http://i799.photobucket.com/albums/yy280/ICAdoral/Grace%20Devotional%20500%20px%20email%20header_zpsihzvrqos.jpg

 

 

 

The Promise

Monday November 09, 2015

God never promised that the followers of Jesus would not suffer bad things. On the contrary, it was Jesus who said: “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” God never promised the followers of Jesus that they would never get sick and neither did He promise to heal everyone that got sick. God heals some and others He chooses no to heal. God never promised everyone that followed Jesus riches. God allows some to become rich and others are allowed to suffer needs. Finally, God never promised in this present life to reverse the consequences of our past sins or bad decisions; there are times when He does and there are times when He does not. What God has promised is a place, which He is preparing for us where we will live with Him. In this place, there are no more hard times, illnesses, or needs. It is a place where we will no longer have to live with the consequences of our past sins or bad decisions. That is heaven, but we are still on earth!

Heaven sounds like a great place but what do I do in the meantime? What do I do when there are bills to pay but not enough money to pay them? What should I do when the doctors diagnose me with a debilitating illness that has no cure? What do I do when as a follower of Jesus my life becomes more difficult because I cannot behave as others do? People who do not follow Jesus can cheat, lie, and steal their way through hard times. The answer is simple: bring all of your requests to God. We can ask anything of God but we must understand He has not promised to grant us everything we ask for. There are those who might ask: what is the point in following Jesus if when I need Him most He can deny my request? Why follow Him?

God never promised to grant us our requests when we most need Him. God made a bigger promise than that. God has promised us a new and perfect place called heaven. In the meanwhile, while we wait and suffer all kinds of hardships, God has promised us mercy and grace.

Hebrews 4:14-16 NLT

 So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.

God may not grant us everything we ask for. God offers us something much better, complete and total access to his throne no matter what you have gone through or what you have done. God has assured us that every time we approach his throne, He will give us mercy and grace. Mercy means that no matter what our sins might be, when we genuinely ask for forgiveness He will forgive. Grace means that He will be with us no matter what we are going through.

This combination of mercy and grace means that He will forgive and may even grant our request. It also means that if He declines to give us our request He will give us strength and walk with us through any adversities. God’s promise to us is that He will help us when we need it most.