Israel, The Red Sea and The Cross

Israel, The Cross and The Red Sea

Israel's experiences in the Old Covenant were prophetic pictures of our redemption in Christ under the New Covenant. We must grasp the whole plan of God to equip us to better understand the time in which we live and our own part in it. By understanding Israel's failures in the wilderness after the Lord brought her out of Egypt, we can understand our own wilderness experiences and see the futility of placing our faith in anything other than the Cross of Christ. Our conquest of our Promised Lands is dependent upon faith, but not just any type faith. Our faith must always rest in the finished work of Christ where all matters pertaining to godliness and victory were purchased by the Lord and His blood.

By Chris McDonald

TEXT: 1 Cor. 10:1-4 - Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; [2] And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; [3] And did all eat the same spiritual meat; [4] And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.

Romans 6:3 - Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

Israel's experiences in the Old Covenant were but pictures of our walk with the Lord in the New. The wilderness experiences of life even though harsh and cruel at times, are necessary as we seek a deeper understanding of God and all that must be accomplished in His people. The work of the Holy Spirit in our wilderness experiences, is preparing us for the conquest of our Promised Land, just as Israel's wilderness experiences were meant to prepare her for the presence of God.

After more than 400 years of slavery, Israel departed Egypt as a free people. Without a single weapon this humble band of slaves defeated the greatest nation on earth and carried away its treasure. Even recognizing the dramatic changes taking place at the end of the 20th century, there has been a reversal in human history to equal Israel's liberation from Egypt. Days before the great miracle at the Red Sea, a type of our death in Christ, Israel was without hope; bound by powers of darkness in Egypt; suddenly they were not only free but wealthier than even the most optimistic could have imagined. A truly marvelous God had considered their grief and had come to set them free. A truly marvelous Jesus has come to consider our grief and set us free as well. We too, like Israel, were without hope before He came.

Romans 5:1-5
Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: [2] By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. [3] And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; [4] And patience, experience; and experience, hope: [5] And hope makes not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

Romans 5:6-8
For when we were yet without strength (hope) , in due time Christ died for the ungodly. [7] For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. [8] But God commended his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

There was great rejoicing after Israel's liberation from slavery. The seed chosen to bring forth the Messiah had faced the seed of Satan in the most dramatic confrontation yet since the fall of man, and the victory had been overwhelming. But the victory was not yet complete. Pharaoh still had his army and he would use it to make one last bold attack upon the children of Israel. In Pharaoh, we have one of the greatest biblical archetypes of Satan. Satan's highest priority continues to be keeping God's people in bondage. If he cannot keep us in bondage, he will try to destroy us. Never forget that friend. This battle over our eternal souls is to the death. We will either find a place of victory or we will die. Our victory over sin, the flesh and Satan will never be complete until, like the Israelites who fled from Pharaoh, we pass through the Red Sea. The Red Sea, is a type, or biblical model of the baptism we experience when we come to Christ. It is through this baptism of death that our enemy is to be utterly destroyed. Through baptism we are to be forever separated from the domain that has kept us in bondage. The apostle Paul explains this:

1 Cor. 10:1-2
Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; [2] And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;

Paul wrote in Romans that we as New Covenant believers were baptized into this same sea of death when we came to Christ and were baptized into His finished work at the Cross:

Romans 6:3
Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

As Pharaoh was a biblical type of Satan, Moses was a type of Christ who comes to set us free. As stated in First Corinthians, the Israelites were baptized symbolically into Moses by their experience at the Red Seas, as a prophecy of how we are to be baptized into Christ.

True Baptism - Not Of Water But Of The Spirit

What does it mean to be "baptized into Christ?" The word baptized literally means to be immersed. Paul said that Israel had been baptized into Moses into the cloud and in the sea and that in the same way we are baptized into Christ. To move into something is to be transferred from a position outside to a position inside. We have been brought OUT of something (SIN) to be brought INTO something (CHRIST). It is through the baptism of death we move from a position OUTSIDE of Christ to a position of ABIDING in HIM. That's why salvation is more than just repeating a prayer in front of a church. It's more than getting baptzied in water, as wonderful as that is when it comes to ritual. It's more than just signing your name to a church roll or confessing to a priest. It's being BORN again as Jesus said. When you get saved neighbor you are CHANGED. You are made a NEW CREATION in Christ Jesus. OLD things are passed away, all things have become NEW.

