There is an issue that has damaged many people's lives in today's
societies that deals with identity, it's called "identity thief."
Identity thief is defined as "the fraudulent acquisition and use of a
person's private identifying information, usually for financial gain."
There is also another issue that deals with ones identity found within
the world of psychology, called "identity crisis." This has been defined
as "the failure
to achieve ego identity during adolescence; a period
of uncertainty and confusion in which a person's sense of identity
becomes insecure." Both of these identity issues are the result of a
satanically influenced, fallen world.
In the Garden of Eden, God made man in His own image and likeness.
(Genesis 1:26) However, when Adam sinned against God, he actually lost
his identity.
He had now taken on the identity of his new father, Satan. Jesus clear
reveals this in one of His confrontations with the religious leaders
during His ministry on earth as the Son of Man, "You are of your
father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was
a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because
there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it."
(John 8:44) Adam as the representative of all humanity has caused the
entire human race to take on this fallen satanic nature, identity. Jesus warns us
today, "The thief (Satan) does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy..." (John 10:10)
From the fall, man is now faced with a stolen identity which has led
him into an identity crisis. Although man lost his identity, God has
made a way for him to once again be identified with his Creator, God
Himself, through faith in Jesus Christ.
What fallen man does not comprehend and many believers have not found,
is that the spirit is who we really are. The body is not the real
person, it is merely the vehicle in which the spirit lives. The soul
(mind, will and emotions) is also not the real person but simply the part of mankind that uses the five senses to accrue information to operate in the natural realm. Simply remove one
of the five senses, and the mind loses its ability to learn and grow. If
all five senses are removed, the mind is rendered completely useless.
The Apostle Paul tells us, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God..." (2 Corinthians 5:17-18) The Apostle Peter tells us, "...that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature..." (2 Peter 1:4) Man could not be a partaker of God's divine nature (God is Spirit, John 4:24), if man were not recreated.
As a sinner, man is called "the old man" (Ephesians 4:22), who cannot
approach God (Ephesians 2:12-13) except through Christ. However, when
one comes to Christ, he/she receives a new identity. He
become a new man. (Ephesians 4:24) God has recreated him. The old man
has stopped being, and the new man has taken its place. The o1d man was
born of the spiritually dead satanic nature. The new man is born of the
very nature of God the Father. The believer no longer needs to identify
with the old nature, because God has recreated a new one. The identity
crisis is over. The stolen identity has been restored. Man in Christ is
returned to his true identity, a partaker of the divine nature.
Think about this; the old creation had no standing with God. The new
creation in Christ, can now stand in the
Father's presence as though sin had never been. As Paul reveals, the new
creation man has become the righteousness of God in Christ. (2
Corinthians 5:17) This is why it is so imperative to develop the
recreated human spirit, through the Word of God, (Romans 10:17), so the
believer can know his identity in Christ. Paul tells us, "I
have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ
lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith
in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Galatians 2:20) Notice, "it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me." Paul
no longer identifies himself with his old sinful nature, but identifies
himself with his new recreated nature, that of Jesus Christ.
Way
to often from pulpits, believers hear how they are nothing more than
sinners. This is the cause of many believers having an identity crisis.
As we see in the scriptures above, the recreated person in Christ is
just that, in Christ, not in the devil. "God has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love." (Colossians 1:13) "For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God." (Colossians 3:3) How can a person be delivered from darkness and be hidden in Christ if he or she were a sinner? "To declare that the Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him." (Psalm 92:15 - also see John 7:18)
It is unrighteousness (sin) that keeps people from God. If believers
were still sinners, then they would not be permitted in the presence of
God. However, the writer of Hebrews says, "Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16)
The
fact is, Christ became as we were, so that we might become as He is. He
died so that we could live. (John 10:10) He was made sin, to make us
righteous. (2 Corinthians 5:21) He became weak, to make us strong.
(Philippians 4:13) He suffered shame, to give us glory. (John 17:17) He was condemned, so we could be justified. (Romans 5:1) He was made sick, so we could have health and healing. (1 Peter 2:24) He
was forsaken by the Father and went to Hades, in order to take us to
heaven. (Acts 2:27) In Christ the believer finds his/her new and true identity. So let us no longer be rob of who we truly are and know "...as He is, so are we in this world." (1 John 4:17) PTL!!!
