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The Scriptural View
 We are the most powerful people on earth...
Denying Self Rule
Freedom comes from looking at the cross / looking through it.
We are not designed to be independent of God. The flesh wants to be in control, but God wants us to depend on Him, he wants us to be totally dependant on Him.
If we focus on God he will change us.
Why wait for God to help? - Lets ask God to help, as the first thing we do, not the last.
God will guide us and we must trust that He will
Picking up our Cross
Picking up our cross means:
To acknowledge we belong to God, daily.
Every morning we should thank God for Life and the new day and say 'Here I am, for you today'
"I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So the life I now live in the body, I live because of the faithfulness of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." (Galatians 2:20)
"You know that from your empty way of life inherited from your ancestors you were ransomed-not by perishable things like silver or gold, but by precious blood like that of an unblemished and spotless lamb, namely Christ." (1 Peter 1:18-19)
God carries our burdens
Following Christ
We need not to do good works, we need not to try to be a better person - we need only to love God.
Everything is centred on our relationship with God.
Sacrifice the Lower Life, to Gain the Higher Life
Whatever we gain on earth - we will lose for eternity.
Let's not put our time into possessions, status, etc.
Sacrifice the Pleasure of Things, to Gain the Pleasure of Life
The apostle Paul was content in Christ,despite being in prison, stoned, bitten by a snake, etc.
The pleasure of life, is knowing we belong to God.
Sacrifice the Temporal to Gain the Eternal
"By faith Abel offered God a greater sacrifice than Cain, and through his faith he was commended as righteous, because God commended him for his offerings. And through his faith he still speaks, though he is dead. By faith Enoch was taken up so that he did not see death, and he was not to be found because God took him up. For before his removal he had been commended as having pleased God. Now without faith it is impossible to please him, for the one who approaches God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him." (Hebrews 11:4-6)
It's better to know we are children of God, than to strive for things in the world, which we will lose anyway.
If we have a rough time on earth, He will make it right in eternity.
Satan wants us to be tied up in earthly things.
We are a Saint, we have authority of Christ.
Satan has no authority over us, we have authority over him.
We must read the "I ams" and "I cans" in Christ.
We have eternal life - which can't be taken away, it's guaranteed.
If we went and did something very bad, we would still go to heaven, it's guaranteed.
God sees us as pure - He sees us through Christ.
We are no longer sinners - we are Saints.
Satan wanted us to die for our sin, but he lost it, so he tries to keep us under the power of sin, he drops thoughts into our minds.
We must give each day to God. Jesus is the bearer of our troubles.
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