His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.

2 Peter 1:3-4
The truth of “Christ in you” is the theological fact God has most used to bring freedom, peace, joy, rest, grace, strength, etc., in my walk with him. Without the knowledge and experience of Christ’s personal presence, I would have quit the ministry, given up on the church, and forsaken all hope for victory over sin. The Spirit of Christ makes Christ’s hope available when I feel downcast, he assists my feeble attempts at ministry, and he is my constant knowledge of God’s love. Faith is the channel by which his his presence is made known and the avenue by which his life is manifest. Christ in you and me is our righteousness (acceptance before God), sanctification (Christian growth), and redemption (blood-bought freedom from slavery) (1 Cor. 1:30).

To be in Christ–that is redemption; but for Christ to be in you–that is sanctification! To be in Christ–that makes you fit for heaven; but for Christ to be in you –that makes you fit for earth! To be in Christ –that changes yours destination; but for Christ to be in you–that changes your destiny! The one makes heaven your home–the other makes this world His workshop.

The Command: Be Filled With the Spirit

And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit. Eph. 5:18

How badly do you want the Holy Spirit to work in and through you? How badly do you want his blessing, presence, and power? Do you really want the complete anointing of the Holy Spirit in your life and ministry? If so, yield all to his Lordship: no reserve, no holding back, no secret sins, no self-protection. We complain that God is not blessing us, could it be that our heart is the problem? To have the fullness of the Spirit is to be fully given to God.

Free Indeed

So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. John 8:36 NIV

We often sell the gospel short. We don’t believe that God can really change a life: freedom from sin, healing from brokenness, and transformation of character. God loves us as we are, yet God loves enough not to leave us as we are. He can free us and others from the sin that so easily binds us.

A Calming Christ

For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matt. 11:30.

Calm is a state of tranquilly: peaceful, quiet, serene, still, tranquil, and untroubled. Through the person of the Holy Spirit, Jesus calms our hearts and gives us peace in the midst of trying and difficult circumstances.

Experiencing the Depths of Jesus Christ

And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. So it was not you who sent me here, but God.
Gen. 45:4-8
In a recent post, we discussed choices: reacting or responding (Heb. 12:14-15). Reacting is being angry at our circumstances, frustrated with people, and despondent at not getting our way (James 1:20). Responding is seeing the bigger picture: God has an appointment in our disappointment. It is not God’s will that people sin, but when God allows their sin to touch our lives, then their actions have become God’s will for us (2 Cor. 4:7-12)
To grow deeper in our relationship with the Lord, we must have a yielded will: a willingness to allow God to use our trials and tribulations anyway he wants in order to produce the life of Christ in us (Phil 1:29, 3:10). We must trust that in God’s sovereign purposes, he is using selfish people, hard places, and broken things to give us our heart’s desire: Christlikeness (Rom. 8:17). We must believe that God has an appointment in our disappointment.

Beloved, Just come

I give you an invitation: if you are thirsty, come to the living water. Do not waste you precious time digging wells that have no water in them. {John 7:37, Jeremiah 2:13}