My Portion in Christ
W. Herschel Ford’s sermon “Since Jesus Came into My Heart” shows us that in Christ our past can be left in the past, and Ford goes on to say that in Christ we also receive a portion. That’s another way of saying a “blessing”, I suppose. And he talks about three things in our portion, when Jesus is in our heart, all found in this verse in Titus 3:4-6: “When the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior.”
The Profound Love of God: A Reflection on God's Unconditional Love
First, we receive the love of Christ. Ford asks us to imagine a man with an only son, with all of his hopes wrapped up in this son of his, when one day a wicked criminal kills this man’s son in cold blood. The father is brokenhearted, but he says to the murderer “God bless you sir, you killed my son but I love you and would do anything for you.”
Ford says this is how God feels towards us – though our sin nailed his only son to the cross, yet still he reaches out to us in love, and says that He will do anything in the world for us! Who can measure the height and depth of the love of our God?! And friend he loves you this way, in spite of your sin. Do you know this?
Second, our portion is God’s salvation. God’s grace saves us from the rightful punishment our sins deserve. With our faith in him, we are saved from that and granted forgiveness and new life. Wow! Do you know His saving love?
And third, our portion is the Holy Spirit. God has not left us alone to fend for ourselves in this world. He has given us the Spirit to help, comfort, teach and accompany us through this life. Ford says that in the old days the Native Americans would test their young boys by sending them into the forest alone among the wild animals for the night. The boy would feel very lonely and afraid, but when he awoke in the morning he would find that his father had been standing behind a tree the whole time, ready to protect his son. We too have our God watching over us at all times, and so we can trust that we are never alone.
Receiving God's Threefold Blessing
Have you received this threefold portion from God? His love, His salvation and His Spirit await you, if you would invite Jesus into your heart, and trust that He has come in and taken residence within you.
