Understanding The Care Of God (3)
Wednesday June 29, 2016
Many of us who have experienced destructive lives in addiction have known the experience of being an “outsider”, of not really belonging, of feeling distanced or detached. Jesus, the Good Shepherd, has something to say to us today.
Jesus said that His sheep knew Him and He knew His sheep. He then said that there were other sheep – outsiders – that he was gathering in to love and belonging. We are not left on our own, isolated from loving relationships. God is inviting us in.
“I am the Good Shepherd. I know my own sheep and my own sheep know me. In the same way, the Father knows me and I know the Father. I put the sheep before myself, sacrificing myself if necessary. You need to know that I have other sheep in addition to those in this pen. I need to gather and bring them, too. They’ll also recognize my voice. Then it will be one flock, one Shepherd.” (John 10:14-16 MSG)
On one occasion when Jesus was tired from a long journey, He asked a Samaritan woman (an outcast of her day) for a drink of water. The woman was quite surprised that he would even speak to her let alone drink from a pitcher which she had touched. Jesus saw this woman as a lost sheep and talked to her about her past life. He invited her to forgiveness and new life. She responded to His invitation. This former outsider then carried the message of her healing and restoration to her community and it impacted everyone who lived there.
They said to the woman, “Now we believe, not just because of what you told us, but because we have heard him ourselves. Now we know that he is indeed the Savior of the world.” (John 4:42 NLT)
Because of Jesus’ great love for this “outsider”, many other “outsiders” came into the family of God. This is how life with God in recovery works.
We hear that Jesus loved us so much that He was willing to come to earth to die for our sins. We then turn our will and our lives over to His care. We are given new life. We carry this message through our new way of living and joyful sharing of how Jesus changed us. This is the way many find salvation and how God’s family continues to grow.
We hear that Jesus loved us so much that He was willing to come to earth to die for our sins. We then turn our will and our lives over to His care. We are given new life. We carry this message through our new way of living and joyful sharing of how Jesus changed us. This is the way many find salvation and how God’s family continues to grow.
©2016 Partners in Hope
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