12/06/23LIFE AND LIBERTY, NOT LEGALISM

12/06/23LIFE AND LIBERTY, NOT LEGALISM

The cross in the Christian's life is not legalism, it is liberty. The cross sets us free from sin, inherent and behavioral.

(I want to talk about the joy of total commitment, the joy of bearing the cross, the joy of being dead to the world and the flesh, the joy of being set free from sin... but that will have to be a different post).

For the moment, let me say this...
I just wrote an article, which points out the truth that Christians not only benefit from the cross of Christ, but we also participate in the cross of Christ. Our participation is not salvific or atoning, but it is inherent to being a believer and essential to living the Spirit filled life.
I point out that Christ calls sinners to deny themselves, take up their cross and, follow Him.
I point out that we not only look to the cross for deliverance, we also bear the cross and we die on the cross (to the world, the flesh, sin, the devil).

As I was writing this, I thought of a glaring, but ignored reality concerning the modern church and the cross. I find it amazing that so many people claim to believe in the cross, but they don't believe in taking up Christ's cross and they do not believe in dying on the cross and they do believe in being crucified to the world and the world to them. They also have the misunderstanding that taking the cross of Christ, bearing the cross of Christ and dying to self, sin and Satan is a miserable aspect in the Christian life.

Yes, the cross speaks of death, even our own dying to sin, self and Satan, but we do not come to the fullness of joy, fullness of love, fullness of peace, fullness of holiness unless we come to our own personal crucifixion.

Death to self and sin is essential to life in the Spirit, essential to fullness of life in the Spirit, essential to walking in the Spirit. Yet very few believers walk in the steps of the Master. Very few actually follow Him to the Garden, to Golgotha and therefore they do not come to their own resurrection life, to their own Pentecost of the fullness of the Holy Spirit.

What you believe determines what you experience in Christ. What you experience in Christ determines how you live the Christian life. There is nothing in the resurrection life, which is negative, which robs us of the blessings of God, which can be considered a dark side to salvation.

We sing about the cross, we talk about the cross, we testify about the cross, but if we have not come the way of the cross and if we are not soldiers of the cross then we have a form of godliness, but we are denying the power thereof.