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Conformed to the Divine
Andrea Lende • April 9, 2021
Titus 3:5-7
Conformed to the Divine
You can also listen to the devotion and prayer at: https://anchor.fm/andrea-lende/episodes/Conformed-to-the-Divine-euingo
Titus 3:5-7
“He saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but because of His own pity and mercy, by [the] cleansing of the new birth and renewing of the Holy Spirit,”
“Which He poured out richly upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior.”
“[And He did it in order] that we might be justified by His grace (by His favor, wholly undeserved), [that we might be acknowledged and counted as conformed to the divine will in purpose, thought, and action], and that we might become heirs of eternal life according to [our] hope.”
The whole message of God’s love for us is in these three verses.
The Lord had mercy on us and desired His Holy Spirit live inside us to lead and guide us.
The only way to accomplish this was to send His Son to die for us.
I am so thankful Jesus willingly stepped out of heaven’s door to live in this world.
Born and raised a Carpenter’s Son, He did not have an easy life.
He had to learn all the things we have to learn to work and earn a living.
He worked day to day in the heat and cold without modern conveniences.
There were no paved roads, so it must have been dusty as the wind blew.
There were days that would have been uncomfortable for Him not unlike days we experience here as well.
We know His true mission was to sacrifice His life for us.
But He lived a life of labor and work before that time.
Yet, He was still willing to come.
In all His graciousness, He came.
He came to make sure we were counted as divine.
We have no ability or power to make this so on our own.
But He does.
He came so the Holy Spirit could renew our hearts and minds.
So that we would be “conformed to the divine will in purpose, thought, and action.”
Today I am thankful Jesus willingly came to this earth so I could be made righteous through His blood and be made new by the gift of His Holy Spirit.
May you be made holy and righteous through the gift of the Holy Spirit as made possible by God Almighty.
Daily Prayer:
O Lord, my God, thank You for showing me more about the gift Your Son came to this earth to give. The gift of the Holy Spirit. Thank You for conforming my spirit to the divine as Your Spirit resides in mine. Thank You for choosing to make me Yours and providing the way to make it so. Help me listen to Your gentle whispers and be obedient to Your call. Help me wait upon You for all I need. Increase my faith as I watch You work. Don’t let me miss You, Lord. Keep my eyes on You instead of the chaos that surrounds me. Keep me seeking You so I stay connected to You and Your plan for my life. Ready me for Your service for I desire to serve You. Help me bless someone this day. Thank You for hearing my prayer.
Answer: My Spirit lives within you My child and I AM leading and guiding you in all I have planned for you.
Response: Thank You, Almighty God and Father.
We start a New Year! How exciting! Paul had just finished telling the Ephesians to put off their old nature. They had been run around by their feelings and desires. He told them to be renewed in their spirit. The Amplified Bible defines this to be “having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude.” As we say goodbye to this year, let us put on the new and leave the old behind. We have an opportunity to reflect on what to bring forward into this New Year.
This is a great message for the New Year. We can be in control of our own words. As a mother, I used to tell my children to use their words to explain what was happening in their minds. I tried to help them find the right words. Words that would help the situation and not make it worse. I must do the same thing when talking to them. It’s important to use words that do not damage their spirits. Words that lift up instead of tear down. Even though my children have grown, I still want to be careful how I speak to them because my worlds will impact them for the rest of their lives.
As we approach the New Year, it is a perfect time to take inventory of what part of our lives, our hearts, and our souls are not bearing fruit. What can we give up as this year comes to a close? What do we need to give to the Lord for His cleansing and pruning? The answers to these questions take time. Time with the Lord. We are creatures of routines and habits which serve us well. But we can also change our routines and habits to serve us and the Lord better. So, we can ask God to show us what He wants us to give up so that He can have more of us.
I cannot think of a better verse to meditate on as we approach the New Year. Jesus said, "the kingdom of God is within you [in your hearts] and among you [surrounding you]." For so many years I believed I had to wait to go to heaven to experience the kingdom of God. I have longed to step into heaven and meet the Lord and His Son. However, as we read the Gospels and study Jesus and all that He said, we begin to understand the kingdom of God is all around us. The kingdom of God is within.
Paul wrote to the Colossians and told them he was praying for them. He prayed they would be refreshed, renewed, and invigorated. He also prayed they would be strengthened. May his prayer be heard by the Lord God Almighty on our behalf today just as it was received two thousand years ago. God is the Source of all things beautiful and wonderful. There is no shortage of renewal, refreshment, or inspiration in His kingdom. And as the Creator of this universe, He continues to pour all good things into His people. Paul wrote that refreshment and strength are needed so we may have endurance.
This verse is the perfect verse to reflect on as Christmas comes to a close. The Lord sent His Son to us. He sent Him to this world as a babe. Jesus was given the task of growing up. A difficult one for all of us. He endured the awkward stages we all go through as we grow past them. I look back at old picture and cringe, yes, I cringe. This life provides plenty of opportunities to feel awkward and just plain weird, but our Father loves us as though we are perfect every day of our lives. This is why Jesus came. He came to make us perfect in God’s sight.
God made Himself flesh so He could take away the sins of the world. The story of the very first Christmas was humble, yet the most powerful and loving birth ever recorded in history. All humanity changed in an instant. When Jesus was born, love filled the earth. Love came down and lifted us up. The angels came to tell the shepherds of this beautiful birth. The stars in the heavens also told the story. As we do all tasks that we do to ensure a beautiful Christmas day, may we remember the miracle that God sent long ago. The miracle of all miracles.
The first Christmas was going to be documented, so that it could be read many times over for all Christmas’ to come. It was also documented so the prophecy of the Messiah’s birth would be known to be fulfilled. Prophets of old foretold Jesus would come from the house of David. They also prophesied that He would be born in Bethlehem. And all this came to pass. Even though Jesus would be known as a Nazarene, His beginning began in Bethlehem. God’s divine plan was set in motion with the first census while Mary was at the end of her pregnancy.
What a wonderful passage to read during Christmas week. Our passage touched my heart as I read it through the lens of Jesus’ birth. “It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor with Himself.” We have so much to be thankful for in these few short words, “restoring the world to favor with Himself.” So undeserved and yet so graciously given. We are offered favor with the Lord. Imagine having favor with the almighty God, the Creator of the universe. Jesus chose to leave heaven’s door where all was perfect. He chose to be born into this dusty messy world.
Jesus had just spoken to a fig tree and deemed it unworthy to live because it had no fruit on it. His disciples were amazed when they saw the fig tree wither and die. Then the Lord talked to them about prayer and belief. He told them that whatever they asked for, if they had the faith and belief, they would receive it. I remember the day I started hearing music and lyrics. I had just bowed my head at the piano and asked if the Lord would bless praise and worship music. As soon as I prayed that prayer, the Lord bestowed the gift of song writing upon me.