14th Sep 26 | 04:00
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Luke 22 63-71
📖 Luke 22:63-71
Mon25Oct2021 – *Transformed to be bridges* - _Luke 22:63-71_ - THE CONVICTION OF JESUS BY HUMANITY (05) - Bible reading: _I Timothy 1:13-17_
The Lord reached out to man, who is unworthy in every way. Look at all that we have done to Jesus and we continue to do against the God of heaven and earth.
Yet, He loves us. He is longing that we will not remain in our foolishness. Man is the one who suffers because of the evil that we do against God.
The Lord heals and restores the fallen. He makes us bridges and stepping stones for others to come into a relationship with Him.
_Luke 22:63-65 Now the men who held Jesus mocked Him and beat Him. (64) And having blindfolded Him, they struck Him on the face and asked Him, saying, "Prophesy! Who is the one who struck You?" (65) And many other things *they blasphemously spoke against Him*._
We have convicted and condemned God, though we are the ones who have proved our own conviction and our condemnation.
He wants man to come back to Him. Repent and seek His forgiveness. He is eagerly waiting to forgive, heal and restore us. He is longing to give us beauty, wholeness, completeness and be a reflection of the image and glory of God.
God created us in His image, in order that we would be God’s vice-regents to the rest of God’s creation. Our sin has taken us far from the original purpose with which He created us but the Lord is restoring us back to the original purpose. This is what was happening through the cross.
_Colossians 1:19-20 For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, (20) and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross._
The process of God’s restoration of man is seen in the life of Apostle Paul.
_I Timothy 1:13-14 although *I was formerly a blasphemer*, a persecutor, and an insolent man; but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. (14) And *the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, with faith and love which are in Christ Jesus*._
This was the amazing work of God in the life of Paul. God’s grace was exceedingly abundant on him, along with faith and love. This was the work of God on a man, who was a blasphemer.
This is the process of restoration that the Lord does in each of us when we repent and seek His forgiveness. Apostle Paul helps us see the greater plan of God when He restores fallen man back to Himself.
As the Lord restores us to Himself, He also makes each of us be bridges and stepping stones for many others also to return from their fallenness and come to fullness of life in Christ.
_I Timothy 1:15-17 This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. (16) However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life. (17) Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, *to God who alone is wise*, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen._
The character of God is longsuffering. When the people abused, ridiculed, bullied, harassed, vandalized and blasphemed Jesus, He was longsuffering towards them.
Why was Jesus longsuffering towards these wicked people? The Lord longed to do the same miracle in each of their lives which He did in the life of Apostle Paul if only they would repent and return to Him.
Sadly, man continues to go on in his insolent ways and continues to treat God with contempt.
Paul says that he is the chief of sinners. How can Paul say that he is the chief of sinners, at the end of his life when he had matured and grown greatly in his walk with the Lord?
Paul always saw himself in the light of God’s glory, majesty and holiness. In the presence of God, Paul knew that he is the chief of sinners. This is how each of us must see ourselves, always. We are nothing but sinners, except for the love of God in us.
Paul then affirms that he obtained God’s mercy, so that in him, who is the chief of sinners, the Lord might display His great healing and transformation, by His unlimited patience.
What and why is the Lord doing this beautiful work in each of us? The Lord does this in each of us, who return to Him so that each of us who is being healed and transformed will bridge many others to also enter into a wonderful relationship with God.
People around us, when they watch us, see that we are ordinary people, whose lives are healed and transformed by the longsuffering God, to bridge others to enter into a relationship with Him.
We are sinners, who have and are experiencing God’s grace, faith and love. This is what makes our lives to be models and bridges. Our lives become a demonstration to the world of the great work of God, of how insolent, wicked and foolish people could be healed and transformed.
*The Lord is not angry or condemning the people who did all the wickedness against Him*. (They had condemned themselves) but He is reaching out to restore them back to Himself.
Consider, friends, the wisdom and the love of God. When man refuses the longsuffering, wisdom and love of God, then the end of man will be the torment of eternal fire.
This is why man must repent and return to God now. Now is the acceptable time.
*Thought to ponder*
```The devil is blindfolding people, to take them with him to the lake of fire, which is prepared for the devil and his angels.```
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