Third Sunday in Easter - Hooray, We’re in Exile!
Goes along with Kids Devotion of the same title.
We don’t belong in this world, but it is our privilege to make it more like Heaven!
Read 1 Peter 1:17-25.
Bible Focus: “And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile.” -1 Peter 1:17
Fantastic news! We are all in exile.
Don’t be alarmed. Our exile really is good news. It means we don’t belong here in this world full of sadness, sickness, and death. We belong with God the Father in Heaven, where “death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain” (Revelation 21:4).
We belong in Heaven, but not because of who we are or anything we’ve done. After all, we are in exile because of our sin. This is our rotten inheritance from everyone who has come before us, but we can’t blame them - our own sins are our own fault.
We belong in Heaven because of who Jesus is and what he has done. His death and resurrection called us back from exile. We are welcome with the Father in Heaven because Jesus paid for our sins with his own perfect blood. Through him, we believe and are saved.
The Father does have some expectations for us during our exile. While we are waiting to get to Heaven, we are to conduct ourselves with reverence. We are to be obedient to God’s will and love each other earnestly. In essence, it’s our job to make our home in exile more like our home in Heaven.
It’s our job, but it’s also our privilege. Remember the fantastic news? We’re in exile, but we know without a doubt that we’ll go to Heaven someday. We are sinners, but Jesus saved us in spite of our failures and faults. This is incredible! It is our privilege to respond with faith and love. It is only natural for us to share our fantastic news through our words and actions. So let’s go, and be reverent, obedient, and loving. Because of Jesus, we can.
Your challenge this week:
Think about how you, personally, can make this world more like Heaven.
Please pray:
Heavenly Father, you have called me back from exile through your Son, Jesus. I confess that I do not always respond with faith and love. Thank you for always assuring me that I am welcome in Heaven with you. I ask that you would help me make this world more like Heaven. In your Son’s name I pray, Amen.
