Human Rights

Scripture:  John 1:10-14  (Click link for scripture in Bible Gateway)

10 He came into the very world he created, but the world didn’t recognize him. 11 He came to his own people, and even they rejected him. 12 But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. 13 They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God. 14 So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son. (John 1:10–14 NLT)

To all who believed and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God! Have you noticed we’re talking a lot about our rights these days? So many people in my nation, the USA, are concerned about First Amendment rights, Second Amendment rights, the right to religious freedom, about all our rights under the law. I wouldn’t be surprised if those of you who are reading this in other nations are noticing a similar thing; that everyone wants to exercise their rights!

The right Jesus gave us by grace is the right to become little children! We have the right to make a new start! We have the right to grow in grace, to change our minds and attitudes from the way we used to think and act to the new way God’s children think and act! Friends, we have the right to change! We have the right to change how we think about what’s right and wrong, about what matters and what doesn’t matter, about who’s in and who’s out. If there’s any “right” that it would be eternally helpful for us to exercise, it’s the right to stop demanding our rights at the expense of grace for others!

The Word became human. This is the humility of God! The Word, the eternal Son of God, humbled himself, bound himself to a body of flesh with human wants and needs, human temptations and stresses, human joys and pain, human successes and failures, and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness (Grace and Truth). His example, his love, his serving, his speaking, his actions, his faithfulness is God saying, “This is how I live when I become one of you!” Everything that Jesus taught us about life and living says, “Now you’re reborn into my family, as my child, this is how you live as one of us!”

Prayer:

Father, Thank you for the right to become your child. Thank you for your humility in becoming one of us. Please show us what to do with that so the world may be saved!