The Divine Exchange

In flipping through a book I haven’t picked up in awhile I found a small piece of paper with this scripture on it…1 John 4:16. I was intrigued. I wondered what that scripture said, so I opened up my bible.

Whenever I hear the name John, I usually think of the verse John 3:16, which says—“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believe in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.” Here is what I found in 1 John 4:16—“And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.”

Then verse 18 says the following: “There is NO FEAR in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made in perfect love.”
In thinking about to the love God has for us…enough love to send His own Son as a living sacrifice for us…I’m reminded that this type of love represents a Divine Exchange, so to speak. This is the transfer of our own imperfections away from us and onto Christ. We’re called to trade in that which is old, our sins and faults, and exchange it for new life.

When we first become Christians, it’s easy to stay amazed by the newness and excitement of our faith. However, those feelings often fall away as life’s nasty twists and turns get in the way. Worries and fears come on the scene and then we lose heart and sometimes faith.

As most of you know, I don’t like fear. It’s not from God. The Word states that very clearly (2 Tim 1:7). Do we all have moments when fear might creep in gradually? Sure. It happens. But we can’t let it stick around. If we fall victim to fear, if we are afraid and give way to that anxiety, it shows that His love has not been perfected in us. I realize this may be hard to hear, but it’s true.

When cancer showed up in my life, I felt fear. I’m human. It would only have gotten worse had I stayed focused on that fear. Instead, I would make a conscience effort to take my eyes off of myself and look to Him. Fear can be resolved first and foremost by focusing on His immeasurable love for you. Not always easy to do, but as believers we have no choice. THIS is how we are able to STAY amazed by the Divine Exchange each day. Keep your focus on HIM! Worship Him! I love this from Rev. 4—“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, who is and who is to come.” THAT is worship! Worship takes our eyes off our “humanness” and this world and puts our focus on God! There’s power in that.

There will be more about this nasty little four lettered word FEAR in the next few entries, so stay tuned.