There is an old hymn that recites those words, and they are often ringing in my ears.

As I consider the victory Jesus accomplished when He came to earth, lived a sinless life, willingly went to the cross, and rose from the dead to pay our penalty for sin, I am in awe of our amazing God!

Jesus did it all!!

Every person who loves Jesus gets to live in victory, though we didn’t do any of the work in conquering the curse of our sin. 

Jesus did it all! 

There is another old hymn, “Jesus Paid It All”. These are the words in the refrain: “Jesus paid it all, all to Him we owe. Sin had left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow.”

What an amazing Savior we have!  He did it all!

Because Jesus did it all, my life is radically changed. I’m a new person, as 2 Corinthians 5:17 states: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”

I still have sinful tendencies, but God, through His Holy Spirit, enables me to pursue Him, and to walk with Him. The Holy Spirit convicts me of my sin, reveals more of my great God to me, and then enables me to repent of my sin. 

In fact, I WANT to sin less. 

I WANT to exalt and honor God in my life.

I WANT to be more like Jesus.

I WANT to tell others about His great mercy and grace, so they can also share in this new life.

I WANT to be set apart to God, even if that means others are uncomfortable with who I am in Jesus.

All of this, and more, is not because of me, it is because of Jesus. It is because Jesus did it all to make it possible for me – and for you – to know Him, to love Him, and to walk humbly with Him, as we are instructed in Micah 6:8: “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

Are you more enamored with Jesus or with things and people of this world? Do you find yourself in awe of what the world considers fine, or are you sold out for Jesus?

I recently had a garage sale, and it gave me opportunities to share about Jesus. One gentleman told me that he believed Jesus lived. He believed Jesus was a teacher. He did not believe Jesus was supernatural.

But God, through His Word, and the personal testimony of witnesses proves this man is wrong.

I am sold out to Jesus because He, through His Holy Spirit, has proved to me, personally, that He is all He tells me He is in His Word.

However, if you are not yet convinced that the Word of God, and all the personal accounts recorded are not accurate, please talk to someone, like me, who has a living, active relationship with Jesus.

I can, without any reservation, tell you that Jesus is supernatural and God.

I can, without any reservation, tell you that Jesus has made my life better, though it’s not easy.

I can, without any reservation, tell you that Jesus keeps His promises contained in the Bible.

I can, without any reservation, tell you that if you fully commit to Jesus, you will never regret it.

I can, without any reservation, tell you that if you don’t commit to Jesus, you will regret it.

Before I committed my life to Jesus, before I understood that Jesus did it all for me (and for you), I doubted the accuracy of the Bible.

When I first started to read the Bible, and read that people were 800 years old, I quickly put the Bible back on the shelf. It didn’t make sense, so I thought it was inaccurate.

But God didn’t stop drawing me to Himself, and showing me that the Bible is accurate. The Bible holds the words of life, eternal life for you and for me.

God had people talking to Him on my behalf for eternal life. 

God eventually helped me to understand how people could have lived to be 800 years old.

God proved to me the truth in Matthew 6:33: “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

As I followed the leading of God’s Holy Spirit, and sought Him and His kingdom, I came to know that I am a sinner. I understood, and understand even more each day, how sinful I am.

But God also showed me how great a Savior Jesus is!  He showed me, through His Word, that His salvation is complete.

Ephesians 2:8: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.”

Romans 10:13: “For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

John 3:16-17: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”

How should we respond to our great God and Savior, who paid the price completely, who did it all, so we can live in victory?

We should glorify God: “And call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.” Psalm 50:15

If Jesus is not yet your Lord and Savior, you also can live in victory, though you did nothing to contribute to that victory. The truth is, without Jesus, we are dead in our sins and transgressions, and therefore, are fully incapable of contributing in any way to this amazing salvation – God’s gift of eternal life.

What changes in our thoughts/attitudes might we need to change so we live victoriously in Jesus?

The Message states Ephesians 2:1 this way: “It wasn’t so long ago that you were mired in that old stagnant life of sin. You let the world, which doesn’t know the first thing about living, tell you how to live. You filled your lungs with polluted unbelief, and then exhaled disobedience. We all did it, all of us doing what we felt like doing, when we felt like doing it, all of us in the same boat. It’s a wonder God didn’t lose his temper and do away with the whole lot of us. Instead, immense in mercy and with an incredible love, he embraced us. He took our sin-dead lives and made us alive in Christ. He did all this on his own, with no help from us! Then he picked us up and set us down in highest heaven in company with Jesus, our Messiah.”

Are you still mired in the “old stagnant life of sin”? You don’t have to stay there! You can accept Jesus’ gift of eternal life. Admit you are a sinner. Admit you are incapable of doing anything about your sinful condition. Ask Jesus for forgiveness. Ask Jesus to make you His child.

This is the most important and urgent decision of your life. I would feel privileged to talk with you about this step in your life. You can reach me at:  ButGodCares@gmail.com.

Living for Jesus, Donna

P.S. If this has helped you, please feel free to share it with others!

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Copyright 2024 Donna Shappy   All rights reserved.  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other – without the prior permission of the author.