Ephesians 6:24
Christianity is at its core being in love with Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Most Wonderful, Most Intelligent, Most Loving, Most Giving, Most Patient, Most Caring, Most Right Person alive today! There is no one like Him anywhere on earth. There is no one like Him in the universe. He is greater and better than any other being. And do you know what the best part is? He loves you and me. He does! He has done more for us than anyone in our lives. No one else is God. No one else knew us and chose us for eternal joy from before our birth. No one else left their throne of glory and became a servant to meet our personal and eternal needs. No one else took our beatings. No one else took our mocking. No one else took our stripes. No one else took our pain. No one else took our sin upon themselves. No one else died for our sins even though they had no sin. No one else rose from the dead to give us victory over sin. No one else lives in us. No one else prepared a perfect life for us in a land of unbelieveable beauty and peace. No one but Jesus. He loves us. That's why we love Him.
When I hear the phrase "in love with," I think of a man or woman's deep love for each other. I am deeply "in love" with my wife. That expresses my personal feelings for the woman of my dreams. That's how a husband and wife should feel for each other. It should be deep, abiding, continual, joyful, hopeful, exciting and invigorating. That's how Jesus loves us!
Ephesians 5:25-33
We're all familiar with this famous passage of Scripture. We understand it from the aspect of how a husband should be like Christ in his love for the Church, His Body. There's another side to this: the reaction of a wife to her loving husband and the Church for her loving Lord.
The wife of a loving husband feels secure. Her husband's undying love gives her the confidence to love him deeply and without reservation or fear. She is truly "in love" with her man. It is the same with Christ and members of His Body. He loves us with an undying love. We are secure, safe, at peace in the relationship. We are "free" to, as Paul writes, "...love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love." We have no fear in Christ's love. He has proven Himself to love us with a perfect love. There is no flaw in His love for us. He is "in love" with us, therefore, we can be "in love" with Him.
God chose to use the marriage relationship as an example of the Perfect Love Christ has for us. I think it's fair for us to think of it in the same way. We can enjoy the same excitement and anticipation with Christ that a wife has in relating to the love of a perfect husband. We are "in love" with each other.
What does that mean? We can share anything with each other. We can enjoy every moment with each other. We are in Christ and Christ is in us. We go everywhere together. We love the same things. We laugh and rejoice in the same things. We feel deeply about the things that are important to each other. We want to be a part of everything each does. We can say anything to each other. We can be truthful with each other. We can get excited about the things that excite the other. We think alike. We believe alike. We grow closer through the years. Life becomes better as we get older. It's a true "marriage made in heaven!"
Every Christian is "in love" with Christ. However, strife, problems, troubles and a lack of communication and understanding can clog up the relationship; much like what happens to many marriages. The beautiful thing is that it doesn't have to stay that way. If you read this and say to yourself, "I don't feel like I'm 'in love' with Jesus," you can make a change. Remember that Jesus is always "in love" with you. You can turn to Him right now and tell Him the way you've been feeling. Tell Him you want to get back to that fresh feeling of "being in love" with Him. He'll help you find your way back. If you feel that way about your marriage, by the way, do the same thing. Talk to your husband or wife. Find a way back to the freshness of "new love." The joy that awaits you is phenomenal! It's worth everything to have it.
Colossians 1:13-14
Christians are a rescued people. Our very lives were in eternal danger and God rescued us. Rescued from what?
First, we need a clear picture of what it means to be in the dominion of darkness. "Dominion" is exousias . It means "power over someone." A person in a "dominion" has no personal liberty. They have no power of their own. They are slaves of another. The other in this case is "darkness." The Greek word is skotous . It carries the idea of one being in spiritual darkness: a place of ignorance, error, misery and damnation.
Paul explained our life before we were rescued in this way:
Ephesians 2:1-3
Every person who is born into life is already dead. They are dead in their transgressions and sins. They follow the ways and wishes of this world and of the ruler of darkness, Satan, every day of their lives. Babies grow up gratifying the cravings of their sinful nature; following its desires and thoughts. They spend their lives being objects of God's wrath. They can wiggle and squirm and think they're doing good, but the fact is they remain dead in their sins.
This is a very sad picture. It's a picture of how the majority of people on earth live every day of their lives. The other people, a minority, are rescued from that miserable existence. People are on one side or the other. Either they are in darkness or they were once in darkness and now live in the light.
