Forever Hidden with Christ in God
Even though you are in this world, your spirit is joined to God forever. You were dead in your sin but now you are alive in Christ. This is your true spiritual identity. In this sermon, I walk you through several passages to help you rest in the power of your union with God.
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“For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
Even though you are in this world, your spirit is joined to God forever. You were dead in your sin but now you are alive in Christ. This is your true spiritual identity. In this sermon, I walk you through several passages to help you rest in the power of your union with God.
Colossians 2:11 In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. 13 And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.
While you were dead in your sins, Christ dove into your death when God made him to be sin on the cross. Once Christ became like you, he overcame sin, death, hell, and the grave. He then rose from the dead.
Ephesians 3:12 In Him and through faith in Him we may enter God’s presence with boldness and confidence.
Philippians 3:20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,
Because you are in the presence of God perpetually, and your true home is Heaven, you have all the blessings of your citizenship already in you. God gave you everything he could give you when he placed his spirit in you.
Ephesians 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms.
God is ever seeking to establish his blessings in your life. Not just so you can be blessed, but so he can use you to be a blessing to the nations of the earth. This is the fulfillment of his original promise to Abraham, to have a family to bless that would be a blessing to the nations of the earth.
Ephesians 1:7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace 8 that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 And He has made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ 10 as a plan for the fullness of time, to bring all things in heaven and on earth together in Christ.
Once you know who you are in Christ, and you know that you are safe in him, there’s work to do. God is busy uniting Heaven and Earth. He is doing this by his own will and purposes, but his church on the Earth is one agent he is accomplishing his will through. It’s important that we live aware of our union with Christ in God so we are sensitive to be used by God as he restores all things.
Ephesians 1:18 I ask that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know the hope of His calling, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and the surpassing greatness of His power to us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of His mighty strength, 20 which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God put everything under His feet and made Him head over everything for the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
The church is his body. Paul calls Christ’s church the fullness of him that fills all in all. He is the one that fills all in all, but we are his fullness. In other words, as Christ comes to completion on the earth, his church will grow to look more and more like him.
Ephesians 2:4 But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in our trespasses. It is by grace you have been saved! 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages He might display the surpassing riches of His grace, demonstrated by His kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life.
We are God’s handiwork. We are God’s masterpiece. We are the proof that God is righteous, in that he has made us righteous. The fruit of his labor will not fail until his church looks like the head. And once we do, he will continue to show us his mercy and kindness throughout eternity.
Ephesians 2:21 In Him the whole building is fitted together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in Him you too are being built together into a dwelling place for God in His Spirit.
God is building his church. As you meditate on God, allow his identity to bleed over into who you see yourself to be. You are part of God’s plan. To be redeemed by the blood of Christ and built together with billions of other people into a beautiful family.
Colossians 3:1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. NKJV
What a beautiful promise, one you can not improve upon, or work to receive - you can only enjoy. Rest in him.
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Jesus Is Praying For You In Heaven
Jesus is praying for you. That’s part of his role as the High Priest over the new and better covenant. At this very moment, he is at the Father's right hand, interceding for you. What do you think he is praying?
We know this, he is not perpetually making offerings and sacrifices for your sin as the priests did under the former covenant. He doesn’t have to because his body and blood were a sufficient one-time offering for all sin. You can rest assured that you are forgiven in Christ.
The author of Hebrews does a masterful job of describing Christ’s role as the High Priest of Heaven. Hebrews is multi-faceted, but one of the major themes is the priesthood of Jesus. Walk with me through the passages in Hebrews that cover this fascinating topic. Hebrews covers a lot of ground, I am going to address the passages related to Christ’s new high priest position.
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“Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.”
Jesus is praying for you. That’s part of his role as the High Priest over the new and better covenant. At this very moment, he is at the Father's right hand, interceding for you. What do you think he is praying?
We know this, he is not perpetually making offerings and sacrifices for your sin as the priests did under the former covenant. He doesn’t have to because his body and blood were a sufficient one-time offering for all sin. You can rest assured that you are forgiven in Christ.
The author of Hebrews does a masterful job of describing Christ’s role as the High Priest of Heaven. Hebrews is multi-faceted, but one of the major themes is the priesthood of Jesus. Walk with me through the passages in Hebrews that cover this fascinating topic. Hebrews covers a lot of ground, I am going to address the passages related to Christ’s new high priest position.
Hebrews 2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.
In the very beginning, we see that Christ’s sacrifice is for everyone. He was able to do this because he became like us.
Henrews 2:14 Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. 16 For indeed He does not [h]give aid to angels, but He does [i]give aid to the seed of Abraham. 17 Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.
Christ indeed became like us so we could become like him. He faced everything we might face as humans when he was like us. He met and overcame everything that could keep us in sin, setting us free from death. Because he knows what it’s like to be us, he has empathy for us and knows what we’re going through.
