A transformation occurs when we identify ourselves with Jesus on the cross—that we died with Him. And because God raised His beloved Son from the dead, we are miraculously raised to life with Him!
Romans 6:5-7 says: Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin.
We are identified with Christ at the moment He died—not for us to die, but to have newness of life. No longer are we slaves to sin, but we are alive in Him, regenerated by the Holy Spirit so we can be conformed into His likeness.
The more we identify with Him, the less sin has control over us. This is not to say we do not sin, because we do. And we have access to the Redeemer who is always ready to forgive.
LET HIM LIVE THROUGH YOU
Identifying with Christ opens the door for a deeper understanding of how much He wants to live through us. We no longer live for ourselves—we now live for Him, and His power lives through us. This is a profound revelation that brings strength and hope.
When Paul was struggling with what he called a thorn in his flesh, Jesus told him, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). And that’s why Paul could declare in the next verse, “When I am weak, then I am strong.”
You may not see it, but you are being transformed day by day as you walk with the Lord.
You can glory in your weakness because it died with Jesus. There is a release from what Hebrews 9:14 calls “dead works” when you understand the meaning of Christ’s perfect sacrifice—that it’s no longer what you do, but what He did. When we miss the mark, however, we often want to make up for it ourselves. We may think, “I haven’t prayed enough. I haven’t fasted enough. I haven’t repented enough.”
But that’s exactly when we need to turn to Jesus and ask Him to cleanse us. We need to lean back into the cross and realize that His finished work is sufficient.
As Peter announced in Acts 4:12, “There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.” You are not saved by Jesus Christ plus your own fasting, or your own church attendance, or your own good deeds.
TRANSFORMED FOR HIS GLORY
Ephesians 2:8-10 makes it clear: God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
This is profound! God created you to live for His glory and walk in the wonderful path He has for your life. And you can only accomplish this by trusting in Jesus. As Romans 6:10-11 says, When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.
You may not see it, but you are being transformed day by day as you walk with the Lord. He freely and lovingly provides us with salvation, forgiveness, healing, and everything else we need.
And we have His assurance in Romans 8:31-32: If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? Hallelujah!
Excerpted from a teaching given at CBN Staff Chapel. Scripture is quoted from the New Living Translation.
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