Life #27 - Toward Life and Incorruption: To Gain is a Work of Faith (2 of 3)

019/2011-07-30

Christians will say we received our salvation as a free gift; we did not work for it. Yes, that is true! To “receive” is a free gift, which salvation is. But, to “gain Christ” is a work that accompanies faith (James 2:17)!

• But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him (1 John 2:5 NKJV).

To keep his “word” takes effort on our part until by incremental adjustments, God’s love is perfected in us. Thus we know we are “in him”.

• And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him (1 John 3:5, 6 NKJV).

To abide “in him” takes staying power on our behalf so that we do not sin—because he has no sin—then are we able to see and know him.

• If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him (1 John 2: 29 NIV).

Do we do what is right? That sounds like work on our part.

If we continue to keep “his word”, abide “in him”, and do what is right, then we no longer sin because the inherent truth that Christ in us has no sin is gradually revealed in us.

To “gain Christ” is to gain life.

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Scripture quotations from New King James Version (NKJV) unless otherwise noted; excerpts from our book to be released next year.