The next couple of meditations is written by Rhema who’s been traveling Malaysia serving the youth alongside Chris Rao (who happens to be her husband!) I was impressed by the youth devotions I saw her do some years ago so I asked her last minute to join the Lent meditations: Nails and Thorns (pdf) project! ~ Sivin
John 3:14-21
How many of you watch the television serial, ‘Lost’? For those of you who are uninitiated, it’s about a group of people who attempt to survive in a remote island that is beset with strange mysterious happenings after their plane they were traveling in crashed. I guess what attracts millions of viewers to ‘Lost’ is seeing the human spirit’s attempt to make the best out of what seems to be a hopeless situation. As I pondered about the show, I guess their flight was doomed in the first place. It’s purpose was set for death and destruction.
Most Christians if not all know John 3:16 by heart. It is an important verse, no qualms about that, for it is the very basis of our faith. However, if they were to be asked about the immediate verses following that, I doubt that many will know. I used to think that our conversion to Christ was akin to our coming to a crossroad where we either choose the narrow road that leads to life or the wide road that leads to destruction. However, verse 18 tells me otherwise. We were all on the wide road that led to destruction and God in His love for the world sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to save us from perishing and placed us instead on the narrow road that leads to life. In our efforts to share the gospel, may we be reminded the same. It is not a two option alternative that we give people. On the contrary, we are throwing the ‘life line’ of Jesus to people who are already sinking!
Action:
1. Begin to thank God for the people who were in some way responsible for throwing the ‘life line’ of Jesus to you when you were ‘sinking’ in the raging waters of sin.
2. Who are some of the people that God is placing in Your heart today that need the ‘life line’ of Jesus