In the Spirit

Revelation 1:10
"I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, ¹¹ saying, 'I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last...'"

Dear Lord,

I want to live in the realm of the Holy Spirit's Presence.  I want to know You. I want to live with an awareness of Your nearness.  I want to feel Your slightest nudge.  I want to hear Your softest whisper.  I want to sense Your approval.  I want to live in the Spirit.

Saint John was in the Spirit on the prison island of Patmos!  This hostile rock pile became a place of Your Presence. 

I live in a world that is unfriendly to grace.  The hostile presence of spiritual powers, leaders in high positions, and entertainment media attack every value that the Holy Spirit embraces.  Nevertheless, I choose to live in the Spirit.

"No matter where a man is, no matter how hard his life, no matter what a man is passing through, he may still be in the Spirit.  And, if he is in the Spirit, even on Patmos, the glory and the message of God will come to him.  There is no situation in life in which the Spirit cannot speak to us, and, when the Spirit does speak, we know the glory of God, even on Patmos" (William Barclay in The Revelation of John, vol. 2, 1959, p. 55).

Fill me with Yourself for today's task.   Empower me in and through the fullness of Your Holy Spirit.  Fill me now.  I wait before You.

In the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
Amen.

I've Just Seen Jesus

Revelation 1:12-13 NKJV
"Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band."

Dear Jesus,

I try to place myself in John's vision when he hears Your voice.  I imagine that I am John, and I turn toward the voice that is speaking to me.  I want to hear You.  I want to see You.  I want to glimpse the image of the divine.

John had saturated himself in the Old Testament, the only Bible of his day.  William Barclay writes: "The best way to prepare oneself for the new revelation of truth is to study, and feed the heart on, the revelation which God has already given in His own word" (In The Revelation of John, vol. 1, 1964, p. 56).  John was ready. 

As I turn to gaze upon You, there You are, standing amidst the seven lampstands--Your church.  The lampstand is a familiar symbol.  A gold candlestick graced the Tabernacle with seven lamps (Exodus 25:31-37). A gold candlestick graced Solomon's Temple (I Kings 7:39).  A gold candlestick with seven lamps graced the temple of Zechariah's vision (Zechariah 4:23).

Although I have never seen You, I somehow know You.  I recognize You. The clothes, the candlesticks... It is You.

The robe reaches to Your feet.  It reminds me of the robe the High Priest wore in the tabernacle and temple.  It reminds me of the royal robe of kingship.  It reminds me of the robe worn by the angelic messenger who appeared to Daniel.  I now can see You in Your "threefold eternal office of Prophet, Priest and King, the one who brings the truth of God, the one who enables others to enter the presence of God, the one to whom God has given the power and the dominion and the throne for ever" (ibid, p. 58).

I've just seen Jesus, I tell you He's alive

I've just seen Jesus, our precious Lord alive

And I knew He really saw me too

As if till now I'd never lived

All that I'd done before won't matter anymore

I've just seen Jesus and I'll never be the same again

(Bill Gaither)

I worship You, my Lord Jesus Christ, as I see You revealed in the pages of Holy Scripture, with the eye of faith, and in the inner assurance of Your Holy Spirit to my heart by faith.

In the Name of my ever-living Lord Jesus, Prophet, Priest, and King,

Amen.

Do I really trust You?

Ezra 8:21-23, 28, 31
21 Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from Him the right way for us and our little ones and all our possessions. 22 For I was ashamed to request of the king an escort of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy on the road, because we had spoken to the king, saying, “The hand of our God is upon all those for good who seek Him, but His power and His wrath are against all those who forsake Him.” 23 So we fasted and entreated our God for this, and He answered our prayer...
28 And I said to them, “You are holy to the Lord; the articles are holy also; and the silver and the gold are a freewill offering to the Lord God of your fathers...
31 Then we departed from the river of Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go to Jerusalem. And the hand of our God was upon us, and He delivered us from the hand of the enemy and from ambush along the road.

Dear God,

I find it easy to quip my trust in You.  I can wax loquacious in prayer, testimony, or sermon. But the question that is on my mind this morning is "Is my testimony mere words?  Do I really trust You?"

Ezra was faced with a similar challenge.  King Artaxerxes had just commissioned Ezra's return to Jerusalem, loaded with Babylon's silver and gold, along with a decree to offer worship to You.  

Upon their departure from Babylon, Ezra, the Levites, and over one thousand men gathered at the Ahava river.  Ezra had bragged upon Your greatness and ability to protect Your people.  He was tempted to have second thoughts when he considered the millions of dollars worth of gold and silver he and his men were carrying through a bandit infested desert road to Jerusalem.  The natural thought was to make a request of King Artaxerxes for a detachment of soldiers to travel alongside the returning Hebrews.  Ezra realized that such a request would diminish Your greatness and ability to protect Your people in the eyes of the pagan king.  So Ezra went to prayer.

