1 Chronicles 1-3
John 5:25-47
“When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins...” Colossians 2:13
What were we like before Jesus Christ came into our life? We were dead in our sins, cut off from the life of God, hopeless and helpless. Even if we wanted to do good, our sinful nature would drag us back into sin. We could try our hardest to live a righteous life, but we could not do it 100% of the time. Whether we have sinned a little bit or a lot, we were dead because of our sins. Yet, while we were in this state, God made us alive in Christ.
Paul tells us, “At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Saviour appeared, He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Saviour, so that, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:3-7). What Paul illuminates is that the gospel does not make bad people good; it makes dead people live again. No matter who we are or what we have done, Christ came for us.
Through Jesus’s death on the cross, God forgave us of all our sins, cancelling the charge of our legal indebtedness that stood against us and condemned us. Every time we lashed out in anger, lied, lusted, stole, cheated or gossiped, Jesus took all those sins away. We are wiped clean and restored back to life because of what Jesus did on the cross but that is not the end of the news. Too many Christians stop at the cross; they take their forgiveness and then live for themselves as they look forward to eternity. Hence, Paul brings our focus back to Christ, saying, “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” (Colossians 3:1-2).
With our new life in Christ, bought by the blood of Jesus Christ, we are not to live however we want. There is a fundamental change that happens within us that demands that we live differently than before—we are now heirs. May we “live a life worthy of the Lord and please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God...” (Colossians 1:10).
Dear Jesus Christ, thank You for saving me by dying on the cross. I want to live in a manner that pleases You.
Praise You!
John 5:25-47
“When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins...” Colossians 2:13
What were we like before Jesus Christ came into our life? We were dead in our sins, cut off from the life of God, hopeless and helpless. Even if we wanted to do good, our sinful nature would drag us back into sin. We could try our hardest to live a righteous life, but we could not do it 100% of the time. Whether we have sinned a little bit or a lot, we were dead because of our sins. Yet, while we were in this state, God made us alive in Christ.
Paul tells us, “At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Saviour appeared, He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Saviour, so that, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:3-7). What Paul illuminates is that the gospel does not make bad people good; it makes dead people live again. No matter who we are or what we have done, Christ came for us.
Through Jesus’s death on the cross, God forgave us of all our sins, cancelling the charge of our legal indebtedness that stood against us and condemned us. Every time we lashed out in anger, lied, lusted, stole, cheated or gossiped, Jesus took all those sins away. We are wiped clean and restored back to life because of what Jesus did on the cross but that is not the end of the news. Too many Christians stop at the cross; they take their forgiveness and then live for themselves as they look forward to eternity. Hence, Paul brings our focus back to Christ, saying, “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” (Colossians 3:1-2).
With our new life in Christ, bought by the blood of Jesus Christ, we are not to live however we want. There is a fundamental change that happens within us that demands that we live differently than before—we are now heirs. May we “live a life worthy of the Lord and please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God...” (Colossians 1:10).
Dear Jesus Christ, thank You for saving me by dying on the cross. I want to live in a manner that pleases You.
Praise You!
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