Henrews 4:15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
God is not mad at you, he knows what it’s like to be you, and wants to help you. Jesus became human so he could set you free from your inability to attain righteousness on your own.
Hebrews 5:1 For every high priest taken from among men is appointed for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins. 2 He can have compassion on those who are ignorant and going astray, since he himself is also subject to weakness. 3 Because of this he is required as for the people, so also for himself, to offer sacrifices for sins.
Hebrews 7:11 Therefore, if perfection were through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need was there that another priest should rise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be called according to the order of Aaron? 12 For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law.
Hebrews 7:23 Also there were many priests, because they were prevented by death from continuing. 24 But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood. 25 Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.
This is such a foundational yet profound truth. Jesus’ priesthood is everlasting, so he is able to save ALL who will come to God through him!!
Hebrews 7:26 For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, [harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens; 27 who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. 28 For the law appoints as high priests men who have weakness, but the word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son who has been perfected forever.
Jesus lived a perfect, sinless life which qualified him to be our spotless sacrificial lamb.
Notice how this next passage starts, he says THIS IS THE MAIN POINT. The fact that we have a new high priest.
Hebrews 8:1 Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, 2 Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man. 3 For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices. Therefore it is necessary that this One also have something to offer. 4 For if He were on earth, He would not be a priest, since there are priests who offer the gifts according to the law; 5 who serve the copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle. For He said, “See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.” 6 But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises.
He established a better covenant, based on better promises, that he himself upholds for us so we can participate in his divine nature and experience ALL of his promises.
The next aspect mentioned is, to me, the most profound aspect of Christ’s resurrection. The high priest under the Old Covenant would enter the earthly holy of holies with the blood of the Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) lamb, but Christ entered the Heavenly holy of holies with his own blood.
The blood of animals allowed for temporary forgiveness of sins, but Christ’s blood atones forever for all of our sins. In his blood is not only forgiveness but new life. In his blood, we are not just forgiven, we are made new creatures that can live in the presence of God forever.
He sprinkled his blood on the heavenly mercy seat as a legal document for the legal right of any human who enters through him to have eternal access into the presence of God. Through his blood, we can live with God, in a righteous renewed state.
Hebrews 9:11 But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. 12 Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. 13 For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, [d]sanctifies for the [e]purifying of the flesh, 14 how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
23 Therefore it was necessary that the copies of the things in the heavens should be purified with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. 24 For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us; 25 not that He should offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood of another— 26 He then would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. 27 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, 28 so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.
10:8 Previously saying, “Sacrifice and offering, burnt offerings, and offerings for sin You did not desire, nor had pleasure in them” (which are offered according to the law), 9then He said, “Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.” He takes away the first that He may establish the second. 10 By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
14 For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified. 15 But the Holy Spirit also witnesses to us; for after He had said before, 16 “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them,” 17 then He adds, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” 18 Now where there is [e]remission of these, there is no longer an offering for sin.
Through the work of Christ, you are perfected forever. His cleansing work (sanctification) is continually effective in you. You no longer have to approach God with offerings and sacrifices, you come to him only through the blood of Christ, resting in the fact that the work of Christ is perpetually keeping you clean.
Hebrews 12:2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.
You are that “joy.” You are the prize Christ desired. You are the reason he endured the death of the cross and faced hades in the grave. Because of God’s great love for you, Jesus became like you, to set you free from everything that could ever separate you from God. And because of this, we can boldly proclaim…
Romans 8:31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? 33 Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long;We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” 37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Amen and amen!!!
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Jesus Descended Into Hades
What happened once Jesus died on the cross? Some say he went straight to the Father. Some say he went into Hades as a conquering king to defeat the devil. But there’s a much more profound truth. Jesus passed into the grave to suffer your death. His faith eventually overcame death, hades, and the enemy as God prepared to rescue him from the pit.
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“My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, and from the words of My groaning?”
The following is a summary of this week’s sermon. I want to encourage you to watch the sermon. I believe it to be one of the most important messages I have ever given. I believe it to be so because it gives you deep insight into the suffering of Christ on your behalf. The following article only covers one aspect I cover in the sermon. I pray the sermon is a blessing to you.
When Jesus died on the cross, he passed into Hades. God made him to be sin on the cross (1 Corinthians 5:21); therefore, he died the death of a person with that kind of nature. God made him like you on the cross, so in him, God could make you like Jesus in eternity. Why did God need to make Jesus like you?
Ephesians 4:9 (Now this, “He ascended”—what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.)
and
Hebrews 2:14 Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.
Jesus had to become human for a few reasons. Mankind has dominion over the earth, so a man had to restore what was lost. No man could, so God sent his son as a human. Jesus first lived perfectly, fulfilling the law for us. In perfectly fulfilling the law, he qualified to be a perfect substitutionary sacrifice for the penalty of breaking the law. As the perfect sacrifice, he also qualified to bear the full weight of sin, which is death.
