It never ceases to amaze me how God speaks.
Read with me from Ephesians 1:3-10 I'm going to break this down and dig into it because this passage is a veritable feast of God's love!
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. Do you see this? EVERY SPIRITUAL BLESSING IN CHRIST. Got Christ? What more do you need?
4 For He chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.
Say what? HE CHOSE me, you, and all who call on His name as Savior. We chose to agree but only because He first chose us. Before the world was even created.
But let's not forget the most important part of this verse, to be holy and blameless in His sight. He didn't choose us to be cocksure sinners out painting the town, maligning His name, mistreating others, doing whatever we want. He chose us to bring Him glory. We're a part of His plan. He hand selected us to be refined by fire for His purposes to go into all the world - whether that's cross-town or over oceans - to share the message of salvation.
In love 5 he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will - 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.
We weren't chosen to be punished but because He loves us. Our destiny is unchangeable. We're no longer sons and daughters of earth but rather the adopted children of heaven through Jesus because it pleased Him. Of all the billions, we are chosen because of His great love. When we're in a love relationship, it's natural to do our best to please our lover. So we must do all we can to align our will with our Savior as He has planned.
There are many who don't understand predestination and will say, but how could a loving God choose some and not others? The Lord would rather that no man be condemned but he gave us free will. He knew from time and eternity some would follow Lucifer when the great angel fell from grace. There are those who will refuse the gift of grace no matter what. God has not pre-condemned them, He simply had foreknowledge of their free will decision. He chose us, knowing our free will decision also. None of us were forced to answer the call, but we are all compelled by the heart of Christ within.
7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.
Redemption. I'm not sure how this word translates in Telugu but in English it's often used to mean an exchange of some sort. When I was a child, my mother shopped in stores that gave her "green stamps," a certain number for every dollar she spent. She would glue the stamps into a little booklet made for that purpose and when the books were full, she could redeem them for products in a catalog. We would all go to the catalog store together and she'd pick out a new toaster or some other small appliance in exchange for the number of books of stamps she had saved.
God's grace, by His infinitely greater wisdom and understanding, has offered us a redemption unlike anything mankind could ever dream of. He said, "I'll come down there and take the form of a human baby, live the difficulty of wearing human skin for thirty-three years, and tell the world what I'm all about. Only a few will really get the message and even those few will not fully understand. I'll be whipped, beaten, brutally tortured, crowned with massive thorns, ridiculed and humiliated, forced to carry my own cross-beam to my death sentence, hung up to die, and poked in the side with a spear. Then I'll be carted away to a tomb while people continue to mock me. But I'll awake from death and leave that tomb after three days behind the stone that will take many men to move. I will show my glory and return to heaven and the world will know that I AM GOD. And those who believe in me will be saved. In exchange, I'll take their sins upon myself and forgive them."
John 3:16-17 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Let me see if I understand this correctly. YHWH, creator of the universe and eveything in it, loved us so much he took on the flesh, piled our sins on His back, carried that evil cross for miles uphill to his own exacution site, after excruciating torture and mockery, let Himself be murdered in the most shameful and heinous way of all, and I have to do what in return? Nothing. Nil. Nada. Zilch. Zero. All we have to do is believe it and He'll fill us with His Spirit for eternity that we may be one with Him and inherit His kingdom. Every time I think about it I just scratch my head when I think of all the times I've taken that for granted. When I've failed to worship Him and be grateful with my thoughts, attitude or actions. Once more I'm force to my knees to beg forgiveness.
9 And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ,
Upon our day of salvation, we're compelled to follow Him. Not because we have to but because we desire what He desires - His will. When the Holy Spirit lives within us, our will aligns with His will. He dies for us, and rises for us, we die to self and He lives within us. It's a merging of Spirit for His purposes. If we're attentive, we will hear and obey. Today, I am being obedient to the Holy Spirit. I woke up knowing I was to blog for East Godavari. I have been ill and then busy getting caught up on many things and it's been a long time since I've done any writing. I felt the urging of the Holy Spirit strongly. I had to smile when I opened email and was affirmed in my soul with a message from my dear Sara asking me to write. Thank You Jesus for our wonderful sisterhood across the sea!
10 to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment-to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.
Everything we do for the Lord today, each day of our lives, is for eternal purposes. The lives I affect (I hope and pray) in India with my Bible study online will affect others in the villages there. Every person we touch with an act of kindness, a word of encouragement, a prayer, an offering of a meal, reaching out to a hurting friend or child, and especially by sharing the gospel, all are for God's glory when done in the name of Jesus.
Although His mysteries keeps us questioning, His Word never changes, He reveals to us what He needs us to know for His purposes every step of the way.
