Good morning Beloved! Happy Saturday! In yesterdays devotional, we explored into the riches of Gods grace. He never intended that any of His children live in spiritual poverty. As we draw closer each day to God, we begin to see just how He is working in our lives. How many of us have heard the old phrase, You have not because you ask not? Jesus told us, Seek, and ye shall find. Knock and it shall be opened. Ask and ye shall be given. Our God is so merciful to us, and it is in that mercy that God pours out His riches. The Bible tells us that God will give us the desires of our hearts. And as we continue to grow and mature in our relationship with God, that His mercy, grace and blessings become more recognizable and fill us up abundantly. So, with that in mind, lets all grab our Bibles and kick off the weekend with a word from the Lord. A God of Grace Our text comes from the book of James 1:17-18 The Lords character is often distorted by the world. To unbelieving eyes, God can seem like a harsh ruler who is quick to condemn any disobedience. Somehow that false view has infected our churches as well. There are believers who approach the Lord as if He were a stingy old man doling out shreds of love, grace, and forgiveness. But spiritual poverty is not the Fathers plan for His children. At salvation, we received every good gift that God intends to give us: forgiveness, redemption, righteousness, a place in His family, and much more. There is a misguided notion among some believers that the Lords grace to us increases as our faith matures. If that were accurate, we would be earning His blessing through works. The truth is that spiritual growth broadens our capacity to recognize and enjoy His grace in our lives. It is sad that so many people feel unworthy to enjoy the Lords blessings. Thankfully, we do not have to merit His goodness, because none of us would be able to measure up. In fact, Scripture underscores that fact that God operates on the basis of His grace rather than our works (Eph. 2:8-9). Think of how big, wide, and deep His love is. He cares for us and showers us with grace because He wants to and not because we earn it. Our heavenly Father is not stingy. He lavishly pours out grace upon us. Instead of sampling meager bits of His Word and His presence on Sunday, we ought to devour whole meals every day. Follow the advice from the Psalms: Oh taste and see that the Lord is good (Ps. 81:10; 34:8).
Posted on: Sat, 15 Mar 2014 08:58:27 +0000