Live Well?

What does it mean to "live well"?

This phrase, "Learn how to live well," is written on the clothes I design, it is the main subject I write about, it is the main theme of my prayers, it fills up the content of my discourses, and when talking with me, you will hear me advise to learn to live well. But what does it actually mean? Where am I getting this phrase from?

I've learned this saying from within the Bible, where it says, "Learn to do well," Isaiah 1:17.

The number one instruction in the Bible is to learn how to do what is “well.” What, then, does it mean to do well? Because the inquiry is into the Bible's opinion of what is "well," we ought to silence our thoughts on what we believe is "well."

If I wanted to live well, I'm sure I could think of ways; whether they are injurious or not, because they come from the natural part of my being, who cares; of living well, but our inquiry, because we are honest enough to say with Paul, "That which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I," Romans 7:15, is in a philosophy greater than the philosophy naturally engraved into the human being. If I wanted to live well, I could never live well. I am not created with knowledge of well-living, which is why we ought, when desiring answers of government from the Bible, to silence our thoughts on what we believe is "well."

We actually do learn what is "well," and the living God does share with us what is "well" through the illustration of His chief apostle suspended between heaven and earth. "Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances," Ephesians 2:15, His minister "hath redeemed us from the curse of the law," Galatians 3:13, teaching that the beginning of "wellness" is understanding that "the strength of sin is the law," 1 Corinthians 15:56.

To do "well" is to do exactly what this illustration is saying. If we would "do well,” we would refrain from what the living God has categorized as "sin" to honor the saying, "Put off concerning the former conversation the old man...and be renewed in the spirit of your mind," Ephesians 4:22,23.

Paul is citing the fact behind that illustration. What was crucified was an "old man" or an "old" devotional philosophy encouraging an "old" devotional manner. This "old" devotional philosophy is as Paul says, a religious conversation governed by "sin," which "sin" the living God terms, "The law." This "law" is the general code behind Moses' religious philosophy, which code teaches that justification and righteousness comes from doing what is handwritten by theologians. The crucifixion of that body means the annihilation of this religious philosophy, and when consenting to let the conversation die to this religious code of service, we are actually consenting to do what is, according to the Bible's philosophy, "well."

Why is "wellness" achieved when dying to the religious philosophy the living God has crucified, abolished, and abandoned? The answer is because personal and devotional health appears when the experience of the conversation’s conscience isn’t dictated by forces outside of that conscience’s will, even like as it says, "Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God," Romans 12:2.

What is actually happening when the devotional mind is actually being renewed? When the conversation is proving the living God’s words and its character is transforming into the devotional character of those words, what is actually happening? What is happening is, according to the living God, "wellness." Why is the renewing and transformation of the conversation's conscience considered to be the number one sign of "wellness"? The answer is found in the saying, "Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth," 1 Timothy 2:4.

Paul has, in one verse, explained the reality of "salvation," that it occurs when "knowledge" of the living God’s science is entered in to. If we are then correctly tracking the definition of "wellness," we are learning that the Bible's philosophy pronounces the conversation to be "healthy" when passing away from what it categorizes as "sin."

To the Bible, "sin" is defined as the philosophy of the religious law, which philosophy states that the person is perfect, intelligent, and divinely favored through executing what is handwritten or traditionally believed. Crucifying such a philosophy, the living God has removed this doctrine from His religious character, letting every willing mind know that "through knowledge shall the just be delivered," Proverbs 11:9. The regeneration of the conversation's conscience from that slain and abolished religious philosophy is the true definition of "salvation," which is why it is the living God's will that our faith's mind understands the knowledge or science of His mind's intention, because when enlightened, and when turning away from what is annihilated, the personal and devotional self will be "well."

So what does all this mean? How does any of this answer the question of "living well"?

To "live well" is to first begin to edify the devotional mind away from what is crucified. When "living well," our mind is actually drawing nearer to the living God's words without the support of popular theology and pre-conceived nations. When "living well," our faith's mind, as it proves the Bible's philosophy, is coming into contact with facts regenerating its understanding on the living God's religious character, and when this takes place, our devotional mind will begin to counsel our natural mind, giving to us the equilibrium we need to live in a state for developing peace.

So, what does it mean to "live well"? It means to become informed on what the living God has categorized as "sin," to refrain from it. Refraining from what is categorized as "sin," we embrace "wellness" by understanding the living God's logic behind categorizing the code behind Moses' religious philosophy as "sin." This understanding will lead to the beginning of learning how to live "well," becoming more inwardly whole through the knowledge we gain when learning of and proving the Bible's philosophy.

The goal of the Bible’s philosophy is for its words to reach our natural mind, to edify it. When refraining from what is spiritually inherited and self-cultivated, the exercising of our mind on the Bible’s words, and on our experience with those words, will give us good knowledge on how to live “well.” This is the entire point. We are to be rational beings living not according to our natural mind, but to the edified mind that is within. Honoring the devotional philosophy the living God calls “well” is the beginning of our inward wellness, which philosophy we need if we should ever think to reach our highest individual potential.

