There is a famous saying and it goes, “I’ve seen the Enemy and the Enemy is us.”
The other evening while strolling through the local Barnes and Noble bookstore, I happened to notice an eye-catching, glossy covered novel entitled, The Enemy Within.
Out of sheer curiosity, I picked it up and started thumbing through the pages all the while thinking, if a person truly is born of God, the enemy is anything but within, “Praise the Lord,” I whispered under my breath.
We are privileged to bear the name of Jesus Christ and are blessed to have His continual abiding presence, and there is absolutely no break in that divine union. (See 1 Corinthians 6:17
But the person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
.) How reassuring it is to know that we have this wonderful companion with us - every moment of every day!
One of my favorite descriptions of Jesus being our closest friend is so wonderfully described by a well known Chinese evangelist named Watchman Nee. In his best-selling books, he affectionately describes this constant companion as our “Resident Boss.” That loving, authoritative person of the Christ-head, whose voice is always gentle and re-assuring when He whispers,
“This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left. Isaiah 30:21
Your own ears will hear him. Right behind you a voice will say,"This is the way you should go," whether to the right or to the left.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
ESV
But unfortunately, the disturbing reality is that most Christians today do anything but personify a life full of freedom and deliverance from the cruel dictates of sin. The truth of the matter is our biggest enemy most often arrives in the form of three notorious S’s: that of Sin, Self, and Satan.
However, as you may have already guessed, there is one of them in particular that we usually have the greatest struggle with, and it isn’t sin and isn’t Satan. You guessed it ... it's “Self” with a capital "S."
We come straight from our mother’s womb, kicking and screaming ... making quite a ruckus, all the while insisting that our every need be met. Then as we are lovingly held and nestled, the next round of hunger pangs arrives and everything goes south in the diaper department, and before you know it ... the whole cycle starts all over again.
It takes many, many years of nurturing, discipline, love, and patience before we develop and mature to the point where we finally become willing to take our eyes off of ourselves and begin to admit that perhaps it wasn’t meant for us to have the starring role in this thing called life after all.
When we purpose within ourselves to begin to focus on the magnificent, finished work of the Cross, that’s when we begin to realize that we have been marvelously delivered from the realm of darkness and brought into His marvelous Light.
“Awake thou that sleepest, ... and Christ shall give thee Light.” Ephesians 5:14
for the light makes everything visible. This is why it is said,"Awake, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will give you light."
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
(KJV)
Our greatest challenge is gaining and maintaining our spiritual freedom by recognizing who we really are and what we really have in Christ Jesus.
We begin to see that the true enemy of the state is in reality, the enemy of the “State of our being!”
If we truly believe what the New Testament says about us, then it shouldn’t be long before we discover that we, at this very moment, have every spiritual blessing named under Heaven (Ephesians 1:3
All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
). Just to mention a few:
I am a child of God. (John 1:12
But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
I have been justified. (Romans 5:1
Therefore, since we have been made right in God's sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
I have been bought with a price and I belong to God. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20
Don't you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
I have been redeemed and forgiven of all my sins. (Colossians 1:13-14
For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom* and forgave our sins.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
I am complete in Christ. (Colossians 2:9-10
For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body.* So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
I have direct access to the throne of grace through Jesus Christ. (Hebrews 4:14-16
So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
I am free from condemnation. (Romans 8:1-2
So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power* of the life-giving Spirit has freed you* from the power of sin that leads to death.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
I am assured that God works for my good in all circumstances. (Romans 8:28
And we know that God causes everything to work together* for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
I am free from any condemnation brought against me. (Romans 8:31-39
What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won't he also give us everything else? Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God's right hand, pleading for us. Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, "For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep."*) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,* neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
I have been anointed and sealed by God. (2 Corinthians 1:21-22
It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us, and he has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
I am confident that God will complete the good work He started in me. (Philippians 1:6
And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
I am a citizen of heaven. (Philippians 3:20
But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
I have not been given a spirit of fear but of power, love and a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7
For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
I am born of God and the evil one cannot touch me. (1 John 5:18
We know that God's children do not make a practice of sinning, for God's Son holds them securely, and the evil one cannot touch them.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
)
And the list goes on... Understanding our true identity in Christ is absolutely essential to our achieving success in living out this victorious Christian life.
If you are born-again, then the things that are listed above are true for you! But it cannot, for one moment, be appropriated until you recognize that there is an enemy who makes it his business to keep you from this knowledge, and the understanding of what your true state of being really is.
The more you reaffirm who you are in Christ, the more your behavior will begin to reflect your true identity! What will be the result? You will have defeated the very enemy of your state. And at last, find your long awaited for, Freedom in Christ.
Jesus has already paid the penalty for your sin. He is asking you, in the quiet of your heart, to put your trust in Him and begin to know and experience once and for all the full life that He promises each and every one of us.
Won’t you begin today to acknowledge your true Identity? All it takes is recognizing the truth of who you really are and what you already have in Him!
"A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of." John 10:10
The thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.
OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt)
(MSG)
