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“Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” – 1 Peter 1:18-19
When our children were small, sometimes they would ask my wife and I if we would buy a particular item for them. One time my wife said, “Well, I don’t have any money.” One of our children replied, “Just go to the machine!” Of course, we know that it is useless to go to the ATM machine for money unless we have previously made a deposit into our account, but they were blissfully unaware of that fact!
Jesus made a deposit in our spiritual accounts when He died on the Cross. Our salvation was not paid for with money, but as our focus verses say, “With the precious blood of Christ.” Jesus made the deposit to remedy the sin problem so that we could be the people of God, and He did that because He loved us.
After we have been born again, we can continue to draw upon His deposit for our needs. The Bible tells us that our sanctification and baptism of the Holy Spirit have already been paid for by Jesus’ Blood (see Hebrews 13:12; 10:19), as well as our healing (Isaiah 53:5). It is also His Blood that gives us victory every day, as we read, “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony” (Revelation 12:11).
The New Testament tells of many who availed themselves of the power deposited for us through Jesus’ shed Blood. Paul and Silas drew on the deposit when they were in prison. With their backs bleeding and their feet in the stocks, they began to sing. They understood that God wants His people to praise Him even when things are looking grim. They rejoiced in the investment God had made in their lives, and He worked for them. God sent an earthquake that released their bonds, and the jailer was so shaken that he and his family repented!
Philip drew on the deposit when he went to the desert. He was in the middle of a revival in Samaria, but the Lord told him to go to the south toward Gaza. Philip could have said, “The desert? Who lives down there? I’m in the ministry; I’m an evangelist, and I need people to talk to.” But Philip knew the importance of obedience, and he did as he was instructed. In the desert, he met a man with a hungry heart, and that man was saved.
The spiritual deposit has been made for us, and God wants us to draw on it for grace and power to do His will. He wants us to be witnesses and laborers for Him. We can draw from Him so we will have the abilities, skills, and attributes that He wants to put into our lives, and then He wants us to share the Gospel with those around us.
The deposit is there. Will we take advantage of it?
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