CHRIST IN YOU, THE HOPE OF GLORY
To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among you: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Colossians 1:27
Without the Lord Jesus Christ residing in your heart and life there is absolutely no hope for your future and no eternal glory! The mystery of salvation is the new birth of the divine seed being planted in one's heart and growing up into a vineyard of the sons of God.
After thirty years of ministry I have come to the conclusion that no one can be changed by human means, only by the transformation of the mind and heart of man by the cleansing power of the blood of Jesus can the world truly be made a new creation. One cannot change a people politically, by voting. The issues of abortion, homosexuality, child abuse, drug and alcohol addiction, pornography and the like can only be changed by the washing of the blood of Jesus Christ and the anointing of His Spirit.
The world is sin-sick, lost and sinking into a deep depravity, a literal cesspool of filth caused by a defecting from their Creator. Prideful arrogance and selfish ambition and religious ritual have polluted mankind leaving him totally ignorant of the things of God! Science, medical miracles, and the electronic age have further caused man to move farther away from his only hope for redemption.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold all things have become new. II Corinthians 5:17
IS CHRIST IN YOU?
"Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." John 3:3
When one experiences being born again by the Spirit he begins to live a life outside the confines of the natural world and a spiritual being is created within his soul. Just as an earthly child is born and immediately wants to be fed, so also the spiritual child longs for the pure milk of the Word.
Praying a prayer without conviction, being baptized, joining the church or going to Sunday school or even taking mass or communion does not make a Christian. Only by the "Divine seed" being planted in one's heart can he become a new creation in Christ. One of the signs of one experiencing the new birth is old things begin to pass away. As Jesus begins to set up house cleaning in His new temple He begins to throw out the old and replace it with all new furnishings.
If the Lord Jesus Christ resides within you, your desires will change, your old habits will begin to disappear and you will instinctively want to do the things that Christ does. The true Christian does not live by rules and regulations anymore such as "Thou shall not" because the laws of God have become fulfilled in Christ and they are now written on your heart.
If you have believed on the Lord Jesus Christ and have repented of your sins and iniquities and received His cleansing through the blood He shed for you, then you are a brand new born again spiritual being and the Spirit of God now resides within you. You are the temple of God, you no longer go to church because you are the church. You have become a priest of the most high God, anointed with His Holy Spirit and given divine revelation of His word.
Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. I Peter 2:4,5
A CHOSEN GENERATION
But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. I Peter 2:9
You are no longer a mere mortal barely existing to survive, you have been transformed by the regeneration of His Spirit and His word to become a supernatural generation of priests who are anointed with the Holy Spirit to minister to the Father of lights. Invited to come into the very throne room of God, we as His holy priesthood have been given access to His divine presence.
As spiritual sons and daughters we can come before the Father at any time to receive His mercy and grace, or to speak to Him about our circumstances just as we would with our earthly fathers. In the old testament the priests would offer sacrifices of animals for the people and the high priest would enter the Holy of hollies into the presence of God. Today we have a High Priest who has gone before us to become the sacrifice for us and to reign forever, interceding for His holy priests on earth.
Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace that we may find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 4:14-16
I beseech you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. Romans 12:1
Our sacrifice to God is our life, given freely to the One who died and was raised for us. As Jesus was the sacrifice for our sin, we in turn give our life in godly service back to Him. The laying down of one's life is a great sacrifice to make, but in light of what He has done for us, well worth the loss of any worldly gain.
To become a born again Christian is to become Christlike in every aspect of our lives as the Spirit transforms us into His very image. The body of Christ is His presence in the earth, the representation of Jesus alive doing the same things He did when He was in bodily form, setting the captives free! As His ambassadors we have the responsibility to continue His kingdom here on earth until He returns.
Heal the sick, cast out demons, raise the dead and preach the gospel (the good news of His saving grace) to the poor is our mission in life, we no longer are bound to this earthly realm. Our commission as soldiers of Christ is to make disciples of all nations, exact replicas of the Lord Jesus Christ. Freely you have received, freely give!
As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. Colossians 2:6,7
Your servant in Christ, Tim Laughlin