God Has No Grandkids

Matthew 3:9  Don’t just say to each other, ‘We’re safe, for we are descendants of Abraham.’ That means nothing, for I tell you, God can create children of Abraham from these very stones.

I am the third generation of preachers in my family. The picture above shows from left; Aunt Leslie, Uncle Bill, Grandpa and Grandma all dressed up for Faith Assembly’s Old Fashioned Sunday. My Grandpa and Uncle Bill were two of the finest, if not the finest, pastors I ever knew. Their love for people, their care for anybody who walked into their churches, and their impacts on their communities were amazing. With a lineage like that, I had to become a preacher, right?

Nope. I learned something important when I was young. I learned that God doesn’t have grandchildren, he only has children. While I am abundantly grateful for the lives Uncle Bill and Grandpa lived, and the legacy they left me, I had to receive God and his calling for myself.

In today’s verse, John the Baptist warns the “church folk” of the day that they had to find their own way, too. They were content to believe they were okay with God because their ancestors were. No, John says, you need to follow God yourselves.

Whether you grew up in a tradition of belief or one of unbelief, God wants a personal relationship with you. That’s why in Matthew 6:9 Jesus taught the disciples to pray, “Our Father in heaven…” They had always prayed “The God of our fathers,” or, “The God of Abraham.” Jesus was saying that a new relationship had come, a direct relationship with our Father.

God wants a relationship with you, too. A personal one, where you get closer every day. It’s there for you, all you need to do is accept it. Take a moment and ask the Lord to come into your life, forgive your sins, and walk with you. It’s that simple. And if you make that decision after reading this, reach out to me at jerry@jerrygodsey.com I would love to help you take the next steps…

Today’s Readings:  1 Samuel 18; 1 Chronicles 6; Psalm 11; Matthew 3