What We Were Made For

Christ suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God. (1 Peter 3:18)

The greatest good of the good news — the gospel — is the enjoyment of fellowship with God himself. This is made explicit here in 1 Peter 3:18 in the phrase “that he might bring us to God.” That’s why Jesus died.

All the other gifts of the gospel exist to make this one possible.

We are forgiven so that our guilt does not keep us away from God.

We are justified so that our condemnation does not keep us away from God.

God is propitiated so that his wrath doesn’t stand between us and God as our Father.

We are given eternal life now, with new bodies in the resurrection, so that we have the capacities for being with God forever and enjoying God to the fullest.

Test your heart. Why do you want forgiveness? Why do you want to be justified? Why do you want the wrath of God to be propitiated? Why do you want eternal life? Is the decisive answer, “Because I want to enjoy God now and forever”?

The gospel-love that God gives is ultimately the gift of himself. This is what we were made for. This is what we lost because of our sin. This is what Christ came to restore.

“In your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11).

John Piper 

The Just and The Unjust

Matt. 5:45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
So, God gives grace and mercy indiscriminately! Not by whether we deserve it, but because He loves us regardless. Very humbling isn't it? What does that mean? It means there is nothing you can do to warrant the grace or mercy of God. Romans 9:14-16 What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God's part? By no means! For he says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion." So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.
How rich is His grace? 1Peter1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead
Eph.1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace
He sent His Son:
John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Definition of grace: unmerited divine assistance given humans for their regeneration or sanctification, a virtue coming from God, a state of sanctification enjoyed through divine grace
Definition of mercy: a blessing that is an act of divine favor or compassion
Definition of just: Consistent with what is morally right; righteous
Definition of unjust: not righteous
Rain is a blessing from the Lord! But it can also be used as a judgement, as the example of the flood in Noah's day shows us. We do not know if we will live the next minute because Almighty God is the author of our life. He has numbered our days since before we were made. Ps.139:13-17 NIV For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!
Lord, someone today needs to hear Your Word. It will be by Your will that they will read this today. Open their heart to receive Your good news, Christ gave us life through His death and resurrection. Amen

Suffering as a Christian

1 Peter 4:12-19 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.  If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And "If the righteous is scarcely saved,
what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?"Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.
Will we except good from God but not evil? (Job 2:10) This is what Job spoke to his wife while he was being tormented with trials by the devil. She told him to curse God and die. Job knew God would not leave him. He with stood all and praised God.
Lord, we need You! When the trials come, we will be weak but You are strong. In good times and bad, we will praise Your name. Give us what we need to stand in You. Amen
Some of us may suffer even unto death. 

The Righteous and The Wicked Share the Same Events in Life

Ecc.9:1-6
But all this I laid to heart, examining it all, how the righteous and the wise and their deeds are in the hand of God. Whether it is love or hate, man does not know; both are before him. It is the same for all, since the same event happens to the righteous and the wicked, to the good and the evil, to the clean and the unclean, to him who sacrifices and him who does not sacrifice. As the good one is, so is the sinner, and he who swears is as he who shuns an oath. This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that the same event happens to all. Also, the hearts of the children of man are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live, and after that they go to the dead. But he who is joined with all the living has hope, for a living dog is better than a dead lion. For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten. Their love and their hate and their envy have already perished, and forever they have no more share in all that is done under the sun.
What thoughts to hold in your heart! It doesn't matter whether you believe in God or not, he has both believer and non-believers' fate in his hands. Won't you bow to Him and surrender your heart today? You may not have a tomorrow! Lord, I pray for the one who might read Your word today. Open their heart to it so that they may see the hope that is found only in You. Amen