The Great Exchange

This is the mystery of the riches of divine grace for sinners:

For by a wonderful exchange our sins are now not ours, but Christ's,

And Christ's righteousness is not Christ's, but ours.

  -- Martin Luther

This is what it means to be  Christian: God takes our filthy garbage -- all our sin -- destroys it forever -- all of it -- and gives us -- in exchange -- the gift of His righteousness so we can live with Him forever.

What an incredible exchange! Greatest deal ever in the whole universe! An old garbage bag traded in for a treasure chest of unspeakable riches!

He did it on the cross.

Christ says, "I love you, I forgive you. Let's move on!"

Looks like He would rather die than live without us...

Satan's Strategy of Attack - Con't from May 21

 The very fact that you are under attack must mean you're on the right side, accomplishing important kingdom work that annoys and frustrates Satan. 

Notice someone else who struggled with his attacks: Read Romans 7:14-25. See how the Apostle Paul describes it -- "I do not understand," "It is sin living in me...", "I do not do the things I want...I see another law working in my body...what a miserable man I am..."   

He is writing in the present tense, describing a struggle at the present time. This means the Apostle Paul battled sin while he was writing a book in the Bible!

Can you think of a more strategic time for Satan to attack?

How Does God Help Us?

 Can we do what God wants us to do if He helps us?

Yes, but how does He help us?

"We mean God is putting into us a bit of Himself, so to speak. He lends us a little of His reasoning powers and that is how we think. He puts a little of His love into us and that is how we love one another. 

When you teach a child writing, you hold its hand while it forms the letters; that is, it forms the letters because you are forming them. We love and reason because God loves and reasons through us and holds our hand while we do it."

    --- From Mere Christianity by C S Lewis