What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
For Reflection:
After Jesus lived here on earth, connected to God, He endured separation from his Father on the cross and gave His life that we might be redeemed - restored back to our creator God, at the ultimate cost of His life. When we begin to recognize the depths of this love and receive the gift of connection that God offers, Jesus redeems us - saves us. Saves us FROM separation from God and saves us FOR connection with God.
It’s interesting to note that pre-exile the people obeyed God to avoid punishment and post-exile they began to obey for connection with God. Is that my motivation too? Connection. Why do I pray? To build connection. Why do I confess? To restore disrupted connection. Throughout the Old Testament, the Israelites had cycles of rebellion, repentance, and restoration with God. Every single time, our God’s love for humanity was on display. If I’m being honest, this cycle lives in me too. Yet, He longs to continue to redeem his people and relentlessly brings life to us.
Trevor Hudson in his book Discovering Our Spiritual Identity says, “Easter Sunday morning is a joyful celebration of the power of God’s love and its unquenchable capacity to bring life out of death.” He goes on to say, “Just about any time we are surprised with new possibilities for life and healing in the midst of brokenness and decay, there is a little Easter that gives us a glimpse of the resurrection power of God’s love made manifest in the crucified and risen Jesus.”
This is our privilege, among the brokenness within us and all around us, to notice where God is breaking in with His healing and redemption to restore us back to Him. These little Easters are feeding our faith and giving us a front row seat to the results of redemption. Have you experienced a little Easter? Has light broken into the darkness within you? Or around you? Where in your life or struggles are you longing for light to pierce the darkness?
Let us pray:
God, I come before you now with a grateful heart. Thank you so much for the gift of connection with you. Thank you for being with us as we live in this broken world. God, it’s super hard at times AND you never leave us. I also know that you make it all matter. You redeem. May we experience little Easters along the way that strengthen our connection with you and increase our love for others. Give us wisdom to be still and increase our awareness of YOU. Fill us with your LIGHT God, that we might reflect you in all that we say and do. In Jesus’ precious name, AMEN.
I wonder what feeds my connection with God and how I can make a habit to maintain closeness.
I wonder what keeps me noticing my belovedness and God’s gentle nudges?