Sweet Home Santa Barbara

Monday, July 15, 2013

Daughter of Christ

Morning, ya'll! Hope you had a fantastic weekend :)

I've got lots of life updates coming for ya this week. But considering I got home at around 11PM last night from a packed weekend down in San Diego, I think I'll save the writing for later in the week. 

For this morning, I'm diggin' through my guest posts that have yet to be on Sweet Home SB. This particular post was published on Overcome the Lie, and I personally think I could use another read today. 

I hope you enjoy it!

***

You are a daughter of Christ.

I'm sure for most of you, this is not new news. Perhaps you've heard this many times. You've written it down as you've listened to sermons explaining how you were bought with a price by the Savior of the universe. 

You've heard the worship songs, you know the lyrics. You know that He loves you because you've read the scriptures that you know to be true. 

But if you're anything like me, it may be easy to desensitize yourself to the weight of these words. It may be easy to forget exactly what it means to be a daughter of Christ. 

We know that we are set apart. But how are we set apart? 

What makes us so different from this world that we live in?

***

Romans 7 is Paul's very detailed account of his battle with sin. If you have ever been astounded by your own behavior, been shocked to find yourself struggling with sin that you thought you left behind, then you have probably taken great comfort in this chapter. 

You have probably found a sense of relief in knowing that even the great apostle Paul struggled the very same struggle that you face. 

I know I have. 

So, if we, as Christians, struggle with sin, then how are we set apart from the world that is filled with it?


You are a daughter of Christ.

That means that you don't have to fight this fight alone. That means that it is not you who is expected to overcome the sinful nature that you feel deep within you. 

That means that you don't have to stand on your own two feet as you face the brokenness of this world before you. 

Because you are a daughter of Christ, it is Christ within you who fights this battle. 

It is Christ within you who births the righteousness that you crave, the holiness that you desire with all of your heart. 

On the outside, we don't appear to be different from this world. Because we're not. We're not expected to be. 

But Christ is different from this world. He cannot deny Himself, and everything about Him is opposite of what we know. 

So, when we embrace our identities as daughters of Christ, we embrace that His Spirit is inside of us. And His Spirit takes that inner battle that Paul describes in Romans 7, and says no more. 

His Spirit says this one is mine! She is holy and righteous because she is my daughter. And she is set apart not by her own actions, but by mine. 

His Spirit sets us free. 


You are a daughter of Christ. 

And you are set free because of it. You are set apart from this world, 
set apart to shine bright for the One within you.

3 comments:

Eleanor Harte said...

I did need this today, Amy! Thank you :)

Anonymous said...

LOVE.

Julie said...

Thank you so much for sharing this! I don't think I caught it when it was originally posted so I'm glad you did! I really needed to hear this. I've been struggling with some sin and turning away from God lately, but when I just let His spirit be within me, I can overcome it all! AMEN, girl. Love you :)