WATCHWORD
4 But God is so rich in mercy; he loved us so much 5 that even though we were spiritually dead and doomed by our sins, he gave us back our lives again when he raised Christ from the dead—only by his undeserved favor have we ever been saved— 6 and lifted us up from the grave into glory along with Christ, where we sit with him in the heavenly realms—all because of what Christ Jesus did. 7 And now God can always point to us as examples of how very, very rich his kindness is, as shown in all he has done for us through Jesus Christ. 8 Because of his kindness, you have been saved through trusting Christ. And even trusting is not of yourselves; it too is a gift from God. Ephesians 2:4-8.
Meditation:
The Power of Christ
We often hear that faith is a decision, and some elements of living our lives certainly rest with our deciding one way or another on a matter. But faith through which we are saved is a free gift of God. We become children of God not through our good works, our best efforts, or services we render to others, our salvation is a gift from God and entirely based upon His grace.
If we could indeed earn our own salvation, then, now get this, we would lose our salvation. Confused? When we go on our own, ‘earning our salvation, we fail because salvation is a grace, a gift from the Lord. Through our faith in Jesus Christ we will never be disappointed nor taken apart, our salvation will be as secure as God himself.
So, what does that mean? We have just come through another year, with its share of crises, where we had to make decisions. Have we learned that in the face of difficulties, our best and most blest response is to surrender our will to Jesus, absolutely and without qualifications?
How we have handled those crises in the past, is past. Our prayer for the coming day, weeks, months of this new year, that our faith is strong, and when the nudges from God to us through the whispers of the Holy Spirit, or our circumstances, we will, indeed, respond with our utmost commitment to our Lord and Savior, alone. Not Jesus and… Not Christ and… But Christ alone. So be it for you and for me.
Bulletin Board:
There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious day
Up from the grave He rose again
And as He stands in victory
Sin’s curse has lost its grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Bought with the precious blood of Christ
No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life’s first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny
No power of Hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
Till He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I’ll stand
Here in the power of Christ I’ll stand
Closing Prayer:
Heavenly father help us walk in faith today. Help us Lord to rest in the grace that you provide. Help us, Lord, to do those things which are fully in your will. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.
