Daily life with Jesus by Grahame Howard: Hold fast

"Behold, I AM coming quickly. Hold fast what you have that no one may take your your crown." Revelation 3:11 NKJV

There's a thief about John 10:10. Just the fact that Jesus tells us to Hold Fast, tells us that someone or something wishes to steal something from us. Steal what? Your faith; your crown. Yes it's true, the devil doesn't want you being successful. He doesn't like it that Jesus recognises our position:

'To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion , forever and ever, Amen.' Revelation 1:5-6. NKJV

There you are. It's no wonder why the devils hates us. We are kings and priests to God the Father through Our Lord Jesus Christ. How amazing is that? The devil doesn't think so, however. This is why he is trying to take our crown. But don't let him. Hold Fast.

Sometimes, we can be our own worse enemy and if we're not careful, we can set off on a downward spiral to disaster. For instance:

ANGER
This is one area where a person can go astray. We can blow things and loose control at times and if we don't quickly regain the control, all can be lost as we totally make a mockery of our Christian witness. We are all susceptible to this area, some worse than others. Therefore, if you have a short fuse, do something about it - quickly.
LUST
This is another area where we all can fall down. Lust claims many people, including pastors throughout the world. Adultery is rife, then there is perversion, homosexuality and pornography just to mention a few. It's not unusual for Christian men and women to live two lives - one being involved in these areas and then the other putting on their Christian face. We cannot serve two masters (Luke 16:13). Sooner or later the bubble will pop and all will be revealed.
THOUGHTS
Thoughts come to us very quickly. Bad ones can become planted and rooted in our minds and pretty soon we begin to believe them. We become convinced that what we think, is true, when it isn't - it's a lie from the devil. Our thoughts, when out of control, can cause mayhem in our thinking and can completely take over our lives if we don't stop them.
Someone may breathe some gossip about somebody and it can seem so convincing, that we take it on board and start being judgemental about a brother or sister. The devil is extremely skilful in spreading fake news around the place hoping we will fall for it. Don't, you are a king and priest unto God, Your Father. Hold Fast your crown. Don't let satan grab hold of it, in fact, don't even let him get near to it. How dare he.

Take authority, you are a servant of the Most High God - El Shaddai, and He trusts you, loves you, has taken your sinful past, given you a crown and a place in Heaven for eternity. You are a somebody; the devil is nothing. He blew his copy book years ago.

So Hold Fast!

Copyright 2020 Grahame Howard