...which was to be like God. Present day, this desire hasn't changed. We still want to be like God. Adam and Eve were already more like God than they knew: not only made in Their image, but also in that they were too innocent to be selfish. (On one hand, one could argue that Adam and Eve's innocence wasn't enough to keep them from disobedience. Alas, it was their very innocence that caused them to disobey. Adam and Eve were the very first humans. Not only were they made from the Earth, but they were the most "fertile soil" humans have ever been. Thus, when the serpent sowed his seeds of deception, they took root in Eve and blossomed so quickly it was utterly overwhelming. When she turned and passed those seeds of deception to her husband, he likewise became overwhelmed with that desire.) God has shown His character to us--He has shown time and again that He, being the fulness of Love, is utterly Selfless.
Consider the covenants He has made with His people. Consider Abraham. In the near Eastern tradition, when two people made a covenant (lending money or paying a debt, etc...), they would cut an animal in half, and as the blood flowed the lesser of the two people (the borrower) would walk between the pieces, pass through the blood and say, "Let it be unto me or worse if I do not fulfill my vow." How is it that the Creator of All, so much Greater than we could ever imagine, MADE HIMSELF LESSER as He walked between the pieces of the livestock Abram had cut in half. We can almost hear Him saying, "Let this be unto me or worse if I do not fulfill the covenant I make with you today, Abraham."
Selah.
WOW. Can you imagine that? Jesus was not the first example of God's humility. God has ALWAYS been humble! In His fierce and Holy nature He is humble and merciful. He is love. Now we have a new covenant, and Jesus is called the gaurantor and the mediator of that covenant. This time, Jesus did not simply walk through the blood of the sacrificed animals. Nay--Jesus let himself be cut, and though He humbled Himself and was mocked and beaten and scarred--it is we who walk through the blood. But this blood covers us. It covers us so that we are not even recognizable. Jesus already fulfilled His covenant when He died and rose again. The veil is torn. Sin is triumphed over. We are free. Now, He is making us spotless so that we can be ready for the celebration of our next covenant: marriage with Him.
I say, "Jesus, let it be unto me or worse if I forsake my vow, that I am Yours." I am Yours, Jesus. And my heart's desire--to be like Him and be with Him will be met as I make myself the lesser--walk in Love with selflessness and humility. Walk in the fierceness of a Holy Warrior, empowered by the Holy Spirit of God, empowered by LOVE Himself. Already, I am more like God than I think. Jesus is in me, and God sees Himself when He sees me. I don't have to strive anymore. I can die every day to my flesh, as I am dead to sin, but it is all fulfilled in the blood of the Lamb. The blood of the covenant. All I have to do is walk with God.
Thank You God, for desiring me above all else...for counting my life as more valuable than Your own. Thank You for coming to get me--for rescuing me from sin and death. Thank You for making such Grand Gestures to show Your deep and unrelenting love for Me. Let's take a walk.
Consider the covenants He has made with His people. Consider Abraham. In the near Eastern tradition, when two people made a covenant (lending money or paying a debt, etc...), they would cut an animal in half, and as the blood flowed the lesser of the two people (the borrower) would walk between the pieces, pass through the blood and say, "Let it be unto me or worse if I do not fulfill my vow." How is it that the Creator of All, so much Greater than we could ever imagine, MADE HIMSELF LESSER as He walked between the pieces of the livestock Abram had cut in half. We can almost hear Him saying, "Let this be unto me or worse if I do not fulfill the covenant I make with you today, Abraham."
Selah.
WOW. Can you imagine that? Jesus was not the first example of God's humility. God has ALWAYS been humble! In His fierce and Holy nature He is humble and merciful. He is love. Now we have a new covenant, and Jesus is called the gaurantor and the mediator of that covenant. This time, Jesus did not simply walk through the blood of the sacrificed animals. Nay--Jesus let himself be cut, and though He humbled Himself and was mocked and beaten and scarred--it is we who walk through the blood. But this blood covers us. It covers us so that we are not even recognizable. Jesus already fulfilled His covenant when He died and rose again. The veil is torn. Sin is triumphed over. We are free. Now, He is making us spotless so that we can be ready for the celebration of our next covenant: marriage with Him.
I say, "Jesus, let it be unto me or worse if I forsake my vow, that I am Yours." I am Yours, Jesus. And my heart's desire--to be like Him and be with Him will be met as I make myself the lesser--walk in Love with selflessness and humility. Walk in the fierceness of a Holy Warrior, empowered by the Holy Spirit of God, empowered by LOVE Himself. Already, I am more like God than I think. Jesus is in me, and God sees Himself when He sees me. I don't have to strive anymore. I can die every day to my flesh, as I am dead to sin, but it is all fulfilled in the blood of the Lamb. The blood of the covenant. All I have to do is walk with God.
Thank You God, for desiring me above all else...for counting my life as more valuable than Your own. Thank You for coming to get me--for rescuing me from sin and death. Thank You for making such Grand Gestures to show Your deep and unrelenting love for Me. Let's take a walk.
