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An
Outreach Publication of the Church of Christ at
Creekwood |
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Ideal
Donor In his book Written in Blood, Robert Coleman tells the story of a little boy whose sister needed a blood transfusion. The doctor explained that she had the same disease the boy had recovered from two years earlier. Her only chance for recovery was a transfusion from someone who had previously conquered the disease. Since the two children had the same rare blood type, the boy was the ideal donor. “Would you give your blood to Mary?” the doctor asked. Johnny hesitated. His lower lip started to tremble. Then he smiled and said, “Sure, for my sister.” Soon the two children were wheeled into the hospital room—Mary, pale and thin; Johnny, robust and healthy. Neither spoke, but when their eyes met, Johnny grinned. As the nurse inserted the needle into his arm, Johnny’s smile faded. He watched the blood flow through the tube. With the ordeal almost over, his voice, slightly shaky, broke the silence. “Doctor, when do I die?’ Only then did the doctor realize why Johnny had hesitated, why his lip had trembled when he’d agreed to donate his blood. He thought giving his blood to his sister meant giving up his life. In that brief moment, he’d made his heroic decision. * Johnny, fortunately, didn’t have to die to save his sister. Each of us, however, has a condition more serious than Mary’s: “for the wages of sin is DEATH” (Romans 6:23). The remedy for our sins required Jesus to give not just His BLOOD but His LIFE. “God
demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we
were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). “He
gave himself for our sins to rescue us from
the present evil age, according to the will of our God
and Father” (Galatians 1:4).
“In Him we have redemption through
His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according
to the riches of His grace” (Ephesians 1:7). The
only One who could do this for us was the One who
conquered sin: The
blessings of His payment for sin are given to those
who: believe
in Him (Acts 16:30-31), turn from their sin in repentance
(2 Corinthians 7:9-10), confess
Consider
what HE gave to provide for your greatest need… Won’t
YOU respond to Him in
grateful, trusting obedience? David A. Sargent, Minister Church of Christ at Creekwood * Thomas Lindberg To Subscribe to "Living Water" send a blank e-mail to:
HTML version: subscribe-livingwater@lyris.dundee.net Follow this link to locate the church of Christ nearest you: www.churchzip.com Archived issues of "Living Water" can be accessed from our website at: www.creekwoodcc.org
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