New Testament passage for Tuesday, December 11, 2012: Revelation 2:18-3:6
1 “And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. “‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. 3 Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you. Revelation 3:1-3 (ESV)
God is faithful to always give us warnings of danger ahead. It is like driving down a country road and seeing sign after sign that says DANGER: BRIDGE OUT AHEAD. Imagine seeing a sign like that and ignoring it. I have known many who had done just that in their personal and spiritual life. As they plummet off into a raging river they cry out, "God, WHY IS THIS HAPPENING TO ME!"
God sees the hidden things. Samuel, the great Old Testament judge, learned a powerful truth when he sought to anoint the next leader of Israel. I Samuel 16:7 says, "the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." Sometimes we can LOOK like we are doing quite well, but really we are dying on the inside. We can LOOK alive, but really be on our last leg.
God is faithful to give us warnings. It's like that road sign that tells you "Turn Around! The bridge is out ahead!" We need to be quick to hear what God is telling us. In our rebellion, we think we can beat the odds. Those road signs are surely for someone else -- not me!
God gives us WAKE UP CALLS. He always does this when there is still a chance to turn around. You may be dying on the inside, but you are not totally dead. "Strengthen what remains." Even though there has been setback after setback, there is still enough to get going in a new direction.
It never pays to flirt with disaster. Living on the edge can lead to living in the ditch. Many have done it by staying too close to those things that God is clearly saying, "STOP. TURN AROUND." It is a wise thing for us to regularly ask God to "please keep speaking, please keep warning, please keep drawing me back to the right paths." He will do that if you ask. The end result will be safety and security. This is a word we all need to hear. So, "he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."
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