God Makes the Rules

# 27 – Today's Du-votional comes from 1Sa 2:8 He raises the poor from the dust And lifts the beggar from the ash heap, To set them among princes And make them inherit the throne of glory. "For the pillars of the earth are the LORD'S, And He has set the world upon them. I cannot read this without thinking of the beggar Lazarus spoken of in Luke 16:19-31. He sat outside the gate of the rich man begging for morsels of food, and all he got was first aid treatment from the dogs who licked his wounds. But when Lazarus and the rich man died, Lazarus was lifted out of the dirt and taken to eternal comfort, while the rich man had to endure the flames of hell. What a picture in Hannah's prayer for us as well, for we are nothing but beggars in need of God's mercy and grace. We are sinners, desperately in need of forgiveness and cleansing. Isa 64:6 says, “ But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags;” There is nothing we can do to earn salvation. Jesus has earned it all, for all of mankind, and God in His mercy, stoops down to the dunghill and offers us forgiveness of our sins through faith in His Son Jesus. Faith in Jesus Christ is the only way to be lifted out of the manure pile and granted the gift of eternal life. Jesus said I am the way the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except through Me. (Jn 14:6) That is God's simple rule for salvation. Trust in His Son. You can complain about it if you want but don't forget “the pillars of the earth are the LORD'S, And He has set the world upon them. He is God. He makes the rules. His rule of salvation is summed up in Mr 16:16 "He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. Father, even my faith is a gift from You. Thank You.