See, the Sovereign Lord comes with power, and he rules with a mighty arm. See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him. He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young. (Isaiah 40:10-11 NIV)
How do you see God? How do you believe He sees you?
Almighty God is sovereign and He is all-powerful. Yet, He cares for us, His flock, as a shepherd. He protects, leads, and comforts us. When we are weak and in need of assistance, He is there to help us. When life’s path becomes too tough, He carries us to safety. He doesn’t carry us at arm’s length, instead, He holds us close to His heart – in His bosom.
When we make mistakes, or feel that we don’t measure up to a certain standard, we may assume that we have let God down. We may even come to the conclusion that God will harshly or unfairly punish us for those transgressions. Being confident in His love for us, despite our weaknesses, helps us to keep a positive perspective on that. He is a holy God and is all-sufficient. He does not NEED us for any reason or purpose, but He does CHOOSE us.
Galatians 4:4-7 NIV) says, “But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.”
Being God’s child and His heir is made possible for us by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It means many wondrous things, but one of those things is that He embraces us warmly and tenderly as His own. He sees and knows all that we have done; good or bad, but He loves and accepts us anyway. He invites us to come to Him, through His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, and enjoy an intimate relationship with Him, as we see in Hebrews 4:14-16 (NIV), “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven,Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
My prayer is, heavenly Father, we all have shortcomings, and others will be quick at times to tell us that we are unworthy of Your love. You tell us in Your Word that You love us. Through Your Son, Jesus Christ, You accept, forgive and choose us. You are awesome and holy and we praise Your holy name. Thank you for dealing with us in love, grace and mercy instead of holding my weakness against me. Please help us to come to you more readily and boldly, so that You can empower us to be strong instead of weak. In Jesus’ name, AMEN.
