Much Encouragement!
I always love it when I have happy and joyful messages to
share, though ultimately, even the messages about sin, judgment, and the need
to come to Christ in repentance and faith for salvation have a joyful goal and
result. Sometimes surgery is required for healing. Pain is involved in the
birth of a child, but the joy of the baby makes it all worth it. You’ve heard
it said, “No pain, no gain.” So, even some of the toughest messages in
scripture still have our joy, peace, security; our life purpose and direction;
and hope of life everlasting at heart.
Wednesday, August 01,
2012, 7:15 a.m. – The Lord woke me with this song:
In the Sweet By and
By / Sanford F. Bennett / Joseph P. Webster
There’s a land that is
fairer than day,
And by faith we can
see it afar;
For the Father waits
over the way
To prepare us a
dwelling place there.
We shall sing on that
beautiful shore
The melodious songs of
the blessed;
And our spirits shall
sorrow no more,
Not a sigh for the
blessing of rest.
To our bountiful
Father above,
We will offer our
tribute of praise
For the glorious gift
of His love
And the blessings that
hallow our days.
In the sweet by and
by,
We shall meet on that
beautiful shore;
In the sweet by and
by,
We shall meet on that
beautiful shore.
Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening. I read Romans 8:18-27 (NIV 1984):
I consider that our
present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed
in us. The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be
revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice,
but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself
will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious
freedom of the children of God.
We know that the whole
creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the
present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the
Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the
redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen
is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what
we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
In the same way, the
Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but
the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And
he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit
intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.
Present Sufferings
Paul begins this section of his writing by contrasting our
present sufferings to our future glory with God for eternity. If we fix our
eyes on Jesus, and if we set our minds on things above, not on things of this
earth, and if we do what we do in this life with eternity’s values in view,
then we should have the correct perspective on whatever suffering we may have
to go through in this life.
We are taught in scripture that we should rejoice in our
suffering and that we are counted worthy to suffer for the cause of Christ. We
are taught that suffering is a part of life, but for the life of the believer,
it has a real purpose. The goal of suffering is to teach us to persevere, to
develop within us godly character, and to grow us in our faith. When we respond
correctly to our suffering, God can work his righteousness in us in making us
holy vessels fit for his service. Suffering on this earth is a lot like the
pains of childbirth, and our future glory in heaven is a lot like the joy of
the birth of a new born baby.
Future Glory
When sin came into the world, God judged all he had created.
Death entered the world. From that moment to the present time the whole of
creation has been groaning – longing for the moment in time when Jesus Christ
will return to earth and the saints of God will receive their eternal reward
and our salvation will be complete. At that time, as I understand it, not only
will the saints of God be liberated from their bondage to these earthly bodies
that get sick, hurt, and are subject to disease, death and decay, but all of
creation will be liberated from its bondage to decay and will be set free from
the curse of sin. Yet, we know that those who do not believe in Jesus Christ
will not experience this joyous freedom from bondage of decay but will be
eternally condemned to punishment.
I like this picture of creation eagerly expecting the
children of God to receive their future glory. I admit that I have a difficult
time wrapping my mind around this subject of the creation waiting eagerly for
this to take place, and so I will not attempt to try to explain it further than
what the scriptures teach it. Yet, as I think of this in relation to followers
of Jesus Christ, I believe this should be our attitude toward the time when
Christ will be revealed from glory, when the saints of God will meet him in the
air, and when we will be forever with our Lord. Amen! Eager expectation can be
described as sitting on the edge of our seats waiting for a surprise we know is
coming or the beginning of something for which we have been waiting and
anticipating a long time. If we could get as excited about God as we do the
things of this world and this life, we could shake this world for Jesus Christ!
We are Saved
We are saved for this hope of eternity with God, but not
only the hope of our future glory, as wonderful as that will be, but for the
hope of the change in our hearts and lives brought about by the grace of God, and
through the work of heart transformation of the Holy Spirit, as we cooperate
with God and his work. Our hope is not just future, though some of it is, and
that is what we eagerly wait for and hope (assuredly) for, knowing that one day
we will no longer have to live in these earthly bodies, but we will all be
changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, and we will be forever with
our Lord. Amen! Yet, our hope is now, too, in all that God has promised us,
even those things we have not yet seen or realized. We are saved not just so we
will go to heaven one day. We are saved so that we will live lives for the Lord
and affect lives for Jesus Christ while we are still on this earth.
In our Weakness
I love this next part. Paul (words from the Lord) said: “In
the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness.” The same way in which our
hope of eternity with God and the hope of our future glory help us stay focused
and persevering in our faith and purpose, even while we must go through times
of suffering on this earth, the Holy Spirit helps us in our limitations we
experience while still in these earthly bodies. Sometimes we just don’t know
what to do. We don’t even know what to ask for or how to pray. There have been
times when all I could say was “Help!” It is awesome to know that at those
times the Holy Spirit intercedes for us, because he knows what is really going
on and what we really need, and others need, too.
A Believer’s Prayer
/ An Original Work / July 31, 2012
With my whole heart,
Lord, I pray to be
Yours,
And Yours always.
Lead me in Your truth
today.
May I love You, and
obey.
Lead me in Your
righteousness.
When I sin, may I
confess;
Bow before You when I
pray;
Live for You and You
always.
Love You, Jesus,
You’re my friend.
Life with You will
never end.
You are with me
through each day,
Giving love and peace
always.
You will ne’er abandon
me.
From my sin You set me
free.
You died on that cruel
tree,
So I’d live eternally.
Soon You’re coming
back for me;
From this world to set
me free;
Live with You
eternally.
Oh, what joy that
brings to me.
I will walk with You
in white;
A pure bride,
I’ve been made right
By the blood of Jesus
Christ;
Pardoned by His
sacrifice.
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