Showing posts with label identity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label identity. Show all posts
Monday, February 19, 2024
In Him
Monday, October 8, 2018
Alive For Evermore
The Bible clearly reveals the believers new and continuous identification of their life in Jesus Christ. It reveals the legal side of our redemption, that is, what God did in Christ for us, from the Cross, until He sat down on the right hand of the Father. However, there is another side of identification. This is known as the vital side of redemption. That is, what the Holy Spirit through God’s Word, is doing in the believer now. Because we have not differentiated between the legal and the vital sides of redemption, there seems to arise some confusion. One school of theology has magnified the legal side, and another, the vital side. One is the courthouse aspect, while the other is the experiential aspect.
The legal part of redemption is the portion enacted by God when a sinner confesses Jesus Christ as Lord and accepts Him as his Savior. The following reveals some of the many aspects from God's Word, concerning the legal side of redemption, that He has provided for every believe through the meritorious work of Jesus Christ. The persons sins are remitted, wiped out as though they had never been (Acts 2:38); He/she is legally justified, that is, declared righteous or set right with God (2 Corinthians 5:21); He/she is legally reconciled to the Father (2 Corinthians 5:18); He/she is legally adopted by God (Romans 8:15); He/she legally become a member of the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:18); Jesus publicly confesses him/her before the Father (Matthew 10:32); His/her name is written in the Book of Life (Luke 10:19); God becomes his/her Father (John 20:17). All these are the legal side of redemption and are instantaneous upon one's repentance, confession and receiving Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
Now that these steps have been taken, the new believer, has a legal right to the Father's protection (2 Thessalonians 3:3); He/she has a 1ega1 right to Jesus' intercession (Hebrews 7:25); He/she has a legal right to the Advocacy of Christ (1 John 2:1); He/she has a legal right to the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38); He/she has a legal right to be in God’s royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9); He/she has a legal right to a child’s inheritance (Acts 2:32); He/she has a legal right to the use of Jesus' Name…(Mark 16:17) Let us keep in mind that when we overlook the legal side of redemption, we will find ourselves building an experiential structure without a foundation, and the building will surely fall (Matthew 7:24-27). This is the reason that so many who teach only the vital side of redemption have so many failures among the believers they teach and why some many believers are out of fellowship.
Now, let us look at some of the many aspects of the vital side of redemption which is the work that the Holy Spirit does in the believer through the Word of God. The Holy Spirit indwells him/her (Acts 2:38); The Holy Spirit imparts to his/her spirit the Nature of God, life as God has it, eternal life (2 Peter 1:4); The Holy Spirit makes him/her alive in Christ (Ephesians 2:1); The peace of God which passes all understanding floods his/her soul (Philippians 6:7); The Holy Spirit witnesses with his/her spirit that he/she is a child of God (Romans 8:16); The love of God is poured out in his/her heart by the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5); He/she has passed from death into life (John 5:24); He/she loves the brethren (1 John 3:16); The fruit of the Spirit fills his/her recreated spirit (Galatians 5:22-23); He/she is an heir with God and joint heir with Jesus Christ (Romans 8:17); He/she can be immersed, baptized and filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8, 2:1-4).
The Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul tells us, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God." (Ephesians 2:8) Therefore, the main thing to keep in mind concerning both the legal and vital sides of redemption is that they are both accomplished by God alone, by His great amazing grace. These things should show us why it is of great importance for believers to have a balance. If believers only have the legal side of the plan of redemption, it would lead into lifeless formalism. It would make doctrines, out of Truth resulting in intellectualism. If believers only have the vital side of the plan of redemption, it will lead into fanaticism, magnifying experiences above God’s Word.
