A Ransom for All - Isaiah 65-66 and I Timothy 2
The Lord gives us a very clear statement of His heart for mankind in I Timothy 2. God desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. Because of this desire of God's heart, Jesus came and gave Himself a ransom for all. I do not see how it could be any clearer. God cares for everyone in this world. Jesus died, and He wants everyone to be saved. Isaiah 65 shows the same heart of God. He did not just stretch out His hand only to a certain group. God stretched out His hand all day long to a rebellious people. Even in their rebellion God still loved them. We all need to praise the Lord and thank Him that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
God has done all to provide everyone with salvation, but we have to respond to Him in faith. Twice in Isaiah 65 the Lord tells us that the people did evil in His eyes and chose to do that in which he did not delight. They chose to reject God and His salvation. What a sad picture. A loving God who did everything to provide salvation for all people, but yet the majority chose to go their own way. How that must break the heart of God, but He still stretches out His hand. That is the heart of God. He paid the debt that we could not pay. He gave Himself as the ransom to deliver us from the hands of Satan and sin. Then, He is rejected, but He still loves. What a wonderful loving Father. We need to show people how much He loves them, and we need to have God's heart to reach out to those around us with the love of Christ. They may choose not to listen, but we need to make sure they know what Jesus did for them and what they could have, if they would choose to trust Christ as Lord and Savior.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Jeremiah 1-2 and I Timothy 3.
God has done all to provide everyone with salvation, but we have to respond to Him in faith. Twice in Isaiah 65 the Lord tells us that the people did evil in His eyes and chose to do that in which he did not delight. They chose to reject God and His salvation. What a sad picture. A loving God who did everything to provide salvation for all people, but yet the majority chose to go their own way. How that must break the heart of God, but He still stretches out His hand. That is the heart of God. He paid the debt that we could not pay. He gave Himself as the ransom to deliver us from the hands of Satan and sin. Then, He is rejected, but He still loves. What a wonderful loving Father. We need to show people how much He loves them, and we need to have God's heart to reach out to those around us with the love of Christ. They may choose not to listen, but we need to make sure they know what Jesus did for them and what they could have, if they would choose to trust Christ as Lord and Savior.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Jeremiah 1-2 and I Timothy 3.