| Whatsoever
Things Are True
by Dan Coburn Pastor, Emmanuel Baptist Church pastordan@mtida.net “We must endeavor to persevere”. That is what the Chief said the President of the United States told him in; The Outlaw Josey Wales. The Bible talks a lot about Perseverance. In Revelation 2:17, It says: “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone which no one knows except him who receives it.” This reminds me of a Charlie Brown Halloween. Remember everyone got candy and good stuff except him? He got a rock. And this is God Almighty, giving not OUT OF, but “according to” his riches. This seems somehow dis-proportionate, at best. After a life of sacrifice (by our standards), and saying “no” to the world, and forgiving instead of getting even, and doing without what the flesh craves, I finally get to heaven, and God says “good job Dan, here’s your rock”. (Kinda reminds me of my Dad when he would tell me to do something, and I would ask: “what will you give me?”, and he would say: “I’ll feed you tonight”. Let’s turn the Spiritual Switch. If I were a Hebrew, a few thousand years ago, and I was arrested for —whatever— and put on trial, after the “jury” heard all the evidence they would (as a sign of innocence or guilt), place a stone on the ground. A Dark stone for Guilty, and a White Stone for Innocent. Now think about this --The God of the Universe, the Ultimate Righteous Judge, will Himself give Me a White stone with my name on it. Reflect on this for a minute. If I have been "declared righteous", who did the declaring? "There is now therefore, no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus..." Romans 8:1 I don’t even have it yet and it is already my most precious possession. I will show it off for-ever. I will sleep with it in my hands. What a Great God. Do you have yours on order? God bless. |
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