God of hope, pour out a generous double portion of hope upon the challenges this dear reader may be facing; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Our text this morning comes from Galatians 4:1-11: 1 My point is this: heirs, as long as they are minors, are no better than slaves, though they are the owners of all the property; 2 but they remain under guardians and trustees until the date set by the father. 3 So with us; while we were minors, we were enslaved to the elemental spirits of the world. 4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. 6 And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" 7 So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God. 8 Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to beings that by nature are not gods. 9 Now, however, that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and beggarly elemental spirits? How can you want to be enslaved to them again? 10 You are observing special days, and months, and seasons, and years. 11 I am afraid that my work for you may have been wasted.
Paul is appealing to his readers in Galatia that since we have a choice and since we have been exposed to the truth about God's awesome love and power, how can we, in good conscience, turn back to something as foolish as living as we did before we knew the saving power of Jesus and trying to be controlled by law rather than grace? One of the richest, if not the richest men in the world is Bill Gates. Many have been the times several have said, "Would Bill and Melinda Gates adopt me? Please??" Can you imagine being heir to the Gates money? Well, stop, because Bill and his wife, Melinda, are busy giving it away for good. Yes, I know that your needs and mine, are good needs too. But the idea of knowing that we're in line to see our bank balance get a few zeros behind the current numbers would be an awesome idea. Well, dear friend, the good and better news is that through our adoption in the Spirit, we are no longer "slaves" to the way we used to live, now we are children of God and as children, heirs of the Most High.
Our call today is to not be like the believers of Galatia. They didn't know a great thing when they received it. They left it to follow a more ritualist and prohibitive style of life. We don't have to. We are children and heirs of the Most High for a better way of living now and our hope is in the promise of a better life yet to come. We should live like that, as an example to others who have not yet heard or not yet received all that God offers.
PRAYER: Loving God, make me more aware of all that is mine through Jesus Christ. Give me hope, joy, peace, love in the places in my life where now I find hopelessness, sadness, discomfort and anxiety and indifference. And help me live my life in a way that is an example and invitation to others to come to this life as well. I ask this in Jesus Christ's precious name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord.
Eradio Valverde
