NOW THAT YOU ARE BORN AGAIN - PT. 5

It's important to note that the sacrificial work of Christ for us which He carried out through His death burial and resurrection purchased for us

> Identity

> Inheritances &

> Abilities

Identity speaks of who we are in Christ; Inheritances speaks of what we have in Christ; and Abilities speaks of what Christ can do through us or what we can do as men in Christ. In this teaching series so far, we have been looking at our identity in Christ, that is, who we are in Christ; but right now we will be looking at what we have in Christ - which is our inheritance in Christ. The blood of Christ purchased for us several inheritances, but in this teaching right now, I will be showing you one. But before I get into that, let's take a review of Bible passages we have examined during the course of this teaching series that shows us our identity (who we are) in Christ;

'For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.' - 2 Corinthians 5 vs 21 {KJV}

• We are righteous

'For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)' - Romans 5 vs 17 {KJV}

• Our righteousness is a gift from God

'For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God...' - Ephesians 2 vs 8 {KJV}

• We are saved
• And our salvation is by grace - our salvation is the gift of God

'Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.' - Matthew 5 vs 14 {KJV}

• We are lights

'For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:' - Ephesians 5 vs 8 {KJV}

• We are lights
• We are children on Light

Waow! These and more as revealed in the Bible are who we are in Christ. Now let's take a look at what we have in Christ, let's take a look at one inheritance we have in Christ;

'In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace...' -Ephesians 1 vs 17 {KJV}

• We have the forgiveness of sins

It's important to note that in this verse, 'redemption through His blood' and 'the forgiveness of sins' are not two concepts, but the Apostle is saying the same thing. The redemption we have through Christ's blood is the forgiveness of our sins. The Colossians rendering puts it clearer;

'In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins...' - Colossians 1 vs 14 {KJV}

• We have the forgiveness of sins

Take note of the word 'even' used in the verse above, it means 'which means'. So if we rephrase the above Bible verse, it says,

'In whom we have redemption through his blood, which means the forgiveness of sins.'

Let's view that Bible verse in the Amplified Bible translation;

'In whom we have our redemption through His blood, [which means] the forgiveness of our sins.' - Colossians 1 vs 14

You see... So we see that the meaning of 'redemption through the blood of Jesus' means 'the forgiveness of our sins'. So when you say "I am redeemed by the blood of Jesus", what you are saying is "my sins are forgiven". Hallelujah!

Dearly beloved, we have the forgiveness of sins in Christ. Notice he didn't say God will give you forgiveness when you ask Him for it, rather he says you have forgiveness! He speaks of it in the present tense; he says "In whom we have!". Beloved, we have! Forgiveness is a present day reality for the Believer, it's an inheritance of the Believers; when you came to Christ at salvation, you came into the forgiveness of sins, you came into the possession of the forgiveness of sins as an inheritance. God is not going to forgive the sin of any Believer today, because He has already given to the Believer forgiveness as a gift, as a possession, as an inheritance, because he's in Christ. - Think about it

Dearly beloved, are you hurting in your heart as a result of sin you committed? Are you held gripped by guilt in your conscience and you have been asking God to forgive you your sin, and you are not even sure He has heard you, and you don't know when He's gonna hear you so you can stop praying that prayer? All you needed to know was that God has already given you the gift of forgiveness in Christ! All you have to do to experience its effect in your heart and mind is to acknowledge it, acknowledge that you have the forgiveness of sins in Christ, acknowledge that you are forgiven; and lo, you are healed! You are free! Peace comes. Glory to God forevermore. Amen.

Beloved, think on these words; and the Lord himself gives you peace. Amen.

- Jenning U. Angel

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