joint heir with Christ

Joint Heirs With Christ Jesus

Romans 8:16–17
16The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,17and if children, then heirs — heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ...

As long as you are born again, you are no longer a “slave”, but a son of the Most High God. And God does not just call you His son. He also calls you “an heir” through Christ. (Galatians 4:7) In fact, Romans 8:17 says that you are “joint heirs” with Christ.

As a joint heir with Christ Jesus, you inherit everything that He is. How precious Jesus is to the Father, is how precious you are to the Father. The way the Father loves Jesus, is the way the Father loves you!

How accepted are you by God today? Look at Jesus. That is how accepted you are! Christ is the measure of your acceptance. How favored are you by God? Look at Jesus, who is seated at the Father’s right hand. You enjoy that same favor today because whatever Christ enjoys, you enjoy!

As a joint heir with Christ Jesus, you also inherit all that He has obtained from the Father. How much Jesus has, is how much you have. How prosperous is the one who made all things, and who put the gold, silver and diamonds in the earth? So are you in this world! (1 John 4:17)

I used to read the Bible to find out how to be a successful and victorious Christian. But now, I read it to find out more about Jesus because I know that when I find Him, I find my every blessing in Him. (Ephesians 1:3, 2 Peter 1:3)

My friend, all that Jesus is in heaven today, you are in this world. All that belongs to Him belongs to you. That is why it is in your interest to know Him more, to see Him in all His glory and beauty. And because Jesus is so glorious, it will take you a lifetime to discover everything that He has done for you and has for you.

Beloved, you are an heir of the Most High God. You are a joint heir with Christ Jesus. So find out all the blessings that your rich inheritance includes and start walking in them today!

Thought For The Day
All that Jesus is in heaven today, you are in this world. source jp daily devo

give thanks in all circumstances

Give Thanks in All Circumstances
 by Erin Mohring ~

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

I remember reading this verse with one of our boys when he was small and he was confused. “How can I always be rejoicing? I have to be praying all the time? I don’t think I can be thankful when I’m sick!” I had to agree with him at the time — this verse asks a lot of us! In reading and praying more over it, I was able to tell my son (and myself) this truth:

It’s all about perspective.

“Rejoicing always” doesn’t mean we’re always jumping up and down with excitement, but rather refers to living in the joy of the Spirit. “Pray without ceasing” is not a command to get down on our knees in prayer all day long, but it is about our constant personal connection with God.

“Give thanks in all circumstances” is the easiest part of this passage for me to understand, but it isn’t always the easiest to live out. This time of year, as Thanksgiving approaches, we see people sharing their gratitude all over the place. It’s inspiring, but it doesn’t usually last past the holidays.

Paul wasn’t talking about seasonal gratitude. He was talking about a state of mind that starts with our trust in Jesus and belief that God works out all things for good for those who love Him (Romans 8:28). When we live this out, we can’t help but give thanks to Him, no matter what we are going through.

Here are three ways you children can express gratitude, as illustrated in this fun picture book:

1. Start the day with gratitude

Giving thanks to God right away in the morning shifts our perspective before anything else happens. Even saying, “Thank You, God, for another day to love and serve You!” can completely change how you approach the day!

2. Thank God for nature

When I’m having a rough day or week, getting out into nature and witnessing God’s beautiful creation can transform my mind. Go outside with your kids and take turns thanking God out loud for the beautiful things you see all around you – the changing leaves, the migrating birds, the refreshing breeze.

3. Write thank-you notes to family and friends

We write thank-you notes when we receive gifts, but let’s also use them to thank the special people in our lives for the gift of their presence! Set out a stack of blank note cards and encourage family members to use them to write one a week to someone who has helped or blessed them in some way.

In the middle of trials, expressing gratitude to the people God has placed in our lives reminds us we are not alone.

So many families have wonderful Thanksgiving traditions centered around giving thanks, but we can center our homes and family lives around gratitude year-round, in all circumstances, because He is good, He loves us, and those things will never change! Now that is a reason to rejoice!

Christian humility

Why Christians Can Be Both Humble and Certain Michael J. Kruger

One of the most common objections made to the absolute claims of Christianity is that Christians are arrogant. Christians are arrogant to claim that they are right; arrogant to claim others are wrong; arrogant to claim that truth can be known. Unfortunately, in the midst of such accusations, no one bothers to ask which definition of humility is being used. Over the years, the definition of humility has undergone a gradual but nonetheless profound change. Especially in the intellectual community. In the modern day, humility has basically become synonymous with another word: uncertainty. To be uncertain is to be humble. To be certain is to be arrogant. Thus, the cardinal sin in the intellectual world is to claim to know anything for sure. Of course, this shift presents a real problem for Christianity. Christians believe that God has revealed himself clearly in his Word. Thus, when it comes to key historical questions (Who was Jesus? What did he say? What did he do?) or key theological questions (Who is God? What is Heaven? How does one get there?), Christians believe they have a basis on which they can claim certainty: God’s revelation. Indeed, to claim we don’t know the truth about such matters would be to deny God, and to deny his Word. (This doesn’t mean, of course, that Christians are certain about everything; but there can be certainty about these basic Christian truths). Thus, for Christians, humility and uncertainty are not synonymous. One can be certain and humble at the same time. How? For this simple reason: Christians believe that they understand truth only because God has revealed it to them (1 Corinthians 1:26-30).  In other words, Christians are humble because their understanding of truth is not based on their own intelligence, their own research, their own acumen. Rather, it is 100% dependent on the grace of God. Christian knowledge is a dependent knowledge. And that leads to humility (1 Corinthians 1:31). This obviously doesn’t mean all Christians are personally humble. But, it does mean they should be, and have adequate grounds to be. Although Christians have a basis on which they can be humble and certain at the same time, that is not necessarily the case with other worldviews. Take the atheist for instance. He is quite certain of a great many things (contrary to his claim that one cannot be certain of anything). He is certain either that God does not exist (hard atheism), or certain that one cannot know whether God exists (soft atheism). And, in his critique of Christianity, he is quite certain that Christians are mistaken in their claims to be certain. In essence, the atheist is claiming, “I know enough about the world to know that a person cannot possibly have a basis for certainty.” That in itself is a pretty dogmatic claim. But, on what is the atheist basing these far reaching claims about the universe? His own finite, fallen, human mind. He has access only to his own limited, knowledge. So, now we should ask the question again: Who is being arrogant? The Christian or the atheist? Both claim certainty on a great many transcendental issues. But one does so while claiming to be dependent on the one who would know such things (God), and the other does so dependent on only themselves. If either position is a posture of arrogance, it would not be the Christian one. No doubt, the atheist would object to this line of reasoning on the grounds that he rejects the Bible as divine revelation. But, this misses the point entirely. The issue is not whether he is convinced of the Bible’s truth, but rather the question is which worldview, the Christian’s or the atheist’s, has a rational basis for claiming certainty about transcendental matters. Only the Christian has such a basis. And since his knowledge of such things is dependent on divine grace, he can be humble and certain at the same time. For more on 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 and the issue of Christian knowledge, see my recent sermon. For more, visit Dr. Kruger's website: Canon Fodder.