Jesus bore the total penalty of the law, and endured the full effects of sin. The total effect includes dying and passing into Hades as a human. He passed into the depths of Hades as a human to suffer its power and to break that power on behalf of humanity.
But he initially didn’t pass into Hades victoriously. His initial experience was to suffer in that place, just like he suffered on the cross. That place has its own sufferings as we see in many prophetic Psalms.
In Acts 2, Peter sets the precedent that some of the Psalms of King David are the prophetic words of the Messiah. We gain insight into the Messiah’s experience on the cross and in the grave from that precedent.
Acts 2:22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know—23 Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; 24 whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it. (Psalm 16:8-11 see below) 25 For David says concerning Him: ‘I foresaw the Lord always before my face, For He is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken. 26 Therefore my heart rejoiced, and my tongue was glad; Moreover my flesh also will rest in hope. 27 For You will not leave my soul in Hades, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption. 28 You have made known to me the ways of life; You will make me full of joy in Your presence.’ 29 “Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne, 31 he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. 32 This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. 33 Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear. 34 “For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, 35 Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” ’ (Psalm 110:1) 36 “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
Peter quotes Psalm 16 and Psalm 110 and directly explains that David was prophesying of the Messiah in Hades. Why do I say in Hades? Because the language supports that he will not be left in that place? It doesn’t indicate that he will not go to Hades, it indicates that he will not be abandoned or left there.
Jesus provides a complete deliverance and salvation. One in which he faced and conquered everything that could separate you from God. You don’t ever have to be afraid of death or hell (hades) because Jesus went there and overcame. The faith of Jesus is stronger than death, and that faith is alive in you. You can actually live from a power that is stronger than death. (that’s another sermon)
Psalm 22 is another place we gain insight into the suffering of the Messiah. Psalm 22 is reflected in the very words of Jesus in Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34.
Psalm 22 is called The Suffering, Praise, and Posterity of the Messiah. As you read it, recognize that Jesus endured the cross and even death in Hades for you to set you free from sin and death. Read this Psalm as a meditative exercise, connect with his suffering for you. Read it slowly and imagine him in the grave, breaking the power of death and hell for you.
Psalm 22:1 My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, And from the words of My groaning? 2 O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear; And in the night season, and am not silent. 3 But You are holy, Enthroned in the praises of Israel. 4 Our fathers trusted in You; They trusted, and You delivered them. 5 They cried to You and were delivered;They trusted in You, and were not ashamed. 6 But I am a worm, and no man; A reproach of men, and despised by the people. 7 All those who see Me ridicule Me; They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, 8 “He trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him; Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!”
Psalm 18 is another Psalm that is a prophetic cry of the Messiah from the grave. The profound aspect of Psalm 18 is it also gives us insight into the Messiah’s experience of being rescued and resurrected from the grave.
Psalm 18:4 The pangs of death surrounded me, And the floods of ungodliness made me afraid. 5 The sorrows of Sheol surrounded me; The snares of death confronted me. 6 In my distress I called upon the LORD, And cried out to my God; He heard my voice from His temple, And my cry came before Him, even to His ears. 7 Then the earth shook and trembled; The foundations of the hills also quaked and were shaken, Because He was angry. 8 Smoke went up from His nostrils, And devouring fire from His mouth; Coals were kindled by it. 9 He bowed the heavens also, and came down With darkness under His feet. 10 And He rode upon a cherub, and flew; He flew upon the wings of the wind. 11 He made darkness His secret place; His canopy around Him was dark waters And thick clouds of the skies. 12 From the brightness before Him, His thick clouds passed with hailstones and coals of fire. 13 The LORD thundered from heaven, And the Most High uttered His voice, Hailstones and coals of fire. 14 He sent out His arrows and scattered the foe, Lightnings in abundance, and He vanquished them. 15 Then the channels of the sea were seen, The foundations of the world were uncovered At Your rebuke, O LORD, At the blast of the breath of Your nostrils. 16 He sent from above, He took me; He drew me out of many waters. 17 He delivered me from my strong enemy, From those who hated me, For they were too strong for me. 18 They confronted me in the day of my calamity, But the LORD was my support. 19 He also brought me out into a broad place; He delivered me because He delighted in me.
He suffered our death and experienced what we should have in Hades to give us the victory. He rendered demons powerless. He gained all authority. And he even preached the Gospel to those who died before him, giving them a chance to be saved through him.
Colossians 2:15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.
1 Peter 3:18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, 19 by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison, 20 who formerly were disobedient, when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water.
Revelation 1:17 And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. 18 I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.
This is a deep and profound aspect of the atonement. I pray you will watch the sermon and allow me to walk you through even more of what happened in the grave. I pray this insight helps you gain more of a sense of value and worth to God because you see the lengths to which Christ suffered to gain you as an eternal family member. May you know your worth to your Heavenly Father, and may you never again be afraid of death or hell.
