FRIDAY May 7, 2021

Our Past, Present and Future

And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.
Ephesians 2:1-3

In China, in 1949, when communism had really taken charge of the nation, every professional, educated person and every Christian endured persecution by the Chinese government. If my Bible was taken from me, and I had a choice of one page of the Bible, it would be Ephesians 2, because it has the full Gospel of Jesus Christ.

There are many people who go to palm or crystal ball readers to have their future read. In Chile, when you walk the streets, you will see Gypsy children with their mothers. Some people would stop a Gypsy, and, for a small amount of money, they would have their palm read in order to know their past, present and future.

It is the Bible that reveals a person’s past, present and future. Understand your position in Christ. Before Christ, in times past, you were in spiritual darkness, walking a sinful life––dead in sin. Before God, you were a transgressor––a sinner. You willfully sinned. Each of us has committed sins; not one of us is without sin. The moment a child is born from his mother’s womb and takes its first breath, they are born in sin––spiritually dead––until they become regenerated by God in a new birth (John 3).

Sin separates us from God. Sin can be fun, but only for a short season. In our conscience we experience guilt and conviction. There becomes an awareness that we are separated from God. We are dead men walking, going nowhere––just following the crowd. We follow the flow of the world where there is no purpose in life. People need a Savior––Jesus Christ. In Christ, they can be forgiven and reconciled to God––made alive. Now in Christ, in the present, we have purpose and in the future, a hope!

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.
~Jeremiah 29:11~

For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!