Jesus’ Irresistible Offer

We are exceedingly important to God. Two thousand years ago, a historic, momentous, concrete, and irrefutable event took place: God broke into human history in the person of His Son Jesus, and history changed—and so did humanity.

The battle of His life was against sin, evil, and death. The power of all three was completely destroyed on the cross. His victory was our victory, for He did it for us. The Good News for today’s unbelieving world is not what God will do in the future within human affairs for its salvation; rather, it is founded on what He has already done.

If the world were aware of what He has already done, perhaps we would not be witnessing the chaos of a world that is perishing because it cannot or will not see. Many people die without knowing Jesus. Another large part of the planet has not even heard His name for the first time. Jesus’ offer is irresistible to the one who accepts it: if you give Him your life, He gives you His. He says: here is My life; it is yours now. I give it to you if you receive it by faith, for you need only trust in Me. I will take care of everything that concerns you. Give up your life and surrender to Me, deny yourself, unite yourself with Me. The Word of God imparts an incredible hope to us: “But whoever is united with the Lord is one spirit with Him” (1 Corinthians 6:17).

It is the living Word that speaks: we are one spirit with Him. Could there be a fuller blessing? I do not want to be absolute, but in my opinion, I do not think so. What does it mean to be united with Christ and to be one spirit with Him? The Bible is full of beautiful declarations that confirm this confession. Union with the Lord brings us deliverance; redemption is a sovereign act of God that enables us to break free from the bonds of slavery to sin and tears away the veil of our darkness. Meditate on the following verse: “He has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Colossians 1:13).

Hallelujah! Now we live united with Him, we are one spirit with Him, and as if that were not enough, we have been transferred into His kingdom. Do we deserve such a great privilege? We no longer have to cling to identities based on past failures and successes, on our profession, on our outward appearance, on our aptitudes and abilities, or on our human shortcomings and weaknesses. Christ’s kingdom is compatible with none of these things. His kingdom is open to all who open their hearts so that He may rule their lives. We are a new creature in Christ, and the new creature is a new creation, and the new creation has no past because it is completely new, begotten in the blood of the Lamb of God. Our past is now on the cross of Christ and nowhere else. He provides for us according to the glorious riches He has in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19). We will lack nothing.

And the deceiver of this world will invite us to deny our identity (being children of God); he will try to tempt us to continue living in the flesh even though we are in Christ and are new creatures. That is the work of the evil one: to try to get us to do things his way (the world’s way) and not God’s way. Do you remember when Christ was led into the wilderness for 40 days to be tempted by the evil one? (Luke 4:1–12). On two occasions he said to Jesus—the emphasis is mine—“…if You are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread…if You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here…” (throw Yourself from the pinnacle of the Temple, for the angels sent by God will watch over and uphold You). That is exactly what the devil tries to do with us: make us doubt what we are, deny our blessed identity, fail Him, and be unhappy in the kingdom of the King of Kings.

We, His people, are the joy of the Lord. He delights in His children and, like a victorious warrior, desires us to walk in the Spirit because we are one in Him. He said it, and I believe Him. God bless you!