Apicontent

Day 31

God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. (Colossians 1:27) 

“Christ in you, the hope of glory.” What does it mean? 

When we hope for something, we wait for it with eager expectation. We look forward to it with longing hearts. We have hope because of Christ in us. 

But what is glory? What are we hoping for? 

On Mount Sinai, Moses said to God, “Please show me Your glory.” And the Lord replied, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you.” (Exodus 33:18–19). Moses asked to see God’s glory and God showed Moses His goodness. God’s glory and His goodness are one and the same. God’s glory is His nature of loving kindness. 

After Moses encountered God on Mt Sinai, his face shown with glory. But the glory of the New Covenant is meant to exceed that. “If the ministry of death [the Ten Commandments], written and engraved on stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of the glory of his countenance, which glory was passing away, how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious?” (2 Corinthians 3:7–8). God’s design is that we radiate His goodness that does not pass away. 

“Christ in you” is the basis for our hope. Our hope begins with God in our spirit. God lives in us—in our spirit. “The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Romans 8:16). Christ in you—the Spirit hidden away in your spirit—is the foundation upon which our hope rests. 

But “hope of glory” isn’t meant to be the end point. The actual glory is Christ through you. It is Christ in your spirit filling and renewing your soul and flowing out through your body for others to experience. The glory manifests when our soul is caught up in knowing and seeing God and our body expresses it for the world to see. 

When our soul is permeated with the nature of Christ—when we are led by the Spirit—our body radiates the glory of God. “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God” (Romans 8:14). When our soul comes to rest in agreement with the Spirit, we will be sons/daughters of God—fashioned after the image of the firstborn Son. You were made to be like Jesus and resonate with His divine nature.

God gives Himself to you in love so that you might share in His goodness—so that every bit of you is flooded with Him. Glory radiates through you when the nature of God—His love, joy, peace and kindness—pours out for the world to see. Glory is the fruit of the Spirit manifested through you in hands-on, earthly, relational ways. 

Glory was the “clothing” Adam and Eve enjoyed in the Garden of Eden before their covering fell away and they saw that they were naked. This is the glory Jesus paid for on the cross. The Spirit wants to burst forth from you in full, vibrant, abundant life. God’s desire is to be made known and visible to the world through you. When your spirit and soul are in agreement with Him, the goodness of God—the glory of God—is free to express itself through you. 

God is glorified when we express His glory. The glory of God is humanity fully alive. 

Just think of it. God created you—imperfect, unique, valuable, treasured you—to share His glory with the world. From the inside out—from spirit, to soul, to body—you were designed to radiate the nature of God! God’s glory—God’s lovingkindness—enlivens you and comes forth through you. You are God’s chosen vessel to enjoy His goodness and share it with the world. 

Ponder for a Moment 

For the rest of today, put yourself in Jesus’ sandals. Let His glory—His nature of lovingkindness—express itself through you as you go about your everyday life. 

“The glory of God is humanity fully alive.” What do these words mean to you? 

Day 32

You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you…. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect. (Matthew 5:43–44, 46–48) 

Jesus tells us, “Be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” But how can we possibly be perfect like that? Don’t Jesus’ words just set us up for failure? What does He mean? 

Webster’s Dictionary defines perfect as “being entirely without fault or defect, flawless … having excellence in every part … as in an unattainable state.” The world tells us “perfect” is being at the top of the class. It is breaking the track record each time you run a race. Religion drives us to think “perfect” involves obeying every law in the rulebook. 

And so we work hard for good grades. We strive for fast race times. We try to obey the rules, especially the ones we feel are most important. And when we succeed, we are praised. Teachers, coaches, bosses, friends, and family give us approval, and we feel valued … conditionally … for a time. 

But when we inevitably fall short, we feel less-than. How easy it is to believe Satan’s lies that because we don’t achieve some high standard, we are defective and unacceptable. 

You and I were not created to be “perfect” in the way the dictionary defines the term. Being “perfect” by the world’s definition is actually a denial of our humanity. 

