Life Here and There

“And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed.”—Galatians 3:8

God has sovereignly chosen that faith should be the means by which people come to know Him. He chose long in advance that He would “justify the heathen” through faith. Therefore He gave the good news of “salvation by grace through faith” to Abraham in the form of a promise. He told Abraham that someday, all the families of the earth would be “blessed” through his lineage (e.g. – Jesus Christ). Abraham believed that promise and God credited to his account as righteousness.

We may not understand all of these great mysteries of faith, but one biblical truth is evident in our lives – God blesses faith. He has chosen to save us through the medium of our faith. He provides blessings in our lives through our faith. We see Him acting in, around, and through us as we look for Him with the eyes of faith.

Where is your faith today? Do you find your security in a fattened bank account, a great job, a good retirement package, or in Jesus? Save your money, work hard, prepare for the future, but trust in Jesus. God, increase our faith today.

j“…thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by:… and whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand be upon him.”—Joshua to Rahab the harlot in Joshua 2:18-19

Did you know that a scarlet thread winds its way throughout the entire Bible? Skeptics and scoffers may fire their arrows at the validity and historicity of Scriptures, but believers throughout the centuries have seen this line of crimson weaving through every book of God’s holy Word. It is the story of the redemption of mankind at the price of the blood of Jesus Christ.

In Genesis 3:15, God promised the woman that her seed would eventually crush the head of Satan, bringing spiritual deliverance to the human race. In the law, that scarlet thread shows up in all of God’s detailed instructions for animal sacrifices. Through the monarchial records, David’s family preserves the bloodline of Christ. The prophets declared the coming of His kingdom. The gospels record the life, death, and resurrection of the Lord. The epistles develop His doctrines and teachings, especially that of His vicarious death. And the Revelation is the final unveiling of His glory.

The Bible tells one story! It’s the story of Christ. Rahab the harlot was but one small link in the chain. Her scarlet thread experience was but one small example of the thread offered to each of us who will claim Christ as our Redeemer today!