Father, thank You for the honor of blood donation. That You would create us so that we could share such a vital substance is awesome. The intricacy and versatility of Your creation are astounding!
John 1:14 (<<click here to read the passage)
How often in life do we wish for some instrument that would take volatile circumstances and bring peace? What if you had something as simple as a garage door open with a button that instead of opening the door to your garage would instantly bring peace.
Work environments, not to mention families, are quite often places where anger can run amuck. Wouldn’t it be great if with one push of your “peace control” the anger would just melt away? How great would it be if the red would fade from the chief antagonist’s eyes and understanding would come to be known and peace would reign?
I remember when Massey was just a little guy, and something would upset him to the point of hot tears flowing down his tiny face. On more than one occasion we would slip into a public restroom stall giving me a chance to get down on his level and get him to just breathe. He wasn’t in trouble, but I would say, “OK, Mass, just take a big breath.” With all the emotion still playing through him, he would do so, a bit shaky at first but he just needed help getting himself under control. Once that happened, everything was cool.
The last thought from my study Bible* of John 1:14 says that when the Word became flesh, Christ became the perfect sacrifice – Jesus came as a sacrifice for all sins, and his death satisfied God’s requirements for the removal of sin (Colossians 1:15-23).
In verses 19-20 of the first chapter of Colossians the Apostle Paul writes,
For God in all his fullness
….was pleased to live in Christ,
and through him God reconciled
….everything to himself.
He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth
….by means of Christ’s blood on the cross. NLT
Jesus was the only “peace control” able to help us get ourselves under control. For the most part, we are utter failures at maintaining peace. Our world is a mess. Something is said or done and “BOOM!” we blow up and anger takes control. We can’t stop it and once it’s underway we can’t seem to slow it down.
But once and for all, Christ gave Himself up to bring true and unending peace. Through His sacrifice, God reconciled everything to himself. And it wasn’t just for one or two incidents of strife and division. Because of Christ’s sacrifice – His perfect sacrifice – by means of Christ’s blood on the cross, God made peace with everything in heaven and on earth… (emphasis mine)
We simply cannot maintain peace. Even in relationships where we truly love one another, far too often, peace is shattered over some trivial matter. Words are said, actions are taken, and peace is gone.
Lord Jesus, we call out to You. You are our only hope. And not just with each other in our time here on earth but most importantly, Your sacrifice satisfied God’s requirements for the removal of sin from our lives and now peace – eternal peace – with You is ours. Praise Your holy name!
*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation
Feb 18th, 2021, Thurs, 7:23 pm
