I'm sorry! I couldn't resist baiting you with the word "election." Given all the havoc of the recent presidential election in the US, I gain great comfort from 2 Peter 1-11 when he speaks of the benefits we have as God's elect.
1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:
11 For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
No matter which side of the aisle you fall on politically, I think we could all agree that there is way too much fear driving and controlling many in our country today, including Christians! Whether you believe in predestination or not, to know that you are saved and secure in God is a safe haven for our souls amidst all the unrest in our country and in the world. The malady of humanity, sin, is alive and well and is the one thing that connects us all to one another.
As Christians, we have the assurance of knowing that our debt has been paid in full. Therefore, fear should have no place in our hearts. In New Testament times, if you went bankrupt, you were required to list your debts and who you were indebted to on an animal skin. It was then nailed to a post in public view for all to see. It was a humiliating experience. Not only did you suffer the ramifications of being broke, everyone knew it and knew all the details of it as well.
Occasionally, a benefactor would come along and take down the animal skin, fold it twice so that the debt information was hidden inside and would write his name on the outside of the skin and nail it back up. Then he would pay off the debt and allow the indebted person to go free.
This is what Jesus did for us! He took the debt that we owe as a sinful human being. We are lost in sin and carrying a death sentence without a way to pay it's penalty. Our sins are not nailed to a post in our town squares but they are written in a book that will be opened on judgement day and read in the presence of Almighty God. It is then payment will be required. But there is no amount of reasoning, good deeds, or good intentions that will cover what we owe. There is only one thing that God will accept as payment for our sin, faith in the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
Christ folded up our animal skin when He stretched Himself on Calvary's cross. He put His name on it and gave his own perfect life as payment. Upon us receiving, by faith, what He did for us, we were made the "elect" of God and sealed with the Holy Spirit who marks us for blessing, both now and for all eternity. There is no longer any debt attached to us. It has been paid in full!
There was nothing we could do to repay what we owed. The cost was too high. Only God Himself could possibly release us from our debt to sin. Because He loved us, He took it upon Himself to redeem us and declare us debt free, forever removing our sins.
He not only died for us, but He lives for us as well. He didn't stay in the grave and because He rose from the dead, we know that we will live again. Until that day, He is "ever interceding to the Father" on our behalf. He is aware, He cares and He is there in the midst of every trial and tribulation, every blessing, every prayer. You are not alone. You are the elect of God, without term limits, and this election transcends anything that we might walk through on this earth. Take heart, be brave, and press on, Christians! We have already won though the one who died for us and there is nothing on earth that can take it away from us!
1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:
11 For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
No matter which side of the aisle you fall on politically, I think we could all agree that there is way too much fear driving and controlling many in our country today, including Christians! Whether you believe in predestination or not, to know that you are saved and secure in God is a safe haven for our souls amidst all the unrest in our country and in the world. The malady of humanity, sin, is alive and well and is the one thing that connects us all to one another.
As Christians, we have the assurance of knowing that our debt has been paid in full. Therefore, fear should have no place in our hearts. In New Testament times, if you went bankrupt, you were required to list your debts and who you were indebted to on an animal skin. It was then nailed to a post in public view for all to see. It was a humiliating experience. Not only did you suffer the ramifications of being broke, everyone knew it and knew all the details of it as well.
Occasionally, a benefactor would come along and take down the animal skin, fold it twice so that the debt information was hidden inside and would write his name on the outside of the skin and nail it back up. Then he would pay off the debt and allow the indebted person to go free.
This is what Jesus did for us! He took the debt that we owe as a sinful human being. We are lost in sin and carrying a death sentence without a way to pay it's penalty. Our sins are not nailed to a post in our town squares but they are written in a book that will be opened on judgement day and read in the presence of Almighty God. It is then payment will be required. But there is no amount of reasoning, good deeds, or good intentions that will cover what we owe. There is only one thing that God will accept as payment for our sin, faith in the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
Christ folded up our animal skin when He stretched Himself on Calvary's cross. He put His name on it and gave his own perfect life as payment. Upon us receiving, by faith, what He did for us, we were made the "elect" of God and sealed with the Holy Spirit who marks us for blessing, both now and for all eternity. There is no longer any debt attached to us. It has been paid in full!
There was nothing we could do to repay what we owed. The cost was too high. Only God Himself could possibly release us from our debt to sin. Because He loved us, He took it upon Himself to redeem us and declare us debt free, forever removing our sins.
He not only died for us, but He lives for us as well. He didn't stay in the grave and because He rose from the dead, we know that we will live again. Until that day, He is "ever interceding to the Father" on our behalf. He is aware, He cares and He is there in the midst of every trial and tribulation, every blessing, every prayer. You are not alone. You are the elect of God, without term limits, and this election transcends anything that we might walk through on this earth. Take heart, be brave, and press on, Christians! We have already won though the one who died for us and there is nothing on earth that can take it away from us!
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