Ephesians 5:8
We have God to thank for all this. He is the One who rescued us from the "dominion;" the "authority" and "power" of darkness.
Ephesians 2:4-9
Several things come to mind.
You and I are fortunate people. God rescued us. The word is errusato . It means to be saved from disaster and be preserved and protected. It means to be freed from bondage. It means to be given the opportunity to live a new life in a better way. It also means we understand the terror of the dominion of Satan's darkness and appreciate the beauty of God's Grace. It means we want to help others be rescued from Satan's dominion of darkness.
Galatians 1:4-5
Colossians 1:13-14
God the Father loves God the Son. That's a fact. But have you ever thought about what benefit we receive from that love?
Think for a moment about what life was like before God created the heavens and the earth, before He created the heavenly host. There was God: God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit and nothing else. God was Eternal. He was Perfect. He was Holy. He was Love. He was Good. He was Kind. Each Member of the God-Head was Loving, Good and Kind towards the Others. Every need was met. They lived in a perfect environment.
So why did God create a universe that would cause Him pain and the loss of His Son to save the lives of created beings? God knew what would happen when He created angels, especially Lucifer. God knew what would happen when He created Adam and Eve. God's always known that His Son, Jesus, would die on a cross and shed His blood for the sins of the world. So, why did He do it?
God Loves. He Loves Perfectly. Our kind of love might have caused us NOT to create anything had we known ahead of time what would have happened. God's Love is better than our love. His Ways are higher than our ways. His Understanding is greater than our understanding.
I believe the reason God created was out of Love for His Son. The prophets wrote of God's Love for His Son.
Isaiah 42:1
God demonstrated His Love for His Son while Jesus ministered on earth.
Matthew 3:17
Matthew 17:5
Jesus spoke often about the Loving relationship He had with His Father.
John 5:20
John 15:9-10
Probably the most poignant and insightful comment about God's Love for His Son comes from Christ's prayer to His Father the night the Roman soldiers arrested Him. Jesus spent His last moments of freedom praying for His disciples.
John 17:22-26
This prayer is so stunning in its depth and distance it causes me to pause before going on. The Love the Father and Son have for each other is beyond any demonstration of Love the world has ever known! Jesus was so proud of His Father's Goodness and Kindness that He wanted others to see it. God had given His Son a Glory which caused the Son to desire to create beings that could enjoy that Glory. Jesus wanted a Oneness with created beings like the Oneness He had with His Father.
God's Love for His Son extends to what His Son Loves. Jesus Loves us! He is "in" us and we are "in" Him. Paul tells us in Ephesians 1:4 that God chose us before the creation of the world. In verse 5, Paul writes that God selected us ahead of time to adopt us as His own children out of His Love. God desired to demonstrate His Love and Grace to created beings. Rather than create beings that had no independent thoughts or desires, God created angels and human beings who could think for themselves, make independent decisions and choose their own way in life. He did that out of His Love and Kindness for His Son.
Ephesians 2:6-7
God has shown His Great Love and Kindness to us through His Son Christ Jesus. He has seated us with Christ in the heavenly realms. He did this "in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace." Someone has said that Christians are "trophies" of God's Grace. We stand out in all of time and the universe as expressions of God's Love and Kindness. Notice the language here: "the incomparable riches of his grace." There is no comparison to God's Grace. It is rich, rich, rich! No billionaire has ever experienced the riches embodied in God's Grace. We are recipients of those riches. We are the wealthiest people alive! We have an eternal existence far beyond anyone's wildest imagination. And why? Because God the Father Loved God the Son.
Christ is "in" you and you are "in" Christ. God loves the Son Who is in you. Christ in you loves His Father. We participate in all that Wonderful Love of God. Meditate on this today. Let the Love of God warm your heart and mind. Let the Love of God soothe your pain. Keep an eternal eye out today. Don't let the little things get you down. Remember the Big Things. Remember God's Love in you and for you.
Colossians 1:13-14
Grace is all about forgiveness. It is what sets Christianity apart from religion. We do not have to personally atone for our sins. We do not have to work for some god's approval. We have "redemption" in Christ. That redemption is "the forgiveness of sins."
Paul said the same thing in a slightly different way in Ephesians.
