"First Things First" -Again

"He hath shown his people the power of his works, that he may give them the heritage of the heathen." (Psalms 111:6)

 Interesting enough, there is something here that might be easy to explain, something that starts with our new birth in Christ. There is something else that I remember about that day when I accepted Jesus into my heart, I became blessed! That might not seem like much to speak about, but it is more than just a blessing, it is all about going from being cursed to blessed in one single moment. Cain was the first to be born, but Able received God's blessing. There is something very important that is shown to us about the second birth, and it is shown to us more than once. Pastor Matt was sharing on this last week, in reference to Jacob blessing Joseph's two boys, Manasseh and Ephraim. The position that Joseph presented his two boys to his father was for Manasseh to receive the first blessing, seeing that he was the oldest; but Jacob blessed Ephraim first, the second born son. It is simple enough to see, how it is that we were born under the curse; our first birth was not the blessed birth, it is the second birth that brings the blessing. As much as I can remember, I felt as though I went from nothing, to becoming part of a family, a very large and wonderful family of God. I had gone from the darkness to the light, from being dead to life, from bondage to being set free, and from being cursed to being blessed; all in one single moment! That is what it means to be saved, which is something that you cannot experience without saying yes to Jesus and letting Him into your heart. That is what it means to be born again; where the first birth was born under the curse, but the second birth comes with such an amazing blessing. As Pastor Bryan was sharing from John 9 and 10 yesterday, there was one particular verse that really hit home in my heart, it as John 10:9, where Jesus says, "I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture." If there is one thing that I have learned over these last thirty plus years, it is that the Door is always open. That is the other amazing thing about this second birth, He will always welcome me back; no matter how far I might stray, He is always the Door...

"Why, then was the law given? It was given alongside the promise to show people their sins. But the law was designed to last only until the coming of the child who was promised. God gave his law through angels to Moses, who was the mediator between God and the people. Now a mediator is helpful if more than one party must reach an agreement. But God, who is one, did not use a mediator when he gave his promise to Abraham. Is there a conflict, then, between God's law and God's promises? Absolutely not! If the law could give us new life, we could be made right by obeying it. But the Scriptures declare that we are all prisoners of sin, so we receive God's promise of freedom only by believing in Jesus Christ." (Galatians 3:19-22) NLT