September
17, 2003
THE
FATHER OF ALL NATIONS
"He
has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all
the face of the earth" (Acts 17:26, NKJV).
"God,
who made the world and everything in it, - is Lord of heaven
and earth... He gives to all life, and breath, and all things.
He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on
all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed
times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they
should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might - find Him,
though He is not far from each one of us. In Him we live and
move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have
said, 'For we are also His offspring.' " (Acts 17:24-28).
Our heavenly
Parent is the Father of all mankind. He created the earth
and everything in it for our benefit and blessing. The pride
and prejudice of mankind have built strong walls of separation
between different classes of people. However, in the sight
of our heavenly Father all souls are of equal value. "There
is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free,
there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ
Jesus" (Galatians 3:28). "The rich and the poor
have this in common, the Lord is the maker of them all"
(Proverbs 22:2). "The - Lord over all is rich to all
who call upon Him. For 'whoever calls on the name of the Lord
shall be saved' " (Romans 10:12, 13; Joel 2:32).
Is it
hard to find God? Not according to Jesus,
"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will
find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who
asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks,
it will be opened... Your Father in heaven will give good
things to those who ask Him" (Matthew 7:7-11).
"You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me
with all your heart" (Jeremiah 29:13).
Where
do we seek for Him? The Bible is a good place to start. He
shares Himself with us through His Holy Word. The experience
which is obtained through a personal acceptance of God's word
will lead you to know that you are not alone in this world,
you have value, you have purpose and your heavenly Father
has plans for you. "For I know
the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts
of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope"
(Jeremiah 29:11).
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