Saturday, June 14,
2014, 7:55 p.m. – The Lord Jesus put the song “Arise and Shine” in my mind. Speak, Lord, your words to my heart.
I read Revelation 2:8-11 (NIV).
The First and Last
“To
the angel of the church in Smyrna write:
These
are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life
again.
These are the words of Jesus Christ to the church (as is applicable
then and now). He is the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End, the
Alpha and the Omega. He was with God in the beginning, and he is God. All
things were made by him. And he is the judge of all. He came to earth, took on
human flesh, suffered as we suffer and was tempted as we are tempted, yet
without sin. He was despised and rejected of humans – a man of sorrows and
familiar with suffering. People hid their faces from him. They did not esteem
him for who he was and is. Some spat upon him. Others mocked him. Some called
him crazy and of the devil. His own brothers made fun of him. His own people
rejected him. His closest companions all deserted him when he was arrested and
put on trial. One of them betrayed him. Another denied him strongly three
times. And, then his own people and the religious leaders of his own faith put
him to death on the cross, although he had done no wrong.
Yet, his death was in the Father’s plan for his life, and
for you and for me. He was to be our sacrificial Lamb to take away the sins of
the world. So, when he died, our sins died with him, and when he was
resurrected, he conquered death, hell, sin and Satan. He died, though, so that
you and I could be free from the penalty of sin (eternal damnation), free from
the control of sin over our everyday lives, and free to walk in his
righteousness and holiness, all in the power and working of the Spirit within
us. He also died so that we would no longer live for ourselves, but for him who
gave his life up for us. So, when we come to faith in Jesus Christ, it means we
die with Christ to our old lives of sin, we are born again of the Spirit of
God, and we are given new lives in Christ to be lived in his righteousness and
holiness (See Ro. 6-8; 2 Co. 5:15; Gal. 2:20; Eph. 4:17-24; Tit. 2:11-14 &
1 Jn. 1-5).
The Slander of Those
I
know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know about the
slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of
Satan.
The afflictions and poverty of the saints in Smyrna apparently
came through the hands of these “Jews” who were not Jews. In other words, there
were those among them who professed Christ as Savior and as Lord of their
lives, but they were so in name only, for truly they were Christ’s enemies, his
opponents, and not his true worshipers. They mouthed empty and boastful words,
but by their lifestyles they denied Jesus Christ.
They were not people of honor, integrity, honesty and
morality, but rather they were immoral, greedy, and paganistic. Some of them
were also heretical teachers of the faith who taught humanistic reasoning, encouraged
idolatry, and gave a free license for immorality in the name of “grace,” et al.
These false professors of the faith in Christ were enemies of the cross, and so
they persecuted and slandered those who held to the testimony of Jesus Christ
and who did not deny his name. Although they claimed to be part of the Body of
Christ, the church, they were truly of Satan and were influenced by him.
These same types of individuals exist within the church
today. They come in various forms, but what they have in common is that they
give false confessions of Christ when truly they are his opponents, working to
destroy the church from within, and working, as well, to destroy the true
gospel of salvation through manipulation of truth, deception, lies and
trickery. Some of them are in leadership positions within the church. Many are
pastors of churches, who have been trained by humans through humanistic
teaching and methods, and who follow the ways of humankind over and above or
even in place of God’s holy word. Many of them are being taught to avoid or to “filter
out” those who hold firm to the teachings of Christ and of the apostles, and to
bring in those who are far from God, and so the “strong in the Lord” get booted
while the sinful, unbelieving and vile often get honored.
Suffering and
Persecution
Do
not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put
some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten
days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your
victor’s crown.
Yet, we are not to be afraid of what we are suffering or are
about to suffer for the name of Christ and for the sake of the true gospel of
salvation. Some of us will literally be put in prison for our faith and
testimony for Christ. Some of us will be put to death because we hold to the
teachings of the apostles. Yet, others may suffer physical hardships, verbal
opposition, pressure to conform to the ways of humans, rejection of family,
friends and church, slander and false accusations, isolation, and/or
misunderstandings and misinterpretation of motives and/or actions. All these
have come to test our faith, and God will use this time of testing in our lives
to grow and mature us, to strengthen us, to teach us perseverance and to draw
us closer to him, as well as to strengthen our resolve to continue in him,
steadfast in faith, and determined to keep preaching the true gospel of
salvation so that many can come to faith in Jesus Christ. Our end reward is
eternal life in glory with God.
The Victorious Ones
Whoever
has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who is
victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death.”
We will all die a physical death one day, unless Jesus comes
back and takes us to himself first. Our physical death is the first death. The
second death is the fires of hell or the lake of fire, which is where all those
who have not trusted Christ as Savior of their lives are destined to go into
eternal punishment. Those of us who are victorious over sin and Satan by the blood
of Jesus Christ shed on the cross for our sins, and through faith in him who
gave his life up for us so we could go free, we will not be hurt by the second
death. We will escape the burning flames of hell and eternal punishment, and we
will live forever with God in glory. Amen!
Many of our loved ones, family members, friends, neighbors
and even fellow church members do not truly know the Lord Jesus, though. So, they
are destined for hell unless they turn their lives over to Christ. We need to
be fervent in prayer for their salvation. We should be living for Christ, too,
so that we set an example of what the Christian life should look like, not that
we will do so perfectly, but that our overall lifestyle and practices should
reflect our faith in Christ, and in his word, consistently and with integrity. In
this way we let our lights shine before others. As well, it is of necessity
that we are purposeful and intentional about sharing the gospel of salvation with
the world around us so that many will hear the truth, and so many have the
opportunity to receive Christ as Savior of their lives. We should never let
their lack of faith discourage us, though, but we should believe the Lord Jesus
for their salvation, and trust that they will one day come to know him, too.
Arise and Shine /
An Original Work
March 6, 2014 / Based
off Isaiah 60
Arise and shine; your
Lord has come.
Allow His light to
flow through you,
For many walk in
wickedness.
Show them the way to
life anew.
Arise and shine. Your
Lord loves you.
Lift up your eyes, and
look about.
Some do believe, while
others doubt.
Believe in all God’s
promises.
The many will, In
Christ, find rest.
Lift up your eyes, and
you’ll be blessed.
Arise and shine;
salvation comes
To all who trust in
Christ, God’s Son.
Forgiven of their
sins, they’ll be,
When they repent on
bended knee.
Arise and shine, so
all will see.
Lift up your eyes, and
see your Lord.
He will revive his
church, forlorn.
Though humans have forsaken
you,
They will find Christ,
and walk in truth.
Lift up your eyes; God
honors you.
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