By: Stephen McClelland. For more information on his ministry, click here.
During church yesterday I had a vision of a man tending a lot of sheep. They belonged to him, and while there was a lot of them they were mostly below average. One of them stood out though, like it would have been an award winning ram. It was taller and stronger than the rest, its wool vibrantly white. The others were dingy and dirty. This one was his prized possession and he took great care for it.
And then Father God walked up. The man wasn’t shocked by it; it was like they knew each other and were comfortable with each other. God was admiring the man’s flock, but I could see Him looking repeatedly in the direction of the prized ram. After a little more chatting I could tell God said “This one is beautiful. I’d like to have him. Would you give him to me?” The man remained respectful, but clearly didn’t want to lose this one. He offered God two, even three of the others instead of the one. But God was focused on the ram. He said softly, “I think I’d like to have this one.” The man, seeing that God was determined, kept trying to bargain. “What will I get from you if I give you this one? This ram is quite valuable!”
God turned to look at the man but did not immediately speak.
I kept thinking, “You don’t give to God to get something! You give God what He asks for because of what you’ve ALREADY gotten from Him! You’ve already been given far more than what that ram is worth. He gave to you first, and it was more valuable than anything you could possibly imagine.” Clearly the man hadn’t thought of it that way, but it was the truth.
A short distance away I saw Jesus. He had been there the whole time, with the man, I just hadn’t seen Him.
Finally, Father God spoke. It was gentle, not condemning, and barely above a whisper. His eyes were soft, and He maintained a reassuring smile. The vision ended as He gestured toward Jesus, “I gave you my lamb. I gave you the best.”
God may or may not be asking you to give up something very valuable to you. Either way, you have already been given the greatest gift. The lamb of God, slain from the foundation of the world. Redemption, reconciliation, and eternal life, by the blood of Jesus Christ. He was given before you asked. He was given when you deserved nothing. He is yours. The greatest savior and the greatest leader. He is yours.
Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay