Reading: 2 John 1
Today’s reading is interesting to me first because John addresses the elect lady. This makes me wonder if this lady was head of the church in which he was writing because he refers to her children. She may have had a church in her home or discipled people and taught others about Jesus. She knew the truth as he continued and the truth abides/lives in her. The truth is the truth about Jesus Christ and His doctrine that John had taught them.
John’s introduction continues with, “Grace, mercy, and peace will be with you from the God the Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.” (vs. 3). As I read this I was aware of the fact he was not praying they would have these things. Instead John assures them that they will have grace, mercy, and peace which can only come from God and Jesus. These three gifts are freely given to us when we accept Jesus as Lord of our life. It is because of what Jesus did for us that we can receive this gift.
Christmas has just passed so the birth of Christ is fresh in my mind. When Jesus was born the wise men brought Him three gifts; gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The gifts given to Jesus were a sign of who He was and a gift in order to worship and show honor to Him. However, what we have received from God is far greater than any physical gift given to Jesus by the wise men.
We have been given the gift of grace, mercy, and peace in addition to so much more. What we do with these gifts is our choice. We can take what we have been given and share it with others so they can receive them as well. Essentially that is the idea of the gospel, sharing the good news of Jesus and all that He has provided for us. John 14:27 states, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you.” We have peace that comes from God in our lives. Not like any peace that the world has seen. Instead it is a peace that shines in times of trials and during troublesome situations.
In Hebrews 4:16 it states, “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” His grace and mercy are not out of reach. Instead when we come into the throne of grace, by coming to Jesus himself, we will obtain mercy and find the grace we need. His grace will help us to walk in times of need, it will help us to hold up our head to seek the Lord. Our God will shower us with His loving kindness and mercy even when we make mistakes or have gone astray. He is always willing to mend our broken hearts and heal up our wounds. He is a God that is good. For the Psalms proclaim, ‘goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.’ (Psalm 23:6)
I pray that you would receive these gifts given to you today. They are a free gift given to all that believe. Yesterday I wrote about the free gift of the Holy Spirit and I pray that you asked God for this gift. “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.” I pray you will receive everything God has given to you and that you would share with others this good news.
I don’t / shouldn’t pray for grace,mercy,peace it’s ours WOW.