09/02/2021
We are tempted to believe that what we have in the world is good, and that it is all we need, but that is simply not true. The earth and everything in it is fleeting, and is never truly ours. So why is it that we value it so much? Why do we surround ourselves with what the world offers us, and treat it as if it were perfect, or even good, when in fact we will die, and all we have accumulated will be lost? In this life the things we have will disappoint us. God’s gifts are always good, and perfect; they never lose their value, and are always glorifying Him as we use them. They are unchanging, and eternal in every way.
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”
James 1:17 ESV
If you have a finely manicured lawn and don’t mow or tend to it for a time it turns into a jungle of weeds. If you have beautiful children and don’t raise them in the Lord, and discipline them as you should, then in short order they become citizens of the world… lost. Some people own nice houses but if they don’t pay their taxes for a couple of years the government comes and takes them away. All that the world gives us comes with a price attached, and with an expiration date, but what our Heavenly Father gives us is good, perfect, and will not be repossessed.
“For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”
Romans 11:29 ESV
God’s gifts can be loosely compared to a gold coin on earth; it shines in our hand, and despite being lost in an ocean, or buried in the ground beneath a mountain, it never loses its brilliance. The earth is unable to take away its shine, or dissolve it over time. This is why those in the world value gold, and is why we, as men and women of faith, should treasure, all the more, what God gives us… His gifts, and calling, are irrevocable, and their value is far greater than gold. Even though we might turn our back on them, cast them into the sea, or bury them under a mountain of sin, they remain ours, and will be just as brilliant when, in repentance and contrition, we return to the fullness of our faith, and pick them up again. They remain ours always, and are as good, and perfect, as they were the day God gave them to us.
“If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”
Matthew 7:11 ESV
God doesn’t give us marginal gifts. Every gift from Him is good, and to test this reality we only need to look at Jesus Christ who was not only good, but the perfect gift of redemption, and eternal life. Through Him we receive the outpouring of God’s grace, and a return passage for those who have lost their faith. Paul says it in this way…
“And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.”
Colossians 1:21-23 ESV
So we receive gifts from God, and they are good, perfect, and ours forevermore. He gives us the gifts of spiritual fruit, and can take what He finds in the earth and bless it such that He makes it serve His purposes, and work to our good. Our Father can use the inadequate or mundane, and by applying his hand to it make it wonderful. Are we ready to let go our grip on what the earth offers, and receive the gifts that the Lord offers us?
“My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold, and my yield than choice silver.”
Proverbs 8:19 ESV
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
Romans 8:28 ESV
Prayer:
Father, thank you for the gifts you give us, and their good and perfect nature. Thank you Lord for the ultimate gift of Jesus Christ who restores us in our faith, and redeems us, so that we are made righteous… free of death, sin, and pleasing to you. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God who gives us good, perfect, and eternal gifts. Praised be your name for the gifts of every type that you bless us with; the large or small, and the grand or meager, for each of them is meant to please us, increase us, bring us close to you, and bring you glory. Merciful are you Lord who takes the impossible and makes it possible, then gives it to us as a miracle, a gift, that only you can give us. Great are you who by your grace has made us perfect in Christ, and now calls us your children. See us Holy Father, as we stand before you clothed, and adorned, in the gifts you have lavished upon us, and welcome us into your home for all eternity.
Rich Forbes