Psalm 23:6 KJV
[6] Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: And I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.
Man was created by God to live forever. As you read the story of creation, you find out that there was really no end-game, no limit set to the life of man. He was created to dominate, to fill the earth and subdue it. There was no documented end to man at the time of creation, until sin came into the picture. God said it quite clearly that the day man eats of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is the day man dies. And that is exactly what happened. Man took of what he had been expressly forbidden not to ear, and then began the phase of disobedience and rebellion to God's commands. However bad that situation could have been, it is also a thing of joy that this is not where the story ends. If it did, we would have had no hope, nothing to look forward to, and nothing to keep us grounded and focused on what is eternally relevant.
With Jesus coming to the world in human form and dying for my sin, He has opened up a new way for me to regain whatever was lost or destroyed. With the Life He has secured for me, I come into a new relationship with God, where I now belong to a new family.i now live by different standards, and hold allegiance to a new order of things. It is no longer business as usual. I belong to the sheepfold of God, which means I have access to the benefits and blessings of citizenship. The verse above makes that clear: goodness and mercy are supplies from the throne of God, and are made available to ALL who are citizens. Are you a citizen, or just content to pass through? Does God know you as His own, or do you have to shout it daily, before people have to question your identity? If goodness and mercy are following me, they leave imprints that cannot be ignored.
God does not do the earthly alone. He also sorts out the eternal. He does not do the seasonal, and then leaves me to fashion out the rest on my own. If He is allowed to come in, He wants to stay in, so the person can enjoy limitless grace and of course, eternal life at the end of the earthly phase. That is why a life that is totally surrendered to God is the template for the manifestation of His power and grace. A life that has been given over to God wil always enjoy God's goodness and mercy. And it is for a lifetime, both down here and forever. God does not do temporary or seasonal; He is eternal. In response, and in appreciation of what God offers, I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. I will also not be content with making it down here; I also want to enjoy all that God offers in eternity. I have to be his sheep, if I will enjoy all He offers. Are you one? God's time of favour is here.
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