A Circus Elephant's Zero Ego

“For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.”
(2 Peter 1:4)

I once heard that the reason that an adult circus elephant can be held in place by a small stake & piece of rope tied around his leg, without worry of him escaping, is because they defeated his will when he was young. They take a baby elephant place a chain around his leg & fasten it to a very sturdy post, one that the baby elephant could not possibly escape from. As the young elephant grows weary of trying to free himself from his bondage, he loses all hope & just flat out gives up. Before long as he grows older, they can tie a small rope around his leg & attach it to a wooden stake that is driven into the ground. At any time this monster of an animal could easily rip the weak restraints & escape, but in his heart…he does not believe that he can.

When we first accept Christ, God gives us the Holy Spirit to dwell inside us. That Holy Spirit is our new nature, a divine nature. He will help us to live the life that God has set out for us. But so often new Christians get in this rut, believing that they can’t live the way God wants, so they live defeated lives. 

Ever wondered why we see so many people who claim to be Christians, struggling with sin?  I understand that there are many who are simply not saved, they are just Christians by mouth, but there are those who have truly accepted Christ that struggle. They think that they are not as good as someone else, that they can’t live up to God’s standards. But truth be known, they are not “partaking of the divine nature” that God has given them. They are not taking part in that new nature, they are still thinking of themselves as cursed. But we, when we come to Christ are no longer cursed…but we have been crowned…crowned with His righteousness, made new, with a new nature. 

The Bible tells us that a dog will return to his vomit & that a pig, after being cleaned up, will return to the mud…that’s their nature. When we accept Christ, we are no dog or pig. We have a new nature…so take hold of it, let God lead you by His word & prayer time…set aside a time daily to get with him & see that you are new & useful to God. Break Satan’s rope & stake.


Vern