Monday, March 13, 2023 Some material taken from NAMB Who’s Your One 40 day devotional
Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." JOHN 14:6, CSB
Worthy of the Greatest Love
With the influence of social media today, a lot of us feel like we do not measure up or are not worthy compared to the rest of the world. We see what others post that, most of the time, is not the true representation. There are filters and all kinds of things we can do to the pictures we take to make them look better than real life. We post the best moments and the prettiest parts of our days, and even people who know us well may not know the truth of our struggles and failures.
By default, our hearts want to justify ourselves through our accomplishments. We sweat, strive and toil to prove to ourselves, the world and God we are worthy. We are worthy of affection and love. We are worthy of honor and recognition. We are worthy of admiration and esteem.
But the only way to God is outside of ourselves. While not altogether worthless, our striving is but vapor before the face of a holy and perfect God. The good news we bring to our friends and family who do not know Jesus is that the only way to the Father is through Jesus. We come to the feet of Jesus as our true selves: broken, tired and in need of restoration, and it is here we see Him as “the way, the truth and the life.” He wants us exactly as we are, filter free. He is not interested in how beautiful our home is or how perfect our lives look. He loves us exactly as we are and calls us His own. Even in our sin, He just wants us to come. He takes care of the rest. Our way to God is found outside of ourselves, and on this path, we find joy in the fact that we can never lose what we did not earn.
Identify what your one may use—esteem, recognition, power, etc.—to justify themselves. Tell them how loved they are and that no matter what they have or have not done, Jesus wants them to come to Him. Even if others have rejected them and said they are not worthy, Jesus loved them enough to die for them. Share with them the good news that because of His sacrifice, Jesus offers us rest from endless striving.
In their case, the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For we are not proclaiming ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’s sake. For God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of God’s glory in the face of Jesus Christ. 2 CORINTHIANS 4:4-6, CSB
Lord, cause the light of Your glory to shine in the life of . I know the clearest reflection of that glory is seen in Jesus Christ. Help _____________ see Jesus clearly. For this to happen, I ask for boldness to speak of Jesus and help him/her understand who Jesus is and what He came to do. Bring to my mind Scripture and stories of Jesus that will help me talk about Him in a way that puts Your glory on display. Remove the blinders Satan has created to blind him/her to the beauty of Jesus. Use other people and circumstances to cause _________________ to consider the truth of Jesus. I trust that You will cause light to shine into his/her darkness as a result.
