And You Were Dead...

“And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved).”  Ephesians 2:1-5

Have you ever had a difficult time conversing with someone when the topic of conversation turned to “religion”? As you began to express your faith and tell of experiences in which the indwelling presence of Jesus was evident, have you noticed that your listeners seemed to be hearing you but not understanding you? There is a good reason for that type of response.

The substance of what you are expressing is the very life of God Himself in the form of His spirit with you. When you try to communicate that with someone who is “unsaved,” there is no recognition of what you are saying since they cannot comprehend something they have never experienced.

The basis for this is the fact that until one is born again by faith in Christ, they are really dead in their sin. That is, they have physical life but are spiritually dead. Once they accept Christ’s death as payment for their sin, once they believe and put their trust in Christ - they are “born again” (a term Christ used), and they have spiritual life. Those who have not been born again cannot understand the things of God since they are discerned only by those who are alive (spiritually speaking).
   
“He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.” 1 John 5:12