OVERCOMING LITTLE FOXES (A must read...) By Dr. Bertist Rouse Dear Loved Ones, “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh” (Ga.5:16; see also Ro.8:4, 14). Each of these Scriptures talk about walking after or in the spirit versus walking in the flesh. If we will walk after the spirit of God we will produce good fruit. Galatians 5:22-23 tells us that “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, temperance, and faith or faithfulness.” We have all eaten fruit that was green and hard, having a poor or bitter taste. But God wants us to produce fruit that is mature and that will be of benefit to our fellow man. John 15:1 says that “I am the true vine, and my father is the husbandman.” God the father gives oversight to the work of the vineyard, in order that there may be mature fruit produced. The possibility of fruit also means that there is a possibility of contamination or corruption. The reason for the manifestation of corruption in the fruit comes about from several possibilities: it may come out of insecurity, pride, self, or not knowing who we are in Christ, as well as other possibilities. Dr. Bertist Rouse called these “little foxes.” Song of Solomon 2:15 “Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes that are ruining our vineyard, while our vineyards are in blossom.” Notice that it says the little foxes affect the vineyard before the fruit is ever produced. These little foxes are the things in life that will cause our fruit to have a bitter taste or be green and hard and not fit for consumption. Following are 20 little foxes we should be on the lookout for. You Do Not Have To Tell Everything You Know Prov. 10:19 In a multitude of words transgression is not lacking. Ps. 19:14 “ Let the words of my mouth and meditation of my heart, be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my rock, and my redeemer.” For most people, when they talk a lot, the longer they talk the more they sin. You Do Not Have To Demand Your Rights Luke 9:23, 24 Jesus said, “If any man come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whosoever will save his life will lose it; but whosever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.” Usually when we demand our rights, we step on the rights of others. It is important to distinguish between ‘rights and responsibilities.’ You Do Not Have To Avenge Yourself Hebrews 10:30 “Vengeance belongeth unto Me, I will recompense, saith the Lord.” To avenge self is Vigilante Christianity. You Do Not Have To Be Important Luke 8:14 “Everyone who makes himself great will be humbled.” We are not celebrities, we are servants. You Do Not Have To Play The Grandstands Matt. 6:1 “ Beware of doing your good deeds conspicuously to catch men’s eyes or you will miss the reward of your Heavenly Father. So, when you do good to other people, don’t hire a trumpeter to go in front of you- like those play actors in the synagogues and streets who make sure that men admire them. Believe Me they have all the reward they are going to get.” Be sure to minister and not perform or entertain. Abraham Lincoln said, “You may fool some of the people all the time, and all the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.” (And I might add, you cannot fool God at any time. You Do Not Have To Prove Yourself 2 Timothy 2:15 “Study to show thyself approved UNTO GOD, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” The big question is, “Why are we so often determined to prove ourselves right?” You Do Not Have To Tell A More Exciting Story Matt. 6:7 Who use vain repetitions,…who “think they shall be heard for their much speaking.” It is absolutely unnecessary to tell a bigger fish story! When we witness for Jesus, we are personal representatives of Him, not substitutes for Him. You Do Not Have To Get Offended Matt 11:6 “… Blessed (happy, fortunate, and to be envied) is he who takes no offense at Me and finds no cause for stumbling in and through Me and is not hindered from seeing the Truth.” Prov. 18:19 A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city. Being offended is to make a choice. Love does not even recognize that it has been offended ( 1Corinthians 13). You Do Not Have To Win The Argument “We are not to be ignorant of Satan’s devises” (2Cor 2:11) We are not in a contest, we are following a way of life and should never feel compelled to be competitive. You Do Not Have To Keep Up With The Jones’ Luke 12:15 “For a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of things which he posesseth.” Our eternal destiny is not weighed in the balances of the things we possess, You Do Not Have To Worry Matt 6:33, 34 “…Seek (aim at and strive after) first of all His Kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right), and then all these things taken together will be given you besides. So do not worry or be anxious about tomorrow for tomorrow will have worries and anxieties of its own. Sufficient for each day is its own trouble.” Phil 4:6 “Do not fret or have any anxiety about anything, but in every circumstance and in everything, by prayer and petition (definite requests), with thanksgiving, continue to make your wants known to God.” Worry is the opposite of faith. Worry is faith in what the devil can do, while faith is belief in what God can do. You Do Not Have To Be Concerned About Who Gets The Credit Prov 27:2 Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth; a stranger, and not thine own lips. Saul set himself up a monument. No great man sets up his own monument, and often does not even understand that he is great. You Do Not Have To Be Irresponsible Phil 2:12 “My dear friends, as you have always obeyed me- and that not only when I was with you- now, even more in my absence, complete the salvation that God has given you with a proper sense of awe and responsibility.” We can all become a more responsible, capable, honorable, and reliable Christian by exerting an extra special amount of will power. God will supply an extra special amount of His grace. We have no excuse, we can be honorable in everything we do! You Do Not Have To Broadcast Your Success Prov 25:27 For men to search their own glory is not glory. Our reputation has preceded and introduced us. Whether real or imagined, the anointing speaks for itself, we will not have to toot our own horn. When we are ‘tooting our own horn,’ we are submitting a counterfeit, distorted and perverted report. You Do Not Have To Protect Your Reputation Phil 2:7 “[Jesus] Made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant… “ Protecting and promoting our reputation can keep us from being the servant we need to be. It can also keep us from being as humble and obedient as we should be. You Do Not Have To Be Entertained Isaiah 26: You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind (both its inclination and its character) is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes in you. The true Christian life is NOT boring! The world cannot even begin to compete. You Do Not Have To Be ‘Super-Spiritual’ Prov 25:14 Like clouds and wind without rain is a man who boasts of his gifts falsely. If we have the ‘goods’, it will be evident to others and we won’t have to take the focus off of Jesus. Super spiritual people take the focus off of Christ and draw attention to self. You Do Not Have To Push Your Agenda John 9:4 “I must work the works of Him that sent Me, while it is day; the night cometh, when no man can work.” John 5:30 “I can of mine own self do nothing. As I hear, I judge, and My judgement is just, because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father that sent Me.” The only agenda we should have is that of the Father- His kingdom come, His will be done. You Do Not Have To Be A Chronic Complainer Phil 2:14 “Do all things without grumbling and faultfinding and complaining [against God] and questioning and doubting [among yourselves]. We should ask God to give us a teachable spirit and He will open our heart to accept and receive His instructions. You Do Not Have To Compromise Your Integrity Psalm 25:21 “ Let integrity and uprightness preserve me; for I wait on Thee.” Prov 20:7 The just man walketh in his integrity. Character is inward; conduct is outward. Our character will produce our conduct and our conduct will reveal our character. (Scriptures quoted have been taken from various translations of the Bible)
Posted on: Thu, 03 Oct 2013 06:13:11 +0000
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