Articles
God Took The Initiative
What has God done for us? That is the question that many ask when confronted with the Gospel. Some choose to never obey because they do not believe God has done anything – others see God as an inactive being who, though He is the apparent impetus behind creation, remains aloof of His creation. But the very first words of Genesis 1:1 speak of an entirely different God. “In the beginning God…” These words tell us of a god who acts, who takes initiative, who creates, speaks, and intimately involves Himself in the affairs of the world beneath Him. The Bible is, in fact, the religion of an initiating god. “Before man existed, God acted. Before man stirs himself to seek God, God has sought man. In the Bible, we do not see man groping after God; we see God reaching after man. Many people visualize a god who sits comfortably on a distant throne, remote, aloof, uninterested, and indifferent to the needs of mortals, until, it may be, they can badger Him into taking action on their behalf. Such a view is wholly false” (Basic Christianity, Stott, p. 11). Long before man thinks to seek God, before it even occurs to him, the Father is actively seeking him. God takes the initiative, leaves His throne, and stoops to our level so that He might lift us up (Romans 5:6-8). “Even when we were dead in our transgressions, [God] made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 2:5-6).
But what has God done for you lately?
God Has Created You – We seem to forget how very much we need God, even in the most basic way. Without His creative force, we would not exist. We owe our lives to Him. Every time we breathe, every glass of water we drink, every night of sleep, every sunset, every meal – our lives are in His hands. We owe it to Him to seek after Him. For as much as He does for us, is it really that much to worship, love, and obey the Heavenly Father? We could not have created ourselves, and we cannot create anything new now (Ecclesiastes 1:10).
God Has Spoken To You – God will never leave us in the dark without answers. He longs to reveal to us what we need – and it is only our stubborn, unrelenting, dull hearts that prevent us from hearing every word of life (Hebrews 5:11-14). Friends, we need His words. No words will guide us as His do. In them we have everything we need (2 Timothy 3:16-17). We have insights into the mystery of Christ (Ephesians 3:3-5).
God Has Acted On Your Behalf – “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). “It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost” (1 Timothy 1:15).
Jesus Christ is our propitiation, which means that He is our intercessor before the throne of God (1 John 2:1-2). If that is not enough, then what more would you ask of your Savior?
He died on a cross on our behalf.
He left His place of power and glory to be a human and endure all things we do (Philippians 2:6-7, Hebrews 4:15-16).
Those who confess Jesus Christ as Lord will have the blessing of His confession before the Father (Matthew 10:32-33). This means, essentially, that Jesus will vouch for us before God.
God has spoken to us – have we listened? God has acted for us – have we responded?
