Christ Did It All!

Friday, July 8th, 2011

Today's Passage: Romans chapter 5
Memory Verse: Rom. 5: 6 & 8

The closest comparison I can make to what Christ did for us would have to be what a parent of a wayward child does. After raising and taking care of that child all his or her young life, it's heartbreaking when he or she throws away life for addiction. We see it often on episodes of "Intervention". Family and friends become terribly upset that the parents still accept that individual after everything he or she does to push them away. Taking money from them, cursing them out when he or she doesn't get his/her way, and then blaming them for the misfortunes of his or her life seem only to push the parents to be more compassionate towards that wayward child.

But when I look at my own life, I really get a picture of how much Christ loves us. When I think of the many years I spat in God's face, my heart breaks. I loved singing from the age of four, and went to church every week, singing what I thought was praises unto a God that I obviously didn't know anything about. Yet He saw what His Father intended me to produce when He created me. That alone gave Him the faith to get on that cross and stay there. So, while I was in my heart-hardened state of sin, with no intention of giving my life to the Lord, He sacrificed it all for me and would've done it even if it were just for me.

Now, multiply that by every rebellious soul that ever lived. Can you imagine the heartache experienced by our God? To be rejected millions of times over, by Your OWN creation? No wonder God had to be reminded that He promised never to wipe us all out ever again! But that's where this thing called faith working through love comes into play. He walked by faith to believe we would accept His Father's grace before we ever conceived of the idea. So all WE had to do was accept the fact that we were accepted long before we were even born.

I love this awesome example of the faith we'll need to walk in when we're praying for loved ones and even strangers who have yet to accept Christ into their hearts. All we need to really remember is that we were once in the same place... But for the grace of God. If I know anything about our Savior, He didn't model anything for us He didn't think we could do. Even when going through tribulations, He would not have us ignorant of the fact that we've got our faith to stand on while we are processed through that season. Saints, there are no excuses for us. Christ did it all. He literally set the example for every possible scenario we could imagine. All we have to do is walk it out.

Prayer: Father, as long as I live I'll never be able to comprehend the height and breadth and depth of Your great love for me. But by Your grace, I accept it and believe Jesus' blood makes me worth the sacrifice You both paid. I extend my faith now to receive the grace needed to see loved ones and even my city surrender to Your lordship. In Jesus' Name, I declare that their hearts are opening to receive what You so freely gave. Amen.