Thankful for a God who Lavishes

Lavish – to to expend or give in great amounts or without limit.

Ephesians 1:3-10  “[God] has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as He chose us in Him before the foundation fo the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him.  In love He predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of His glorious grace, with which He has blessed us in the Beloved.  In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of His will, according to His purpose, which He set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, things in heaven and things on earth.”

These verses are packed full of God.  If we slow down and read this for the purpose of learning more about God, we see in every one of these sentences and phrases that God is the initiator in all things related to salvation and spiritual blessings, all of which is for His purposes.  It is not because of any action from any man or woman.  It’s not even because any man or woman asked for or accepted His salvation or spiritual blessing, for we read in Romans that man’s mind is hostile to God and cannot choose or submit to Him (Romans 8:7)…apart from His divine purpose, calling, and power.  Read back through those verses again below, taking note of all of the reference to God or Jesus.

Twenty times in these 8 verses, God is seen as either the initiator of salvation, the means of salvation, or the purpose of salvation.  It all points to God. 

Am I using the grace His has extended to me to fulfill His purposes?  Or am I using them to fulfill my own?  Do I praise Him for His rich blessings?  Or do I complain that I am lacking?  Do I glorify Him in my thoughts, words, and actions because of the way He has so truly blessed me “in all wisdom and insight making known to [me] the mystery of His will”?  Or do I pridefully think that I’ve done anything worthy of Him? 

How about you?

I am thankful for God who chose me before the foundation fo the world and who lavishes upon me the riches of His grace.

Jesus, the High Priest

I am so very thankful to have a High Priest who is more than able to sympathize (and empathize) with every weakness I encounter in this body of flesh.  Jesus was indeed tempted in every respect and did not sin.  He served as the One and final sacrifice that would ever be required for our sin.  He now sits at the right hand of the Father and serves as Mediator on my behalf.  Let this sink in…the One who Mediates for me (and all who are saved) with the Father knows…really knows my (our) weaknesses!!  That is why we can and should draw near to the throne of grace with confidence, not because of us but because of Jesus Christ, our High Priest and Mediator.  There we will find mery.  Praise be to God!

“Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.  For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.  Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”  ~Hebrews 4:14-16, ESV

The Warmth of the Sun

Something happened to me on Thursday afternoon as I headed home from work.  The sun was setting behind me.  It was reflecting in the rear-view mirror of my car, blinding me as I was trying to drive.  I tilted my head down so that I could see the road in front of me.  When I did, I felt the warmth of the sun shining on my forehead!  Catch that!?!?  I felt the warmth of the sun in a mirror reflection of the sun!!!  Now that is power.  This doesn’t happen with a candle or a bonfire.  The heat of man-made fires don’t reflect in mirrors, but the heat of God-created fires do.  Just stuck me as interesting.

Grandma’s Funeral

Today was Grandma’s funeral.  I have such peace because of the hope I have in Jesus that she is with Him.  I am excited for her, that after all these years, she has gotten to see her Maker and Lord.  What a glorious day!

The reality that sh isn’t just down the road a ways for me to visit her is sad, but I can’t remain sad for long.  She lived a long, good life filled with lots of love - deep, genuine, selfless love.  She loved the Lord.  Oh, how I know she loved Him!  She loved her family so deeply.  In pictures, you can see it in her eyes and on her face how much she loved every one of us.  And she loved her friends and her church.  It has been a good day of celebrating her life.  God was glorified in her life and in her death.  Praise Him!

Sheep don’t choose their Shepherd

Thought I’d share what the Lord showed me this morning.

You’ve heard it said that sheep follow their Shepherd because they hear and know the voice of their Shepherd (John 10:4).  Well, this morning God enlightened me to the fact that sheep don’t choose their Shepherd.  The Shepherd chooses them.

Really, think about it.  Sheep wandering out in a pasture don’t choose whoever the shepherd is out there watching them, guiding them, protecting them.  A shepherd chooses his flock.  Over time, the sheep get so used to hearing their shepherd’s voice that they don’t follow just any ole guy with a staff; they follow the one they know.

Brother, Sister, follow the voice of the One you know.  He choose you.

 

For other Scriptures on election, see Romans 9, Ephesians 1, John 6:44-45…and tons of others.