"The Day"

 "There laid they Jesus therefore because of the Jews' preparation day; for the sepulchre was nigh at hand." (John 19:42 KJV)

  "For example, there was God's promise to Abraham. Since there was no one greater to swear by, God took an oath in his own name, saying: "I will certainly bless you, and I will multiply your descendants beyond number." Then Abraham waited patiently, and he received what God had promised." (Hebrews 6:13-14 NLT)

 Hope, peace, joy, and love; those are the things which are said to be bestowed upon those who put their trust in the finished work of Christ Jesus. As it goes, all four of those things are given, but they must be used in order to be made manifested in our lives! 

 Case in point: say you have been bestowed with the honor of being chosen for a high office, whatever that office might represent; if you do not feel as though you are worthy, you may not do so well making your position worth the calling, or your performance worth the position you were given. We have these gifts, because we have been made brand-new! The old man is buried with Christ; the new man is risen with Christ, and given a new, glorious position, that is secured in Heaven! 

 Yes, it is true, we are not worthy, but not because we have been given that position; because it was not based upon anything we did! But the thing that matters the most, which we frequently forget the must, is that Christ has made us worthy by the death He suffered upon the cross! What that means, in case you might not have been paying attention: Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love are ours, given with the New Life we have in Christ, which basically means, they do not need to be asked for, they need to be put to use! 

 We must understand what this day represented, the "The Day of Preparation." When you look upon the children of Israel, as they prepared for the journey; they were dressed, their sandals were on their feet, and staff in hand; standing inside their houses, prepared for the very first Passover! God instructed them to be ready, as if they were going to be taken somewhere that night! 

 I know it might be hard to understand it, but if you don't show up, then God can't use you, as you could be used! That might sound incredibly simple and so easy to do; but it is the main thing in just about every situation! Abraham did not go when God first told him to go; but when he did go, God began to do a great work in him. 

 If we are prepared for the journey, then the journey has already begun; now we walk in it...

"I don't mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus is calling us. Let all who are spiritually mature agree on these things. If you disagree on some point, I believe God will make it plain to you. But we must hold on to the progress we have already made." (Philippians 3:12-16 NLT)