But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ. (Philippians 3:20)
The moment you believed and received Jesus as the Christ, you were born into the family of God. By the law of the Spirit of life, you have been adopted as a child of God.
You do not have to serve your ex-father, the devil. You will never return to your old family that belongs to the “father of lies” (Jn 8:44). You have crossed from death to life (Jn 5:24). God gave you the right to become children of God (Jn 1:12). The adoption process through Christ Jesus is completed. It is finished!
Just running away from slave masters will not give slaves freedom. Someone with power has to change his slave status into that of a free man by law. That’s precisely what Christ has done on the cross. By the new law, He set us free from the law of sin and death (Rom 8:2). If you are in Christ, therefore, you are no longer under the old law. No more condemnation for you under the old law. You have been completely set free by law!
So, do not place your own standard above the grace of God. When you put your faith only in the One who loved you and died for you, you will begin to live with the assurance that you are forever a child of God. And nothing can change that.
You will know that God answers your prayer because of who you are and gives you victory in all circumstances. You will see that the power of sin cannot overcome you any longer. You will experience peace and rest, knowing that the Holy Spirit will lead you to your home in heaven.
Everything pirates do aboard a pirate ship is evil, no matter how noble it may be. Whatever they do, they contribute to the evil activities of piracy. The only ticket to change their destiny is to get off the pirate ship and board the salvation ship.
God so loved the world that He did not leave us under the curse of Satan, sin, and hell. What God has done is not something temporary that the world offers. He brought fundamental and complete changes in us through Christ. So, get off your old ship, get on board with Christ, and sail with Him. When you do, amazing healing will take place in you.
Therefore, it is critical to know why God sent His Son to the world—salvation (1 Peter 1:9). This is the ultimate reason and goal of our faith. Salvation means complete freedom from your past. Because Jesus, your True King, lives in you, Satan no longer has power over you. You no longer have to run errands for the devil.
Salvation means victory in your present circumstances. You now possess the incredible status and authority that came with the position of children of God. Because Jesus, your True Priest, lives in you, the curses of sin have no power over you. Salvation means certainty about your future. God has seated you with Christ in the heavenly realms (Eph 2:6).
Because Jesus, your True Prophet, lives in you, you are on your way home to heaven. So, do not focus on the things of the world. How did salvation come to us? By the death and resurrection of Christ Jesus: “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Cor 15:3-4).
When Christ came into the world, no one received nor believed in Him (Jn 1:9-11). And yet, He voluntarily gave up His own life and went to Calvary (Jn 10:18). The devil could not touch Him. Jesus willingly struck His own heel.
Why? To finish the work of salvation, God the Father had begun at the beginning of time—the plan He had revealed to us in Scripture. Jesus came to fulfill the ultimate covenant of God—Christ. By rising again from the dead, He put the last enemy to be destroyed under His feet—death (1 Cor 15:26). By living in us as our True King, Jesus will soon put the enemy under our feet (Rom 16:20).
Know that you belong to heaven (Php 3:20). Your name is written in heaven (Lk 10:20). God will never blot out your name from the Book of Life (Rev 3:5).
The Holy Spirit living in you is a deposit that God will give you the inheritance He promised and that He has purchased you to be His own people(Eph 1:14). So, boldly declare: “I hereby confirm that by the blood of Christ, I became a child of God, and that I possess the citizenship of heaven here on earth, and that my name is written in the book of life.”
Prayer. Father, I thank You for bringing me out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of heaven. Now I know my name is written in the Book of Life, and nothing can change that. Use my life today to proclaim the gospel of Your kingdom wherever You send me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.