In the Old Testament God told Moses that His name was “I AM.” God never changes, and in the New Covenant I AM now lives in us, reminding us: “I AM what you need me to be, I AM your comfort, I AM forgiving, I AM mindful of you, I AM your healer, I AM loving, I AM a deliverer, I AM a giver, I AM a friend!”

The Apostle Paul said in Phil. 4:6-8 not to be anxious about anything, but that when we thankfully commit those things to the Lord, He will guard our hearts and minds with peace. He follows that up by telling us what to think on instead—whatever is true, good, virtuous, pure, loving and commendable. In other words, don’t let your thoughts keep you slogging through the gutter of worry, fear and anxiety about what MIGHT happen. Remember, the future is a phantom—it hasn’t happened! Keep your thoughts and thanksgiving in the NOW, trusting God to take care of those things you have placed in His care. Let HIM take care of the future!

In many areas of life you can slip back into old patterns that you had previously freed yourself from. You wake up one day and realize you are back in the rut of doing what you were stuck in 10 or 20 years ago! This can also happen in your thinking, which ends up limiting the power of God actively working in your life. It happens when you start reading the Bible more as a history book than as a living letter to you, to be applied and acted on every day. Remember, back then it was the ministry of Jesus in a Jew. BUT NOW, it’s not just history, it has become the ministry of Jesus carried out through you!

As you negotiate through the traffic and the bustle of stores, and thrill in the beautifully decorated scenery around you, remember that on that night an angel stood in the heavens declaring the reason for our celebrations. “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord…” (Luke 2:11). Merry Christmas! What a precious and amazing gift God has given to us!

When you really get it that Jesus paid the entire price for sin, you’ll understand that you’re no longer under the devil’s tyranny and oppression. Know this as confidently as you know your name—the devil has NO power over you anymore, in any area, because Jesus took your sin and permanently gave you HIS righteousness!

Jesus did for us what we could not do for ourselves. Our sins for His righteousness. Our fear for His love. Our sickness for His health. Our unbelief for His faith. Our life for His LIFE. “When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory” (Colossians 3:4).

Jesus took off His equality with God, so He could put on human flesh and walk on this earth demonstrating to us what God looked like in human flesh. He had no sin nature, so the devil had no ability to put anything on Him or do anything to Him until it was time for the cross. There, He took YOUR sin nature, and all the judgements that were against you because of it, and gave you His LIFE in exchange! Now you are cleansed, with the nature of Christ in you, and the devil has no more right to touch you than he did Jesus! This is how we walk in the earth as He did, and can do the works He said we can do! “… as he is so also are we in this world” 1 John 4:17.

The only way we can build our expectations upon something other than personal experiences is through exposing our hearts and minds to the “great and precious promises” of God, and believing them to be ours! (2 Peter 1:4)

Jesus walked the earth as a man, born of God without a sin nature. That meant the devil had absolutely no ability to touch Him, because sin was what was holding mankind under his slavery. When Jesus destroyed the works of the devil against us by paying the price for our sin, we became as He was in the earth—free from sin! Forgiven and made righteous! Healed, delivered and blameless in the Father’s sight! IT IS FINISHED!

Jesus says to His followers, “I will work through you.” The disciples were looking to Him to be the one to do the works, but He was looking to them. It was hard for His disciples to understand that they would be His voice, His hands and His feet. Their eyes were on the future, but Jesus empowered them, AND US, for the present!