Where Will You Go Next?

The true test of all Christians is how closely they resemble the Savior.   As we align ourselves along various scales...faith, forgiveness, confidence in the Father, indifference to what we have or don't have, love, purity, disregard for acclaim, loyalty to the Kingdom of God, honesty, unhurried devotion to prayer, patience, gratitude, we find a different sort of life coming into place.  It is impossible to be a "good Christian" without the supernatural working of Christ in us.  We are a hopeless tangle of lusts, frustrations, lies, mismanaged emotions, fears and self-absorbed loyalties.  Nothing we do can make us fit with Christianity...not with real Christianity.   Spiritually, we are like a dieter who cannot break free of too many calories.  The world can only look at the symptoms of unprocessed Christianity: road rage, drug abuse, depression, anxiety, materialism, greed and cheating spouses.  The one who is born-again sees something much more personal; the absence of Christ in daily living.  With Christ a part of us, not just as a role model but a living, interconnected part of our new personality, we can become perfect as He is perfect.  Each day is day one of Christ coming out of us in a new way; His love joined to our affections, His faith brought into our stresses, His holiness pouring into our desires.  Christ crucified does away with our Sin.  Christ resurrected breaks apart the bondage Sin has had over us and gives us the habits and behavior patterns of God Himself in the day we have before us.  What did Paul mean by, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me "?  (Galatians 2:20 NIV)Was it some quasi-spiritual gibberish or is he saying that Jesus Christ really does live in us?  Is He as He really is a part of us, living through all the decisions and behaviors of our personality?  If so, then we have real hope to be good and righteous and full of the peace and joy of God Himself.

But the righteousness that is by faith says: "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down) "or 'Who will descend into the deep?'" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).  But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming:  ( Romans 10: 6-8 NIV)