SHIFT WEEK 4 SATURDAY

When Christ died on the cross the work of salvation was completed and Christ provided access for all believers into God’s holy presence. Therefore, salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone.

God is a real person and our relationship with Him can be cultivated as with any other relationship. We have been saved to live in fellowship with Him. We can enjoy the riches of the Christian life only as we grow in intimacy with Christ. The presence of our Lord in our lives brings this intimacy and these riches in glory with Him.

If there is no peace, joy, longsuffering, patience, live, etc., it may well be that we are out of fellowship with Him, or that we have not come into a living relationship with Him. We must spend time in His presence everyday. It is terribly easy to get our minds set on a thousand good things, but not on Christ. No religious activities or feelings can substitute for the cultivation of the presence of God in our lives.

“I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me ." (Galatians 2:20 NET).

“When Christ bids us come and follow, He bids us come and die,” said Bonhoeffer.

The victory in the Christian's life comes as we die to selfishness and follow Him. The apostle Paul wrote, “To me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Phil. 1:20). Again he wrote, “The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Gal. 2:20). Paul can write this because he has been crucified with Christ.

The Christian life is impossible to live if you do not know Christ as your Savior. It is impossible if you have never put your faith in Christ. Nothing in the unsaved person’s life can satisfy God’s righteousness. God will not accept our self-righteousness in the slightest degree.

When we are crucified with Christ we allow Him to strip away everything that keeps us from having an intimate fellowship with Him. It is like letting Him strip off all our old worn out clothing and letting Him robe us in His perfect righteousness. Anything that would keep us from following into the fullness of His life needs to be nailed to the cross daily.