"By His own choice, He gave us a new birth by the
message of truth so that we would
be the firstfruits of His creatures."
James 1:18
In my reading this morning, I barely made it past the first part of this verse.
"BY HIS OWN CHOICE"
Am I the only person who sometimes feels as if God HAS to do something? Do you, like me, remind Him of what is His job and what His word says as if He is somehow obligated to answer? As I read the first part of this verse I realized how often I think God works for me. Yes, He has given me promises in His word. Yes, He is faithful. Yes, His word does not change. However, He owes me absolutely nothing. Yet, He chooses to be in a relationship with me.
This is what is true for all of us. Nobody owes us anything. The relationships we have come down to someone making a choice. Our parents had to make the choice to be our parents. Our friendships exist because we make a choice to be a friend. Our marriages exist because we choose to be married to our spouse. These are choices that are not just one time decisions. They have to be made daily. I often fail. Miserably. I'm not the best parent, friend, or spouse. I am selfish so I choose myself over the needs of others. These are some of the thoughts I have as I read the words, "By His own choice."
God is not me. When He makes a choice, He does not waiver. He chose to give me a new birth. One that adopted me into His family. Just as a child is adopted here on earth, it happens because someone loves that child so much, they can't imagine them not being a part of their family. They would not be complete without that person in their lives and will do whatever is necessary to ensure the adoption process is complete. God felt the same about us.
Not only did He choose us, but He chose us as His firstfruits. When I search the definition of this word, I find, "the first agricultural produce of a season, especially when given as an offering to God." God planted a seed for us (Jesus). We are the "produce" of that seed. Just as He chose us, we have the choice to be an offering to Him. We choose this in how we live our lives. Because choosing relationships requires sacrifice of us. We often must choose to lay aside our own desires, opinions, and needs in order to fulfill the needs of others. To be a parent, we have to put the best interests of our children first. To be a good friend, we must be considerate to someone else. Perhaps our opinion on a subject is hurtful to a friend and we have to let that issue go in order to maintain the friendship. We recognize the person is more valuable and important than whatever matter on which we disagree. When it comes to marriage, the choices are numerous! We have to choose to overlook offense. Then we must choose to show love to our spouse even as we are wounded and hurting. It doesn't mean we don't address issues that need to be addressed, but we have to remember to address them in love, just as God does when dealing with us regarding our issues.
If we want the best parenting, friendship, and marriage possible, there are choices we must make. What choices will you make today to improve the relationships in your life? What bitterness will you let go in order to heal a relationship? What apology do you need to make? What sacrifice do you need to make in order to make a relationship whole? It could be your time or perhaps your pride. Don't wait for someone to prod you into making things right. Follow God's example, "By His own choice..."