The Greek word for perfect, teleios, actually means living out the goal set for each of us by God. Teleios is not an end to be reached; it is a way of continual life. It does not imply that we are without sin. Rather teleios refers to a condition in which we imperfect, messed-up humans are in ongoing relationship with our perfect Creator. 

On the cross, Jesus took our sins and imperfections; we are complete in Him. The Father sees us wrapped in the perfection of His Son. We are perfect when we give up our own striving to be perfect (by the world’s definition) and rest in the perfection of our Savior. 

We were not created to live as independent beings. The world and religion say, “I can do it. I can pull myself up to that standard.” Satan said, “I will exalt my throne above the stars of God” (Isaiah 14:13). But our soul—the I of us—was created to be led by the Spirit. We were created to say, “O LORD, You are my God. I will exalt You. I will praise Your name” (Isaiah 25:1). 

Acknowledging Jesus as our Savior—exulting our Lord—gives Him proper place in our lives. Being perfect—living life as God created you to—comes from accepting yourself as you are and living in ongoing surrender and obedience to the perfect One. He welcomes you and cherishes you as you are. 

God’s definition of “perfect” is based in His perfect love. He is the source of the love that makes us perfect. Jesus’ love goes beyond loving your neighbor. It blesses those who curse you. It is kind to those who hate you. It prays for the ones who abuse and persecute you. God’s love extends even to your enemies. 

It isn’t in you or me to love like that. Maybe a good person could love a neighbor … but to love an enemy? Only God can do that. You are perfect when you live in Christ and let His love radiate through you to all, including your worst enemy. 

Ponder for a Moment 

How might you have tried to make yourself “perfect” in the past? 

How might embracing God’s definition of “perfect” change your opinion of yourself? 

How might it change your opinion of God? 

Day 33

For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:14–19) 

What a prayer! Paul knows the One to whom he prays; he feels the Trinity’s passion to share God’s life of love with us. 

Paul bows his knees to the Father and these words gush out. He knows that the answer will flow out of the riches of God’s goodness. So he asks that the Spirit strengthen us. From deep inside, the Spirit works to reveal truth and give us understanding. 

Growing to know Christ is like a dancing with a lead partner. God leads and we follow. Like a willing dance partner, we don’t know what the next step might be but, by faith, we follow His promptings. We trust in what we do not see and move in sync with Him. As we do this the dance that is eternal life unfolds before us. 

We express the faith God gives by trusting the Faithful One. We trust that He is who He says He is and we trust that we are who He says we are. By faith we welcome Him to dwell in our hearts and know that we are His born-again children. The dance that is eternal life begins and continues by faith; we trust in His goodness—that He will not fail to lead us in lovingkindness. 

God wants each and every one of us to know the fullness of life in fellowship with Him. But we can’t know it unless we believe. Expressing the faith God gives—following His lead—is a choice. We have free will. We don’t have to let Him be our lead partner. 

God’s love is the firm foundation for our life in Christ. His love is the soil into which our roots sink deep. We are established—we are “rooted and grounded”—in love. 

But our knowing God and His love doesn’t stop there. Love is like an ocean. You can stand on the shore, wade in the waves or swim out beyond the breakers and experience its beginning, but you can’t know its end. 

God’s love is stronger than we can think or imagine. It is endlessly powerful and good. It doesn’t follow the rules of our world. The love of Christ gives without thought of getting. It doesn’t love because; it loves in spite of. It exceeds any definition words can express. Our minds cannot grasp it … but still you were created to comprehend it in deeply soul-satisfying, relational ways. 

“The love of Christ which passes knowledge” has expression in the width, length, depth and height of the cross. Width and length—the stretching wide of Jesus’ arms on the cross to encompass the expanse of the world. Depth—the descent of Jesus leaving heaven, becoming a man and taking our sins with Him to the grave. Height—the ascent of Jesus to the Father where we are seated with Him in heavenly places. 

Such love exceeds factual knowledge, but it is here for you and me to know in personal relationship. Experiencing the extravagance of Jesus’ love for us allows us to know the extravagance of the life He has secured for us. Progressively coming to know the riches of Jesus’ love changes you into the image of the One who created you … until you come to be “filled with all the fullness of God.” 

