Genesis 1-3 / Matthew 1

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” Ephesians 1:3

The best thing that can happen to any person is to become united to Christ. The reasons are plentiful. As Paul says, "we are blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms," and there is nothing left out of that.

To be united with Christ is to be united with the Creator of the universe. John 1:2-3 says, "Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made." Paul tells us, "For in him all things were created; things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible…all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together" (Colossians 1:16-17). Jesus Christ is not only the Creator of the universe, but He is Himself the means by which the entire universe keeps in motion and functioning.

The great adventure of the Christian life is getting to know Jesus and the divine power we have in Him. It begins by progressing from knowing He is our Saviour, then our Lord, and more than that, He becomes our life. Jesus is the antithesis to all our failures and disillusionments. 2 Peter 1:3 says, "His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him." In union with Christ, we have wonderful freedom, because the more we come to know Him, the more we experience the unlimited resources we have in Him.

Complete dependence on the indwelling Spirit of Christ is what makes the Christian life liberating and secure. As we present all that we are to God and say, “Lord, by your Holy Spirit, take charge of my life,” the explanation for our lives then becomes God at work in us and through us. We could have all the money in the world, the greatest minds, the most sophisticated technology and the support of family and friends, but all this combined cannot promise to be to us all that we need in the time we need it.

For many of us, life can be like pushing a bus up a hill, and we cannot do it. Paul's prayers are always for spiritual truths to become experiential. They are about knowing, experiencing and drawing on the resources of Christ for every situation. At the beginning of this New Year, let us resolve to give Christ freedom to work in our lives, so that we push that bus up the hill in His strength. There comes a time when utterly secure and dependent on Christ, we reach the top and know with certainty we would not have made it were it not for our union with Christ.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, I cannot imagine a life without You. I pray that this New Year will deepen and strengthen my resolve to live in dependence on You. I thank You, Lord, for all that You are to me. Amen