Life, 3of5

~ Life From Jesus Christ ~   

The Life Imparted  ~  “I am the door.  If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.  The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.  I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:9-10). 

“And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:30-31).

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). 

The Life Possessed  ~  “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.” (John 3:36).

“And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.  He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.  These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God” (1 John 5:11-13).

The Life Exhibited  ~  “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.  We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.  For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh” (2 Corinthians 4:7-11).

“For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God.  I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.  I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain” (Galatians 2:19-21). 

The Life in Fruition  ~  “Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began, but has in due time manifested His word through preaching, which was committed to me according to the commandment of God our Savior” (Titus 1:1-3).

“But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life” (Jude 20-21). 

“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” (Romans 6:22).

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW

NOTES:

(1)     The current TOP 10 ALN posts are listed at the very bottom of this home page.

(2)     There is an INDEX of all ALN posts accessed by scrolling down the left column.

(3)     You may LINK to any ALN posts on your own blog or website. 

(4)     You may COPY any ALN post, but please credit ALN as the source by prominently displaying the following statement:  Reprinted from “Abundant Life Now,” a free blog which offers inspiring moments, thought-provoking comments, and solid Biblical insight at http://RobertLloydRussell.blogspot.com/ .

Identity In Christ, 175of175

~ “Whose You Are” Is More Important Than “Who You Are”! ~

Throughout this Monday series of 175 posts (beginning on January 5, 2015 through today, June 18, 2018) we looked at our “Identity in Christ.”  As a summary to the series, this final post looks at a few consequences of our Identity in Christ. 

In Christ We Have Been Accepted Into God’s Family  ~  “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved” (Ephesians 1:3-6).

In Christ We Have A Down Payment  ~  “Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ.  He anointed us, set His seal of ownership on us, and put His Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come” (2 Corinthians 1:21-22).  “Now it is God who has made us for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come” (2 Corinthians 5:5).  “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation.  Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—to the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:13-14). 

note:  “Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us” (2 Timothy 1:14).

In Christ We Have An Endowment  ~  ”And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).  “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (2 Peter 1:2-4).

In Christ We Have An Inheritance   ~  “In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:11-12).

In Christ We Are Eternally Secure  ~  “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand” (John 10:27-28).  

In Christ We Have Eternal Life With God  ~  Jesus said, “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.  In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you.  I go to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:1-4). 

Summary of This Series  ~  While there are many important aspects of our “Identity in Christ” here are some that stand out to me:

1)      Knowing your “Identity in Christ” is the divine cure for insecurity!

2)      The key aspect of my significance is my position in Jesus Christ.  He called me “out of darkness and into His marvelous light” and made me part of His “royal priesthood” (1 Peter 2:9). 

3)      Jesus Christ has given me, and each of His children, various grace gifts (1 Peter 4:10) and He is continuing to work in me and through me (Ephesians 2:10). 

4)      Understanding your “Identity in Christ” is essential for victorious Christian living! 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW

NOTES:

(1)     The current TOP 10 ALN posts are listed at the very bottom of this home page.

(2)     There is an INDEX of all ALN posts accessed by scrolling down the left column.

(3)     You may LINK to any ALN posts on your own blog or website. 

(4)     You may COPY any ALN post, but please credit ALN as the source by prominently displaying the following statement:  Reprinted from “Abundant Life Now,” a free blog which offers inspiring moments, thought-provoking comments, and solid Biblical insight at http://RobertLloydRussell.blogspot.com/ .

Best & Worst Fathers

~ Consider Father Extremes ~

The Father Wound  ~  Many throughout the world today suffer from various kinds of “father wounds.”  These wounds can be caused by an absent father or from physical, mental, or emotional abusiveness.  Suffering from father wounds can sometimes make it difficult to respond to a loving heavenly Father.  On the other hand the extreme contrast can also make it more joyous when a person understands God, the Father, and His great everlasting love for them. 

The Worst Father  ~  In our society today it is unfortunate that many are fiercely loyal to even the most abusive and brutal fathers.  This phenomena is even more prevalent in the spiritual world—loyalty to the worst of all fathers.  Jesus put it this way, “Why do you not understand My speech?  Because you are not able to listen to My word.  You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do.  He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him.  When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.  But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me” (John 8:43-46).

The Best Father  ~  God, the Father, is the exact opposite—He is the perfect Father. 

“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me’” (John 14:6).

“Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip?  He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, “Show us the Father?”  Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me?  The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works.  Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves’” (John 14:9-11). 

The Father Knows and Cares  ~  “Your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him” (Matthew 6:8b).  Jesus also said, “Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins?  And not one of them is forgotten before God.  But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.  Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows” (Luke 12:6-7). 

The New Testament has a number of examples of how this is carried out in real-life situations.  Two examples are the account of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32) and the shepherd who is missing one of his hundred sheep (Matthew 18:12-14). 

The Father’s Love  ~  “When the fullness of the time had come, God [the Father] sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:4-5). 

“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.  For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father’ [‘Daddy’ in our vernacular].  The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 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” (Romans 8:14-17). 

Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!” (1 John 3:1a).

Closing Comment  ~  While it is true that if you never knew your earthly father, or if your earthly father was abusive, the love of the heavenly Father can be difficult to understand.  God, the Father, knows that and loves you intimately.  Don’t let your earthly negative experiences cause you to miss out on all the extreme blessings that your heavenly Father has in store for you—if you come to Him.

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW

NOTES:

(1)     The current TOP 10 ALN posts are listed at the very bottom of this home page.

(2)     There is an INDEX of all ALN posts accessed by scrolling down the left column.

(3)     You may LINK to any ALN posts on your own blog or website. 

(4)     You may COPY any ALN post, but please credit ALN as the source by prominently displaying the following statement:  Reprinted from “Abundant Life Now,” a free blog which offers inspiring moments, thought-provoking comments, and solid Biblical insight at http://RobertLloydRussell.blogspot.com/ .