EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!
SUNDAY FEBRUARY 16, 2020.
SUBJECT : THE MANIFESTATION OF GOD'S LOVE FOR 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:
The message of the Gospel comes to a focus in God’s love for us. This love of God has to be manifested by the death of the Son for those who were unworthy. If Christ’s death on the cross were the result of debt that God paid for the merit of those who kept law and performed meritorious deeds, then there would be no manifestation of love and grace. Love is not manifested in the payment of debt. However, since the cross came regardless of the spiritual condition of the recipients, then love and grace are manifested.
Love is God’s nature of love is His most outstanding and obvious characteristics. When you love someone dearly, you are ready and willing to give freely to the point of self-sacrifice. 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, our punishment, and exchanged His life of inestimable value with our lives that is completely worthless due to sin. He, in exchange, offered us the new life that He had bought for us.
God’s love nature caused God to create the world for an extension of His kingdom, and caused Him to send His only Son—Jesus Christ—to rescue us from the slavery to sin an death. When we were weak and helpless because we could do nothing on our own to save ourselves, Christ had to come to our rescue. It 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.
God sent Jesus to die for us, not because we were good enough, but just because He loved us and is passionate about our well being. God is a Passionate Father. In Psalms 103 vs 13 the psalmist reminds us, "As a father pities his children, So the Lord pities those who fear Him." Jesus demonstrated this the day the disciples found themselves on the Sea of Galilee, and a storm was brewing, which is typical of the Sea of Galilee even today. The boat containing these disciples started to take in water because of the turbulence. With the boat beginning to sink, these terrified disciples asked the ultimate question, "Lord, don't You care?" Of course He cares!
Be assured that, having begun a life with Christ, you have a reserve power and love to call on each day for help to meet every challenge or trial. 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.
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 passionate 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 love for me. You have daily loaded me with Your benefits, always forgiving me my iniquities, healing me all my diseases, redeeming my life from destructions, satisfying my mouth with good things, so that my youth is renewed like the eagle's, and crowning me with loving kindness and tender mercies. May I not miss my path in You, in Jesus' Name I have prayed. Amen.
PRAISE THE LORD!