A Reason To Love

Why exercise love?

If the true synonym and definition of "love" is "edification"; as it says, comparing two verses revealing this definition, "Ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another," 1 Thessalonians 4:9, and, "Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another," 1 Thessalonians 5:11; what benefit is gained when exercising love?

When we love, when we edify, we transcend our present level of consciousness to enter into a higher level of personal and environmental awareness. When we edify, we are refreshing another mind. When we edify, we are allowing that other mind to form connections that it never knew existed. To edify is to then correctly comfort, and when "comforting," we demonstrate the living God's devotional character, who says, "I, even I, am he that comforteth you," Isaiah 51:12. 

What does it mean to "comfort"? We find the definition of the word, "Comfort," in the saying, "Ye may all prophesy one by one, that all may learn, and all may be comforted," 1 Corinthians 14:31.

If "comforted" by the living God, one is learning from the living God. If learning from the living God, one is being edified by the living God. If edified by the living God, then one is actually loved by the living God. This is why it says of one taught by the living God’s wisdom, "The LORD hath loved him," Isaiah 48:14, and, "I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee," Revelation 3:9.

When the living God "loves," or "edifies," our conversation's conscience actually undergoes a transition. That transition is from depending on the pen and judgment of theologians to living by the devotional knowledge engraved upon the heart of the mind when learning of and proving the Bible's words. 

The intention behind the Bible's wisdom is to cut the conversation off from the theories of trained experts on religion to revive the conversation through "comfort," which is why it says, "I, even I, am he that comforteth you: who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the son of man which shall be made as grass; and forgettest the LORD thy maker"? Isaiah 51:12

The point is to understand that the devotional mind has a Creator, that by learning of our personal faith’s Creator, we may retain principles of wellbeing to know that our human being is blessed by the same Creator. In this sense, the "love," "comfort," or "edification" of the living God is for advancing our level of personal and devotional consciousness, and when "loving," we are to do the same for another mind. 

We may now know why it says, "Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren." 1 John 3:16

The living God laid down His "life" for our conversation's conscience. What is this "life" that was offered? Since it says, "Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee," Psalm 63:3, we may know that the "life" offered is the "lovingkindness" offered. 

What is the living God's "lovingkindness"? It says, "Let thy lovingkindness and thy truth continually preserve me," Psalm 40:11, and, "Thy lovingkindness is before mine eyes: and I have walked in thy truth," Psalm 26:3, and, "Quicken me after thy lovingkindness; so shall I keep the testimony of thy mouth," Psalm 119:88, and, "O continue thy lovingkindness unto them that know thee; and thy righteousness to the upright in heart," Psalm 36:10. 

We learn, from these verses, that the living God's "lovingkindness" is actually His "righteousness." This "righteousness" is His "truth," which "truth" is the "word" or "testimony" of His mouth, and we know how it says, “Out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding,” Proverbs 2:6. This makes perfect sense, seeing as how it says, "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth," John 17:17, and, “By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many,” Isaiah 53:11.

Now, if it is written, "The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us," John 1:14, it is fair to conclude that the testimony of the living God's mouth found its self perfectly demonstrated by one peculiar mind. This demonstrated “knowledge,” “understanding,” or "testimony" is, in all actuality, what was laid down or offered for our personal and devotional wellbeing. When we therefore read, "Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances," Ephesians 2:15, we are actually reading about what was annihilated or cut off from that "testimony," even a religious philosophy encouraging sanctity through the pen of ancient and modern theologians, or “through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men,” Colossians 2:8, and not through “the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding,” Colossians 1:9. 

As the living God put His testimony of revival and reform into the universe for the edification of any and every willing mind, so too it is our responsibility to mimic His act, placing into our age that testimony we have received when sincerely learning of and proving the science of His mouth. The character of His testimony is a philosophy of advancing personal and devotional consciousness, making it right to "love" as we have first been "loved." There is then a very great need to "love," and we should not shy away from its course of learning, because we are all born to assist another in their advancing personal and devotional awareness, even like as the living God, though the wisdom of His "lovingkindness," intends to do for our inward person.  

Wait

"Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD." Psalm 27:14

We, as student-patients of the living God's voice, have one assignment, and that is to wait on His voice. 

What kind of "waiting" are we talking about? 

Is this "waiting" the kind of waiting we do when in a line at a bank, or when waiting in line for food?

In this kind of waiting, we patiently stand in a line awaiting our turn to be served, and to help the time go by, we may lend our ear to conversations around us, we may take out our phone for amusement, or we may simply wander off in thought. 

If the Bible is referencing this kind of lethargic waiting, then what are we waiting for?

Maybe we wait for some supernatural demonstration to confirm that God sees us.

