My Senses Redeemed!!!

I was discussing Galatians 5:19-23 the other day with some friends. We were contrasting the works of the flesh in verses 19 - 21 and the fruit of the Spirit in verses 22 and 23. One of my friends commented that the works of the flesh are rooted in our five senses and our emotions. He said that our senses are corrupted by the sin of this world and if the fruit of the Spirit is to be evident in our life, we must walk in the Spirit.

While I totally agree with my friend about this, that is not what this post is about. I began to think about our "corrupted" senses. It seems to me that if "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, by becoming a curse for us," Galatians 3:13 then He has also redeemed our senses from the curse of corruption. So, we can live with our senses redeemed by Him and use them to give Him glory.

A couple of weekends ago my beloved wife, Roxana, and I went to Flagstaff to cellebrate our 27th anniversary. When we pulled in to the Bed & Breakfast and exited the car, I felt (touch) the beautiful coolness in the air and I smelled (smell) the wonderful aroma of pine. I immediately gave glory to God for the gift of this beautiful place and His creation. The next morning I went for a run. Even as my chest hurt a bit from the altitude, I was amazed at the incredible beauty I saw (sight) and the sounds (hearing) of wild animals. My heart cried out again in glory to God! Finally, upon my return from the run, our B&B hostess had prepared a wonderful breakfast, which I fully enjoyed (taste). Praise the Lord! Wow, all 5 senses fully exploding with glorious praise to Him in one weekend.

Sometimes we might tend to beat up on our physical senses as the cause of our sinning. Our destiny as believers is not to deny our senses of any pleasure. God created those senses and a beautiful world to take in with them. He wants us to use our senses for the purpose He created them. He has redeemed them to be a vehicle for us to bring Him greater glory.

So, whether you are enjoying a great meal, listening to a beautiful symphony, enjoying the loving touch of the love of your life, or anything else that stimulates these sense the way God intended - do it with redeemed senses - and let your heart cry out in glory to God!

What Has God Done?

Do you ever spend time meditating on what God has done in your life? I have spent time lately doing just that, and I have become even more overwhelmed than ever before by the magnitude of it all. Let’s consider it together.

First, let’s look at what God did and how we were transformed. First of all, consider our condition. We “were dead in the trespasses and sins”. Ephesians 2:1-3


Often, I have heard people give testimonies that they were headed down a path of destruction; that they were headed for death / destruction. Christ saved them from where they were headed and put them on a path of life. I understand that the person saying this means to give God the glory for rescuing them, and their heart is right. I may have even said something like this myself. However, it is not technically accurate. You see we were not headed down a path of destruction – we were already dead. He didn’t rescue us from the path headed toward destruction. He took that which was dead (us) and made it alive!!!

We were in the same condition as Lazarus when he lay in the tomb. He had been dead three days. His body was stinking. He wasn’t laying there thinking to himself: “man I hope Jesus shows up soon, because I could sure use a bath and some deodorant.” He was DEAD and rotting! His physical condition was the same as was our spiritual condition. God miraculously changed that for him physically and for us spiritually.

He did it by the same sovereign power He used to create us and all of creation. In the creation process, He took something that did not exist and made something, created it. In the salvation process, He took something that was dead (us) and made something, created it to be alive.

Genesis chapter 1 tells us the state of being for the universe was non-existent. There was nothing there. Then, He created the heavens and the earth. But the earth was without form and dark, so He spoke and all of that changed.

The creating power that He used to create us in His likeness and then give us dominion over all the other living creatures is the power He used to “make us” alive. He created us spiritually just like He created us physically.

It is the same power that created the universe, the same power that designed heaven, and the same power that raised Christ from the dead!

And He is not done yet. This same power continues to work in us too. He did not simply use it to bring us to salvation. He continues to work that power in us. It is the same power that makes Him able to do “far more abundantly than all that we ask or think.” Ephesians 3:20

It is an incredibly awesome thing that He has done and continues to do in us! Now let’s look at why He did it. First of all, His character is one of mercy. He desires that His character be known and that His Name be glorified. Romans 15:9 1 Peter 1:3-5

The second reason is because He loves us. This is a complete mystery and it is totally about God’s character and because He literally is love. It has absolutely nothing to do with our being lovely. Consider:

Romans 5:8 "but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. "

Notice the present tense here. He shows His love. It is a continually thing. He continually demonstrates His love for us. It didn’t just happen once. It continues to be an ongoing demonstration of His love.

His love is fixed on us. We cannot shake it. Nothing can separate us from it!

Romans 8:37-39. One of the characteristics of His love is its permanence. How many times did God forgive the Israelites, His chosen people? They kept turning their back on Him and rebelling; yet whenever they saw how miserable they were without Him and made a slight move in His direction, there He was to forgive and restore. That is how determined His love is for us.
What kind of love is it? It is the kind of love that calls us His children. 1 John 3:1-3. Wow, He literarily made us part of His family. I think we often brush by this, because we have heard it so many times for so long. Think about it for a moment. He called us His children – and so we became His children. His calling it so is what made it so. Not because we are so desirable (please) nor have something in us that He wanted us for His family. We weren’t a draft pick that He saw our talent and potential and so decided to take us in the first or second round. No, it is all about Him who “called us children of God: and so we are”.

So, what difference does it make? If we can grasp what He did for us and believe that He has and continues to empower us with the same power that He used to create the universe and the same power that makes Him able to do absolutely anything, there must be some consequence.



In Ephesians chapter 2, where the Apostle Paul tells us that we are saved by grace, which is a gift of God, He then tells us what our purpose is. “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” He did it for us to fulfill His great purpose; “for good works” and "that we should walk in them." Notice here that it does not say that we should do them, but rather that we should walk in them. The good works are not something we do; they are part of a lifestyle. They are part of why we were created.


I believe there is nothing more fulfilling in life than knowing that we are here for a purpose and that we are living that destiny laid out for us. Let’s take hold of what He did and why He did it; and go fulfill the purpose for which He did it.