Reel me in Father. My mind is going in different directions and I need to focus on You, allowing things to get back in order. Amen.

Acts 10:17-23 (<<click here to read the passage)

I appreciate Tyndale House, the publisher of my Life Application Study Bible. If you have read the MoreThanUseless blog for any length of time, you know that I often refer to it. Sometimes an application note hits a chord in my heart and speaks to me. Oft times it will bring to life a thought that had never crossed my mind before, and then my heart and mind run with it. And best of all, God uses it to teach and direct me!

This passage, about which I have already written, has one more thing to say to me…and to my readers as well.

One thing we have to address with all seriousness is the fact that many seriously religious people strive to do all the right things. Just as Cornelius, they are religious, devoted, generous, respected, and sincere…and though those are wonderful attributes, in and of themselves, they are simply not good enough. Those things can bring us closer to God but without one key ingredient in the mix, we will still be spiritually separated from God.

The gospel – the good news – of what Jesus accomplished by His death and resurrection is that key ingredient that our salvation depends upon. Without understanding that truth, we are lost. And no matter what we do, no matter how much we work at pleasing God, it is a fool’s errand. We must understand, acknowledge, and accept, by faith, Jesus’ sacrifice and the salvation that He freely extends. That is our only hope.

But as I spoke of in last Wednesday’s post – To Know and To Be Known (click on it to read it) – God doesn’t leave us hanging. We are too precious to Him to ever do that! He fervently pursues us not wanting any to be lost! Remember that old familiar verse, John 3:16?

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. NKJV

There alone is our redemption, but we must be careful not to equate earnestness with righteousness before God. We are brought into right standing with God by faith in Christ alone.

So, the questions that we each must address are, have you trusted in Jesus? Are you sharing with others – even those who seem religious – the truth that Christ is the only way to God?

Lord Jesus, fill us with Your love. May we seek out Your wisdom. May we first acknowledge the truth for ourselves and then may we – again in love – never give up sharing the truth with others so that all who are lost may come home. Amen.

Apr 3rd, 2022, Sun, 7:46 pm