Today we continue our new series entitled, “Press through it!”
We have been walking our way through the following passage for quite some time now. Let’s go back to it today.
“We have this treasure from God, but we are only like clay jars that hold the treasure. This is to show that the amazing power we have is from God, not from us. We have troubles all around us, but we are not defeated. We often don’t know what to do, but we don’t give up. We are persecuted, but God does not leave us. We are hurt sometimes, but we are not destroyed. So we constantly experience the death of Jesus in our own bodies, but this is so that the life of Jesus can also be seen in our bodies. We are alive, but for Jesus we are always in danger of death, so that the life of Jesus can be seen in our bodies that die.”
(2 Corinthians 4:7-11 ERV)
Today I will continue to focus in on this line: “So we constantly experience the death of Jesus in our own bodies, but this is so that the life of Jesus can also be seen in our bodies.” Let’s read this statement from two other translations. The New International Version reads, “We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.” The Passion Bible reads, “We continually share in the death of Jesus in our own bodies so that the resurrection life of Jesus will be revealed through our humanity.”
Reading and meditating on this verse reminds me of something Paul said in his letter to the believers in Philippi. He said, “All I want is to know Christ and the power that raised him from death. I want to share in his sufferings and be like him even in his death. Then there is hope that I myself will somehow be raised from death.” (Phil 3:10,11 ERV).
So what does this mean to you today? A few things.
1. The Apostle Paul and many of his contemporaries (first century believers) were persecuted for the cause of Christ. The same misaligned energy that led to Jesus’ death was carried over to the followers of Jesus throughout the establishment of the early church. People were persecuted for believing in a man who died and rose again. Paul, and the believers of his time, wanted dearly to experience the resurrection power that raised Jesus from the dead. Easter Sunday is coming up soon and it is the resurrection of Jesus that separates Christianity from every other world religion. Paul himself told us that without the resurrection, there is no Christianity. Without the resurrection, everything we do is in vain (1 Cor 15:14). So experiencing God’s resurrection power was one of the major goals of early believers. Paul explained that in order to experience the power of the resurrection, we must also be willing to experience the fellowship of Jesus’ sufferings.
2. The resurrection power of Jesus and the fellowship in the sufferings He experienced are inextricably linked. Believers today want power, but many don’t want sufferings. You can’t have one without the other.
3. If you want to walk in the power Jesus walked in, you must be prepared to experience the opposition He experienced while He was in the earth.
4. Both power and prosperity come with persecution. If you are going to operate in the supernatural, allowing God to use you to do things that are clearly beyond the limits of humanity, people are going to talk about you. Further, if you are going to experience divine success, and allow God to use you to accomplish all He birthed you to accomplish, you are going to face opposition. Satan is not going to idly sit by and watch as God uses you to change the world. So in order to be divinely impactful on this planet, you must be okay with worldly persecution on this planet.
5. People criticize what they do not understand. This is why they fought against Jesus. This is also why, when you truly start operating in supernatural power and/or experiencing supernatural success, people will talk about you. You have to be okay with it. Their poison cannot stop your purpose. You cannot be moved by what they say. You have to know that persecution is part of the package. If you want the power of Jesus, you must be willing to experience suffering with Him.
6. When we experience both the power of Jesus and the suffering of Jesus in our own bodies, the Bible tells us that Jesus’ life will be on display through our own bodies. This is the goal. We want to display Jesus to this world every day. In order to do it, we just have to know that success comes with suffering and prosperity comes with persecution.
7. If no one is talking about you, then you are probably not doing anything of significance in the Kingdom of God. You may think you are succeeding from an earthly point of view, but you have to look at your perceived success through God’s eyes. Are you truly succeeding, making Kingdom impact, doing things that will have lasting value, or are you just seeking success by the world’s standards? God does not measure success in houses, cars or fame. God measures success in purpose.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I want to know You. I want to experience You in the most intimate way. I declare, by faith, that I am open to experience the power of the resurrection. The same power that raised Jesus from the dead is flowing in me. I shall experience this power every day, in every way. I know that in order to experience Jesus’ power, I have to be willing to experience Jesus’ sufferings. I am. The world may talk about me. They may rise up against me. And they may persecute me. I am not moved by it. They did it to Jesus and I am an heir and joint-heir with Him. I am so committed to making Kingdom impact in this world that I am prepared to face and overcome any and all persecution. Nothing and no one can stop me. Because You are IN me! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
