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Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Best Dressed

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But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts. —Romans 13:14

Most of us pay at least some attention to the way we look, and there is nothing wrong with that. But have you ever noticed how some people, instead of wearing an outfit, their outfit is wearing them? We don’t want attire like that. When we put on our clothes, we expect them to do what we do, to go where we go.

That is the idea of Romans 13:14, which tells us to “put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.” This refers to a practical, day-by-day repetition of putting on of Christ. We embrace Him again and again.

To put on the Lord Jesus Christ is to have him be a part of everything we do. He goes with us where we go. He is a part of our decision-making process. He is Lord every day of our lives. He is not only our Sunday Jesus, but He is our Monday Jesus, our Tuesday Jesus, our Wednesday Jesus, and our Thursday, Friday, and Saturday Jesus.

He is Lord when we go to church. He is Lord when we go to the movies. He is Lord when we go out to dinner. He is Lord when we go to work. He is Lord when we go on vacation. He is Lord of all. And if He is not Lord of all, then He is not Lord at all.

I like the J. B. Phillips paraphrase of this verse: “Let us be Christ’s men from head to foot, and give no chances to the flesh to have its fling.”

Putting on the Lord Jesus Christ—that is what we need to focus on. Let’s focus our energies on becoming like Jesus.

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Are You Awake?

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This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. —Romans 13:11

Have you ever had someone call you very late at night or very early in the morning? You answer the phone, and the voice on the other end says, “Did I wake you?”

What do we always say? “No.”

Why are we so reluctant to admit we were sleeping? Why do we always want to deny it?

The apostle Paul wrote, “Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living” (Romans 13:11–12).

The J. B. Phillips paraphrase states it this way: “Why all this stress on behavior? Because, as I think you have realized, the present time is of the highest importance—it is time to wake up to reality. Every day brings God’s salvation nearer. The night is nearly over, the day has almost dawned. Let us therefore fling away the things that men do in the dark, let us arm ourselves for the fight of the day!”

“The present time” this verse is referring to is the Lord’s return. Paul wasn’t addressing his words to nonbelievers; he was addressing Christians. He was addressing his remarks to genuine believers whose spiritual lethargy and laziness made them appear and act as though they had no spiritual lives.

We, too, can get a little lazy and a little lethargic. Maybe we have been taking in the Word of God without an outlet for what God is teaching us in our lives, and as a result, we are actually falling asleep in the light. We are resting on our laurels and living in our past. We need to wake up. The coming of the Lord is near.