My human nature is one of melancholy, but I am a person full of thankful joy! Is it because I experience perpetual good fortune, a life of unbroken bliss? Not at all. Through the years I have known successes and failures, tragedies and triumphs. My joy is not borne of luck, but from the Lord Who enriches me with love, faith, hope, healing, and purpose. From knowing Him I draw life! God is not a Judge on the periphery of life of Whom I am afraid, Whose approach fills me with dread. He is my Father, my Friend. My holy place is one of celebration.
Some disciples seem to know Him primarily as a God who waits for them to fail so He can lower the boom, an angry Deity that they must appease with their goodness, hoping He will look on them with favor. Their holy place is one of fear. Which person are you?
The Scripture teaches that we who are ‘in Christ,’ need not live in fear, trembling before God, as the Israelites did at the foot of Mt. Sinai where the Law was given to Moses. Instead, we are invited to a holy procession to Mt. Zion, the city of our God, where we rejoice in His loving kindness. Read it for yourself.
"You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, … The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.”
But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, …" (Hebrews 12:18-24, NIV)
Disciple, are you secure in Him today?
Do you trust Him with your financial circumstances, your children, your future, your health, your spouse, your emotional stability, your eternal salvation?
You can! In the up’s and down’s, the sorrow of death and the exultation of birth, the uncertainty of human plans, He says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." (Matthew 11:28-29, NIV) He does not invite us to go live on a beach resort for the rest of our days. He invites us into the yoke with Him, a place of service and productivity, that lets us experience real ‘rest,’ a sense of satisfaction rather than endless longing for fulfillment!
A religion can never do that. A religion designed to appease Him demands more and more of us. A relationship renews us. Christian religion (an oxymoron!) lives at the foot of the smoking mountain hearing the fearful rumbling of coming judgment! Christians who know Christ Jesus as Savior and Lord live in joyous procession to the Throne of God, even as they walk a route that descends into the valleys and climbs to the heights along the way.
"Praise the Lord!
Sing to the Lord a new song.
Sing his praises in the assembly of the faithful.
O Israel, rejoice in your Maker.
O people of Jerusalem, exult in your King.
Praise his name with dancing, accompanied by tambourine and harp.
For the Lord delights in his people;
he crowns the humble with victory."
(Psalm 149:1-4, NLT)
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In Christ alone my hope is found,
He is my light, my strength, my song!
This Cornerstone, this solid Ground;
Firm, through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My Comforter, my All in All,
Here in the love of Christ I stand.
No guilt in life, no fear in death,
This is the pow'r of Christ in me!
From life's first cry to final breath,
Jesus commands my destiny.
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand.
Till he returns or calls me home,
Here in the pow'r of Christ I'll stand!
In Christ Alone
Townsend
© King's Way - Thank You
CCLI License No. 810055
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