Claiming All That Is Ours in Christ
We possess spiritual blessings in Christ that we can claim now through faith and courage.
A.W. Tozer emphasizes the spiritual blessings available to believers in Christ, categorizing them into three classes: immediate blessings upon salvation, future inheritances awaiting Christ's return, and blessings requiring active pursuit. The first class includes forgiveness and sonship, which believers possess even before fully understanding them. The second class consists of future glories that are assured but not yet experienced, while the third class involves blessings that demand effort and faith to claim, such as victory over sin and a deeper relationship with God. Tozer encourages believers to actively seek these treasures, likening them to the Promised Land that requires faith and courage to enter.
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Those spiritual blessings in heavenly places which are ours in Christ may be divided into three classes: The first is those which come to us immediately upon our believing unto salvation, such as forgiveness, justification, regeneration, sonship to God and baptism into the Body of Christ. In Christ we possess these even before we know that they are ours, such knowledge coming to us later through the study of the Holy Scriptures. The second class is those riches which are ours by inheritance but which we cannot enjoy in actuality until our Lord returns.
These include ultimate mental and moral perfection, the glorification of our bodies, the completion of the restoration of the divine image in our redeemed personalities and the admission into the very presence of God to experience forever the Beatific Vision. These treasures are as surely ours as if we possessed them now, but it would be useless for us to pray for them while we journey here below. God has made it very clear that they are reserved for the time of the manifestation of the sons of God (Rom. 8:18-25).
The third class of blessing consists of spiritual treasures which are ours by blood atonement but which will not come to us unless we make a determined effort to possess them. These are deliverance from the sins of the flesh, victory over self, the constant flow of the Holy Spirit through our personalities, fruitfulness in Christian service, awareness of the presence of God, growth in grace, an increasing consciousness of union with God and an unbroken spirit of worship. These do not come to us automatically nor must we wait to claim them at the day of Christ's coming. They are to us what the Promised Land was to Israel, to be entered into as our faith and courage mount.
Sermon Outline
- Immediate Spiritual Blessings in Christ
- Inherited Spiritual Blessings
- Spiritual Treasures by Blood Atonement
- Deliverance from sin, victory over self, and the constant flow of the Holy Spirit
- These blessings require faith and courage to possess
Key Quotes
“These treasures are as surely ours as if we possessed them now, but it would be useless for us to pray for them while we journey here below.” — A.W. Tozer
“These do not come to us automatically nor must we wait to claim them at the day of Christ's coming. They are to us what the Promised Land was to Israel, to be entered into as our faith and courage mount.” — A.W. Tozer
Application Points
- We can claim immediate spiritual blessings in Christ through faith and courage.
- We must make a determined effort to possess spiritual treasures by blood atonement.
- We should not wait until the day of Christ's coming to claim these blessings, but rather enter into them now.