Benediction

May 27, 2019

Benediction

“This is my Son, chosen and marked by my love, delight of my life.”

Matthew 3:17 (MSG)

The word benediction literally means to say good things. Our model for a benediction in our spiritual lives is the voice of God speaking to Jesus after he was baptized by John: “The moment Jesus came up out of the baptismal waters, the skies opened up and he saw God’s Spirit—it looked like a dove—descending and landing on him. And along with the Spirit, a voice: “This is my Son, chosen and marked by my love, delight of my life” (Matthew 3:16-17 MSG). Through this benediction, God commissioned Jesus for his ministry on earth.

Jesus’ ministry and the New Testament letters make known to us that this benediction is not only for Jesus but also for all who follow him.  Noted theologian and scholar, Bishop N.T. Wright, says that at the heart of the gospel proclaimed by the Apostle Paul is the fact that “what is true for the Messiah is true of his people.” Wright explains this truth this way: “the Messiah died, so his people die in him, sharing his suffering; the Messiah rose again, so his people rise again in him, knowing the power of the resurrection to comfort and heal, already in present time, and cherishing the hope that one day they will be given new, resurrection bodies like the one the Messiah himself has now” (Tom Wright, Paul for Everyone 2 Corinthians (London, SPCK) p.4).

 Do you honestly believe that what is true of Jesus is true for you? I know it is a huge leap of faith to so believe, but this is the message of scripture. God’s mercies begin afresh each morning (Lamentations 3:23), and every morning God’s speaks afresh to you, “This is my child, chosen and marked by my love, delight of my life.”

My Takeaway: Join me today and take a leap of faith and choose to live in God’s benediction for us: “You are my child, chosen and marked by my love, delight of my life.”

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Copyright © 2019 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Free to Love

May 24, 2019

Free to Love

“So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”

John 13:34

God created us with a seemingly insatiable need for love, acceptance and a sense of self-worth. These needs seem insatiable because we are in the grips of cultural conditioning that teaches us to meet our needs out of our own abilities and strength, through performance-based acceptance, and through our own accumulation of successes. Despite our best efforts we can never quite get to the place where we can rest, and thus we continue to strive to meet our needs. Our quest is like trying to quench our thirst by drinking sea water. Eventually we come to the place where we cry out with the Apostle Paul, “Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life . . .” (Romans 7:24). When we do we will come to the same conclusion as Paul, “Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 7:25).

The answer for meeting our needs for love, acceptance and worth are found in this truth: until you know who you are in Christ, you cannot love; you can only take. Jesus is free to love us unconditionally because he is not dependent on our love. His needs for love, acceptance and worth are fully satisfied by God’s love for him. Until we know that in Christ, we are the beloved child of God, with whom He is delighted and upon whom His favor rests, we will always try to take from the persons and events in our lives anything that we think will satisfy our need for love.

Take time to consider the driving ambition in your profession and avocations. Consider your interpersonal relationships. In what ways are you dependent on them? How often are your words carefully crafted to curry favor with others? The more we are dependent on the praise of others, the more we strive to avoid criticism or rejection by others, the less we are resting in God’s unconditional love for us.

My Takeaway: The converse is just as true. The more I learn to rest in God’s never-ending love and acceptance of me, the less dependent I become on other people to satisfy my needs, and the more I become free to love.

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Copyright © 2019 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Freedom

May 23, 2019

Freedom

So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.

John 8:36

“For freedom Christ has set us free” (Galatians 5:1a NRSV). Jesus has set us free from sin and free for life as his followers. By his death, resurrection and ascension, he has set us free from sin and death: “And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death” (Romans 8:2). This freedom from sin and death makes possible our relationship with God. We get to be in an everlasting right relationship with our Abba Father because Jesus has set us free from the sin that had separated us from God.

When Jesus walked on earth, he was truly free. His freedom was rooted in his belief that he indeed was the beloved child of God. He knew in the very depths of his being that he belonged to God before he was born, that he was sent into the world to inaugurate God’s New Creation, and that when his mission was completed he would return to God his Father. This abiding belief in his core identity set him free to fulfill God’s purpose.

We too, as the followers of Jesus, are asked by God to accept our core identity as His beloved children with whom He is delighted and upon whom His favor rests. In our acceptance of God’s love, we are set free to fulfill God’s purpose for our lives without regard to popular acclaim, or the lack thereof.

My Takeaway: I have found the following prayer helpful in ordering my life as one who has been set free:

O Lord, how excellent is your name in all the earth;

I worship you. With all angels and saints I adore you.

I acknowledge you to be my Creator and my God.

I render to you the reverence of my being and my life.

I am not my own. I am yours.

By creation and redemption I am yours.

I will devote myself to your service this day and forever.

O Lord, grant grace for this I pray

in the name of my Savior, Christ Jesus.

Amen

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Copyright © 2019 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Unfinished Business

May 22, 2019

Unfinished Business

Jesus said,

“Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.”

Luke 23:34a

Why did Jesus extend forgiveness to those who were murdering him? The murderers neither asked for, nor apparently wanted his forgiveness; in the very next verse we learn the soldiers started gambling for his garments. I have long assumed Jesus’ prayer for forgiveness was an indication that he was so much a better person than those gathered at his feet. Unquestionably that is true, but there was so much more at work in Jesus’ prayer.

Jesus was practicing what he preached; he was praying for his enemies. He also was modeling for us the importance of tending to all of the unfinished business in our lives. When we have been hurt by others, our offer of forgiveness is liberating. Our forgiveness of others enables us to move on with our lives. So also when we have sinned against others, when we seek forgiveness, we are freed to move on with our lives. Either way, our unwillingness to forgive, or to seek forgiveness, keeps us bound in chains to our past.

My Takeaway: Jesus prayed for those who nailed him to the cross. That prayer set him free to offer another prayer a few hours later, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit” (Luke 23:46a NRSV).

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Copyright © 2019 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.