Christ in you, the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27) is an important verse in what is known as exchanged-life theology. The exchanged-life concept basically refers to the exchange that takes place when someone comes to Christ. Here are a few examples:

We were once enemies of God, now reconciled to Him. “For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life (Romans 5:10).”

 We were once sinners, now we are saints. “For as through the one man’s [Adam] disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One [Jesus] the many will be made righteous (Romans 5:19).”

No longer dead, but alive. “Even when we were dead in our transgressions, [God] made us alive together with Christ (Ephesians 2:5).”

God made it possible for you to be a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17) in Him. You are equipped to live the life He desires you live unto Him, if you consent to allow Him to live His life through you.

Christ laid down His life for you at Calvary so you can be His friend (John 15:13). He wants to walk through the journey of life with you. Will you let Him?

Christians whose hearts and minds are directed toward God enjoy His love and their relationship with Him. New Testament believers often refer to their personal relationship with Christ. There are also many references to Old Testament saints who enjoy a close relationship with God.

 Listen to the words of David in Psalms 86: “For Thou, Lord, art good and ready to forgive, and abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon Thee (vs. 5).” “For Thy lovingkindness toward me is great, and thou hast delivered my soul from the depths of Sheoul (v. 13).” “But Thou, O Lord, art a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness and truth (v. 15).”

 “The Hebrew word for lovingkindness is hesed, used about 250 times in the Old Testament. It means loyal, steadfast, or faithful love and stresses the idea of a belonging together of those involved in a love relationship. It connotes God’s faithful love for His unfaithful people. In the Old Testament, communion, deliverance, enablement, enlightenment, guidance, forgiveness, hope, praise, and preservation are all based on God’s hesed (Charles Ryrie, Ryrie Study Bible).” Hesed.com defines hesed as, “the consistent, ever-faithful, relentless, constantly pursuing, lavish, extravagant, unrestrained, furious love of our Father God!”

Are you enjoying your love relationship with God? Take some time to meditate on hesed and all His lovingkindness to draw you into a deeper love relationship with Him. Dwell on how to bring hesed into your personal relationships and strengthen your belonging together.

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up (Galatians 6:9).”

What are you presently waiting for? Is it a recent desire or a long-term hope?  What has to happen for you to get what you want? Does it require effort on your part or are you hoping for the benevolence of another? Does it seem like you will never get what you want?

I visited with a parent recently that was concerned about the spiritual state of her son. Her son is not in church and there is little evidence of an interest in spiritual truth. She wondered, “Did I do enough to direct my son to God” OR, “What should I be doing now to help my son find God.” Good questions that are valid. Of course, everyone can think of things they would have done differently. Every parent would like a “do-over” or two.

What should this mother do? Continue doing what she has done – living a life directed toward God, praying for her child, worshipping God at church and at home, receiving encouragement from friends, and praying for her son. She should also be patient and have faith that her son will respond to Amazing Grace. One thing she should not do is condemn herself over mistakes made or circumstances that appear not to have been good for her son. God really does “work all things [good and bad as they appear to people] together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28).”

“Prayer is not overcoming God’s reluctance, but laying hold of His willingness.”  ~Martin Luther

“But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him.’ The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).”

Rhodium plating is a durable white metal that can be used to make yellow gold look like white gold. Does it work? Yes and no. It can be tried, but jewelers never know if rhodium plating will stick or not. They just do not know if it will actually adhere to the surface of the jewelry.

The plating process involves the rodium plating being heated in a glass jar on a burner. The yellow gold is dipped into the jar while attached to an electrical connector. The electrical current makes the liquid metal cling to the gold.

Sometimes the ring comes up out of the jar and looks white and the rhodium plating has worked as expected. Other times, the ring will come out of the jar and look patchy. Some white plating has stuck to the yellow gold in places and has not in others. It can be re-dipped and is usually successful.

How, you ask, could this have anything to do with my walk with God? Ask yourself – is my faith authentic or do I have a “plated” version of Christianity? “You should be looking at yourselves to make sure that you are really Christ’s. It is yourselves that you should be testing, not me [Paul]. You ought to know by this time that Christ is in you, unless you are not real Christians at all (2 Corinthians 13:5, J B Phillips translation).”

Are you a poseur? A poseur is a person who pretends to be what he or she is not.  Poseurs attempt to impress others by assuming a manner or behavior other than his or her real self. Sometimes believers get all “gussied up” for church or “religious” functions by being on their best behavior and trying very hard to appear holy. Is that the real You or the You that you think would make you more acceptable to those people – or maybe to God?

Other people think they have to be “gold plated” or clean up their sinful behavior before they can approach God. Nothing could be further from the truth. God wants you to admit your sin and your need for His grace and mercy. He desires you come just as you are. That’s why every Billy Graham crusade ends with a call to respond to Christ’s forgiveness by singing “Just As I Am.”

Wherever you are in your spiritual journey, be real with God; He knows and understands your heart “just as it is.”

“Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.” ~Judy Garland

Why do people compare themselves to others? People compare possessions, abilities and even responsibilities. Comparison occurred among the disciples.  They argued over who would be the greatest in the kingdom Jesus spoke of establishing.