When we understand the balance, we find that what is legally ours becomes vitally ours by the work of the Holy Spirit in us through God’s Word. In other words, it comes down to this. It comes down to what we believe about God’s will, nature, character, purpose and plan as revealed in scripture. Many believers will say that God’s Word is true; that there are no discrepancies; that it is infallible and inerrant, but they dispute these very statements with doctrines, creeds and rituals that nullify God’s Word. Jesus said, "For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men…All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition...making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down." (Mark 7:8-13
So, there are three main actions that believers should embrace daily if they want to know without doubt what their true identity in Christ is. First, be saturated in God’s Word; second, confess God’s Word; third, have intimate fellowship with the Father. Doing these things will result in knowing who we are in Christ, who Christ is in us and how the Father truly sees us, that is, our identification in Christ. The more we receive, understand and live in our new and true identity, the more we will live in the realm of the Spirit and not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. (Galatians 5:16-18) The Apostle Paul tells us, "Therefore be imitators of God as dear children." (Ephesians 5:1) So, we must ask the question, "How can believers be imitators of God if they do not know God nor who they truly are in Christ, who Christ is in them and how the Father sees them? The Holy Spirit through the Prophet Hosea tells us, "My people are being destroyed because they don’t know me." (Hosea 4:6 NLT)
The answer to this question based on this scripture is clear. If believers have an unbiblical perspective or knowledge of God then it stands to reason that they will have, at best, a limited knowledge of their identity, and may never come into the victorious, abundant life that Christ has provided. However, the New Testament is filled with the realities of both the legal and vital side of redemption. The Apostle Paul tells us, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will." (Ephesians 1:3-5) As we see in this revelation given to the Apostle Paul, man was marked for sonship before the foundation of the world. In other words, before the foundation of the world God the Father purposed a family, and man was and is the answer to that purpose.
So, let us no longer grow weary with an unbiblical understanding of our new and true identity in Jesus Christ. Why? "...because as He is, so are we in this world." (1 John 4:17)
The legal part of redemption is the portion enacted by God when a sinner confesses Jesus Christ as Lord and accepts Him as his Savior. The following reveals some of the many aspects from God's Word, concerning the legal side of redemption, that He has provided for every believe through the meritorious work of Jesus Christ. The persons sins are remitted, wiped out as though they had never been (Acts 2:38); He/she is legally justified, that is, declared righteous or set right with God (2 Corinthians 5:21); He/she is legally reconciled to the Father (2 Corinthians 5:18); He/she is legally adopted by God (Romans 8:15); He/she legally become a member of the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:18); Jesus publicly confesses him/her before the Father (Matthew 10:32); His/her name is written in the Book of Life (Luke 10:19); God becomes his/her Father (John 20:17). All these are the legal side of redemption and are instantaneous upon one's repentance, confession and receiving Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
Now that these steps have been taken, the new believer, has a legal right to the Father's protection (2 Thessalonians 3:3); He/she has a 1ega1 right to Jesus' intercession (Hebrews 7:25); He/she has a legal right to the Advocacy of Christ (1 John 2:1); He/she has a legal right to the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38); He/she has a legal right to be in God’s royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9); He/she has a legal right to a child’s inheritance (Acts 2:32); He/she has a legal right to the use of Jesus' Name…(Mark 16:17) Let us keep in mind that when we overlook the legal side of redemption, we will find ourselves building an experiential structure without a foundation, and the building will surely fall (Matthew 7:24-27). This is the reason that so many who teach only the vital side of redemption have so many failures among the believers they teach and why some many believers are out of fellowship.
Now, let us look at some of the many aspects of the vital side of redemption which is the work that the Holy Spirit does in the believer through the Word of God. The Holy Spirit indwells him/her (Acts 2:38); The Holy Spirit imparts to his/her spirit the Nature of God, life as God has it, eternal life (2 Peter 1:4); The Holy Spirit makes him/her alive in Christ (Ephesians 2:1); The peace of God which passes all understanding floods his/her soul (Philippians 6:7); The Holy Spirit witnesses with his/her spirit that he/she is a child of God (Romans 8:16); The love of God is poured out in his/her heart by the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5); He/she has passed from death into life (John 5:24); He/she loves the brethren (1 John 3:16); The fruit of the Spirit fills his/her recreated spirit (Galatians 5:22-23); He/she is an heir with God and joint heir with Jesus Christ (Romans 8:17); He/she can be immersed, baptized and filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8, 2:1-4).
The Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul tells us, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God." (Ephesians 2:8) Therefore, the main thing to keep in mind concerning both the legal and vital sides of redemption is that they are both accomplished by God alone, by His great amazing grace. These things should show us why it is of great importance for believers to have a balance. If believers only have the legal side of the plan of redemption, it would lead into lifeless formalism. It would make doctrines, out of Truth resulting in intellectualism. If believers only have the vital side of the plan of redemption, it will lead into fanaticism, magnifying experiences above God’s Word.
