At Home With Jesus – November 17, 2020

I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant. . . . My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people.
Ezekiel 37:26,27

At Home With Jesus

There’s no place like home. That’s why we want to be home for the holidays. That’s where we want to be after a long day at work. Home is where we feel safe, and our hearts are at rest.

In the prophet Ezekiel’s day, the people of Israel were far from home. They were living in far-off Babylon. And it was their own fault. They had separated themselves from God by worshiping other gods and living for themselves rather than for him. So, God used King Nebuchadnezzar to invade Israel, rip them from their comfortable lives, and whisk them a thousand miles away to Babylon. Living as exiles, the Israelites learned a hard lesson. They longed to be at home with God.

Do you feel like your sin has put distance between you and God? The prophet Ezekiel has some words of assurance for you. God has made a permanent pact of peace with you. God knew that we couldn’t bridge the chasm created by sin. So, Jesus closed the gap for us. He loved God and us perfectly. On the cross, he suffered hell, the consequence of everyone’s sin. Because God raised Jesus from the dead, nothing can separate those who are in Christ Jesus from God’s love.

So, when your sins leave you feeling far from God, look to Jesus. Remember what he has done to rescue you from those sins. Remember that because of what he has done, God promises to dwell with you. And, one day, he will take every one of his followers home to heaven. And you can be sure there is no place like it!

Prayer:
Merciful God, you are mine and I am yours. By your Holy Spirit, make your home in me that I may rest in you. Amen.