Praise the Lord for this
wonderful Thursday. The sun is shining brightly and it is
magnificent. He blessed us with a great time of study and
fellowship yesterday. Praise the Lord for the month of June. The sweet
summer of 2016 has (unofficially) arrived and it is here to stay. We
all rejoice and celebrate the promises and goodness of our Lord. I will
be away for a few days attending the Annual Conference of our
church. It is being held at the ON Center in the city of
Syracuse. Our beloved Bishop, Mark Webb, will be presiding
over the sessions. Praise the Lord for the Church. Praise the Lord
for the way the Lord is at work in the world in and through His Church, the
Body of Christ on Earth.
One
of our daughters has recently used some of the writings of Dietrich
Bonhoeffer for her devotions. On November 21, 1943, Dietrich Bonhoeffer
wrote a letter to his fiancee, Maria von Wedemeyer, while he was imprisoned by
Hitler during World War II. In the letter, he talked about a spiritual
lesson he was learning from his life as a prisoner. He wrote, “A prison
cell, in which one waits, hopes, does various unessential things, and is
completely dependent on the fact that the door of freedom has to be opened from
the outside is not a bad picture of the promises of Jesus.”
The theme of hope is a welcome one when we are faced with some of the things that life can throw at us. When we are filled with fear, we need the hope of God’s presence, power and promises. When we are faced with pain or illness, we need the hope that God is aware of what is going on in our lives. When a bad and difficult situation goes on for a long time, we need the hope of knowing that God is able to overcome the evil that has besieged us in his time. When it seems the world has lost its mind and has become hostile to God and everything good, then we need the hope of knowing that God is still in control and is the ultimate victor.
The theme of hope is a welcome one when we are faced with some of the things that life can throw at us. When we are filled with fear, we need the hope of God’s presence, power and promises. When we are faced with pain or illness, we need the hope that God is aware of what is going on in our lives. When a bad and difficult situation goes on for a long time, we need the hope of knowing that God is able to overcome the evil that has besieged us in his time. When it seems the world has lost its mind and has become hostile to God and everything good, then we need the hope of knowing that God is still in control and is the ultimate victor.
Thanks
be be to God. We have a sure and certain hope that is grounded
in reality of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. “Praise be to the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms
with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For He chose us in Him before
the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love
He predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance
with His pleasure and will — to the praise of his glorious grace” (Ephesians 1:3-6). God knew you before you were
born — even before the world was created. He set you apart to belong to
Him. He called you and knew you by name. He created you to belong
to Him that you might know Him and live with Him forever. This is who you
are. This is your heritage, and your position is secure in Him. As
the apostle Peter wrote, this is “an inheritance that can never perish, spoil
or fade — kept in heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:4).
It is written “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9). The book of Revelation says: “To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve His God and Father — to Him be glory and power for ever and ever!” (Revelation 1:5-6).
Because of who our Lord is, and standing in His promises, we know that something good is going to happen. Something is on the horizon. Something is growing. Something is happening because there is Someone behind the scenes making it happen. We are not sure what it is going to look like, but we know it is going to be wonderful. It has already begun in us, and one day it will be completed. Paul said that he was “confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).
It is written “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9). The book of Revelation says: “To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve His God and Father — to Him be glory and power for ever and ever!” (Revelation 1:5-6).
Because of who our Lord is, and standing in His promises, we know that something good is going to happen. Something is on the horizon. Something is growing. Something is happening because there is Someone behind the scenes making it happen. We are not sure what it is going to look like, but we know it is going to be wonderful. It has already begun in us, and one day it will be completed. Paul said that he was “confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).
In Jesus our
sure Anchor.
Brown,
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