02/12/2018
Do you understand how precious you are to God? As you go about the process of worshipping Him, and building your faith in Him, do you realize that He is working to bring you to Himself with even greater vigor? We readily accept that Jesus is the Son of God, but can we actually admit to ourselves that God could love the fallen men and women we are? Can we accept that the blood of Christ was freely offered, and has completely cleansed us? Can we receive the gift of grace without question?
“And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!"”
Galatians 4:6 ESV
Well God does love us. He loves you and me. He doesn’t love us in the way we use the word today, you know, like when we say such things as “I love the taste of that cake” or “I love how well they play that song.” No, God loves us in the true sense of love, He loves us in the fullness of ourselves... His Spirit loving ours. He loves us as His children. It is for this reason that He sent His Son, and now the Holy Spirit to us. He sent His Son to redeem us, and His Holy Spirit to reveal to us our lineage, and prepare us for a life in eternity as part of our adopted family.
I was reading Andrew Murray today and he understood this amazing relationship. He spoke of how God continued to bring us to Himself and prepares us to join the rest of the family. Let’s read an excerpt from his writing...
“There is a great difference between the work of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Father and the Son accomplished their work for and on behalf of humankind: salvation that prepared them for their acceptance. The Holy Spirit’s work is to impart to us the grace that enables us to accept and live out what the Father and the Son have provided.” - Andrew Murray
We live out the gift of Jesus Christ today in both our lives here in this world, and in the promise of the next. God didn’t send His Son just so that we could be good citizens of the here and now, and to treat each other well in the 24hour a day world we live in; He sent Jesus to redeem us, and as the next step in perfecting us for eternity with Him. Now He has sent His Holy Spirit to comfort us, and to teach us the grace and manners needed to enter into His presence and live in His house eternally.
One of every Christian’s favorite Psalms shouts to us of this. Read, or recite, this Psalm again, but this time pay particular attention to the final verse...
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
Psalms 23:6 ESV
This is the culmination of the effort, the finalization of God’s plan as He has prepared us to live within His house... as beloved children. We are being prepared to live in the house of the Lord forever! We are being taught what it is to behave as the children of God. Suddenly, all the lineage scripture that seemed so redundant to read, and contained verse after verse of...
“Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,”
Matthew 1:2 ESV
Suddenly these verses have become wonderful... because they include us in the final count. Won’t it be a celebration when the final verse reads this way...
“and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus, who is called Christ, and [insert your name here] was born ”
Matthew 1:16 ESV
We are indeed precious to God; so much so that The Bible contains book after book detailing the story of our struggle to know Him, and, even greater than that... of His love for us and desire that we be returned to Him... it is the story of His love for us!
So realize the love He has for you, and the great lengths He has gone to reinstate you, and to return you to His loving arms. When you refuse to accept the sacrifice of Jesus, and the grace of God; when you turn your back on the Holy Spirit and the understanding it brings, then you have done more than just refused God... you have broken the heart of your Father.
Prayer:
Father, thank you for loving me from the very creation of the world. Thank you for desiring to have me as your child, and for seeking my return in spite of my many failures. Thank you for sending Jesus Christ, my brother, to rescue me from the wilderness of sin, and for your Holy Spirit that instructs me in what it means to rejoin the family. I weep at the goodness and love you extend, and at the pain and suffering I have caused you and Jesus. I shed tears of joy in understanding that your love for me never diminished, never faded, never brought you doubt in my worth... through all my sin and disobedience you pursue me, and never give up hope. Help me Father to love you just as you love me. Help me to be Holy, and righteous in your eyes. Help me to appreciate fully the suffering of Christ, and the grace you have shown me. Help me as I take my place in your house, and at your table. How can I ever understand such love except by faith, for you are beyond all understanding, and love me with a love the depths of which I will never truly fathom. Holy, Holy, Holy are you, and greater if your Love than even the stars in the sky, and the sands of the earth. Help me love you more each moment of every day Father, knowing even then it will fall short of my desire for you.
Rich Forbes