“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me…” (Luke 4:18a NLT)
Every claim the Bible ever made about who Jesus is has been validated through His life, death, resurrection, and ascension. (See What Are the Odds – posted on 11-13-21)
Consider these attributes/characteristics of Jesus. He is …
- Master Designer, Creator and Sustainer of all of life
The more carefully you look at your personality, your body, your mind, every detail of who you are at the core of your being, everything that’s good about you, these are the fingerprints of Jesus on your life. The Psalmist wrote: “You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank You for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous – how well I know it.” (Psalm 139:13-14 NLT) If you want to catch a glimpse of what being sustained by Jesus means, put your hand in front of you palm up. Then place something unbreakable (😊) in your open hand. Your hand is “sustaining” whatever you have in your hand. Now, pull your hand out from under whatever you’re holding and see what happens. That’s what would happen to you without Jesus’ hand sustaining you. Jesus is the Sustainer of all of life.
- Giver of every good and perfect gift
We tend to be very quick to take credit for whatever good comes into our lives and blame God or someone else for what’s not so good. James 1:17 says: “Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God…” (NLT)
- Our ever-present Friend
Jesus doesn’t walk out because we have a bad day or do something stupid. He’s not a fickle friend who abandons us when the going gets tough. He’s the friend who sticks closer than a brother; the One who will never leave you or forsake you. Hebrews 13:5 (NLT) says: “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”
- Our Unlimited Lover
No one will ever love you like Jesus loves you. How do I know that? When Jesus died for you, He paid the penalty for your sins, past, present and future (Pastor Vance at Hope Church is fond of saying: “When Jesus died for you, ALL of your sins were future.” 😊). By the shedding of His blood on your behalf, He bridged the gap between Heaven and earth to give you access to all that Heaven offers – now and forever. To understand this better click on this link and watch a brief video by Ron Hutchcraft https://hutchcraft.com/bridge-to-god Jesus said in John 15:13: “There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (NLT) That’s exactly what He did for you and me on the Cross.
- Our Forever Forgiver
Our earthly friends often forgive us on a conditional basis (i.e. “if” or “when”). When Jesus forgives you, He casts your sin into the sea of forgetfulness, never to be remembered against you again. If God could forget, He wouldn’t be perfect. He doesn’t forget, He chooses to not remember our sins. Big difference! No other friend can do that. Micah 7:19b says: “You will trample our sins under your feet and throw them into the depths of the ocean!” (NLT)
- Our Fear Reliever
Fear can be crippling. When we let our fears control us, we live a debilitating existence. There are at least 365 references in the Bible telling us to not fear (one for each day 😊). There was a point in my life I thought I’d lost everything – my wife, custody of my kids, job, house, car, all gone. I was whining to God about losing everything and He said to me: “You haven’t lost everything because you haven’t lost Me, and I’m all you need!” That was the day I stopped being afraid. Jesus said: “And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid…” (Luke 12:7 NLT)
I’m going to stop here for today. I’ll share a few more tomorrow. Until you understand that what Jesus did, and even who He is, is all about His love and compassion for you, you’ll never recognize your need of Him to meet every need you’ll ever have.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 