2 Corinthians 10:3-5 NKJV “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh.  For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God.”

We face situations on a daily basis that fall into the category of “battles”. Health issues, marital issues, financial issues, children’s issues, career and business issues, just to mention a few. They could be daunting. But our winning or losing the battle (s) is very much dependent on our focus: the external forces or our internal armory.  As a child of God, you have residing inside of your spirit-being, He that is greater than the devil and all his cohorts (1 John 4:4). You have to renew your mind (Romans 12:2) to the truth that in Christ Jesus, you are more than conqueror (Romans 8:37). In Christ Jesus, you are an overcomer. In Christ Jesus you triumph always (2 Corinthians 2:14). You will never be defeated as long as you keep your focus on Jesus Christ, the author and finisher of your faith (Hebrews 12:2). God, who is in you, is greater than anything you will ever face. The Greater One is in you! You must resist and cast down any contrary thought the enemy might try to place in your mind (2 Corinthians 10:5). The battle ground is in the mind. That is where the battle is won or lost! David understood this principle as he confronted and defeated Goliath (1 Samuel 17:45-46).

 

Galatians 2:20 “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless, I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

For a believer in Christ Jesus, living a life of sacrifice is to live your life totally for Christ. You live as commanded by God in His word and as led by the Holy Spirit. You die to your old life and on a daily basis you resist temptation and crucify (put to death) sinful desires that keep you from following Christ (Luke 9:23). God wants us to offer ourselves as living sacrifices, daily laying aside our desires to follow him; putting all our resources at His disposal and trusting Him to guide us; doing this out of gratitude that our sins have been forgiven (Romans 12:1).  Jesus Christ is our perfect example of living a life of sacrifice. While He was here on earth, He did nothing of Himself, but acted in total surrender to the instructions of God, the Father, seeking only the will of His Father who sent Him (John 5:30). Remember, as a believing Christian, you have been crucified with Christ, and the life you now live should be by faith in Christ, who loved you and gave Himself for you (Galatians 2:20). Whenever God asks us to do something it will entail a sacrifice, and when we make that sacrifice in obedience, the door of the miraculous is opened unto us!

Luke 1:37 ‘For with God nothing shall be impossible.”

What a statement! If we just believed this, how different our lives would be! From birth we are trained to know our limitations. There are limits to everything, in the natural. It is a fact of life. But God has no limits. When we enter into the realm of the supernatural, we have to take off all the limits. We have to renew our minds with the truth that God is not like us. He can do anything.  We have an awesome God whose power is so great that we cannot even comprehend it. He created the universe effortlessly by the spoken word. Yet many times we find ourselves wondering if our situation is too hard for the Lord. We cannot see how even God can pull us through. Jeremiah says of the Lord “Ah Lord God! Behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee:” Jeremiah 32:17. The Lord said to Jeremiah, ‘Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there anything too hard for me?’ (Jeremiah 32:27). The answer is a resounding NO! The only thing that limits God is our unbelief (Deuteronomy 7:17-19, Psalm 78:41). As a believer, redeemed by the finished work of redemption in Jesus Christ, you are commanded and commissioned to live by faith which is a life that trusts in God’s word (Romans 1:17). Craig Groeschel says “You don’t have to know every answer to every question to trust Jesus. It will always take faith.” Today, let us honor God by believing that nothing is too difficult for Him.

1 Peter 1:8 ESV “Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory,”

Being a Christian is not supposed to be a burden but a delight. You are supposed to enjoy your salvation. Our enemy, through his lies, tries to give us a different picture. This does not mean we will never face tests or trials, but the promise of God is that we can have peace and joy even when we face trouble, because the Lord is with us and taking care of us (John 16:33). Joy is an important part of God’s provision for your life to be fulfilled. Just as God has provided air for you to breathe, God has provided joy for you. Joy should be the atmosphere in which you live (Romans 14:17). This will not happen if you focus on your circumstances. We must focus on Jesus to keep from having our joy stolen from us. The choice is ours. The joy of the Lord is given to us by His grace. It is not something we earn or achieve. But, like everything we are given by God’s grace, it must be received by faith (Romans 5:2). Instead of allowing our human feelings and circumstances to rule us, we should choose to rejoice in the Lord. Then we will experience His overflowing joy (John 15:11). The Word of God has been given to us so that we may have the joy of the Lord. God’s Word (the Bible) was not given to put you into bondage, but to make you free (John 8:31-32). Your life is not meant to be a constant struggle, but of joy. No matter how bad things may look around you, you can always rejoice in the Lord (Philippians 4:4). If this does not describe your life, then you are missing out on the full provision God has made for you. You must constantly remind yourself that you have the joy the Lord, you are full of joy, joy is flowing in your life, and you live in joy!

 

Luke 23:18 “And they cried out all at once, saying, Away with this man, and release unto us Barabbas:”
What happened to Barabbas is a picture of what happens when a person is born again. Barabbas was guilty; Jesus was innocent. Yet Jesus suffered the death that Barabbas should have experienced, and Barabbas went free.
Likewise, we were all guilty (Romans. 3:23) and condemned to death (Romans 6:23), yet Jesus suffered our punishment so that we may go free (2 Corinthians 5:21). Just as Barabbas did not ask for this substitution, so ' God commended his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us' (Romans 5:8). Barabbas was freed, but he had to choose whether to accept this new status and remain free or go back to his old ways and come under the judgment of Rome again. Likewise, we have all been freed through the substitutionary death of Jesus, but we must choose whether to accept our freedom by putting faith in Jesus or to reject it, by denying Him. Our death to sin and resurrection to life with Christ is already a reality in our spirits but will only become a physical reality when we know and believe it. In the same way that Jesus died unto sin once, and death no longer has dominion over Him, the person who recognizes their death with Christ unto sin, will not allow sin to rule over him or her anymore. Any Christian who is struggling with sin has not recognized that they are dead unto sin.