Determination

• Be determined to obey God-(1 Samuel 7: 3)- Then Samuel said to all the people of Israel, "If you are really serious about wanting to return to the LORD, get rid of your foreign gods and your images of Ashtoreth.  Determine to obey only the LORD; then he will rescue you from the Philistines."  In this verse, we see clearly that if we are determined to obey God, we are immediately blessed by God and are given victory over whatever obstacles we are facing.  We can see immediately that the LORD will rescue them from the Philistines that were against them.  We know that when God gives an order, and that order is followed; we will reap the blessings to come from one single act of obedience.  This is proof that God's word is not only true, but literally results in blessings and victory.
• Determine not to sin (Job 31: 1)-I made a covenant with my eyes not to look with lust upon a young woman.  When we are determined not to sin, we make a commitment to the Lord, within our hearts not to subject ourselves to temptation of any kind.  If we see there is danger of falling into sin, we steer away from that danger; we avoid that temptation so that we do not fall into sin.  When we see something that could lead us into temptation, rather than continue to stare at it; and lust after it, we change our focus onto the task at hand, or go somewhere else or do something else to avoid that sin.  This is how we exercise our determination not to sin against God.  When we do this, we become stronger, and are blessed.
• Determine to stand firm (Isaiah 7: 9)-"Israel is no stronger than its capital, Samaria.  And Samaria is no stronger than its king, Pekah son of Remaliah.  You do not believe me?  If you want me to protect you, learn to believe what I say."  What the LORD is trying to say to the Church in this verse is that we must be determined to stand firm in Christ.  If we want to stand firm, we must learn to believe in the word of the Lord.  We must believe in what He says.  When we believe in the Lord's word, we act in a certain way (in obedience to His commands), and our actions or decisions result in blessings and victory in all areas of our lives through our Lord Jesus Christ.  
• God helps us be determined (Isaiah 50: 7)-Because the Sovereign LORD helps me, I will not be dismayed.  Therefore, I have set my face like a stone, determined to do His will.  And I know that I will triumph.  We know in this verse that God helps us to be determined to accomplish any task He sets us to do.  He makes a promise to His Servants that He will be our guide, protect us, and provide for us.  We need not be concerned or fearful, in anything because we are confident that He will give us what we need.  He will give us strength to complete the journey ahead of us.  
• Determine to follow Christ (Mark 8: 34-38)-Then He called His disciples and the crowds to come over and listen.  "If any of you wants to be my follower," He told them, "you must put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross, and follow me.  If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it.  And how do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul in the process?  Is anything worth more than your soul?  If a person is ashamed of me and my message in these adulterous and sinful days, I, the Son of Man, will be ashamed of that person when I return in the glory of my Father with the holy angels."  In these four powerful verses, we see that the LORD calls His disciples, (us), and tells us that if any of us want to be his followers, we must put aside all selfish ambition.  The Christian life is a selfless life we live.  We cannot be only thinking of ourselves.  We must shoulder our cross, (life's heavy burdens), and follow Him.  If we are selfish, and try to keep our lives for ourselves, (try to only live for and accomplish victory only for ourselves), we will lose it.  (Meaning we could die in our walk of faith-become faint in it, and give up-resulting in corporal death).  And how can we benefit by gaining the whole world-(fame and fortune) but lose our souls in the process?  (Meaning we could lose our salvation by not obeying God's commands to live for Him and do as He asks).  He asks a rhetorical question to the believers to help them to understand that if they do not live for Him, they are living selfishly, or for themselves, which is another form of idolatry.  He wants us to understand that nothing is more important than our souls and where they will end up.  He clearly says that if any of us are ashamed of Him in these bad days, He will be ashamed of us on judgement day.  So we must be determined to follow Him.  And if we do not have sufficient determination to follow Christ, we should be praying to God, and asking him to give us the determination we need to go forward.

I hope this study is helpful in understanding the importance of determination.  Determination is very necessary to walk in faith with Christ.  It is one of the most difficult walks in life, but, here we see with Christ it is not impossible.  For I can do everything with the help of Christ who gives me the strength I need.  Philippians 4: 13.  Until the next study, God bless you!