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Jesus Died In Your Place
God didn’t unjustly punish Jesus instead of us, something much deeper happened. God performed the opposite transaction in Jesus that he does in us.
In him, we die to sin and are made alive, but when Jesus was made like us, he died as us. He was a man in all ways like we are, yet without sin (Hebrews 4:15), but God changed that on the cross. He made Jesus a sinner by nature. Jesus never sinned, but God made him to be sin. If he didn’t, God would be unjust in punishing our sin in Jesus.
2 Corinthians 5:21 God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.
God didn’t symbolically place our sin on Jesus like an Old Covenant lamb. He quite literally made Jesus to BE sin to the core.
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“God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.”
The death, burial, and resurrection of Christ is the most important event in human history. Our eternal destinies depend on our response to Christ’s work on the cross, in the grave, and in his ascension. We see the value of humanity to God and the lengths to which he went to make a way of deliverance from sin and death.
My current series will cover these three days. This article focuses on the cross or the death of Jesus. So much was accomplished on the cross. It’s impossible to cover it in one sermon/article. In this article, I will focus on Jesus as our sin offering. God made him like us in death so we could be made like him in life. See “The Great Exchange” for more on the exchange that took place on the cross.
Our Sin Offering
God didn’t unjustly punish Jesus instead of us, something much deeper happened. God performed the opposite transaction in Jesus that he does in us.
In him, we die to sin and are made alive, but when Jesus was made like us, he died as us. He was a man in all ways like we are, yet without sin (Hebrews 4:15), but God changed that on the cross. He made Jesus a sinner by nature. Jesus never sinned, but God made him to be sin. If he didn’t, God would be unjust in punishing our sin in Jesus.
2 Corinthians 5:21 God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.
God didn’t symbolically place our sin on Jesus like an Old Covenant lamb. He quite literally made Jesus to BE sin to the core.
Romans 8:3 For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man, as an offering for sin. He thus condemned sin in the flesh, 4 so that the righteous standard of the law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
God condemned sin in the flesh of Jesus. The Old Covenant law demanded that sin be punished in the body of the sinner, so God had to make him like us to punish our sin fully.
1 John 2:2He Himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.
Why did God do it this way? Critics of Christianity will say something like this; God brutally sacrificed himself to himself so that he could accept humans.
That kind of thinking does not understand the authority of humankind. God gave dominion over this planet to humans. Humans brought in sin and death, so a human had to repair the breach. God is not like the Greek or Egyptian gods that sacrifice children to satisfy their anger. God is a loving father. He is a righteous judge as well, and his moral standard needed to be upheld. The Israelites asked for the law in the desert, and once it was in place, it could not just be erased. The fullness of the law had to be executed, including the full penalty for the transgression of the law.
Blood had to be shed for one reason, not a killing by a god in a fit of rage, but for the exchanging of dead human life for eternal spiritual life.
Lev 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for your souls upon the altar; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.
The life of the flesh had to be killed so the life of the spirit could take its place. Blood had to be shed to atone for our souls under the Old Covenant, but for our spirits under an eternal covenant. The blood of goats and bulls could temporarily cleanse your soul, but the blood, or life, of Christ, can cleanse your spirit to make you the kind of vessel that God can inhabit, eternally.
One of the effects of his eternal atonement is that we become righteous in him. It’s not temporary righteousness, it’s now our nature. Righteousness and true holiness are our states of existence. We are no longer dead in our sins, in our spirits, our eternal identity, we are alive forever.
1 Peter 2:24 He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. “By His stripes you are healed.”
When he became like us, he was punished and died as we should have. But when we become like him, we live and experience his life.
Romans 6:10 For that which He died, He died to sin once for all; but that which He lives, He lives to God. 11 So also you, consider yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but living to God in Christ Jesus.
I will never get over the elegance of God’s plan. It was birthed in his love for us. God so loved and valued us that he crafted a plan to send his only son to die in the place of all humanity to set us free from sin and death.
While this is deeply profound, it was just the beginning. What happened in the grave was even more horrific than what Christ experienced on the cross. In my next sermon/blog I will cover what Jesus experienced in the grave once he died in our place.
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Spiritual Mindfulness
How do you become spiritually minded? Fill your mind with thoughts that are true about spiritual realities. For example, when you are feeling sad, you can begin to meditate on the idea that the joy of the Lord is your strength. Once that becomes a reality in your heart, your experience will change, and joy will replace sadness.
There is plenty of instruction in scripture on what and how to think. In any situation you face in life, there is a promise related to your spiritual existence. The external status may not change, but your inner man and the state of your life don't have to be swayed by those external circumstances.
It's not just positive thinking; it's about changing your thoughts and feelings to match what God says is possible, rather than embracing the physical circumstance. As you hold God's promise, specifically his Word concerning that promise, it can and will manifest into your life.
The Word of God is alive. The Word of God planted in a believing heart can and will produce joy, peace, healing, righteousness, transformation, and any other aspect of abundant life that Jesus died for you to have.
