Second, thank goodness it's finally warm and sunny and gorgeous outside :) Even though the pollen is stillll killing me. I haven't been able to breathe or speak clearly for about, oh, three weeks now, but hey, it's sunny and I don't care!
Okay, so Ephesians 1 is the text of the moment. "Even before He made the world, God loved us" So cool. God knew us and loved us before He even created us. He also knew that we would come to disappoint Him and hurt Him by turning away from His love and grace and mercy, but He decided we were worth it anyways. Not because of anything we've done or will do, but because He is great and loving and kind.
Also, something that I picked out of this passage, and maybe because I was looking for it, was that the defining moment in our relationship with God was the point where we place our faith and hope in Christ Jesus. Seven times (by my account) in this chapter, Paul says that the great things that God has in store for us, and the reason He has chosen us is "because we are united with Christ" or we "trust in Christ" or because of our "strong faith in the Lord Jesus." There are a lot of people, including some Christians, that seem to think that just believing in God and being a good and loving person classify you as saved. I firmly believe however that it is faith in Christ as our Savior and the Son of God that saves us from our sins and the punishment we deserve...and I think this passage supports that. God sent His Son as a sacrifice, and we fail to acknowledge that fully, which I feel is kind of a disappointment to God. I mean, here He is, sending His only Son, who is pure and holy, to die and pay for our selfish and evil sins, and we treat it as if it's nothing.
Chapter 2
We were dead because we lived in sin, and now we are alive. I've never been dead, haven't even come close yet, but I feel like this is a definite moment to rejoice :) Paul is careful to remind those at Ephesus in this chapter that it is by God's mercy and love that they are saved though, and only through Him will they ever escape death. Paul reiterates his point a few times actually, and the NLT version says specifically "God saved you by His grace when you believed. You can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it" - Ephesians 2:8-9. That is an important message to remember, as I know that I sometimes fall victim to thinking that I am better than non-believers because I'm saved...but I didn't do anything to deserve the salvation I'm given, and instead of holding it out as a merit badge, what I need to be doing is making my life a song of worship to Him who gave me the freedom from my sins.
Okay, time to go grab a snack and head home for the afternoon...I might run outside later if I can muster the breath to do it...Or maybe I'll just walk around and bask in the light. There's a cool festival happening on campus later too, so lots of fun stuff to do today. Awesome!
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