Our Hope: Jesus Gives Life

“The thief does not come except to steal, kill, and to destroy.  I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”
John 10:10 (NKJV)

We know that God created us and gave us life.  Genesis 1:7 says, “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.”

But it didn’t take long for man to fall from grace.  He and the woman God created for him sinned right there in the Garden.  They listened to the serpent, ate the forbidden fruit, and were banished from Eden.  Since then, life has been difficult for all mankind.  But God did not desert; He did not abandon; He did not leave man alone.  He waited for the appropriate time, and as He waited, He put a wonderful plan into place. He prepared a way, an escape from sin for the people He loved.  All of this was done in love, not in anger for man’s fall, but because He cared for His creation, for each and every soul.

When we spend time reading the Old Testament, we can visualize this plan.  We can trace important events.  We can see how God used different people at different times, to fulfill His plan.  We read of blessings and curses, and of God’s faithfulness to those who loved Him.  But we can also see the great gulf between man and God.  We learn of rituals and methods of pleasing God.  We see how difficult it was for people to keep The Law, as it was at that time, all they had to live by.  But we also catch glimpses of God inserting Himself into their lives in so many different ways.  He knew they needed hope, and it was His plan to provide it to them.

“And He was numbered with the transgressors, and He bore the sin of many, and He made intercession for the transgressors.”  Isaiah 53:12b

God was sending a Savior.  He was sending the replacement, if you will, of all the animals that man was required to offer to God in sacrifice, to atone for their sins.  He was disclosing throughout history that a Messiah was on His way, to relieve the sin burden of people who would choose Him.  God was giving hope, even to those who would not live to see it come to pass.

But that is and always has been our God, to bring hope to the hopeless, even in those times before a Savior was in place.  The Lamb of God would bring light to the fallen world, and in that process, He would bring new life as well, life that was abundant and good.

It is a different life.  It is more than just breathing, eating, sleeping, enjoying it or suffering in it.  It is LIVING.  This life is one that holds expectation in every new day, and excitement for all the possibilities that are in His hands.  It is the prospect of eternal life, and it is the removal of fear of death and the unknown.

Jesus is Our Hope.  He is our life.  He is our yesterdays, our todays, and our tomorrows.  He is everything to us–or He should be.  If you don’t know Him and all He has for you, reach out to Him now.  He will hear your prayer of repentance.  He will answer your call for help.  He will reassure you that He is faithful, and will gladly take on your burdens.  If you already know Him, then you are already enjoying His promise. For He is Jesus, and He is life!

If you have a testimony of this life that Jesus has given you, please share it with us at www.mystoryofgrace.com.  We want to celebrate with you! Tell about how Jesus has changed your life!

Blessings!