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"He Came unto His own ..."
John 1: 1-14
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There is nothing quite so frustrating as rejection. None of us like it and most of us loathe it. It is humiliating and embarrassing. It is one thing to be rejected by strangers, but a very different thing to be rejected by our friends and family. It is hurtful and some psychologists tell us that it has lifelong ramifications associated with it.
Jesus knows all about rejection. The above scripture lesson is prefaced with these words from John 1:11 "He came unto His own, and His own did not receive Him." Do you hear that? Jesus, the Word of God, the co-eternal creator of the creation (John 1: 1-3; Colossians 1:15-18), came into the very world He had created and was rejected. However, the story that follows is the miracle of Advent.
Advent is all about God coming to humanity with an indescribable gift of redemption even in the face of rejection. Remember what you just read?
"He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
-John 1: 10-14 NASB
This is the great message of Advent and the Christian faith --a message of God's gift of love. God loves us - even "us" who have rejected him. To "us" God offers the possibility of becoming "children of God." The question facing us all is this: How do I become a "child of God"?
Although there are those who proclaim it, not ALL are children of God. We are indeed all the "creation of God," but we are not all the "children of God." We must receive and believe in order to be named as the "children of God." We must "receive Him" through faith and "believe" that Jesus alone is our hope of salvation and deliverance.
Have you done this? Have you come to the place in your life when you have honestly become sickened by your sin and desperate for God's forgiveness? Have you turned to Jesus in absolute faith and surrendered your whole life over to Him? If not, why not pray this prayer right now?
"Dear God, I know I am a sinner and I am sorry for my sins. I realize that I cannot be good enough for you to accept, so today I ask Jesus to come into my life, forgive me of my sins, and make me a child of God. Father, with your help, from this day forward, I will live for you. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. In Jesus' name, Amen.
He came unto His own, and I certainly hope that now you are a "child of God."
Today, if you prayed this prayer or if you have more questions, we'd love to hear from you. Click here for more information or reply to this email.
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