Month: June 2019

The Ultimate Gift

~ everydaycrossliving ~ Leave a comment

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast” – Ephesians 2:8-9

977F99EB-EF42-461F-A952-7A4AA90A080E
Have you ever received a perfect gift? A gift, so special, that you were in awe at the gift-giver. Most likely, you wanted to bless the giver in return. As Christians, we have received the ultimate gift. A gift unlike any other!

God intentionally picked and carefully wrapped up saving, amazing grace, for all who will place their faith, in His Son. That is the ultimate gift. It is, even more amazing, that God prepared this gift before we fell in love and surrendered to Him. Romans 5:8 declares, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” While we were sinners, Jesus graciously worked to earn and secure our salvation. Could you imagine doing that for an enemy? That is what God did for us.

Although we are blessed to receive the gift of saving grace, by responding in faith to God’s Son, Jesus Christ. We can never boast about it! We did not earn salvation, it was a free gift of grace – God’s unmerited favor and love bestowed upon us. We cannot boast, because we will never do enough good works to earn it! It is His amazing grace that even enables us to daily bear our cross. The Bible clearly instructs us on this manner.

It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God: our righteousness, holiness, and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.”
1 Corinthians 1:30-31

This is what the LORD says:
“Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom,
nor the strong man in his strength,
nor the wealthy man in his riches.
But let him who boasts boast in this,
that he understands and knows Me,
that I am the LORD,
who exercises loving devotion,
justice and righteousness on the earth—
for I delight in these things,” declares the LORD.
Jeremiah 9:23-24

However, we can boast on the giver. We can boast on our God!

Again, have you ever received a perfect gift; what about the ultimate gift? As Christians we have received the ultimate gift! Shouldn’t we bless the Giver in return? Ensure you spend time everyday blessing the Giver. Praise God for grace and salvation. Bless His name for the undeserved favor He lavishes on you. Worship the one and only Savior, Jesus Christ.

Self-Absorbed in the Storm

~ everydaycrossliving ~ Leave a comment

 

074414E2-8172-49BE-A575-A04B6F2A3053

And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships.
And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.
And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?
And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.
And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?
And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?
Mark 4:36-51

The disciples are on the boat with Jesus, but they still find themselves in a storm. Can you relate? Have you ever been walking with Jesus; doing the right thing; going to church; treating others well; and still find yourself in a storm?

While they were in the midst of this mighty storm with raging waves and fierce winds, they do what most of us would do, they awake Jesus. Jesus calms the storm, but He also admonishes them because of their lack of faith. The storm was so great, that the Bible details their boat becoming full with water due to the waves that beat into the ship. Yet, Jesus rebukes them!

Was Jesus being harsh? Maybe harsh, like a committed coach, pushing his players to their greatest potential. Harsh, as a loving parenting, refusing to allow an “A” student settle for a “B.” Jesus was pushing the disciples into greater faith. He does the same with us. Jesus knows our capabilities and He wants us to reach our full potential in Him! God is pushing us to greater faith, because others are looking to us. We should stand out as a peculiar people (1 Peter 2:9), who have faith in God, even in our biggest storms.

This same story is found in Matthew 8:23-27 and Luke 8:22-25, but it is in Mark’s rendition that mentions, the “other little ships.” When the disciples find themselves in this mighty storm, there were other “little ships” on the sea with them, as well. If their ship was struggling, can you imagine what was happening to the other little ships? The disciples were so self-absorbed in the storm, they gave no thought to the other little ships. When we are self-absorbed in our storm, we forget about others. Others who may be observing how we handle the storm. Others who may also be in a storm.

When we are self-absorbed in the storm, we will find ourselves having a pity party. Full of complaints, crying out, “Lord, why me!” While God could be saying, “O’ Ye of little faith.” We cannot be so self-absorbed in our storm that we forget about the other little ships. The other little ships, in our lives, could be our children, a new convert, or a struggling friend.

5C124ECA-FC63-4508-AEAB-AF2C61B213F1

When Jesus speaks to the wind and waves; the other little ships were blessed as well. Jesus didn’t just stop the storm in the disciples’ boat, He stopped the storm on the entire sea! Stand firm in your faith, so the other little ships around you will be blessed by your faith in Christ!

Some little ship, might be looking to see how you handle your storm. Don’t become self-absorbed in the storm. Instead, even in the storm, bear your cross with faith in God. Allow the one who controls the wind and the waves to keep you, in the storm.