identity – Page 6

709. Born Identity: You Are a Saint

June 30, 2019 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

The world tends to view saints as people who are rewarded for good behavior. That’s not how God sees it.

While most believers in Christ are being told in no uncertain terms - week after week - that they are nothing but dirty, rotten sinners, we find God identifying you as something quite the opposite… holy. It’s part of the inheritance you have received.

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708. Born Identity: We Have Peace With God

June 23, 2019 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

Jesus came to bring peace to those who would receive it. It’s not like the fleeting peace the world tries to give.

How do we begin to truly experience this personally? Is it by how we begin to live our lives or by following a multitude of religious rules? Quite the opposite.

The good news: You can’t make peace with God - but He has made peace with you.

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707. Born Identity: God Remembers Sins No More

June 16, 2019 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

The Christian religion is often built upon the idea we should repeatedly be seeking a renewed forgiveness from God whenever we fall short.

It’s time to ask ourselves a question at it relates to the message of the gospel and the New Covenant of Jesus Christ: How can we be forgiven for something that God says He no longer remembers?

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706. Born Identity: Forever Forgiven – Unconditionally

June 9, 2019 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

How can we know for certain we’re forgiven by God? Is it based on the condition we repeatedly confess all our sins? Is it dependent on whether we forgive others or not? Water baptism?

Let’s ask a different question that contains a very significant answer: Why did our High Priest offer His blood by a sacrifice that occurred “once for all” and afterwards - He sat down? Knowing you are completely forgiven by God should never be something you have to wonder about.

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705. Born Identity: God’s Forgiveness Is Not Repeated

June 2, 2019 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

If we needed to continue seeking more forgiveness from God for every time we fell short, then the second covenant established by Jesus was a failed experiment. Repeated forgiveness is what the Jews pursued under the first covenant (before the cross).

If more forgiveness needs to be dispersed by God, then Jesus would need to keep offering Himself again and again. We have a better proclamation inside of a new and better covenant. Sins weren’t just covered; they were taken away.

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704. Born Identity: Forgiven Through One Offering

May 26, 2019 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

Still seeking more forgiveness from God? You could probably use some good news. God’s complete forgiveness for sin occurred once for all.

When sin has been removed and taken away to be remembered no more, the forgiveness offerings are no longer needed. We no longer seek what we already possess.

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Born Free

May 22, 2019 by kingdomlife

Anytime that we discuss freedom as it relates to believers in the kingdom of God, we must realize that freedom means different things to different people!

In Acts 22, an incident in the life of Paul powerfully illustrates the New Testament truth regarding Christian freedom in the kingdom of God!

Paying a High Price!

And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman, and uncondemned? When the centurion heard that, he went and told the chief captain, saying, Take heed what thou doest: for this man is a Roman. Then the chief captain came, and said unto him, Tell me, art thou a Roman? He said, Yea. (As a Roman Citizen or a FREE man, Paul had rights!) And the chief captain answered, With a great sum obtained I this FREEDOM. And Paul said, But I was born FREE. —Acts 22:25-28 (KJV)

Freedom meant something totally different to the Roman captain than to Paul.

Many today believe that their Christian May freedom is obtained by ‘paying a high price’—hard work, moral discipline, personal sacrifice! They think that if you sacrifice much in zealous pursuits of Christian discipline, you are ultimately rewarded with victory and freedom.

But I like what Paul said, “Maybe your freedom cost you a high price, but I was born FREE.” Before we can understand and experience true freedom, we have to know that it’s not something we obtain through personal sacrifice, we are born into it!

That doesn’t mean that our freedom was without cost. It came at a very high cost—THE LIFE OF THE SON OF GOD. The degree to which you understand and believe in the freedom you are born into in Christ is the degree of true freedom you will experience in everyday life!

Freedom of the Heart

Proverbs 23:7 says, “For as he [man] thinketh in his heart, so is he.”

“Thinketh” means “to calculate; to put a valuation on.” “What” and “who” we value in our hearts determines where we go and what we become! Therefore, the way I believe about God and our relationship, controls the way I see and relate to myself and others.

Before we can understand and experience true freedom, we have to know that it’s not some- thing we obtain through personal sacrifice, we are born into it!

True Freedom Starts at a Heart Level!

All the experiences of our lives, can be directly linked to the condition of our hearts or our belief system! (Prov. 4:20-23)

You can be a God-fearing, Holy Spirit-filled, Bible-quoting, morally-disciplined Christian, living in a reclusive commune! But if your beliefs are still deeply rooted in performance religion, you’ll never be free from the destructive behaviors and bondage that dominate your life.

Unfortunately this is the sad reality of many Christians in the church today.

