The "Exchanged" Life- Bill Bright

The "Exchanged" Life – Bill Bright

For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 3:3, NLT).

Dear friends:

One of the most profound and life-transforming, yet little-emphasized truths of the Bible is that of the exchanged" life.

The apostle Paul described it this way: "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me" (Galatians 2:20, NIV).

Paul said, "I no longer live." His new reality was "Christ lives in me." That is the exchanged life. Paul exchanged his weak, impotent, sinful life for that of the risen, sinless, holy Son of God. Such should be the reality for all believers. It is no longer I who lives, but Christ who lives in me.

That is the way I live moment by moment: Christ in me. I am just a suit of clothes for Him. By faith, I have exchanged my own life of failures and defeats for His life of victory, love and joy. That is how the exchanged life results in the abundant life, which Jesus promises. Bill Bright no longer lives; it is Christ who lives in me.

Christ is my life, and I do not have any rights. That makes a revolutionary difference in my lifestyle. For example, I Corinthians 13:5 says that love, "will hardly even notice when others do it wrong" (TLB). Many times people have criticized and attacked me. But it is almost as though they are talking about somebody else. I try always to respond with love. But that response is not Bill Bright, because by my former nature I would be very prone to react to get even. But with Christ living in me, it is not I, but Christ who enables me to live above circumstances and pressures of the world system. So, I cannot get any credit.

Paul was also inspired by the Holy Spirit to write, "Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God's right hand in the place of honor and power. Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth. For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God." (Colossians 3:1-3, NLT).

We were crucified with Christ. We died with Him. Our life is now hidden with Him, and He lives in us and we are seated with Him in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6).

Remember this marvelous truth when your old carnal, worldly nature with its pride and lusts tries to resurrect and manifest itself. Just remind yourself that your old nature is dead, and it is now Christ who lives in you. Then you will begin to experience the abundant life you may have never known before.

 

One’s past does not define who they are today

One’s past does not define who they are today.

 

A Matter Of Being Someone – Dr. Neil Anderson

2 Corinthians 5:17

If any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come

Being a Christian is not just a matter of getting something; it's a matter of being someone. A Christian is not simply a person who gets forgiveness, who gets to go to heaven, who gets the Holy Spirit, who gets a new nature. A Christian, in terms of our deepest identity, is a saint, a spiritually born child of God, a divine masterpiece, a child of light, a citizen of heaven. Being born again transformed you into someone who didn't exist before. What you receive as a Christian isn't the point; it's who you are. It's not what you do as a Christian that determines who you are; it's who you are that determines what you do (2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 2:10; 1 Peter 2:9, 10; 1 John 3:1, 2).

Understanding your identity in Christ is absolutely essential to your success at living the Christian life. No person can consistently behave in a way that's inconsistent with the way he perceives himself. If you think you're a no-good bum, you'll probably live like a no-good bum. But if you see yourself as a child of God who is spiritually alive in Christ, you'll begin to live in victory and freedom as He lived. Next to a knowledge of God, a knowledge of who you are is by far the most important truth you can possess.

After years of working with people who are in deep spiritual conflict, I found one common denominator: None of them knew who they were in Christ. None knew of their spiritual heritage. All questioned their salvation and the love of God. Are you aware that there is someone alive and active in the world today who is dead set against you seeing yourself as spiritually alive and complete in Christ? Satan can do nothing to damage your position in Christ. But if he can deceive you into believing his lie--that you are not acceptable to God and that you'll never amount to anything as a Christian--then you will live as if you have no position or identity in Christ.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, I take my stand as a child of God in Christ. Thank You for giving me this gracious and unwarranted position.

