Living Beyond the Cross

Isaiah 53:2-5
For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

Greetings my beloved!

I hope you are having a wonderful week! I love this time of year, as we wait to celebrate Resurrection Sunday! There is nothing more beautiful than the resurrection of my Lord. He loves us so much that He died for us - he suffered death that we may live. He carried the wounds from the cross that we may receive the forgiveness of sins, and the healing power of His blood. But does that mean we should sin for His forgiveness? Of course not, we should strive to live our lives holy, acceptable, and blameless.

Do you think today is any different than the day in which the crowd yelled, "Crucify Him?" He is still despised and rejected of men. The very man that He created rejects Him even today. Do you think it breaks His heart every time the world speaks out against His name? Do you think it hurts Him when people who call themselves Christians, His very own, speaks out against His Word? It makes me so sad to know that I at one time was like that, calling myself a Christian, but not living it out. Christianity is not just a mere religion; it is a relationship with the most high God. Seek God on a deeper level, for Him to reveal Himself to you.
The Love that God has for you should trump all of the cares of this world. Suddenly, nothing else matters than the beautiful pure love of God. Can you feel it? Allow Him to transform you today, so that you can grow deeper with Him. It is only though your transformation that God can reveal His pleasing and perfect will for your life. Christ died for us, the least we can do is offer ourselves as a living sacrifice for Him.

Romans 12:1-2
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Let us live our lives to the higher calling through Christ Jesus, by fulfilling our calling that He has predestined in us. Let us sacrifice our own earthly desires that we can step into our true purpose, and what better time to do this than now! Let us shed off our fleshly desires, our fleshly way of thinking, and step into the spiritual realm to reveal our purpose.

Ephesians 1:11-12
In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 

Romans 8:5-11
Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.

It is no longer about us; it is about that resurrection power that dwells in us! Isn't that exciting! So, this resurrection Sunday, let us not think merely about the death and resurrection of our savior, which is indeed a beautiful thing, but let us go beyond the cross, to see what it means for us. Are you ready to step into God's will for your life? 
 
Blessings!

Christina