Word for Today: Accepting or Rejecting the Gift
tangle-Weekly-Devotional-Feasting-or-Fasting.emlPosted by: masinick <masinick@...>
in a perfect way, how to live, how to act, but He also showed us "The
Father". People of His day just couldn't seem to get it, because they
could not fathom seeing God in the flesh - but that is precisely who
Jesus is.
The Bible says that Jesus came to seek and save that which is lost. My
friends, that is every one of us. The thing about it is that He came to
seek and save, but He did not force that upon us. It is a free gift.
Like any gift, it is only useful if we take it, accept it, and embrace it.
Have you ever accepted the free gift of Jesus' love and salvation? Do
you recognize that you need to be loved? Most of us do. But what about
recognizing that you also need to be saved? Do you realize that God
wants to save everyone, but that He will not save everyone - not that He
can't, but that He will not force anyone to come to Him? Do you know
that it is important to be saved? Saved from what? Saved from the
power of sin over us in our lives. Saved from a Christ-less eternity.
Saved from the very real perils of the "Lake of Fire", which lasts
forever, has no way out, and is the only other destination other than
eternity with our Lord.
You see, it is really important to accept that free gift. It is God's
provision for everyone. But when we throw out the gift, we throw out
the opportunity to be with Him forever in eternity. We scoff at the
need to be saved, we mock, torture, and do the very things Jesus'
persecutors did to Him before He was nailed to the Cross at Calvary.
Note that Jesus had to go to Calvary. That is an integral and important
part of the gift. He did that to demonstrate His great love for us. He
died in our place, paying once for all the penalty for our sin. He
arose victorious from that penalty, something that no other person or
thing can ever do, and He did it all for anyone who will trust in Him.
Will you be one of those who trust in Him? Not in the good things that
you do, not in the work that you do, not in some words, not in some
deeds, but in Him? If you accept His gift, then you get a new name - a
new name written down in glory - in the Book of Life. If you don't,
your name is blotted out of the Book of Life, and is, instead,
chronicled in "the books", which are recording everything that you do or
ever will do - and those books will condemn you.
The choice is, and always has been, yours. Will you accept Christ? It
really is that simple.
The Bible tells you all that you will ever need to know about all of
this. The Book of Romans, a letter from the apostle Paul to the church
at Rome, goes into great detail, explaining what some call "The Romans
Road", an explanation of sin, its consequences, and the alternatives
that are available to each of us. I encourage you to read it, whether
you have accepted The Gift or not. If you are unsure, read! If you are
sure, read! You may have the opportunity to share what you know with
others, and you are wise to remind yourself often of the incredible gift
that God has made available to all. Don't be one of the the ones who
ignore the gift, thereby rejecting the love and the provision of God.
Embrace the gift, and tell others about it, too!
Yours in Christ,
Brian
--
To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: 1corinthians7-unsubscribe@welovegod.org