Morning Devotional

December 12, 2003

"Life's Mysteries" 

by Don Emmitte

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How we praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we belong to Christ. Long ago, even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. And this gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the wonderful kindness he has poured out on us because we belong to his dearly loved Son. He is so rich in kindness that he purchased our freedom through the blood of his Son, and our sins are forgiven. He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. God's secret plan has now been revealed to us; it is a plan centered on Christ, designed long ago according to his good pleasure. And this is his plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ--everything in heaven and on earth. (Ephesians 1:3-10 NLT).

You might believe from the title of this morning’s devotional that this was going to be a deeply philosophical reading. Nothing could be further from the truth! In fact the greatest of life’s mysteries have been revealed to us. However, it’s those little mysteries that seem to give me trouble understanding.

For example, why do our socks periodically disappear and why don't they ever disappear in pairs?   Why can only one person in the house put on a new roll of toilet paper? Or, why do we still get fat when we're not eating anything fun? Those are some of the mysteries that I have not discovered the answer to yet. There are others, of course, such as how those fuzz balls get inside the lining of our jackets or why women always go to the ladies' room in pairs. But we have been given the knowledge of the greatest mystery of all. Jesus said, "To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God" (cf. Mark 4:11). Jesus set up His kingdom in our hearts when He came and gave His life on the cross.

Mismatched socks, weight gain, and fuzz balls are still a part of this mysterious fallen world. But if we're talking about the truly important issues in life, we don't have to find ourselves baffled. Our reading this morning declares this truth so clearly: God's secret plan has now been revealed to us; it is a plan centered on Christ, designed long ago according to his good pleasure. And this is his plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ, everything in heaven and on earth. What a blessing that in a world of questions, we've been given some concrete answers in God's Word about the things that really count.

As we approach this Christmas, what is your relationship to Him? Do you belong to Him? Are you under His authority now? Don’t wait another minute. Place your faith in Him and Him alone!