If you have found yourself asking this question, you are not alone. Many people have an authentic longing to serve God, but they are not quite sure how. They find themselves struggling in sin and failing to do what is correct multiple times. With temptation all around us, many wonder if they can maintain a committed Christian lifestyle in the Lord?
Walking upright is a genuine desire that every real believer in Christ has. Commanded in scripture to keep the commandments of God, we strive to obey our God with love and sincerity. Deep down in the innermost being of a true believer in Christ is a longing to do what is right. But when temptations arise from our flesh when the individual is not fully submitted to God, sin is committed.
I want to share some helpful tips to consider for deliverance so that you may live a life of victory over sin. Faith is necessary to walk with God. With faith in God and these few tips, I hope that you’re inspired to recommit to God.
Having a made-up mind is vital in our walk with Christ and first on the list. We cannot effectively live for Jesus without being willing to let go of anything or anyone that would compromise our relationship with Him. A made-up mind is so essential that Jesus said in Luke 14:26-27 (KJV),
If any man come to me and hate not his father, mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannont be my disciple.
Jesus is not telling us to hate these things by way of disgust. But they are not to be loved more or preferred more than Him. We have to keep in mind that when Jesus bids us come to Him, we are going to an actual Person. We believe in His doctrines and truths and are choosing to live life His way. There should not be anything that we are unable to part with when it comes to obeying God. Our minds have to be made up to do what He tells us to do, even in the face of trials, temptations, and oppositions.
Outside of being determined to live for Christ, we must trust His Words and believe His promises. In Luke 9:35 (KJV), we read,
And there came a voice of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him.
Jesus was on a mountain with three of His disciples. Being transfigured before them, they saw Him in His glory, speaking with Moses and Elias. As Moses and Elias departed in a cloud, they heard a voice out of the cloud saying, “this is my beloved Son, hear him.” God spoke out of the cloud and instructed the disciples to hear Jesus’ words. They were to take heed and believe what He teaches them, trusting that the words of Jesus are truths.
We, as followers of Christ, have to do the same thing. We have to be freed from any doubt and have confidence in all that Jesus tells us in His Word. That includes the promises, warnings, commandments, all of it. With a trust that it is for our betterment, He will do everything He said He would do. We cannot go forward with our ideas about the Word of God, thinking that we are right because it feels right to us. There has to be a point of submission, cleaving, and believing all that God’s Word says in the way He says it.
The last tip I would like to leave you with is knowing that God is for you. Many of us have fallen for the lies of the enemy, thinking that God is disappointed with us, which couldn’t be further from the truth. Romans 5:8 (KJV) reads,
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
As believers, we have to know that God is on our side. He commended His love towards us over two thousand years ago so that we may have a way of salvation through Christ. God saw us as worth sending His Son to die for us. We mean something to God and have to know that through Jesus, we have consolation, peace, and the forgiveness of sin. God does not want us to live defeated lives in living for Him. He has provided us with the ability to do what is right through His Holy Spirit and He will back us up as we stand on His Word in obedience to Him.
Believe in the Son of God. Take His words to heart. Know that every promise of victory, forgiveness, and power belongs to you. Choose to refuse the ways of this world and cleave to the ways of God. Allow your mind to be renewed and transformed by the Word of God.
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Romans 12:2 (KJV)
Keep your mind on the things of God and believe the promises of deliverance in God’s Word. Meditate on His Word and fill your mind with spiritual things, that you may be strengthened and grow in faith. Repent, start your first works over again if you have to. Do it this time with a determination to go all the way by the grace and Word of God.
Let us pray: Heavenly Father, I pray that You bless the hearts of Your people and allow Your Word to penetrate our hearts. Give us the proper understanding of what it means to walk upright before You and lead us in the ways of righteousness. Help us live lives that are pleasing unto You and not conformed to the practices of this world. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
