(4 minute 46 second read)
Are you living the abundant life that Jesus has promised you?
With having an audience of 75,000 Christians, I’ve been able to have many interesting conversations.
Some uplifting and encouraging, and others more somber and melancholic.
I have noticed something that troubles my spirit, because I know far too well that I have experienced the same things that a lot of people I see experience now.
Far too many Christians are depressed, powerless, hopeless, and are just flat out struggling.
I’ve felt lost and hopeless, with the feeling that I was too weak to carry on, and overwhelmed with the circumstances of life.
Jesus said, “The thief does not come except to steal, and kill, and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have life abundantly.” - John 10:10
Even as a Christian I’d go through seasons of my life where I came to a conclusion that God couldn’t do what He said He could do.
I’d pray and not have answers (or at least, the answer I wanted).
I’d struggle through sins and not be able to have deliverance or the strength to keep fighting.
It truly felt like I was in a wilderness.
And in this wilderness, I would search for joy, but it would constantly elude me. I would search for meaning, but that would fall short.
Like the Israelites, I was physically alive in the wilderness, but even through God’s provision I was spiritually dead.
Alive physically, but dead to “true living”
I didn’t believe that God was going to do what He said He was going to do.
I’d be in Church every Sunday, critical of all of these external things that wouldn’t move me. The worship, the preaching — nothing was satisfying or bringing me peace.
Nothing.
Where was this abundant life I was promised?
“Lord, help my unbelief.”
There’s this key factor that prevents us from living the abundant life that Jesus promises us.
The answer is so, so simple — yet it is the hardest, and most difficult thing at the same time.
Self.
The beautiful and meaningful life that the Lord promises us is not based on personal blessing, personal wealth and prosperity, personal achievement, or any other self-actualizing precedent.
Living self-focused opens the door to spiritual deadness and bursts open the door of immorality.
When “self” becomes the driving factor in our lives, that is when we fail.
We cannot live this life by our own strength, and we deceive ourselves if we think we can!
We as Christians seem to go against this “victim mentality” that our culture seems to be propagating, only except when it comes to us and our relationship with God.
“God, I did my part… So why aren’t you doing yours?”
We’ll go to God in prayer, and read our Bibles, and when God doesn’t immediately take action in our lives the way we want Him to we’ll think that God didn’t give us what He promised so we lose faith that He ever could or will.
How do we deal with self?
Jesus said this in Matthew 16:25, “For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”
When we decided that we’ve come to terms with self and decide that it’s time to die to ourselves — our rights, desires, plans, and the way we think…
We are propelled into this life that Jesus promised us, because He lives inside of us.
The reason we lack victory in our walk with God, and the reasons our prayers feel ineffective, and we lose the joy of life is because we have decided to not die to self.
How do we do it?
The gospel is about grace.
It’s about what God has already done for us, and not about what we can do.
When we come to Christ, His blood covers our sin.
We are made alive to Him, and through that, become the righteousness of God through Jesus Christ.
We live out this life by conforming to what God’s word says about us, and living out God’s truth in our lives.
It all starts with one part of you dying.
Self.
God bless you, and walk in victory today!
-Nils
Thank you.
Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Join over 3000 other Christian subscribers