Showing posts with label themes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label themes. Show all posts

Monday, August 4, 2014

Unending Love, the Theme of the Bible

Jesus is the theme of the bible and through him, God not
only created all we know, He reveals his unending love and purpose for us.

John 1:1-5: In the Beginning was the Word, and the Word was
with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things
came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that
has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.

Romans 5:8: But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in
that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more than having been
justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through him.

From the very beginning, God revealed his pleasure in
hanging out with Adam.

Genesis 2:19: Out of the ground the LORD God formed every
beast of the field and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to
see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature,
that was its name.

As a parent, I have experienced the pleasure in my own
children learning the names of things. I can only imagine the joy the LORD
experienced as he brought each creation before Adam to decide upon its name.

As we continue to read the story of Adam, we are introduced
to Eve, the perfect helper and companion God created for Adam out of Adam.

Genesis 2: 22-23: The LORD God fashioned into a woman the
rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man. The man said,
“This is now bone of my bones, And flesh of my flesh’ She shall be called
Woman, Because she was taken out of man.”

God continues to show us how much he loves us and enjoys
hanging out with us by sharing the truth of how we came to live in a fallen
world. As a child, I can honestly say I walked and talked with God on a daily
basis. I have even felt him chuckle at the way in which I thought I would be of
great use to him. This foundation is what helped me through the toughest and roughest
years of my life. In the story of man’s creation, we are not told how long Adam
and Eve enjoyed their face to face relationship with the LORD, but we know it
existed!

Genesis 3: 8-10: They heard the sound of the LORD God
walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid
themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.
Then the LORD God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” He said,
“I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked,
so I hid myself.

How many times have we tried to hide from the LORD God only
to discover at some point, He has pursued us as well?

While the LORD God could have ended the human race right
then and there, he instead chose a way to reconcile us to Him once again.

Genesis 3:15: And I will put enmity between you and the
woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And
you shall bruise him on the heel.”

As the story unfolds, we are next introduced to Cain and
Abel. Once again, it is revealed that God speaks to his people.

Genesis 4:6-7: Then the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you
angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will not your
countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the
door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.

As we know, Cain chose not to listen to God and instead
opened the door to sin and murdered his brother. One might think after this the
LORD would give up on the human race, but he doesn’t. Adam and Eve are
appointed another offspring that they name Seth. Through Seth’s descendants, we
are introduced to Noah.

In the days of Noah we read that the LORD grieved over his
creation.

Genesis 6:6: The LORD was sorry that He had made man on
earth, and He was grieved in His heart.

We are told he was so grieved, he said he would wipe out
even the animals, the creeping things and the birds. Just as one might think it
was over for mankind, we read about Noah and discover that he found favor in
the eyes of the LORD.

We are shown that Noah enjoyed a close relationship with the
LORD. I say that due to the faith Noah showed in building an arc as the LORD
God commanded. When the flood was over, God established a covenant with Noah
and his descendents. He blessed Noah and his sons telling them to be fruitful
and multiply, and fill the earth.

We are shown that without faith it is impossible to please
God because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he
rewards those who seek him earnestly. It was by faith that that Noah built the
arc in the middle of dry land. It was also by faith that Abraham went out to a
place to receive an inheritance without knowing where he was going.

In God’s eyes, the greatest heroes of the faith are not
those who achieve prosperity, success, and power in this life, but those who
treat this life as a temporary assignment and serve faithfully, expecting their
promised reward in eternity. (Daily Inspiration for the Purpose Driven Life,
Rick Warren, 2004 by the Zondervan Corp, p37)

We are also shown that opening yourself up to God is the way
to obtain a closer relationship with the Lord as we read the story of Job. As
it comes to a close, we are once again shown that God communicates directly with
His people. We see he values the relationships he has with those that depend on
him and he does indeed reward them for their faith.

Job 42:10: The LORD restored the fortunes of Job when he
prayed for his friends, and the LORD increased all that Job had twofold. 

All through the Old Testament books we are shown example
after example that God is more than involved, we are shown that He is fond of
us. Even when Moses threw a temper tantrum of sorts, God revealed he would do
as Moses had requested. We are told that Moses found favor in the LORD’s Sight.
He even tells us that God knew Moses by name! Calling someone by their name
confirms that you know them.

Exodus 34:17: The LORD said to Moses, “I will also do this
thing of which you have spoken; for you have found favor in My sight and I have
known you by name.”

Again and again we read about God and the relationships he
has enjoyed with those who seek him and come to him with thankfulness in their
hearts; fully knowing, believing that He is the Most High God deserving of our
worship.

In reading the Daily Inspiration for the Purpose Driven
Life, we are shown that we were created for God’s pleasure. We are also shown
that we were formed specifically for God’s family. It is with that knowledge
that we begin to understand that we were created to become like Christ and we
were shaped to serve God.

God loves us so much, He sent his son to save us. I don’t
know how much more proof man needs to be able to see the depth of God’s love
for mankind than that! However God takes it one step further and lets us know
that he did not come to judge but to save thus putting sinners minds and hearts
at ease.

John 3:16-17: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His
only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have
eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world,
but that the world might be saved through Him.

As we read in our text book, we discover the message in the
Book of Acts is this: Anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
(Knowing the Bible 101 A Guide to God’s Word in Plain Language, Bruce Bickel
& Stan Jantz, 1998 Harvest House)

In closing, I would like to share a reading from my favorite
devotional:

Seek my face, and you will find fulfillment of your deepest
longings. My world is filled with beautiful things; they are meant to be
pointers to Me, reminders of My abiding Presence. The earth still declares My
Glory to those who have eyes that see and ears that hear.

You had a darkened mind before you sought me wholeheartedly.
I chose to pour My Light into you so that you can be a beacon to others. There
is no room for pride in this position. Your part is to reflect My Glory. I am
the Lord! (Jesus Calling, Sarah Young, 2004 Thomas Nelson, page 165)

For all of these reasons and more, I know that God loves me
and my purpose is to serve Him by revealing His Glory through my testimony.

References

Knowing the Bible 101 A Guide to God’s Word in Plain
Language, Bruce Bickel & Stan Jantz, 1998 Harvest House, p. 239

Jesus Calling, Sarah Young, 2004 Thomas Nelson,
page 165

Daily Inspiration for the Purpose Driven Life,
Rick Warren, 2004 by the Zondervan Corp, p37

The MacArthur Study Bible, John MacArthur, New American
Standard Bible, Updated Edition, 2006, Thomas Nelson Publishing