You Are God’s Beloved

Knowing you’re God’s beloved will cast out sin and its temptations. God affirmed Jesus before He cast out any demons or performed miracles. God said at Jesus’ baptism at the River Jordan, “This is My beloved Son of whom I am well pleased (Matt 3:17).” Imagine that the Father approves you, and I say you because you are in Him (1 John 4:17). For everything, Jesus is so is the believer He is beloved by the Father (Mark 1:11 and Matt. 3:17), so are we! As Jesus is wise, so are we! He is our sanctification, redemption, and righteousness (1 Corin. 1:30). The reality is we fail to embrace the truth of what we have in Christ Jesus because we haven’t heard it preached from or through a familiar voice. The finished work of Jesus Christ at the cross is for us. Remember, He knew no sin; in Him was no sin, He did no wrong (2 Corin.5:21). When I first heard the truth that Jesus loves me and that He died for me, my spirit bore witness to the truth, but my head, my intellect, and reasoning processed my heart away from the beauty of the person of Jesus and His Spirit. It didn’t make sense that someone that doesn’t know me would die for me? When my mother didn’t regard me! But still, my heart knew what my head couldn’t articulate. I kept seeking this Savior Jesus that paid my sin debt. Recently I learned my acceptance of Jesus Christ as my Lord implies trust in Him. When you trust, you function at a rest level, meaning even in the minuscule like sitting in a chair. 

How many times have you examined a chair before sitting? I have to say I don’t recall checking every chair I’ve rested in, but I have to say I haven’t trusted God the same way. And in that respect, I’ve relied more on creation than the creator! God created man to start on rest (Gen. 2:2). From the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, He put man in a completed work (Gen. 2:7). Since I wasn’t taught this at the beginning of my journey with the Father, rest and qualifying didn’t and couldn’t go together. When I received Jesus as Lord of my life, I was introduced to a set of rules to maintain my position with God. Afraid to lose my salvation, I walked a tightrope. One day I was reading scripture, and I came across 2 Tim. 1:7, “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind,” which made me question whenever I experienced fear; fear doesn’t come from my heavenly Father! But I still didn’t understand how rest fit in my walk with God. 

                       “Rest is Holy-Spirit directed activity.” 

                                                                                Pastor Joseph Prince        

Jesus is the rest God has provided for you, His person, and His Spirit! Jesus said, “Come to Me, and I will rest you (Matt. 11:28).” Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. (He is our Lord and Savior, and He died for my sins, and by His finished work, I am the righteousness of God in Him) For our High Priest who sympathized with our weaknesses and was tempted as we yet without sin. For us, to come boldly to the throne of grace (Heb. 4:15-16). I can go boldly to the throne of grace because Jesus, who God raised from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in heavenly places (Eph. 1:20). Now because I know and understand, “I am in Christ Jesus.” I am at the Father’s right hand. At the Father’s right hand, there is no lack or shortage of any kind. As Jesus is God’s beloved Son in whom He is well pleased, so are you!