Forever Home in the Eternal Family of God

Daily Encouragement for the Family of God by Kenton Cheek

18 December 2024

Reading From Titus 1-3

“At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared,he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.”

–Titus 3:3-8

     Paul describes our former way of life prior to the new birth in vivid detail.  Apart from God, we were dead in our transgressions, but in Jesus Christ we have new life.  This tremendous blessing of salvation did not come to us because we were somehow good enough or had done enough righteous deeds to tip the scales in our favor. 

What we were helpless to do for ourselves, the Lord Jesus did for us out of His own kindness and love.  When we make the decision to believe on Him and receive all that He has for us by confessing that He is Lord, we are born again; we go from darkness to light, from death to life.  The old has gone, the new has come! We are new creations in Christ Jesus, joint-heirs with Him and adopted into His eternal family as sons and daughters of the Most High God.

     From the moment of our conversion forward, we are meant to walk in the newness of life.  This means allowing ourselves to be guiding by the Holy Spirit into all truth and be inspired by the love of Christ to do good unto the Father, unto others and unto ourselves.  We are blessed to have the written record of His divine revelation, the Holy Bible, to give us wisdom and knowledge, helping us along in our journey. 

     God did not save us from ourselves just to make us feel better.  He saved us so that we would be conduits of His grace and mercy by sharing His love and message with others around us.  This is done by finding creative ways to lovingly share His Truth and demonstrate compassion in practical ways to our fellow men and women to bless them and love them into the Kingdom of Light. 

Ephesians 2:8-9 reveals “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” God saved you for a purpose.  That purpose is to glorify Him and invite others to do the same. God is love and He dwells within us. Share His love with others.

“Lord, I pray against spiritual laziness among Your people.  May we look around us and see the needs of others and begin to minister to them with tender kindness and grace and mercy.  Help us to see others and see ourselves as You see us.  Bless us with Your divine, eternal perspective through the wisdom of Your Word illuminated and made alive by Your Holy Spirit.  Empower us as we put Your Word into practice in our daily lives.  May we be genuine and loving followers of You.  In the wonderful and matchless Name of Jesus Christ I pray these things.  Amen.”

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.

So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

–Galatians 5:13-26