28 December 2022
Peter 1:3-7 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
Peter 1:3-7 continued
In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed
Here it is Christmas Eve, and I find myself quietly sitting here by the tree, with our puppies, reflecting back over Bible history, while praising and thanking God for His Living Hope. His living hope that he sent to us over 2000 years ago that was born in a lowly stable. So, you might ask; what has been your conclusion based on these reflections? It is simply this. Our God is a God of love, and everything he has done since before the foundation of the earth, he has done based on that love. When it comes to you and me, the best example of this can be found in John 3:16 which says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever should believe in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” I further have concluded, based on what Jesus said before ascending back up into heaven to sit down at the right hand of God the Father, that God uses people to do his will on earth. For in Matthew 28:18-20 Jesus said, “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Realizing this tonight, I have also been thanking God and praying for those individuals that God has placed in my path over these past many years. I have attempted over the years, but many times I have failed, to use the gifts, talents and abilities God has given me to imitate the example of Jesus when it comes to sharing and caring. Praise the holy name of Jesus!
Sharing And Caring
God gave us the Bible for many reasons,
To reference while on this road we trod.
One of the most important reasons,
Is to learn about the very character of God.
In its pages it expresses so many facts,
That tells us so much about who God is.
When it tells us about his love for the world,
The most violent offender will collapse in tears.
God wants us to apply his word to our lives,
And in so doing imitate him.
To live a life that is holy,
And to say goodbye to sin.
God also wants us to use our gifts,
To reach others without being over bearing.
To demonstrate our love for others,
With a ministry of sharing and caring.
Merry Christmas!
Ethan W. Moses