From Adam to this present day, God has been searching for a people who will entrust their lives totally to him. He desires a body of faithful believers who give him their complete trust and confidence and commit themselves wholly to his keeping.
Christ distinguished between the world’s way of doing things and his way. As his followers, we are to be different from the world, loving, serving and forgiving; and we can be sure this will offend a darkened world.
It is clear the Lord loves his church and desires to bless it. So why does Revelation 2 present such a fearsome picture of Christ as he appears to his people?
After Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount, his listeners sat in awe. Scripture says, “The people were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes” (Matthew 7:28-29, NKJV). The Greek word for authority in this verse means “with mastery, power, liberty; as one in control.” Jesus’ listeners were saying, in essence, “This man knows what he’s talking about.”
James understood suffering. In Jerusalem, persecution of the early Christians was rampant. Many of Jesus’ followers were martyred, causing others to flee across the region. What did James say to encourage the church? He wrote, “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray” (James 5:13, ESV).
Our ministry receives letters from many Christians who have somehow lost heart. These are followers of Christ who have truly been saved. They’ve tasted the mercy and goodness of the Lord and experienced joy, peace, hope and gladness of heart. Then something happened; they fell into some kind of sin or compromise, and the joy of the Lord left them. Now they live in turmoil and fear, completely defeated.
In the span of a mere ten verses, David expressed all the pains of life. Psalm 6 contains a revealing glimpse into the agonies that our spiritual ancestor endured all at one time, sufferings that would stretch any person beyond their limits. We see David struggled with sin, endured physical sickness, cried out with an anguished soul, faced threatening enemies and looked death squarely in the face.
“Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered” (Psalm 68:1, NKJV). In every generation, God is rising to scatter his enemies. He puts to chase all demonic principalities, driving them from his people. The very words of this verse, in fact, were quoted by Moses when the ark went forward in Israel. “So it was, whenever the ark set out, that Moses said: ‘Rise up, O Lord! Let your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate you flee before you’” (Numbers 10:35-36).
A few years ago, I was in a crosswalk when I was very nearly crushed between two cars. One vehicle had stopped in the crosswalk, and another sped rapidly toward it, the driver not paying attention. I was caught in between just as the speeding car neared. Instinctively, I jumped, lifting myself onto the parked car as the speeding car rammed into it. The impact threw me onto the pavement and into oncoming traffic. Fortunately, all drivers were able to stop.