John 3:3-8
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. [4] Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? [5] Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. [6] That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. [7] Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. [8] The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

2 Cor. 3:7
But if the ministration of death, written and engraved in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away:

2 Cor. 5:17-18
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. [18] And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;

The Bible records how Israel was delivered from Egypt by the Passover, but it was through the Red Sea and being under the cloud in the wilderness that they were truly joined to Moses. Likewise, it is the CROSS that delivers us from bondage to the world. Once delivered we just follow through the cloud of God's presence and baptism into Christ DEATH that we join ourselves to HIM. Through baptism we move to a position IN HIM. Paul states it this way in Romans 6:4-5:

Romans 6:4-5
Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. [5] For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

Israel's passage through the Red Sea is a type of water baptism, which is a mere symbolic ritual representing what happens to us when we're born again. Baptism is being UNITED in Christ in the very likeness of HIS DEATH in order to live in the power of His resurrection. Honey, you can be immersed in water as many times as you want to - even in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost - but it will never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never make us partakers of the Lord's death. Water baptism represents the commitment and faith we make to live in union with Christ, nothing more. When Christ died on that cross, WE died with Him. When He went into the tomb, in the mind of God, our flesh, went into that tomb with HIM. When Christ came out of the grave, WE came out of the grave with Him. Praise God. And that newness of life is found ONLY through faith in the finished work of the cross of Christ and ALL that it purchased for us. We cannot go beyond that and we cannot take anything away from it.

Sadly, many in the church world (especially preachers) tend to lessen the importance of the Cross. If we were preaching the cross and understanding this principle as we ought, the seeker-sensitive gospel would go; the prosperity-greed gospel would go; the hyper-faith doctrines that offer false hope would go; we don't have "faith" in our "faith," we have faith in CHRIST. Many have the ritual down pat without having the commitment and faith to go along with it.

Just as a wedding ceremony is not the actual marriage but rather a ceremonial commitment to marriage, water baptism is a ceremonial commitment to marriage, water baptism is a ceremonial commitment to what is supposed to be a reality in our lives because of our salvation. The baptism that Paul declared to the Roman Christians was the actual commitment to union with the Lord in His death. This is a day-by-day commitment to take up our crosses and lay down our own lives and self-interests for the sake of the Gospel.

This is the true baptism. It's not a mental acceptance of a doctrinal truth, as so many try to make it. It's a lifestyle of DEATH to our own natures, so Christ can live through us the NEW NATURE of the Holy Spirit. You say "it's hard to die." Let me shock you with something. It's
"impossible to die," to be frank without the help of the Holy Spirit. Christ could not die without the help of the Holy Spirit. That is why He was called the "eternal Spirit," in Hebrews 9:14.

Hebrews 9:14
How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

Christ offered Himself to God through the eternal Spirit. We must do the same. This is not submission to a ritual. We must lay down our lives and interests to serve CHRIST.

God-ordained ceremonies are important, so this is not to belittle water baptism, no more than we'd seek to belittle a wedding ceremony. To be frank, New Covenant believers in the early church did not practice the modern invention known as the "altar call," but, after conversion the new believers were baptized by immersion in water. They did this just as quickly as they could find water.

We must always teach new converts to Christ that our walk with Christ is not based or to be ruled by convenience. Our submission to convenience is possibly the greatest foe to our entering into the true baptism - laying down our lives for His sake. It's one of the hardest and most yet, most needed, events in the life of the believer. Many try and walk this walk without being baptized into Christ's death. It won't work friend. If we laid aside our modern substitutes for water baptism and returned to the spiritual mandate of teaching what true salvation meant, we'd see a difference in our converts!!!!! Most would begin their spiritual walks on a firmer footing, understanding the essential commitment to laid down their lives and sacrifice their own convenience. If we connected conversion with an immediate demonstration of how important the church considers obedience to God's mandate in His Word, believe me, our converts would be more solidly grounded in the truth. The foundation we start out on is so vitally important. Without a foundation, the process of growth is ruled totally useless.

