Review

This book lays out the foundation of what it means to apply the reality of who we are in Christ to both fight against sin and to work towards holiness. It starts with a story about a the author asking an older friend what his biggest surprise was as he entered old age, to which the friend responded, “I thought I would be more sanctified by now.”

As a christian it is so easy to get caught up in what we should do to behave correctly and this book is a great reminder that our focus should be on who we are in Christ and how God sees us through Christ. Our union with Christ is what provides the power to then live out according to our new identity.

This was a fantastic easy read that I will definitely be revisiting.

Quotes Worth Keeping

The first mistake is the slide toward legalism. This happens when we see our sin, know it’s a problem, and want to do something about it. But we think that the sole solution is found in exerting more effort, mustering up more resolve, and practicing more discipline. So with white knuckles and gritted teeth, we strive for a self-righteousness that we will never attain. This leads to frustration, pride, and all kinds of problems. The second mistake is the drift into apathy. This happens when we see our sin, know it’s a problem, and trust that God has done something about it. But we begin to think that the gospel basically amounts to the truth that Jesus pardons sinners, so we don’t exert much effort in fighting sin. We resign ourselves to the way things are as we declare our dependence on God’s grace. We become lazy about resisting temptation, and we grow far too content with certain sinful patterns.

In Christ, we are justified. We are clothed with his righteousness, and nothing can change this status.

when we are discouraged by our sin, we need to remember our position. We are in Christ. We are living under his reign. Sin will never rule over us again. Yes, it will continue to affect us and allure us. Yes, it will mar our experience in many ways. But our position remains. We are united with Christ. And in Christ, we are dead to sin because we died with him.

if you’re not fighting sin, you’re not following Christ, because Christ calls us to resist the devil (James 4:7), to flee from immorality (1 Cor. 6:18), and to strive for holiness (Heb. 12:14).

We sin because we want to. Sin entices us by awakening our desires and stirring up passions within us. In the moment of temptation, sin looks appealing.