In Which You Once Walked

“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:1-10 ESV)

If our faith in Jesus Christ is genuine God-gifted and God-persuaded faith in Jesus Christ, which is not of our own doing, and which is not a result of our own fleshly works, it should result in us no longer walking (in conduct, in practice) in sin. We should no longer be those who are following the course of this sinful world, following the prince of the power of the air (Satan), the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience.

We should no longer be those who are walking (in conduct, in practice) in sin but who are now walking in holiness and in righteousness and in walks of obedience to our Lord and to his commands. And we should no longer be among those who are living in the passions of their flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, who are by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. All this is to be in our past, not part of our present reality.

Sin should no longer have mastery over our lives to where we obey its sinful desires. For if sin is what we obey, and not righteousness, and not obedience to our Lord and to his New Covenant commands, it will lead to death, not to life eternal. But if obedience to our Lord is what we obey, it leads to righteousness and to sanctification, and its end is eternal life. For we died with Christ to sin that we might live to his righteousness (Romans 6:1-23).

For God, who is rich in mercy, sent his only begotten Son Jesus Christ to the earth to ultimately become our sacrifice for the sins of the world. For in his death, he who knew no sin became sin for us on that cross in order that we might become the righteousness of God, i.e. in order that we might die with him to sin and live to his righteousness (1 Peter 2:24). And in his death he redeemed us out of slavery to sin so we will honor God with our bodies.

And the grace of God, which is saving us from our slavery to sin, is training us now to renounce (say “No!” to) ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives while we wait for our Lord’s soon return. For Jesus Christ gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works (see Titus 2:11-14; Ephesians 2:8-10).

And all the promises of God in the Scriptures written for the benefit of those who have died with Christ to sin and who are living to his righteousness in walks of holiness and in obedience to his commands, in practice, are ours to claim if indeed we have died with Christ to sin and we are now living to his righteousness in walks of obedience to his commands in holy living. So these promises are not for the professers of faith who are still walking in sin.

And then this is critical that we understand this about faith and what genuine faith in Jesus Christ looks like. For it is not lip service only. And it is not born of the flesh, but of God. It is not of our own doing, and neither is our salvation. For our faith comes from God, it is gifted to us by God, it is perfected by Jesus Christ, and it is persuaded of God. And so this faith is going to align with God’s holiness and with his will and purpose for us.

And all throughout the Scriptures we are given the picture of faith as something that results in us dying with Christ to sin, self-denial, and us following our Lord in obedience to his commands in holy living. For if we profess him with our lips, but we walk in sin and we do not obey his commands, in practice, then we are liars who do not live by the truth, and we will not inherit eternal life with God, regardless of what we profess.

And although we are not saved by our own fleshly works, this does not mean that our salvation is absent of works. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. And all throughout the Scriptures we are taught what we are to put out of our lives and what we are to put on in our lives, instead, which will give honor, glory, and praise to God, and not to self.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24] 

Hear my Voice 

An Original Work / July 9, 2012

Based off Psalm 27

The Lord is my great salvation.

He’s the stronghold of my life.

When my enemies attack me,

My heart will not fear at all.

Though a war break out against me,

Confident in Christ I’ll be.

Of the Lord, I ask that I may

Live with Him eternally. 

Hear my voice, Lord, when I call you.

Merciful to me You’ll be.

Though my relatives forsake me,

My Lord God will receive me.

Teach me Your way, O my Jesus.

Lead me in Your righteousness.

I will sacrifice to my Lord.

I will sing with joyfulness.

I am confident that I will

See the goodness of the Lord.

All the richness of His blessings,

My Lord has for me in store.

He asks me to be of courage;

To be strong and to take heart,

Patiently as I wait for Him,

And from Him to ne’er depart.

https://vimeo.com/119813963