Water baptism is a fulfilling of the ritual, but baptism into CHRIST is a fulfilling of the covenant. Many fulfill the ritual but fail to lay down their lives; We may not ever fulfill the ritual but to be born again, we must always fulfill the covenant. Water baptism does not save us; it does not cleanse us; it causes no one to partake of the Lord's death, which is the baptism Israel's entrance into the Red Sea portrayed.

Peter said it was through this baptism of Christ where our eternal salvation was secured:

1 Peter 3:17-21
For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing. [18] For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: [19] By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; [20] Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water. [21] The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:

We must always understand that laying down our own lives to share His death then rising out of that death to partake of His resurrection.

Romans 6:5
For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

Baptized Into The Cloud, Free From Sin

Romans 6:3-4
Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? [4] Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

What the Red Sea account shows us about Israel's deliverance, Romans 6 shows us about our own deliverance from sin. The Believer is not to continue in sin! We do not have to live under sin's dominion if we will but place our faith in Christ's finished work and understand and grasp our position in HIM.

Paul says in Romans 6:1, "what shall we say then?" In other words, "Does grace give a person a free reign to sin?" His answer was "God forbid." Grace is certainly greater than sin just as the power of God was greater than the Red Sea. Israel crossed the Red Sea and was delivered but she failed to reach her Promised Land because she never entered into the full victory of God's presence. We do not have a license to sin!

Romans 6:1-2
What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? [2] God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?

Paul said we are "dead to sin." We are in actuality "dead to the sin nature," that breeds sin. Paul says "away with the thought, let not such a thing occur." By position, we as the believer are immersed, placed into Christ. This is a spiritual event, not water baptism.

1 Cor. 1:17
For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.

1 Cor. 12:13
For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

Galatians 3:27
For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Eph. 4:5
One Lord, one faith, one baptism,

Col. 2:11-13
In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: [12] Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. [13] And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;

When Christ died on the Cross, in the Mind of God, we died with Him; in other words, He became our Substitute, and our identification with Him in His Death gives us all the benefits for which He died; the idea is He did it all for us! What does this mean?

First, the believer must reckon himself immersed or placed into Jesus Christ. This is the first thing the believer should know about his position in Christ. This is one of the most glorious truths in all of Scripture, yet so much controversy has raged over what is meant by baptism that the glorious meaning has often been bypassed. Baptism is a picture of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. When a true believer is immersed, he is proclaiming to the world that he is being identified with Christ:

by being placed under the water, he is proclaiming that he has died and been buried with Christ.
by being raised up from the water, he is proclaiming that he has been raised from the dead with Christ to live a new life.

The believer is immersed, placed into, or identified with Christ in death. This is the believer’s position in Christ. Very simply, if the believer really died when Christ died, then he has died to sin and is freed from sin and its penalty and punishment. What a glorious gift from God! What a glorious position to receive from God’s wonderful grace! God takes the person’s faith (and baptism as stated in this passage) and counts the person as participating in Christ’s death. God counts and considers the person...

to have died in Christ’s death.
to be placed into Christ’s death.
to be identified with Christ’s death.
to be a partaker of Christ’ death.
to be in union with Christ’s death.
to be bound with Christ in death.

Not only did we die with Him, but we were buried with Him as well, which means that ALL the sin and transgression of the past were BURIED; and when they put Him in the Tomb, our sins were placed in the tomb as well. We died with Him, we were buried with Him, and His Resurrection to a "newness of life." The end result of this entire process is we as believers:

have died to sin
have died to the penalty of sin
have died to the judgment of sin · and as a result we are freed from sin
and freed from the penalty of sin
and freed from the judgment of sin

This means that the rule and reign and the habits and desires of sin no longer have control over us. Sin ceases to have a place or a position in our lives. We are free from sin, free from...

sin’s habit
sin’s control - sin’s bondage · sin’s enslavement
sin’s rule and reign
sin’s guilt It means that we no longer live “in” sin, in the position and place of sin.

Romans 6:14
For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

Because of the fallen nature that still resides inside us, even after conversion, we do not embrace the idea we can find sinless perfection. But we CAN be free from sin "reigning," and "ruling," in our lives. This business of "sinning a little bit everyday," is not found in the word of God. It's not we don't fall, it's that we strive for holiness, instead of tolerating sin!

We are free from living "in sin." We no longer practice and desire sin. We desire and practice righteousness, seeking to please God in all that we do. And as glorious as this is, it means that we are freed from the condemnation of sin, the terrible punishment that shall be measured out in the awful day of judgment.

