I have to make myself stop and consider what they mean, and ask God to renew a passion for every word in His love letters to me. I suppose it is a human condition, and I can choose whether to be lazy or to do the work to search for worth. Today’s one of those days. A holy nation? Doesn’t sound intriguing or dynamic at first glance. Surely there is a reason The Lord wants me to know this. So, I choose right now to yield to Him once again.
Abba, you are so
pure and perfect and just. I don’t deserve good, but you cause goodness and
mercy to follow me because you love me. I yield to you, setting aside my
emotions and thoughts that aren’t aligned with truth. Teach me what it means to
be a holy nation, and it is important to know. Have your way in me today. In
Jesus’ name…
“But
you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A
HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God’s OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim
the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous
light; for you once were NOT A PEOPLE, but now you are THE PEOPLE OF GOD; you
had NOT RECEIVED MERCY, but now you have RECEIVED MERCY.”
--1 Peter 2:9-10 This link shows
NASB, NLT, and The Message.
Nation is a pretty simple concept. We have become one
kingdom and we belong to God… in the next post, we’ll look at being God’s own possession.
I want to spend some time looking at “holy,” which is where so often our
eyes gloss over. Surely I’m not the only
one who gets so used to terminology that I have to force myself to ponder it
anew.
Why did God choose
us and make us holy?
1.
So that we would be holy and blameless (Ephesians 1:4,
Ephesians 5:27, Colossians 1:22, 1 Corinthians 3:17)
2.
So that – and here is the beauty – He could be with us: individually and corporately (one body). Now that we
are made holy and blameless in Christ Jesus, His Spirit can live in us. (Ephesians
2:21, 1 Corinthians 6:19, 1 Peter 2:5)
This is so important… Our knight in shining armor –
our very own Prince came to earth to remove all barriers, so that we could
always be with Him in spirit and in truth. We have a heavenly Father who is always with us, not only watching over
us, but also speaking to us through His Holy Spirit.
Under the Law of Moses, only one person could enter
The Lord’s presence, once a year. The High Priest had to undergo strict rules
to be made holy, or he would die in God’s presence. God is so pure and set
apart (holy) from us, that only by blood covering our sins can we be
made holy and enter His presence. (Thank you, Jesus!)
Oh, my sweet
heavenly Papa. Thank you for Jesus. Thank you for your love letter to me,
teaching me truth that I can stand firm on. Thank you for destroying all
barriers to our love story - making me holy so we can be together forever. Truly,
you’ve given me such a beautiful love story. I once was lost, ashamed, and
afraid in a forest of sin and death. Then you sent my Prince, and we will live
happily ever after! May your light and truth shine brightly through my life,
that all around me would see Jesus. In His name…
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