PERSONALLY PRIVILEGED
1 Peter
1:20-21
He [Jesus] was chosen before the creation of the world, but
was revealed in these last times for your sake. Through him you believe in God,
who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are
in God.
When sin made an ugly mess of God's perfect world, it did not
take Him by surprise. The Divine rescue for humanity, through the sacrifice of
Jesus Christ, was not an afterthought; it was all in the original plan (Titus
1:2). Even before the world was created
in all its beauty, God knew that the first man and woman would spoil
everything. But even before anything went wrong, God had planned for Jesus to
be the way for everything to be made new again (Revelation 21:5). His death was
not an accident, but an appointment which had been made ages before (Galatians
4:4-5).
The revelation of God’s plan was prophesied but not
understood (Isaiah 53:1) until God showed Jesus to the world (Luke 2:30). His death, resurrection and ascension of
Jesus were a confusing sequence of events to the authorities (1 Corinthians 2:8),
but God’s provision for us. As well as being for God's glory, He intended us to
benefit personally. Without His intervention, and His revelation of His actions
in the gospel, we would still be lost - far away from God and unable to have
any relationship with Him. If Christ had not come to us, we could not trust God
for anything: our lives would have remained without meaning or hope for this
life and the eternity to come (Ephesians 2:12).
Peter makes the redemption story very personal to his
readers, and us: it was ‘for your sake... so that your hope and faith are in God’. Although many people claim to believe in God
(the demons also believe in His power, and they tremble in fear – James 2:19),
there is no personal relationship with God except through Jesus (John 14:6) (1
Timothy 2:5). It is one thing to believe
in God’s existence, another thing to have the confidence to come close to Him
through the blood of Christ (Hebrews 10:22) and call Him Father (Romans
8:15). The revelation of Jesus ‘for your
sake’ came through the authority of Jesus (Acts 1:8) and the inspiration of the
Holy Spirit to the Apostles (Galatians 4:6) (Ephesians 3:2-5) . The purpose is that you might believe in God
as Father and become His child (John 1:12) trusting Him for this life and
eternity.
So, if you have trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ, please
don't accept the lie that God does not know or care about you. Do not live
today as if heaven has forgotten you and hell is about to swallow you up - that
is cruelly untrue. As you go to work today, doing your business and attending
to family at home, remember that Jesus Christ came to earth for you. Be
thankful that He suffered because He loved you and wanted you to become a part
of Father God's family. And don't forget
Romans 8:32 which says, "He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up
for us all - how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all
things?" The love of God is
overwhelmingly generous to those who know and trust Him personally.
Dear Lord God. Thank You for the revelation of your salvation
plan in the gospel. Please forgive my slowness to be grateful for all that You
have done for me personally. How easily I forget Your love and the willing
sacrifice of Jesus, which was planned even before You made the world. Help me
to trust Your Word to me today, so that I may grow in confidence of Your love
towards me. And help me to believe that You will personally provide for all my
needs, and help me to live as a citizen of heaven. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
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