How many of us truly know what Christ has done for us on the cross?He put on humanity that we might put on divinity. He was rich but for our sakes became poor. He cruised the lake in another man’s boat. He rode another man’s beast. He was buried in another man’s grave. When he died, few people mourned, but a black crepe we hung over the sun. When He died, all that they found in His possession where the clothes He wore by day, and slept in by night. He came to His own, but his own rejected Him.

In infancy He startled a king; in childhood He puzzled doctors of law. In manhood He ruled the course of nature, walked upon the waves as if they where pavements, and hushed the sea to sleep.

He never wrote a book and yet all the libraries in the world could not contain the books that have been written about Him. He never wrote a song, and yet He has furnished the theme for more songs than all the song-writers combined. He never founded a college, but no one has more students. He never practiced medicine, and yet He has healed everyone near and far.

He is the star of astrology, the rock of geology the lion and the lamb of zoology. He is the revealer of the snares that lurk in the darkness; the rebuker of every evil thing; the quickener of all that is the wholesome; the adorer of all that is beautiful; the reconciler of contradictions; the harmonizer of discords; Healer of diseases and the savior of mankind.

Every prayer that goes up to God in His name will be answered for His sake. He was crucified, yet still lives. Herod could not kill him; Satan could not seduce him; death could not destroy him; and the grave could not hold him.

In coming to this world he had but one objective He did not come to save us from sorrow for He was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. He did not come to save use from temptation for he was in all points tempted as we are. He did not come merely to preach, or to teach or to heal only. He did not come to deal with our wrong doing, but with our wrong being. He come to deal with sin. That insulted God, killed the prophets, robbed heaven and make hell the high capital of the universe.

He was a man born contrary to the laws of life. The purpose of Christ was purposed in the mind of God before the foundation of the world. Christ’s method to accomplish his purpose was not meant to organize a new political party to lift him into prominence. He did not amass a strong army. He did not rely on force as Napoleon did. He did not rely on education or reformation. He relied upon one intangible thing. TRUTH.

He became the Son of Man that we might become sons of God. He said I am come that they might have life, and have it more abundantly. For this purpose the Son of God was manifest – that he might destroy the works of the devil.

It is our privilege to reign with Him as believers. We have been made to sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. We are to be more than conquerors. Sin shall not have dommion over use. Sin, sickness and Satan are banished from the glorious realm in which God’s children are call to live. Jesus is the king, we are His kingdom. His will is our highest desire and the extension of His kingdom our sole occupation. All else will be added unto us. Our occupation is rulership not defeat.

This piece written by Apostle Andre gives us an overview of the Jesus Christ. I want to pick up one concept and work with it today.

For this purpose the Son of God was manifest – that he might destroy the works of the devil.

Read Romans 6

And
1 John 3:4 – 9 we read

4Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. 5And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. 6Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him. 7Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. 8He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. 9Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.

In 1 John 3:5 is says that “He was manifest to take away our sins”, and verses 8 “that He might destroy to works of the devil” and then in Romans 6: 6 “6knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.”

This is the biggest concept of the Christian life that we need to grasp and as Andre puts it.

He did not come to deal with our wrong doing, but with our wrong being. He came to deal with sin. On national HIV/AID day I was in a shop and they where all wearing T-Shirts that read “the problem is the virus not the person”. We could change that to “the problem is the sin not the person”.

Most people associate Christianity with good works and good behavior. That is the way that the world judges Christians by their behavior and in some way it is right. Jesus says that a bad tree with produce bad fruit and a good tree good fruit. (Matt 7:17 & 18) So therefore if the person’s actions are bad, then the person is bad and if the actions are good then the person is good. That is an extreme generalization I would think. The reality is if the person is acting in a sinful way then the sin in their life has not been dealt with. If they act with the fruit of the Spirit then, then the Spirit has been at work in their lives.

I want to look at dealing with sin in your life. Here I am not talking about sinful actions, but the root of sin in our lives. I am going to look at from two points of view, firstly what Christ has accomplished for us and secondly our response to what He has done.

What did Christ accomplish for us on the cross? Let’s go back to Romans; Romans 5 discusses how death came through one man, that being Adam and that the gift of grace came through one Man that being Jesus Christ and the free gift resulted in justification of life. Then saying where sin abounded so grace abounded much more. That grace will always abound more than sin as sin brought death so grace through righteousness brings eternal life.

That is why Romans 6 starts with shall we continue to sin so that grace may abound. If sin brings forth grace why don’t we all sin so that we will experience more of God’s grace? Paul says certainly not! Then he poses a question how shall we who have died to sin live any longer in it.

Then he goes on to explain to us what happened through the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ.
We where crucified with him. (vs. 6)
The Greek word for “crucified with” and appears 4 times in the bible once in Matt, Mark and John, then in Romans and Galatians. In the gospels it is used to describe the thieves who where crucified along with Him. Paul is saying here that just as the thieves where “crucified with” Him so our “old man” was crucified with Him. In one way Jesus took our place on the cross as the sacrificial Lamb in another way Jesus took us through the cross as well. He was crucified, so that we did not have to be yet we can draw the benefits as if we had been crucified.
We are buried with him (vs. 4)
Through baptism we are buried with Him. Just as Christ was buried in the grave so we through baptism are buried alongside Christ in the grave. That is why baptism is not just an act or a public statement of faith. It is a burial service, where we are buried with Christ.
We shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection (vs. 5)
If we where crucified with Him and buried with Him then we shal