Every bit of Paul’s prayer is God’s desire for you today. 

Ponder for a Moment 

Read Paul’s prayer again as if you personally are the one Paul is praying for. 

Read Paul’s prayer again, this time making it your prayer for someone you know. 

Day 34

Let us exult and triumph in our troubles and rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that pressure and affliction and hardships produce patient and unswerving endurance. And endurance develops maturity of character. And character produces joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation. Such hope never disappoints or deludes or shames us, for God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us. (Romans 5:3–5, AMPC) 

“Triumph in our troubles”? “Rejoice in our sufferings”? Why would we do that? When troubles strike—sickness, lawsuits, war, natural disaster, persecution, famine—they unsettle us. Our natural inclination is to avoid hardships, not rejoice in them. 

Our souls want peace and rightness … because we were designed for these things. And so we pray that our difficult circumstances would change, and sometimes they do. But, in the vulnerability of trials—when we do not understand and cannot control the suffering—we have the continual opportunity to trust God … and find peace and rightness, not in circumstances, but in the assurance of our Father’s love. 

Please don’t think for an instant that your problems are signs that God is displeased with you. Problems are not punishments. The enemy may use hardships to tempt you to think that God has forgotten you, but that is not true. 

In suffering, we are tested. Do we want God only on our terms—for the “good” we desire? Or will we trust Him regardless of our trials? Will we cling to Him in assurance that, even though we may not understand the reason why He allows the suffering, He is working for the deep, eternal good of the people He loves? 

Romans 8:28 says, “All things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” When I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, I clung to hope in that Scripture. “All things work together for good,” I told myself. “I will be healed.” “We will become a missionary family.” But my definition of “good” didn’t happen; God had something deeper in mind. 

God’s definition of “good” is found in the next verse. “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Romans 8:29). 

And slowly I began to see: God works through difficulties and trials of every sort—through all things—so that we come to be “conformed to the image of His Son.” “Good” is our character be coming like His. “Good” isn’t the absence of external, stressful circumstances; it is the presence of internal rightness with God. 

Whatever has happened or is happening, Jesus is right there with us in the midst of the storm. As a human being tested and tried in all ways even as we are, He relates to us in our suffering. Just as a good friend would suffer with you in your hardships, Jesus hurts with you. His heart overflows with empathy and compassion for you. He shares your pain. 

Even if you cannot feel His nearness, He is with you. In the Old Testament, we read how Job, in all his sufferings—having lost children and earthly possessions, tortured with sickness and the false counsel of others—had no understanding of the reason for his afflictions and no assurance of the Lord’s presence. Yet Job did not give up on God. I stand in awe of those I know today who, in the face of overwhelming trials, devoid of understanding and of God’s felt presence, refuse to give up on God. 

Hold on my friend. Hold on to the hope that does not disappoint. Believe in the good of God. In your suffering, He is molding your character to match His. He will pour His love into your heart. This is His promise to you—His beloved. 

Ponder for a Moment 

Consider God’s definition of “good” for your life and how it may differ from your own. Record your thoughts. 

Can you think of a time when suffering resulted in your knowing God in a deeper way? If so, tell of that time. 

Day 35

I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. (Galatians 2:20) 

This Scripture sums up how Paul lives life. But what does it mean? What is Paul actually saying? 

He begins, “I have been crucified with Christ.” Paul knows it has already been done; when Jesus was crucified, he was crucified with Him. When Christ died, Paul’s old/Adam nature died too. 

Paul knows the old Paul is dead. He says, “It is no longer I who live.” Although Paul would still have been tempted to think, feel and act like he used to, he is aware that he is dead to the old way of living. No longer is he being led by his independent soul—his mind, will, and emotions separated from God. No longer is he held captive to his old way of thinking based on the Old Covenant law. 

Paul says, “But Christ lives in me.” He has come into agreement with Someone greater than himself. Now Paul is being led by the Spirit. 

Rehabilitating the old nature was not an option for Paul; neither is it an option for us. Religion is forever telling us that we can and should be rehabilitated. It seeks to provide ways that the “good” self might help fix up or control the “evil” self. But that is not God’s way. The freeing truth is to know that when Christ died, we died too. 

