Daily Devotions for Difficult Days [124] Is He Worthy?

Today's Guest Devotional is written

by Mike Loveridge, assistant pastor of Manor Park Church

Is He Worthy?

The song for this week is ‘Is He Worthy’ by Chris Tomlin. You can listen to the song here. Like previous weeks, I suggest you listen to the song, dwell on the words and then read through my brief comments. I hope this song blesses you as it has me.

Do you feel the world is broken? 
(We do)
Do you feel the shadows deepen? 
(We do)
But do you know that all the dark won't stop the light from getting through? 
(We do)
Do you wish that you could see it all made new? 
(We do)

Is all creation groaning?
(It is)
Is a new creation coming? 
(It is)
Is the glory of the Lord to be the light within our midst?
(It is)
Is it good that we remind ourselves of this? 
(It is)

Is anyone worthy? 
Is anyone whole?
Is anyone able to break the seal and open the scroll?
The Lion of Judah who conquered the grave
He is David's root and the Lamb who died to ransom the slave

Is He worthy? Is He worthy?
Of all blessing and honour and glory
Is He worthy of this?
He is

Does the Father truly love us?
(He does)
Does the Spirit move among us?
(He does)
And does Jesus, our Messiah hold forever those He loves? 
(He does)
Does our God intend to dwell again with us? 
(He does)

The story of the Garden of Eden is familiar to all of us, I’m sure. Whether or not we were brought up in Christian homes, we all know the tale of Adam and Eve and the fruit and the snake. God had made the world, and it was good! But Eve fell prey to the temptation of Satan and persuaded Adam to rebel against God. And just like that, sin entered the world. God judged their rebellion with a curse and banished them from the garden forever. Yes, I know this story well. But I’ve been reminded again recently of just how central it is to my faith.

It is here, in the Garden of Eden, that I learn two things. First, it reminds me that this world is not as it should be.

I don’t know about you, but my default is often to assume that my life should be a fairly happy and comfortable one. When things go wrong, I get annoyed! When my loved ones or I go through difficult times, I’m often surprised and angered. My gut reaction is, ‘Why?’

Well, it’s in the Garden of Eden that I find my explanation. In the beginning, this world was perfect. The Bible tells us that God ‘saw everything he had made, and behold, it was very good’ (Genesis 1:31). But, when Adam and Eve disobeyed God, sin, death, and suffering followed. This world is no longer very good.

Don’t get me wrong – there is still great beauty in God’s creation. But tragically, you don’t have to look far to see the cracks. Some are fairly small – they form the backdrop of our everyday lives. Disagreements, selfishness, illness, pain, greed. But on occasion these cracks open up and form gaping holes that seem to stretch as far as the eye can see. Death, loss, disease, dementia. Do you feel the world is broken? I do.

Sorry, so far this is not a very uplifting devotional! But praise God, the lessons of the Garden of Eden do not end here. If the events of the Fall teach me that the world is infected by sin, they also remind me that God has a remedy and that he loves us enough to use it.

Even in those first moments straight after Adam and Eve sinned, we see that God has every intention of restoring what has been lost. Have a look at Genesis 3:15 – ‘I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel’. This verse is God’s first clue pointing towards his great salvation plan. God promises that Eve’s offspring will crush Satan’s head. And God always keeps his promises!

In fact, we know that the decisive blow has already been struck. Eve’s perfect descendent, Jesus Christ, died on the cross and triumphed over the devil (Colossians 2:15). Death has been defeated and one day, the Bible teaches us, Christ will return for good and ‘he will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, for the former things have passes away (Revelation 21:4). Does the Father truly love us? He does! Is a new creation coming? It is. Does our God intend to dwell again with us? He does!

So, what have I learnt from the Garden of Eden? On the one hand, it has reminded me that I am not immune to the brokenness of this world. I may long for the world to function as God intended it to, but the reality is that right now I am a sin-infested human living in a sin-infested world. But I am not without hope. That may be my present reality, but God has invited me to join him in a new and perfect creation for my eternal future. This world is not the end. The new creation is coming. We will see it all made new. So, let’s remind ourselves of this and give praise and honour to Jesus who has accomplished this for us. Is He worthy? He is!

Prayer for today

Our loving heavenly Father,

We thank you for your incredible creation. Although it is marred by sin it still points to your love, beauty, power and might. Thank you that you made me and that you love me enough to send your Son into this world to redeem me.

Father, we lift before you all those struggling with the effects of living in a fallen world and ask that through their trials and sufferings, they may grow in their faith in you. Thank you that you do work all things for the good of those who love you.

As we long for the day when we see you face-to-face once more, may we be your servants here on earth to share the amazing news of Jesus with those who don’t yet know you.

We pray all this for your glory and honour,

Amen

 

Photo by Ravi Pinisetti