The Great Connection

CONSIDER
The great and precious promises of God connect us to His divine nature. As a result of this connection, we possess the moral capacity to be holy and the emotional ability to be healthy. His promises give us the direction to arrive at His ultimate destination of Christlikeness.

BIBLE TRUTH

Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. (Rom. 8:12–14 NLT)

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO ME?
Although we are not fully aware of all aspects of our inheritance, God’s promises provide a taste of the expectations He fulfills so we may live with earnest anticipation as we experience His life living through us. His promises are not merely for the hereafter, but encompass life here and now. God provides the solution for life change. By acting on His promises we have His resolution to all problems and deliverance from the social ills that plague us. We do not comprehend that the solutions to all of life’s problems stem from believing and acting on the promises of God. God is literally saying to you, “I can solve your emotional problems, your parenting problems, your relationship problems, your mental problems, all of your problems, if you will trust My truths.” If our Christianity does not make a difference with our problems, then we have a problem with our Christianity.

PRAYER
God, because of Your glory and excellence You have given me great and precious promises! These are the promises that enable me to share Your divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires. . . . (2 Pet. 1:4)



(excerpts from Desperate Dependency by J. Kirk & Melanie D. Lewis)

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Blessed by Our Benefactor

CONSIDER
As our benefactor, God provides from the resources of His kindness, love, and mercy, through the abundance of His grace, to complete our souls. He does not give us what we deserve but from an overflow of His generosity. It is ironic that when we think of God’s benefits, we most often visualize our version of what the blessing should look like. We often miss experiencing God as our benefactor because we want Him to bequeath to us people, positions, and possessions, believing that through these we would be fulfilled.

BIBLE TRUTH

But—“When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. Because of his grace he declared us righteous and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life." (Titus 3:4–7 NLT)

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO ME?
The benefits of God include His purchasing our freedom through His Son, Jesus Christ. This freedom affords the privilege of entering His home as His child, where we can sit at His table dressed in our royal robes washed in the blood of Jesus. The price was not paid to merely release us to seek our independence or to indulge ourselves with the pleasures of this world. We are now free to belong to Him. It is sad, however, when the selfish mind misses this whole truth and insists freedom gives liberty to sin and do what we want to do when we want to do it. For these deluded individuals, eternal life in heaven is more important than being children of God. The idea of a relationship with Jesus holds no value to such people. It is yet another form of indulgence waiting for them in the next life of everlasting bliss. But for the authentic Christian, relationship with Jesus is vital. Possessing the privilege of the position as His child, our persistent pursuit is His divine nature and Christlikeness.

PRAYER
Abba, Father, I am so very privileged to be your child! You have sent the Spirit of Your Son into my heart prompting me to call out, “Abba, Father.” Now I am no longer a slave but Your own child. And since I am Your child, You have made me Your heir. . . . (Gal. 4:6–7)



(excerpts from Desperate Dependency by J. Kirk & Melanie D. Lewis)

If you would like to receive our blog posts via email, simply submit your email address in the box on the left. They will make you verify your request by jumping through a few hoops, but that is for your safety!

We would love for you to POST A COMMENT about the insights you have received on your journey toward desperate dependency.

Empowered to Live Beyond Ourselves

CONSIDER
Grace from heaven moves the heart to calm tranquility. When our core needs are addressed, the issue of well-being is resolved, the crisis of the day is settled, the intricacies of interpersonal relations are solved, and the prospect of pleasing God is complete God’s peace pervades. When will that ever happen? When we access God’s grace. There are two access points from which we may qualify to enter into God’s grace. The first is faith, believing what God has said. The second is obedience, doing what God has said. Navigating these pathways will enable the Christian to negotiate all of life’s challenges and experience Jesus Christ as relevant to every area of life.

BIBLE TRUTH

So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better. (Col. 1:9–10 NLT)

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO ME?
As surrendered followers of Jesus Christ who live in desperate dependency upon Him, we are empowered by God to live beyond ourselves. The power to live Christ’s life on earth cannot be manufactured by our own efforts. We are not even capable of conceptualizing the process. Human beings on a quest for their own best interest usually resort toward self-indulgence or self-promotion, thinking self-empowerment is somehow the solution to their powerless condition. Seeking within our own strength to create our own grace always leads to some form of illicit dependency, addiction; some inappropriate behavior, deviance; some undesirable state of being, mental illness; or some irreversible consequence, death. Thus grace must come to us not through us. In God’s economy we are the recipients of His grace not the progenitors of it.

PRAYER
God, I must admit I have a difficult time comprehending that You have given me everything I need for living a godly life. But I choose to trust that by Your divine power, You have given us everything we need for living a godly life. . . . (2 Pet. 1:3)


(excerpts from Desperate Dependency by J. Kirk & Melanie D. Lewis)


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User-friendly Grace

CONSIDER
The prospect of God’s unmerited favor giving undeserving people the power to live depends exclusively upon the person of Christ. Jesus provided the way to access God so we can have the power to live the life He lived in the fashion in which He lived it—being dependent upon God. Grace is the catalyst, providing what is needed and furnishing what is lacking to embed the image of Jesus Christ, God’s most precious treasure, on our souls.

