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GOD’S MASTERPIECE

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. (2 Corinthians 5:17)

In Christ, you are not just a different person; you are a new kind of person!
Mark Hankins

While preaching in Paris, I had the opportunity to visit the Louvre. With over eight miles of galleries, one million works of art and more than 400,000 masterpieces, I knew I would not be able to see everything. So I headed right for the Mona Lisa (one of the most world-famous masterpieces) and spent extra time there. If you see all the other paintings and sculptures, and miss the Mona Lisa, you have missed the most important work of art.

The same is true of the Bible. It contains the world’s greatest collection of God’s works of art. However, if you see all the beautiful pictures in the Word of God and miss God’s greatest masterpiece, then you will have really missed the Bible.

The Bible is the story of man’s redemption. The Bible is about Jesus, our Redeemer, and His work. All sixty-six books contain pictures of God’s plan and purpose to restore man to Himself.

Confession: I am a new creation in Christ. Old things are passed away, and everything made new. I am God’s Masterpiece – a man in Christ!

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UNDERSTANDING REDEMPTION

For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures. (1 Corinthians 15:3-4)

The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus are the center of the Gospel!
Mark Hankins

The simple definition of redemption is, “Freedom through the payment of a price.” Webster’s Dictionary defines the word redeem as: “To buy back; to re-purchase; to get back; to recover; to ransom; to pay off (a mortgage or note); to liberate from captivity; to deliver; to reclaim.”

In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul says, “First of all I delivered unto you.” The Revised Standard Version translates this, “as of first importance.” The matter of first importance is what God did for us in Christ Jesus in the great plan of redemption.

Redemption is an accomplished fact in Christ. Jesus said, “You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32) The truth will not help you if you do no not know it. You must see what God has done for you. In John 16:13, Jesus called the Holy Spirit the Spirit of Truth. God wants you to be free. He has given you His Holy Spirit to show you the things of Christ.

Confession: In Christ Jesus, I am redeemed. I have been liberated from the captivity of sin. I am delivered!

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THE GLORY – A PLACE OF REVELATION

But we all with open face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. (2 Corinthians 3:18)

We must see the glory of God to do the will of God.
Mark Hankins

The glory is a place of revelation. God reveals Himself to us in ever increasing ways in the glory. He is the Lord our Provider, Healer, Shepherd, Righteousness, and Victory. He is everything we will ever need!

After Moses saw the glory of God, his understanding expanded of who God is and how great His goodness is. Now Moses could receive what was necessary for him to do all that God required of him. We must see the glory of God to do the will of God.

You will look a lot better in Christ than you do outside of Him. So what do you need to do? Get on the rock; climb into the rock, and in Him the glory of God will pass by. In Him you will be changed. In Him is revelation. In Him the goodness of God will come to your house.

Confession: Before I was formed in my mother’s womb you ordained a place for me in Christ. Christ is the Lord my Provider, my Healer, my Shepherd, my Righteousness, and my Victory! In Him, the goodness of God is coming to my house!

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YOUR PLACE IN CHRIST

Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. (Psalm 32:7)

Take your place in Christ and get ready for a front-row seat for the glory of God!
Mark Hankins

When Saul met Jesus on the road to Damascus, the first thing he said to Jesus was, “Who are thou, Lord?” (Acts 9:5) The second thing he said to Jesus was, “Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?” (v. 6) Saul, who became Paul, then spent the rest of his life finding out who Jesus was and doing what Jesus wanted him to do. Paul coined a phrase that is the signature of his letters: “in Christ.”

The Apostle Paul used the phrase in Christ, in Him, and in Whom over one hundred-thirty times. God sees you in Christ, but you must see yourself in Him. You are a new creature in Christ. In Him you are righteous now, blessed now, healed now, free now, forgiven now, and victorious now!

Take your place in Christ and get ready for a front-row seat for the glory of God! Experiencing the glory and goodness of God is not just for a select few believers. God has a reserved seat for you with your name on it!

Confession: I am taking my place in Christ! In Him I am the righteousness of God. In Him I am triumphant! In Him, I am blessed. In Him I am redeemed. In Him, I have a heritage — an identity and an inheritance!

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THE SECRET PLACE

And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:5-6)

Moses was getting in on God’s plan of redemption— man belongs at the right hand of God—meaning in His presence. Mark Hankins

When I was nineteen I went to my daddy’s church one day and began to pray. After praying in the Holy Ghost for two and a half hours, the Spirit of God fell on me. God spoke to me, “There is a place for you by Me. I want to show you your place.” The Lord took me up into the heavenly places in a vision. I saw a big rock. God said, “This is your place — right by Me! I have had your place by Me reserved for you even before you were born. I prepared it ahead of time. There is deliverance, healing, prosperity, victory, and blessing in that place.” In His presence I experienced joy and victory like I had never known.

I didn’t know about Exodus 33 until several years later. God had spoken to me exactly what He spoke to Moses: “There is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock.” (Exodus 33:21)

Confession: God has a place reserved for me in Him. God has raised me up in Christ Jesus to be together with Him in heavenly places.

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