HE LEFT HIS THRONE

“He left His Father's throne above,
So free, so infinite His grace;
Emptied Himself of all but love,
And bled for Adam's helpless race:
'Tis mercy all, immense and free;
For, O my God, it found out me.”  (Charles Wesley)

Long ago, Persia was ruled by a kind shah who concealed his identity and visited the public baths as a beggar.  Seeking the lowest place and worker, the shah went to the cellar where a man stoked the furnace.  The shah befriended him, and the man shared his simple food and conversation.  Over time the worker grew attached to this stranger who visited him.  When the ruler finally revealed his true identity, he expected the worker to ask for a gift.  Instead, the furnace tender said, "You left your palace and your glory to sit with me in this dark place, to eat my coarse food, and to care about what happens to me.  On others you may bestow rich gifts, but to me you have given yourself."

What an illustration of what Jesus did for us.  He left His throne of glory and came to our place of labor and loneliness to befriend us.  That's amazing enough, but it gets even better.  Jesus has invited us to sit together with Him in "the heavenly places."  As you sit by His side, you will discover He is the God who gives. 

-- Lenya Heitzig and Penny Pierce Rose in “Pathway to God's Treasure: Ephesians”

#5056