God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ… —Galatians 6:14
The gospel of Jesus Christ always forces a decision of our will. Have I accepted God’s verdict on sin as judged on the Cross of Christ? Do I have even the slightest interest in the death of Jesus? Do I want to be identified with His death— to be completely dead to all interest in sin, worldliness, and self? Do I long to be so closely identified with Jesus that I am of no value for anything except Him and His purposes? The great privilege of discipleship is that I can commit myself under the banner of His Cross, and that means death to sin. You must get alone with Jesus and either decide to tell Him that you do not want sin to die out in you, or that at any cost you want to be identified with His death. When you act in confident faith in what our Lord did on the cross, a supernatural identification with His death takes place immediately. And you will come to know through a higher knowledge that your old life was “crucified with Him” (Romans 6:6). The proof that your old life is dead, having been “crucified with Christ” (Galatians 2:20), is the amazing ease with which the life of God in you now enables you to obey the voice of Jesus Christ.
Every once in a while our Lord gives us a glimpse of what we would be like if it were not for Him. This is a confirmation of what He said— “…without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). That is why the underlying foundation of Christianity is personal, passionate devotion to the Lord Jesus. We mistake the joy of our first introduction into God’s kingdom as His purpose for getting us there. Yet God’s purpose in getting us into His kingdom is that we may realize all that identification with Jesus Christ means.
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December 23 2014
Journal Entry for Today-JDV
Lord, this devotional and song remind me about the power of surrender and connection to You. When we are surrendered and connected to You, we are able to live the abundant life You provided. Over the past few days and weeks You have been reminding me that when I surrender my own ideas and notions about how to live and prosper and turn everything over to You; the easy parts as well as the hard parts, the non spiritual and the spiritual, change occurs. Help me to live life surrendered and connected to You. Help me learn to live life with you in a way that I am totally surrendered, connected and dependent on You in all my ways.
And God says…”In day to day living, you have a tendency to think that you can handle certain aspects of your life….you think “I got this”; especially if it is a small thing or a “daily normal living activity” that you have lived out thousands of times. But what if you changed your thinking, and lived totally “on the edge”. What if I gave you a way to live totally dependent on Me in every aspect of your life, so you do not have to wait on dire circumstances or difficulties to feel very close to Me? What if you found a way to life surrendered and connected in every way?”
“I want a relationship with you; a daily living, connected, walking and talking relationship. So instead of waiting till your circumstances are so dire and potentially disastrous to trust Me completely, why don’t you take on more than you can chew every day? What if you take on more than you ever dreamed? Why not dream a dream so large that it requires you to surrender and be connected to me in every aspect of your life? If you step out into a dream or vision that I give you that is so large it can only be attained by surrender and trusting Me, you may not need those trying and difficult circumstances that have driven you closer to Me. Delight yourself in the Lord and I will give you the desires of your heart. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not rely on your own understanding and I will make your paths straight.”
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