A Creator We Can Trust

Welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread. Our reading titled, A Creator We Can Trust, was written by Monica LaRose. The monster in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is one of the most widely known literary characters, captivating our cultural imagination. But close readers of the beloved novel know that a strong case can be made that Shelley actually portrays Victor Frankenstein, the delusional scientist who created the creature, as the real monster. After creating an intelligent creature, Victor denies him any guidance, companionship, or hope of happiness, seemingly guaranteeing the creature's descent into desperation and rage. Confronting Victor, the creature laments, You, my creator, would tear me to pieces and triumph. Scripture reveals how different the true creator of all things is with unchanging, tireless love for his creation. God didn't create on a whim, but out of love created a beautiful, very good world. And even when humanity turned from him to choose monstrous evil instead, God's commitment to and love for humanity didn't change. As Jesus explained to Nicodemus, God's love for his creation was so great, he was willing to give even what was most dear to him, his one and only son, that the world might be saved. Jesus sacrificed himself, bearing the consequences of our sin so that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him. We have a creator we can trust with our hearts and lives.

Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from John chapter 3, verses 10 through 17. You are Israel's teacher, said Jesus, and do you not understand these things? Very truly I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. I have spoken to you of earthly things, and you do not believe.

How then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven, the Son of Man. Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Let's pray. Dear God, thank you for being a good creator who we can trust, a creator who so loves his creation that he would sacrifice everything for it. May we sacrifice our everything for you. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen.