May 30 ~ Romans 11:1-5
I ask then: Did God reject his people?
By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the
tribe of Benjamin. God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew.
Don’t you know what Scripture says in the passage about Elijah—how he
appealed to God against Israel: “Lord, they have killed your prophets
and torn down your altars; I am the only one left, and they are trying
to kill me"? And what was God’s answer to him? “I have reserved for
myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” So too, at
the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace. And if by grace,
then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be
grace.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
As
Nathan approaches his fourth birthday, he has taken up the rally cry of
“You don’t love me anymore!” when he is reprimanded. We assure him
that we do, and he often follows with, “Well, then I don’t love YOU
anymore!”…or the “knife-to-the-heart” response – “I am not your bestest
friend any MORE!” We smile and say, “Okay”…and he has to do his “time
out” or whatever anyway!
Timothy, our resident worry-wart, will
often spontaneously ask, “Are you mad at me?” …as if he has done
something that upset us – or that he knows he should not do. Of course,
we assure him that we are NOT mad at him. And Zola just goes with the
flow! The three children are in many ways a microscopic model of the
world at large and how we operate and react in regard to others –
particularly authority figures and leaders.
I have long heard it
said (and more frequently in recent months)…that by all rights, God
should wipe us all out and either start over or give up completely.
We’ve all said and done things that must make God crazy in any given
moment. The quote for this date on my daily calendar says, “Only some
of us can learn by other people’s mistakes. The rest of us have to be
the other people.” And this is where God’s grace comes into play.
Without
God’s grace, we surely would be totally banished from the face of the
earth. He could not put up with us otherwise! Because of God’s grace,
we are given second chances – often, lots of them! God honors His
promise to redeem us through the blood of Jesus. So those of us who
have surrendered our hearts to Jesus Christ and admitted our sins and
shortcomings are covered by God’s grace and mercy. This is not a
license to live as we please…but it IS a reminder that our “good works”
will not get us into God’s “good graces.”
The message for today
is that God is occasionally mad at us - or disappointed. He may not
feel like being our “bestest friend” in the moment. But because of the
blood of Jesus…and God’s amazing grace…we are part of the “remnant” who
are protected and given more chances than we deserve to turn things
around. Let’s show God just how grateful we are and make the most of
them, shall we?
©2016 Debbie Robus
Showing posts with label continuing the works of Jesus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label continuing the works of Jesus. Show all posts
Daily Devotional for April 15, 2015
John 14:11-14
“Believe me: I am in my Father and my Father is in me. If you can’t believe that, believe what you see — these works. The person who trusts me will not only do what I’m doing but even greater things, because I, on my way to the Father, am giving you the same work to do that I’ve been doing. You can count on it. From now on, whatever you request along the lines of who I am and what I am doing, I’ll do it. That’s how the Father will be seen for who he is in the Son. I mean it. Whatever you request in this way, I’ll do.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
Arkansas Razorbacks basketball forward Bobby Portis announced that he will not return to college for his junior year. Instead, he has declared himself eligible for the NBA draft this summer. Portis weighed the pros and cons of this decision, and in the end, the need to provide for his family probably proved to be the tipping point. Portis has already done wonderful things in his college career. He set school records as a Razorback…received national accolades…and won the hearts of Arkansans in particular – and Razorbacks fans in general. I am sure that his mother would tell you that his accomplishments far exceed her own – or anyone else’s in the Portis family.
Parents will often say, “I want better for my own kids than I had.” I don’t think too many parents would say, “I want my children to be mediocre,” or even, “If they do half as well as I have done, I’ll be happy!” So when we read this scripture and think about what Jesus is saying, it seems to me that He isn’t expecting us to literally turn water into wine or cast out demons. He most certainly does not expect us to be nailed to a cross for the sins of man, because HE has already covered that detail! I believe that Jesus wants us to “take a page from His book”, so to speak…and do all that we can to continue His work.
What are the works of Jesus? I made a mental list of some of them…and I am sure I have missed many. But in part, Jesus: demonstrated honor and glory to God, humility, kindness, mercy and compassion, respect for others, tolerance and forgiveness…fed the hungry…healed the sick and the injured…ministered to the poor…consoled the grieving and “poor in spirit”…and taught us how to pray – and to love one another.
Clearly, we cannot literally heal the sick and injured (unless we are physicians and nurses)…but we can do our best to minister to those who are experiencing these conditions. We can meet their needs to the best of our ability – and with the strength and power of God Almighty. We can feed the hungry – both literally and figuratively…we can show respect, tolerance, forgiveness, humility, kindness, mercy, and compassion. We can minister to the poor…we can console and encourage those who are grieving and hurting. We can pray…and love one another as God loved us. And in all of these things, we can give glory and honor to God!
