Victory Over Sin

Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. Philippians 2:12-13

Dear Lord Jesus,

By Your grace, I am saved. I praise You! The only thing I contribute to my salvation is the sin that made it necessary. Even my faith comes not from myself but is a gift of Your sovereign grace. When You gave me a new heart and put Your Spirit in me, my life transformed. My eyes were opened, and I went from darkness to light, from dead in sin to alive in Christ. I was born again by Your grace and given everlasting life in You; the grace of all graces.

I praise You for choosing me, for patiently drawing me to You, for helping me to finally see my sin with contrition and turn from it, and for helping me turn to the light of the gospel and trust in You. I was dead in the trespasses and sins in which I once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air.. and was by nature a child of wrath like the rest of mankind (Ephesians 2:1-3). I was dead in my sins until God graciously intervened in my heart. Lord, You saved me from my sins, opened my eyes, and now I am a new creation in You – eternally secure and walking upright on Your righteous path with a clear view of objective reality. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come (2 Corinth 5:17).

The Power of The Holy Spirit

I must never forget who I am in Christ and the power that I have inside of me. As Christians, we must understand who we are as we embark on doing the will of God, which is what proves our faith in Christ to be real. When we do not understand that the Lord has done a tremendous, sovereign work in our hearts, it is hard for us to take up the Word of God and seek to obey it. But when we truly understand the miracle God has done in us; when we know we are a new creature in Christ, we can have the utmost confidence as we look in God’s Word and know that we can obey what He says. His grace is sufficient! As fallen as we are, we won’t be able to obey God’s perfect standards perfectly, but nevertheless, as children of God, we can have real victory over sin. We possess the fruit of self-control by virtue of the Holy Spirit who lives inside of us. We have the power of the Holy Spirit to deny self, take up our cross, and choose what is right, good, and true. Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4).

Although there will be a great battle everyday with the world, with the flesh, with the enemy, we know that as true believers, we can obey Your Word and glorify You through doing the will of God - Because Your grace is sufficient, Lord. Your grace has not been given to us so that we may still live however we please; so that we may still live in darkness. That is not what Your grace means in Scripture. Your grace has been given to us as Christians so that we may have the power to do what is right and choose Your glory over ourselves.

I trust You, Jesus. I trust Your goodness. I trust every single Word You say, and I don’t take any of it lightly. Help me continue to prove my faith to be true through my loving obedience to You…all by Your grace!

All glory belongs to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ Name I pray Amen.

Love,

Jenna

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What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Romans 6:1-2

Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law. Romans 3:31

What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means!Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? Romans 6:15-16

(I love this passage of Scripture...like I love every other passage in the Bible)!

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

2 Peter 1:3-11