BIBLE TRUTH
“May grace and peace be lavished on you as you grow in the rich knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord!” (2 Pet. 1:2 NET)

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO ME?
God anticipates every challenge, while enabling us through His grace to have the power to live Jesus’ life on earth. All His spiritual, psychological, and interpersonal power that is beyond our comprehension and aptitude is made user-friendly through God’s truth in our lives. We are not required to have a thorough understanding of the inner workings of God’s abilities, nor a profound knowledge of the intricacies of our problems. It is sufficient to know, “I am hurting”; “I am afraid”; or “I am sinking”; and that God is able to rescue me from this present evil world as I desperately depend upon Jesus Christ. A desperate dependency on Jesus reveals God’s abundant power.

PRAYER
Lord, thank You for being close to me, especially when I am brokenhearted. Please rescue those whose spirits are crushed. Thank You for rescuing me when my spirit is crushed. . . . (Ps. 34:18)


(excerpts from Desperate Dependency by J. Kirk & Melanie D. Lewis)


We would love for you to POST A COMMENT about the insights you have received on your journey toward desperate dependency.

Graceful Sustainer

CONSIDER
The extent of God’s blessings does not stop with the discovery of the divine treasure of salvation, for within the celestial cavern glows the continuing grace of God through Jesus Christ our Sustainer. Grace, practically understood, is the power to live supplied by God. Jesus literally gives us the capacity to live beyond ourselves. Specifically, He enables us to live beyond our fleshly abilities to be empowered by His divine nature. When our feeble flesh cries, “I can’t do this,” we can reach for His supply of grace and recognize that we do not have to face any issue in life with our meager capabilities.

BIBLE TRUTH

Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ. (Eph 4:11–13 NLT)

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO ME?
The Scriptures teach that God is actively working to bring His children to completeness and fulfillment. The Christian’s life is abuzz with divine activity. Jesus is constantly involved with His disciples to bring each one to maturity. Grace is the all-encompassing biblical concept used to depict the process that starts with salvation and ends with perfecting us into the image of Jesus Christ.

PRAYER
Lord, I am so grateful that you offer me to call on You when I am in trouble. I know You will rescue Me. In everything I desire to give You glory. . . . (Ps. 50:15)


(excerpts from Desperate Dependency by J. Kirk & Melanie D. Lewis)


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The Crisis of the Cross

CONSIDER
We may agonize as we witness the cruel death Christ suffered. But the anguish of the cross can be intimately observed in the Garden of Gethsemane. “He took Peter and Zebedee’s two sons, James and John, and he became anguished and distressed. He told them, ‘My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me’” (Matt. 26:37–38 NLT).

BIBLE TRUTH

He walked away, about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” Then an angel from heaven appeared and strengthened him. He prayed more fervently, and he was in such agony of spirit that his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood. (Luke 22:41–44 NLT)

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO ME?
Jesus knew that when He became sin for us, His Father would not be able to be in a relationship with Him for that point in time because God can have no part with sin. The crisis of the cross was that Christ had to face the penalty of sin without God. So glibly we pummel through our day, striving to be independent, inconsiderate of the consequences. But Jesus knew the horror of facing even one minute without a relationship to God. He modeled a life that was totally dependent on God. The trauma of the tragedy was that He willingly sacrificed His relationship with the Father in order to be in a relationship with you and me!

PRAYER
Dearest Savior, who has believed Your message? You were despised and rejected—a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. But we turned our backs on You and looked the other way. You were despised, and we did not care. Yet it was our weaknesses You carried; it was our sorrows that weighed You down. You were pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. You were beaten so we could be whole. You were whipped so we could be healed. Lord, I don’t want to continue to be like the sheep that stray away. Don’t let me leave Your path to follow my own. Thank you that You paid for the sins of us all. (Isa. 53:1–6)


(excerpts from Desperate Dependency by J. Kirk & Melanie D. Lewis)


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So Much More

CONSIDER
God’s undeserved, limitless grace is available to address the core needs of the soul. Christ offers

Redemption from the
      •Domain of Satan
      •Domination of sin
      •Damnation to hell
      •Dictates of this present evil world

Resolution of
     •Guilt
     •Shame
     •Fear

Restoration to
     •Love
     •Joy
     •Peace

Reconciliation
     •To God
     •Through Jesus
     •By the Holy Spirit


BIBLE TRUTH

Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. (Eph. 1:4–8 NLT)

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO ME?
Unfortunately, when we consider God’s job in our lives, we think we are merely saved from hell and destined for heaven. But God has provided so much more for us. The salvation Christ offers is not merely for escape from hell, or membership in heaven. Rather, it is an invitation to a relationship with the living God! Through His great and precious promises He enables us to experience abundant life now and an eternal inheritance beyond comprehension.

PRAYER
God, Your grace has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. Enable me to follow Your instructions to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. Empower me to live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to You, while I look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed. Thank You that Christ gave His life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us His very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds. . . . (Titus 2:11–14)


(excerpts from Desperate Dependency by J. Kirk & Melanie D. Lewis)


We would love for you to POST A COMMENT about the insights you have received on your journey toward desperate dependency.