The Pursuit: Chasing After Your New Life in ChristSample

“Definition Time” Dead- 1: deprived of life: having died: 2: lacking power to move, feel, or respond People generally don’t like to talk about death. Death is usually a topic reserved for quiet talk surrounding a coffin, or in moments of great fear, when death seems close and you can’t avoid it. Sometimes death is a conversation because it is so mysterious and powerful. Occasionally, death is something to celebrate. For example, how do you feel about bread? You may like a good sandwich, or a biscuit, or a thick, fluffy pancake. All of those things require something. A seed had to die. Did you know that’s where wheat comes from? A seed is planted, it dies, and wheat is born from its death. You have a new beginning that you get to enjoy because of Christ, but, understand that when you were made alive in Christ part of you died. When Jesus came into your life, He destroyed a part of you that had been there a long time. It’s called sin. What is sin? The Bible defines sin as missing the mark – not hitting the exact spot or standard that God has set. In other words, sin is not being perfect. Sin was in charge of your life before Jesus came in. You were a slave to sin. Did you get that? Your sin was keeping you from God and Jesus killed it. You are dead to sin. Your sins do not control you anymore. You are free but temptation does not end. That is the scary part. Every day your old sins are going to try to come back. They are going to try to drag you back into the old way of life. Every day for the rest of your life, you have a choice to make. Are you going to continue in the freedom you have been given in Christ or are you going to go back? How do you keep from going back to your old life? Choose to follow what God’s Word says. When you want to go back to the old way – pray, talk to a friend who is a Christian, and get out of the place where you are thinking about going back to your old ways. When you do mess up and fall back into old sin habits, tell someone and confess to God as well. This will protect you from falling back into those old ways again. There is no way to beat sin on your own. Everyone needs help from God and other Christians. Take a few minutes to think about what you know was in your old life that was not in line with God’s plan for you. Pray and ask God to protect you from going back to those things. You never knew death could feel so good, did you?