HE GAVE HIS LIFE TO YOU

Wednesday 18 September

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 (NIV)

For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time. 1 Timothy 2:5-6 (NIV)

‘I gave my life to Christ when I was…’ let me respectfully stop you right there. Some people think it is mere semantics to pick up on certain phrases but is it really?

Do you know that your thoughts create, confessions and confessions create neural pathways or mental patterns otherwise known as strongholds? It’s worth noting that these strongholds can be positive also. Keep that in mind.

The fact of the matter is, we can reinforce structures which hold or contain our belief or unbelief. It’s up to us essentially. No wonder ‘as a man thinks so is he and death and life are in the power of the tongue.’ This shows us that the way we think and talk matters a great deal.

Case in point. You didn’t ‘give your life to Jesus’ at salvation because you ‘were dead in trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1).’You only existed before receiving Christ. If you have this ‘I was alive’ mentality then you may think that you actually had a life before being saved. You didn’t. That’s why you needed His eternal life.

In all reality, He gave His life to you, because the real you who is a spirit, was born dead from your mother’s womb. This is why Jesus told Nicodemus in John chapter 3:7b ‘you must be born again’. This was the only way Jesus could try to get him to comprehend what He was saying. An Old Testament illustration for an Old Testament Pharisee.

In the Christmas carol ‘Hark the herald angels sing’ there is a line that says Jesus was born to give us ‘second birth’. This phrase cannot be found anywhere in the New Testament because it is simply not accurate. The ‘new birth’ is more accurate and indicates that the new man in Christ never existed before as we see confirmed in 2 Corinthians 5:17.

The interesting thing about strongholds of belief or unbelief is that whatever is ingrained into your subconscious is what begins to gravitate towards you because you are attracting and repelling things without even being aware of it.

This is why we are told to meditate, that is study, contemplate, mutter, and roar on the word everyday to ensure that the predominant mental activity is coming from the sayings of God and not the philosophies of man.

When our minds are renewed with the word we will do the word naturally and the Spirit of God in us will empower us to carry it out. We must be intentional with the way we think and the way we talk when it comes to the scriptures (OT) and the revelation of the scriptures (NT).

Whichever way you ‘slice it’, you’re either building negative or positive strongholds in your mind. Choose God’s word. and not the words of man. Choose life!

APPLICATION

Take some time out of your day to meditate on the life you have received in Christ and all the privileges and blessings that are now yours to have and enjoy to the full until it overflows.