The wickedness that exists in the world is because of transference. Our actions, our words, our thoughts are transferred from within us to the world surrounding us. And they generate the circumstances and consequences we live in. But if wickedness can be transferred, so can righteousness. By the grace of God and by the transference that He established through the cross, our sin is removed from us and placed on the cross, and the righteousness of Christ is transferred from the cross into our lives. By changing what is in us we can change the world.

Listen Now:

Download Transcript

Show Notes:

As you mature, you become responsible. The more you grow and the more you mature, the more responsibility you take for what is necessary in your life. By doing that, by becoming a responsible person, you affect the world and people around you. It may be something that you are doing internally, but it impacts the lives of everyone you associate with. We understand this principle on a natural level, but we often fail to apply it spiritually. It is the nature within us that negatively affects the world, and if we never take responsibility ourselves for that nature then we have no hope of changing the world.

The world is a closed system. We are all interrelated one to another. What I do does not affect only me. It affects you and it affects the world. And if we as the Body of Christ are to be a solution to the world and the age we live in, then we will have to stop pointing the finger and blaming everybody and everything else and take on the responsibility. We need to do more than say our sins are forgiven. We need to become responsible for changing the consequences of our sin.

Christ did not stand before the Father and say, “These people have sinned. I didn’t. Why should I carry the responsibility of what these other people have done?” Instead, in obedience to the Father, He let God transfer all our iniquity onto Him so that the righteousness of God could be transferred to us. Instead of saying that the sin of the world is not our problem, we need to follow Christ’s example and take responsibility for the sin that has impacted the world through us and transfer that sin to the ever-present provision of His cross so that His righteousness can impact the world through us.

Key Verses:

• Genesis 11:1-9. “Let us make for ourselves a name.”
• Romans 8:20-21. “The creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope.”
• 2 Corinthians 7:1. “Let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit.”
• Isaiah 55:6-7. “Let him return to the LORD.”
• Isaiah 1:16. “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from My sight.”
• Jeremiah 4:14. “How long will your wicked thoughts lodge within you?”
• James 4:8-12. “Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”
• Romans 8:21. “The creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption.”
• Philippians 2:5-8. “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who … emptied Himself.”
• 2 Peter 1:3. “His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness.”
• Isaiah 53:6. “The LORD has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.”
• 2 Corinthians 5:21. “… that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
• Hebrews 5:8. “He learned obedience from the things which He suffered.”
• Romans 5:18-19. “Through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.”
• Romans 13:14. “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Quotes:

• “You’ve got to come to the place where you understand that what is going on is your responsibility.”
• “We are responsible. By repentance and confession, we’re cleansed by God from the cause of our surroundings.”
• “We should have by now suffered enough things in our life that we can wake up to the reality that what’s causing the discomfort around us is that which still dwells within us.”

Takeaways:

1. As a believer in Christ you are forgiven by God for your sin. But that does not mean that the consequences of your actions have been removed. It is just that simple. We have done things. And when we do things, when we think things, when we say things, something is set in motion that affects everything outside of us.
2. Are you responsible for the futility that rests on this planet? The answer is “Yes.” You are responsible along with all of humanity. That futility is only removed by the sons of God coming into the perfection of removing from themselves the defilement that dwells within them.
3. By the cross of Christ I am able to transfer onto Him everything within me that has brought about the wrong consequences in the world around me. And His nature can be transferred to me, bringing the consequences of righteousness.