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Consider Yourselves Dead to Sin

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We turn to another “in Christ” passage in Romans: “So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (6:11). 

We take another step, “consider yourselves dead to sin.” This is a breathtaking step. Is that all we do—“consider [ourselves] dead to sin”? Does it mean a mere change of mind—consider?

Whole systems of thought and philosophy are built upon this assumption: change your mind, consider, and it is done. “As [a man] thinketh in his heart, so is he” is the golden text of modern thought movements. These thought movements are a reaction against the negative thinking of much that passes as Christianity. As such, these movements redress the balance. They are a redress, not a remedy. They are a shot in the arm and give you a momentary lift, but they are not a remedy for the deep-down disease. One of the adherents to a thought movement listened to our Morning of the Open Heart in one of our ashrams as people told their needs. She sent up a note: “We shouldn’t be blaming ourselves for all our faults. We should think positively.” She squirmed at the diagnosis and wanted to pass over our needs to an affirmation of wholeness. She wanted to take immediate refuge in sentimentalism instead of in salvation. An MA in psychology took refuge in one of these thought movements: “At first for a few days I rode on air. They told me to say, ‘I am perfect,’ and I did and for a few days I felt so. Then the realities closed in. I wasn’t perfect, nor were they. It was all a verbalism. Sadly, I had to give up this unreality.” What was the matter with all this?

THE PRAYER

O Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior, save me from mental shortcuts that leave me in the quagmire of disillusionment. I want something that lifts me up and keeps me up. I want Thee and only Thee, for Thou art life and only life. Amen.

AFFIRMATION FOR THE DAY

I will not affirm my affirmations—I affirm His. Then and then only am I safe.

Confused about last week’s entry? Read this article clarifying the matter of the destiny of the unevangelized.

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WHAT IS THIS? Wake-Up Call is a daily encouragement to shake off the slumber of our busy lives and turn our eyes toward Jesus. Each morning our community gathers around a Scripture, a reflection, a prayer, and a few short questions, inviting us to reorient our lives around the love of Jesus that transforms our hearts, homes, churches, and cities.

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