God’s Grace is Sufficient

I don’t know about you, but when I read the story of God creating this world, I start to imagine.  No matter how vivid our imagination, it is a feeble attempt.  Just think of the perfect temperature, the beauty of the flowers and trees, the transparency of the rivers, lakes,  and streams of water, and how the animals, with their majestic beauty down to the creepy-crawly, presented no fear.

For those who love to plant a garden, can you imagine how easy it could be to grow anything?  It would be a gardener’s paradise.  We wouldn’t have to worry about the soil being too hard or rocky; there would be perfect nutrition in the ground, no need to weed, and an automatic watering system that took no work to set up.  It sounds like heaven to me.

And what about the animal lovers?  I would be in that category.  There are so many animals I wish I could enjoy.  I have always loved horses and the thought of having one and being able to ride.  Having a monkey as a pet has been a dream of mine.  Throughout my life, mostly, I have stuck to cats and dogs, which I love dearly.  The pain and suffering when one passes away are heart-wrenching.  But in the new creation, there was no death or fear, only life, love, and peace.  It is hard to imagine a life absent of fear and full of love and peace in our world today.  God created Adam and Eve to enjoy the beauty of His creation.  They had no fear or sadness; peace, joy, and love were all.

I think all of us have probably questioned at one time or another why Eve would make a choice that would destroy her peace and happiness.  Eve had everything that she could have possibly wanted.  But the devil caused her to believe that she was missing out on something great!  And Eve believed him.  The reality is that we are no different.  If we trust God and the Word He gave us, why do we go in another direction all the time?  The bottom line is that we think we might be missing out on something.  And we are not trusting that God has our best interest in mind.  We are not any different from Eve.  Many times in our lives, we allow the convincing words of others or circumstances to convince us that something is okay.  And after the fact, we realize this was not in God’s plan.

On the other hand, Adam decided to eat it when he was presented with the fruit, knowing it would be wrong.  He knew it would be wrong to eat the fruit; even though he may not have understood the consequences, he knew it was wrong.  How could you know what death is if you have never seen it?  But he should have trusted God’s Word that it was not a good thing.

Imagine what must have been going through his mind.  He had to be concerned about what would happen if he didn’t eat the fruit when his wife had already eaten it.  If he chose not to eat it, he could lose her forever.  He was not choosing to love God above anything else.  But again, we are not any different.  How many times do we put other things before God?  God has to be number one in our lives at all times.  We can not let people, things, circumstances, any rabbit trail, whether of a religious sort or not, or even ourselves get in the way of making God number one in every area of our lives.

If we didn’t know the end of the story of Adam and Eve, it would appear hopeless.  But then came grace.  Their choice had significant consequences, but God’s love and grace gave them a second chance.  Their choice to sin should have brought instant death.  The grace of God, willing to give His only Son as a substitute, and Jesus willing to accept the consequences of sin, gave Adam and Eve and each of us another chance.

Imagine what it must have been like for them.  Adam and Eve had never experienced death.  They had never seen anything die.  God, in His mercy, sacrificed a lamb in their stead.  The lamb would have been their friend.  All the animals would have been like pets to them.  And to see two of these precious lambs dying because of their sin must have been excruciating.

The only way we can even come close to getting a glimpse is to think about one of our pets.  I relate primarily to our dogs.  It would be excruciating if one of our dogs had to be put to death for my sin.  We love our pets so much.  But they also had to realize that this sacrifice pointed to the One that would ultimately take the consequences of sin.  What joy they must have had that Jesus was willing to do this for them while simultaneously being sad that they had caused so much pain and suffering.

It pains my heart as I write, thinking about myself and how easy it can be to bring hurt and pain to the One that has done so much for me.  God loved the world and gave His Son so that I may live.  Why is it so difficult to remember what He has done for me?  I don’t think I am the only one with this problem.  We get so caught up in daily life that we forget to contemplate what He has done for us.  Yes, we may go through the motions of daily Bible study and prayer, but we fail to connect with God fully.  Spending time with God, going to church, or any religious thing we may be involved in can become just a ritual and lose all meaning.

I love God’s promise: “My grace is sufficient for thee:  for my strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).  Our weaknesses are His strengths.  This is the most exciting news!  No matter how weak we think we are, He is even stronger.  We can’t create; we can only submit to God creating in us.  As David, we can say, “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me” (Psalms 51:10).  We can’t clean our hearts!  No one can empty themselves of self.  The only thing that we can do is consent for Jesus to accomplish the work in us.

It is easy to look around at others and be like the Pharisee, thanking God that I am not like “those” people.  But I want to be as the publican, “standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner” (Read Luke 18:10-14).  We are all sinners in need of God’s grace and mercy.  And “He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him (Jesus), seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25).  God through His Spirit is the One that draws, convicts, forgives, cleanses, makes the changes, recreates, He does it all.  Our job is to consent, and we will find rest when we consent!

Dear Father,

Please, take my heart; I can’t give it to You.  You created me; my heart is Your property.  I need You to keep it pure.  I am so weak, selfish, and unchristlike; please save me despite me always getting in the way.  You are the potter, and I am the clay; mold and fashion me, so I love Your pure and holy presence so that I can feel the rich current of Your love flow through me.

In Jesus’ Name,

Amen

Surrender fully to God today and let Him do the work within You.

I love you all!

When have you felt the closest to God?  I would love to hear your story!  Comment below or private message me.

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