The Mark of a True Christian Let Jesus live in you big! Let Jesus live in you: spirit, soul and body. When you were saved from your sins and accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior you became part of the army of God, soldiers in Christ. Everyone wants to be a soldier; they just don’t want to be in a war. It’s selfish of you to only focus on wanting to live ‘your best life now’ while people all around you are deceived, tormented, dying, and falling into the hell you were once saved from. No scars, no true walk. When your scars prove your legitimacy in Christ for your persecution is for Christ’s sake and not your own, then your true walk as a soldier in Christ can begin. Paul died daily. When he got the revelation of the gospel, he became willing to die daily. • I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20 • And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Matthew 10:38 • Let no sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Romans 6:12 • We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. Romans 6:9 When you walk in the flesh you are allowing a resurrection of your old man. There was a slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination, who brought her masters much profit by fortune telling in Acts 16:16. She was speaking truth, but it was from the wrong spirit. “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” The Bible says for many days she followed Paul and kept speaking behind him. We are to have our senses strengthen by the word of God. You will encounter demon spirits daily. You must keep your shield up and walk in discernment. Shut down demon voices. Paul was annoyed. The devil will try to annoy you, wear you out and grieve you. Shut him up. Paul Spoke to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus to come out of her.” Acts 16:18 The spirit came out that very hour. If God before you who can be against you. Romans 8:31 There was a spirit behind Paul while he was doing the work of the Lord, but he spoke to it! If there is a spirit behind you or speaking in your ears, speak to it! You have authority to speak directly to those spirits. Demon spirts are entities with a mind and with a purpose and they are your enemies. They strategize, plan and plot and maneuver against your life. They use people and situations to work on you mentally, physically, and emotionally so they can stop the power of the Holy Spirit in your life. Paul cast it out. He commanded it out. Your shout must be in confidence not in fear or frustration. Your position is from victory. The story does not end there. Paul got into a heap of trouble for casting out a spirit from the demon possessed fortuneteller. When her masters saw that their hope for profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace. Acts 16:19 They tore off their clothes and beat them with rods then threw them into the inner prison with their feet fastened in stocks. Your bold identity in Christ will cost you. Stripped naked, beaten, and thrown into prison and what was their response? They were praying and singing hymns to God! But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God and the other prisoners were listening to them. As Paul and Silas had scars from their Christian walk so did Jesus. He too was stripped naked, beaten, and hung on a cross. Yet Christians are afraid of a little suffering. They don’t want to be inconvenienced. They think the Christians life is coming to church and sipping on your lattes and then going out to lunch with your church friends. Sounds more like a Christian club to me and not the army of God you were enlisted in when you said YES to Jesus. I have news for you, All who desire to live godly will suffer persecution. 2 Timothy 3:12 They were paying a price for doing something right. The scars they bore only proved the legitimacy of their walk with Christ. You may have not been stripped naked, beaten, and thrown into prison for your decision to follow Christ. But if you have never been stripped of everything you once enjoyed, beaten in your emotions by people you were closest to, have had your own family tear you down and estranged themselves for your decision to follow Christ, if you have never been in a prison of isolation, prison of mockery, prison of rejection, prison of robbery lack and destruction because you would not remove yourself from the army of God, then you’re not fully following Christ. You have not sold out for Jesus. Because as He is so are we in this world. • His victory came through pain. • His triumph came through loss, through rejection, through misunderstanding, though separation. P