-December 15, 2021-
Good morning, happy Wednesday,
“For you know the grace our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.”
(2 Corinthians 8:9).
This verse is so amazing and incredible! It shows how much He loved us, to come down to earth to be born in such a lowly way, to live humbly, to own almost nothing in this world, to go to the cross and die for us, and rise again. The King of glory who owns the world, chose to be poor in order to make us rich.
It is all by God’s grace that He came to make us His children and freely give us all things both now and for all eternity. He set aside His divine vestments, to wear the clothes of a servant. He was rich but for our sakes He became poor. He was born in a manger into a poor family, grew up to work in his earthly father’s carpenter shop, began His earthly ministry, did the Father’s will, and went to the cross. There are several instances of His poverty in the gospels.
Jesus had no home. He said in Luke 9:58, “The foxes holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” During His earthly ministry He lived and slept outdoors. Jesus had no money. When Peter asked about paying the temple tax, Jesus sent him fishing and the first fish he caught had a coin in its mouth, Peter used it to pay the tax for he and Jesus, just as our Savior had told him to. He had but one outer garment, which the soldiers gambled for at the foot of the cross.
Earthly things did not matter to Jesus, though He created all things and owns all things. Psalm 50:10-12 says, “For the beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the mountains, and the wild beasts of the field are Mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell you; for all the world is Mine, and all its fullness.”
Jesus became poor that we might become rich. Rich in mercy, in grace, in salvation, in eternal life, in all spiritual blessings, and in our inheritance as the children of God. We are so incredibly rich, not in monetary terms but in what really matters. The people of the world are chasing after the pleasures and treasures of money, possessions, fame, success, and power. None of these things brings satisfaction or fulfillment. Often the richest people in the world, with their billions, are the most miserable people. Only Christ and a personal relationship with Him brings true joy and contentment.
Peter wrote, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:3-4). Paul also told us in Ephesians 1:3, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.”
Let us thank God for everything we have in Christ. We are richly blessed and blessed richly; we are freely given and given freely; and we are loved fully and fully loved. The One who was rich became poor so that we might become rich.
Have a blessed day thanking God for Jesus and what He has done for us and given to us. Stay safe and healthy.
In His grace,
Dean
Dean Allen's Daily Devotional 