Sunday, October 26,
2014, 5:00 a.m. – the Lord Jesus put in mind the song, “For Our Nation.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read 2 Thessalonians 1 (NIV84).
Perseverance in Faith
Paul, Silas and Timothy,
To the church of the
Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
Grace and peace to you from God
the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
We ought always to thank God
for you, brothers, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more,
and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing. 4 Therefore,
among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the
persecutions and trials you are enduring.
Although it is
true that much of today’s modern church, particularly here in America, can be
compared to the church in Laodicea (See: Rev. 3:14-22), this is not true of all
believers in Jesus Christ in the USA or throughout the world. There are many
dedicated followers of Jesus Christ who love him with their whole hearts, who
are faithful in service, committed to obedience, and who are walking daily in
Christ’s righteousness and holiness. These faithful followers of Christ are
also committed to the sharing of the full gospel message of Jesus Christ and
our salvation with the world around them in order to see as many as possible
saved before the Day of Judgment. They hold fast to the word of God and they do
not deny Jesus Christ. As well, they are devoted to loving others with the love
of Jesus Christ.
Because of our
testimonies for Jesus Christ and for his gospel, and because we stand firm on
the Word of God, and we do not compromise our faith, or blend in with the
world, and we stand out as different, we are persecuted. The sad reality of the
situation here in America, though, is that the strongest and most severe
persecution is not necessarily coming from those who do not believe, but from
those within the church who profess Christ as Savior, and even from those who
are in leadership positions within the church. The reason for this is that so
much of the church here in America has blended in with the culture of the world
in order to be culturally relevant and to not offend people, and so anyone who
does not conform to the new way of “doing church” is often ostracized, kicked
aside, forsaken, mocked, falsely accused, rejected, and treated like an enemy
of the church.
Yet, not all
persecution comes from within the church, though this has been where I
personally have faced most of mine. There are many in the world who take
offense to our beliefs and who do not comprehend faith in God, belief in Jesus
Christ, or the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit within us. They think we
just create this stuff in our own minds, or we have preconceived ideas of what
we want to believe, which some do, and thus they think we find scriptures to
support what we want to believe in order to justify what we say are our
beliefs. Granted, there are people who do this, but not every follower of
Christ does this. So, those who do not believe will strongly come against us
with their insults, mocking, false accusations, and will tell us to mind our
own business, to not be judgmental of others, and to stop confronting them with
the Word of God, in particular the parts they don’t like.
Because You Believed
All this is evidence that God’s
judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of
God, for which you are suffering. 6 God is just: He will pay back
trouble to those who trouble you 7 and give relief to you who are troubled,
and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven
in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8 He will punish those who
do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 They
will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of
the Lord and from the majesty of his power 10 on the day he comes to
be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have
believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.
We can be
encouraged, though, because God has allowed these times of trial in our lives
for a purpose. One of the purposes is to strengthen us in our faith, and to
develop within us godly character, and perseverance, etc. Another purpose is so
we learn to not rely upon our own resources or on our own strength, but so we
learn to put our trust in the Lord Jesus and to depend on him for all that we
need. As well, when we go through difficult times, and we are comforted by the
Lord in our trials, we learn sympathy and compassion for others who are going
through difficult times so that we can comfort them with the comfort we
received from Christ (See: 2 Co. 1; Ro. 5:3-4; Jas. 1:3-4).
We can also find
encouragement in knowing that all this suffering is temporary, and that one day
our sorrow will be over and we will get to be with our Lord forever, and then
there will be no more pain or crying. Amen! All those who now persecute us will
be stopped, one way or another. Yet, we certainly find no comfort in knowing
that those who refuse to believe in Jesus Christ will be punished with
everlasting destruction, and shut out from the presence of the Lord. We should
grieve over that fact. In fact, this should be what motivates us to share the
gospel, because we want as many as possible to be saved before our Lord
returns. Just the mere thought of so many people dying and going to hell should
move us to compassion, and that concern should spur us to share the gospel, in
spite of our suffering.
Every Good Purpose
With this in mind, we
constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and
that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act
prompted by your faith. 12 We pray this so that the name of our Lord
Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our
God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
It is so
encouraging to know that others are praying for us. We may not even know who
those people are, and/or we may not even have specific knowledge of their
prayers for us, but it helps to know we are not alone in this battle. So, it is
critical we pray for one another.
No matter how
long some of us have known the Lord Jesus Christ, we have not yet reached
perfection, because as long as we live in flesh bodies, we will still battle
the flesh, yet we can be encouraged because Jesus Christ already won this
battle for us! Amen! All we have to do is to yield to his Lordship in our
lives, submit to his will and purposes, walk in his love and in obedience to
what he teaches us, and resist Satan, flee temptation, and draw near to God in
full assurance of faith. We don’t do any of this in our own strength, though, but
only in the power and working of the Spirit within us, who gives us all we need
to live godly and holy lives in this present age while we wait for our Lord’s
return.
So, because none
of us are yet perfect, even those of us who have known the Lord a very long
time still need prayer, and we still need prayer that God would make us worthy
of his calling, “for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for
his good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13 ESV). To live a life worthy of his calling means
to submit to his Lordship, walk in his love, believe in his promises, trust in
his mercy, put off the deeds of the flesh, and walk in the Spirit so that we do
not gratify the desires of our flesh.
Also, we need
prayer that by HIS power God may bring to fruition (completion) our every
desire for goodness and our every deed prompted by faith. First of all, these
can only come from the Spirit within us, for in our own flesh we have not the
desires or the deeds which are in line with God’s word and with his holiness
and his purposes.
For each one of
us, these desires and deeds will vary depending upon our faith, and depending
upon our specific calling, ministries, gifts and assigned parts within the body
of Christ, though as followers of Christ we should all desire to see people
saved and for them and us to walk in truth and to live holy lives pleasing to
God.
For me
personally, God has called me to write out what he teaches me each day from his
word, and from my time with him in fellowship and in prayer, and to place it on
the internet so that a “runner” may “Run With It.” He has also called me to
speak to the church here in America, to talk with them about what it means to
be a believer in Jesus Christ, to share the FULL gospel, to point out the false
teaching that is being passed off as truth, to warn of wolves in sheep’s
clothing, and to talk about idols, complacency, spiritual adultery and willful
sin, and to call the wayward back to a right relationship with their Lord; to
call them to repentance, and to warn of judgment (divine discipline). Yet, the
Lord Jesus has also given me a promise of his church revived, so I believe him
that he will bring that to fruition.
For Our Nation /
An Original Work / September 11, 2012
Bombs are bursting.
Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently
calling
You to follow Him in
all ways.
Trust Him with your
life today.
Make Him your Lord and
your Savior.
Turn from your sin.
Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of
your sin;
Cleanse your heart,
made new within.
Men betraying: Our
trust fraying.
On our knees to God
we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us
answers
That are only found in
Him.
God is sovereign over
all things.
Nothing from His mind
escaping.
He has all things
under His command,
And will work all for
good.
Jesus Christ is gently
calling
You to follow Him in
all ways.
Men deceiving: we’re
believing
In our Lord, and
interceding
For our nation and its
people
To obey their God
today.
He is our hope for our
future.
For our wounds He
offers suture.
He is all we need for
this life.
Trust Him with your
life today.
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