Top o' the Tuesday to you! Did you determine to get to bed on time last night, even if it meant clubbing yourself over the head to get to sleep? Making the time adjustment sometimes involves drastic measures. I did manage to get to bed and go to sleep, and it did make a difference this morning. The warm day yesterday meant time to start cleaning up the shrubbery... and this morning I get to pay for doing motions my body has not done for a while. Getting older hurts in so many ways. Tylenol, it's what's for breakfast as you grow older!
The battle of wills continues. The cat sneaks under my bed to make a nest, and I try to prevent the ensuing mess. Praise the Lord that her nemesis, the vacuum cleaner, is on my side. My Compact Oxford English Dictionary defines nemesis as: a means of punishment or downfall that is deserved and unavoidable. If you believe the Bible, you can see that God has no nemesis, but the Devil does have a nemesis. Which side would you choose to be on? Jesus has no nemesis, though the world may believe otherwise. According to the Bible, Jesus lived a sinless life and was not born into Original Sin, therefore he deserved no punishment. Jesus also chose to sacrifice his life willingly, which is not a downfall. What is frightening is that those who have sinned or have been born into Original Sin do have a nemesis. There is an agent who is a means of punishment and downfall that none can avoid.
Do we despair then? Is all hope lost? Not quite, what if the punishment demanded by our nemesis was taken by someone else? A person who lived the perfect sinless life and was not born under the curse of Adam's sin might serve as a sacrifice on our behalf like the Passover lamb did for the Israelites. That same Bible tells us who the Lamb of God is and how he died for our sins and took the punishment in our place. If we choose to believe the Bible, we get it all. A nemesis that demands our punishment and downfall, but also a Savior who died to atone for that sin. No longer do those who believe in Jesus have a nemesis! The deserved punishment and unavoidable downfall has been paid for by another!
As the clouds of darkness give way to the light of Jesus, we can see that the clouds were the smoke of Hell that blotted out the light. When you came to Jesus and accepted his salvation, you also began to realize just how close the hell fires were to receiving you for all eternity. Each one of us has been literally snatched from the jaws of eternal death by our Lord Jesus. Like little lost lambs we wandered in darkness, each seeking his own way, but lost nonetheless. Into that darkness came a great light as the prophet Isaiah wrote centuries ago. Those living in darkness have seen a great light, but not all will come to that light. Jesus, who John pointed out as the light of the world, also told us that many would stay in the darkness.
We use the phrase lightly as we do many words today, but we all know someone who has refused to see the light. Prayer and supplication is not for our personal needs alone; bring the tools of our trade to bear on the matter. Let God know that you care enough for that unsaved friend to kneel down in prayer and supplication for his or her eternal soul. We may never be called to show the greatest love by laying down our life for a friend, but we can show love by giving time in prayer and supplication for that friend. As Jesus told us, God sees that effort and love. Perhaps you know of a friend who could use some intercession between him and a coming nemesis today.
Have a wonderful spring-like day today!
Bucky
P.S. ...and try to not overdo it on the yard work!
No comments:
Post a Comment