In the beginning "God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them" (Gen. 1:27).
God’s plan for all mankind is to have a relationship with Him. With the fall of man, when Adam and Eve ate the fruit, there was a divide, a chasm if you may, created between man and God because of sin.
This gap had to be bridged by someone, and it could only be bridged by a person who would pay the price for our sin, or the penalty for humanity, someone who was fully man and yet fully God (as God in the flesh, Jesus Christ).
The Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary and impregnated her with God’s perfect, divine seed. Thus, the infinite God became flesh and dwelt among us in the person of Jesus Christ (John 1:14).
So, did you know that Jesus secured our salvation when He offered Himself as a sacrifice for us on the cross at Calvary? The word of God tells us that In fact, "the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness" (Hebrew 9:22).
The blood of Jesus was shed for us as a sacrifice for our sins; this is what gives us access to God. Without Jesus' sacrifice, we would be unable to have a relationship with Him.
Though Romans 6:23 tell us that the wages of sin is death, it also assures us that the gift of God is eternal life. This gift is through Jesus Christ our Lord. Christ purchased it, prepared it, prepares us for it, preserves us to it; he is the All in all in our salvation.
Although believers by nature, are far from God, and children of wrath, even as others, yet it is amazing to think how nigh we are brought to Him again by the blood of Jesus Christ.
Therefore, when Jesus prayed for His disciples He looked up to heaven and said, “I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one; as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.
“I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.
Father, I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am. Then they can see all the glory you gave me because you loved me even before the world began!
So you see Jesus wants us to have peace and experience unity of purpose to lead the world to Him. He wants us to be Holy as He is Holy. He gave himself as a holy sacrifice for us so that we can be made holy by God's truth.
What more could we ask for? He gave His life for us. What will we sacrifice for Him? Jesus said "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me" (Lk. 9:23).
Therefore, if you're going through some difficulty in life, remember that God has you covered; Jesus prayed for you, you will not fail, you will overcome. Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love?
Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?
As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.” No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
Yet, I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow, not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.
No power in the sky above or in the earth below, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
1 John 4:7-12 admonishes us, "Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.
Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us."
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