Maybe we wait for some thing to occur in life to help us confirm some belief we have in God, to the end we may take courage in that belief, to never let it go.

If the Bible is counseling its student to simply stand idle, waiting for some thing to somehow occur for strengthening some ideal or image we have of God, then what good is His Bible and that Spirit forwarding it? Let us then (I say sarcastically) stand and wait for the revelation of our image of God to appear and confess to us a reason to believe on whatever we believe on.

But I should not think that the mind of the Bible would have its student inactive, and this I know because "the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed," 1 Samuel 2:3. 

The "waiting" referenced by the living God is no inactive service, like as we wait for food to cook in an oven or in a microwave; this is contrary to His religious character.

The "waiting" spoken of should rather be thought of as a waiter waiting on a table.

Is a waiter lazy? Is a waitress inactive? Is a waiter idle? A waiter serves the individual they wait on, and when it comes to the living God's voice, we ought to also carry our conversation as the waiter, that is, "rightly dividing the word of truth," 2 Timothy 2:15. 

There is no physical God to wait on; there is no natural man to worship; there is no literal temple to go in to; how then do we wait on the living God? Paul just told us, saying, "Rightly dividing the word of truth," 2 Timothy 2:15, which means, "Study to shew thyself approved unto God," 2 Timothy 2:15. 

Our assignment is to match the same spiritual wisdom of the Bible's mind; nothing matters but that our conversation's face dawns the same face as the living God's religious character. Our conversation learns "the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding," Colossians 1:9, by waiting on His words, for by examining and proving His words, we wait on them. Herein is the reason why we are counseled, "Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God," Romans 12:2. 

Paul plainly tells us the definition of "waiting," and of what kind of waiting we are to do, that it is a type of waiting wherein the mind of our faith's confidence is transformed. This transformation is what is meant in the saying, "Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart," Psalm 27:14. 

By mentally and actively waiting on His words, our heart is to receive strength, making it well for us to know that "wisdom strengtheneth," Ecclesiastes 7:19. This is the logic behind "waiting" on His voice, even the hope of better comprehending His voice to capture wisdom to live by.

The living God's religious character is not inactive or without intelligence; an unintelligent and inactive religion is one that encourages the use of idols, doctrines, ceremonies, and religious laws to bless the conversation. But the living God's course of learning is higher than what we know and accept. There are therefore two types of "waiting" we may entertain: the first is found in meditating on His words to edify our faith's heart and mind; the second is on aimlessly resting on the philosophical opinion of religious speculation to satisfy the self-cultivated or inherited belief we have of God. To the one, we improve our faith's cognition by investigating and proving His voice; to the other we weaken our faith's cognition "through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men," Colossians 2:8; the course that we choose is ours to make. 

But for us who actually care to have our heart lifted, refreshed, and edified on heavenly things, it is well for us to say, "I will meditate in thy precepts, and have respect unto thy ways," Psalm 129:15. 

We chase the living God's religion; not the religion of pastor so and so, of mother and father, or of self's spiritual ideal. We give our confidence to the Bible's wisdom not to compare it with what we believe, or to pick and choose what of it makes sense to what we believe, but to edify what we think we know, to the end we may have a sober spiritual understanding kindly directing who we are, and who we care to be. If we will open this book, and if we will bless the understanding of this book's wisdom, we ought to therefore exercise humility, willingly casting self into the dust that His words may regenerate it. 

We have no physical realm or dimension to enter in to, therefore it takes very great humility to quiet the mind for actually acknowledging His words. In this age of self-gratification and misinformation, it is easy, because we do not quickly grasp Scripture's language, to lend our energy to the spiritual opinion of others, but this is not what the living God counsels us to do. Every individual conversation is to wait on His voice for a personal revelation of His face, and although we all think differently, and although we all possess our own essence of being, His face remains the same; there is no misinterpreting His voice if we are diligently and patiently examining His words. 

Our realm and dimension for drawing nearer to His name is mental and spiritual; the only way to commune with this wisdom is through edifying the heart of our inward person. As we, according to how we are counseled by His wisdom, wait on His voice, we will receive knowledge of His will for our heart and mind, by an experimental faith, to chase the hope of His intention, strengthening who are for others who may not yet know who they are. And this is the blessing behind waiting on His voice, for we do not simply wait on His understanding for self's good, but it says, "Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification," Romans 15:2. 

We therefore ought to wait on His voice, because wisdom is the end of His understanding's higher education, and wisdom is meant to be shared. We fail as human beings, and as stewards of the living God's religious character, because we have no benevolent wisdom revealing the living God's will and intention. But counsel is given to change how we operate: "Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD," Psalm 27:14, we are instructed. 

Let us then patiently wait on the revelation of the living God's new covenant science. We have breath in our lungs to improve our personal and devotional character, and to help us in this task, "we have received a commandment from the Father," 2 John 1:4. Therefore "be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves," James 1:22. "Gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ," 1 Peter 1:13.