SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 4/13/2017 10:10 PM
My Worship Time Focus:
PT-2 “The Reason”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Colossians
3:3
Message of the verses: “For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
John MacArthur writes “Not only have believers died to
sin, but also their lives are ‘hidden with Christ in God.’ What does ‘with
Christ in God’ mean?” Now we looked at
the first two things that answer this question that MacArthur purposed in our
last SD, and now we want to look at the third and last answer to that question
which is: “Believers are eternally secure, hidden protectively from all
spiritual foes.” I realize that there
are people who believe that they can lose their salvation, and I suppose that
in my early walk with the Lord I thought that was a possibility, but since have
learned that it is not true. As I look
back at the time when the Lord saved me I know for a fact that I was not at all
looking for anything spiritual, in fact probably the opposite, and yet I know
now from looking back at when I became a believer that it did not matter what I
was looking for in January of 1974 it was what God was going to do in my life
that was the most important, in fact the most important thing that ever
happened to me. In my study of the 17th
chapter of John’s gospel I could see this truth more clearly than ever. In eternity past God the Father would set
aside a love gift for His Son, and then when Jesus came to earth, He had to pay
the price of redemption for this love gift.
He prayed that His hour had come, come to pay the price for His bride;
He also said in His prayer that this love gift had belonged to the Father, but
now He was giving it to the Son. The
apostle Paul was told by God in Acts 18:10 “for I am with you and no man will
attack you in order to harm you, for I have many people in this city.’” That was Paul’s job and every believer’s job
to go out into the world and preach the gospel and those that the Lord has
chosen for His bride will come to know the Lord as their Savior and Lord. The timing for the salvation of these is
different, some are saved more easily than others, but make no mistake all will
be saved, and all will spend eternity with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Ok, it is now time to go back to answering our
question. Now only are we eternally
secure, but we see that we are “hidden protectively from all spiritual foes”
Peter writes of our salvation in 1 Peter 1:4-5 “4 to obtain an inheritance
which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven
for you, 5 who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation
ready to be revealed in the last time.” The writer of the Hebrews writes in 7:25 “Therefore
He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since
He always lives to make intercession for them.” Jesus also tells us in John 10:28 “and I give
eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them
out of My hand.” Next we will quote from
Romans 8:31-39:
“31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? 32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? 33 Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; 34 who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. 35 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 Just as it is written, "FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE BEING PUT TO DEATH ALL DAY LONG; WE WERE CONSIDERED AS SHEEP TO BE SLAUGHTERED." 37 But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
MacArthur concludes “All the riches of the eternal God
are available to those lives are hidden with Him through His Son.”
4/13/2017 10:40 PM
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