Examining Ourselves.

“Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves!  Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test?  But I trust that you will realize that we ourselves do not fail the test” (2 Corinthians 13:5-6). 

It is ironic that most believers are unaware of the impact of Jesus living in them, some, though they mouth they have Jesus in them do not know or live it by experience.

Do to religious influence I was on sin conscious dude, I felt like the Bible was designed to examine and judge ourselves and others for the wrongs in our life.  Now, thank God, I realize that the Bible is far removed from such religious deception?  If we did an honest examination of ourselves as we are taught by religion, we would disqualify ourselves as Christlike because what we would see in and of ourselves is nothing like Christ. Thank God, in-spite of our sin we are not disqualified!

What are we to examine for ...is it our faults, failures, spots, wrinkles and our sins? If we do examine for such it is a grantee that we will find such. Why? Because religion has taught us to be sin-conscious...rather than God conscious...and our use of the Bible is religious use...to judge and condemn people because they do not live up to some religious code of ethics. 

I wonder...could this verse be asking us to examine ourselves to see if we give Christ in us His rightful place as Head, or do we  exalt some religious man as Head? We need to examine ourselves to see if Christ in us, is our Head, if so, then what He says about us is true and we ARE to BE as HE IS in this earth because, "WE ARE THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF CHRIST!"  

We need to examine ourselves to see if we believe by faith that we are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.  We are to examine ourselves to see if we believe that it is not about our self-righteousness or our flawed integrity, but it is about His righteousness and His flawless integrity.  That is how we should be examining ourselves.  That is why we should be judging ourselves to establish whether we are in Christ as He is in us, and if we believe that it is all about Him and not about us.

If we examine ourselves (and others, of which we have no right to examine) for sin all we enforce is sin and unbelief's dominion over us.  If we examine ourselves we will find sin and think, we are so unrighteous, or we are such a worm, or are so unworthy, or we do not qualify to be a child of God.  None of us are worthy in and of ourselves.  None of us are qualified.  He does not call people because they are qualified He qualifies people He calls.  Our qualification is not determined by our qualifications it is determined by the qualifications of Jesus the qualifier.

Jesus perfectly, and completely took upon Himself our infirmities our flaws our frailty and any weakness.  He bore everything that would keep us from manifesting Christ.  He bore everything that would keep us from maturing in Christ.  He bore everything that would keep His life from flowing through us as His Community of the Redeemed to accomplish His purpose for the Community of Humanity.  

Why did He bare all our failures?  He bore it so that we can behold Him in us, believe and become all things that He said we already are in Him.  We are a holy priesthood, a holy nation, a chosen peculiar people.  When we realize that He is the one who is the qualifier and He is the one that is the qualified in us, then Spirit and soul become one and think alike.  This happens because the soul is thinking rightly and lining up with Spirit, then what flows out of us will be the Christ life.