If you will be in Perth on the 4th December put this in your diary—it's the book launch for Thirsty Deer: A guide for teen girls on how to love God with all your body, soul, strength and mind. The title says it all. I've been working on this project for nearly two years—almost done! Watch this space for more info. #thirstydeerthebook #thirstydeer #faith #teens #teenagers #girls #christianbooks
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Ephesians 1:7b
We have forgiveness of sins because of God's rich grace. Colossians 1:13-14 God has rescued us from the power of darkness and has brought us into the kingdom of his Son, whom he loves. His Son paid the price to free us, which means that our sins are forgiven. Even though humankind has been rebellious and sinful since creation, God loves us so much that he has forgiven us. It cost him dearly though—his son, Jesus, died in our place so that we could be forgiven. It's like when your dog escapes and is caught by the ranger who takes it to the pound. You have to pay a fee to have him released. Spiritually we were stuck in the pound, but God came and paid the fee so that we could be released. Matthew 28:19 is known as the Great Commission. Jesus told his disciples, 'Go and make followers of all people in the world. Baptize them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit'. The NIV says, go and make disciples of all nations. A disciple is a student or a learner. Jesus was commanding his disciples to tell people about him so that they would follow him too. This instruction wasn't just for the disciples but for all Christians.
God calls some people to other countries to share the good news—we refer to them as missionaries. However, you don't have to go to the other side of the world to make disciples, you can start right where you are. You can share the good news about what Jesus did with your friends and family. In John 13:34-35 Jesus said, 'I give you a new command: Love each other. You must love each other just as I loved you. All people will know that you are my followers if you love each other.' Sometimes the best way that we can make disciples is to love people. I learned a lot about the Psalms from this video. In Ephesians 1:7 Paul said, In Christ, we are made free by his blood sacrifice. He is referring to the fact that we are free from the consequence of sin, which is death. Instead we are free to spend eternity with God, because Jesus paid the price for us. Galatians 5:13-14 says, You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbour as yourself." This freedom is not so that we can do anything we like, because we know God will forgive us.
Many people view Christianity as legalistic and full of rules and commandments to obey. Paul is saying there is only one rule, and that is to love others. We are free from the Old Testament rules and regulations. If you want an insight into these, take a look at the book of Leviticus in the Old Testament. We are free from the punishment we deserved—separation from God. We are free from pleasing others because we only need to please God. We are free from trying to live by the world's standards—we are simply called to love God and love others. We are free from the fear of an uncertain future because we know that we will spend eternity with God. We are free from guilt and shame, because the blood of Jesus covers all our sin. So, be free. Matthew 26:36-39 says, Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee. Grief and anguish came over him, and he said to them, “The sorrow in my heart is so great that it almost crushes me. Stay here and keep watch with me.” He went a little farther on, threw himself face downward on the ground, and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, take this cup of suffering from me! Yet not what I want, but what you want.”
Jesus had just shared the passover supper with his disciples and gone to Gesthemane to pray. He knew that he was going to be crucified shortly and he was overcome with grief. You know that kind of anxiety where your guts turn to liquid? It was like that but worse, because he wasn't about to speak in front of the whole school or sit an exam—he was about to take the sin of the whole world! He didn't want to suffer but he prayed that God's will would be done, not his. This is a principle we can apply to our prayer. We can ask God for what we want, but we should pray that God's will would be done. In the Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6:10 Jesus said we should pray, Let your will be done on earth as it is done in heaven. Try it this week. |
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