Knowing the Truth Will Set You Free

The Jews served God based on performance religion that unknowingly kept them in bondage. Jesus said to them:

And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free? —John 8:31-33 (KJV)

They didn’t even recognize the religion they were in. They thought that everything was just great!
They served God under a system governed by rules, regulations and performance that could never make them acceptable before God. This is what they needed to be set free from, and it’s the same for many today.

Jesus said, “you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” That truth is relationship with God—free from legalism, self- righteousness and the guilt of the law! Jesus came to give us freedom and abundant life in Him. Celebrate the freedom you were born into every day!

Blessings, Arthur

703. Born Identity: You Are Sanctified

May 19, 2019 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

Hollow religious teaching will declare you’re saved by grace (justified), but being sanctified is a gradual, progressive, life-long process which must work at in order to become more set apart before they reach the finish line . It’s time to change our thinking. Consider that through the cross God has already gifted you with sanctification and this is the starting line. Whew! It’s the ultimate head-start, and now you can run from here.

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702. Born Identity: You Are Righteous

May 12, 2019 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

Sadly, most believers in Jesus Christ have been taught they are identified as sinners and have failed to realize the gift of God’s righteousness that has been inherited by faith, apart from works. The Jewish people pursued righteousness under the law by trying to keep the Ten Commandments, plus 603 other commands and rules from the law which came through Moses. Yet they never attained a state of righteousness through that law. Nobody was righteous under that system… not one. On the other hand, Gentiles who weren’t even chasing after right standing with God attained righteousness by faith. We have been gifted with His righteousness. In Him, we are in a state or condition that is acceptable to God because of what Jesus did for us (and not what we do for Him). It is not progressive, nor does it increase or decrease based upon our performance or behavior. Growing in our understanding of this grace that has been poured out upon us - and abides in us - now empowers us to outwardly reflect the light of Jesus Christ.

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701. Born Identity: You Have Been Perfected

May 5, 2019 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

It’s been said that “nobody is perfect.” While that may be true from a behavioral perspective, it shouldn’t be confused with who God has already made us to be as believers in Jesus Christ. You have been perfected, not by how well you perform or by the things you do, but by what Jesus did on our behalf. Perfection was a necessary requirement, but we will never achieve this status based upon our works and behavior. While behavior improvement can gradually take place in our lives and result in good and positive results - it has nothing to do with having already been perfected in Him. Growing in our understanding that Jesus has already made us inwardly complete will likely result in beneficial, outward changes with what we do. But we should avoid getting this backwards or it will lead to frustration, guilt and fear. God demanded perfection, not progress. Therefore, He provided a Substitute, not a goal.

We borrowed the last part above from our friends at The Grace Cafe Podcast, and we mentioned them on this podcast. We recommend that you give them a listen!

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700. Podcast 700 – Growing in Grace Highlights

April 28, 2019 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

Just a couple of months ago we celebrated 14 years of the Growing in Grace podcast. This week we hit another milestone - our 700th Growing in Grace podcast! To create a special edition of the podcast, both Mike and Joel have dug into the archives to share some "highlights" from past Growing in Grace podcasts. We truly enjoy sharing our hearts every week regarding this wonderful gospel of grace, and we hope you enjoy hearing these gospel nuggets.

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696. The Spirit Vs. the Flesh (Walking in the Spirit)

March 31, 2019 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

“The law is not of faith.” This word from Paul is a central theme throughout the book of Galatians. It needs to be kept in mind as we look through the letter, including chapter 5 as the apostle compares the Spirit to the flesh. Believers in Christ who had been freed from the law are no longer in the flesh, but in the Spirit (Romans 8:9). Although we can be tempted with the works of the flesh that Paul lists in Galatians 5, it is those who are of the flesh that will not inherit the kingdom of heaven (unbelievers). They are stuck in “works” mode… which may appear as sinful and at other times it may appear as Godly. This is not a passage on living “good enough” to inherit eternal life. We’ve all continued to struggle with being perfect… we still may have moments of anger, quarrels, jealousy, impure thoughts, etc. Fear not! God is always with you and He desires to be our helper during those times.

The Galatians were earlier accused of having fallen from grace because they were trying to be perfected by the law of works (Galatians 3:3 & 5:4). As children of God, we receive an inheritance as a gift because we are an heir, not because we are living in a way that is going to be considered morally acceptable. This is not to diminish or disregard the importance of behavior - Paul’s exhortation is for us who are in Christ to behave in a way that reflects the true righteous nature of who we’ve been born to be in Christ. This is not accomplished by our empty efforts of trying to produce our own fruit, but by the Holy Spirit within us. Now we can bear His fruit, apart from the law of works.