With Christ have I been crucified, yet I am living; no longer I, but living in me is Christ. Now that which I am now living in the flesh, I am living in faith that is of the Son of God, Who loves me, and gives Himself up for me
Paul to the Galatians 2: 20, Concordant New Testament
Paul got it. Paul wasn't like so many of our so called luke warm believers of today. He knew in his heart that he wasn't alone in this life, that the spirit of the Lord Jesus is the epicenter of all who he is. In essence, Paul WAS Jesus. He speaks to this is his foundational passage we find in Galatians. That I am no longer, that it is Christ Jesus who now occupies this vessel of mine {Paul to the Galatians 2:20}. Paul definitely wasn't living separately from Christ. Jesus was right there in the thick of it with him. We could learn a lot from the life of Paul. First and foremost is living knowing that we are not alone in this life. Knowing that each and every decision and event is not simply ours alone. For to know that we do not live separate opens up a whole new understanding not only of who we are, but how we now live. I hear a lot of once united couples declaring that they now live separated. Not divorced necessarily, just separated. I see this as a life lived in limbo. The same can be said of far too many believers today who live in the delusion that they are separate from God. This is the lie spoken by the deceiver. The lie spoken to Eve that if she were to take of the forbidden fruit that her eyes would be opened and that she would "Be like God, knowing good and evil" {Genesis 3:5}. The trouble is, the eyes of too many believers have not been opened. They continue to live within the lie that they are separate from God. One of the verses those within the church spit out in order to prove this point comes from the words of the prophet Isaiah, that "your iniquities have separated you from your God" {Isaiah 59:2}. When someone reminds me of this passage, I ask them one important question, what about Jesus? Isn't Jesus the One who came to erase the sin of the world? Isn't it Jesus Who took our iniquities upon Himself at the cross {Paul to the Corinthians (2) 5:21}?
In all my time in the church, I was never introduced to a life lived within the love of the Father. However, I was in fact reminded at every opportunity of my sinful life lived outside of Him. Again, those within the church will point to scripture to emphasize their teachings. They recite the words of Paul which we find in Romans, that ALL have sinned and are wanting of the glory of God {Paul to the Romans 3:23}. This is that hill they die on! However, they cringe at the context of the following passage, that we are now justified "Through the deliverance which is in Christ Jesus" {Paul to the Romans 3:24}. Yes, we all were once sinners, but we're now redeemed through the sacrifice of Christ Jesus. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us {Paul to the Romans 5:8}. So, apparently in spite of our sin condition, God loved us enough to dispatch His Son as the propitiation of our sins. Not only that, but it is Christ Jesus Who has spoken to the truth of our life lived within the Father {Johns Account 14:20, Johns Account 17:21}. It is Jesus Who speaks to the truth that we do not live separate from God. It is those within the church who continue to preach the lie that we do. Who are you going to trust, God or misguided men? Has God ever lied to you? Has He ever revealed to you something which wasn't true? As far as I'm concerned, if the Father has spoken it, I believe in it. Therefore, I believe in my heart that I now live within the love of the Father, not within the lie of the deceiver.
That they may all be one, according as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be in Us, that the world should be believing that Thou dost commission Me
Johns Account 17: 21, Concordant New Testament
~Scott~
No comments:
Post a Comment