The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. John 10:10

My grandfather used to say, "Any job worth doing is worth doing well."

Apparently, the burglars who hit the Philadelphia house of Rachel Schortye on October 15th have made those wise words their motto. Schortye confessed that part of the problem that day was the family had left their door unlocked.

But ... any job worth doing is worth doing well.

Believing that, the burglars came back a second time. That's right, one week after their first venture into Schortye's home, they broke in a second time. On the second visit they took the family's 52-inch flat-screen TV, their winter clothes, the party supplies for their eight-year-old son's birthday celebration, and the family's three-month-old puppy.

I guess it shows the accuracy of Jesus' comment about the thief coming only to steal and kill and destroy. Of course, Jesus wasn't exclusively referring to earthly thieves, who want to rip off our earthly stuff.

Jesus also meant the forces of darkness, which are shooting for something far more valuable and longer lasting than a flat-screen TV. Jesus was talking about the devil, who has chalked up a pretty successful record of stealing the souls of humanity from God and robbing those souls of paradise.

In contrast to Satan -- the thief -- Jesus holds up, well, He holds up Himself. He's the only one who can come into our lives and radically change them for the better. How did He say it in John 10:10? Ah, yes, He said, "I came so they (and by that He meant us believers) might have life and have it to the full."

Notice, He's not talking about living His life for us, suffering for us, and dying for us, so we might be condemned to a boring, ho-hum, lackluster life. Jesus wiped out our sins, so we might have a great life here, and an even better life in the everlasting hereafter.

And no, when He said we'd have an abundant life, He wasn't saying we'd get every toy we could think of; He didn't mean that no evil would come around us, and He didn't mean that you would always be happy.

He did mean that He would be by your side and the thief would never, ever be able to get you. He meant that His victory had become yours, and no matter what comes your way, you will come out on top in heaven.

He meant that He had done the job of saving you, and He had done it well.

THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, I give thanks for Your Son, my Savior, who has brought light into my world of darkness, who has changed my days from bearable to wonderful, and my eternity from damnation to salvation. In Jesus' Name I give thanks. Amen.

In Christ I remain His servant and yours,

Today's Bible Readings: Ezekiel 18-19    2 Timothy 3

To Download Devotion MP3 to your computer, right click here and select "Save Link As" or "Save Target As" or "Download Linked File As"