2020-10-30
Good Morning Dear Ones,
The Holy Spirit has more to say about Paul’s first mission. He was teaching about salvation, which is for everyone. At least the opportunity to be saved for time and all eternity is available to everyone. This requires knowing that it is not for us to judge who will be saved and who won’t be [MT 7: 1-2]. RO 10: 8-11, “God’s message is near you, on your lips, and in your hearts, i.e. that is the message of faith we preach. If you confess that Jesus is Lord and believe that God raised Him from death, you will be saved. For it is by our faith that we are put right with God; it is by our confession that we are saved. The Scripture [IS 28: 16] says, ‘Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.’” Our confession is openly expressing acknowledgement that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior, our true belief in His Lordship over us. Our belief that the Father raised Him from death to life as the Firstborn of all creation is basic to this confession. We must do our best to run the race of faith and win eternal life for ourselves, for it is to this life that God called you when you first professed your faith before many witnesses [1 TIM 6: 12-13]. Christ professed the truth before Pontius Pilate, that His Kingdom is not on earth and that whoever was telling the truth belongs to Him [JN 18: 36-37].
Paul went on to discuss how the Father adopts believers in Christ into the family of God. RO 8: 14-17, “Those who are led by God’s Holy Spirit are God’s children. For the Spirit that God has given you has not made you slaves and does not lead you to be frightened of Him. Instead, the Spirit makes you children of God and by His power, we cry out to God, ‘Abba! My Abba!’ Instead, the Holy Spirit joins with our spirit to declare that we are God’s children and will possess all the blessings He keeps for His people. We will also possess with Christ what God has kept for Him. We will share in His suffering and in His glory!” We must understand that the suffering we have at this present time is small when compared to the greatness of the future glory we will enjoy. All of believing creation eagerly awaits the time when God will reveal His children. God gives each of us a skill set ---to be used in doing the tasks He has set aside for us. These tasks are His work, and it is set before us to do by God, Who loves us. We can turn to Him at any time of day or night in prayer. He listens for our prayers and gives us the benefit of His great wisdom. We should praise God for His grace and for giving us His work to do, that is His pleasure and His purpose. In union with Christ, our lives are forever altered and made better. God gave us free agency to make our own decisions and enables each of us decide how important eternal life with Christ is to us. To me, it is important enough to lead me to give my entire career to doing His work. My belief in Christ and the gifts of the Holy Spirit are so important to me that I felt daily study of the Bible and conveying God’s teaching to others accurately, who willing to listen, a prime directive [RO 8: 18; EPH 1: 3-6].
When did the Father decide to adopt us? We can look to the answer He gave the prophet, Jeremiah, for some direction on this question. JER 1: 4 [God speaking] “I chose you before I gave you life and before you were born…” From COL 1: 15, I have learned that “Christ was the Firstborn of all creation, the visible likeness of the invisible God.” This means that the Father decided to have Christ do the work of creation. As the process of creation was accomplished, I assume plans were made for the creation of each person with his skill set. Each person must discover that skill set for himself and then become committed to acting on it. The Father makes the decisions, and the Son and us do God’s work. We join Him in it at the Son’s direction. The Father loves each of us, even though there are times when we disappoint Him. No other human loves us in the same way and to the same extent as God does. God has taught us what love is, and Christ has modeled it for us. When we profess faith in Christ and confess our sins openly and honestly before Him, He forgives all except serial sinning against the Holy Spirit [LK 12: 10]. At the basis of the Covenant of Grace is God’s willingness to hear all our confession, our willingness to seek out where or what sinning we do, and our openly honest confession of it. God forgives our sin as long as we don’t continue doing that sin. God wants us to mature in our faith, as evidenced in HE 5: 12-13.
Why did the Father adopt us as His children? He did this out of His love for us and to present us as holy and without fault before Christ at the time for the judgment of the just. God’s plan of salvation is the reason Christ’s disciple slept during the Son’s suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane [see MK 14: 32-36; LK 22: 42], which helps to flesh out the big picture.
PRAYER: O Lord, You teach us by Christ’s example what real love is. Both Christ and Paul prayed often. They asked for accurate conveying of Biblical truth and that they can find ways to utter the truth with clarity, so others would understand. Paul, in 1 COR 13: 4-8 said, “Love is patient and kind. It is not jealous or conceited or proud. Love is not ill-mannered or selfish or irritable; love does not keep a record of wrongs. It is not happy with evil, but it serves the truth. Love never gives up, and its faith, hope, and patience never fail. Love is eternal.” This description of love is within our general capacity, if we will only demonstrate the characteristics described here. While on earth, our love is like looking into a dull mirror, but when we have gained eternal life, we will see You, Lord as You are---pure, clear, and fitting all our best ideals. We ask You to give our lives direction, to help us when we are at a crossroads, and to heal ourselves and our land. This is a lot to ask of You, but You have the power and the will to lead us to lives of obedient faith in You. In Christ’s holy/mighty name, we offer this prayer. Amen.
NEXT WEEK: I’ve been commanded to discuss how well does the Father love us and the role of prayer in our lives. My own first public confession took place after my baptism and confirmation. I was asked to express my faith after I got home at a huge church center the before 15, 000 people. I had never spoken before such a large number of people, although I’ve done plenty of public speaking—and certainly never about such a personal subject. I decided to place my faith in Christ, Who I believe was watching over me that night. My heart was pounding with initial nerves, but I plunged into what I had to say. The words kept coming, as I briefly explained what it was like being raised in a Conservative Jewish household, related my experience transitioning from rejection of Christ (taught in traditional Judaism) to burgeoning belief in Him. Then, I explained how this belief grew as I learned more about Him and His teaching. By then, I had done a lot of reading, including the New Testament. (I was already very familiar with the OT). As you probably know, Jews accept the OT as truth, but reject the NT. When I finished, I thanked the audience for their interest in my testimony of faith and left. I knew I had done the right thing and that God was pleased with it. In the ensuing 12 years that I was in that denomination, I came to compare its doctrine with mainline Christianity and found the former deeply wanting. (This does not mean that I disrespect the members of this church or their lifestyle). While I’m no more special than any other person, I feel blessed to have been given the kind and extent of faith in God I have. Praise and thanks be to Him!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn
© Lynn Johnson 2020. All Rights Reserved.
<-- Back to Archives