Romans 6:1-14 "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into Hid death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should talk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 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. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace." Amazing grace how sweet the sound who saved a wretch like me! For I was blind but now I see. Everytime I hear this song it brings chills throughout my body, I close my eyes and listen around me to those singing the beauty of the words written about a grace that we so do not deserve, but was given freely by a God who loves us as His children. Since I did not come to know Christ until my 20's, I know the meaning of grace from living a life of sin, a life that I called my own. A life that I chose to live the way I saw fit. But through God's grace, He showed me a better way, a newer way, a free way to live, and to live abundently. My past, my sins have no hold over me anymore. I am a new creature in Christ. He lives in me now. He chose me, thats the part that is so hard to understand. Why did He chose me? There is one reason, and that reason is love, a mighty love that only God has to give. He showed us His amazing love in His death for our sins. His blood covered my dirty past, it covered my sins that were covering me, but once I came to Christ, He took that all away. He not only took it away but He remembers no more. Baptisism doesn't save us, we are saved when we ask Christ to come into our hearts, our baptisim is a picture, a symbol if you will of our sins being washed away, being under sin, and coming up washed, clean, and new. As Christ died for our sins and rose again, we too will die no more, but we will be given a life with Him forever. When I became saved, I no longer have to live in sin, I no longer desire to sin, but to live in Christ as He lives in me. When I sin, when I choose to live this way, when those days come that sin seems to take over, all I have to do is remember who my Father is, remember His death, and His resurrection, and no that I am no longer a slave to sin, sin has nothing over me anymore. We choose each day just how we live, and we need to choose to live for Christ, just as we are living for the very first time. Remember that day Christ came into your heart? You were overjoyed, you were on fire, you were a new person, the old was gone, so what happens to that feeling, where does it go? We allow this world, satan, and our selfish desires to take over, and Christ gets put on a shelf to the other things in our life. When we are not making Him our desire, our life, and our center, we are not going to have the feelings we did when we were saved. But when we are living for Him and He is the center, He points us in the direction we are to go, and the more we learn, the more we grow, and the more we grow the more we yearn for Him. We are alive and free because of a God who loves us, and chose to give His life for us. Sin is still a problem in our lives, but the amazing thing is we don't have to give in to it. It has no hold over us, we are free indeed. Turn our eyes away from the temptations, away from the sin, and recoginize that satan is out to kill us, to destroy us, and to lead us right into the path of sin. Satan has nothing on us, Christ took care of all that on the cross. He has already wrote the last chapter in the book, He knows how it all will end. He has taken care of our sin, our past, and wants us to have a future in Him, to live with Him, and to walk with Him. The choice is yours and mine to make. He doesn't force Himself, but is there for us waiting and knocking. Its our choice whether or not we open the door to His love and grace. If not for that grace, I would still be in chains to my sins, but He has taken those chaines off with each nail driven into Him. We have a gift, we have everything in Christ. Let go of this world and the things that are driving you away from Him, take hold of His grace and watch Him free you from your past. What are you waiting for?Tuesday, September 8, 2009
nothing but pure grace
Romans 6:1-14 "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into Hid death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should talk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 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. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace." Amazing grace how sweet the sound who saved a wretch like me! For I was blind but now I see. Everytime I hear this song it brings chills throughout my body, I close my eyes and listen around me to those singing the beauty of the words written about a grace that we so do not deserve, but was given freely by a God who loves us as His children. Since I did not come to know Christ until my 20's, I know the meaning of grace from living a life of sin, a life that I called my own. A life that I chose to live the way I saw fit. But through God's grace, He showed me a better way, a newer way, a free way to live, and to live abundently. My past, my sins have no hold over me anymore. I am a new creature in Christ. He lives in me now. He chose me, thats the part that is so hard to understand. Why did He chose me? There is one reason, and that reason is love, a mighty love that only God has to give. He showed us His amazing love in His death for our sins. His blood covered my dirty past, it covered my sins that were covering me, but once I came to Christ, He took that all away. He not only took it away but He remembers no more. Baptisism doesn't save us, we are saved when we ask Christ to come into our hearts, our baptisim is a picture, a symbol if you will of our sins being washed away, being under sin, and coming up washed, clean, and new. As Christ died for our sins and rose again, we too will die no more, but we will be given a life with Him forever. When I became saved, I no longer have to live in sin, I no longer desire to sin, but to live in Christ as He lives in me. When I sin, when I choose to live this way, when those days come that sin seems to take over, all I have to do is remember who my Father is, remember His death, and His resurrection, and no that I am no longer a slave to sin, sin has nothing over me anymore. We choose each day just how we live, and we need to choose to live for Christ, just as we are living for the very first time. Remember that day Christ came into your heart? You were overjoyed, you were on fire, you were a new person, the old was gone, so what happens to that feeling, where does it go? We allow this world, satan, and our selfish desires to take over, and Christ gets put on a shelf to the other things in our life. When we are not making Him our desire, our life, and our center, we are not going to have the feelings we did when we were saved. But when we are living for Him and He is the center, He points us in the direction we are to go, and the more we learn, the more we grow, and the more we grow the more we yearn for Him. We are alive and free because of a God who loves us, and chose to give His life for us. Sin is still a problem in our lives, but the amazing thing is we don't have to give in to it. It has no hold over us, we are free indeed. Turn our eyes away from the temptations, away from the sin, and recoginize that satan is out to kill us, to destroy us, and to lead us right into the path of sin. Satan has nothing on us, Christ took care of all that on the cross. He has already wrote the last chapter in the book, He knows how it all will end. He has taken care of our sin, our past, and wants us to have a future in Him, to live with Him, and to walk with Him. The choice is yours and mine to make. He doesn't force Himself, but is there for us waiting and knocking. Its our choice whether or not we open the door to His love and grace. If not for that grace, I would still be in chains to my sins, but He has taken those chaines off with each nail driven into Him. We have a gift, we have everything in Christ. Let go of this world and the things that are driving you away from Him, take hold of His grace and watch Him free you from your past. What are you waiting for?
