IN

Greetings in grace from one who is alive to those who are alive.

I pray that your life is increasing even as these words make their way across your eyes and into your thoughts. While being surrounded by a culture of death, and even as society continuously promotes and encourages more and more diverse ways to experience death, I write to remind you that if you have been re-born, from above, then death no longer has any right to influence your life.

Death exposes itself in many evil and subtle ways:

• Relationships are a place where death can be painfully and extendedly experienced. Intended by God to be one of the greatest earthly and eternal blessings that mankind has been gifted, when spoiled, there are few other more devastating heartaches that can be experienced. That misery is exacerbated and inflamed through strife, contention, unforgiveness, separation, divorce, “prodigal children,” or even the darkness of hatred that slithers into one’s soul over time. All of the above were never in God’s creative goodness, which is why the soul-sorrow that proceeds is nearly beyond our capacity to cope with.
• The fragility of physical health is another reality of life that hardwires the human mind to submissively accept death’s penetrating work over time. As we add rings to our tree’s trunk, it becomes unavoidable to notice how our bark is not as healthy as when we were teenage saplings, frolicking in the timber under the warm spring sun. It takes a ton more work to stop our branches from sagging from the constant pull of gravity or even keep them attached during the blustery storms of life. And then, those leaves keep changing colors and want to fall off… a visualization of the inescapability of the change of seasons.
• Financial pressure is inadvertently applied to us when we are just children. It does not take long to learn that the necessities of life do not just appear like the overflowing leftovers colorfully packed in Tupperware containers in your parent’s bottomless refrigerator. The pursuit of money starts innocently enough as wanting to buy your own super-sized value meal. Eventually, it sours into a slavemaster who demands forty… fifty years or more of your blood, sweat, tears, and soul otherwise, you could be relegated to the fearful noose of lack, bankruptcy, or even destitute poverty. Always working, but never having enough… a unique and wearisome facet of death spread over a lifetime of failing to keep up with the Joneses (whoever they are).
• Emotional death is another silent killer that prowls around in the dark looking for unsuspecting victims who have lost the will to fight. Depression and oppression deal repetitive blows that weaken the resolve or identity of a soul. Others have a bull-ring painfully piercing the septum of their heart making them helpless cattle easily led by whatever feeling is jerking the rope. Like an old, blind cow, they are pulled in any direction their feelings demand, often leading them to the slaughterhouse grinder that converts once-healthy muscle tissue into a pile of ground beef to be devoured by the propane-fueled flames of life.

The Apostle Paul summarized it this way, “I die daily,” (1 Corinthians 15:31a).

But, is this the way it should be… is this the, “inevitable,” existence we are all subjected to possess?

But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.
1 Corinthians 15:20-22 BSB

Notice that the defining difference between experiencing death in, “Adam,” and experiencing life in, “Christ,” is location… “IN.” That little bitty word has a big impact. Location, location, location…

Just a few verses later, Paul quotes from a Greek philosopher to rationally reinforce his point, “Do not be deceived: ‘Bad company corrupts good character,’” (verse 33).

There is much being said today about the importance and necessity of understanding our divine identity, which will greatly impact our internal value. In no way am I trying to lessen the need for believers to have a revelation of, and live from, a healthy identity; however, even in the messaging of the identity teaching today, that little preposition sneaks up and shows up… “IN.” Our identity IN Christ. Location.

If we were in a desert, our location would determine how our daily life would most likely go. Dehydrated brain, burnt skin, sweating odor, squinty eyes, and lethargic muscles fatigued by the heat. The environment produced those effects organically. If we found ourselves dropped at the North Pole, the surroundings would be the polar opposite of the desert, but have equal or possibly greater misery… especially for the gals like my wife who would be looking for a purple blanket, even in the desert, in case she got chilled by an unexpected breeze. Just the thought of that icy domain is making a bunch of women reading get preemptive goosebumps. The opposite of a terrible environment can just be a different terrible.

When a person is IN Adam, or in their natural and flesh-fueled life, the environment is deadly. Knowing this, they erroneously speculate that if they just had a bigger house, some different peeps, a warmer zip code, a better spouse, a new and effective drug, more money, funnier sitcoms, a fun and popular hobby… then life would be awesome! Nope… same flesh, different location. No matter how much we change the natural nuances around us, we are still IN the Adams Family. In that family, everybody dies. Adam means, “humankind,” so we have to get out of humanity and IN something else.

“IN Christ all will be made alive.” What does that mean… what does it look like? It looks like Jesus.

He was surrounded by hatred and vile persecution, yet:

But about the Son He [God] says:

“Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever, and justice is the scepter of Your kingdom.

You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You above Your companions with the oil of joy.”

(Hebrews 1:8-9 BSB)

Jesus was filled with more joy than anyone and everyone around Him. He made an environment of Joy while being hated by many.

He was mocked by the small and great alike. He was abandoned by his most intimate friends, even to the insulting end of being betrayed with a kiss of faux friendship from Judas, his fellow-laborer in the ministry. His family disowned Him as a religious heretic and his birth-brothers even wanted Him to die (see John 7 verses 1 and 3 together).

He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in His mouth. When they heaped abuse on Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats, but entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.
1 Peter 2:22-23 BSB

Jesus WAS an environment. When people were around Him, He changed their life.

One day while Jesus was teaching, some Pharisees and teachers of religious law were sitting nearby. (It seemed that these men showed up from every village in all Galilee and Judea, as well as from Jerusalem.) And the Lord’s healing power was strongly with Jesus.
Luke 5:17 NLT

This radical, environmental emanation was not just exclusive to the physical person of Jesus in His earthly ministry, but was also true for those who were IN Christ after His ascension to Heaven.

As a result of the apostles’ work, sick people were brought out into the streets on beds and mats so that Peter’s shadow might fall across some of them as he went by. Crowds came from the villages around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those possessed by evil spirits, and they were all healed.
Acts 5:15-16 NET

Peter’s shadow was healing folks! Jesus promised that we would overflow with life to the degree that it would flow from us into the environment around us:

On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’” (When he said “living water,” he was speaking of the Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him. But the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet entered into his glory.)
John 7:37-39 NET

If our heart is safely hidden IN Christ, we are IN His environment of life, and we are creating an environment of life around us that destroys death… ALL death! Our relationships can overflow with life because the most overwhelming relationship is with HIM. We are healed IN Him, which brings grace for health contrary to the gravitational pull of the sick world around us. Our financial situation should be IN Him, the greatest example of generosity EVER. And, our emotions should definitely be coming from IN Him, the One Who showed us an example of how to be completely in control of one’s soul.

Therefore we do not become discouraged [spiritless, disappointed, or afraid]. Though our outer self is [progressively] wasting away, yet our inner self is being [progressively] renewed day by day.
2 Corinthians 4:16 AMP

Which way are you progressing, Beloved?
Let us go into the progression of THE Great Awakening!

With great love,
Steve