In Adam, all sinned and fell into the old nature born of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil with the soul in charge. But when Jesus died on the cross, He took our old nature with Him to the grave. And when He rose, we rose with Him in His new nature of life being led by the Spirit. Romans 6:5 says, “For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection.” 

Paul encourages, “Put off the old man with his deeds, and put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him” (Colossians 3:9–10). He encourages, “Be renewed in the Spirit of your mind, and … put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:23–24). 

We believe what God says about our union with Christ in His death and resurrection. We give ourselves to God in faith and let Him lead us in the transforming work He wants to do in and through us. We “put off” and “put on” by welcoming truth and letting God’s thoughts and feelings renew our souls. We “work out [our] salvation” (Philippians 2:12) by letting the life of Christ in us work its way out for the world to see in our God-given humanity. 

But we can’t trust someone unless we know they love us. We can live by faith only when we are confident of God’s love for us. Paul says, “And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” 

“Who loved me,” that is the key. Paul knew Jesus’ love deeply and personally. 

Life in our new nature hinges on knowing God’s love for us. You can’t live by faith—you can’t give yourself totally to Him for His transforming work—unless you know that He loves you —you personally. Love isn’t love until it is given away and Jesus gave Himself totally, unreservedly for you. The Son of God died for you to give you His full, abundant life. 

Ponder for a Moment 

What does it mean to you that you have been “crucified with Christ”? 

What does it mean to you that your life is now defined by Christ’s life in you?

Day 36

By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. (John 13:35) 

It isn’t our correct theology about God, having Christian morals or how much time we spend praying that sets us apart. Love for others is our defining mark. “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” Jesus’ love in us, overflowing to others, marks us as His disciples. 

Consider the contrast between being religious and being a disciple of Jesus. The religious leaders of Jesus’ day—scribes and Pharisees—didn’t care about people. They didn’t treat the poor, the widowed, or the oppressed with compassion. Rather they heaped guilt and shame upon people by shunning them or pointing out their sins. They burdened people with laws they couldn’t obey. They tore down others to elevate themselves. 

Jesus did the exact opposite. People mattered to Him. He valued and cherished each unique one. By treating men, women, and children—tax collectors, prostitutes, and invalids—with care and compassion, He revealed to each their worth as struggling, yet beautiful human beings created in the image of God. 

God doesn’t love us grudgingly. He doesn’t love us because He is good and that is the right thing to do. He is not disgusted with us in some way, but polite enough to hide His displeasure. Jesus sees right and wrong, but He doesn’t judge. His love for you is wholehearted, spontaneous, complete. He loves you because you are His treasure. He delights in you. 

To be loved like that is what every soul desires. We were created to know it. Deep in the core of each of us, we long to be treated with kindness—to be delighted in—to be valued for who we are. 

Love is what we need and love defines us as Jesus’ disciples. In the amazing plan of God, when we come to know Jesus’ unconditional love for us, we begin to express that same love to others. Knowing Jesus’ love allows us to put all judgment aside and simply love. In fact, our love for others is our defining mark; it is evidence we have been with Jesus. 

And, in the amazing plan of God, our love for others attracts them to Jesus—the source of love. 

Jesus calls us to be His witnesses to the world. He said, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men” (Mark 1:17). We fish with His love. Love attracts people to Him because it fulfills the deepest need of every hurting, longing heart.

Jesus’ last miracle recorded in Scripture had to do with fishing in this way. John, Peter, and several of the other disciples had been fishing all night without a single catch. Jesus appeared on the shore and called out, “Cast your net on the right side of the boat” (John 21:6). They did … and netted a huge catch. 

Later, after breakfast on the shore, Jesus took Peter aside. Three times He asked the disciple, “Do you love Me?” And, after Peter responded, “Yes, Lord,” Jesus said, “Feed My lambs.” “Tend My sheep.” “Feed My sheep” (John 21:15–17). 

Three times Peter had denied Jesus and three times Jesus restored the man by reinforcing that he still had a part in God’s plan in being a fisher of men—by caring for others. 