In His love,
mama anne
Read with me from Ephesians 1:3-10 I'm going to break this down and dig into it because this passage is a veritable feast of God's love!
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. Do you see this? EVERY SPIRITUAL BLESSING IN CHRIST. Got Christ? What more do you need?
4 For He chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.
Say what? HE CHOSE me, you, and all who call on His name as Savior. We chose to agree but only because He first chose us. Before the world was even created.
But let's not forget the most important part of this verse, to be holy and blameless in His sight. He didn't choose us to be cocksure sinners out painting the town, maligning His name, mistreating others, doing whatever we want. He chose us to bring Him glory. We're a part of His plan. He hand selected us to be refined by fire for His purposes to go into all the world - whether that's cross-town or over oceans - to share the message of salvation.
In love 5 he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will - 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.
We weren't chosen to be punished but because He loves us. Our destiny is unchangeable. We're no longer sons and daughters of earth but rather the adopted children of heaven through Jesus because it pleased Him. Of all the billions, we are chosen because of His great love. When we're in a love relationship, it's natural to do our best to please our lover. So we must do all we can to align our will with our Savior as He has planned.
There are many who don't understand predestination and will say, but how could a loving God choose some and not others? The Lord would rather that no man be condemned but he gave us free will. He knew from time and eternity some would follow Lucifer when the great angel fell from grace. There are those who will refuse the gift of grace no matter what. God has not pre-condemned them, He simply had foreknowledge of their free will decision. He chose us, knowing our free will decision also. None of us were forced to answer the call, but we are all compelled by the heart of Christ within.
7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.
Redemption. I'm not sure how this word translates in Telugu but in English it's often used to mean an exchange of some sort. When I was a child, my mother shopped in stores that gave her "green stamps," a certain number for every dollar she spent. She would glue the stamps into a little booklet made for that purpose and when the books were full, she could redeem them for products in a catalog. We would all go to the catalog store together and she'd pick out a new toaster or some other small appliance in exchange for the number of books of stamps she had saved.
God's grace, by His infinitely greater wisdom and understanding, has offered us a redemption unlike anything mankind could ever dream of. He said, "I'll come down there and take the form of a human baby, live the difficulty of wearing human skin for thirty-three years, and tell the world what I'm all about. Only a few will really get the message and even those few will not fully understand. I'll be whipped, beaten, brutally tortured, crowned with massive thorns, ridiculed and humiliated, forced to carry my own cross-beam to my death sentence, hung up to die, and poked in the side with a spear. Then I'll be carted away to a tomb while people continue to mock me. But I'll awake from death and leave that tomb after three days behind the stone that will take many men to move. I will show my glory and return to heaven and the world will know that I AM GOD. And those who believe in me will be saved. In exchange, I'll take their sins upon myself and forgive them."
John 3:16-17 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Let me see if I understand this correctly. YHWH, creator of the universe and eveything in it, loved us so much he took on the flesh, piled our sins on His back, carried that evil cross for miles uphill to his own exacution site, after excruciating torture and mockery, let Himself be murdered in the most shameful and heinous way of all, and I have to do what in return? Nothing. Nil. Nada. Zilch. Zero. All we have to do is believe it and He'll fill us with His Spirit for eternity that we may be one with Him and inherit His kingdom. Every time I think about it I just scratch my head when I think of all the times I've taken that for granted. When I've failed to worship Him and be grateful with my thoughts, attitude or actions. Once more I'm force to my knees to beg forgiveness.
9 And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ,
Upon our day of salvation, we're compelled to follow Him. Not because we have to but because we desire what He desires - His will. When the Holy Spirit lives within us, our will aligns with His will. He dies for us, and rises for us, we die to self and He lives within us. It's a merging of Spirit for His purposes. If we're attentive, we will hear and obey. Today, I am being obedient to the Holy Spirit. I woke up knowing I was to blog for East Godavari. I have been ill and then busy getting caught up on many things and it's been a long time since I've done any writing. I felt the urging of the Holy Spirit strongly. I had to smile when I opened email and was affirmed in my soul with a message from my dear Sara asking me to write. Thank You Jesus for our wonderful sisterhood across the sea!
10 to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment-to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.
Everything we do for the Lord today, each day of our lives, is for eternal purposes. The lives I affect (I hope and pray) in India with my Bible study online will affect others in the villages there. Every person we touch with an act of kindness, a word of encouragement, a prayer, an offering of a meal, reaching out to a hurting friend or child, and especially by sharing the gospel, all are for God's glory when done in the name of Jesus.
Although His mysteries keeps us questioning, His Word never changes, He reveals to us what He needs us to know for His purposes every step of the way.
In His love,
mama anne
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