Focal Passages: John
3:16-18; 14:6-11; 1 Timothy 2:3-6
Mount Mitchell in North
Carolina is 6,711 feet high, the highest point east of the Rockies.
Mount Whitney in California
is 14,501 feet high, twice as high as Mount Mitchell.
But Mount Everest in Asia
stands 29,000 feet high, twice as high as Mount Whitney.
If these mountains were
placed side by side, anyone standing on Mount Mitchell or Mount Whitney would
look up to Mount Everest.
So it is with Jesus.
All
great individuals look up to Him, the one and only Son of God, for He towers
above them in many ways.
Jesus stands tallest in
conquering temptation.
Almost daily, society
uncovers character flaws in great people; but Jesus, the perfect Son of God,
never sinned.
When Satan came against Him
with three fierce temptations, He defeated the Enemy in every case.
Jesus’ life has been
scrutinized for centuries, but no flaws have been discovered either in His word
or deed.
Jesus stands tallest in
power.
He stopped a storm and cast
out demons.
He healed the sick, blind,
and deaf.
With five loaves and two fishes He fed 5,000 people.
His dynamic personality
attracted people from all walks of life.
He changed Simon, a simple
fisherman, into Peter, the forceful preacher at Pentecost, and He changed Saul,
a murderous Pharisee, into Paul, the mighty missionary to the Gentiles.
When
his enemies put Him to death on the cross, He rose again in three days.
Yes, Jesus, the one and only
Son of God, stands alone.
Finally, Jesus submitted
more to God’s will than anyone who ever lived.
He allowed God to map out
His life’s plan. Even when God’s plan led to a cross, Jesus willingly died for
the sins of the world.
As a result, deep in the
heart of our Christian faith is a certain text: John 3:16.
And deep in the heart of the
text is a special word: whosoever. It can stand for all people, or it can stand
for one person.
If you believe in Jesus, the
verse belongs to you: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have
everlasting life” (KJV).
Now replace whosoever with
your name and live your special text beginning today, because salvation refers
to life on both sides of the grave.