Do you see it? Jesus is speaking to us. “Fishers of men—disciples of Mine—cast your net on the right side. Fish in a different way. Feed My lambs (physically, emotionally, and spiritually). Care for My people (physically, emotionally, and spiritually). Lift them up and encourage them with the truth of who they are and who I am. Treasure them as I do. Let them know how much I love them. Let My love, expressed through you, draw people to Me that they might become whole.” 

My dear brother, my dear sister, love is evidence that you follow the One who is the source of the love we all so desperately need. Radiating God’s love is your witness to the world. Your love for one another marks you as a fisher of men—a true disciple of Jesus. 

Ponder for a Moment 

In what ways might your opinion or judgement of a person have prevented you from loving them? 

Who can you celebrate today? Who can you delight in today? Who can you love today? 

Day 37

We have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is so also are we in this world. (1 John 4:16–17) 

Amazing! Incredible! Can we really believe John’s words to us? 

“We have known and believed the love that God has for us.” God is love and He loves us. But unless we know that truth—unless we believe it—God’s great goodness can’t come to us and change us from the inside out. God’s promises spring from His lovingkindness. Knowing and believing He loves us extravagantly allows us to embrace the extravagance of the life Jesus purchased for us on the cross. 

The fall in the Garden of Eden gave God opportunity to show us the full extent of His love. Would God leave disobedient, sinful Adam and Eve to fend for themselves? Or would He welcome the human race in its blindness? Would He stay with us as we scorned, rejected and despised Him? 

Apart from the fall, God would have had no stage upon which to display the depth of His passion for humanity. On the cross, Jesus showed us the full extent of God’s love—poured out on sinners like ourselves. 

John was there. With his own ears, he heard Jesus’ agonizing prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. With his own eyes, he witnessed the betrayal of Judas’ kiss, the mocking, spitting crowds, Jesus’ flesh torn open by the whipping. Imagine watching with John as the Son of Man staggered up the hill to Golgotha. Let your ears ring with the pounding of the nails that bound our Savior willingly to the cross. Hear the words from Jesus’ parched lips, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do” (Luke 23:34). 

Know and believe the love that God has for you. Our knowing and believing doesn’t change God; He is overflowing with love for us. But our knowing and believing changes us—so that we come into agreement with God, so His life can have expression in and through us. What we know by faith comes alive in flesh and blood—in physical expression—through our lives. 

Over and over again, Scripture encourages us to know and believe. Jesus said, “You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). Truth in itself doesn’t make you free; knowing the truth does. He said, “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water” (John 7:38). Believing in Jesus allows rivers of living water—the life of God—to pour from your heart.

“Love has been perfected among us.…” What? How can that be? Isn’t God’s love already perfect? Yes! God’s love, as expressed to us in the giving of His Son, is perfect. 

But the word “perfect” implies living out the ongoing goal set for us by God. And the goal of love is that all would come to know and share life in Christ. We get the privilege of perfecting Jesus’ perfect love by bring it to hands-on, relational fulfillment on earth. 

Dear friend, our Father planned that you would be like His Son. The promise is not to be delayed for heaven; it is for your life here and now on earth. You were made to feel and express Jesus’ emotions: intense anger with the temple money-lenders, exuberant joy at the success of His disciples, heart-wrenching grief in the Garden of Gethsemane. You were created to think like Jesus who saw every human being as precious and valuable regardless of worldly labels. You were made to know and believe the Father’s love for you, to love others with that same love and be like Jesus in this world. 

Holy Spirit, give us revelation. Help us in our partial belief. Help us to more fully know the love that God has for us. Perfect Your love in us, through us and among us. 

Ponder for a Moment 

Read today’s verses again. What is God saying to you through these words?

Day 38

“I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them that they may be one just as We are one. I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.” (John 17:20–23) 

Just before going to the cross, Jesus prays this prayer for us. It is His heartfelt desire for His people—for those 2,000 years ago and for you and me today. Jesus pleads to the Father on our behalf, that we be one with Him—that we join Him in the oneness He shares with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Our union with Him drives His prayer. 

