2003-09-26
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
In the last several messages, I’ve been sharing some of the rich and remarkably detailed descriptions of heaven found in the Scriptures. God wants us to have these, so as to stimulate us to make the wise choices and have the self-discipline necessary to desire to spend eternity with Him there. In other words, He wants us to know what His will for us is and why it is better to obey Him than to reject Him. Today, I am led to tackle the question: What is our position in all of this?
It seems logical to begin with the words of the song sung in heaven by the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders called “Creation.” REV 4: 11, “Our Lord and God! You are worthy to receive glory, honor, and power. For You created all things, and by Your will they were given existence and life.” In today’s context, one can hardly miss how powerful these words are. For illumination, we must see what EPH 1: 4-5 tells us. “Even before the world was made, God had already chosen us to be His through our union with Christ, so that we would be holy and without fault before Him. Because of His love God had already decided that through Jesus Christ He would make us His sons-this was His pleasure and purpose.” Yes, Dear Ones, we were created for God’s pleasure and His purpose. When we think about what that means, it tells us: 1) We are meant to be in fellowship with God forever. 2) It is His purpose that we should present ourselves to Him, so He can gradually prepare us through sanctification to be permanent residents of the Kingdom of Heaven with Him. 3) He has called us to serve Him with faithful obedience and honor. 4) When we serve Him this way, we join Him in His work of bringing others to faith while strengthening our own faith. 5) We are meant to be His friends as well as His servants. 6) He wants us to inherit the Kingdom as joint-heirs with His Son, Jesus Christ. 7) When we obey God, we experience Him and the blessings He is so eager to shower upon us. 8) God wants only what is best for us in the eternal sense. 9) Our recognition of God’s wonderful attributes and deeds, which Jesus Christ models, gives us a clear picture of God’s will for how we should be. 10) God never asks us to do anything for Him that He doesn’t also equip us to do. Every one of these precepts can be backed up in Scripture.
To carry out God’s will for us, we must refuse to believe Satan’s lies. I find it compelling that questions [paraphrased] often asked in our congregation at baptisms and other ceremonies of commitment are: Do you accept that Jesus Christ is God’s Son and the only way to salvation and peace? Do you reject the lies of Satan and accept Christ as your personal Lord and Savior? With true faith, a person answers, “yes, with God’s help.” Such faith is seen in heavenly worship with the singing of “Redemption,” the song found in REV 5: 9-11, to the Lamb Who was slain. “You are worthy to take the scroll and to break open its seals. For You were killed, and by Your death You bought for God people from every tribe, language, nation, and race. You have made them a kingdom of priests to serve our God, and they shall rule on earth.” The reason for rejecting Satan is clearly stated in JN 8: 44, where Christ is rebuking hypocritical traditional Jews [and all who labor in unbelief]. “You are the children of your father, the devil and you want to follow your father’s desires. From the very beginning he was a murderer and has never been on the side of truth, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he is only doing what is natural to him, because he is a liar and the father of all lies.” Those tough words are the truth. God’s will is crystal clear in JAS 4: 7, “So then, submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil, and he will run away from you.”
Paul exemplifies a person of deep faith who suffered much on account of his obedience to God. The desire that many true believers have to be home with the Father and to have the Glorious Appearing happen as soon as possible is seen in Paul’s comments in PHIL 1: 23-24. “I am pulled in two directions. I want very much to leave this life and be with Christ, which is a far better thing; but for your sake it is much more important that I remain alive.” Here is a perfect case of placing obedience to and trust in God first over relief from suffering. That didn’t mean Paul never complained. Like us, he was human. But, I have no doubt that Paul’s place in heaven is one of honor, because of the extraordinary obedience he displayed once he came to faith on the road to Damascus [AC 9: 1-6].
The only way that we can truly give Christ free reign in our lives is to yield control of them to Him. That is sure to require major lifestyle and thought process changes from what we inherited as sinners. However, God has created us to be able to make those changes, even though it isn’t easy for us to do. Remember, He never asks anything of us that He doesn’t also equip us to do. Next week, we’ll continue to look at more about our position with regard to what God tells us about heaven.
PRAYER: O Lord, as we delve into Your words about heaven, we realize their life-saving potential for each of us. You have made us desire to experience You through obedience and faithfulness to You on earth. You have led us to be eager for eternal life-one of joy and fellowship with You in heaven. Your promises are more valuable to us than anything we can obtain from other people. Your values and perceptions on our suffering have the power to bring us to the place where You can polish our rough sinful edges to reflect the pristine beauty of Your light. These words of Yours are brought to mind. PS 119: 93, “I will never forget Thy precepts for with them Thou hast quickened me.” PS 36: 9, “ For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light.” The words “quickened” and “light” are crucial to us. When we are quickened, we are brought to faith. Your light allows us to see Your will and bring Christ’s love into our own lives and those of others. Christ’s new commandment in JN 13: 34-35 are direct revelations of Your will for each of us. “And now I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. If you have love for one another, then everyone will know that you are My disciples.” As sinners, we must confess the sin we have and repent from it. If we will do this, You have already shown that You have the power and the will to impart true faith to us, to show us how to do Your will, to give us the gift of the Holy Spirit, and to allow us to benefit from the unparalleled work done by Christ on the cross-redemption for all who believe. What should our position be? It must be, Dearest Father, one of eternal thanks and praise to You. By showing us what worship in heaven is like and the awful consequences of the alternative, You have borne in us a profound desire to be permanent citizens of heaven who rule jointly with Your Son. How grateful we are that You love us so much that You would allow Him to suffer the humiliation and physical pain of the cross, so that we might spend eternity with You and Him in heaven! We bow before Your throne to ask that You continue to help us become mature believers who serve You effectively and have eternal fellowship with You. In Christ’s name, we pray. Amen.
Next week, as promised above, I am led to discuss more wonderful words from God that help us understand our position in God’s will for us to be citizens of heaven. Imagine the courage that it took for Abraham to leave his home and all that was familiar to him for an unknown destination, just so that he could do God’s will. Think about what it took for Moses to overcome his speech impediment, so that he could carry out God’s will. God asks each of us to “step out of our boxes” and follow His commands when we often don’t know where it will take us or the full extent of what we will accomplish in obeying Him. Ruth’s loyalty to her mother-in-law, Naomi, allowed her to eventually become a part of Christ’s lineage. None of us may be as prominent as those I mention here, but in the context of our own lives, God has a will for each of us. Many of us will do things that never get publicity, but may still have far-reaching benefits in God’s plan. Every single believer without exception is important to God and His Son. JN 6: 39-40, which are words from Christ, reveals this. “And it is the will of Him Who sent Me that I should not lose any of all those He has given Me, but that I should raise them all to life on the last Day. For what My Father wants is that all who see the Son and believe in Him should have eternal life. And I will raise them to life on the last Day.” I pray each of us is in that group. Hallelujah! To God be the glory!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn