A Little Girl and Her Father - Part 2 - The Bond

Romans 2:4 (NIV)
Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you towards repentance?

Often what sounds like the obvious way, good, logical or even spiritual, need not necessarily mean that it is the truth. There are many incidents throughout the Bible where you'll find that God does things differently to the way the world would have done things. In fact, it is very often the very opposite. The verses prior to Romans 2:4 are about judging others, what wicked people a certain group are and how they should be punished. Though we know that God, in his justice, will punish anyone who does wicked things, yet God chooses to show His kindness, tolerance and patience, which are an expression of His love, to lead them into repentance. It is His way to begin the transformation process in His people, to bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal 5:22-23) and thus come into His likeness.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 gives the biblical definition of LOVE.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 (NLT)
4Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5or rude. Love does not demand its own way. Love is not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it has been wronged. 6It is never glad about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance (tolerance).

In my first posting on "A Little Girl and Her Father - Perspective", the essence of the story is the little girl's trust in her father, that her trust is not in its bind, but in its bond. This is also the same for us with Christ Jesus.


Why is this bond with Jesus, so important?

John 11 teslls about the death of Lazarus, the brother of Martha and Mary. This chapter shows the differences in the way Jesus response to the two sisters very same words when they each met up with Him.

"Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." (v21 - Martha, v32 - Mary)

Jesus response to Martha was that her brother will rise again and that He is the resurrection and the life (John 11:23, 25).

With Mary, Jesus response was, Jesus wept (John 11:35).

The differences in Jesus response to these two sisters reflect the strength of the relationship, the bond Jesus had with them as revealed in Luke 10:38-42 - Jesus Visits Martha and Mary.

The strength of the bond or relationship we have with Jesus, will determine how much we entrust our lives to Him. The stronger the bond, the stronger our trust in Him, the greater will our response in faith to Jesus be.


How do we develop this bond with Jesus?

Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT)
28 Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke fits perfectly, and the burden I give you is light."

Like Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet, listening to what he taught (Luke 10:39), come to Jesus and sit at His feet, listening to Him.

Prayer is how we communicate with God. Set aside a daily time to meet with God (Psalm 5:3) and be confident God will speak to you, expect Him to answer and He will gladly do so (James 1:5-8)


Be conscious of God's love for you.

The following are more scripture verses that shows of God's love for you and His desire to form a bond with you.

Proverbs 8:17 (NLT)
17I love all who love me. Those who search for me will surely find me.

Isaiah 54:10 (NLT)
10For the mountains may depart and the hills disappear, but even then I will remain loyal to you. My covenant of blessing will never be broken," says the LORD, who has mercy on you.

Hosea 2:19 (NIV)19 I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion.

Romans 5:8 (NIV)
8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.