God isn’t interested in dealing with our sins. Nor does He make us feel guilty or ashamed about our past.  He ignores it. To Him it is DEAD.  He already dealt with it on the Cross.  He is doing His best to help us move into our identity of righteousness.

 Yes, we need to repent.  We need to confess our sins, turn away from our patterns of sin, and receive His forgiveness.   Then, turn around and follow the LORD. That’s what true repentance means.  It’s not simply an “I’m sorry.”   It’s a change of direction.

 The enemy uses condemnation that pushes us away from turning to face God with our confession.  He makes us feel ashamed. You might hear him say, “You idiot.  Why did you make such a fool of yourself?  You blew your relationship with God.”  We are afraid to face the LORD.  And instead, feel the need to perform for His approval.

 Unlike the enemy, Holy Spirit convicts us.  “This isn’t who you are. You are better than this. Look at Jesus.   He is who you are.”

 We cannot re-educate our old nature.  We can’t discipline it, wash it, paint it, or improve it.  IT IS DEAD‼  What we can do is accept His new life.  Have you ever tried to discipline a dead dog or teach him a new trick?  Have you ever gone back to a house you used to live in and tried to remodel it when it no longer belongs to you? We keep trying to fix our old nature when old nature isn’t part of us anymore.  We have a new address…JESUS

 Performance is something self-initiated.  It is born from a guilty conscience or the need to perform for approval or prove one’s value.  We perform to silence the inner critic.  Performance is a ‘have to,’ not a ‘want to.’

 In the story of the ugly duckling, he didn’t need a facelift or lessons on how to be a Swan.  He only needed to know his true identity to be free.

 As sons and daughters of God, living His life, we no longer strive for completeness.  We are living FROM completeness. We are living on this side of the cross.

 We are on the finished side of the Cross.  This doesn’t mean we don’t need to repent when we miss it.  Repentance renews our love for Him and frees us from guilt.  Repentance means to turn around. It means to see where we came from and start heading home again.  Jesus is where we came from.  He is our home. The good news of the gospel is:  We are IN Christ, and Christ is IN us.

 It is only in keeping our identity in Him as our focus that we are completely transformed.

 Our purpose in this life is to reveal God’s nature to every person we meet. We must help them see their value as sons and daughters of the King.

 Our purpose does not require striving, it requires trust, faith, and obedience.

The tree of life, which lives in us, bears fruit without effort.  It is consistent with the life of our original design.

 John 15:16 says, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.”

 God has given us a NEW LIFE…full of Him, but we must learn how to walk in it. He often allows situations and people in our lives to be unpleasant.  Through them, God teaches us how to walk in new life.  He must be our guide.

 Every situation in our lives allows us to walk in our new Christ-like life.  When the wrecking ball of circumstances or difficult people crash against our comfort zone, we need to know that Holy Spirit is working. He is removing the old to reveal the new.

Instead of moaning, whining, or complaining, which is the worship language of hell, we are called to rejoice and give thanks—which is the worship language of heaven.

Ask God, “What is it about my new life in Christ that You want me to experience in this relationship or circumstance?  What is it You want to grow in me?”  What is it about You, that You want to show me?  Thank You Father for this circumstance.  Thank You that you are doing Your perfect work.

 Hebrews 4:11 says, “Let us labor therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.”

Our assignment is to quit working for approval and enter into the rest of our identity in Him through believing.  He is the place of complete approval.  The labor here is to war against our mindsets–the lies of the enemy.  We are to labor by entering into who we are.

 When the old nature tries to resurrect, we need to address it. “No, you are dead.  You are not who I am anymore.  Get out of here.”

 True rest is discovering who we are and celebrating His fullness with joy.  This rest is the true Sabbath God wants for us.  Not just one day a week, but 24/7.

 Righteousness is not a to-do list.  We can’t do numbers 1 through 10 and be righteous. Rather, it is accepting and stepping into the oneness that Jesus came to restore.

 1 Thessalonians 5:5 says, “You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness.” NKJV

 Ephesians 5:8-10 “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord..”

We need to be transformed.  We cannot co-labor with Him to transform the world until we look like Him inside and out.

 The bottom line is this.  Our old man is DEAD.  God is trying to teach us only ONE thing: That Jesus lives in us, and we live IN Him. Because of Him we can walk, see, speak, and think out of our NEW NATURE.  It’s His life.

 We learn how to walk by doing what the Holy Spirit directs.  When He says stop, we stop.  If He whispers go we go.  If He says wait or be silent, we do so.  And if He says speak, we speak.  We don’t argue or do what is comfortable for us, we follow Him. It is a brand-new path of NEW LIFE.

 God said to me one morning, “Don’t draw back in fear.  Don’t set aside this call.  Heaven and all creation await the coming of the sons of God.  You are My sons and daughters.  Stand in who you are, in Whose you are, and declare My will.”

 God says, “We are entering a new day.  This day was written in your book before you took your first breath.  It’s a glorious day.  A day of discovery.  The real you is about to be born.  The real you is about to be seen and welcomed in ways you never imagined.  It’s a new chapter.  A chapter of triumph.”

 “There are many waiting and cheering as you step into place.  They’ve known all along it was yours for the taking.  They’ve waited with Me, the great cloud of witnesses. If you choose to accept it, My mission for you is to BE all I’ve created you to be and to experience joy beyond your dreams.  People are waiting to receive the treasures you carry.  I am with you.”

 “I will shut the mouths of the scoffers and open the eyes of the blind.  No more debates about who I am or if I am.  I am God Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.  There is no god like Me.”

 It is a choice when we get down to the core of this message.  Joshua confronted Israel and said, “Choose you this day whom you will serve.” Joshua 24:15

 He lives in us, and it’s time for us to show the world who He is by living His Life. It is no longer we who live, but Christ.  Let’s show the world who He is and who they are.

 The Holy Spirit is here to help us with our new nature. He is here to teach us how to see, think, confess, and live the abundant life we now have in Jesus. 

 So, let’s quit complaining or insisting on our way or our time.  Let’s pick up our crosses – the unique assignments He’s given to each of us and follow Him.  We may say we are waiting for God to move, but He is the One waiting.  He is waiting for us to respond.  He’s given us all we need to do the tasks before us – He’s given us Himself.  It’s a victory march.  Let’s join Him.

Shalom ♥