Tuesday, February 19, 2019
As surely as God is faithful, our word to you does not waver between “Yes” and “No.” For Jesus Christ, the Son of God, does not waver between “Yes” and “No.” He is the one whom Silas, Timothy, and I preached to you, and as God’s ultimate “Yes,” he always does what he says. For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory. 2 Corinthians 1:18-20(NLT)
The passion grows near. Each time in the annual cycle, as we approach
the Passion
of Christ, his triumphal entry, with palm branches, Last Supper,
arrest, beatings, condemnation, carrying the cross, the nails, suffering,
rejection, death, burial, and the miracle of an empty tomb, I have this anticipation
happening within; it is an eagerness to see the story in its’ best light. I do not want to see the pain of Jesus
glossed-over, nor the meaning of the resurrection, a very dead man who is alive
again! This is our exquisite reminder of
God’s best “YES” – the ultimate gift of life.
In writing to his fellow believers
at Corinth Paul makes clear a point in which I’ve failed to connect the dots
for a long time:
All
of God’s best “YES” is mine also.
Now, let me quickly point out that
nothing about God’s “yes” originated with or in me; it’s all His, from before
the creation.[ii] But the cross was God’s invitation to
everyone who has ever drawn breath to join Him in the fellowship of His
ultimate “YES”.
We are invited to live in truth,
the truth that God loves us, and on that point He never wavers. To punctuate that invitation is an empty tomb
that is His ultimate evidence of that love.
When we accept His invitation, His “Yes” becomes ours.
Now, to be sure, receiving
unwavering truth, wrapped in the gift of God’s love does not (for me) unwrap
immediately, nor does its full weight and meaning take hold all at once. That would be like understanding the length, depth,
history, and purpose of the universe all at one time. But accepting Christ’s offer of grace to be
forgiven of our sins is the beginning, a primer lesson of what is to come.
In the months and years that
follow the conversion from being lost, one who is alienated from God,
to saved, a friend of God, the truth of God, His love, his
unwavering “YES” is unveiled to our souls gradually as we become closer. As with any friendship, the deepening of the
ties comes with time and experience.
For several years (from mid-teens
to mid-twenties) I was alienated from God, growing more cynical and frustrated
each step of the way. But when I returned
like a Prodigal, I was received like a Prodigal…open arms of the Father[iii].
That was more than 45 years ago. Like the Apostle Paul, I cannot say that I
have arrived…nobody does that short of arriving in Heaven…but I can see the
growth of truth, the “YES” of God in my life.
How does that show up? It’s in a string of answered prayers,
realized blessings, and a heart that wants nothing more than God’s sweet
will. It’s a growing agreement with God’s
ways being the best ways. It’s in having
much more joy seeing the success of my fellow believers than accumulating any
earth-bound achievement for my own conceit. It is looking back and realizing that what I’ve
been “working-at” is what God has been “working-in” me; it’s
Russell agreeing to discard the Russell list of wants and will, and seeing God
fill up the emptied Russell with Christ.
The Apostle Paul put it this way:
For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him. Philippians 3:8-9(NLT)
For You Today
If you’re afraid God will say “NO”
start agreeing with His “YES”.
Go to VIDEO
[ii] See
Revelation 13:8 – Jesus’ sacrifice for us was planned by God before the world
was created.
[iii] Read
Luke 15:11-32
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