The Names of God
My
Life
| Resources to aid your Understanding |
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"I have come that
they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."
John 10:10
"And this is eternal life,
that they may know You..." John 17:3
“I am the resurrection
and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall
live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do
you believe this?” John 11:25-26
The wonder-filled life
of Jesus has no beginning nor end; it fills that infinite and
immeasurable eternity that stretches my time-bound mind. Inexhaustible,
all-powerful, loving and wise, His divine life brings a confidence
and a security that far exceed man's best attempts at earthly
peace. Yet, by His amazing and unfathomable grace, this glorious
Life is now available to all who will believe and follow His
Way!
Before I knew Jesus, I had only
temporary earthly life. In my finite human body, I could breath, walk,
eat and talk. I could think, reason, know and love. But my own feeble
love and corrupted understanding were only a shadow of the resources now
available through His "abundant life" in me.
When I first put my trust in
Jesus Christ, my Savior and my Lord, He miraculously transferred me from
my old earthly existence to a brand new incorruptible existence with
Him. He cancelled my judgment for sin, lifted me up and filled me with
His life-giving Spirit so that I might be His friend and serve His
people. What an amazing life!
We know how it happened: Two
thousand years ago, He died an agonizing death to pay the penalty for
our sins and to free us from bondage to our sin nature. Then He
rose from the grave, and ascended to His heavenly throne -- "far above
all principality and power and might and dominion." [Ephesians 1:21] All who have put their trust
in His redeeming work on the cross now share in His victory.
For, in His immeasurable
eternity which transcends our linear view of time, we died on that cross
with Him — though He bore all the pain. When He rose from the dead, we
shared His resurrection. As Paul wrote,
"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 delivered Himself up for
me.” Galatians 2:20
“Such knowledge is too wonderful
for me. It is high, I cannot attain it." Psalm 139:6
One with Him, I have been
learning to see the world through His eyes. One with Him, familiar words
that once seemed dry and empty have come alive with new meaning. One
with Him, I could set my heart on a perfected and glorious eternity!
Amazing grace! How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me!
One with Him, I share in His
suffering as well as His triumphs. For today's unholy world is no more
compatible with His holy truths than it was 2000 years ago when He
became man and walked among us. Now as then, people hide from His light
and despise His holy ways. But,
"... thanks be to God who always
leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance
of His knowledge in every place. For we are to God the fragrance of
Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are
perishing. To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and
to the other the aroma of life leading to life." 2 Corinthians
2:14-16
Since I “have died with Christ”,
I choose to "reckon" myself "dead to sin and alive to God."
Nothing is impossible for Him! By His life in me, “I can do all
things through Christ who strengthens me.” For He has promised to
"supply all [my] need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus."
Romans 6:11; Philippians 4:13,
19
The fact is, I am “a new
creation; old things have passed away; 
behold, all things have become
new." He "who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ"
has made us "ambassadors" for His wonderful Kingdom. 2 Corinthians 5:17-2o
Through an amazing exchange: He
takes our old sinful life and gives us His holy, all-sufficient life in
its place. "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we
might become the righteousness of God in Him." 2 Corinthians 5:21
I still have a choice. Each
moment I can choose to listen to the tempting voice of my sinful nature
-- or to the still small voice of God's Spirit in me. I wish I would
always chose the latter. But I don't. And when I choose my own
way, I soon sense His sadness. Then I come back to the cross -- not for
the holy life He has already given me, but for cleansing and restoration
-- so that I might again delight in the love-relationship I treasure
above all else.
Because Jesus, my Life, now lives in me, I see,
hear, know, love and trust — not as before, but with new eyes, ears,
mind and heart — all His. By His life in me, I see Him and others with
new vision, for He shows me the truth from His heavenly perspective.
[2 Corinthians 5:16] I
know my King. I hear His voice, and my heart cries, “Follow.”
“...we have this
treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be
of God and not of us. We are hard pressed on every side, yet not
crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not
forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed— always carrying about in
the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may
be manifested in our body." 2 Corinthians 4:7-10
Jesus, my precious Life, how great Thou art! Help me, moment by
moment, to live by your life, so that you may be known and honored
though this fragile earthen vessel. Make me a sweet fragrance of
yourself, my Lord and my Life.
References: Eternity
Psalm 139:6; John 10:10:27,
17:3; Romans 6:4-11;
2 Corinthians 2:15-16;
4:10-12, 5:16-21; Galatians 2:20;
Colossians 1:12-13
What
it means to be a Christian
