by Pastor Carl H Stevens

The secret to experiencing Christ's life is selflessness and complete surrender to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. John 12:25 says, "He that loveth his life shall lose it." In contrast, "He that loseth his life for my sake shall find it" (Matthew 10:39).

This begins with the realization of personal depravity. Man is born with a natural, fallen disposition. But through brokenness and humility, the heart becomes eligible to receive grace's provision for victorious living. Psalm 51:17 says, "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise." Continual death to the desires and cravings of the flesh ushers in the desire to please the Father: "I have been crucified with Christ - (in Him) I have shared His crucifixion; it is no longer I who live, but Christ, the Messiah, lives in me; and the life I now live in the body I live by faith - by adherence to and reliance on and (complete) trust - in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me" (Galatians 2:20, Amplified).