Reading your Bible for Today April 7

April 7: Titus 2:11-15

Key Verse: Titus 2:13
looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ

Devotion:
What a glorious age we live in, under the grace of God. A grace that abounds. A grace which covers all. A grace for everyone. A grace which is freely given. But that same grace is not something we should just treat like some other thing which we take for granted in our lives. Far too many people are taking God’s grace for granted whilst others are not actually sure they are living under His grace.

When we know Christ in a personal relationship, we understand that we live within His grace. If we are living in that grace, then should we not be acting like we are living there? To live in His grace means we need to put aside our ways of ungodliness, our lustful ways and take on the ways which He wants us to live by. To live discreetly, righteously and godly. Yes, we will be living exactly that way in heaven, but whilst we are here in amongst everyone else living in their own earthly ways, we need to set an example by which others can identify us as living under His grace. What use is any of this if nobody else can see we are living under His grace?

We are living in hope, by faith; but also knowing He will return because this is what He has promised us. He is the one who set the example in the first place by giving Himself up on the cross just for us. We did not know Him. We did not care. We may as well have been one of the Roman soldiers dishing out the punishment... Yet He was still willing to give up His life hoping we would see what we are doing and turn to Him in sorrow and grief, begging for His forgiveness. He has shown us His faith in us by giving us the choice to follow or reject. All we need to do is to show Him our faith by following what we cannot see.

Christ has set the example by which we should live. He has set the example of love which we should follow. He knows we cannot fully live up to His standard, that is why He gave His life for us on the cross. But that does not mean we should ignore His standard.

Points to Ponder:
Do you feel left out when your friends do not include you?

How can we feel left out with God when He gave it up for everyone?