Ezra's example inspires me.  In the face of fear, he prayed, and invited others to fast and pray with him.  I don't know how long the Hebrew contingent fasted and prayed, but it was long enough to get an answer from You.  Through prayer, You showed Ezra a plan to divide the gold and silver among twelve of the priests.  He challenged them to holiness and honor in delivering their trust to the temple. At the weigh-in in the temple at Jerusalem, integrity won the day.  God protected the returning remnant, and His holiness triumphed.

Prayer, faith, and fasting anchored Ezra and the people of God and protected them with a safety that even a detachment of the king's soldiers could not have provided.

Lord, teach me to trust You for my safety.  You have called me to take some major risks for You.  It is easy for me to look for contingency plans that are based in fear, not faith.  I often want to call for my detachment of soldiers!  You tell me to seek Your face.  

So, I seek You.  I seek You until I hear from You with direction.  I need Your plan.  The people that I lead need Your plan.  They deserve to have a leader who spends time alone with You discerning Your direction.  

Thank You that even the heart of the king is in Your hand.  Thank You for meeting with us in our prayer and fasting. Thank You that You are our protection upon the desert road.  Thank You that You are our defense as we ascend from Jericho to Jerusalem upon that bandit infested highway.  

I trust You.

In the Name of my ever living Lord,

Amen.

In the Spirit

Revelation 1:9-11 NKJV
"I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.  I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, saying, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,” and, “What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.”

Dear God,

Thank You for the revelation of Yourself in the Person of Your Son, Jesus Christ.  Thank You for the revelation of Yourself, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit through the pages of sacred scripture.  The Law reveals You.  Your involvement with the historical people of Israel reveals You.  The Prophets foretell You.  Biblical poetry worships and celebrates You.  The Gospels describe You with graphic detail. The Acts of the Apostles reveal the impact of Your life, death, and resurrection on people like us.  The Epistles reveal Your church as Your design for evangelizing the lost and making disciples of believers.  John's Revelation celebrates You as victorious and coming conqueror, and Lamb of God enthroned in heaven throughout eternity.

As I await Your final revelation, reveal Yourself to me through the indwelling Holy Spirit.  Fill me, propel me, and empower me to live in the Spirit.

"John was in Patmos; and John was in the Spirit... No matter where a man is, no matter how hard his life, no matter what a man is passing through, he may still be in the Spirit. And, if he is in the Spirit, even on Patmos, the glory and the message of God will come to him. There is no situation in life in which the Spirit cannot speak to us, and when the Spirit does speak, we know the glory of God, even on Patmos" (William Barclay in The Revelation of John, vol. 1, 1964, p. 55).

John was able to stand for You as a witness even when it cost Him everything.  He had already survived being deep fried in a cauldron of boiling oil!  Yet, this 90 year old man says that he "was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ."  John was suffering life in a prison island stone quarry for You.  The grace that sustained him was by living "in the Spirit."

If I am to be an effective agent of Your grace on earth, I must be "in the Spirit."  Help me to pray in the Spirit, live in the Spirit, walk in the Spirit, and work in the Spirit.  My world is a dry and desolate Patmos. Sometimes, I feel as if I am pecking away at immovable stones with tableware for tools.  If John could be "in the Spirit" on Patmos, surely I can live in the Spirit today, by Your grace.

Usher me into Your Presence in the Quiet Place.  Fill me, empower me, and guide me.  Help me to live in Your Presence. I want to impact my world today through living in the fullness of Your Holy Spirit.

In the Name of the God who comes to me in the cave on a desert prison island, and any other desolate place I find myself, and reveals Himself,
Amen.

Survive and Advance

Revelation 1:9 "I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ."

Matthew 24:13 "But he who endures to the end shall be saved."
Acts 14:22b “We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.”
II Timothy 2:12a "If we endure, We shall also reign with Him."

My Lord and my God,

I enjoy watching the NCAA basketball tournament each March.  Sixty-eight teams struggle to survive and advance in the tournament.  Favorites are often upset.  "Cinderellas" remarkably advance.  

You call me to endure tribulation if I am to enter into Your eternal Kingdom.  My Christian life is one of "survive and advance."

Tribulation meant pressure or crushing weight upon a person's body.  I have felt the stress of burdens and the weight of responsibility that feels like a crushing weight upon my chest, a heaviness, a sorrow, a deep burden that can only be lifted through intercession with the Divine.  

Patience is a steadfast endurance, the deliberate placing of one step in front of the other.  Patience is not passive.  Patience is assertive and faithful.  It is courageous, persistent conquest even in the face of terrifying odds.  

