I have been crucified with
Christ… —Galatians 2:20
“Paul said, “I have been
crucified with Christ….” He did not say, “I have made a determination to
imitate Jesus Christ,” or, “I will really make an effort to follow Him” —but—
“I have been identified with Him in His death.” […] “…it is no longer I who
live….” My individuality remains, but my primary motivation for living and the
nature that rules me are radically changed. I have the same human body, but the
old satanic right to myself has been destroyed. “…and the life which I now live
in the flesh,” not the life which I long to live or even pray that I live, but
the life I now live in my mortal flesh— the life which others can see, “I live
by faith in the Son of God….” This faith was not Paul’s own faith in Jesus
Christ, but the faith the Son God had given to him (see Ephesians 2:8). It is
no longer a faith in faith, but a faith that transcends all imaginable limits—
a faith that comes only from the Son of God.”
CHAMBERS
Jesus called the Pharisees hypocrites. He did because they were living a lie. (Matthew
23:25-28) “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the
outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and
self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of
the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also. “Woe to you, scribes
and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the
outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all
uncleanness. So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you
are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.” They believed that what they were doing
was what living for God was all about.
The source of their life was not God it was their flesh. They praised God, but their hearts were not
devoted to God. They could tell others
how to live, but they, themselves, were not living the same way.
It is easy to condemn them,
but it is also very easy to slip into the same way of living. Being religious. Looking good – spiritual, to people who can’t
see your heart. Afraid that someone
might find out that we are not perfect.
Too late! Oh how I wish that God
had chosen another way for us after we are born again. How I wish that there was not a continued
struggle with my sin nature. But there
is something about our choosing that makes our following more precious to God. When you were in school, you studied
subjects. Some you liked and some you
did not. But the most important part of
the learning was not in the study .. or even in the grade your received … it
was in the application of what you learned.
Sometimes it was difficult to see what value the subjects had to
living. But there was actually a great
deal of thought that went into the decision to teach certain subjects. The knowledge was going to be important for
living, but only if applied. It is the
same way with Spiritual truth. The Word
is truth. But, it has little value if
not applied to living. That is where the
choosing comes in. The Pharisees chose
to not apply it to their lives but to use it as a club to oppress the
people. The Word gives life when applied
to the heart. Embrace the life that you
live by faith in Jesus. ELGIN
"The Love Of God"
The love of God is greater
far Than tongue or pen can ever tell It goes beyond the highest star And reaches to the lowest hell
The guilty pair, bowed down
with care God gave His Son to win His erring child He reconciled And pardoned from his sin
Could we with ink the ocean
fill And were the skies of parchment
made Were every stalk on earth a quill And every man a scribe by trade
To write the love of God
above Would drain the ocean dry Nor could the scroll contain the whole Though
stretched from sky to sky
O love of God, how rich and
pure! How measureless and strong! It shall forevermore endure The saints' and angels' song”
Charley Elgin
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