Romans 8:1
There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

Romans 5:3-8
[6] For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. [7] For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. [8] But God commended his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:9-10
Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. [10] For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

This is the believer’s position in Christ. He is immersed, buried, placed into, and identified with Christ in death. And having died, the believer never has to be under the rule and reign of sin and its judgment again. He is a partaker of Christ’s death, bound and united to Christ in death; therefore, we are dead to sin and all its effects.

The Red Sea Experience And The Likeness Of His Resurrection

Romans 6:5
For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

We must always remember this: a true believer is a person who really believes. This simply means he repents, confesses, obeys, and is baptized into Christ's death. It is this person whom God credits as having died in Christ. This is the glorious position of the true believer.

Romans 6:3
Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

Romans 6:6
Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

1 Cor. 12:13
For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

2 Cor. 4:11
For we which live are always delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.

Galatians 2:20
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

Galatians 3:27
For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Paul proclaims that the Cross is the instrument through which all blessings come; consequently, the cross must ever be the object of our faith, which gives the Holy Spirit latitude to work within our hearts and lives. We can have the "likeness of His Resurrection," i.e. "live the Resurrection life," only as long as we understand the "likeness of His death," which refers to the Cross as the means by which all of this is done.

Before the believer can be identified with Christ in the resurrection, the believer must be immersed or placed into the Lord's DEATH. But once we have been placed into HIS DEATH, we WILL be placed and identified with the resurrection of Christ. God counts the true baptized believer as having been raised in Christ. God takes the believer’s faith (and baptism as stated in this passage) and counts the person as participating in Christ’s resurrection. He counts and considers the person...

to be identified with Christ’s resurrection.
to be a partaker of Christ’s resurrection.
to be in union with Christ’s resurrection.
to be bound with Christ in His resurrection.

True Gospel Faith

Romans 6:6-11
Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. [7] For he that is dead is freed from sin. [8] Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: [9] Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. [10] For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he lives, he lives unto God. [11] Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Because the church has stopped preaching the doctrine of the cross and the fact we have been baptized into Christ's death at conversion, we are preaching a gospel so watered down the world at large does not even know what we believe any more.

Many people think if they have been baptized and do half-way right, then they are saved and God will never reject them. Others, who are highly disciplined and have reformed their lives, think they are as acceptable to God as anyone else because they do live moral and decent lives. A confused public, including both those within and without the church, is basing their eternal fate upon one or more of the following. They think they are saved...

by baptism.
by doing good deeds.
by being as good as they can.
by church membership
by faith in faith
by acts of contrition without placing true faith in Christ

Much of the confusion has been caused by men over-stressing or misunderstanding one of the truths of Scripture. Too often too many of us have been guilty of abusing Scripture; and once we have taken a strong position, we have been unwilling to back off or to give balance to the whole truth, even when we realized we had gone too far. It is time for us to totally commit our lives to the Lord, to lay aside our bandwagons and exhaustively labor to proclaim the whole truth both to the church and to the world. Again, it is time for the truth to be proclaimed, the whole balance of Scripture—time for us to help straighten out the confusion of the public, for many within the church are deceived and are without Christ; and the world cannot come to Christ with a genuine experience until they come as Scripture dictates.

1 Peter 1:13-21
Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; [14] As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: [15] But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; [16] Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. [17] And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear: [18] Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; [19] But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: [20] Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, [21] Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

1 Peter 1:22-24
Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: [23] Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which lives and abides for ever. [24] For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:

Peter said we have purified our souls in obeying the TRUTH THROUGH THE SPIRIT unto love; "being born again,"..by the WORD OF GOD, which lives and abides for ever. Here are some thoughts about our salvation experience:

a. We are saved by faith.

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast” (Ephes. 2:8-9; cp. John 1:12; John 3:16; Romans 10:9-10).

b. We are saved by obedience.

“And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him” (Hebrews 5:9; cp. Matthew 7:21; John 15:10; Rev. 22:14).

c. We are saved by repentance.

“I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:32; cp. Acts 11:18).

d. We are saved by confession.

“Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32-33; cp. Romans 10:9-10; 1 John 4:15).

e. We are saved by baptism. (Not water baptism, but by the baptism into CHRIST)

“Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:38).

