Thankful in Light of Our New Covenant – Part 2 of 3

The moment we believed in Him He took our unrighteousness and gave us His righteousness. The more we understand this, the more victorious we’ll be in receiving true freedom. It’s crucial that we get this truth. It’s what makes true Christianity different from all other religions. Every other religion has rules and regulations to follow in order to reach Paradise, Karma, Reincarnation, or whatever their goal may be. However, no one can achieve God’s standards on his or her own merits, and with Christianity that’s just the point: we all fall short of God’s standards and need a Savior.

Christ’s blood makes us right with God and transports us from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. This New Covenant is better than the Old because God guarantees it no matter how we feel about ourselves or to what degree we’re able to keep His commandments. Even though we’re imperfect, we receive Jesus' one-time sacrifice to pay for all our past, present, and future sins. Righteousness no longer has anything to do with us, because it has everything to do with Him.

One simple prayer of faith makes us right with God and forever allows us access into His presence. With that prayer, He gives us new life by His Spirit. However, we still make mistakes. That’s because our old nature is at war with the new. The old nature wants to do everything its own way, contrary to God’s way.

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Joy and a Thankful Heart – Part 1 of 3

We have an enemy called the devil, who goes around like a roaring lion seeking whom he can devour (1Peter 5:8). We ought not to underestimate his craftiness because when our guard is down he’ll try to blindside us. Whether we like it or not, the truth is that we are engaged in a war twenty-four hours a day.

Every team wants to know its opponent’s strategy so that it can win the game. That is why I may mention the devil’s strategies now and again – not to give the enemy glory, but to expose his game plan.

When God gave Adam and Eve authority over creation, life was good. However, when they disobeyed God they lost that authority. They didn’t just eat “an apple.” They took hold of something much bigger than just a piece of forbidden fruit. They took hold of the knowledge of good and evil, which had far-reaching consequences. In fact, everything was affected negatively in that we died spiritually, as God had warned. We no longer lived with God as our source, but tried to live apart from Him. We all failed at this miserably, but God had a plan to rescue us.

Jesus came to put things right. Through His authority, we have the advantage and the victory over sin and its consequences. The devil doesn’t want us to walk in that authority so he cons us into thinking that we don’t have it. He tricks us into thinking that we are losers and failures.

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Poem - To be a Christian

To be a born again Christian
Requires one act of honest confession
Receiving Christ’s forgiveness brings total redemption
It’s the only way for true restoration
God and man finding reconciliation
Accept this offer of Christ’s salvation
And in Him become a new creation
From there begins the work of sanctification
In heaven is our final destination
Where we’ll receive complete transformation
Amen!

by Christina A. Morley

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