Author: mary

God’s grace is like the ocean, spread out reaching as far as it can. With every tide, it washes over those who are in need of His presence and mercy. His grace is for anyone with a pulse who is willing to give up their own control. 2 Corinthians 4:15 says, “All of this is for your benefit. And as God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory.”

The angels rejoice when someone comes to know Christ. Every time God pours out His grace and people accept the salvation of His Son, there is much rejoicing and thanksgiving. God’s grace is for every person, no matter what they have done, where they have been, or who they are. God looks down and sees His image; He sees people in need of His loving grace. God, in His kindness, gave His grace freely. It cost us nothing, but it cost Him everything. He gave His beloved Son so that we may be with Him in eternity. When we come to know Him, we give Him glory. It is all for His glory.

May you experience His grace and mercy today if you do not know Him in a personal way. If you do know Him, then extend that same grace to those around you whether they deserve it or not. After all, He has extended it to you.

When this world is over and it is time for Jesus to return, we will know that the promise the Apostle Paul makes in 2 Corinthians 4:14 will come to fruition: “We know that God, who raised the Lord Jesus, will also raise us with Jesus and present us to himself together with you.”

This is the promise that we can cling to as Christians. We know that just as God raised Jesus from the dead, He can raise us as well when Jesus returns. We will be caught up with Him and taken to heaven to live with Him for all eternity. This was His plan from the beginning of time. His plan was never for man to continue to live in sin, but to be rescued and given new life and the promise of eternity.

Do you believe Him and what He says about eternity? Do you believe that He is the God He says He is? Do you truly believe that He raised Jesus from the dead? There are many religions that do not believe this key event. It is what separates Christianity from the rest of religions. If you believe this simple truth, then you can also hold on to the truth that He will raise you to live too in eternity with Him.

King David had a very intimate relationship with the Lord. In Psalm 116:10 he said, “I believed in you, so I said, ‘I am deeply troubled, Lord.'” Paul quotes this verse in 2 Corinthians 4:13: “But we continue to preach because we have the same kind of faith the psalmist had when he said, “I believed in God, so I spoke.” What kind of relationship is this?

David had the kind of Relationship with God that he could talk and God would listen. He was so close to the Lord that He valued what the Lord said. He listened to the Lord and the Lord listened to Him. He shared His deepest feelings with the Lord. He went to the Lord before he went to anyone else. Paul admired the relationship David had with God the Father and explains that in 2 Corinthians 4:13. He describes His faith as being like David’s. He spoke confidently to the Lord because He believed in Him.

As a child of God, we can speak to God in the same way, as though He is a friend or family member. We can share when we are afraid or frustrated, or we can share any other type of emotion. We can speak to Him knowing that He will listen. When Christ died on the cross, He tore the veil between God and man. We can communicate freely with Him because Jesus made a way. When we pray, the Holy Spirit will intercede for us and help us know what to say.

Serving Jesus Christ means that we may face dangers. Look at the life of Paul. From the minute he was converted to Christ, he began experiencing harm and despair. However, he did not count it as despair. He pressed on to know Christ more and more. The more he knew about Christ, the more he shared it with the world around him. This was his attitude in 2 Corinthians 4:11-12: “Yes, we live under constant danger of death because we serve Jesus, so that the life of Jesus will be evident in our dying bodies. So we live in the face of death, but this has resulted in eternal life for you.” His constant state of danger resulted in eternal life. It also resulted in the salvation of many.

While God may not be calling you to put yourself in the middle of danger, He may be calling you to endure and persevere trials and persecution. Maybe He is calling you to take a stand at your job for what is right. Maybe He is calling you to defend the poor and helpless. Maybe He is calling you into a life of missions, spreading the gospel from nation to nation.

Whatever He is calling you to, have the attitude of Paul. Say, “Yes, Lord,” and follow Him wherever He is leading. Consider others’ lives more valuable than your own and the gospel message more important than anything else. When you do, you will carry the cross of Christ with you wherever you go.

We were never made for this world. We were created for heaven, to live in eternity with God the Father forever. Once sin crept into this world, our bodies began to decay. We are meant for heaven, our permanent home, but we are residing in these temporary bodies. So while we are on this earth, we will experience heartache, troubles, and suffering.

2 Corinthians 4:10 says, “Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.” Everyday our bodies inch closer and closer to death. We suffer in this life because this life is only temporary. When Paul said that through suffering, we share in the death of Christ, he was showing how the death of Christ was what motivated his life. It spurred him on to serve and love others. The life of Christ was vibrant in the life of Paul. He was willing to die for his faith because his Savior died for him. There was nothing in this life that could shake Paul because he carried the death of Christ with him.

So while we live in this world, we will experience suffering, but when we carry the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ within us, we will live for Christ, serve for Christ, love others like Christ.