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LEARN & GROW
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Week of September 20, 2009
KEY VERSE
"He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high..." (Hebrews 1:3a)
CENTRAL TRUTH
As God, Jesus not only upholds the entire universe, but has effectively paid for all our sins; so why would we not trust Him with every little detail?
DEVOTION
God's greatest works are His creation and redemption, both of which require absolute and infinite power. A God who can create and uphold the entire universe and who can forgive our sins and offer eternal life is one in whom we can confidently trust with all areas of our lives.In this first chapter of Hebrews, the writer presents Jesus as the "exact imprint" of God. That is: He is fully God who has the power to uphold the entire universe and who provides salvation for us through His death on the cross. Did you notice that the verse says that Jesus "upholds the universe," and not simply that He created it? That means by His power we continue to exist at every moment. In fact, if He were not to uphold the universe at every moment, we would simply cease to exist. That's an interesting thought, especially when we consider trusting in the Lord for every detail of our lives. Can we trust Him for the security of our families, our employment, our relationships, our healing, and our needs? Sometimes we might feel He is distant. Sometimes we might feel that He doesn't hear our prayers. The fact that He upholds the universe tells us that every time we wiggle our fingers, God is present. He even holds our fingers into existence as they wiggle! If you doubt God's power to answer prayer or handle the details of your life, just wiggle your fingers. But Jesus not only upholds the universe by His power, He also loves us enough to have paid the price for our sins by dying on the cross. That means we not only can trust Him for His power, but also that He loves us so much that He would die for us. So we can be confident that Christ can not only handle all the details of our lives, but that He loves us so much He continually acts with our best interests at heart. Why wouldn't we trust Him with every detail?
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
- What is the hardest area for you to trust fully in the Lord?
- As you look back in your life, where can you see God's faithfulness and provision the clearest?
- Though the Bible is clear that Jesus loves us, why do you think it is that sometimes we don't feel loved?
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