DEVOTIONAL :EVERYDAY IN THE WORD

EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 19, 2019.

SUBJECT : GOD’S LOVE TOWARD US!

Memory verse: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3 vs 16.)

READ: Romans 5 vs 6 - 11:
5:6: For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
5:7: For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die.
5:8: But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
5:9: Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.
5:10: For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
5:11: And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.

INTIMATION:
God’s love for us unique and unparalleled. His love is dynamic and not self-centered; it reaches out and draws others in. This is one of God's most outstanding and obvious characteristics. Here God sets the pattern of true love, the basis for all love relationships—when you love someone dearly, you are ready and willing to give freely to the point of self-sacrifice. The message of the Gospel comes to a focus in God’s love for us as is stated in our memory verse.

The apostle Paul, in the passage we read, expounded the love of God for us. He explained that when we were weak, lost in sin, and helpless and could do nothing on our own to save ourselves, Christ had to come to rescue us. For His love for us, God paid dearly with the life of His Son, the highest price He could pay, and unheard of in history. Jesus accepted wholeheartedly His propitiation for our sins, set aside His deity, took the form of man, and paid the wages of sin we owed—death—on the cross at Calvary (Ezekiel 18 vs 4 & Romans 6 vs 23). Jesus, in exchange, gave His sinless life of inestimable value for our sinful lives that are completely worthless. He came at exactly the right time in history in accordance with God's plan and schedule. It is God that controls all history, and He controlled the timing, method, and events surrounding Jesus' death.

The apostle Paul further explains that the love that caused God to create the world for an extension of His kingdom, and caused Christ to die in our place, is the same love that sends the Holy Spirit to live in us and guide us daily. The power that raised Jesus from the dead is the same power that saved us and is available to us in our daily lives.

Therefore, having begun a life with Christ by accepting what He did for us, you have a reserve power and love to call on each day for help to meet every challenges or trials. Too often, in our spiritual life, although we may need to love God more, there is a much higher need to recognize just how much He loves us. When our relationship is such that we feel God's love and His passion for His children, we naturally begin to love Him more. You can pray for His power and love as you need it.

Many of us have at one time or the other felt like that, "Lord where are You when I really need You?" "God, I'm going under. Don't You care?" But a believer and a child of God will remember the promise found in First Peter 5 vs 7, "Casting all your care upon Him; for He cares for you." He cares about the minutest details of your life that even the very hairs of your head is counted. (Matthew 10 vs 30). Though you may not know He cares, rest assured He does!

In Psalms 145 vs 18 the psalmist tells us, "The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth." What this means is that He is never too busy for you. When you pray, you will never get busy signal. He hears you and ready to meet your real need. Jesus had a very special term He used to describe the personal and loving nature of God. He called Him, "Abba." The word Abba is an Aramaic word used to describe the most intimate, personal nature of a father. He is never too busy for you. He is never more concerned about a crisis in one individual than another.

Prayer: Abba Father, thank you for Your unparalleled love toward me. You so loved me that You gave the life of Your Son, Jesus Christ, as a propitiation for my sins. I cannot thank You enough. I pray, O Most High God, that You endue me with Your spirit of love that I may love You as You loved me, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.
PRAISE THE LORD!