The Plumbline

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. (Romans 12:2) But let God... We allow a lot of things to influence our thought life, don't we? The more we let in, the more difficult it becomes to actually 'filter through' all that muddle. The moment we realize we have been entertaining way too much of this world's philosophy is the moment we begin to ask God to put his Holy Spirit in 'filter mode' over our thoughts. The transformation God desires for each of us begins with a changing of the guard over our minds. There is nothing more transformative than the power of God's Spirit at work in our thoughts. When we allow his Spirit to guide (control) what comes into our minds, the more our actions will be transformed by the thoughts he actually wants us to dwell upon.  God's will isn't some...

Do you regularly carry some form of identification with you, especially when you leave the house? Most of us have a driver's license, passport, or identification card of some kind. Some have that information in their smartphone, while others carry a wallet full of identifying information. Is it that tiny card you carry that really identifies who you are? Is it possible to carry a bit of 'false identification' with us? Yes, there are many people who produce such 'false IDs' because there is both a demand for them and a profit to be made. It is possible we may be carrying some sort of 'false identification' with us apart from those cards that could be carried in our wallets. That 'false ID' is the one we carry along with us because we feel shame for our past - identifying with our failures and not the hope we are given in Christ Jesus. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ag...