You will never kill personal sin until you kill the power of sin. You may stunt it’s growth. You may stall its effects. You may keep it at bay. You may even choke it to unconsciousness. But in order to kill it, you must get to its source.

We’ve seen what we ought to know about our identity as Christians—now we’ll see how we ought to live out that identity. It’s Jesus who tells us who we are, and it’s Jesus who tells us how to live. We must be rooted in Jesus, built up in Jesus, and firmly established in Jesus for all we are and ever will be as Christians.

Our identity as Christians comes with a calling to hardship and suffering. Yet as we endure hardships as Christians, we become better ministers and servants of Jesus and his message of good news to everyone.

Colossians 1 gives us the framework for understanding the fullness of who Christ is, what he has accomplished, and why he came into this world. We are who Jesus says we are, and until we understand who Jesus is, we’ll never understand who we are and what we were created to be.

The Necessity and Benefits of Gospel Friendships

God has given us Christ, the greatest gift, so of course He'll give us everything else that is needed to be conformed into the image of Christ. While He works that plan, we live lives free of opposition, accusation, condemnation, or separation.

Romans 8:28 is one of the greatest promises in the Bible. It's based on fact, not feeling. It's God's project, not ours. It's a total plan, not partial. It's purpose is good, not evil. It's for Christians, not Non-Christians.

Suffering is a part of God's curriculum. It has a point and an end that far surpasses the pain. God calls us to groan to Him, hope in Him, and pray with Him while we wait.

Many believers through ignorance or misunderstanding do not walk in the freedom that is theirs in Christ. They trust Christ, by grace, but try to live like Christ through their own effort. We are free to enjoy the benefits of God's grace, which we see in this passage are: God is our leader, God is our Father, Assurance of God's favor, and we inherit the world.

God the Father, has sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to secure our salvation, free us internally, and gain us righteous standing before God. We have been indwelt by the Holy Spirit. However, we still have a sin nature residing within us. Christians make regular personal decisions about whether we will yield to the person of the Spirit or our sinful nature.