Note from Jesus
Dear Faithful Follower,
One of David’s most beautiful praise songs, (Psalm 139:1-24), speaks of the abiding presence of your Father in heaven with His children — with you. He knows you inside and out. He knows your thoughts from afar. He knew you when you were unseen and unfelt in your mother’s womb. From your conception, He had a plan for your life and a purpose for your time on earth. There is no place that you can go that the presence of your loving Father will not be with you to sustain you as His beloved child. This great psalm has comforted believers for centuries. I hope you will read it several times today and be reminded of how much you are loved by Us — Father, Son, and Spirit.
The apostle Paul also has a chapter in his letter to My followers in Rome that speaks about Our presence in your life through the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:1-39). The language that Paul uses is complementary to the language of David, and it is equally as beautiful and reassuring. Here are some of the statements of assurance that Paul gives you in the verses below. He writes these things to help you live as a true child of the Father while you live in a broken world longing for your ultimate redemption:
- There is no need to fear because We — Father, Son, and Spirit — are on your side in all of your battles.
- The Father longs to bless you with everything you need to be My disciple, to conform you to My example, and to bring you into My inheritance.
- The Father has declared you “not guilty” so that no one can bring a meaningful charge against you.
- No matter what happens, you will share in My victory.
- Nothing, absolutely nothing, can come between you and the love that We have for you.
- The Father has revealed this love to you and given you assurance of it through what I did to save you.
“But no matter what comes,” Paul says in the conclusion to all these promises, you “will always taste victory through Him [the Father] Who loved us. For I have every confidence that nothing… can come between us and the love of God revealed in the Anointed, Jesus our Lord.”
How can you know this is true?
How can you trust in these great promises?
I provided the assurance you need to answer these questions by becoming flesh, facing temptation, dealing with the fickleness and unfaithfulness of friends, facing persecution and ridicule, dying as a criminal would die, and being raised victoriously from death. I came to your world and faced your life’s struggles so that you could know I understand them. That understanding isn’t just based on My being God. My understanding involves being mortal and vulnerable so that through death I could conquer the power of sin, death, and hell. I did all of this so you could know that there is not a place I will not go to redeem you, reclaim you, and restore you to My presence. And I sent you the Spirit as a guarantee of these promises to you (Ephesians 1:13-14; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22).
Verses to Live
The message I want you to hear today is simple, yet profound. You are loved by Us — Father, Son, and Spirit. We will never abandon you. No one and nothing can separate you from Our love. So be confident in the Father’s love, My commitment to helping you, and the Holy Spirit’s presence within you. The apostle Paul spoke the same way about this to you. I want you to believe it! There is absolutely no one and absolutely nothing that can separate you from Our love for you!
So what should we say about all of this? If God is on our side, then tell me: whom should we fear? If He did not spare His own Son, but handed Him over on our account, then don’t you think that He will graciously give us all things with Him? Can anyone be so bold as to level a charge against God’s chosen? Especially since God’s “not guilty” verdict is already declared. Who has the authority to condemn? Jesus the Anointed Who died, but more importantly, conquered death when He was raised to sit at the right hand of God where He pleads on our behalf. So who can separate us? What can come between us and the love of God’s Anointed? Can troubles, hardships, persecution, hunger, poverty, danger, or even death? The answer is, absolutely nothing. As the psalm says,
On Your behalf, our lives are endangered constantly; we are like sheep awaiting slaughter.
But no matter what comes, we will always taste victory through Him Who loved us. For I have every confidence that nothing — not death, life, heavenly messengers, dark spirits, the present, the future, spiritual powers, height, depth, nor any created thing — can come between us and the love of God revealed in the Anointed, Jesus our Lord.
(Romans 8:31-39)
Response in Prayer
O Father of grace, in Your mercy You have repeatedly demonstrated Your love for me. I trust that You are near me no matter what happens in my life or how I feel at the moment. I thank You for the empowering presence of Your Holy Spirit to heal, renew, and abide within me. I pray for strength to believe the truths I have heard from Your word — to believe not just in the good and easy times, but also in the hardest and most trying moments of my life. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
‘A Year with Jesus’ is written by Phil Ware.
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All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved.