My Heart, Christ’s Home…

If you are a born-again child of God, then your life is no longer your own to live as you choose; but you have been bought with a price, which is the precious blood of Jesus that was poured out on Calvary’s Cross…

We each initially invite Christ into our life as a guest, until we make Him our Lord.

My Heart, Christ’s Home (part 1)

My Heart, Christ’s Home (part 2)

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We much each learn to say as Paul said.

Galatians 2:20

20 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.

Romans 6:9-14
The Message

6-11 Could it be any clearer? Our old way of life was nailed to the cross with Christ, a decisive end to that sin-miserable life—no longer captive to sin’s demands!

What we believe is this: If we get included in Christ’s sin-conquering death, we also get included in his life-saving resurrection.

We know that when Jesus was raised from the dead it was a signal of the end of death-as-the-end.

Never again will death have the last word.

When Jesus died, he took sin down with him, but alive he brings God down to us.

From now on, think of it this way: Sin speaks a dead language that means nothing to you; God speaks your mother tongue, and you hang on every word.

You are dead to sin and alive to God. That’s what Jesus did.

12-14 That means you must not give sin a vote in the way you conduct your lives.

Don’t give it the time of day. Don’t even run little errands that are connected with that old way of life.

Throw yourselves wholeheartedly and full-time—remember, you’ve been raised from the dead!—into God’s way of doing things.

Sin can’t tell you how to live.

After all, you’re not living under that old tyranny any longer. You’re living in the freedom of God.
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The Gospel’s Way to Holy Living (Romans 6)…

What Paul had said at the close of chapter 5—that grace superabounded over all man’s sin—raises another question, and a very important one.

Does the teaching of the gospel (salvation by grace through faith) permit or even encourage sinful living?

The answer, an emphatic denial, extends over chapters 6–8.

Here in chapter 6 the answer centers around three key words: know (vv. 3, 6), reckon or consider (v. 11), and present (v. 13).

It will help us to follow Paul’s argument in this chapter if we understand the difference between the believer’s position and his practice.

His position is his standing in Christ. His practice is what he is or should be in everyday life.

Grace puts us into the position, then teaches us to walk worthy of it.

Our position is absolutely perfect because we are in Christ.

Our practice should increasingly correspond to our position.

It never will correspond perfectly until we see the Savior in heaven, but we should be becoming more and more conformed to His image in the meantime.

The apostle first sets forth the truth of our identification with Christ in death and resurrection, and then exhorts us to live in the light of this great truth.

Because sin brings death, we need new life through oneness with Christ.

In this chapter, Paul assures his readers a second time that God has broken sin’s power.

We have joined Jesus Christ in baptism (6:3) and have been united with Him in His death (6:5).

Paul uses relational terms in describing how we grow closer to Christ as we transfer from the old life to the new.

When we were united with Christ in his death, our evil desires and slavery to sin died with Him.

Now, united by faith with Him in His resurrection life, we have unbroken fellowship with God and freedom from sin’s hold on us.

The power of sin over us, as well as the penalty for sin, died with Christ on the cross.

Our “old sinful selves,” our sinful nature, died once and for all, so we are freed from its power.

The “power of sin” refers to our rebellious, sin-loving nature inherited from Adam.

Though we often willingly cooperate with our sinful nature, the desire to do so comes from our old nature.

And it is this power of sin at work in our lives that is defeated.

Paul has already stated that through faith in Christ we stand acquitted, having been declared not guilty before God.

Here Paul emphasizes that we need no longer live under sin’s power.

God does not take us out of the world or make us robots—we will still feel like sinning, and sometimes we will sin.

The difference is that before we were saved we were slaves to our sinful nature, but now we can choose to live for Christ (see Galatians 2:20).

Because of Christ’s death and resurrection, His followers need never fear death.

That assurance frees us to enjoy fellowship with Him and to do His will.

This affects all our activities—work and worship, play, Bible study, quiet times, and time spent caring for others.

When you know that you don’t have to fear death, you will experience a new vitality in life.

“Consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin” means that each day we should regard our old, sinful nature as dead and unresponsive to sin.

Because of our union and identification with Christ, we are no longer bound to carry out those old motives, desires, and goals.

So let us consider ourselves to be what God has in fact made us.

We have new life through oneness with Christ, and the Holy Spirit will help us become all that Christ has declared us to be.

How can we keep this command to not let sin control the way we live, to not give in to its desires?

We can take the following steps:

(1) Identify our personal weaknesses,

(2) Recognize the things that tempt us,

(3) Stay away from sources of temptation,

(4) Practice self-restraint,

(5) Consciously invest our time in good habits and service,

(6) Lean on God’s strength and grace, and

(7) Let the peace of Christ fill our hearts.

The Greek word translated “instrument” can refer to a tool or a weapon.

Our skills, capabilities, and bodies can serve many purposes, good or bad.

Sin makes every part of our bodies vulnerable to attack. But when Christ controls our new nature, every part can be an instrument for service.

The one to whom we offer our service is what makes the difference.

Give yourself completely to God, asking Him to put you to good use for His glory.

Selah (let us pause and calmly think about these things)

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Saturday, October 29
The Winning Walk
Dr Ed Young

BOUGHT AND PAID FOR

If you belong to Jesus Christ, you are not your own. The Bible says you have been bought and paid for with a price: the precious blood of Jesus Christ.

Let’s say you invite me to your home for lunch.

You clean up the house, cook a fabulous meal, and put the Bible out on the coffee table, since the pastor is coming.

I arrive in a paneled truck with a crew of workers, all of us in blue jeans.

We get out with paint cans and brushes, and we paint your house a rainbow of colors.

I also decide a wall or two needs knocking down, and your living room furniture needs re-arranging.

Then I ask you for the menu, and when you say we’re having spaghetti, I suggest pizza instead.

Finally you say to me, “What do you think you’re doing? I only invited you for lunch. You’re acting like this is your house and not mine.”

If you have been to Calvary and received Jesus Christ as your savior, the “house” that is your body does not belong to you any more.

It is not your house. It is God’s house. His Holy Spirit takes up residence in you. And He is well within His rights when He says things like,

“That ego has to go,” or “Those words don’t match what you say you believe.
Change them.”

Jesus Christ has paid the price for you, and you are not your own.

Memory Verse

I Corinthians 6:20
For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.
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