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done that Christ had to be sacri–
ficed.
Man's nature is a mixture of good
and evil potential. Man has negative
and positive capacities. But he is
neither intrinsically good nor in–
trinsically evil by nature. When man
sins he does so by choice. But the
same is true when he does good.
Each person has within himself
the capacity for monumental evil.
As Jesus said: "For from within, out
of the heart of man, come evil
thoughts, fornication, theft, murder,
adultery, coveting, wickedness, de–
ceit, licentiousness, envy, slander,
pride, foolishness. All these
evil
things
come from within,
and they
defile aman" (Mark 7:21-23).
Jesus knows "what is in" man. He
knows that we have the capacity for
enormous evil. He recognizes that
we are but dust. He knows our
frame . He understands that "the
ftesh is weak."
Man Needs Extra Help
Yet Jesus was optimistic about
man's capacity for good. He knew
that with the help of the Holy Spirit,
man is capable of much good. He
promised to send, as a help to man,
the Holy Spirit-in Greek,
paraclete,
meaning literally "a help alongside"
(John 14: 15-17, 26, 16: 13, etc.). This
Spirit would provide Christians with
dynamic power (Acts 1:8) with
which to overcome the negative as–
pects of their nature.
Paul spoke p1ainly of the kind of
fruit that would be borne by the
indwell ing of the Holy Spirit in
Christians: "But the fruit of the
Spirit is !ove, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness. faithfulness,
gentleness, self-control; against such
there is no Jaw" (Gal. 5:22-23).
Man is capable of producing
good fruit. With the help of the
Holy Spirit the sky is the limit. Man
can soar to undreamed-of heights.
He has at his disposal the same
power that created the universe.
Man can, with God's help, realize
his own maximum potential-both
in this life and in the life to come.
No man need be discouraged in the
light of this knowledge! No one
needs to live in a chronic state of
guilt and fear. No one needs to
The
PLAIN TRUTH October-November 1978
adopt a "whipped dog" posture
about life. There is help. There is
hope.
But each individual must assume
the responsibility for himself. Each
must avail himself of the merey,
power and freedom of God. We
must all "work out" our own salva–
tion (Phil. 2: 12). We must take the
initiative in the fa ce of God's calling
and offer. We must generate from
within ourselves the will to reach
out our hands to God in humble
acceptance of His magnificent otfer.
Man-ln the lmage of God
To know God is to know true free–
dom. It means freedom from guilt.
Freedom from self-doubt. Freedom
from chronic discouragement. Free–
doro from a sense of worthlessness.
Man is worth something. Man is
worth so much that God gave His
only begotten Son for him! (John
3: 16.) To God man is the pinnacle
of His creation. He is the ultimate
expression of divine ingenuity. Man
is created in the image of God.
Man, in all of his beautiful sizes,
shapes, skin colors and types, is a
child of God. Man, in two sexes, is
created in the image of God.
For man to realize who and what
he is brings joy beyond expression.
1t
is a leap to new plateaus of hope
and anticipation for the future.
Jt
is to be fulfilled in this life also.
For many "Christianity" is basi–
cally a religion of the afterlife. But
real Christianity is a religion of "the
now"-it is a way of life. It is a way
of tapping into one's potential as a
human being created in the image
of a creative God.
Each individual has unique abili–
ties and talents-some greater and
sorne lesser than other human
beings. We are encouraged to func–
tion "according to our severa! abili–
ties"-that is, to do the best we can
with what we have to do with. As
the writer of Ecclesiastes said,
"Whatever your hand finds to do,
do it with your might" (Eccl. 9: JO).
There is nothing to do in the grave
except to wait unconsciously in dark
oblivion for the resurrection call of
the Creator. Now is the time to act.
Today is the time of your salvation
ifyou have been called ofGod. This
is your moment in the sun, your
time of personal fulfillment.
It
is a time of hope and joy. It is a
time to revel in your talents and
abilities. Time to use them fully in
order to glorify God.
lt
is a time to
use the power of the Holy Spirit to
fight against the unseen forces of
evil and to gain the victory over the
negative side ofyour own nature.
lt
is a time of forgiveness, a time
of personal peace with God. You
have been reconciled if you have
been forgiven. You have been
granted the priceless gift of guilt–
lessness. There is nothing to be sad
and upset about. As the writer of
Hebrews said: "Therefore lift your
drooping hands and strengthen your
weak knees, and make straight
paths for your feet ... " (Heb.
12: 12-13).
You, as a created child of God,
have incredible potential- both in
this life and that which is to come.
Once you are within the sphere of
God's influence, and led by the
power of His Holy Spirit, you can
begin to realize that potentíal. You
can soar to new heights of accom–
plishment. When you come to real–
ize who and what you are in terms
of God's purposes, your life will
take on new and profound meaning.
You will have new direction-a
sense ofvision and destiny.
As a Spirit-led child of God you
will no longer be weighted down
with a back-breaking load of guilt.
You will no Jonger feel a loss of self–
esteem. lnstead you will have a di–
vinely imparted sense of identity.
In Christ you can have your sins
"removed as far as the east is from the
west." You can walk freely in the
bright light ofrevelation and forgive–
ness, knowing that you are sealed
with the Holy Spirit ofpromise.
Then, and only then, will you be–
gin to live up to the incredible po–
tential for which you were born!
o
RECOMMENDED READING
The following booklets will be sent free
of charge upon your request:
Why Were You Born?
The Seven Laws of Success
Just What Do You Mean . .. Conversion?
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you is on the inside front cover.
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