GIVEN UNTO US (PART 1)

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

For to us a child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders.

Isaiah 9:6

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Today starts a series of devotions from Isaiah, Chapter 9, simply titled, “Given Unto Us” as the scriptures reminds us all of how very loved and blessed we are, loved and blessed by an Almighty, Creator God who wished that we might not perish from our sin but rather have the rich opportunity to live with Him forever. This was accomplished through His one and only Son Jesus, freely given unto us to bring salvation and so much more. Today, we will look at one of the things we received through Him: governance. Look at verse 6:

For to us a child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders.

Go to the dictionary and you will find the following definitions for governance:

- The way that a city, company, etc., is controlled by the people who run it.

- The exercise of authority while controlling others.

- The need for governance exists anytime a group of people come together to accomplish an end.

   

God sent His only Son unto us to reign over the world, to bring divine authority and control over a people in need of direction toward righteousness, a people who needed guided from the wide path of destruction paved in wickedness that would lead them to sure death from sin (Matthew 7:13-14). To do something so significant required a power no one earth possessed. Only Jesus could come and rule in a way that would lead the people to God while accomplishing His purposes. This is why God placed the government of His creation on the shoulders of His Son.  is peop

Indeed, Jesus Himself said the following, providing validation and acknowledgement that He was fully and firmly in charge:

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.” Matthew 28:18  

It was by this authority that He lived and led His disciples, leaving behind a legacy of self-sacrificial service and faithfulness to God the Father that we get to carry on, walking in the footsteps of the earliest disciples and all the saints who have followed. Through the words of the gospels in our beloved Bibles, we find a rich account of the actions Jesus took and the words He said, given unto us so that we might know how to live as He lived as we walk through life under His authority. For Jesus told us the following:

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

The best leaders provide consistent, sound guidance to the people they govern. They leave little doubt what is expected from them and don’t just tell their people what to do but they practice what they preach, serving as role models that lead by example. Jesus was the best leader and role model ever because He was the only perfect leader and person that ever lived. He took all the guess work out of what was expected of God’s people by keeping things fundamental. To live as we are supposed to live under His authority, all we have to do is live like He lived. For He was (and is) the life, and not just any life but THE life, the kind of life that is holy and pleasing to God. There is no other way we are to live under the rule of Jesus than by His WAY, the way always defined by truth because He is the TRUTH.  

In short, when we follow Jesus, the precious, blessed Son given unto us by God to govern over us in power, we gain an amazing reward far beyond the immediate harvest of righteousness. For by walking in the footsteps of Jesus, the Way and the Truth and the Life, we will find salvation from our sins and subsequently life eternal with the Father and the Son who made it all possible, the One who shows us the way every day.

Friends, as Christians, we are to live like Christ, plain and simple. There is no better way to define what a Christian is. As it has always been and will always be, the way to God the Father is through Jesus the Son, the One who has the government of creation on His shoulders, the One who will always guide us to the Father if we follow His lead and submit fully in obedience to His authority.

Thanks be to God for the gift of Jesus!   

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark
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