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“For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.”
How do you become spiritually minded? Fill your mind with thoughts that are true about spiritual realities. For example, when you are feeling sad, you can begin to meditate on the idea that the joy of the Lord is your strength. Once that becomes a reality in your heart, your experience will change, and joy will replace sadness.
There is plenty of instruction in scripture on what and how to think. In any situation you face in life, there is a promise related to your spiritual existence. The external status may not change, but your inner man and the state of your life don't have to be swayed by those external circumstances.
It's not just positive thinking; it's about changing your thoughts and feelings to match what God says is possible, rather than embracing the physical circumstance. As you hold God's promise, specifically his Word concerning that promise, it can and will manifest into your life.
The Word of God is alive. The Word of God planted in a believing heart can and will produce joy, peace, healing, righteousness, transformation, and any other aspect of abundant life that Jesus died for you to have.
Intentional Spiritual Mindfulness
We can use Romans chapter 8 as an exercise in spiritual mindfulness. Just before Paul writes the masterful words in the chapter, Paul paints a beautiful picture of the relationship we are now in with God.
Romans 7:1 Do you not know, brothers (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has authority over a man only as long as he lives? 2 For instance, a married woman is bound by law to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is released from the law of marriage. 3 So then, if she is joined to another man while her husband is still alive, she is called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law and is not an adulteress, even if she marries another man. 4 Therefore, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God. 5 For when we lived according to the flesh, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in our bodies, bearing fruit for death. 6 But now, having died to what bound us, we have been released from the law, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.
The Apostle Paul uses marriage to illustrate how we are no longer under the law and are now under grace because we died to the Law in Christ. Not only are we dead to the law, we now live in the new way of the spirit.
What does that mean? In this new way of living, our old sin nature was removed, and we were given a new nature through Christ. We now have a new heart, and God placed his spirit in us. He currently leads us by his Spirit in our inner man, rather than externally through rules and laws. God's spirit in us is transforming us into the image of Christ as it leads and guides us into truth.
The spirit of God is inside every believer, seeking to transform and lead us, but we must renew our minds and allow ourselves to be transformed and led. Becoming spiritually minded is the same thing as renewing our minds. We are to renew our minds, or change our thoughts, to align with what is now spiritually true of ourselves, now that we are living by this new way of the spirit.
Romans chapter 8 is a great place to gather good spiritual truth to change your thoughts and develop spiritual mindfulness. I will list a few passages from Romans 8 that contain spiritual truths.
1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For in Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man, as an offering for sin. He thus condemned sin in the flesh, 4 so that the righteous standard of the law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
This is a large selection at the very beginning of the chapter. You can read and think about these passages to shape your self-image. As you begin to believe about yourself the things listed in these verses, an incredible something happens. Your heart becomes receptive to these truths and allows them to change you. This is how the living Word of God changes you. Hold it in your heart and mind until you believe it to be true of you. The Word in your heart will then begin to change you.
9 You, however, are controlled not by the flesh but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you.
This is fantastic news. Did you know you are no longer controlled by your natural desires (the flesh)? You might say, "I wish that were true." You might be thinking about all the mistakes you've made and continue to make. If you struggle with an addiction or compulsive behavior, you might think your flesh controls you. But that's not true of your spirit.
In your spirit, you are in control. In your spirit, you only desire righteousness. In your spiritual identity, you only want what God wants for you. So how do you bridge the gap and begin to live from the desires of your spirit rather than the desires of your flesh? You must take the time to meditate on spiritual truth until that aspect of yourself is more real than the carnal self that still likes sin.
15 For you did not receive a spirit of slavery that returns you to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" 16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children.
You are God's child. When you take time to own the identity of a child of God, especially in the face of failure and temptation, your identity in him becomes a source of power for you. You are no longer someone who naturally desires sin because you are a child of God, and God's kids only want God's ways in their lives.
17 And if we are children, then we are heirs: heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ—if indeed we suffer with Him, so that we may also be glorified with Him.
Not only are you a child of God, but you are also an heir of God. God has brought you into his family, and he has given you the same inheritance he gave Jesus. If you believed and experienced that, how would that change your prayer life? How would that change your choices? How would that affect how you handle money and all of your resources?
26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know how we ought to pray, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans too deep for words. 27 And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
God's spirit is in you, searching your heart, helping you in areas you are weak. The spirit of God will also pray for you, through you, when you don't know how to pray. You can agree with God's prayers in you by speaking out of your spirit in a language that is unknown to you. When you don't know what to pray, praying with your spirit is a secret weapon that God gave you. Using that gift is another way to cultivate spiritual mindfulness.
I want to encourage you to work through Romans 8 on your own. You can even rephrase the passages that speak of your spiritual identity into the first person and speak those out loud. You do not speak that thing out to make them true; you speak them out because that's who you already are. And that's the point, to persuade your mind and heart that you are this spiritual being that Paul describes in chapter 8.
