June 16, 2022 A GIFT FROM THE FATHER
John 17:6-8, 26 “I manifested Thy name to the men who Thou gavest Me out of the world. Thine they were and Thou gavest them to Me, and they have kept Thy word. Now they have come to know that everything Thou hast given Me is from Thee; for the words which Thou gavest Me I have given to them; and they received them, and truly understood that I came forth from Thee, and they believed that Thou didst send Me.” “and I have made Thy name known to them, and will make it known; that the love wherewith Thou didst love Me may be in them, and I in them.”
Hebrews 2:11 “For both He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one Father; for this reason He is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.”
John 17 is referred to as ‘the high priestly prayer’ that Jesus prayed before His crucifixion. (One should read the entire chapter as it reveals much about the heart of the Father and His Son.) If we read this chapter and meditate on what Jesus prayed, it will have a profound effect on how we view ourselves and it reveals the love that God, and Jesus has for us as His sons and daughters. When we think about life, where we came from, and why Jesus came to be crucified, it all starts with the love of God. In God’s love, He created you and I. We know about the fall of man and sin entering the world; because man, including you and I, sinned, we were separated from our Father. The central truth of the gospel is that Jesus came to restore us back to our Father. Yes-Jesus came to rescue, to buy back, to restore and to save His brothers and sisters-the ones that God gave to Him. It was the love that God and His Son has for us that lead to His crucifixion. It is amazing and hard to get our minds around it, but you and I are a gift that God gave to Jesus! Does that not speak volumes about how much Jesus loves us and how much the Father loves us? One may debate predestination and the free will of man, but it is a clear fact that we have been chosen of God and adopted into His family and are considered as brothers and sisters of Jesus. Also note that Jesus is not ashamed to call us brothers and sisters even though we have not always done it right and even though we have sinned against Him; He sees us as redeemed and made right with the Father; Jesus sees beyond the immediate; He understands what His crucifixion accomplished and He sees just how complete our salvation is and He sees the inheritance that is yet to be revealed to His brothers and sisters; He knows where we are headed!
John 17:20-21 “I do not ask in behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one; even as Thou, Father, art in Me, and in Thee, that they also may be in Us; that the world may believe that Thou didst send Me.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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