You Are Not Your Own!    By James L. Lantz

Who would have thought that the Almighty would consider you and I to be so precious that He would sacrifice His only begotten Son to purchase our redemption. God, in His infinite wisdom, knew before the creation of the world that He would have to buy back His most beloved creation with the life and blood of His Son, Jesus. Had the princes of this world known of God’s great goodness and glory that He was preparing for those who love Him, they would never have crucified the Lord of glory.  1 Cor. 2:8  Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.  Evil spirits are continually planning, and pursuing stealing that which God has given you, and seeking how they can kill and destroy you, while love makes a way to redeem the repentant ones. Justice requires that sin be punished and when man chose satan’s words instead of God’s words he chose satan’s punishment which was eternal damnation. God did the impossible by having His Word take on flesh and blood so that He could suffer and die on the cross and take man’s punishment for sin. After suffering the torments of hell for three days and three nights God’s justice was satisfied for those who would accept His Son and the sacrifice He made for them.   Isaiah 53:11 YLT Of the labour of his soul he seeth–he is satisfied, Through his knowledge give righteousness Doth the righteous one, My servant, to many, And their iniquities he doth bear.  When Jesus arose triumphantly from the dead He presented His holy sinless blood before the Father who accepted it for the remission of our sins.  Heb. 9:12 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

Paul, by the Spirit, writes of how we should glorify God in our body and in our spirit because we have been bought with a price.  1 Cor. 6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?  1 Cor. 6:20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.  Peter writes that it was because of the Father’s abundant mercy that we were begotten again unto a lively hope through Jesus Christ being resurrected from the dead. A few verses later he also mentions the tremendous price that God paid to redeem us from our vain manner of life.  1 Peter 1:18 & 19  For as much as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:  Peter later references that false teachers who introduce a loose immoral lifestyle are ones who deny their Master who purchased them with His own blood!  2 Peter 2:1 ESV But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.

Jesus came as the sacrificial lamb who purchased us with His life and blood but He also came to be our example of how we are to function in the kingdom of God. In God’s kingdom we submit to the Father’s will because Father knows best and His plan for our life can not be improved upon. Jesus would testify that He did not come to do His own will but only the will of His Father. Jesus said, those who don’t love Me will not keep My words, but I only speak what I hear from My Father.   John 12:49 For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.  The word declares that His Father is the greatest of all!  John 14:28 Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.
Acts 2:34&35 For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, Until I make thy foes thy footstool.
1 Corinthians 15:27 For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him.
Ephesians 4:6 One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

God expects us recognize what He has done for us through Christ and that we now live under a new constitution in the kingdom of God. It was impossible for us to reverse ourself from our position of spiritual death and become alive unto God again. God sent the Lord Jesus Christ to redeem us from our lost sinful condition by cleansing us with His Own blood and resurrecting us from the dead!  Eph. 2:4&5  CEV  But God was merciful! We were dead because of our sins, but God loved us so much that he made us alive with Christ, and God’s wonderful kindness is what saves you.  Heaven receives all who have been washed and cleansed through the precious blood of Jesus! God’s people from the old covenant had to wait under the earth in a place called Abraham’s bosom until the price for our sins was paid in full.

Lazarus Body Lay On The Earth While Angel’s Carried Him To Abraham’s Bosom!

Luke 16:22  And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;  After Jesus presented His own blood before God in the heavenly holy of holies Jesus returned to Abraham’s bosom to bring His faithful ones to heaven. Today, when believers sleep (die), they go directly to heaven since their spirit is alive unto God through the new birth.  2 Cor. 5:8 We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.  Those that have gone on to be with the Lord will return with the Lord Jesus when he appears in the clouds at the last trump to receive their resurrected bodies. Our redemption will then be complete as our bodies are made new just like our Lord’s flesh and bone body.  Phi. 3:21 Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.  Our gracious loving heavenly Father will be showering us with the exceeding riches of his grace through Christ Jesus for all of eternity!

Since we have been purchased with the life and blood of Jesus we are expected to –
– Give Christ the preeminence in everything!
– Present our bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is our reasonable service!
– Abide in Him and walk even as He walked!
– Put off the old man!
– Put on the new man!
– Be filled with the Spirit!
– Not frustrate the grace of God because our righteousness is in Him!

Let’s give Christ the preeminence when we sow our ballot (vote) for the
future of our nation, our state, and our community on May, 17th.

Remember that actions speak louder than words. Don’t be like the preacher and the Sunday School teacher who wouldn’t lift one little finger to help their dying neighbor! This also means that we are to check on how an incumbent has voted on things that are important to God. Things like protecting the life of the most vulnerable (the baby in the womb, our children, and our elderly), voting for the collective good of our nation, state, and communities, understanding that God made us male or female, obeying the constitution, honoring their oath of office, telling the truth, voter integrity, and treating everyone the same (not corrupting themselves with back room deals). If someone is running for office for the first time look at how they have handled things up until now. Pray and seek God’s guidance to select the candidate that would most please the Lord! Change parties if you have too. In Pa only those who are registered as a republican can vote for a republican candidate in the spring primary. This means that those registered as independents can not vote for a republican or democrat in the primary but that you must be registered with the party that you want to cast your vote for. Voters must be registered to vote 15 days prior to election day. By casting your vote in person you have your neighbors whom you know and trust overseeing the counting of your vote. If you vote by mail it is counted by a select chosen few who may or may not do what is right by your vote.

I watched a short video recently of how a church congregation in Germany refused to help the Jews that were loaded into railroad cars and were being transported to concentration camps to be starved or die in Hitler’s gas chambers. The train stopped outside of this church where the word of God was being taught but the leader had the people rise and sing louder to drown out the voices of those in the rail cars crying out for help. To him who knows to do good and does it not, to him it is sin! This video tells the story of a man who was haunted in his dreams because of what he witnessed as a boy. You can find it on Utube entitled “Sing A Little Louder”

James Garfield – (president of the United States in 1881) said this

Now more than ever before, the people are responsible for the character of their congress. If that body be ignorant, reckless, and corrupt, it is because the people tolerate ignorance, recklessness, and corruption. If it be intelligent, brave, and pure, it is because the people demand these high qualities to represent them in the national legislature.
“ If the next centennial does not find us a great nation . . . It will be because those who represent the enterprise, the culture, and the morality of the nation do not aid in controlling the political forces.”