At the end of the day, we will be doing what is best for our “family” – the body that we are a part of as believers in Jesus Christ and children of the Most High God. If we humbly do the works of Jesus according to God’s guidance and wisdom…and we call on Him to equip us… we will “do greater things” – not because WE are so wonderful, but because God is empowering our efforts.
We cannot all be NBA players and support our families in this manner. But we can serve on “Team Jesus” and do great things for the family of God. This should be our daily goal…to trust God to equip us to do whatever He ordains. We should confidently ask Him to give us these abilities, knowing that whatever we ask for that He has sanctioned will be accomplished.
There is no doubt that Bobby Portis would have garnered many more accolades in the next two years as an Arkansas Razorbacks basketball star. And I am sure he will receive a lot of recognition in the NBA. But at the end of the day, Bobby had to decide whether to make a difference and provide for his family now…or to stick around and make more of a name for himself in his home state. We have to decide the same thing – in a different way. Will we focus on what feels good to us…what promotes OUR agenda…or will we do the work of Jesus, and give God the glory? Will we make a point…or will we make a difference?
©2015 Debbie Robus
“Believe me: I am in my Father and my Father is in me. If you can’t believe that, believe what you see — these works. The person who trusts me will not only do what I’m doing but even greater things, because I, on my way to the Father, am giving you the same work to do that I’ve been doing. You can count on it. From now on, whatever you request along the lines of who I am and what I am doing, I’ll do it. That’s how the Father will be seen for who he is in the Son. I mean it. Whatever you request in this way, I’ll do.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
Arkansas Razorbacks basketball forward Bobby Portis announced that he will not return to college for his junior year. Instead, he has declared himself eligible for the NBA draft this summer. Portis weighed the pros and cons of this decision, and in the end, the need to provide for his family probably proved to be the tipping point. Portis has already done wonderful things in his college career. He set school records as a Razorback…received national accolades…and won the hearts of Arkansans in particular – and Razorbacks fans in general. I am sure that his mother would tell you that his accomplishments far exceed her own – or anyone else’s in the Portis family.
Parents will often say, “I want better for my own kids than I had.” I don’t think too many parents would say, “I want my children to be mediocre,” or even, “If they do half as well as I have done, I’ll be happy!” So when we read this scripture and think about what Jesus is saying, it seems to me that He isn’t expecting us to literally turn water into wine or cast out demons. He most certainly does not expect us to be nailed to a cross for the sins of man, because HE has already covered that detail! I believe that Jesus wants us to “take a page from His book”, so to speak…and do all that we can to continue His work.
What are the works of Jesus? I made a mental list of some of them…and I am sure I have missed many. But in part, Jesus: demonstrated honor and glory to God, humility, kindness, mercy and compassion, respect for others, tolerance and forgiveness…fed the hungry…healed the sick and the injured…ministered to the poor…consoled the grieving and “poor in spirit”…and taught us how to pray – and to love one another.
Clearly, we cannot literally heal the sick and injured (unless we are physicians and nurses)…but we can do our best to minister to those who are experiencing these conditions. We can meet their needs to the best of our ability – and with the strength and power of God Almighty. We can feed the hungry – both literally and figuratively…we can show respect, tolerance, forgiveness, humility, kindness, mercy, and compassion. We can minister to the poor…we can console and encourage those who are grieving and hurting. We can pray…and love one another as God loved us. And in all of these things, we can give glory and honor to God!
At the end of the day, we will be doing what is best for our “family” – the body that we are a part of as believers in Jesus Christ and children of the Most High God. If we humbly do the works of Jesus according to God’s guidance and wisdom…and we call on Him to equip us… we will “do greater things” – not because WE are so wonderful, but because God is empowering our efforts.
We cannot all be NBA players and support our families in this manner. But we can serve on “Team Jesus” and do great things for the family of God. This should be our daily goal…to trust God to equip us to do whatever He ordains. We should confidently ask Him to give us these abilities, knowing that whatever we ask for that He has sanctioned will be accomplished.
There is no doubt that Bobby Portis would have garnered many more accolades in the next two years as an Arkansas Razorbacks basketball star. And I am sure he will receive a lot of recognition in the NBA. But at the end of the day, Bobby had to decide whether to make a difference and provide for his family now…or to stick around and make more of a name for himself in his home state. We have to decide the same thing – in a different way. Will we focus on what feels good to us…what promotes OUR agenda…or will we do the work of Jesus, and give God the glory? Will we make a point…or will we make a difference?
©2015 Debbie Robus
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