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Jesus was cut off by death that we might be joined to God eternally.
Our old man was put to death in Him that the new man might come to life in us. Just keep letting go.
“ Today I’d like to encourage you in a teaching and I’m calling this today ‘Keep Letting Go’. We’re going to base our teaching today on some very encouraging scriptures. Turn with me if you will the book of Romans – Romans chapter 6 verses 9 to ll, actually we’ll go from verse 8 I think..
8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him.10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
.. Father, help us to hear, for we are told that without faith it is impossible to please you, therefore help and enable us to mix faith with that which we hear, that this Word may be sown into our hearts and that we will bear the fruit of this for Your glory, in Jesus name. Amen.
Let Go Control
Keep Letting Go, that is how God has purposed our Christian walk. All the while we are in control God cannot change us – conform us into His image. Now Paul’s argument here [from the above scriptures] is ..
6 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?
..In other words shall we carry on sinning – enjoy sinning – that grace may abound. Why, if indeed we are born again, we don’t, because the Holy Spirit will convict us. And that is the argument that he raises, and we need to realise that we receive God’s gift of the risen life of the Lord Jesus Christ. We receive it by faith.
The Actual Life Of Christ In Us
Now this risen life, the life of Christ risen from the dead, now glorified, is not an image. It is not a copy – something we look to or adhere to or admire like a picture that we think is very well painted. It’s none of those ideas. What we should know is that the very life that Christ that was raised up in, that new life is now the life that you also receive in Him. It is the very same life that the Father raised up in power. It’s also the very same life that you and I live now by faith in Christ Jesus.
“O well it was for Christ, but for me it is different although I’m in His likeness in a sense”
Jesus Bore Our Shame That We Might Share His Glory
… No it is not! We share everything in Christ that God wrought through Him. Everything that the Father did in Him He does also in you now in Christ Jesus. And that is why I’m calling this teaching today ‘ Keep Letting Go ‘. We are kept by that experience, by that life, the actual life of Christ now in us. So we are to let go of those hindrances that stop us from being kept by that power. This is very important.
And if we are truly born again there is something within us that wants this. That will agree with this and will not settle until those things that the Lord is dealing with in our lives and in our hearts are dealt with. But in order to see that they are dealt with we have to keep letting go. Because the nature of sin is that it wants you to hold on to it in order to gratify the flesh. That’s the nature of it.
Resurrection Power
And so we have received God’s gift of the risen life of Jesus Christ. The very life and power and energy is now imparted to us who believe and settle discipleship. That is the cross. Many professing Christians are not experiencing this very life that the Father raised that is in our lives because they are not taught true discipleship or the cross.
You can’t go an easy way around this. You have to be willing to die in order to experience this very power and energy that is now imparted to us, that is in Christ. And you have to remember also that .. He’s eternally living and kept by that power. Every moment, this very second as I’m preaching this sermon, where we are, it is still the same in Him. And it is the same in us, to those that believe…..
God’s way and not man’s way
… And this is where God is shaking now. He is shaking in His house and he is going to shake and shake and shake until those who in their heart have settled the conditions of discipleship. In other words have settled it that it is God’s way and not man’s way. Now of course you see our biggest problem is that doing it God’s way we immediately see that it is impossible. The disciples saw that – “..well who can be saved..” Jesus came back with a positive saying “…with man it’s impossible but with God all things are possible..”
And that’s why I come back to the point of ‘Keep Letting Go.. back to what I have been preaching here. It is the life of Christ that has to be imparted to you – it’s the gift of God to mankind. That is His ultimate gift. What a gift eh? So therefore when the gift of Christ is imparted to you your confidence is no more in yourself, in your flesh, in the ways that you walk. Your confidence is now in the risen Christ, this power that is now raising us up. This power that is preserving and keeping us from the evil one, from temptations, from the spirit of this age, those things that otherwise would draw us back into compromise.
The Fullness Of Christ
This is why we have to be led again not of the flesh, but of the Spirit.. When we decide to be identified with Him, and not some church or denomination, or some minister or man, but are identified with Him and Him alone, then you will begin to experience what it is to be preserved – to be raised up in the power of Christ and to walk as an overcomer. That is what the apostle is saying here.
And so this letting go – we have to decide about sin in our lives, and the self life. When we decide and we settle on this we find that this power begins take over. What does it say in the gospel of John chapter 1 verse 16… a wonderful promise..
Take It By Faith
16 And[a ] of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.
.. Profound, you just take that one by faith. ‘And of His fullness we have all received’ Now what was the fullness that was in Christ? Himself? No, the fullness that was in Christ was the Godhead because the Godhead cannot be divided, He is one divine Spirit who eternally manifests as Father, Son and Holy Spirit…… When we receive the Holy Spirit we receive the personality of God. We receive Christ, when you are baptised in the Holy Spirit you are receiving Him – personally because He cannot be divided. Jesus said “..when you see me you see the Father…I and my Father are one..”
Baptised And Raised Up Into Jesus
….Have they really seen who Jesus really is? That’s the question we raise. You see God is calling the church back to apostolic faith, and the apostolic church – the early church. It is all there in the Word – they baptised into that name. That is the only name in heaven and earth, the name of Jesus.
‘Keep Letting Go’, that’s our problem, we want our old traditions, our old ways, our old denominational ways. We don’t like change, that is all of our problem. And this is why I’m calling it today – ‘Keep Letting Go’ that the life of Christ may begin to manifest through us. Because Jesus said “..by the fruit you will know them..” And that is why you see in John 1 verse 16 as we have just read He is the only source of life.
This is why the weakest of persons can receive…. it is because of His life that we receive and we all have a hope set before us. That is the good news of the gospel is it not? It doesn’t matter who you are because you are going to be raised up in His power. Whatever your colour, whatever your creed, whatever your life was. It’s all about His power being raised and manifest through you because the old man is put to death. Hallelujah! The Deeper Life is a life of just letting go…