Within Me is a Life-Source Beyond My Own

Christ is my Life-Source now. I am no longer my own source of life.

"For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.” (Galatians 2:19-21 NKJV)

Pray for the Spreading of the Unchained Word of Christ

Finally, brethren, pray for us that the word of the Lord will spread rapidly and be glorified, just as it did also with you; and that we will be rescued from perverse and evil men; for not all have faith. But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one. (2 Thessalonians 3:1-3 NASB)

Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, descendant of David, according to my gospel, for which I suffer hardship even to imprisonment as a criminal; but the word of God is not imprisoned. For this reason I endure all things for the sake of those who are chosen, so that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus and with it eternal glory. (2 Timothy 2:8-10 NASB)

Knowing God, Dwelling Securely Connected to the Father, through Faith in Jesus Christ

“…that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenlies…” (Ephesians 1:17-20)

“For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of the law, ‘The man who does those things shall live by them.’ But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way, ‘Do not say in your heart, “Who will ascend into heaven?” (that is, to bring Christ down from above) or, “Who will descend into the abyss?” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).’ But what does it say? ‘The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart’ (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:3-9)

Knowing God's will is part of knowing Him, but knowing God is so much bigger than just knowing His will (Bob Hoekstra, Counseling God’s Way). This is why we can rest in not always having all the answers we desire of God. Obedience to God is not trying to be good enough to make Him happy with us. That is the old covenant, the old way, and we can never be good enough to match His perfect righteousness. The primary obedience God is looking for is the obedience to the call to believe in His Son, Jesus Christ, the God-Man. He has always been God. He became a Man, related to our mortal weakness, and now will always remain the God-Man in power and invincibility in His Father’s house, which is now our Father’s house. Furthermore, through faith in Christ, God works in us to will and to do His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).

The word is near you, even in your heart and in your mouth. It is not about sending someone to go retrieve God’s word or will from heaven or across many oceans for us to hear it and do it where we are. Christ prayed the Father would sanctify believers by His word which is Truth (John 17:17-19). God’s Word, specifically the Person and works of Christ Jesus, sets us apart, keeps us, and protects us. The word of faith, the word of Christ, is a shield so close that it is around your heart and your mouth. You don’t have to wait around for Christ to come to your rescue or to reveal something of God’s mysterious will to you. You don’t have to wait for Christ to come down from heaven. He already has. You don’t have to wait for Christ to be risen from the dead. He already is. Confessing Jesus as Lord involves acknowledging that Jesus is the Lord that came down from heaven. Believing in the heart involves believing that Christ came back from the dead, ascended back to the Father and sent His Spirit into all believers. He’s already here with you! He is the word right there with you, there in your heart and in your mouth. He is closer than the next thing you’re going to say or the next thing you’re going to feel. Take a deep breath. He is closer to you than your breath!

God has loved you all HIS life (Jeremiah 31:3). He has no beginning and no end. Think of it. Before He created you, He knew you and loved you! More than that, before forever began He had you in mind for a special place in Himself. When He was thinking of you, He wasn't just considering all the choices you would make or the time and place you would be born into. He knew you intimately, as He intended to create you, with the view that He would fit you uniquely into a special, carefully selected, personal place in relation to some aspect of His Infinite Self. This is the white stone Christ has promised to the overcomers with the special, secret name written on it that God and you alone will know (Revelation 2:17). It’s a special connection into the Father for you and you alone (John 14:1-6)! He had you in Him in mind. You will arrive there one day and wonderfully discover that the Father has for you a unique, customized place in Himself that will fit you perfectly. He will affirm  that He created you with this connection to His Eternal Person in mind.

Every believer in God through faith in Jesus Christ has a special connection to the Father, one with Him in a unique, individualized way. It is this special, unique, individualized connection that makes all believers one with each other. Our oneness with the Father creates oneness with each other. If only we could always see each other in the church this way as we pass each other by.

Greater Works than the Father Working Through the Lord Jesus?

"Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves. Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it." (John 14:10-14 NKJV)

How could anyone ever even come close to comparing to the Son of God in all His wondrous works? He healed the sick and crippled, gave sight to the blind, took authority over demons to cast out man's most ancient foes while all mankind had been helpless and powerless against them, raised the dead, forgave sins, and resurrected Himself to never die again, destroying the power and fear of death for all believers. He alone said truly that He always did and said everything He heard and saw the Father do and say. He was sinless and was the only One whom the Father from heaven declared to be well-pleasing and well-loved. And the apostle John said that there were many more works that Christ did that were not documented, and that even all the books of all the libraries probably couldn't contain them all.

Some have proposed that Christ was speaking here of the works of many Christians as being greater than the works of one Christ, emphasizing quantity over quality. However, it seems rather that the works Christ spoke of would be greater according to a different and superior classification. He said the believers' works would be greater based on the reality of His return ascension to the Father. Working from heaven the resurrection life and power into our personal experiences is greater than even Christ's own perfect, prophetic, pre-Pentecost works which included being crucified and bodily-resurrected, ascending to the Father, and becoming received by each believer in order to indwell (inspire) each believer as the fullness of the God-Man from the throne of the Father and Son through the Spirit. The greater work of the believer involves God's desire for the ascended, immortal God-Man, the Lord Christ Jesus, to be working resurrection from heaven through His Spirit within the deepest parts of mortal vessels and rippling outward to the uttermost parts of the earth.

God's Loss

God feels the greatest loss over the lost ones, as evidenced by the greater joy He feels when they are saved in Christ.

“Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven. For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost. What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish." (Matthew 18:10-14 NKJV)

Promise-Fulfillment Progression in Christ Diagram