Purchasing Damaged Goods

I appreciate the drive these days to “Adopt, don’t shop,” when it comes to getting a pet. But years ago, we did get one of our babies from a breeder. When we first met Coco, the breeder put her down, and she wouldn’t use her hind legs. After several tries, she still wouldn’t walk.

As we found out when we got home, Coco could not only use her hind legs, but leap to high surfaces and lay there like a panther. But let’s face it. If she had been crippled, we would have paid more, if necessary, to take her into our happy home. Compassion is a powerful thing.

It makes me think of the compassion of our Creator. Because of sin, there was not a human among us that wasn’t marred. We were all damaged goods, and it was because of our own sin. But rather than turn from the whole lot of us, God sent His Son, Jesus, to live as the only perfect human who was fully God, and die on the cross to purchase us with His blood through salvation. The righteous for the unrighteous as we see in 1 Peter 3:18. Now that’s compassion, mercy, and grace. That’s incomparable.

There is no love like His love. Rightly does Romans 5:8 say,

“But God demonstrates His own love toward us,

in that while we were still sinners,

Christ died for us.”

Lord, thank You for making a way for us to be adopted into Your wonderful family! There aren’t words for the price You paid. Please draw in those friends and loved ones for whom we’re praying, that they might not reject such a compassionate redemption.