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Grace Through Jesus
Andrea Lende • May 22, 2020
John 1:17
Grace Through Jesus
You may also listen to the meditation and prayer at: https://anchor.fm/andrea-lende/episodes/Grace-Through-Jesus-eedlbo
Daily Word:
John 1:17
“For while the Law was given through Moses, grace (unearned, undeserved favor and spiritual blessing) and truth came through Jesus Christ.”
As a young child I was taught Jesus died for my sins.
We sang songs about Him.
We gathered around the table at Sunday School and learned about Him.
But I didn’t really understand the full impact of His death and what it has meant for me until my later years.
Every time I see a passage like our scripture today, I am almost overcome.
I am so grateful that Jesus accepted His task.
I am so thankful that He was willing to leave heaven’s door and come to this earth.
He showed us how to live.
He gave us untold wisdom through His life that was transcribed in the four short gospels by four men.
He made it possible for me to be in direct communication with God, Almighty.
There are so many people here on earth that I have no access to that I would love to be able to talk to, get advice from, learn from, and simply just be in their presence.
I am unable.
But our Lord, Jesus Christ, made it possible for me to be in relationship with the Creator of this universe.
I can sit in His presence and be restored daily.
I can worship Him quietly and alone in my home or in public with the masses.
He looks upon me graciously.
I do not deserve His attention, but He gives it to me.
In fact, He desires relationship with me.
How is that possible?
How is it possible that the Creator of the oceans, rivers, mountains, plains, skies, heavens, and all that I can possibly comprehend desires relationship with me?
He is my Creator and my Redeemer all in one.
This is possible because Jesus willingly left heaven’s door to walk upon this earth and ultimately give His life to save me from myself – save me from my sins.
He gave His human life as a sacrifice so that I could be made perfect in God’s eyes.
The God of this universe sees me as perfect.
Nothing I do or don’t do can make that possible.
Only God can make that possible.
And He did that through the sacrifice of His Son.
So, reading this verse today reminds me of just how much I am thankful that Jesus came to this earth to be the One Sacrificial Lamb for us all.
“For while the Law was given through Moses, grace (unearned, undeserved favor and spiritual blessing) and truth came through Jesus Christ.”
Today I choose to meditate and ponder about the miracle of Jesus’ birth and what His sacrifice has done for me.
May you find that the Lord’s sacrifice has made you perfect, whole, and complete in Him.
Daily Prayer:
O Lord, my God, thank You for Your perfect plan to save me. Thank You for sending Your Son to sacrifice His life for me and for all people of all ages. Thank You for making it possible to be in relationship with You. Thank You for choosing me to know You, Lord. Thank You for making me blameless so that You can look upon me and see beauty – Your beauty, Lord. You made me as I am and call me to be new in You every day. You give me grace for all my imperfections. You show me how to be better, live better, and give more. You mold me and make me into the person You desire me to be. You ask me to give all I am to You, Lord. Help me continually give my will up to You. Help me to desire Your will over mine. This constant battle has raged in me my whole life. Help me finally surrender completely to You, Father. And help me to fully worship You, Lord. It is in worshiping You that I lose the cares of this world. Help me to truly be Yours, Father. Help me to serve You as You desire. Help me bless someone this day. Thank You for hearing my prayer.
Answer: I AM the Great I AM and I desire your worship and your praise.
Response: I praise You, God Almighty, Father of all, and Creator of the universe and all that is in it!
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.