We
know that God loved us before we ever loved Him, even while we are still
sinners (Romans 5:8-10). We do not have to make our self holy before we come to Christ.
This is impossible to do.
God
demonstrated His love for us when He sent His Son to atone for our sins (1 John
4:10; Romans 5:8-10). It is not by our works, or we could boast about our
accomplishments (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Jesus
was delivered to death by the Jews and Romans, for the purpose of paying the
debt of our sin, and He was raised back to life for our justification (Romans
4:25).
Nothing,
not even death, or our worry over a life full of trials, or angels or demons,
nor the power of hell or any created thing can separate us from God's love,
which He reveals to us in Jesus Christ, our Lord (Romans 8:38-39).
When
we come to Christ, our old carnal, fleshly nature dies. Satan still uses it to
tempt us; but it is dead in Christ (Colossians 3:3). Therefore, we have no
excuse for living a sinful life.
We
are crucified with Christ. Although we now live in our body, we live by the
faith of God's Son who abides within us, because He loves us and died for us
(Galatians 2:20).
Prayer:
Father
God, thank You for the covenant You made with us and for putting Your laws in
our heart and mind. Your love remembers our sins no more; and we have no need
for further sacrifice, because we are forgiven once and for all (Hebrews 10:16-18).
We
now draw near to You with a genuine heart full of assurance, which comes from
our faith in Your faithfulness. You cleared our conscience from guilt and
shame. We hold unshakably to our hope in You. We know that You will give us all
things through Your grace (Romans 8:32).
Remind
us not to forsake the practice of meeting with other Saints for the purpose of
fellowship and encouraging one another, especially as the day of Christ's
return approaches.
Thought
for the Day:
God
loves us so much that He gave us the power of His Spirit, so that we can tell
everyone we know about what He does in our life. - Acts 1:8