The anchor for all of this you may ask? The cross of Christ. Our faith must anchor here and stay HERE. I know this sounds redundant and you probably are saying, "when are you going to write about something else?" To be honest, there is nothing greater to write about than what Christ has done for us at Calvary. It's the power of God unto salvation!

1 Cor. 1:18
For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.

What Scripture declares is that salvation is looked upon as the whole experience of a truly born again person. When Scripture speaks...

of believing in Christ, it means a person who repents, confesses, obeys, and is baptized into His death.
of obedience to Christ, it means a person who believes, repents, confesses, and is baptized into His death.
of repentance toward Christ, it means a person who believes, confesses, obeys, and is baptized into His Death.
of baptism in Christ, it means a person who believes, repents, confesses, and obeys.
of confession to Christ, it means a person who believes, repents, obeys, and is baptized.

Now note a most critical point: just because a person professes and does some of these things does not mean the person is saved. Just because a person...

professes faith,
lives a moral and good life,
is baptized in water
claims to live as Jesus taught

...does not mean he is saved. The power of salvation is not in these things, not in profession and moral goodness and baptism and the teachings of Jesus. The power to save is in Jesus Christ Himself, in believing that He is the crucified Savior, the Son of God Himself who has the power to save. Scripture speaks of the true believer in different ways at different times, anyone of which means that he is saved. Scripture says that a true believer is a person...

who believes.
who obeys.
who repents.
who confesses.
who is baptized into Christ

As we close this journal let me talk about Romans 6:10-11.

Romans 6:10-11
For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he lives, he lives unto God. [11] Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Paul says Christ died unto the sin nature, once, "for all." All LIFE comes from God and we receive that life by virtue of the CROSS and our faith in that Finished Work. Therefore, as Paul says, we must RECKON OURSELVES DEAD unto the sin nature. While the sin nature is not dead, we are dead unto the sin nature by virtue of the Cross and our Faith in the Sacrifice of Christ. We are alive in the power of His resurrection unto God through CHRIST by what He did at the Cross. That is what is meant by Resurrection Life.

Israel, sadly, never experienced this life in God in the wilderness. They came through the Red Sea but decided on Law instead of the presence of God. That is a whole other story for another time.

Neighbor, it's getting late. I'm afraid that the quality of our "births," in the Kingdom of God have been so horrible in their quality because of the idol of convenience instead of teaching those who come to Christ what true faith really is. The quality of our conversion can have an impact on the quality of our entire spiritual lives. The worship of convenience is a terrible enemy of true faith. It is one of the first idols that must be destroyed in our lives if we are to abide in Christ. We must return to teaching that we have been baptized into Christ's DEATH and as a result the sin nature has been destroyed as well.

I would be remiss if I didn't end this journal with a call to you who are reading this and have never been saved to give your heart to Christ. He wants to set you free today. He's not interested in a "refined," you. He wants to transform you and change you and make you "NEW." You say "how will He do this?" By inviting you to take up His cross today and come follow Him. The Holy Spirit wants to baptize you into the Lord's DEATH and cause the RED SEA experience to take place in your life like it did in Israel's history so long ago. Her enemies were never seen or heard from again. That's a whole other journal of how Miriam played the tumbrel on the shores of the Red Sea after the horse and rider were thrown into the sea. When you anchor your faith in what Christ has done for you at the cross, SIN will be thrown into the sea. He so desires that today.

If you are a believer and you're not walking in spiritual victory, His call is the same to you. He bids you come and die. I know that sounds weird to most, but it's the only path to true life in Christ. The modern church world has lost this message in the midst of its descent into madness and false doctrine such as the greed gospel and all the self-esteem offers it makes to the world today. Friend, if we could gain victory by making "self" better, don't you think God would have done that? Don't you think He'd MUCH rather sent a set of rules and regulations down to Earth to abide by instead of having to shed blood so man's heart could be transformed into wanting to obey the law of God? Man cannot keep the law on his own. He must have the Holy Spirit and the only parameters the Holy Spirit will work is within the legal confines of the Cross.

When we unite with Him in death, we will be raised with Him unto life. Anchor your soul today in HIM. There is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved. Praise God.

Acts 4:12
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

1 Cor. 1:17-18 - For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are (being) saved it is the power of God.

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