DAY 2

Jesus, the Redeemer Who Loves Us

‘To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father – to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.’ Revelation 1:5b-6 (NIVUK)

Reflection

Here we see the power and simplicity of the good news of Jesus. The first revelation of Him in the whole book is that He LOVES US, deeply, personally and unconditionally. This is a vital starting point and foundation.

Revelation, more than any other New Testament letter, reveals Jesus in all His ascended power and glory. And yet it starts with reassuring us that He first loves us. The book of Romans also assures us of this incredible truth. ‘Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?… No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels or demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.’ Romans 8:35-39 (NIVUK)

Knowing that nothing can separate us from Jesus’ love secures us in the midst of the chaos and storms of life.

Secondly, He has freed us from the penalty of our sins by His blood. So much so, that we are not just forgiven, we are now made righteous. He was made sin, so that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him (see 2 Corinthians 5:21). Knowing that we are righteous through the blood of Jesus is, as we shall see, key to overcoming the devil’s accusations against us.

But we don’t have to settle just with freedom from the penalty of sin, we can have dominion over the power of sin, ‘For if we have been united with him [Jesus] in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin – because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.’ Romans 6:5-7 (NIVUK)

Thirdly, He has commissioned us and made us to be a kingdom and priests. God’s plan isn’t just to save us but to commission us; to make us a royal priesthood. Priests draw near to God and intercede for others. In Christ, we are invited into God’s presence and called to carry His presence into the world.

Why does Revelation emphasise these truths from the outset? Because often we live beneath our calling, forgetting the identity Jesus has secured for us. To overcome the world, we need to remember who we are, but even more, whose we are. We are loved, we are free, we are chosen to come before the King in worship and intercession, and to represent Him and His Kingdom to those around us. We are royalty because of His righteousness. This gives us a holy confidence, even in a hostile world.

Devotional

by Karen Smith

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