The Lord Who Invites Us.
"Come."
(Matthew 11: 28)
(Mark 6: 31)
(Luke 19: 5)
(John 21: 12)
One of the ancient sounds of invitation that comes from God is when the great flood ended. After so much destruction, calamity, cleansing and renewal, with the promise of a new life, God invites Noah, saying, "Come out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives" (Genesis 8:16). God says, "come." And somewhere later in human history, the Lord says to Moses, "Come up to me on the mountain and stay here, and I will give you the tablets of stone with the law and commandments I have written for their instruction" (Exodus 24 12). And then, in the prophetical chapters of Isaiah, we read God's invitation, "Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters, and you have no money, come buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost" (Isaiah 55: 1). The Lord again, through Isaiah, invites us saying, "Give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David" (Isaiah 55:3). The invitation continues throughout, and it did not just stop anywhere in human history.
The Son of God, Christ Jesus, the Messiah, continued the same. He said to the fishermen beside the Sea of Galilee, "Come, follow me, and I will send you out to fish for people" (Matthew 4: 19). Jesus said to his tired disciples, "Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest" (Mark 6: 31). Christ's message to those going through a difficult time was, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28). Jesus looked up to Zacchaeus up on the tree and said "come down immediately. I must stay at your house today" (Luke 19: 5). To the dead body of four days, kept inside the tomb, Jesus called in a loud voice saying, "Lazarus, come out!" (John 11: 43), "Come," Jesus said to Peter, and Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came to Jesus (Matthew 14:29). He also said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these" (Luke 18: 16). And, after his resurrection, Jesus appeared to His disciples by the Sea of Galilee and said, "Come and have breakfast" (John 21: 12). There have been always an invitation for us from the Lord.
What an accepting and loving God we serve who, at different moments of our lives, invites us to be a part of His family and have a relationship with Him by saying "come." The Lord's invitation is there for everyone, irrespective of our physical appearance, social status and spiritual standards. The Lord says, "come" with wide-open arms and invites us to be a part of His glory. He is asking us to share His glory as His children. His invitation is there before us to come to Him as we are! No alterations needed, no upgrading needed and no status changing required. We are called to come unto Him with a heart of submission and commitment, and He will take care of the rest. God's invitation is always there for us.
The Lord is inviting us, calling us to love Him, adore Him, worship Him and serve Him. The Lord invites us to come into His presence so that He can make us pioneers like Noah (Genesis 8:16) and leaders like Moses (Exodus 24 12), and He can quench our thirst and satiate our hunger (Isaiah 55: 1). We have God's invitation so that when we run to Him and we may live, and God will make a covenant with us (Isaiah 55:5). Christ Jesus shares the same passion in inviting us into the fellowship of the Trinity so that we can be part of God's great mission in this world and we would be sent to fish for people (Matthew 4: 19), you could find rest (Mark 6: 31) & (Matthew 11:28), salvation comes to your house like it came in Zacchaeus's place (Luke 19: 9), you begin to live a new life coming out of all your past and a dead lifestyle like Lazarus (John 11: 43), you could see miracles happening around you just like Peter walking on water (Matthew 14:29), your innocence is acknowledged like the children who were around Jesus (Luke 18: 16), and you could become personal witnesses of the risen Lord who lives and dwells within us just like that memorable breakfast after Jesus's resurrection (John 21: 12).
Today, if you are in a stage where things may look distant, situations may look out of control, or refuge may look invisible, remember that you have the Lord your God whose silent whisper you could hear in your heart saying, "come." You have Christ Jesus inviting you to be part of the Heavenly Father's family, a fellowship that chooses love over hate, forgiveness over pointing out mistakes, and acceptance over rejection. God is waiting for you with outstretched arms. Come! Come running into His presence, give yourself to Him, submit all the parts of your life that may worry you, and commit yourself to living and growing in His image. And that's all you may have to do. God will take care of the rest. Christ invites us to come to Him. All it takes is to decide, get up and run to Him. And God says, you are welcome.
May the blessings of God the Father, the love and grace of Christ Jesus the Son, and the fellowship and guidance of the Holy Spirit, be with us and help us as we seek God, who invites us to share in His glory.
May God bless you.
Yours in Christ,
"Come to the Lord"
by Journey Worship Co.
