So Many Presents (Gifts) in the Summer of 2021!
Would you be able to keep your cool and act ‘all calm’, if this happened to you?
1. Jesus healed the leper. (Luke 5;12)
2. Jesus revealed that He is Messiah to the woman at the well. (John 4:26)
3. Jesus healed a man blind from birth. (John 9:6, 7)
4. Jesus forgave the sins of a paralyzed man then gave him the ability to walk. (Mark 2:4-5)
Imagine, if you can, the first thoughts, emotions, and responses of the folks listed above. What might they have thought? What emotions would they exhibit? What did they do? Does the scripture give any clues as to what they felt or did immediately after receiving these gifts from Jesus?
Wait just a minute! You and I as followers of Jesus have received blessings from Jesus. We too have been given gifts!
I don’t expect you to look up all these references, but if you have time to read even a few of them, you can discover the actual reactions of people blessed with God’s precious gifts of life, healing, forgiveness, and acceptance.
Walk in the Light of Jesus – encounter Him as you read and feel what these may have felt.
· We have forgiveness by grace through faith.
(Ephesians 4:31-32)
· We are being set free to love.
(John 8:31-32; 13: 34, 35)
· We have eternal life in heaven.
(John 1:12-13)
· We will see Him face to face; “we will see Him as He is”.
(1 John 3:2)
· We have a permanent residence not built by hands….no taxes, no pest control contract, nothing to break.
(2 Corinthians 5:1)
· We have a forever family where love abounds all the time. (Galatians 4:1-7; Philippians 1:6)
· We get to know answers to questions that have plagued us down here.
(I Corinthians 13:12)
Do The Book: Walk in the Light of God’s Word – Psalm 107:2 – Let the redeemed of the Lord say so…
You may not have trouble showing emotion and passion, and there may be times when the emotions and passion you show are not be appropriate or helpful. Let your guided response to the miracle work of Jesus in your life be a revelation to you and others. Let them see gratitude, praise, thanksgiving, and joy. Go ahead. It is ok!
Please make sure you respond in quiet worship of the Lord Jesus who suffered for sin, so we wouldn’t have to pay the penalty for our own sins. Praise the one who became sin for us, so that we could be made “right with God”.
Walk in the Light of Real Fellowship with Others
Make sure you give glory and honor to Jesus by telling someone about what you have experienced based on Jesus’ gifts to you. His gifts are real and lasting based on His promises and His integrity. He keeps His word. Hallelujah! (2 Peter 1:3-4)
Are you shouting yet? No, really, what thoughts and emotions are you experiencing? What actions are you doing or considering in response to the gifts God has given to you?
You may be have a calm, quiet personality and others may not see what is happening inside you because you don’t reveal it very often. This time might need to be an exception. Tell somebody; show somebody; hug somebody; look at a person in close relationship to you then tell them what you are thinking and feeling.
Here are some more examples of the gifts we got/get from Jesus:
· You and I have received the revelation that Jesus is Messiah who came to take away the sins of the world. (John 1:29)
· You and I are accepted by the Father because of faith in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Ephesians 1:6)
· We are in a forever family according to God’s promise. (John 14:1-6)