This past Sunday I had the privilege of preaching at my home Corps, the Mt. Greenwood / Blue Island Corps. That same Sunday we began a new series on Come Join Our Army. Using the Orders and Regulations for Soldiers of the Salvation Army (a.k.a. called Chosen to be a Soldier), we’re going to break down what it means to be a soldier; what one believes, what’s expected of them, etc.
I got to preach on chapter four of the O&R: Maintaining Contact with the Life Giver. It explains five different ways that can help us stay in constant relationship with Jesus: prayer, Bible study, walking by faith, witnessing and walking in the light.
1 John 1 says:
5This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. 7But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all[b] sin. 8If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.
William Booth suggested that one way in which we can figure out if we are walking in the light is to do a self examination once a week.
His basis was 2 Corinthians 13:5: Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. The chapter then gives specific questions you should ask yourself:
– Am I habitually guilty of any known sin? Do I practice or allow myself in any thought, word or deed which I know to be wrong?
– Are my thoughts and feelings such as I should not be ashamed to hear published before God?
– Does the influence of the world cause me to do or say things that are unlike Christ?
– Do my tempers cause me to act, or feel, or say things that I see afterward are contrary to that love which I ought to bear always to those about me?
– Am I doing all in my power for the salvation of sinners? Do I feel concern about their danger, and pray and work for their salvation as if they were my children?
– Am I fulfilling the vows I have made to God in my acts of consecration, or at the penitent form (altar)?
– Am I conscious of any pride or haughtiness in my manner or bearing?
– Do I conform to the fashions and customs of the world, or do I show that I despise them?
– When did I last read my Bible? Did I put it into practice?
– When was the last time I met with God, simply to be with him?
Take some time to ask yourself these questions. Don’t rush through them just to check them off either. Pick a few that really strike you, and then go through them sincerely.