The payoff is life, for to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Do you want abundant life and peace that life's circumstances can not shake? Cultivate spiritual mindfulness and watch your life reflect spiritual truth.
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You Can Touch God and Draw on His Power
God’s power is at work in you to give you strength and abilities. You don’t have to convince God to give it to you, but you do have to appropriate it.
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“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us”
God's power is at work in you to give you strength and abilities. You don't have to convince Him to give it to you, but you have to appropriate it, like the woman who touched Jesus as he passed through the crowds and was healed.
Mind-renewal and faith are vital components for the appropriation of His power. It's always available, but like water in the ground, you have to tap the well to access the water. God's spirit in you is a never-ending wellspring of life within your inner being, ready and willing to strengthen you, provide for you, encourage, heal, and lead you.
You no longer have to seek God outwardly, He lives in you, and you can draw on His power at any moment. But you might have to take a step in faith and renew your mind as you reach for Him.
Ephesians 4:22 to put off your former way of life, your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be renewed in the spirit of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. BSB
One of the stumbling blocks for the religious mindset is that we are now righteous with God by faith and not works. We are saved by God's power (grace) working to change us when we trust (faith) in the finished work of Jesus on our behalf. Everything we ever need to receive from God comes the same way, by grace through faith. In other words, His power works in us as we trust in the work of Christ.
Scripture constantly encourages us to think in accordance with our spiritual identity in Christ. As we do so, we begin to outwardly manifest within our soul, bodies, and lives what is true of our spiritual state of existence.
Paul prayed through that process in his letter to the church in Ephesus.
Ephesians 3:16 I ask that out of the riches of His glory, He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. Then you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 will have power, together with all the saints, to comprehend the length and width and height and depth 19 of the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us BSB
God's power is wrapped within His love for you. As you rest in His love for you and become confident in what Christ accomplished on your behalf, you will experience the fullness of His power in every area of life. God's spirit will flow like water into a garden and make everything whole that is sick, broken, or lacking.
It's interesting to note that the word "power' in verse 20 is the Greek word dynamis, which means; strength, power, ability. In Luke 8:45 it's sometimes translated as virtue. We also learn more about how this power, strength, and ability work from this verse.
Luke 8:45 "Who touched Me?" Jesus asked. But they all denied it. "Master," said Peter, "the people are crowding and pressing against You." 46 But Jesus declared, "Someone touched Me, for I know that power has gone out from Me."
If you're not familiar with this story, Jesus is walking through a large crowd, and a woman who believes that if she touches Jesus, she will be healed reaches out and touches him. And just as she believes, she is healed.
What's fascinating to me is that Jesus felt something different from her touch. She didn't just touch him with her hands, like everyone else, she touched him with her faith. You might even say she touched him with her heart since we believe with our hearts (Romans 10:9).
The Greek word for "touch" here is haptomai, which means; to fasten one's self to, to lay hold of, adhere to, cling to, appropriate. The facet of this definition that stands out to me is appropriate, which means "to take something for one's own use."
This woman determined in her heart that Jesus had something for her. Something that she could take for her own use. And what did Jesus say?
"Daughter," said Jesus, "your faith has healed you. Go in peace." (Luke 8:48)
Her trust in Jesus caused his power to flow out of him and into her, without him doing anything and even knowing she would do it. It's as if Jesus is an unlimited source of power that anyone at any time can touch and take what they need.
What do you need to experience from God? Jesus died for you to have an abundant life full of God's promises and blessings. God is not withholding from you. He loves you and wants the best for you. Renew your mind of your righteousness in him and reach out and touch him today.
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God's Ways Are Higher Than Ours But He Reveals Them To Us
People misquote passages like “God’s ways are higher than our ways,” as a justification to be confused about God’s will. The fact is, if you are a Christian, God’s Spirit lives in you and is teaching you God’s ways. He even gave us a book to renew our minds so we would know his ways and be able to teach others his ways. Join us today as we discuss how to know God’s ways.
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““For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so My ways are higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.”
God’s Ways Are Higher Than Our Ways
Christians have a bad habit of quoting scripture out of context. How many times have you heard someone say “God’s ways are higher than our ways” when they are trying to make sense of a confusing situation?
Here’s the actual context of that statement
Isaiah 55:1 “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you without money, come, buy, and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost! 2 Why spend money on that which is not bread, and your labor on that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of foods. 3 Incline your ear and come to Me; listen, so that your soul may live. I will make with you an everlasting covenant— My loving devotion promised to David. 4 Behold, I have made him a witness to the nations, a leader and commander of the peoples. 5 Surely you will summon a nation you do not know, and nations who do not know you will run to you. For the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, has bestowed glory on you.” 6 Seek the LORD while He may be found; call on Him while He is near. 7 Let the wicked man forsake his own way and the unrighteous man his own thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that He may have compassion, and to our God, for He will freely pardon. 8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. 9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so My ways are higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts. BSB
What “way” of God is higher than ours? Mercy and forgiveness. This passage is actually a beautiful promise or provision in the Lord as a result of the work of the Messiah. He’s prophesying through Isaiah what life will be like under the New Covenant. He’s not giving a cliche explanation for random a confusing life event.
