John 1:12
“But to all who believed him and accepted
him, he gave the right to become children of God.”
Yesterday, I brought up the
fact that most of us who are followers of Jesus Christ
live our lives as if Jesus hasn’t done anything since
the Cross of Calvary. We would never admit this. We would quote chapter and
verse of the many passages showing that Jesus is actively involved in our
lives. However, when it comes to the way we live our lives, we are telling the
world (and ourselves) a different story.
I want us to go back to the basics of Christianity. Instead
of majoring on the minor doctrines of the Bible, let us instead focus on what
is important to God. God did not write a love letter to us (Bible) where only
the educated seminarians can understand. He wrote His letter to all of us. He
wants us all to understand how much He
loves us. He wants us to understand that
there is freedom in the Cross of Calvary. Jesus came to set us free from the
penalty of sin. He came to offer us hope, forgiveness, and freedom. He came to restore the relationship
mankind had with Him before The Fall.
Jesus told His disciples, and He’s telling us today, “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in
God, and trust also in me. There is more
than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have
told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is
ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am. And
you know the way to where I am going” (John 14:1-4, NLT).
This is the passage that led me to salvation. When we read
this passage, we tend to focus primarily on the fact that Jesus is preparing a
place for us in Heaven. However, what opened my heart to God thirty-one years
ago was when Jesus said, “I will come and
get you, so that you will always be with me where I am…” Jesus wants to
have an intimate relationship with us. He died on the cross to restore the relationship
that was destroyed in the Garden of Eden. The Creator of the Universe loved us
so much that He died so that we can be with Him for all of eternity.
John 1:12 tells us that if we give our lives to Jesus
Christ, we will become a child of God. “But
to all who believed [Jesus] and accepted him, he gave the right to become
children of God.” The moment you gave your life to Jesus, the Creator of
the Universe called you His child. As a father, I would die for my children. God did just that for you and me. He
died to set us free. For this reason, if
He loved us so much that He was willing to die for us, how much more will He
take care of us?
Meditate on This Truth
Matthew 5:25-33)
“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday
life—whether you have enough food and drink,
or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food,
and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or
harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t
you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a
single moment to your life?
“And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies
of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet
Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And
if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into
the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little
faith?
“So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will
we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ These things dominate the
thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek
the Kingdom of God above all else,
and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”
Rest in God’s promises, for you are His
child. He promised that He will take care of His children, and His promises are
always true.
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