Ephesians 1:7-8
God's Grace dictates forgiveness because of Christ's sacrifice. Jesus lived the perfect Life. He died for our sins. He shed His Blood on the Cross. That shed blood is our redemption, our salvation. Christ, the Eternal Savior, lives "in" us.
"Redemption" is apolutrosin . It comes from the words apo , which means "from", and lutroo , which means "to redeem." Together, the words mean "to let go free for a ransom."
Every human being born since the beginning is born with a sin nature. (Remember that Adam and Eve were not born. God created them to be without sin. However, they chose to sin. Their children were born into sin.) The Apostle Paul wrote:
Romans 3:24
People are slaves to the sin that fills their bodies and minds. Paul shows us the impact of that slavery in Ephesians.
Ephesians 2:1-3
We belonged to another. We were Satan's slaves. He owned us. We could not free ourselves by our own power and designs. We were doomed and didn't even know it. But God had a plan. That plan included the payment of a high price for our freedom.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
The price was the shed blood of God's Perfect Son, Jesus Christ.
Acts 20:28
Christ paid the price for our ransom.
1 Timothy 2:5-6
We are free in Christ! We are no longer slaves. We are free people. All that Christ has done has been for you and me to experience freedom.
Galatians 5:1
Galatians 5:13
Christ teaches us that as free people, we are no longer under the power and authority of sin. We don't have to give in to sin's temptations. In fact, we shouldn't give in to sin's temptations. We have something much higher and better to experience: righteousness!
Romans 6:14-23
What happened to our sins the moment we received Christ as our Lord and Savior? What happens to the sin we commit each day? Where does it go? Does it add up against us on some account sheet? Will we have to face God and answer for every sin we've committed? No! We are forgiven.
Colossians 1:13-14
You and I have redemption every day of our lives. We are redeemed! It's not something we had once and then lost. It's not something we get at the beginning of our salvation, lose and then have to get from God over and over again. We are redeemed! Bought! Saved! Forgiven!
"Forgiveness" is aphesin . It comes from the word aphiemi , which means "to send away, to dismiss." "Forgiveness" is the releasing of sins from the sinner. Dr. Spiros Zodhiates explained it this way.
"The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament," World Bible Publishers, 1992, pp.296-297
God has given us a wonderful gift: forgiveness. What do we do with it? Enjoy it! But don't take advantage of it. Don't sin more because we have forgiveness. Sin less because we understand the price Christ paid for it. Sin less because Christ in us shows us the life God wants us to lead. And there's one more thing we should do.
Colossians 3:12-17
If someone has done you harm, remember what Christ did for you. Then, forgive the one who harmed you. Let the peace of Christ rule in your heart. We've been called to peace.
Go to GraceThoughts6 for more GraceThoughts.
"Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © , 1973, 1978, 1984, International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers."
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Last Updated: 12/20/1999 "Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love."
"Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church--for we are members of his body. 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.' This is a profound mystery--but I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband."
"There is a name I love to hear, I love to sing its worth. It sounds like music in my ears, the sweetest name on earth. Oh, how I love Jesus! Oh, how I love Jesus! Oh, how I love Jesus, because He first loved me!"
"For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."
"As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath."
"For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord."
"But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast."
"Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen."
"For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."
"Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight."
"And a voice from heaven said, 'This is my son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.'"
"While he was will speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!'"
"For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does."
"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love."
"I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them."
"And God seated us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus."
"For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."
"In him [Christ] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding."
"...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus."
"As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the
kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.
All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath."
"You are not your own; you were bought at a price."
"Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood."
"For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men..."
"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free."
"You, my brothers, were called to be free."
"For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey--whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness. I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
"For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."
"Aphesis is part of a larger process which does not involve simply the freedom of the sinner, but the change of the sinner from being a slave to sin to becoming a slave of God. With that freedom from sin, he acquires freedom of action because of his changed nature and spirit. He acquires that ability to follow after God instead of fleeing from God, the desire to flee from sin and pursue it. Forgiveness, therefore, must never be understood as the permission for the sinner to continue in his sinful condition ... Forgiveness is not condoning sin but rather doing everything possible to see that the particular sin or sins of the sinner are removed from him by God who is the only One who can deliver and cleanse him. Forgiveness, therefore, is never freedom in sin but freedom from sin by God."
"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God the Father through him."