LHM Daily Devotions - A Promise Made Good

"A Promise Made Good"

Feb. 20, 2019

For as by a man came death, by a Man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.

~ 1 Corinthians 15:21-22 (ESV)

It appears we have God to thank for raising Jesus from the dead.

While the old man, Adam, bestowed on us the gift of death, that was not to be our final lot. God, who made man in His own image (see Genesis 1:27), would not have death be the concluding statement of His creation. Instead, He promised a Savior (see Genesis 3:15), who would war against the ancient and vile serpent, the crafty deceiver, the harbinger of death.

In the promise of a Deliverer that God made to Adam and Eve, He gave us Jesus and, in so doing, He gave us life. But we still have the here and now to grapple with. Though Satan's end is sealed (see Revelation 20:10), his dreadful infection of this world continues on. And sadly, its effect is not far from any of us.

The struggle with sin in our lives is all too familiar and far too real to dismiss as some sort of flawed character trait that we can rid ourselves of, given enough time and therapy. It's the old man, the native sinner, who lives within each of us. And how close he is, too, goading us with a bony finger with some petty grievance or favorite sin we can't get past. And we won't either, get past it, until we turn it over to God and His Word, so a true cleansing can take place.

Indeed, by one man came death, and the soul cancer his action brought infects us all.

But by another Man (see Galatians 4:4); a Man sent from God (see 1 John 4:9); a Man who upheld the Law of God and sinned not (see Matthew 5:17-18); a Man who gave His all for us (see Philippians 2:5-8); that Man—Jesus, the Christ—has made new life possible for each and every one of us (see 2 Corinthians 5:17).

Scripture has given us ample testimony of who God is, of what our condition is before Him, and of what He has done on our behalf: "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him" (John 3:16-17).

Lest there be any doubt, Paul spells out our predicament—and God's righteous solution—for us all.

"Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one Man's obedience the many will be made righteous. Now the Law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 5:18-21).

Thanks be to God. He has delivered us and made us whole.

THE PRAYER: Dear Lord Jesus, though we sin and fall short every day, by grace we are saved. Renew us as Your new creations, born anew to share Your message of love with others. In Your Name I pray. Amen.

This Daily Devotion was written by Paul Schreiber. Use these devotions in your newsletter and bulletin! Used by permission; all rights reserved by the Int'l LLL (LHM).
It appears we have God to thank for raising Jesus from the dead.