The Plumbline

So do you think we should continue sinning so that God will give us more and more grace? Of course not! Our old sinful life ended. It’s dead. So how can we continue living in sin? Did you forget that all of us became part of Christ Jesus when we were baptized? In our baptism we shared in his death. So when we were baptized, we were buried with Christ and took part in his death. And just as Christ was raised from death by the wonderful power of the Father, so we can now live a new life. (Romans 6:1-4) If you haven't realized it yet, we do 'continue to sin' even after we say yes to Jesus. There is still a struggle with temptation. We don't just magically 'stop sinning' - we must deal with the urges to do what is wrong when we know what is right. Good news is that we don't do it alone! We have Christ in us to help us with that very real struggle. Did you ever wonder what purpose water baptism plays in a person's life? If we are honest, some of us may have ...

Destination - the purpose for which someone is destined.  Really we can thing of being "destined" as being set apart for a particular purpose - we have a "use" defined for our lives.  Our "destination" is "in Christ" if we have entered into relationship with him.  If not, our "destination" is rather uncertain. 25-27 But now you have arrived at your destination: By faith in Christ you are in direct relationship with God. Your baptism in Christ was not just washing you up for a fresh start. It also involved dressing you in an adult faith wardrobe—Christ's life, the fulfillment of God's original promise. (Galations 3:25-27 The Message) The awesome point of this passage is the "direct" relationship we have with God through Christ.  The Apostle Paul has spent better than half of this letter to the Galations explaining the purpose of the Law of Moses as "pointing to" the destination he now reveals -...