February 4, 2016
The Lord is my light and my salvation-whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life-of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1
This verse was given to me by two close friends via a poster on one of my birthdays in college. It certainly has been accurate ever since in being helpful to me in several circumstances. What about your life has God enriched it with a Scripture verse? There have been others, of course, for me. Another one is Philippians 4:13 which will be discussed later.
What actually is life? I believe it is how we live. Thanks to our Lord, He has provided us with it. It is full of bumps, detours and smooth paths. The first book of the Bible mentions life right within the first chapter. God informs us everything has the breath of life as He notes “all the beasts of the earth, all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground.”
Proverbs is known for thoughts making creation think when reading them. I believe two are significant when corresponding to life. “For whoever finds Me finds life” (8:35a) “For through wisdom your days will be many, and years will be added to your life.” In the former verse, life has been found and is significant for us as believers in Christ. The latter implies the importance of wisdom and possessing this trait will enable us to live longer.
Peter and the Gospel of Matthew put two thoughts together relating to Christ’s life. In addressing a crowd, the renowned disciple informs them: “You killed the author of life” but we rejoice when Matthew informs us our Lord gave His life “as a ransom for many.” Isn’t the second verse the story of Easter?
Life is how we live. Therefore, in the closing verses of John, we read the Lord laid down His life for us and follows it up will we do it for Him? We may have obstacles and barriers to face but thankfully it is because of our Lord we are able to survive this process called life.
Prayer: Lord, help us to be always thankful for what You have provided and knowing “In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.” Amen.
Jeff Spang