 

 

Trusting in God's Faithfulness – Dr. Charles Stanley

Trusting in God's Faithfulness – Dr. Charles Stanley

1 Thessalonians 5:16-24

Is there something God has told you to do that seems just too difficult? You can be sure that if He has called you to carry out His will, He’s going to be faithful to accomplish it through His Spirit living and working in you. So if you tell Him, “I can’t do that, Lord—what if I fail?” you’re really saying, “God doesn’t keep His word.” And yet, our total expectation should be in Him—not in our own energy, ability, or experience.

When you doubt God’s trustworthiness, that unbelief becomes a gap in your spiritual armor, and you can be sure that’s exactly where Satan will attack you. You’ll begin to doubt even more about God’s character, such as His goodness—and that distrust will become a heavy load of baggage you’ll needlessly drag through every area of your life.

You might feel that you do not have enough faith to obey, but the Lord isn’t asking you to have faith in favorable circumstances. He’s asking you to trust that He is who He says He is.

Do you believe that God is a liar? It’s really that simple: either He is truthful or He’s not. But if you believe that faithfulness is His character, then you can do anything He requires. You’ll be strengthened by your dependence on Him—whether a deluge or trials or a flood of blessing comes.

It’s actually when life gets rough and rugged that the sweetness of God’s faithfulness makes itself real in your heart. As you walk through those storms in complete reliance on His strength, your trust in His character becomes part of who you are and strengthens from within.

 

Contagious Joy

Contagious Joy – Dr. Charles Stanley

1 John 1:1-4

Jesus calls us to be His “witnesses.” When some Christians hear this word, they worry that they need exceptional skill or charisma in order to share the good news with others. Yet to witness is not to merely speak of the “plan of salvation” to someone. The word literally means to see, hear, or know by personal presence and perception; to testify; bear witness to; give or afford evidence of. When John wrote that he was sharing what he had experienced first-hand, he was saying, “I am full of joy because of the experience of knowing Jesus, and I want to invite you to share in that joy!”

When you’re in love with someone, you are excited about the relationship and time spent together. Likewise, when you’re in love with Jesus, you can’t keep to yourself the joy that comes from knowing Him—it just spills over, bearing witness and strengthening other believers. In fact, as you give testimony of who God is and how He’s working in your life, it makes no difference whether you speak quietly or with great exuberance: in their spirit, Christians will pick up on the deep, genuine gladness in your heart that goes beyond natural happiness. And people who don’t yet know the Lord will find themselves hungering for the relationship you have. In that way, they will be drawn to His Spirit in you.

Witnessing is not a matter of eloquence or talent. It’s an overflow of the personal relationship with Jesus Christ that is conforming you to His image. As you allow the Holy Spirit to increasingly express His life and power through you, contagious joy will be “fruit” of His indwelling presence.

Adapting Ministry – Dr. Neil Anderson

Adapting Ministry – Dr. Neil Anderson

1 Corinthians 9:22

I have become all things to all men, that I may be all means save some

The world at the end of the twentieth century is changing at an alarming rate. People are under tremendous stress to keep up with the rapid rate of change. The ecclesiastical challenge is to give anxious people the timeless message of Christ and present it in a contemporary way that relates to a changing culture.

Many of the older and mature saints who rightfully constitute the boards and committees in our traditional evangelical churches resist change. They are comfortable with the form of worship, style of music, and methods of teaching that brought them to Christ and helped them mature. They get uncomfortable when a young pastor comes in with new ideas.

Jesus said you can't put new wine into old wineskins (Luke 5:37). The wineskins don't represent the substance of our faith; they represent the package our faith comes in. Christian practices wear out their purposes and the next generation doesn't relate to them.

Jesus not only came to fulfill the law, but He also came to usher in a new age. The Jewish community was locked in tradition. Most of the opposition didn't come when He presented the truth, but when He confronted their traditions. When one doesn't conform to the customs and practices of the status quo, the establishment will be offended. The new wine often comes under the scrutiny, and sometimes the wrath, of the old wineskins.

