Trading Places, Part Two by Chris Holm

Colossians 2:20-22 admonishes us to quit thinking like the rest of the world: If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were still living in the world, do you submit to rules and regulations, such as, “Do not handle [this], Do not taste [that], do not [even] touch!”? (these things all perish with use)—in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men. (i.e., religion)

2 Peter 1:3-4 beautifully affirms what has been accomplished and what is provided to the believer: His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. Through these He has given us His precious and magnificent promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, now that you have escaped the corruption that is in the world caused by evil desires.

None of this stuff works if you don’t believe. If you’re uncomfortable not having anything to do, you can always go back to religion with its long list of dos and don’ts, otherwise known as the Law. We all know how that worked out for us.

Now, let’s pray Jesus’ prayer of consecration. Only this time, we pray it in reverse. He gave up his righteousness for our sin; we do the opposite: We recognize sin has been defeated through His obedience, setting us free from bondage and condemnation, enabling us to adopt His righteousness as well as His mindset, aka the mind of Christ.

Prayer of Consecration

“Father, not My will (my old way of thinking), but Your will (Your Word) be done. I hereby purpose in my heart to declare, “Be it unto me according to your Word!”

Your Word says, Let the redeemed of the Lord say so. (Psalms 107:2; Isaiah 62:12) I bring myself into agreement with your word and call myself the redeemed of the Lord.

Galatians 3:13 emphatically states Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, because it is written: Everyone who is hung on a tree is cursed. That means I’m redeemed from poverty, sickness, and sin (spiritual death). I confess that neither one of these curses shall have dominion over me any longer. Your Word is final authority, and I purpose in my heart to enforce the truth of your Word.

I hereby declare in accordance with your Word, I have the mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 2:16) I set my mind on things above, not on earthly things. (Colossians 3:2)

I encourage you to do your own digging through the scriptures and apply them to whatever situation may be ailing you.

Walking in the Light

“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” (James 1:22)

You get the picture. Easy? No. Believing is a decision. You must be deliberate about it. There is no other way.

The Apostle Paul, author of the Pauline Revelation, offers this word of advice in Philippians 2:12-13 … Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling for it is God which works in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

And again, here in Romans 13:14, Clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh.

And again, here in Ephesians 4:22-24, Put off your former way of life, your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be renewed in the spirit of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

This is called renewing the mind. It’s an awesome, life-changing task. Are you up to it?

Postscript

If I were able to shorten the length of this blog and condense everything into just one jewel of a sentence that could best sum up its entire meaning, it would be this:

“If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.” C.S. Lewis

“He must increase; I must decrease.”

John 3:30

“To the praise of the glory of his grace who has made us accepted in the beloved (Jesus).”

Ephesians 1:6

Chris Holm has been living in Japan for 30 years. His passions include traveling, studying Japanese, and conversations with his Japanese wife, but not necessarily in that order. Chris is now fully woke to the righteousness of God, His grace, and His goodness – He’s done it all. Chris is a ZChurch happy camper.