HAPPY THURSDAY!
Today’s scriptures are about Jesus’ bond with us. Jesus’ entire life was dedicated to us, the children of God. He lived and breathed to create, maintain, and even mend the relationship between God and man. From the beginning of time He’s been a part of the process of our creation, evolution, and growth. When He came to earth as a man, He did so not only to become the sacrificial Lamb of God, but to also experience what it means to be human, and to teach us how to be more “spiritual”. Jesus taught us love with a passion so deep, that I could still feel it when I read His words in the New Testament of the Bible.
When I first read Jesus’ Prayer for All Believers in the Gospel according to John, I felt this overwhelming since of emotions that I can’t explain. I felt His presence, and felt the love that He has for me. I can liken it to the feeling you get when you’re with someone who loves you dearly, and you can feel the love radiating from them. You can look at that person and see the love and compassion in their eyes. That’s how I felt when I read this passage—I felt His love radiating in my heart. Jesus prayed and asked that just as He is one with God, that we be one with Him. That’s the greatest prayer anyone could pray for us, that we can know God so intimately, that we become one with Him. Jesus loved us so much, that He was willing to give His life so that we could experience something that He’s always known—something so spectacular that we couldn’t even imagine it in the flesh.
Jesus Prayed: “Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me. And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.” (John 17:24-26) When we believe in Jesus, we inherit so much more than just eternal life. We’re given a wisdom that allows us to see the world through brand new eyes. We’re given an unmistakable joy that comes from within. We’re given strength that endures the natural course of life, which is filled with rollercoaster like highs and lows. Jesus asked God to allow us to understand, and accept who He is, and to love Him for that. He truly cares about who we are, what we do, and how we do it, because He gave up His life so that we could have the best of Him.
Can you honestly say that you feel Jesus’ presence and can recognize your special bond with Him? I’ve been saved since I was a young girl, and was baptized on my 15th birthday. I can honestly say I went through a phase in my young adult life when I could’ve answered no to that question. In hindsight, I can look at some of the things I’ve endured and passed through, and say it was nothing but the blood that got me through it. At the same time, when I was going through it, I just felt lost and alone. I knew that I had a purpose, and the things that I was doing weren’t “me”, which is why I felt a deep emptiness inside. I felt like I was destined for greatness, or was called to do something special, so I grew more and more frustrated with my ignorance. Jesus pressed on my heart until I buckled and surrendered, and it’s been uphill from there. Now, I cannot function without acknowledging and fellowshipping with Jesus daily. Our bond grows stronger each passing day, because I’m open to receive the wisdom He’s been trying to give me all along. The biggest lesson learned (and I’m still learning) is one of patience.
Jesus never prayed that we be perfect, but He prayed that we know the Love of God. His hopes was that the Holy Trinity—God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit—would fulfill us, and we’ll be able to live that abundant life that He promised. Now that’s the life! Being filled with the Spirit, while trusting and relying on Jesus Christ to see us through. When we understand that we are not of this world, and fame, fortune, and prestige don’t equal success in the eyes of the Lord, we’ll be able to truly enjoy the fruits of Jesus’ labor. When we stop putting the world’s limitations or expectations on ourselves, and start living the way Jesus showed us how to live, growth, joy, and peace will follow.
Jesus said: “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6) If we know that God is the Creator of the Heavens and Earth, the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, and Jesus is the only way to Him, what would be the next step? You are called from darkness and into light, and if you feel that calling on your life, or you feel that there has to be something more, other than the life you’ve been living, then take a few moments to take the God Quiz. I can personally testify that without Jesus in your life, there’s always going to be something missing. However, with Him you’ll always be fulfilled, because His love, grace, and mercy will get you where you need to be. My favorite verses today are: Christ ... loved the church, and gave himself for it; that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word. (Ephesians 5:25-26)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455547&dtype=Scripture
http://www.intouch.org/broadcast/today-on-radio
http://www.intouch.org/magazine/daily-devotional
I love you!
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