Devo: "The Glove, The Secret of Living Large, Living Loud, Living Great!"

The Glove, The Secret of Living Large, Living Loud, Living Great!

“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.” (John 14:12)

    One of the most inspiring things I have ever seen is the Grand Canyon. When Paula and I went to see it, I was uninformed about its details. I was thinking it was something like an impressive one-mile wide and one-mile deep. But when we walked up to the canyon rim, I was shocked. My first thoughts were, “God, “You out did Yourself, this too much!” As it turns out, the Grand Canyon at its widest point is eighteen miles wide and approximately six-thousand feet deep. The Grand Canyon is so great, so large, that it demands each of us to declare the greatness of our God.

    When Jesus Christ lived on the earth, He lived a Grand Canyon sized life. His life was so large, so great, He changed the world. What is crazy is, He said, “he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do…” Jesus is telling us, we have a destiny, as believers in Him, to live louder, to live larger, to live greater than He physically did on the earth.

    It is easy to shrink back in unbelief when we consider Jesus’s declaration. How can we do greater things than Jesus? But when understand what Jesus is saying and the context in which He said it, we can live a life expecting to see the greatness of God.

    Just before Jesus make His statement about greater works, Jesus declares, “…I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works…” Jesus is telling us, His secret to living big, living loud or living great, was allowing His Father abiding in Him, to do His Work. Jesus is declaring, the works that were occurring were the Father’s. Because it was the Father abiding in Him who was doing His Work, the Father was being glorified. Jesus came to show us and give us the resources to live a surrendered life to God, allowing the greater works of God to be expressed in and through us.

    Believing in Jesus, every moment, of every day, is living totally surrendered to Him. We are like a glove. A glove in and of itself is powerless to do anything. But when a glove allows itself to be put on a powerful hand, whatever the hand does the glove does in like manner. As we intentionally live by faith in Jesus, we are allowing Him to fill us with Himself and allow Him to do great things. We are the glove; He is the Hand! “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” (Galatians 2:20)