When we understand the balance, we find that what is legally ours becomes vitally ours by the work of the Holy Spirit in us through God’s Word. In other words, it comes down to this. It comes down to what we believe about God’s will, nature, character, purpose and plan as revealed in scripture. Many believers will say that God’s Word is true; that there are no discrepancies; that it is infallible and inerrant, but they dispute these very statements with doctrines, creeds and rituals that nullify God’s Word. Jesus said, "For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men…All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition...making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down." (Mark 7:8-13
So, there are three main actions that believers should embrace daily if they want to know without doubt what their true identity in Christ is. First, be saturated in God’s Word; second, confess God’s Word; third, have intimate fellowship with the Father. Doing these things will result in knowing who we are in Christ, who Christ is in us and how the Father truly sees us, that is, our identification in Christ. The more we receive, understand and live in our new and true identity, the more we will live in the realm of the Spirit and not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. (Galatians 5:16-18) The Apostle Paul tells us, "Therefore be imitators of God as dear children." (Ephesians 5:1) So, we must ask the question, "How can believers be imitators of God if they do not know God nor who they truly are in Christ, who Christ is in them and how the Father sees them? The Holy Spirit through the Prophet Hosea tells us, "My people are being destroyed because they don’t know me." (Hosea 4:6 NLT)
The answer to this question based on this scripture is clear. If believers have an unbiblical perspective or knowledge of God then it stands to reason that they will have, at best, a limited knowledge of their identity, and may never come into the victorious, abundant life that Christ has provided. However, the New Testament is filled with the realities of both the legal and vital side of redemption. The Apostle Paul tells us, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will." (Ephesians 1:3-5) As we see in this revelation given to the Apostle Paul, man was marked for sonship before the foundation of the world. In other words, before the foundation of the world God the Father purposed a family, and man was and is the answer to that purpose.
So, let us no longer grow weary with an unbiblical understanding of our new and true identity in Jesus Christ. Why? "...because as He is, so are we in this world." (1 John 4:17)
Monday, October 23, 2017
Where Is Your ID
To seal man's redemption, making it both eternal and available to all mankind, we see that Jesus our Great High Priest (Hebrews 4:14) ascended into heaven, with His own blood obtaining eternal redemption for us on the basis of His substitutionary death and resurrection on our behalf. "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...But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified." (Hebrews 9:12, 10:12-14)
When Christ sat down at the Father's right hand, man had been perfectly redeemed because he had been legally identified with Christ in His redemptive work. (Romans 4:25, 5:1-2) Now man, by faith in Jesus Christ has a new identity. "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." (2 Corinthians 5:17) Let us look at how the believers new identity from spiritual death to life in Christ Jesus unfolds. To discover these thing, we look to the Pauline epistles, where we find the greatest revelation of the believers identification in Christ.
" Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin." (Romans 6:6) "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Galatians 2:20) On the cross, God made Jesus to become sin for us. (2 Corinthians 5:21) It was our spiritual death and our sin nature that He bore. He became identified with us on the cross as our Substitute.
"For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection...Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him." (Romans 6:5, 8) When Jesus died, we died with Him. First, spiritual death was laid on His spirit, then He died physically, in the same manner that Adam died. Spiritual death is separation from God. It was spiritual death that eventually brought physical death to Adam and all people. (Romans 5:12) Jesus speaks of Himself to the people around Him at the tomb of Lazarus, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die." (John 11:25-26) Faith in Christ removes the sting of spiritual death and gives us eternal life.
So, as a result of His crucifixion mankind can now find their identity with and in Christ. When Jesus died, we died with Him. As His spirit left His physical body and went into hell we were identified with Him. Paul tells us, "Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death..." (Romans 6:4) "Having been buried with Him in baptism..." (Colossians 6:10) Baptism in these verses is a type of our burial with Christ. Though His body was laid in the tomb, (Matthew 27:57-61), His spirit suffered in hell as He paid the penalty that was due man. He could adequately pay man's penalty and meet the demands of justice because on the cross, He had become identified with man.
Keep in mind, the penalty He paid was not His, but man's. In the mind of God, it was you and I there in that place of torment, bearing the judgment that was due us. On the basis of this identification the person who confesses with their mouth the Lord Jesus Christ and takes Him as Savior, receives the redemptive work of Christ, and will not go to hell but goes free. However, the person who refuses Christ's redemption on his behalf must go there. Also, always remember that hell was never meant for man. It is a person's freedom of choice to refuse God's redemptive work though Christ, that puts him there. In other words, a person can chose hell over heaven, darkness over light, Satan over Christ. Therefore, it is a person's decision as to where they go for eternity, not God's.
