As our focus on our self decreases, Christ increases within
us (John 3:30). Through His divine power, God gave us everything we
need to live a godly life. In our union with Jesus we possess and function
through His divine nature (2 Peter 1:3-4). We are God’s offspring and He
gave us the divine nature of Christ, which infuses every part of our body, soul
and spirit (Acts 17:28-19). We are transformed with
ever-increasing glory into His likeness (2 Corinthians 3:18; Romans 12:2).
Jesus is the exact image of God and contains all the
attributes and character of God (Colossians 1:15; 2 Corinthians 4:4). God
desires to bring forth His attributes and character within us too. In Him, we
live and move and have our total existence (Acts 17:28). He
dwells in us and works through us (2 Corinthians 6:16). We have
everything that Christ has, and all we have is His. Christ is glorified in us (John
17:10).
We are fully human, just as Jesus was on the earth; but we
also contain Christ in us, who is fully divine. In our union with Jesus we live
in His divine nature, and His divine nature manifests in and through us (2 Peter
1:4). God wants us to cease from our efforts, so we can enter into His rest
(Hebrews
4:10). We have the same chance, which Jesus did, of living a Spirit-filled
life (Galatians 5:16, 25).
Through experience in walking in God, we actually become
the love of Christ. We are filled throughout our entire body, soul and spirit
with all of God’s fullness. We possess the richest measure of His divine
presence within us, and we are wholly filled and flooded to overflowing with
God Himself (Ephesians 3:19, Amplified Bible). It is not
we who are able to do all things, but Christ in us, who does all things through
us (Philippians 4:13).
Christ uses us and works through us in His divine power.
All He wants us to do is to lay down our humanity and follow the leading of His
Spirit moment by moment throughout the day. Then, it is no longer us, but
Christ living in and through us (Galatians 2:20). His Holy Spirit sanctifies us
throughout our lifetime until we are perfected according to the quality of the
fullness of Christ’s stature (Ephesians 4:13).
Prayer:
Father God, when we dwell in Your love, we have faith. When
we walk in Your faith, we have hope. When we live in Your hope, we walk in
righteousness, peace and joy (Romans 14:17). Help us to lay down our life
and to follow the direction of Your Spirit throughout our day; so that we can
walk in Your works (John 10:38; Ephesians 2:8-10). Lead us
by Your Spirit and help us to cease from our own labors and to enter into Your
rest (Hebrews 4:10).
Thought for the Day:
Negative emotions illuminate the areas in our life where we
still have idols. As we repent of them, Christ takes them from us. Then, Satan
has fewer and fewer areas where he can hinder our walk in Christ.