Devotional Blog Friday, July 1

Daily Devotional for Friday, July 1

Blessed Hope

 

The blessed hope you look for will be fulfilled when God your Savior Jesus Christ gloriously appears to bring you into His glory and fulfill your salvation in Him. Let us back up a bit. Salvation begins with God’s grace—His completely unmerited favor (Titus 2:11). God did not save you because you were good or deserved it. God saved you completely on His own merit and because of His goodness. Because of God’s grace, salvation is called His gift to you (Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8). God extended His grace to you because He loves you. 

Salvation by grace has appeared to all men when Jesus Christ was lifted up from the earth, drawing all men to Himself, being nailed to the cross (John 12:32). Grace has often been expressed in the acronym: God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. Jesus voluntarily gave Himself for you, paying your sin debt (Titus 2:14). He had never sinned, but He became sin for you. You have never been righteous, but through Christ’s sacrifice, you are made righteous in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21). 

God’s grace not only saves you, but it also sanctifies you. When you are saved, you become a new creation in Jesus Christ (verse17). You have new desires, new thoughts and a new will. Your strongest desires are no longer ungodliness and worldly lusts but righteousness and godliness (Titus 2:12). Yes, you still battle with the sin nature, and that is why you look forward to the blessed hope when Christ comes again to make you completely new and perfect like Him.

Thought: Thank God for His salvation in Jesus Christ. 

Phillip Miller