Lenten Series: In Need of The Helper
Lent is a liturgical observance and season of reflection; not a biblical mandate. It is simply a time to remind ourselves and appreciate the abundant grace of Christ’s saving work on the cross. It is a time to press in deeper in submission to Christ’s authority as we prepare our hearts to celebrate, with exceedingly great joy, the resurrection that awaits every believer and follower.
In our Lenten daily devotionals, we will focus on our spiritual needs and desires and how the Helper is our Gift for strength and success if we will bow in greater submission to the authority of our King and the terms of His Kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Spirit.
Reflection: Obeying the Shepherd
Digging for Truth: Scripture teaches God IS love; his nature is pure Fatherly love for his creation. Therefore, he is faithful to all who come into his family through the covenant of love he offers in Christ and the work of grace for salvation (Ephesians 2:8-9). When we accept Christ’s invitation to step into this covenant, we are saying we want to be bound to God’s love and covered by grace. That may sound all warm and fuzzy, and certainly God’s love is a miraculous and abundant gift, but let’s be real and restate what it means to connect to Christ’s sacrifice for salvation. God’s love covenant is based on spiritual reciprocity—God fills us with his merciful, sacrificial, and healing love [agape] and we return that love to God by obeying his commands—his Word.
Grace for the Heart: Grace, faith, and obedience all go together in Christ’s work of salvation. By grace—the unmerited favor of God—we receive spiritual gifts as we stand in a place of faith—trust—and act in obedience as we listen to our Shepherd. To accept Christ’s sacrifice is to deny ourselves [our will] and obediently follow like sheep wherever our Shepherd leads us. It reminds me of a song I learned, as a child, many years ago:
Savior, like a Shepherd lead us,
Much we need Thy tender care;
In Thy pleasant pastures feed us,
For our use Thy folds prepare:
Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus,
Thou hast bought us, Thine we are;
Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus,
Thou hast bought us, Thine we are.
The way God protects and guides us is not through force, it is through our obedience to the tender nudging of the Helper who actually gives us the ability to obey (John 14:15-17). God’s “folds” from this song, is about our obedience leading us to a place of resting in his promise to prepare, provide and protect his own.
Acts 5:32 NLT “We are witnesses of these things and so is the Holy Spirit, who is given by God to those who obey him.”
Challenge: As we reflect on our obedience to the Shepherd, today, let’s remember the covenant promise we willingly made to be bound to God’s love and covered by grace as we submit to his tender care. “Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him” (Philippians 2:12-13).
Prayer: Lord, thank you for making our hearts your home and for dwelling with us each day. Thank you for the Helper who shepherds our will toward conformance to your will and plan for our lives. May the love you give to us, today, be returned to you through our faithful promise to love and honor your Word. In Jesus’ name. Amen.