God's Plan of Salvation

# 90 – Today's Du-votional comes from 1Sa 7:5,6 “And Samuel said, "Gather all Israel to Mizpah, and I will pray to the LORD for you." 6 So they gathered together at Mizpah, drew water, and poured it out before the LORD. And they fasted that day, and said there, "We have sinned against the LORD." And Samuel judged the children of Israel at Mizpah. (1 Sam 7:5,6) This is such a powerful picture of God's plan of salvation, and we would do well to soak it in. God gives us these pictures because it is His desire that all men would be saved. He does not delight in the death (read that the damnation) of the wicked. (Ez 33:11) and in 2 Pet 3:9 we read that He is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” Here's the picture: Samuel is a type of Christ whom God sends to intercede on behalf of the people. He, like Jesus, stands in the gap between a holy God and an unholy people, (you and I) Jesus is a living prayer for mercy from God and pardon from Him for our sins because of what he did on the cross. Jesus stands forever as the intercessor for all mankind, but only those who see their need for forgiveness can truly receive Him. We like the Israelites must confess, “We have sinned against the Lord.” Now, note the final portion of this passage, “and Samuel judged.” This is what happens next in God's grand scheme. The Lord Jesus will come again, and He will judge all the people of the earth. His judgment will be based on whether or not we have come to repentance, and received Him as our Savior and Lord. On that Day, each one of us will have to give an account, and that account will come from our Great Intercessor, Jesus Christ. He will tell the Father whether we are in Him, or on the outside looking in. The criteria for judgment is summed up for us in Joh 12:48 "He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him--the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. Are you ready for your court date? What are you doing with His Word?