Four times in this part of His prayer, Jesus asks that we “may be one,” just as He is one with the Father. Hours later Jesus paid the price to guarantee fulfillment of this request. Our atonement (at-one-ment) was accomplished on the cross. 

Jesus took our sins and our sin nature upon Himself; He made Himself one with us so that when He died, we died. And when He rose, we rose. We share in His resurrection life; we share His divine nature. Jesus, the Son of God and the Son of Man, is both one with His Father and one with His people. He is the bridge that unites us. 

The life of God flows to us in union with Jesus. In Christ, we become the people God created us to be—“made perfect in one.” Jesus shares Himself with us so intimately, so completely, that His nature becomes ours. His glory becomes ours; the glory the Father gave Jesus, is the same glory Jesus gives us. His love becomes ours; the love of the Father for His Son is the same love the Father has for us. 

In union with Jesus, the life of God flows to you so your life resonates with His and you become your true self—the son or daughter of God He created you to be. And in union with Jesus, the life of God flows through you. The life you share with Jesus is what creation longs to experience. That is your witness—“that the world may believe that you sent Me.” 

God’s plan for saving the world is not so much about church programs or ministries. It is about His Son on display through His people. It is that simple and that profound. The glory of God—the love of God—bursting out through you, is God’s plan for redeeming the world. 

But how do we express Christ who lives in us? How do we let God pour out through us for the world to see? How do we manifest God’s lovingkindness to others?

We don’t know what the person in front of us really needs. We don’t know how they are thinking or the traumas and hurts they have suffered. Do they need food? Shelter? What words would help? If Jesus were here, what would He do to heal the wounds of their spirit, soul and body? 

We don’t know what they need to feel valued, treasured and loved, but the Spirit knows. He will guide you. Being at one with Jesus means following the Holy Spirit’s guidance. He will lead you in caring for others the way Jesus would. At one with Jesus, you can fling wide the windows of your soul and let out His healing goodness. 

You in your frail humanity—ordinary, limited you—at one with all-knowing, all-powerful, all-loving God, is your witness. Creation longs to see Christ on display through you. God shares His glory with you. And so, at one with Jesus, you radiate His nature to others—and the world comes to know and believe that the Father loves us even as He loves His Son. 

Ponder for a Moment 

Read today’s Scripture again. In your own words, what is Jesus’ heartfelt desire for you? 

In your own words, what is Jesus’ heartfelt desire for the world? 

Day 39

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28–30) 

So how do we apply all that we have learned to our lives? What are we to do? How do we come to better express God’s love? How do we become the people He has promised we shall be? 

Trying to make life work apart from Christ is a heavy burden we were never meant to carry. Over and over again we simply come with our loads and learn to rest in Him. We come to the One who is kind and approachable—gentle and lowly. We come to the One, who as a humble man acknowledged his absolute dependence on His Father. We come to the One who cannot be deterred in wanting to be with us and give Himself to us. 

And so we continue in eternal life as we began—by coming to Jesus. Receiving what He gives is both the initial gateway into and the continuing pathway for life in Christ. Coming to Jesus, learning from Him and taking His yoke is the way forward into the glorious mysteries, “for eye has not seen, nor ear heard the things which God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). 

Jesus finds pleasure when you receive what He paid the price to give. He never tires of your coming. It saddens Him to see you alone and trying to fend for yourself. No matter who the world says you are or what you have done, He wants you. Jesus isn’t put off by your sins, troubles, or partial belief. He doesn’t get frustrated with you after a while and wish you would stop pestering Him. You can’t shut down His passion for your wholeness. 

Just as cancer doesn’t put off a surgeon, sin doesn’t put off God. The surgeon is pleased when people come for life-saving operations. The patient’s coming actually allows the doctor to do what he wants to do. 

Jesus is so pleased when you come to Him; it lets Him do His healing, transforming work. When you bring yourself to Him, it satisfies His longing for your wholeness. His joy and ours rise together as He gives and we receive. 

