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UNTO HIM THAT LOVED US IN TEN WAYS!
Revelation 1:5 (KJV) - And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, 6. And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
...unto Him that LOVED US... That phrase got me thinking. Past tense or perhaps present perfect)... not sure here. Nevertheless He LOVED US! I KNOW He loves us right now, but In what ways did He love us in the past tense? That seemed to be what struck me at the moment. (Of course, in context here, the CROSS where He shed His blood was the ULTIMATE MASTER STROKE of His love toward us. And for you and I that happened before we were even born.). But IN WHAT OTHER WAYS DID HE LOVE US? Hence the following meditations:
1. Unto Him that loved us by PLANNING to create us from eternity past! He loved you when you were just an exciting IDEA in His heart and infinite mind! See Romans 8:29-30. You were "ALWAYS ON HIS MIND." Incredible the mere thought of it! Blows me away!
2. Unto Him that loved us by CREATING us in our mothers womb. Read Psalm 139! See Jeremiah 1:4-5. It required the hand of God to cause a living spirit to join your mother's egg and your father's sperm into the miracle called YOU! Without Him breathing spirit into that union at that very moment, you would have NEVER come into being! This is PROOF of God's incredible love for you! Even medical research alone states that the chances of you even existing are billions to one!
3. Unto Him that loved us by causing us to ARRIVE at the exact moment in history He designed us for. See Esther 4:14. Scripture is copiously replete with verses that declare God's perfect timing concerning each event and each person. That you are living in this particular generation and were born on a particular date in a particular year is NO ACCIDENT, even if your parents didn't discern it as so! You SHOWED UP in the plan of God ON TIME! Now get busy for the Master!
4. Unto Him that loved us by shedding all His blood for us on Calvary, dying on the CROSS - THE ULTIMATE STROKE OF LOVE... that is the winderful truth highlighted here in the rest of this verse!
5. Unto Him that loved us, DRAWING us to Himself by the Holy Spirit. See John 6:44. On your own, you could have NEVER come to repentance and faith in Christ. NO WAY! Even if your salvation was a subtle experience or a childhood experience, it is nothing short of a MIRACLE! Only the DRAWING POWER of the Holy Spirit wooing you, seducing you (if you will), romancing you, convincing you, persuading you, alerting you, warning you, LOVING YOU could have ever brought you to Jesus! Now this is LOVE INDEED!
6. Unto Him that loved us by giving us a NEW BIRTH at the moment we called on His name!
His LOVE made you His NEW CREATION SENSATION!
2 Corinthians 5:17-18 (KJV) - Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation...
2 Corinthians 5:17-18 (CJB) - Therefore, if anyone is united with the Messiah, he is a new creation—the old has passed; look, what has come is fresh and new! 18 And it is all from God, who through the Messiah has reconciled us to himself and has given us the work of that reconciliation...
2 Corinthians 5:17-18 (GW) - Whoever is a believer in Christ is a new creation. The old way of living has disappeared. A new way of living has come into existence. 18 God has done all this. He has restored our relationship with him through Christ, and has given us this ministry of restoring relationships.
2 Corinthians 5:17-18 (MSG) - Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it! 18 All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other.
7. Unto Him that loved us by FILLING US and INDWELLING US and BEFRIENDING US with the precious Holy Spirit. See 2 Corinthians 13:14 and Philippians 2:1. COMMUNION WITH AND FELLOWSHIP WITH the Holy Spirit! Indeed, "What a friend we have in Jesus... via the Holy Spirit at the right hand of the believer and INDWELLING the believer!
8. Unto Him that loved and LOVES us by answering our PRAYERS. See John 16:26-27.
9. Unto Him that loved us enough to give us the SCRIPTURES as our Manufacturer's Operator's Manual, our freshly written Love Letter from Heaven to read each day! See Psalm 119:105. THY WORD IS A LAMP UNTO MY FEET AND A LIGHT UNTO MY PATH!
10. Unto Him that loved us enough to tell us the END FROM THE BEGINNING! We WON because we see God's original intent in the Book of Genesis! WE WON at Calvary! WE WIN NOW because of Jesus' ministry at the right hand of the Father! And we ULTIMATELY WIN! Resurrected, glorified bodies and eternal purpose! Like you've heard it said: "I've read the END of THE BOOK (Revelation) and it says. WE WIN! I WIN! YOU WIN!
UNTO HIM THAT LOVED US IN TEN WAYS!
Jeremiah 31:3 (KJV) - The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.
EXPECT LOVE, LOVE, and MORE LOVE
Jeremiah 31:3 (MSG) - ...GOD told them, “I've never quit loving you and never will. Expect love, love, and more love!
Revelation 1:5 (KJV) - And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, 6. And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
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