"Work of Redemption"

 "Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake." (John 14:11 KJV)

  "Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. We know that our own sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him. We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him. When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus." (Romans 6:5-11 NLT) 

 Just because we have these sinful desires, which seem to haunt us more than they should, we have in us the ability to doubt the work of redemption in our life; almost as if there are split personalities within us, that have constantly been fighting with each other. Well, that is really not the case, and we should make every effort to stop thinking that is the case: we have a new life in Christ, that old life was crucified with Christ, and once and for all, it is no longer alive unto sin, but is now alive unto God through Christ! 

 See how easy it is to accept this simple illustration? Now that we have accepted it, it must be lived out in our lives, which is only possible by the Spirit of God controlling our lives. How I seem to feel this work, if you want to call it work, is by believing that the transformation is complete! That might be easier to say, but as soon as we make it won and done, we tend to find ourselves back to old habits again. 

 If you have heard it before, then hear it goes again: If your faith does not accept the very first verse in the Bible, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth," then your faith is going to have issues with the transformation that has taken place in your life! You have got the believe that God can do what He has said He has done! 100% of what He says, must be verified in our heart, whether we understand it or not, it has got to be true, because He has said so! 

 Let's make this clear: Who is it that says whether or not you are free from sin? There is only One that can free you from sin, and that is God; and if God says you have been set free from sin, there really is nothing else to fight about, you have been set free! Jesus paid the price for that, once and for all, there is no more sacrifice for sin, only surrender! 

 You think you can do this, but it is not yours to overcome: The battle belongs to the Lord...

"Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God's grace." (Romans 6:12-14 NLT)