Are You in An Entanglement With Christ?

Scripture: I Kings 8:61 -  Let your heart therefore be wholly devoted to the Lord our God, to walk in His statutes and to keep His commandments, as at this day.

How is your relationship with Christ? Are you in a committed relationship with your Lord and Savior or are you in an entanglement with Him? Have you decided to be with Christ because it is convenient for you, at this time? Have you decided that Jesus is a good catch - for the moment? Is your relationship with Christ one of opportunity or are you fully committed to Him?

Understand that an entanglement is a complicated relationship; it is one that you happened to find yourself in but don’t plan to be in forever. To be entangled means to be caught up or twisted up in something and that something is usually not good. When Jephthah went to fight the Ammonites, he described it as being entangled in controversy or at great strife with. Proverbs 5:22, talks about a wicked man being entangled in the ropes of his own sin. Entanglements are not positive, and God does not want to share us with others. We should have no other gods before Him.

God expects us to be fully committed to Him as He is to us. He does not expect to be in an affair with us, sharing us with other suitors. He expects us to be in a marriage where we are fully devoted to Him and only Him. However, some are just in for what they can get. As long as the getting is good then the relationship is good. Furthermore, when things don’t go our way, some are ready to throw in the towel. Some prefer to go back to the life they had forgetting the mess they were in before Christ came into their lives. There is no relationship better than the relationship with Christ. God expects us to:

•           Trust Him with all our heart (Proverbs 3:5-8)
•           Love Him with all our heart (Matthew 22:31)
•           Have faith in Him (Hebrews 11:6)
•           Believe He is real (Hebrews 11:6)
•           Know that He will reward those who seek Him (Hebrews 11:6)
•           Listen to Him (John 10:27)
•           Learn from Him (Psalms 143:10)
•           Exalt Him (Psalms 34:1)
•           Seek Him (Matthew 6:33)
•           Be crucified with Him (Galatians 2:20)
•           Love Him above everyone else (Luke 14:26-27)
•           Not be ashamed of Him (Romans 1:16)
•           Talk about Him to others (Matthew 28:19)
•           Be devoted only to Him (Luke 16:13)

The relationship with God is not a complicated one. It’s not one that has to be hidden. His expectations are clear. The benefits of being exclusive to Him are clear. The relationship with God is not intended to be an entanglement, an embarrassment, a predicament, or feel like a trap. It is not one-sided. God was committed to us well before we were committed to him. God’s commitment to us is written out in His word His love for us cannot be denied.

•           God cares for us (Jeremiah 29:11)
•           God has a plan for us (1Peter 2:9)
•           God created us to succeed (Ephesians 2:10)
•           God is with us always (Joshua 1:19)
•           God will not forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:8)
•           God’s love can’t be taken away (Romans 8:38-39)
•           God has prepared a place for us to be with Him always (John 14:2-3)
•           God has sacrificed greatly to save us. His love knows no bounds, it is unlimited (John
             3:16, Romans 5:8, 2 Corinthians 5:21)

Prayer: Father, God, I thank You for showing me what true love is. I thank You for choosing me, loving me, caring for me, protecting me, and being true to me. Lord, search my heart and remove those things that cause me to be unfaithful to you so I can be fully committed to You. Thank You for reminding me that our relationship is not an entanglement, it is not complicated because it is a full commitment for both parties. My life is a mess when I cheat on You, but yet You take me back and clean me up. Lord, thank You for second, third, fourth…infinity chances to get it right. Thank You, for loving me so much that You sacrificed Your only begotten Son so I could live and live more abundantly. In the matchless name of Jesus, I pray, Amen.

(by Pat Towns)