DRAWING NEAR
January 6
Identifying with Christ
God "has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the
heavenly places in Christ" (Eph. 1:3).
Christianity isn't simply a belief system--it's a whole new identity.
Many people mistakenly believe that one's religious preference is
irrelevant because all religions eventually lead to the same
spiritual destination.
Such thinking is sheer folly, however, because Scripture declares
that no one comes to God apart from Jesus (John 14:6). He is the only
source of salvation (Acts 4:12) and the only One powerful enough to
redeem us and hold us secure forever (John 10:28).
Every Christian shares a common supernatural union with Christ. Paul
said, "The one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him"
(1 Cor. 6:17). We are in Him and He is in us. His life flows through
us by His Spirit, who indwells us (Rom. 8:9).
As a non-Christian, you were in bondage to evil (Rom. 3:10-12),
enslaved to the will of Satan (1 John 5:19), under divine wrath (Rom.
1:18), spiritually dead (Eph. 4:17-18), and without hope (Eph. 2:12).
But at the moment of your salvation a dramatic change took place. You
became a new creation in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17), alive in Him (Eph.
2:5), enslaved to God (Rom. 6:22), and a recipient of divine grace
(Eph. 2:8). You were delivered out of the domain of darkness and
transferred into the kingdom of God's beloved Son (Col. 1:13). You
now possess His righteousness (2 Cor. 5:21) and share in His eternal
inheritance (Rom. 8:16-17).
All those blessings--and many more--are yours because you are in
Christ. What a staggering reality! In a sense what He is, you are.
What He has, you have. Where He is, you are.
When the Father sees you, He sees you in Christ and blesses you
accordingly. When others see you, do they see Christ in you? "Let
your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good
works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven" (Matt. 5:16).
Suggestions for Prayer:
Thank God for His marvelous grace in taking you from spiritual
death to spiritual life in Christ.
Ask Him for wisdom and discernment to live this day for His good
pleasure.
For Further Study:
Read the book of Ephesians, noting every occurrence of the phrase "in
Christ."
What has God accomplished in Christ?
What blessings are yours in Christ?
Drawing Near, Copyright 1993 John F. MacArthur, Jr.
All rights reserved. Used by permission.
http://www.gty.org
~~~
John 14:6 (NKJV)
6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one
comes to the Father except through Me."
Acts 4:12
12 Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name
under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.
John 10:28
28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish;
neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.
Romans 8:9
9 But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the
Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit
of Christ, he is not His.
Romans 3:10-12
10 As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one;
11 There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God.
12 They have all turned aside; They have together become
unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one."
1 John 5:19
19 We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the
sway of the wicked one.
Romans 1:18
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all
ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in
unrighteousness
Ephesians 4:17-18
17 This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should
no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of
their mind,
18 having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the
life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the
blindness of their heart
Ephesians 2:12
12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the
commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise,
having no hope and without God in the world.
2 Corinthians 5:17
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old
things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
Ephesians 2:5
5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with
Christ (by grace you have been saved)
Romans 6:22
22 But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves
of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting
life.
Ephesians 2:8
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of
yourselves; it is the gift of God
Colossians 1:13
13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us
into the kingdom of the Son of His love
2 Corinthians 5:21
21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might
become the righteousness of God in Him.
Romans 8:16-17
16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are
children of God,
17 and if children, then heirs; heirs of God and joint heirs with
Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified
together.
These devotions are posted with permission from John MacArthur's
first (1993) devotional work, _Drawing Near_, and they are also sent
out daily for free to several folks via e-mail.
In addition, John's second (1997) devotional, _Strength for Today_,
is also available free via e-mail only. _Strength for Today_ follows
the same format as what you have seen here from _Drawing Near_, but
with different monthly themes.
If you would like to receive daily devotions via e-mail from either
of these series, just let me know (via e-mail), and I will gladly add
you to the list(s) of your choice.
You can hear John MacArthur daily via the Internet by visiting:
http://www.oneplace.com/ministries/Grace_to_You/
and
http://www.gty.org.uk/
You may email John MacArthur in care of Grace to You at:
letters@gty.org
NOTE for those of you reading via newsgroups: If you wish to reach
me, please contact me via e-mail for quickest results.
In Christ,
Peter
Peter G. Chase :: Columbus, Ohio, USA
pchase@wowway.com
STOP! Who do you think Jesus is?
http://www.gty.org/Resources/Articles/2425
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There is a living God. He has spoken in His word. He means just what he says, and will do all that He has promised. - Hudson Taylor
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