Sanctified by the Cross

John 15:5 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. Apart from Jesus we can do nothing. Both as a church and as individuals. One of the things we must do as Christians and as a church is to periodically check to see if we are doing what we do in our own strength or if we are rightly abiding in Jesus and doing out of the strength He provides through the Spirit. If we try to do the things we are called to do in our own strength, one of two things will eventually happen. The first thing that can happen if we do things in our own strength is great frustration and obstacles. God wants our hearts to be His. And knows that reliance on His Son is the only reliance that is ultimately good for us. Where we are the most frustrated in our Christian life or in ministering to others is usually the place that we are trying to do it in our own power. If we are not abiding in Christ the vine we t...

Romans 7:18-20  18 For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. 19For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. Ever feel like this? We all go through times where we know what the right thing is to do and yet we struggle to do it. It is no less sin in the eyes of God. Sadly many have used this set of verses as a "Get out of Holiness Free" card. But for the believer in Jesus Christ we are told that sin's power over us has been broken (Romans 6:6, 6:14) We are now "Alive to God" (Romans 6:11), and are to walk in "Newness of Life" (Romans 6:4). So why does Paul speak just a chapter later about having the desire to do what is right, but not having the ability to carry it out? Has he contradicted himself? Are there time...

Colossians 1:3-5 (ESV) 3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, Thankful to Spurgeon for bringing this passage back to mind this morning. We are reminded here that one of the great motivations for us as believers is the hope laid up for us in heaven. Often we don't think of the eternal life we have with God in heaven because we are so deeply invested here. The problem with being so deeply invested here is that we will suffer from shortsightedness. Everything must be accomplished here and we find ourselves not needing or desiring the there of heaven. So our hearts are called by the gospel to desire the there of heaven more than we want the here. Why? What is the hope laid up for us in heaven? Because it is only there that ...