And so we come to the One who restores our souls and frees us to be the people He created us to be. We come and trust we will hear His voice. Then we come and ask that we will live in obedience to what we have just heard. We say, “I surrender all” and we mean it. And later we pray it again, but this time “all” somehow means more than it did before. We give our life to Him and He takes that life, works Himself into us and gives it back to us to live in oneness with Him. God grows us, not by making us self-sufficient, but by bringing us to know His sufficiency. Religion and the world are forever suggesting that we need to do something to improve ourselves—to contribute to our growth—to better please God. But it is our coming to God that pleases Him. Think of the father’s joy upon the prodigal’s return. 

We are right with God, not when we get our act together, but when we come in honest acknowledgement that we were never meant to make it on our own—that we need continual care, courage, guidance … love. 

We were made for relationship with our Creator. We were made to live in the stream of God’s grace —by letting Him lead in the dance of life. Over and over again, we come to Jesus and accept his invitation to partner with Him in life. 

Nothing pleases Jesus more than that you come and receive what He freely gives because in coming and receiving you become your true self—the person He created you to be. He takes your stresses, anxieties, and worries and asks you to learn of His gentle and humble ways. He gives rest for your soul as you take His yoke and join in His life. 

Ponder for a Moment 

Come to Jesus. 

Repeat and repeat and repeat ….

Day 40

Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people. But the LORD will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you. (Isaiah 60:1–2) 

“Arise, shine; for your light has come!” Arise in the light of our Father’s adoring gaze. Shine with the knowledge that you are His beloved—treasured, valued, precious, and adored. 

“The glory of the LORD has risen upon you”—not as you hope to be someday, but as you are right now. Our Father shares His glory—His nature of lovingkindness—with you. He created you to be like His Son. 

“Darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people.” That darkness will seek to gain a foothold in your soul. Satan is consumed with hatred of all things good—especially the “very good” of you. He will seek to smother God’s glory by twisting your thoughts and destroying your life and witness on earth. As believers, we are in a monumental battle. 

But light shines best in total darkness. Through it all the promise remains. “The LORD will arise over you and His glory will be seen upon you.” 

And so, in the confusion and hatred of the world—in famines, pandemics, and wars—we cling to God’s Word. “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? … Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Romans 8:35, 37). We cling to God’s promises and know that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. We bring our thoughts into agreement with what God says: 

“His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him” (2 Peter 1:3). We will be “filled to all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:19). “When He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” (1 John 3:2). “As He [Jesus] is so also are we in this world” (1 John 3:17). “We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Romans 8:37). 

We are more than conquers by believing God and living out all that He has promised for us. We triumph by bringing light into the darkness of our trials and exalting Him above the mountain of our afflictions. In the face of all Satan throws at us, in the darkest circumstances of our lives, we win by laying down our wants and choosing God’s will (God’s way of love) above our own. “Love never fails” (1 Corinthians 13:8). 81 

Jesus did this. And we shall do the same. 

Creation longs that we rise and shine in the likeness of God’s Son. “The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God” (Romans 8:18–19). 

I want to encourage you. You are here, now, in this hour of history to live as the beloved son/ daughter of God you were created to be. You are here to resonate with Jesus and radiate His life—His glory—to the world. 

I wish I could sit with you and hear your story. I wish I could watch through the words of this devotional and see you overcome the enemy’s lies, arise in bold assurance and shine with the goodness of God. 

Life on this planet is your opportunity to live out God’s will—to bring God’s will to earth. God’s glory is upon you as you go about your everyday “ordinary” life in the extra ordinary life of God. You are light in the darkness. You are a spirit-soul-body channel of God’s love. Our Father manifests His love to the world through His Son, and He manifests His love today, in the chaos and evil of this world, through you. 

Ponder for a Moment 

“Arise, shine for your light has come!” 

How are you personally challenged and encouraged by these words? 

May the Holy Spirit strengthen you in the tears and triumphs of the days ahead. May your eyes be opened and your soul restored so that you see our Father as He really is. May Jesus’ love fill your heart and pour from you so that all people everywhere are encouraged to come and see that “God is love.” 

Onward precious beloved. Amen. Amen. And Amen.