2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
This is a remarkable path on which the Lord is taking us. Each day, I must place my trust in Him that He will guide me to what He wants me to write. He leads me to continue with citations that reveal Him as Jehovah Shammah, the Lord is there. Today, our focus will be on how modern day believers can keep strong in our faith and have our eyes on the bigger picture, the hope of the resurrection. We are beset by the work of the adversary in our everyday lives. However, our loving Abba Who is always there for us wants us to pay attention to how He is at work in the lives of people around us as well as in our own lives. We carry with us the responsibility to respond to His sovereignty over our lives by freeing ourselves of selfish, human agendas to make room to allow the Holy Spirit to do Jehovah Shammah’s work through us. Sometimes, that isn’t always easy. The buffeting from the devil’s work and those allowing him to lead their lives causes us to feel tired and discouraged. Jehovah Shammah knows that and provides for it.
PHIL 3: 20 focuses us on the bigger picture. “We, however, are citizens of heaven, and we eagerly wait for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, to come from heaven.” It is interesting that I was led today to this citation. Only last night, I was thinking about May 14, 2001, modern Israel’s birthday. I was wondering what God has in mind for this beleaguered nation that is fraught with problems from without and within. Not long ago, the Israelis closed off the roads leading into the Palestinian village of Ramallah in an effort to stop all of the fire bombs, rock throwing, and gun fire that had come from these anti-Semitic Arabs. The Palestinians came in with bob-cats to remove the blocks to their access to Israel in response. Needless to say, gunfire erupted from both sides and lives were sadly put in peril. This is only one example of incidents going on all over Israel’s borders and in the Temple mount area of Jerusalem. Political and religious dissension within Israel is an everyday problem. Busloads of innocent citizens, some of them children and tourists sometimes are killed or injured from Arab-set bombs. The assassination of Rabin a few years ago by Jewish extremists is only one example. The ultra-Orthodox in government have been trying to strip away civil rights and even citizenship itself from other Jews. Messianic ministries are constantly under pressure by efforts to stop them from sending or receiving snail mail or e-mail and other threats, including expulsion from Israel altogether. Life in Israel challenges faith, because of the clash between man-centered worldly values and God-driven spiritual ones. In the face of all of that, we need to be encouraged to have faith and to know that we are only tent-dwellers here on earth-that our citizenship is in heaven. We need to remember that by abiding in our faith, the day will come when we will hear that last trump calling us to a meeting in the air with Jesus, Who invites us to His wedding feast and will see to it that we will be given resurrection bodies [1 THESS 4: 16-17, 1 COR 15: 42-50].
When Paul wrote his letter to the Colossians, he addressed our need to focus on Jehovah Shammah, the Lord is there in a very special way. He spoke about living and dying with Christ. COL 3: 1-4, “You have been raised to life with Christ, so set you hearts on the things that are in heaven, where Christ sits on His throne on the right side of God. Keep your minds fixed on things there, not on the things here on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. Your real life is Christ when He appears, then you too will appear with Him and share His glory!” Let’s look closely at the language used here, e.g. “raised to life with Christ.” Paul writes often about the difference between living a worldly life and living “in Christ.” There is a huge difference. A man-centered life leads to sin and death as RO 6: 23 tells us. “For sin pays its wage-death; but God’s free gift is eternal life in union with Christ Jesus.” This wonderful verse also reveals the alternative that we can choose when we live “in Christ.” Another key phrase in the Colossians passage above is “where Christ sits on His throne at the right side of God.” This not only tells us about Christ’s access to the Father, but it is a reminder of the precious message of HE 7: 24-25. “But Jesus lives on forever, and His work as a Priest does not pass on to someone else. And so He is able, now and always, to save those who come to God through Him, because He lives forever to plead with God for them.” In other words, we have a High Priest on the job all the time to intercede for us Who has immediate and close access to the Father.
One might ask: What does it mean to have his life “hidden with Christ in God?” This most important phrase means that Christ’s death on the cross has “covered” all our sins from which we have repented. We are both saved and granted God’s protection from the adversary when we are faithful. That doesn’t mean we won’t have to do spiritual warfare with the adversary and his followers, but it means that we are equipped to be victorious in it. EPH 6: 13, 16, “So put on God’s armor now! Then when the evil day comes, you will be able to resist the enemy’s attacks; and after fighting to the end, you will still hold your ground…at all times carry faith as a shield; for with it you will be able to put out all the burning arrows shot by the evil one.” Imagine how wonderful it will be when we together will “appear with Christ and share in His glory!”
PRAYER: O Lord, no matter how much spiritual warfare goes on in our lives, when we have faith that You are always there for us and know from Your word that we are equipped for victory, we do not need to be discouraged or let our strength of faith waver. You have commanded us to focus on the things of heaven rather than of earth because You know that they will help carry us through the suffering we must endure for our sanctification. You also know that by our being faithful, Your work will be accomplished through us. Because of Your abiding and profound love for us, we can take comfort in knowing that You not only equip us for victory over the adversary, but You stand in support with Your constant presence in our lives. You are our Jehovah Shammah, the Lord is there. When Christ ascended into heaven, He was brought to Your side to intercede for us, relating to the pain we feel from having experienced it Himself. He awaits Your command as we do, to blow the last trump and call us to meet with Him in the air. You opened Your heart to us when You promised us that we will share in His glory. We acknowledge that wonderful promise and dedicate ourselves to listening for Your commands and obeying them. We eagerly await the time when we will join You in eternal life and humbly offer You our adoration, worship, loyalty, trust, obedience, honor, glory, praise, and thanksgiving. In Christ’s name, amen.
Jehovah Shammah leads me to write more about the life He wants us to live on earth, so that we will better appreciate the promise of eternal life that He makes to us in tomorrow’s message. Each day that I write about Him, I not only fall deeper in love with Him but find new ways that motivate me to obey His commands. He gives each of us a new and better perspective on the ills of this world in which we temporarily dwell, so that we can deal with them in a way that pleases Him and brings blessings to us. There are so many ways that Jehovah Shammah manifests His love for us. Take comfort in knowing that love is for each of us every day of our lives. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn