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The Prince of Life “The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified His Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied Him in the presence of Pilate, when He was determined to let Him go. But ye denied The Holy One and The Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; and killed The Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.” (Acts 3:13-15 KJV) Just before the Apostle Peter uttered the above words, people had been filled with wonder and amazement when he, Peter, accompanied by John, performed a miracle at the gate called Beautiful. A certain man, lame from his mother's womb, who was carried and laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple had been made whole. It is at this point that Peter speaks to the multitude and declares that it is not by his own ability that this lame man has been made whole but that it is through Jesus Christ, THE PRINCE OF LIFE, whom they killed, that this man has been made whole. Peter used this wonderful, befitting, title for Our Lord Jesus Christ for the killing of Jesus Christ was still fresh in their minds. Other translations say THE AUTHOR OF LIFE. When declaring Jesus Christ as Prince or Author of Life, Peter was saying that Jesus Christ, The Son of The Living God was also the Founder, The Initiator, The Chief of Life. Jesus in His ministry never denied this but instead confirmed it over and over again with such statements as; “ I Am The Way, The Truth and The Life, no one comes to the Father, but by Me” (John 14:6) “I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.” (John 14:6) “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” (John 10:10) A closer look at the name Peter ascribes to The Lord Jesus, The Prince (KJV) or Author of Life (NIV), reveals the following: The Author, The Founder, of LifeWhen we hear the word ”author”, we immediately think of the writer of a book. However, the word author also refers to the creator or originator. The one who has the original idea. The one who came up with the master plan. In his letter to the Colossians, Paul says “ for in Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or authorities--all things were created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1: 16-17) John also says that “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men” (John 1:1-4) “ And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only Begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. John bare witness of Him, and cried, saying, This was He of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for He was before me.” (John 1: 14-15) David says this “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be”. The Initiator, The Chief, of LifeThe title Prince of Life means that Jesus Christ is also the initiator or the Chief of the New Life every one of us has and/or is ever going to experience. One who initiates is one who puts an operation into plan. The Chief is one who has the highest place of priority. Paul says that “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” (Ephesians 2:1-6) Hallelujah!!! What Adam got us into – death, Jesus Christ, got us out. This everlasting life is what we read of in John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Peter emphasizing the same says “For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth: who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed Himself to Him that judgeth righteously: who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.” (I Peter 2: 21-25). Glory be to God!! What a joy to know that we can have a personal relationship with the Author of Life, The Prince of Life, The Founder, The Chief and Initiator of Life. Jesus Christ is truly the answer to all of humanity’s dilemmas. When we come to the realization that Jesus Christ is the Author of our lives, we will have joy in asking Him in prayer to guide us. He knows the end from the beginning, He is the Alpha – The Author and we can entrust our lives to Him knowing that we are in safe hands. He who is The Creator of all that we see and have not seen surely will enable us, by His wisdom, to lead a life that will glorify Him. We have the right to acknowledge Him not only as Our Redeemer but also as Our All in All. He has all the answers to life’s questions and as Author; nothing is too hard for Him. HE has the blueprint of our lives and we can have access to it by aligning ourselves to His will. When Peter told those who had killed Jesus Christ that He was the Author of Life, his intention was to cause them to turn to Him, The Prince of Life, if they desired to enjoy everlasting life. Conclusion My prayer is that God will fully reveal Himself to you so that you may trust Him. For HE alone has good plans for you. He has authored a wonderful life for you. Choose this day to be on His side. He has the true version of what your life should be. Life has many twists and turns but The Chief of Life will lead you like A Faithful Shepherd through very valley of shadow of death and will give you divine protection and favor. HE alone has brought us victory. Paul rejoicing quotes Hosea 13:14, “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” (I Corinthians 15: 55–58). Like Joshua, declare your position, “As for me and my house we will serve the Lord” Friends, let us serve Him for HE alone has the “Authorship rights” to our lives. Click here for March 2005 focus " The Alpha and Omega"
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