Death and Birth Certificates.

"knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin." Romans 6:6.

"Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 6:11.

I can remember back in the early 1980s when God spoke to me to memorize Romans chapter 6. As I did that and meditated upon the chapter, it kept occurring to me that I had been crucified with Christ in truth, that I was actually in Him when He was crucified. I was in Him in the same way I was in my mother, and had she been crucified prior to my birth, so would I have been crucified with her. With Christ however, I was also in Him when He was resurrected!

If you could look into the archives of Heaven and open the death certificate file, you would find your death certificate there.

Also, if you would move to the birth certificate files, you would find a label on the front of the file drawer stating, "And of Zion it will be said, "This one and that one were born in her; And the Most High Himself shall establish her."" Psalms 87:5. Then as you opened the drawer, you would find your birth certificate.

In my personal experience, during those times in my life when I find things impinging upon me, duties, anxieties, afflictions, potential problems, etc., it always comforts me when I go back and look at my death and birth certificates.

First I "know" (Romans 6:6). Then I "reckon" (Romans 6:11), and say to myself, "Dead men do not worry about problems. Dead men cannot be hurt by the world and its system. Dead men have already suffered the very worse that can happen to them."

The only thing left to do then is to get real happy and praise God!

As a matter of fact, as I am writing this I am experiencing this joy right now! I pray that the Holy Spirit come upon you right now with this same joy!

Larry Chkoreff, August, 2001