Next, we see the satisfaction of man's penalty paid for by Christ in hell. The Apostle Paul sums the meritorious work of Christ this way, "God was manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up in glory." (1 Timothy 3:16) In hell, when justice was satisfied, Jesus was "justified (declared righteous) in spirit." Now the Father could declare man righteous and legally freed from spiritual death. Now the Father had the right to impart life, His own nature, to the spirit of man. (2 Peter 1:4) Notice, "even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved). (Ephesians 2:5) "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." (Colossians 2:13)
Hell could not hold Him. When man's sin was paid for by Jesus, Peter tells us, "For You will not leave my soul in Hades, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption, (His body in Joseph of Arimathea's tomb). (Acts 2:27) Paul tells us, "and what is the exceeding greatness of His (God's) power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,
far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come." (Ephesians 1:19-21)
Now that man has been redeemed, made alive, declared righteous in Christ, the Father has "raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus." (Ephesians 2:6) Now it is up to us, all believers. Our Heavenly Father desires us to take what is legally ours and in the Name of Jesus put every enemy of ours under our feet that we might reign as kings with Him. (Romans 5:17) The identification of man with Christ has destroyed the work of Satan in humanity. This means that no person on planet earth ever needs be identified with the first Adam, but can live, can have abundant life now through Jesus Christ, the second Adam.
So, let us rid ourselves of the lies of still being sinners, of never being able to please God, of unworthiness, of failure and weakness. Let us, "Put off the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, (our identification with the first Adam) and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man (our identification with Jesus, the second Adam) which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness." (Ephesians 4:22-24) PTL...
When Christ sat down at the Father's right hand, man had been perfectly redeemed because he had been legally identified with Christ in His redemptive work. (Romans 4:25, 5:1-2) Now man, by faith in Jesus Christ has a new identity. "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." (2 Corinthians 5:17) Let us look at how the believers new identity from spiritual death to life in Christ Jesus unfolds. To discover these thing, we look to the Pauline epistles, where we find the greatest revelation of the believers identification in Christ.
" Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin." (Romans 6:6) "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Galatians 2:20) On the cross, God made Jesus to become sin for us. (2 Corinthians 5:21) It was our spiritual death and our sin nature that He bore. He became identified with us on the cross as our Substitute.
"For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection...Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him." (Romans 6:5, 8) When Jesus died, we died with Him. First, spiritual death was laid on His spirit, then He died physically, in the same manner that Adam died. Spiritual death is separation from God. It was spiritual death that eventually brought physical death to Adam and all people. (Romans 5:12) Jesus speaks of Himself to the people around Him at the tomb of Lazarus, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die." (John 11:25-26) Faith in Christ removes the sting of spiritual death and gives us eternal life.
So, as a result of His crucifixion mankind can now find their identity with and in Christ. When Jesus died, we died with Him. As His spirit left His physical body and went into hell we were identified with Him. Paul tells us, "Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death..." (Romans 6:4) "Having been buried with Him in baptism..." (Colossians 6:10) Baptism in these verses is a type of our burial with Christ. Though His body was laid in the tomb, (Matthew 27:57-61), His spirit suffered in hell as He paid the penalty that was due man. He could adequately pay man's penalty and meet the demands of justice because on the cross, He had become identified with man.
Keep in mind, the penalty He paid was not His, but man's. In the mind of God, it was you and I there in that place of torment, bearing the judgment that was due us. On the basis of this identification the person who confesses with their mouth the Lord Jesus Christ and takes Him as Savior, receives the redemptive work of Christ, and will not go to hell but goes free. However, the person who refuses Christ's redemption on his behalf must go there. Also, always remember that hell was never meant for man. It is a person's freedom of choice to refuse God's redemptive work though Christ, that puts him there. In other words, a person can chose hell over heaven, darkness over light, Satan over Christ. Therefore, it is a person's decision as to where they go for eternity, not God's.
