There is a picture I have of God that brings encouragement because it
reminds me He is listening, and He is listening attentively. Like the
toddler with a saddened spirit or the same toddler who is excited with her
latest discovery and simply wants to share it, and mom or dad or grandma or
even papa bends down close to fully listen – ears, heart, and eyes captivated
with the moment and with the child that belongs to them. On bended knee
they embrace the child, soothe the hurt, or exclaim with delight over the
newest discovery. The joy of intimate connection pulses strongly with the
moment. Psalm 116:1,2 paints the word picture of us and our God, “I
love the Lord because he hears my voice and my prayer for mercy. Because
he bends down to listen ...” Over and over again, the psalmist
calls out to God and God responds ... with His compassion, His healing, His
comfort, His enablement, His perspective, His justice, His guidance. But
as the psalmist calls out to God, and God responds, so too does God call to us
and seeks our response.
The womb of a virgin, an unlikely birthing room amidst an unkempt stable, an
ordinary night of shepherding illumined by the song of angels, and God wrapped
Himself in an infant body, and His name was Jesus. Why did He
come? The manger led to the cross because He came to call us to
salvation. A salvation that only He could provide. He couldn’t
lower the standards of His perfect holiness, but He could meet those standards
within His own perfection and become the sacrifice that would call us into a
relationship with His Father. Jesus Himself said in Matthew 9:13, “I have
come to call ... those who know they are sinners.” In Ephesians 1 we are
told, “God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to
himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave
him great pleasure. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased
our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.” It is a call
that is freely offered, but a call we must respond to. For it is by
believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by
confessing with your mouth that you are saved.
Take some time to listen and respond. Have you heard God’s call for
salvation? How have you responded to it?
– Bev
(Related Bible reading: Psalm 116:1,2; Romans 10:9-13)