Jesus had an encounter with Peter after the resurrection. Jesus had just challenged Peter three times to feed His sheep (or make disciples/watch over His followers). Jesus then told Peter about the type of death by which Peter would die.  “Then Jesus spoke to Peter and said, “Follow me (John 21:19).” Peter noticed John just as he heard the master’s command. “Peter said to Jesus, ‘Lord, and what about this man (John 21:21)?’” “Jesus said to him, ‘If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me (John 22:22)!’” The Lord rebuked Peter for being distracted over John’s future. Peter’s only responsibility was to follow Christ.

Do you compare yourself to others? Do you question why others seem to have an easier lot in life than you? Do you like to play poker with other people’s chips?

Trust God for where He has placed you. Life sometimes is not fair. God will see you through difficulties and let you see others properly if you keep “fixing your eyes on Jesus (Hebrews 12:2).”

Your worth is not based on what you have accomplished or how you compare to other people and their accomplishments. You are of infinite value to God because of His everlasting love toward you and you can rest in the fact that you are an adopted son or daughter.

“For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled we shall be saved by His life (Romans 5:10).”

Jesus rose from the dead three days after the crucifixion. He appeared to His disciples and taught them and was with them for forty days before ascending to the Father. He returned at Pentecost as the Holy Spirit, not to be with His followers physically, but now to live in them and give His life to them and to you if you are a follower of Jesus Christ. He has saved you from the penalty of all your sins. This means you will spend eternity with Him in Heaven. It also means He is the power source for your life. He is the light that illuminates your path. He is the provider of all your needs and your Comforter in times of trouble. He is your Peace.  He is with you when you sit and when you rise. He will never abandon you or leave you alone. No one can snatch you out of His hands. In fact, He upholds you in His righteous right hand. He is with you always, to the very end of the age.

He is alive, and has made you alive spiritually in Him and He desires to live His life in and through you. “For it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).”

John the Baptist was baptizing repentant sinners in the Judean countryside. At the same time, Jesus was also baptizing in the same area. John’s disciples became jealous that more people were going to Jesus to be baptized than were coming to John. They reported it to John the Baptist. To this John replied, “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’ The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. He must become greater; I must become less (John 3: 27-30).”

 The key to living a Christ-first life, a Christ in you, the hope of glory kind of life, is to have the same attitude that John the Baptist had at this incident in Judea. “He must increase and I must decrease.”

In what area of your life must Jesus increase? In what area of your life must you decrease? God wants all you are and all you will become to be devoted to Him.  “You shall have no other God’s before Me (Exodus 20:3).” This is what He wants for you today.

“Faithful is He who calls you and He will also bring it to pass (1 Thessalonians 5:24).”

God calls His children to be faithful. Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him as righteousness (Galatians 3:6). But, often Christians are not faithful due to lack of faith, sin in their life, or they feel defeated by the circumstances they have to deal with. But God continues to pursue the relationship.

What if God gave up on His sheep when they sinned or strayed from Him? He would not have any followers. But God in His infinite mercy strives with each person and desires to restore the relationship and help the person become whole.

Israel was the epitome of unfaithfulness. Yet, Psalm 121:4 says, “He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.” Time and again, the nation strayed and God hung with them, pursued and restored them, and continued with His plan for the redemption of sins through Jesus Christ. And He continues to do so to this day.

Do not ever think or feel you cannot go to God because of your lack of faith or because you have sinned. If you are a believer in Christ, He lives in you. “He is your hope for glory (Colossians 1:27).” “He will never [ever] leave you or forsake you (Hebrews 13:5).”

“For the Lord your God is a merciful God; He will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your forefathers, which He confirmed to them by oath (Deuteronomy 4:31).”

Jesus spent forty days on earth after the Resurrection before His ascension to Heaven (Acts 1:3). Before Christ left, He instructed His disciples not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for the Holy Spirit He had promised earlier.

 His disciples asked Him, “Is it at this time you are restoring the kingdom of Israel?” This is the same basic question they asked Him in Matthew 24. Jesus responded, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His one authority, but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth (Acts 1: 7-8).”

Jesus’ kingdom is not of this world, as He told Pilate just prior to the crucifixion (John 18:36). His kingdom is restored and is being built, one soul at a time. Jesus is more concerned with His children being witnesses for Him and extending His kingdom than for His people to know when He will return. He does want us to be ready and to look forward to His return (2 Timothy 4:8), while at the same time living fully in Him, and for Him, while we wait.

“We must work the works of Him who sent Me, as long as it is day; night is coming when no man can work (John 9:4).”

Easter 2012 was a celebration of the resurrection of Christ — as is every other Easter. Personally, it was a celebration of the resurrection of my soul that is only possible because of the resurrection of Christ. He does make all things new!

“Now after He had risen early on the first day of the week, He first appeared to Mary Magdalene, from whom He had cast out seven demons. She went and reported to those who had been with him, while they were mourning and weeping.  And when they heard that He was alive, and had been seen by her, they refused to believe it (Mark 16:9-11).”

The resurrection is the same for everyone who receives Christ, and is personally specific to each believer. The same, in that each person is forgiven their sins(s) and given a new eternal destiny. Personally specific, in that each person has their own unique problems and issues to overcome.

He is risen. He is alive. He lives in you. Allow Him to meet you at your specific point of need and help you overcome your doubts, fears, and problems. He is in the business of “creating clean hearts and renewing steadfast spirits (Psalms 51:10).”