"Be faithful to the point of death (if you must die for your faith), and I will give you the crown (consisting) of life." Revelation 2:10 The Amplified Study Bible
The Greek crown or garland of green leaves, was given to winners in athletic event. James also mentioned the crown of life in James 1:12 as an encouragement to believers to persevere under trial. The thing is, when we come against tribulation, it is easy to throw the towel in and give up. 'I'm not playing that game anymore,' we may utter, 'it's just not fair,' and then stomp away taking our ball back. But just the fact that Jesus offers us a crown shows us that He wants us to win it.
He sees us as winners and the crown of life is our reward. Whatever we come up against, God wants us to stay away from fear. Faith cannot work with this. They are total opposites. If he can, the devil will try to kill or injure us as we try. He will try to discredit us by giving us a bad reputation; but just keep on going.
God has many secret weapons in His armoury and one of them is the ability to use keys. The devil may try to trap us or prevent us from doing a particular thing. However, God can use one of His keys to open a way forward, He can make a way where there wasn't one before. It's exciting stuff to hang around with Jesus.
God goes before us and does a recce of all that's about. He knows what we will be going into, hence why we need to constantly be in touch with the Holy Spirit. Things may not always go our way. A look at Shadrach, Meshach and AbedNego in the fiery furnace because of their refusal to compromise their faith, shows us this. And then, there was Daniel trapped inside the lion's den. They could have felt that this wasn't fair at all and agreed to compromise. But, they were committed to God and nothing was going to stop them from fulfilling His will for their lives.
When we're up against flak, it is not the time to give up and walk away because it is not fair. No, it's the time to stand and dig in. If we want to win that trophy, that crown of life, we need to grit our teeth and never surrender - except of course to God Himself.
Whatever you are facing today, do not compromise your faith. Pray and give it to Jesus; He loves to help. He is looking for commitment and He is willing to do His bit too. When you feel snookered - can't find a way out of the situation without doing some damage, He is your man. He is sold out to you; is faithful and is your best friend too. Reciprocate and the benefits will be immense.
Copyriight 2020 Grahame Howard
No comments:
Post a Comment
Leave a message