Servings Per Verse: Unknown
ESV:
And you were dead in the trespasses and sins
*ETS:
You were a sinner, having a nature to sin, and you were dead to the presence of God.
*DTFTD:
The testimony of a Christian speaks to what was and what is with specific emphasis on contrast. The Christian can say with certainty, "I am what I was not, and what I was I am no longer." The degree of contrast is diametric. The believer's testimony relates opposites, "I was dead to God, now I am alive to God. I was in darkness, now I am a child of the light. I was lost, now I am found. I was blind, now I see." Why would we ever think it not possible to determine whether a person is truly saved? Do I not have the ability to determine the difference between light and darkness, life and death, sight and blindness? The Christian witness is to be light in a world of darkness. If the difference between a saved and lost person should be obvious to the world, should it not be obvious to the saved as well? The Christian conversion is an experience of transition where old things pass away and all things become new (II Corinthians 5:17). The Christian's transition is a testimony of God's grace and proof of reconciliation. Paul's word in Ephesians 2:1 is the introduction to an emphasis of the distinction between the old life without Christ and the new life in Christ. The transition is a testimony of God's pursuit of our souls and his power in our lives. Our God, being rich in mercy, performed a miracle of grace when he focused his power and love on our captivity to sin and death. The devotional text for today simply states the fact of the Christian's past, "you were dead in trespasses and sins . . . ." Thank God for that little word "were," which speaks volumes of His powerful work in our lives.
"Redeemed, how I love to proclaim, it redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, Redeemed through His infinite mercy, His child and forever I am." (Fanny Crosby, 1882).
*EDS:
The Christian's motto : "Because of my encounter with the Lord Jesus Christ, I am what I was not, and what I was I am no longer. I am not what I will be, and what I will be, in that final day in Christ, I will be forever to the glory of God's grace."
INGREDIENTS: An introduction to the Christian's new life in Christ. Word Study: The word "dead" means "spiritually dead, that is, destitute of a life that recognizes and is devoted to God, (a life) given up to trespasses and sins, inactive as respects doing right" (Wuest Word Studies, Vol. 1).
*ESV- English Standard Version; ETS- Essence of the Text in a Sentence; DTFTD- Devotional Thought For The Day; EDS- Essence of the Devotional in a Sentence.
