In Christ we are:
*justified (Rom 3:24)
*no condemnation awaits us (Rom 8:1)
*set free from power of sin (Rom 8:)
*sanctified (1 Cor 1:2)
*pure and holy, as if we never sinned (1 Cor 1:30)
*given new life (1 Cor 15:22)
*made right with God, our righteousness is in HIM (2 Cor 5:21)
*one in Christ with other believers (Gal 3:28)
*have ALREADY BEEN GIVEN every spiritual blessing, benefit (Eph 1:3)
*adopted into family of God (Eph 1:5,6)
*forgiven (Eph 1:7)
*identified as belonging to God by the Holy Spirit (Eph 1:13)
*have ALREADY BEEN RAISED to sit with Christ in the heavenly realm (Eph 2:6)
*are God's Masterpiece, His Mona Lisa (Eph 2:10)
*can walk boldly and confidently into God's Presence (Eph 3:12)
*Made complete in Christ (Col 2:10)
*Have eternal glory (2 Tim 2:10)
What we have in Him we have to receive by Knowledge.
2 Peter 1:2-4 (Message)
“Grace and peace to you many times over as you deepen in your experience with God and Jesus, our Master. Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God. The best invitation we ever received! We were also given absolutely terrific promises to pass on to you—your tickets to participation in the life of God after you turned your back on a world corrupted by lust.”
“Grace and peace to you many times over as you deepen in your experience with God and Jesus, our Master. Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God. The best invitation we ever received! We were also given absolutely terrific promises to pass on to you—your tickets to participation in the life of God after you turned your back on a world corrupted by lust.”
I have heard the New Testament called the “Living Will” of God. It talks about every spiritual benefit, right, privilege, gift, and authority we have ALREADY been given in HIM as believers. It is impossible to operate in the power God has left us with if we live in ignorance. Hosea 4:6 says, “My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge...”
The reason I chose the Message’s translation in 1 Peter is because of the word “experience.”
Being in the Word is not about head knowledge, it is about heart change.
Spending time with God means you experience Him; you experience the power and faithfulness of His promises. As His daughter, the first time I ACTED on my head knowledge and told the devil to leave, my heart changed because it worked. The first time I obeyed God and loved the unlovely, my heart was flooded with light and LIFE, and my heart changed. My inner man has gained strength because as revelation increases, as God’s nature increases, and LIFE increases in my life, I decrease (John 3:30). I have experienced it; I can testify to it! It is real! The more we allow Christ (The Word) to dwell in our hearts the more we are “swallowed up, immersed, and overwhelmed” (Kenyon) in Love, Zoë, Light, Truth, and the very nature of God. I like Mark Hankins illustration of us becoming pioneers, blazing the trail into the deep uncharted places of God.
Being in the Word is not about head knowledge, it is about heart change.
Spending time with God means you experience Him; you experience the power and faithfulness of His promises. As His daughter, the first time I ACTED on my head knowledge and told the devil to leave, my heart changed because it worked. The first time I obeyed God and loved the unlovely, my heart was flooded with light and LIFE, and my heart changed. My inner man has gained strength because as revelation increases, as God’s nature increases, and LIFE increases in my life, I decrease (John 3:30). I have experienced it; I can testify to it! It is real! The more we allow Christ (The Word) to dwell in our hearts the more we are “swallowed up, immersed, and overwhelmed” (Kenyon) in Love, Zoë, Light, Truth, and the very nature of God. I like Mark Hankins illustration of us becoming pioneers, blazing the trail into the deep uncharted places of God.
Sign me up!
The deeper I go, the more knowledge I act upon, the more of His Living Will I take as my personal possession. For example, if my grandmother leaves me a diamond ring, I have to first know I own the ring. If a millionaire doesn't know he has any money he will continue to live as a pauper.
No thank you, I want what is mine!
However, the true joy from the ring does not come into fullness until I go, take action, and possess what is mine. The words “I can’t” and “God did not give ‘that gift', 'that faith', or 'that ability' to me,” are red flags that we need to go pick up THE WILL and see what God has given us.
God is no respector of persons.
Jesus did not die just so I can get my ticket to Heaven. He died to give me life and life more abundantly; He died so I can reign in this life (Rom 5:17). I want to unwrap every gift He died to give me, because I cannot be truly grateful for something I do not know is mine.
I love this quote by Smith Wigglesworth, “If a thing is in the Bible, then it is so; it is not even to be prayed about; it is to be received and acted upon."
QUESTIONS:
Which REALITY "IN Christ" makes you the most grateful?
Which REALITY "IN Christ" are you going to ask God to help you "unwrap" and totally receive as your own?
Part 2 is coming soon!!!
- Drew and 
Some have asked to read the paper, so I thought I'd share parts of it with you over the next few days. Warning: IF, and only IF you are interested, grab some coffee, a comfy seat, and stay tuned for Part 1 tomorrow!
