Years ago, I was privileged to counsel a 15 year old
teen. Several sessions into our
counseling, I challenged him to begin living by faith by depending on Jesus
Christ to live through him. I asked if
he was willing. He ruefully said, “What
is that going to look like?” I smiled
telling him I did not know except that it would probably look different than
what he was experiencing.
A week later, he sauntered into my office and we began to
discuss how his week had been. I asked
him if he had been asking Christ to live through him and if so, if he had
noticed any difference. He put his hand
on his chin to think, then he shared the main difference was that he felt more
peace. I’ve heard that a lot through the
years. A lot of people would eagerly
pony up thousands of dollars to experience more peace.
One of the Gospel truths we joyfully convey at Grace Life
International is that not relying on Christ to live through us is the number
one reason we struggle. Why? Because Jesus said, “Yes, I am the Vine; you
are the branches. Whoever lives in me and I in him shall produce a large crop
of fruit. For apart from me you can’t do a thing.” TLB When He is living through us there is fruit,
which includes, but is not limited to, the fruit of the Spirit. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy,
peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control;
against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23 ESV
Does that mean we will always experience love, joy, peace,
etc., in our emotions? I wish it were
so, but that’s not realistic. We don’t
always live this way and even when we do, God intends for us to live by faith
and not by feelings.
So, how do we know Christ is living through us if we can’t
feel the flow of His life pulsing through us? We ask Him to live through us and then live
our daily lives believing He is doing so, until He informs us otherwise. That’s called living by faith.
One person became upset when they began living by faith in
asking Jesus to live through them when they experienced all hell breaking loose
around them. Instead of realizing our
common enemy in his attempts to bring resistance to our living by faith, they
wrongly concluded that asking Christ to live through them didn’t work and they
ceased… for a while. Later they resumed
and were encouraged.
Are you depending on Jesus Christ to live through you
today? If not, start right now and live
by faith. Life may get harder or
easier. You may experience more or less
peace. Regardless, persevere and keep
living by faith for “…without faith it is impossible to please God...” Hebrews 11:6 NIV
Believe it. This is
the Gospel.
Mark Maulding, President and Founder
www.GraceLifeInternational.com
All Content Copyright © 2013 Mark Maulding
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