Eye Has Not Seen, Ear Has Not Heard
How about this one?
1 Corinthians2:9 Rather, as it is written: (Isaiah 64:4) “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no heart has imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him.”
Have you ever heard someone say this in an attempt to console someone? Or maybe you’ve seen this passage posted on social media as some sort of attempt at comfort for someone who is going through a rough time.
Keep reading…
10 But God has revealed it to us by the Spirit.
Paul cites an Old Testament truth but follows up with a New Covenant treatment of that idea. Because we have God’s spirit dwelling within us, we can know what God has prepared for us. He wants us to know His will for us so we can co-labor in faith with Him. God doesn’t want you to be confused about what He’s doing in your life. He wants you to be able to hear Him clearly, so He did something about it, through Christ He made a way to put His spirit in you so He could commune with you from within.
I go into much more detail about these ideas in this sermon, I hope you have time to watch it.
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Stop Judging Yourself For Not Doing Enough
Jesus calls his followers salt of the earth and light of the world. Salt brings flavor, or fulfillment, and light brings clarity, or revelation. We are quite simply part of God’s story, life is not about us, it’s about him. We, as his followers, are to help people find fulfillment and enlightenment in him. Our only strategy is walking in love and communicating the Gospel. The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation. To be salt and light, we illuminate the Gospel so it can help people come out of the darkness and into his light.
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“You are the salt of the earth...
You are the light of the world...”
No matter how much good you do for the Kingdom of God, it will never be enough to repay Jesus for the price He paid for you. You can never be good enough, spiritual enough, or kind enough to represent God the way He deserved to be represented fully. So go ahead and let yourself off the hook for not measuring up, stop judging yourself for not doing enough. Here's the secret, no one does enough.
Maybe you feel like you should be further along in your transformational journey with Christ than you are now. You're right, you should be further along. But, if Jesus were to stand in front of you, He would probably say something about your little faith or maybe worse.
But… that's true for all of us. That's the beauty of the exchange of the cross. He measures up for us, He makes us complete. He fulfilled the Law for us. It's His power that works through us. And the more we allow His strength to work in us, the more we'll participate in His finished work.
Salt and Light
You might be thinking, Clint, you're usually nicer than this, why are you saying these mean things? Because I want you to realize that no matter how much good you do or how many mistakes you make, God doesn't change His mind about you.
God still sees you as the salt of the earth and the light of the world. It's an interesting thought. In John 8, right after He heals someone, Jesus calls himself the light of the world. But in Matthew 14 He calls YOU the light of the world. He calls you by the same title He gave Himself. He looks at you and sees Himself. He looks at you and sees someone capable of doing the same things He did, because He knows YOU have His same power.
Jesus calls his followers salt of the earth and light of the world. Salt brings flavor or fulfillment, and light brings clarity or revelation. We are quite simply part of God's story, life is not about us, it's about him. We, as His followers, are to help people find fulfillment and enlightenment in him. Our only strategy is walking in love and communicating the Gospel. The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation. To be salt and light, we illuminate the Gospel so it can help people come out of the darkness and into his light.
Walking in that power is not the result of being a better person, it's the result of God's presence within. So, yes, of course, God desires that you live a life that brings honor and glory to His name, and doesn't minimize the work of Christ on your behalf, but your standing with God is not based on your deeds, they're based on Christ's.
Quit Disqualifying Yourself
So quit judging yourself and quit disqualifying yourself. Too many Christians place themselves on the sidelines because they don't think they're in a place to do the work of the ministry. Too many Christians miss daily opportunities to be a blessing to others, and spread the Gospel of the Kingdom because they are too focused on their own failures and believe God can't use them.
That's a lie. God can use you, God wants to use you, and God will use you if you would put yourself in the position to be used. You are the flavor of the Kingdom someone needs today. Repenting, humbling your insecurity, and stepping out in love toward people is the saltiness God wants to sprinkle into people's lives.
You can bring hope to people because God lives in you. So stop judging yourself and disqualifying yourself, and commit to a daily lifestyle of sprinkling the flavor of the Kingdom in small ways, everywhere you go. You can do it because Christ is in you!!
Watch this full series: Your Life Is Not Your Own
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Love Is A Lifestyle
Your life is not your own for you were bought with a price. When we hear these statements we can slip into a performance mindset. Yes, we do need to lay our lives down for the sake of the Gospel, but it's a natural process as we lead with love. Love is the greatest attraction to Jesus, it's our strategy. Love will win the world.
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“Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.”
If we as Christians get this right, we can make the most significant impact in the world for the Kingdom of God since the resurrection of Christ.
