DOES BEING RESCUED, AND GIVEN GRACE, PEACE AND LOVE SOUND APPEALING?
BIBLE PASSAGE:
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,
Who gave Himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age,
according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever
and ever. Amen.
(Galatians 1:3-5)
MEDITATION:
When Paul wrote his letter to the churches in Galatia, the first thing
he did was remind them of how gracious God had been to mankind.
Grace refers to ‘elegance or refinement of movement’, but when Paul
used the word, he was referring to ‘the free and unmerited favor of God’.
He even alluded to how His grace was manifested through Jesus Christ,
who gave Himself for our sins.
Paul was subtle in referring to Jesus Christ as our Savior. He told
the Galatians (and us) that when Jesus gave Himself for us, we were
‘rescued’ from ‘the present evil age’. It is clever how in just a few words,
Paul connected the sacrifice of Jesus to the will of our God and Father.
Evilness has always been with us. It was present in the days of Paul, and
it is present in the world we live in today. With his ingenuity, mankind
can fashion all kinds ways to try and eradicate evilness, but even with
their best efforts, evilness still remains and spreads throughout our world.
When evilness is present, peace can be very difficult to find. Paul knew
this, and he associated peace with ‘God our Father’. He wanted others
to know that only God can provide peace for those living in a stormy
and sinful world of evilness.
In many ways, mankind tries to distract himself from the evilness, but
regardless of how hard we try, it remains as a continual threat to our
peace. God is the only source for bringing about genuine peace in our
lives. However, there are many who are still refusing to call on Him
and surrender their lives to the Lord, as our Rescuer and Savior.
In the last part of his salutation to the churches in Galatia, Paul offered
up praise to the God of grace and peace. Since Paul was part of the evil
threat to believers at one time, he knew what it was like to be radically
changed by God. He was grateful for his rescue and continually praised
God for His graciousness.
An example of grace:
Years ago King Charles V was loaned a large sum of money by a
merchant in Antwerp. The note came due, but the king was bankrupt
and unable to pay. The merchant gave a great banquet for the King.
When all the guests were seated and before the food was brought in,
the merchant had a large platter placed on the table with a fire on it.
Then, taking the note out of his pocket, he held it in the flames until
it was burned to ashes. The king threw his arms around his benefactor
and wept.
In the same manner, we have been mortgaged to God. Our debt is due,
but we are unable to pay it. However, over two thousand years ago, God
invited the world to a Gospel feast, and in the agonies of the cross, God
held your and my sins until every last remnant, and every trace of our
guilt was consumed. We, like King Charles V, owe God our complete
and sincere gratitude.
ACTION:
Words are important, so we need to choose ours carefully. What we say can
be uplifting to the spirits of others, or create a whirlpool of discouragement.
Paul’s salutation to the Galatians sounds like a nice greeting, but as we have
seen, it is much more than just an opening to a letter, it is a message about the
goodness and grace of God. It reminds us of how His plan is a manifestation
of His love for you and me through, the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ.
Look at these words from Jesus.
But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who
persecute you, that you may be children of your Father
in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the
good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
(Matthew 5:44-45)
When God looks at mankind, He could ‘write us off’ as hopelessly evil,
but with our Heavenly Father, hopelessness is transformed into a type
of hopefulness. Whenever we look at a cross, or hear about Jesus, it
should stir our emotions so much, that we praise God for His love and
grace to us.
Whenever we choose to follow Jesus, and let His Spirit have control of
our lives, we are going to have new challenges. One of those challenges
is to allow His love to flow through us. We can either meet this challenge
and embrace a new attitude of love, or we can choose to close the door on
His love passing through us to others.
If we choose the latter option, then we will have a negative impact on what
God is doing in the lives of others. That’s a scary thought, isn’t it? Anytime
we are doing anything in opposition to God’s plans, it should cause a cold
chill of fright in our mind and lives.
Not only could we be blocking what God wants to do in the life of someone else,
but we will inhibit our own opportunities to grow closer to the Lord. If we aren’t
growing closer to God, then we are in danger of drifting farther away from Him.
Anytime we drift away from the Lord, we are opening door for Satan to step in
and start disrupting our lives in ways we could never have imagined.
Take a few moments and think about how God has changed you in the area
of love. Has He changed you at all? Has He changed you just a little? Or, has
He changed you in an overwhelming way, and now everything you do and say
is ‘flavored’ with love?
Pray,
“Heavenly Father, out of gratitude I kneel before You
and thank You for loving me in spite of my the failures.
in my life. Thank You for Your unmerited grace through
Jesus, who gave Himself for me and my sins, and rescued
me when all hope seemed lost. Thank You for the peace
You offer me in an evil world that is bent on creating turmoil.
Teach me to embrace Your peace and love for me, and to
allow Your love to flow through me to others. In order for
Your love to flow through me, I know it will require changes
in my focus, attitude, thoughts, words, and deeds. Help me
in making these changes and show me the positive impact
I can have on others when I welcome Your control of my
life.”
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