Next, we see the satisfaction of man's penalty paid for by Christ in hell. The Apostle Paul sums the meritorious work of Christ this way, "God was manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up in glory." (1 Timothy 3:16) In hell, when justice was satisfied, Jesus was "justified (declared righteous) in spirit." Now the Father could declare man righteous and legally freed from spiritual death. Now the Father had the right to impart life, His own nature, to the spirit of man. (2 Peter 1:4) Notice, "even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved). (Ephesians 2:5) "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." (Colossians 2:13)
Hell could not hold Him. When man's sin was paid for by Jesus, Peter tells us, "For You will not leave my soul in Hades, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption, (His body in Joseph of Arimathea's tomb). (Acts 2:27) Paul tells us, "and what is the exceeding greatness of His (God's) power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,
far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come." (Ephesians 1:19-21)
Now that man has been redeemed, made alive, declared righteous in Christ, the Father has "raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus." (Ephesians 2:6) Now it is up to us, all believers. Our Heavenly Father desires us to take what is legally ours and in the Name of Jesus put every enemy of ours under our feet that we might reign as kings with Him. (Romans 5:17) The identification of man with Christ has destroyed the work of Satan in humanity. This means that no person on planet earth ever needs be identified with the first Adam, but can live, can have abundant life now through Jesus Christ, the second Adam.
So, let us rid ourselves of the lies of still being sinners, of never being able to please God, of unworthiness, of failure and weakness. Let us, "Put off the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, (our identification with the first Adam) and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man (our identification with Jesus, the second Adam) which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness." (Ephesians 4:22-24) PTL...
Monday, May 16, 2016
Who Am I
There is an issue that has damaged many people's lives in today's societies that deals with identity, it's called "identity thief." Identity thief is defined as "the fraudulent acquisition and use of a person's private identifying information, usually for financial gain." There is also another issue that deals with ones identity found within the world of psychology, called "identity crisis." This has been defined as "the failure
to achieve ego identity during adolescence; a period
of uncertainty and confusion in which a person's sense of identity
becomes insecure." Both of these identity issues are the result of a satanically influenced, fallen world.
In the Garden of Eden, God made man in His own image and likeness. (Genesis 1:26) However, when Adam sinned against God, he actually lost his identity. He had now taken on the identity of his new father, Satan. Jesus clear reveals this in one of His confrontations with the religious leaders during His ministry on earth as the Son of Man, "You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it." (John 8:44) Adam as the representative of all humanity has caused the entire human race to take on this fallen satanic nature. Jesus warns us today, "The thief (Satan) does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy..." (John 10:10) From the fall, man is now faced with a stolen identity which has led him into an identity crisis. Although man lost his identity, God has made a way for him to once again be identified with his Creator, God Himself, through faith in Jesus Christ.
What fallen man does not comprehend and many believers have not found, is that the spirit is who we really are. The body is not the real person, it is merely the vehicle in which the spirit lives. The soul (mind, will and emotions) is also not the real person. Simply remove one the five senses, and the mind loses its ability to learn and grow. If all five senses are removed, the mind is rendered completely useless. The Apostle Paul tells us, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God..." (2 Corinthians 5:17-18) The Apostle Peter tells us, "...that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature..." (2 Peter 1:4) Man could not be a partaker of God's divine nature (God is Spirit, John 4:24), if man were not recreated.
As a sinner, man is called "the old man" (Ephesians 4:22), who cannot approach God (Ephesians 2:12-13) except through Christ. However, when one comes to Christ, he/she receives a new identity. He become a new man. (Ephesians 4:24) God has recreated him. The old man has stopped being, and the new man has taken its place. The o1d man was born of the spiritually dead satanic nature. The new man is born of the very nature of God the Father. The believer no longer needs to identify with the old nature, because God has recreated a new one. The identity crisis is over. The stolen identity has been restored. Man in Christ is returned to his true identity, a partaker of the divine nature.
Think about this; the old creation had no standing with God. The new creation that God started on the Day of Pentecost can now stand in the Father's presence as though sin had never been. As Paul reveals, the new creation man has become the righteousness of God in Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:17) This is why it is so imperative to develop the recreated human spirit, through the Word of God, (Romans 10:17), so the believer can know his identity in Christ. Paul tells us, "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Galatians 2:20) Notice, "it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me." Paul no longer identifies himself with his old sinful nature, but identifies himself with his new recreated nature, that of Jesus Christ.
