J Heinrich Arnold-Freedom from sinful thoughts.pdf

10. Self-SurrenderIF WE BELIEVE that faith is a gift from God, it followsthat for this gift to become ours, we must willinglyreceive it. And we must receive it as it is given –wecannot dictate the path it takes us or the way it mightchange our lives. In short, to receive faith in God, wemust surrender all faith in our own power to bring aboutchange: “His power is made perfect in our weakness”(2 Cor. 12:9).In an ancient text known as The Shepherd, the earlyChristian Hermas uses a vivid parable to show us thenecessity of dismantling our human power. Hedescribes the Kingdom as a great marble templein the process of being built, and each man or woman inthe world as a potential building block. Those blocksthat appear useful are chiseled by the masterstonemason, and if they fit, they are used. Those that donot must be discarded. To me, the picture has a simple