Wednesday, April 8, 2020

30 New Days - Day 22

the 22nd day of a 30 day devotional Bible Study by the Rev. Tracy A. Siegman, Senior Pastor FCC, Covington, KY.  Shared with her gracious permission.

If you read the suggested passage each day, by the end of 30 days you will have read the entire New Testament.

Day 22
30-day reading plan: 2 Corinthians

Daily Verse: 2 Corinthians 6:2
For he says,
“In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.”

I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.

When you see someone standing on the street corner with a sandwich board and a bull horn, you already know what he is saying before you even hear him. You’ve heard the message enough to know that he is yelling at the crowd of passers-by to repent of their sin or they will burn in Hell. Non-believers are rarely concerned about burning in Hell for eternity. Many non-believers think they are good people and will therefore be going to Heaven.

Before I became a believer, I prayed to God and believed in Heaven. I wasn’t concerned with Hell, because I knew a personal Hell of mental health illness. For me, salvation has not been about a ticket aboard the Heaven bound train. My salvation has been in this life as I have experienced healing through the love of God and mercy of Christ. Since coming to believe in the Lord, I have been properly diagnosed as having bipolar disorder. I have been released from the personal Hell of trying to cope with mental health illness without help. I still deal with mental health illness every day, but the yoke is lighter with appropriate treatments and counseling, coping skills, prayer, and self-awareness.

Non-believers are looking for this type of salvation, a release from their personal Hell and reconciliation to God through salvation that leads to wholeness and healing of our brokenness. I have personally experienced so much salvation in this life that I can’t imagine how Heaven will bring greater healing. That’s the salvation the world is looking for and can find in Christ. People don’t need the fear of Hell; they need the promise of healing.

Question for reflection:
How have you experienced salvation and reconciliation in this life?

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