Way to often from pulpits, believers hear how they are nothing more than sinners. This is the cause of many believers having an identity crisis. As we see in the scriptures above, the recreated person in Christ is just that, in Christ, not in the devil. "God has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love." (Colossians 1:13) "For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God." (Colossians 3:3) How can a person be delivered from darkness and be hidden in Christ if he or she were a sinner? "To declare that the Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him." (Psalm 92:15 - also see John 7:18) It is unrighteousness (sin) that keeps people from God. If believers were still sinners, then they would not be permitted in the presence of God. However, the writer of Hebrews says, "Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16)
The fact is, Christ became as we were, so that we might become as He is. He died so that we could live. (John 10:10) He was made sin, to make us righteous. (2 Corinthians 5:21) He became weak, to make us strong. (Philippians 4:13) He suffered shame, to give us glory. (John 17:17) He was condemned, so we could be justified. (Romans 5:1) He was made sick, so we could have health and healing. (1 Peter 2:24) He was forsaken by the Father and went to hell, in order to take us to heaven. (Acts 2:27) In Christ the believer finds his/her new and true identity. So let us no longer be rob of who we truly are and know "...as He is, so are we in this world." (1 John 4:17) PTL!!!
In the Garden of Eden, God made man in His own image and likeness. (Genesis 1:26) However, when Adam sinned against God, he actually lost his identity. He had now taken on the identity of his new father, Satan. Jesus clear reveals this in one of His confrontations with the religious leaders during His ministry on earth as the Son of Man, "You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it." (John 8:44) Adam as the representative of all humanity has caused the entire human race to take on this fallen satanic nature. Jesus warns us today, "The thief (Satan) does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy..." (John 10:10) From the fall, man is now faced with a stolen identity which has led him into an identity crisis. Although man lost his identity, God has made a way for him to once again be identified with his Creator, God Himself, through faith in Jesus Christ.
What fallen man does not comprehend and many believers have not found, is that the spirit is who we really are. The body is not the real person, it is merely the vehicle in which the spirit lives. The soul (mind, will and emotions) is also not the real person. Simply remove one the five senses, and the mind loses its ability to learn and grow. If all five senses are removed, the mind is rendered completely useless. The Apostle Paul tells us, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God..." (2 Corinthians 5:17-18) The Apostle Peter tells us, "...that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature..." (2 Peter 1:4) Man could not be a partaker of God's divine nature (God is Spirit, John 4:24), if man were not recreated.
As a sinner, man is called "the old man" (Ephesians 4:22), who cannot approach God (Ephesians 2:12-13) except through Christ. However, when one comes to Christ, he/she receives a new identity. He become a new man. (Ephesians 4:24) God has recreated him. The old man has stopped being, and the new man has taken its place. The o1d man was born of the spiritually dead satanic nature. The new man is born of the very nature of God the Father. The believer no longer needs to identify with the old nature, because God has recreated a new one. The identity crisis is over. The stolen identity has been restored. Man in Christ is returned to his true identity, a partaker of the divine nature.
Think about this; the old creation had no standing with God. The new creation that God started on the Day of Pentecost can now stand in the Father's presence as though sin had never been. As Paul reveals, the new creation man has become the righteousness of God in Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:17) This is why it is so imperative to develop the recreated human spirit, through the Word of God, (Romans 10:17), so the believer can know his identity in Christ. Paul tells us, "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Galatians 2:20) Notice, "it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me." Paul no longer identifies himself with his old sinful nature, but identifies himself with his new recreated nature, that of Jesus Christ.
Way to often from pulpits, believers hear how they are nothing more than sinners. This is the cause of many believers having an identity crisis. As we see in the scriptures above, the recreated person in Christ is just that, in Christ, not in the devil. "God has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love." (Colossians 1:13) "For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God." (Colossians 3:3) How can a person be delivered from darkness and be hidden in Christ if he or she were a sinner? "To declare that the Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him." (Psalm 92:15 - also see John 7:18) It is unrighteousness (sin) that keeps people from God. If believers were still sinners, then they would not be permitted in the presence of God. However, the writer of Hebrews says, "Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16)
The fact is, Christ became as we were, so that we might become as He is. He died so that we could live. (John 10:10) He was made sin, to make us righteous. (2 Corinthians 5:21) He became weak, to make us strong. (Philippians 4:13) He suffered shame, to give us glory. (John 17:17) He was condemned, so we could be justified. (Romans 5:1) He was made sick, so we could have health and healing. (1 Peter 2:24) He was forsaken by the Father and went to hell, in order to take us to heaven. (Acts 2:27) In Christ the believer finds his/her new and true identity. So let us no longer be rob of who we truly are and know "...as He is, so are we in this world." (1 John 4:17) PTL!!!
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