JOHN 17:20 “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; 21 that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. 22 And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: 23 I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.
This prayer of Jesus is fascinating to me. It covers the focus of the Christian life completely. It contains the will of God for every believer and it contains the strategy for the body of Christ to make an impact in the world, to the point that those in darkness come to the light of Christ. It’s the perfect circle.
Christ is in God and God is in Christ
You are in Christ and Christ is in you
Christ and his father are in you, and you are in the father with Christ
Christians are to be as united with each other as Christ is with the father
Christ shares his glory with all Christians
As we become mature in our love for one another, it will be a magnet that draws people to believe that God sent Jesus for them too
It’s a perfect strategy that is rooted in relationship, and motivated by love. The father and son’s relationship, our relationship with them as individuals, and our relationship with one another.
Encompassed in this circular relationship is encoded the commandments of Christ to love God and love one another. When you know/experience God’s love for you, the only mature response is to recognize that God loves everyone else as much as he loves you.
The fruit of this circle of love is action. Love is not just an emotion, it’s action. Fundamentally love is taking care of orphans and widows, feeding the hungry, and not forgetting those in prison. But it’s also patience with those who push your buttons. It’s a prayer for those who use you. It’s kindness for an angry, offensive person. It’s a soft word to turn away rage. It’s going the extra mile for someone trying to take advantage of you. It’s praying for the sick and believing with them to experience what Jesus paid for. This circular lifestyle of love is not motivated by obligation, it’s the fruit of your relationship with God and your love for others.
Imagine a mill that’s powered by water. As long as the water flows, the wheel keeps spinning, generating the power. The water is God’s love for us. The mill wheel is the body of Christ, collectively responding to the endless supply of God’s love that converts into energy toward the world. An energy that brings life, light, and love.
And the beautiful product is…the world believes that Jesus is for them too!! It’s time for the church to grow up and find common ground rather than pointing the theological finger at one another to delineate who is right and wrong. Love is focused on maturity and revealing God to the world. My prayer for you and myself is that we allow God to shape us into mature unifiers in his body.
I hope you watch this week’s sermon, as usual, I go into more detail on this topic.
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Don't Confuse Letting Yourself Down with Letting God Down
In our discipleship group, someone asked this question.
I tried fasting for a week and after 72 hours , I broke it . I feel super guilty about it . How do I deal with this guilt and not think God is mad at me?
This was my answer…
You let yourself down, but you didn't let God down. When we don't reach our goals and disappoint ourselves, we have to process that and make choices to trust ourselves going forward. But God's not upset with you.
As far as fasting, it's a good exercise when we've become dull of hearing or hard-hearted toward God. It quiets our carnal bodies and desires and allows our spiritual senses to take a front seat, so you can remember who you already are in Christ.
In our discipleship group, someone asked this question.
I tried fasting for a week and after 72 hours , I broke it . I feel super guilty about it . How do I deal with this guilt and not think God is mad at me?
This was my answer…
You let yourself down, but you didn't let God down. When we don't reach our goals and disappoint ourselves, we have to process that and make choices to trust ourselves going forward. But God's not upset with you.
As far as fasting, it's a good exercise when we've become dull of hearing or hard-hearted toward God. It quiets our carnal bodies and desires and allows our spiritual senses to take a front seat, so you can remember who you already are in Christ.
As I continued to think about her question, it speaks to why we started Forward Church. Sara and I wanted people to know that God is not mad at them, that Jesus paid the price for our sin and exhausted all of God's wrath. Unfortunately, most of the Christian world doesn't know that, so we carry all kinds of guilt around when we should roll it off onto Jesus and live in the freedom he has given us.
He wants us to live righteous and holy lives, but when we fall short, he doesn't get mad and feel the need to punish us. He encourages us and reminds us that we are his child.
We're Harder On Ourselves Than God Is
It's easy to confuse letting yourself down with letting God down. If you fail to live up to a standard or reach a goal that is within healthy Christian living standards, it's easy to feel like God is upset with you, but He isn't.
It's natural to feel disappointed in yourself, but you have to remember to do a couple of things. First, remember that God is pleased with you because you are in Christ. He's not excited about your failure, but He's not going to judge, punish, or reject you over it. Secondly, remember that God is not holding your sins or failures against you anymore because Jesus paid for them all.
You might judge, punish, and reject yourself, but that would be unwise. The righteous person falls 7 times but gets up (Proverbs 24:16). Never falling isn't what makes or keeps you in right standing with God, the blood of Jesus does that.
So when you sin, or just fall short of a goal you've set for yourself, watch your self-talk. Be quick to encourage yourself to get up and keep moving forward. You going to fall, you're going to fail, you're going to disappoint yourself, but a winner gets up and keeps moving. Don't be a loser and make yourself a victim of your self-imposed judgment and punishment.
1 John 2:1 My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. 2 He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world.
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