The Lifestyle of the Gospel
Is there such a thing as a Christian lifestyle?
Whatever sacrifice I make does not in any way add to my salvation. My salvation is complete on the basis of Christ’s complete sacrifice.
Christian lifestyle begins with what we believe, what we know to be true. And then in response to the mercies of God we present our bodies to him as a living sacrifice.
When Jesus told us to love our enemies he was assuming we would have them. It is our response to our enemies and not the fact that we have enemies that makes all the difference.
I like to remind myself that this world is not my home and that the kingdoms of this world are not the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ.
Governments should not fear Christians when our numbers increase dramatically. It is our basic impulse to disobey. We only disobey when we are forced to say we must obey God rather than man.
In this passage the darkness we fight is the darkness that is still inside us. Indeed the language Paul uses is a language of absolute victory.