I know you have, because I think we all do. We wake up in a stupor as though we just got through an intense movie, and our life was as the main character!
In this case, I was held hostage for who knows what reason, but needless to say, it was a bit threatening. I began to ease in the situation while surrounded by people of evil intentions, as I found compassion within myself to ask them simply why they were doing what they were, and desiring also to share with them about Christ and give them hope beyond whatever or wherever their evil intentions were taking them.
I don't remember much else, but then this morning read on in Matthew where I've been studying for awhile, to refresh my memory of the verses where Jesus tells His disciples that we must not fear those who can kill the body but not the soul. Our soul belongs to God and noone out there can keep us from this eternal love and keeping. It was interesting as I had even awoke to thinking upon this verse, and was comforted by the fact that truely noone and nothing can keep us from our Lord-neither life nor death is to be feared with God on our side. Christ goes on to say that he brought the sword to divide and prove those who are worthy of Him- those who will deny, and follow Him.
As we are weak in flesh, He can be made stronger, and if we allow Him to be magnified in our lives and proven, He will then prove us true to His Father God in Heaven. Jesus is the way, the answer- the key to living this life with eternity in focus- as His life is life to us, and His death is also; so must be our lives- whether we live or die, to Him be all the glory.
I also thought on persecution recently as I read from a book full of stories of those who had undergone bouts of it. It brings questions to our minds as to why, etc. But we are then confirmed when and if we do go through this, just why and even beforehand, that it is inevitable in this life. From harsh to almost non existant as in these westernized countries it can be, we still have some answers even if not all fully explained. And so are my thoughts on the next blog.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Friday, July 2, 2010
blessed are those who are persecuted...
So we often wonder how it is that our lives will or should look as followers of Christ; a paradox for sure, as we die to ourselves to live to Christ. In our weakness He is made stronger in us, we are to put others first, while in the kingdom of heaven those who were first shall be last, and the last first. We wonder if God will “bless us” as His word seems to intend. However our view of blessings can be skewed by the ways in which our narrow minds conceive.
Spiritual blessings are to be above all treasured, and material can also be nice, but if our real treasure is laid up in heaven as Matthew says it should be, we will have our minds so set there that temporal things don’t phase us quite so heavily. I have now come to understand that we do not deserve anything as sinners, and that every gracious gift given to us comes from our Father in heaven, regardless of whether we deserve it. We don’t have answers for everything; for pain, for blessings per se, or cursings, for God no longer works consistently has the God of the ‘big stick’ in order to beat us to submission. He works as a compassionate one who gave us free life through His Son Christ Jesus the heir of all things as is reiterated all throughout the Bible. So there we have it at first hand, the riches of Christ and blessings eternally laid up in heaven for us. We shall not want for more; and yet we do. We are here on earth and we desire the temporal. The temporal, though beautiful as it may be in the short term, is nothing to be compared with the beauty of Christ and the blessings to be poured out when we enter His presence in eternity. We live for now all to often, and see the pain this world so easily bestows when our hopes are here. We are given such good lives, in some terms, and yet not all of us do.
We see fellow believers of Christ being persecuted for their faith, yet this is a God honoring thing in this world for it is written in His Word, blessed are those who suffer for His sake. We can take this to heart, and rejoice in the Hope and faith His gives us through the knowledge of His Son, knowing that as He says, “the genuineness of our faith, being more precious than gold, though tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 1)
God gives us a huge manual to tell us of the short comings of many men, His hand in their lives, and how to avoid wrong doing. He tells us His righteousness has been GIVEN to us, so we need not work for salvation, but we must live in light of this glorious lot in our lives.
Psalms says “the good mans steps are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; For the Lord upholds him with His hand. ..I am young, and now old; Yet have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread. He is ever merciful, and lends; And his descendants are blessed.”
Well we know that none are actually good- except Christ, but that He has now laid on our account, His own righteousness. So then those who live according to His word, or even just those who are His may receive this blessing? Well there you see, material blessings in the way of provision, and I truly have seen this in my own life ONLY by grace MANY times. I know believers have perished for their faith- so there you wonder of safety provision, but ultimately their true valued treasure was not kept from them, and their lives are now an honor to the Lord even by their death. I read stories of those faithful to the Lord amidst rough family derission, yet through all the toil and pain they endured, God brought them through even the most unbelievable physical circumstances to prove their faith.
And so you have it, some who are spared and some who are not. We know not which we will be, if ever we even truly have to face trials such as these. But count it a blessing, if so, for then our faith will be given opportunity to prove Christ what honor is due. May we live in such light of His eternal blessings, that they far outweigh any menial life circumstances that beset us in this life. May we live in the light of His glory and grace, and be imitators of God in this world, being holy, that is ‘set apart’ as he called us to “be holy, for I am holy.”
Spiritual blessings are to be above all treasured, and material can also be nice, but if our real treasure is laid up in heaven as Matthew says it should be, we will have our minds so set there that temporal things don’t phase us quite so heavily. I have now come to understand that we do not deserve anything as sinners, and that every gracious gift given to us comes from our Father in heaven, regardless of whether we deserve it. We don’t have answers for everything; for pain, for blessings per se, or cursings, for God no longer works consistently has the God of the ‘big stick’ in order to beat us to submission. He works as a compassionate one who gave us free life through His Son Christ Jesus the heir of all things as is reiterated all throughout the Bible. So there we have it at first hand, the riches of Christ and blessings eternally laid up in heaven for us. We shall not want for more; and yet we do. We are here on earth and we desire the temporal. The temporal, though beautiful as it may be in the short term, is nothing to be compared with the beauty of Christ and the blessings to be poured out when we enter His presence in eternity. We live for now all to often, and see the pain this world so easily bestows when our hopes are here. We are given such good lives, in some terms, and yet not all of us do.
We see fellow believers of Christ being persecuted for their faith, yet this is a God honoring thing in this world for it is written in His Word, blessed are those who suffer for His sake. We can take this to heart, and rejoice in the Hope and faith His gives us through the knowledge of His Son, knowing that as He says, “the genuineness of our faith, being more precious than gold, though tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 1)
God gives us a huge manual to tell us of the short comings of many men, His hand in their lives, and how to avoid wrong doing. He tells us His righteousness has been GIVEN to us, so we need not work for salvation, but we must live in light of this glorious lot in our lives.
Psalms says “the good mans steps are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; For the Lord upholds him with His hand. ..I am young, and now old; Yet have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread. He is ever merciful, and lends; And his descendants are blessed.”
Well we know that none are actually good- except Christ, but that He has now laid on our account, His own righteousness. So then those who live according to His word, or even just those who are His may receive this blessing? Well there you see, material blessings in the way of provision, and I truly have seen this in my own life ONLY by grace MANY times. I know believers have perished for their faith- so there you wonder of safety provision, but ultimately their true valued treasure was not kept from them, and their lives are now an honor to the Lord even by their death. I read stories of those faithful to the Lord amidst rough family derission, yet through all the toil and pain they endured, God brought them through even the most unbelievable physical circumstances to prove their faith.
And so you have it, some who are spared and some who are not. We know not which we will be, if ever we even truly have to face trials such as these. But count it a blessing, if so, for then our faith will be given opportunity to prove Christ what honor is due. May we live in such light of His eternal blessings, that they far outweigh any menial life circumstances that beset us in this life. May we live in the light of His glory and grace, and be imitators of God in this world, being holy, that is ‘set apart’ as he called us to “be holy, for I am holy.”
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