Today, we're going to take on a posture of peace by resting in the finished work of the cross.
Hi, I'm Lindsay Van Zale. Posture is a podcast that serves as a short audible fist bump to remind
you that God is in everything. Together, we're going to be emboldened to take a daily posture
of perfect peace. Colossians chapter 2 verses 13 through 15 says this,
Every plan the enemy set up to take you out was nailed to the cross with Jesus.
Only Jesus rose again, but the power of sin did not. He holds your victory safe and secure today.
Isaiah 53 gives us a itemized list, if you will, of what took place on the cross. It says that
Jesus took up our pain and he bore our suffering. It says that Jesus was pierced for our transgressions.
He was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought us peace was laid upon Jesus,
and by his wounds, we are healed. The power of sin and all of its effects, all of the residue
and consequence of sin, the lack of peace, the lack of health, the lack of wholeness,
were all nailed to the cross and disarmed by Jesus. Anxiety was nailed to the cross. Depression
was nailed to the cross. Stress was nailed to the cross. Isolation was nailed to the cross.
Coronavirus was nailed to the cross. Whenever a tragedy strikes, like the global health pandemic
that we're facing right now, there are accusatory murmurings that always arise saying,
this is God's judgment on us. And I'm sure the people that are saying those types of things
are only thinking about what it implies of us. You know, they're wanting us to know we're unworthy,
we need to shape up, we need to make things right, we need to get our act together. But
actually, the accusation that something like this would be a judgment of God really implies
horrendous things about Jesus. Because when we believe something like a coronavirus,
a pandemic was sent by God as judgment, what we imply is that Jesus's work on the cross
wasn't a finished one. That somehow there's something that you and I can do to chip away at,
or maybe even add to what Jesus has already done. And I'm here to tell you, you and I don't have
that kind of authority. I used to grossly underestimate what Jesus did on the cross
by believing it was all about modifying my behavior. It was about getting me to shape up,
it was about getting me to behave better. But actually, the amazing victory that Jesus won
through the cross modified sin's behavior. No longer do you or I have to be weighed down by,
or dictated to, or crushed by sin, because Jesus disarmed its power over us.
This is the kind of God Jesus is. He is rich in mercy, abounding in love. He is mighty to redeem,
and He is always at the ready to put sin in its place. This is the reality that we get to live
into as the people of God, and that we get to invite others to live into as well. If you think
that anything that you're suffering with right now, whether it's what's happening with the
coronavirus or maybe something in your life, if you think that it's been sent by God to teach you
a lesson or to put you in your place, you're wrong. You're wrong. You're wrong. You're wrong.
place. The book of Colossians reminds us specifically in chapter 3 that Christ's
resurrection is our resurrection too. Christ already put us in our place and
You're wrong. You're wrong. You're wrong. You're wrong. You're wrong. You're wrong. You're wrong.
it says in in chapter 3 verse 3 that that place is a life that is now hidden
in Christ. You and I are held secure in victory today. Coronavirus has no power
over us. It doesn't dictate our thoughts or our actions or our mood or our peace.
We are victorious in Jesus and if you're listening today and you've never made
Jesus the Lord of your life, I have good news. Jesus makes it super easy for us to
come to him. He did all the hard work and the Bible says that all we have to do is
confess with our mouth and believe in our hearts that Jesus rose from the dead.
The Bible says that all of us have sinned and fallen short of God's standard.
That the just punishment for our sin was eternal separation from God in hell and
what Colossians is telling us is that that debt was nailed to the cross. There
was no way that we could ever earn our way into heaven so Jesus who is the Son
of God came and lived a sinless life among us and then as a sacrifice for our
sins he died on the cross but he didn't stay dead. He rose again defeating sin
forever and it's because of Jesus's perfect sacrifice that we can be
reconciled to God and today, today we can live free from the power of sin.
Salvation is God's free gift to us but we have to accept the gift. It's up to us to
accept it. That's the part that we play. So if you're wanting to make Jesus your
Lord, you can pray this prayer with me. There's no magic prayer but this is a
prayer that represents that heart condition we talked about, confessing
with our mouth and believing in our heart. So you can say this after me
wherever you are right now. Heavenly Father, forgive me of my sins. Make me
brand new. I believe Jesus died for me and rose again so I could live for you.
Fill me with your spirit right now so I can know you, serve you, and follow you
the rest of my life. Today I acknowledge that my life is not my own because today
I give it to you. Thank you for this new life. It is in Jesus's name that I pray
this prayer. Amen. Now if you prayed that prayer for the first time, I have a link
in the description below. If you're watching this, it's in the description. If
you're listening to this, it's going to be in your podcast description. Click on
that link and let me know that you prayed that prayer and I'm just going to
email you some free resources that will help you over the next 30 days grow in
your relationship with Jesus. For those of us who have known Jesus a long time,
it's important that we remember and we stay fresh in this revelation of Jesus's
finished work, especially in the time that we're living in right now. You and I
are not powered by sin and we're not powered or moved by what's going on in
the world right now with this pandemic of coronavirus. You and I sit firmly in
the position of being hidden in Christ. He is our security. He is our victor and
he shares that victory with us today. Today, let's remember there is nothing we
can do to add to the finished work of Jesus and there is nothing that we can
do to chip away at it. What we can do is believe in it, stand firm in it, and gain
confidence in who we are in Christ and as we are transformed by that truth, we
can transform the world around us. The promise of perfect peace is found in
Isaiah 26 3 and in Hebrew it is shalom shalom, meaning complete wholeness.
Nothing missing, nothing broken. This is who you are in Jesus. Let's declare this
together. Today, I am kept in perfect peace. With my whole heart, I trust the
Lord. I am strong. I am victorious. I am whole. Remember, friend, you are a living
testimony of Jesus's ultimate win, not because of anything you did but because
of what he did for you. With every step you take today, you're putting Jesus's
victory on display and Satan's defeat on replay.