I had the privilege of helping an established church through an organizational change. The pastor had been there for 30 years and had led the church from its beginnings to more than 1000 attenders. The organization had evolved with little planning or purpose, so we reorganized 26 committees into seven. Although the organizational change was significant, it took place without any dissension. The major key in this case was the vision and credibility of the pastor, who realized the need for new wineskins.

God is leading us into the twenty-first century, and we must learn how to adapt our ministry to a changing culture.

Prayer: Lord, enable me to establish my life on the substance of faith, not the package of traditions and customs it comes in.

The Expression Of Pride

The Expression Of Pride

Proverbs 16:18

Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling

Pride is a killer. Pride says, "I can do it alone. I can get myself out of this mess without God's help." Oh, no you can't! We absolutely need God, and we desperately need each other. Paul wrote, "We are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh" (Philippians 3:3). Humility is confidence properly placed. Examine the instructions on pride and humility in James 4:6-10 and 1 Peter 5:1-10. The context reveals that spiritual conflict follows the expression of pride. Pride is what caused Lucifer to be thrown out of heaven.

Jesus said, "Simon, Simon [Peter], behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat" (Luke 22:31). On what basis could Satan make that demand? The context reveals the answer: "There arose also a dispute among them as to which one of them was regarded to be greatest" (Luke 22:24). Pride was Peter's downfall, and it opened the door to the devil's opposition.

The Lord says that pride goes before destruction and an arrogant spirit before stumbling (Proverbs 16:18). We must confess areas where we have not denied ourselves, picked up our cross daily, and followed Him (Matthew 16:24). In so doing we have given ground to the enemy in our lives.

Have we believed that we could be successful and live victoriously by our own strength and resources? We must confess that we have sinned against God by placing our will before His and by centering our lives around self instead of Him. We must renounce the self life and by so doing cancel all the ground that has been gained in our members by the enemies of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We must pray that God will guide us so that we will do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but that with humility of mind we will regard others as more important than ourselves (Philippians 2:3). We must ask God to enable us through love to serve others and in honor prefer others (Romans 12:10).

Prayer: Loving Lord, I want my life to be marked by a humble spirit today. Forgive me for my proud, self-centered ways and independent spirit.

 

1 John 4:4

1 John 4:4

Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world – Dr. Neil Anderson

 The Satanist organization is massive and extremely secretive. When you hear of satanic priests or rituals, you are hearing only about activities at the lowest level. You need not concern yourself too much with what you see or hear, since the Satanist activity which you read about in the newspapers or which is recorded in most police reports is usually the activity of mere dabblers. It's what you don't see that is pulling the strings and arranging events in Satanism. I have counseled enough victims of Satanism to know that there are infiltrators committed to infiltrating and disrupting Christian ministry.

 

To illustrate how human and spiritual forces of wickedness work together, ask any group of committed Christians this question: "How many of you have been awakened alertly or terrorized at 3:00 a.m.?" I ask that question regularly in my conferences, and about two-thirds of the participants raise their hands. Satanists meet from 12:00 to 3:00 a.m., and part of their ritual is to summon and send demons. The early morning hours are prime time for demon activity, and if you have awakened at that time, it may be that you have been targeted.

 

I have been targeted numerous times. However, it's not a frightening experience for me, and it shouldn't be for you. John promised, "Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world" (1 John 4:4). You have authority over Satan's activity and you have the armor of God to protect you. Whenever Satan attacks, you must "be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might" (Ephesians 6:10). Consciously place yourself in the Lord's hands, resist Satan with the spoken Word, and go back to sleep. You are only vulnerable when you are walking by sight instead of by faith or walking in the flesh instead of in the Spirit.

 

What should we do about Satan's hierarchy of demonic powers? Nothing! We are not to be demon-centered; we are to be God-centered and ministry-centered. We are to fix our eyes on Jesus, preach the gospel, love one another, and be God's ambassadors in our fallen world.

 

Prayer: Father, keep me from losing my focus on the eternal. I choose to fix my eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of my faith.