In the midst of tribulation and suffering, You call me to endure with an assertive patience that transforms adversity into Kingdom glory!  

William Barclay wrote: "The way to the kingdom is the way of courage and endurance.  No lover of ease and comfort, no craven and coward creature, no one flabby in body and in mind, ever achieved one of the great journeys of the world.  The journey to the kingdom is the greatest journey of all, and it requires the greatest endurance of all" (In The Revelation of John, vol. 1,, 1964, p. 50).  

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.  For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal" (II Corinthians 4:16-18).

My Lord, You are the model of endurance.  You endured the cross.  You endured the weight of the sins of the world.  You endured to the end. You are able to strengthen me to endure pressure, adversity, or conflict with an assertive patience of faith and action that transforms tribulation into glory!  You survived that You might be advanced!

"Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Philippians 2:9-11).

May Your Kingdom come and Your will be done in me.

Amen.

Are You Carrying Your Cross?

John 12:23-26 NKJV
23 But Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified. 24 Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. 25 He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.

Dear Jesus,

This morning I read a news story about a college football team on a missions trip to Ethiopia. Landon, a kicker on the team, befriended Dejene, a fourteen year-old Ethiopian street child. That friendship emerged into life transformation for Dejene, now called Josh.  Josh is now living in North Carolina and is being adopted into an American family.  His life is transformed with hope and a future.

I could not help but think about Landon's willingness to be inconvenienced by an annoying street kid. His willingness to be inconvenienced developed into sacrificial love, giving of his  own time and resources to help a child.  

Lord, it is only in losing my life in You that I find my life.  

In a quest to live responsibly, I fear I have become somewhat selfish.  I don't want to be selfish.  I want to be generous, giving and caring.  I want to carry Your cross.

"Not only is the church at times refusing to carry its cross, but the unchurched are certainly refusing to carry their cross" (Ford Philpot in So You Want a Mountain, 1964, p. 99). Philpot goes on to say that socialist redistribution of wealth, excessive government taxation, and miserly church members are "compelling other folk to carry their cross." He asks, "Are you robbing Him by refusing to give out of the abundance that He has given you?" (ibid., p. 101).

Lord, I am Yours.  My resources are Yours.  Peel away the grasping control of my tight clasp upon my life, and invite me afresh to the cross.  I refuse to rob You.  I am abandoned to Your cross.

Thank You for striving with my heart to insist upon Your Lordship of my life.  I yield to You afresh.

In Jesus' Name,

Amen.

Hold On!

Matthew 27:45-50 NKJV
45 Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. 46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
47 Some of those who stood there, when they heard that, said, “This Man is calling for Elijah!” 48 Immediately one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink.
49 The rest said, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him.”
50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.

Dear God,
Grant me enduring faith.  Grant me the tenacity of faith and confidence in You, even in the midst of extreme adversity, to hold onto You. Grant me the courage to cling to You with faith when failure and destruction seem certain.  One strand of hope will be enough, if You are that hope. 

William Barclay wrote:  "Here, then, there is the precious thing.  Jesus passed through the uttermost abyss, and then the light broke.  If we too cling to God, even when there seems to be no God, desperately and invincibly clutching the remnants of our faith, then quite certainly the dawn will break, and we will win through  The victor is the man who refuses to believe that God has forgotten him, even when every fiber of his being feels that God has forsaken him.  The victor is the man who will never let go his faith, even when he feels that the last grounds of faith are gone. The victor is the man who has been beaten to the depths, and who still holds on to God, for that is what Jesus did." (William Barclay in The Gospel of Matthew, vol. 2, p. 408).

Any adversity I face is small in comparison with Your cross. Any suffering I endure pales in comparison with You--God made flesh taking upon Himself the sins of the whole world.  If I could die on a cross a dozen times, I still would not know the excruciating burden You bore upon the single cross You faced.

Dear Jesus, thank You for going to the cross to bear my sins.  Thank You for dying for me.  Thank You for bearing the sins of the whole world upon Yourself.  Thank You for being the sinless Lamb of God.  Thank You for taking away my sins by faith.  I love You.

My Lord, grant me the courage to endure the cross before me.  Use my temporary moments of suffering to draw me to worship you.  Transform my moments of pain into worship, as You focus my thoughts on the pain You endured for me.  Redirect personal attacks so that my suffering shifts my attention upon the suffering You endured for me.  Help me to die more deeply and completely to myself so that You may live in me.  I want Your mind to become my mind.  I want the mind of Christ.

Thank You for drawing me into Your cross today.  Thank You for a fresh sense of wonder and thanksgiving.  I love You.  I need You.  I am utterly dependent upon You.

In the Name Jesus,
Amen.