Another Man, Another Life

In Jesus, the light of God’s glory shines into the dark places of our weakness, revealing the life of Another in us.

Devotional Credit: Abide Above by Miles Stanford
Photo Credit: Unsplash

Miles Stanford reflects on the glorious truth that the Father has not left us bound to the old life in Adam but has given us Another Man, Jesus, in whom He is fully pleased. The discovery of our own weakness, failure, or even shame does not have to drive us into despair. Instead, it becomes the backdrop against which the brilliance of Jesus shines even brighter. The Father delights in His Son, and because we are united to Him, that delight extends to us.

Stanford reminds us that our struggles and shortcomings, far from disqualifying us, reveal the necessity and sufficiency of Jesus as our life. Every self-discovery of inability makes His perfection more necessary and more precious. When we look to ourselves, we find frailty. When we look to Him, we find fullness. God has placed all His thoughts of blessing toward man in Jesus, and they remain secure, unaffected by our inconsistency.

The call then is not to strive in self-effort to imitate Jesus, but to rest in Him who lives within us. To try harder to be like Him is to miss the point. Instead, we are to count ourselves dead to the old and alive in the new. We are to distrust both our strength and our weakness, and simply yield to the indwelling Lord who longs to live His life through us. That is the abiding life, and it is the secret of transformation.

This devotional makes plain that the Christian life is not a moral self-improvement program. It is the life of Another living in us. God commanded light to shine out of darkness, and now the light of His glory shines in our hearts through the face of Jesus. Our failures magnify His grace, our weakness displays His strength, and our emptiness reveals His fullness.

Journal Entry – Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture

My beloved, you do not need to measure yourself by what you find in Adam. You are no longer defined by the weakness of your flesh, for I have placed you in Christ, the One in whom I am well pleased. As you behold Him, you see not only My delight but also your true identity.

Do not let the awareness of sin or inability discourage you. Let it instead point you to Jesus, who is your life. Every failure you discover in yourself becomes a reminder that I have given you Another Man, perfect and complete, who has fulfilled all righteousness and now lives in you.

You are called not to imitate Him by your own effort but to trust Him to live through you. Reckon yourself dead to sin and alive to Me. Yield to the Spirit who indwells you, and My life will flow out in ways that bring Me glory. The old has passed away, and the new has come. Your life is hidden with Christ in Me, and I will make Him known through you.

Scripture References: Matthew 17:5, Romans 6:6-11, Galatians 2:20, 2 Corinthians 4:6, Colossians 3:3-4, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Philippians 2:13, Ephesians 3:16-19, Hebrews 7:25.

Real-Life Analogy

Imagine trying to paint over a stained wall with thin layers of cheap paint. No matter how many coats you apply, the blotches still show through. Now picture a master painter bringing in a new wall panel, perfectly smooth and clean, covering the old surface entirely. You no longer see the stains because they are hidden beneath something new and flawless. That is what union with Jesus is like. Your flaws and stains are not your final story. You are covered and defined by His perfection.

Today, when I am tempted to fix myself through effort, I can pause and say, “Lord, I trust You to live Your life in me and through me right now.” In doing so, I rest in the reality that I am not painting over stains, but living out of the new life of Jesus already within me.

Prayer of Confidence

Lord, I thank You that I no longer live in Adam but in Jesus, the Man in whom You are well pleased. I rejoice that my failures do not diminish Your promises, for all Your blessings are secured in Him. I rest in the truth that I do not need to strive to be like Jesus in my own effort, for He lives in me. I am alive in the new, and I gratefully yield to You today with confidence that You will express His life through me.