SPIRITIUAL DIARY FOR 10/2/2014
8:20 AM
My Worship Time Focus: Why
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: 2 Thess.
1:6a, 7a
Message of the
verses: “it is only just for God…to
give relief”
In order for us to better understand what the “why” is
there we have to look at the last statement that is found in the commentary of
John MacArthur from our SD of yesterday.
He writes “As did the issue of retribution, the issue of rest and relief
poses three questions: why, who and how.” We have already gone over these same three
questions as we looked at the retribution of God for those who have been
persecuting the believers at Thessalonica, and stated that what Paul writes
about was not only for those who were persecuting the believers in
Thessalonica, but is for those who are persecuting believers during any time period
including today. So the same is for
believers in receiving God’s rest and relief is for all believers, including
today. It is good to remember that there
is no time in heaven, and though that is hard to understand as we on earth live
on a time system that was created by God.
Our time takes place as the earth rotates the sun and also rotates on its
own in a 24 hour period, and 365 days of the earth rotating the sun. God created this in the beginning as recorded
in the book of Genesis, but as stated there is no time in heaven as Peter
stated when he wrote that a day was like a thousand years to God, and the
reason he wrote that was to show that there is no time in heaven.
1 John 1:9 says “If we confess our sins He is faithful
and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness,” and as we read this verse we can ask the question why is God
able to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. The verse says that God is faithful and
righteous to forgive ours sins and faithful and righteous to cleanse us from
our sins and to answer the question why He is able to accomplish this we have
to look at the cross of Jesus Christ; we have to look at the theology of
redemption. Paul wrote in Romans 3:26
the following “God is the just and the justifier of the one who has faith in
Jesus. John MacArthur quotes one of my favorite
authors from one of my favorite books he wrote.
A. W. Tozer from his book “The Knowledge of the Holy writes “[The]
solution for the problem of how God can be just and still justify the unjust is
found in the Christian doctrine of redemption.
It is that, through the work of Christ in atonement, justice is not
violated but satisfied when God spares a sinner. Redemptive theology teaches that mercy does
not become effective toward a man until justice has done its work. The just penalty for sin was exacted when
Christ our Substitute died for us on the cross.
However unpleasant this may sound to the ear of the natural man, it has
ever been sweet to the ear of faith.”
When he writes about the natural man he is speaking of the unbeliever
and Paul wrote in “1Co 2:14 But a natural man does not accept the things of the
Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them,
because they are spiritually appraised.”
There are people who believe and even teach that God can
just forgive our sins because He is God, and there has to be no penalty for
sins that are committed. This goes
against the character and attributes of God, for God hates sin so much, but
loves people so much that He sent His Son into the world the first time to care
for the sin problem by dying on the cross, and it is there when the world
turned dark that the Father took out His wrath on His own Son for my sins and
for all those who will accept His forgiveness.
In our church we eat of the Lord’s Supper once a month to be reminded of
this precious truth that Christ died for us, and it is because of this truth that
we are forgiven and that is why God will and does give us rest and relief. The total rest and relief will be given in
heaven as we wrote about in our last SD when we described the three different
rests that we as believers have. Our life
on this earth is not always pleasant but our future is out of this world. There are times when we suffer, and there are
many, many people who have given the ultimate sacrifice for the cause of Christ
by giving up their own lives for the cause of Christ. I have read that there are as many as 1000
people a day who die because of their faith in Jesus Christ, and one day they
will receive a crown for this at the Judgment Seat of Christ. Peter
writes in 1 Peter 5:10 “After you have suffered for a little while, the God of
all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect,
confirm, strengthen and establish you.”
James writes “2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter
various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4
And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and
complete, lacking in nothing.” Paul
writes in 2 Cor. 12:10 “Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with
insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s
sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”
He also wrote in Romans 8:18 “For I consider that the sufferings of this
present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be
revealed to us.” Paul wrote this after
he suffered many things for the cause of Christ and eventually died a martyr’s
death. He writes in 2 Corinthians more
about his afflictions “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an
eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison.” He lists some of those afflictions later on
in that letter.
Spiritual meaning
for my life today: I mentioned about
a crown that people who are martyrs receive when they die for the cause of
Christ, and that same crown is given to those who do not fall into temptation
which is a very difficult thing to handle when living in our day in our
country. Paul writes “No temptation has
overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not
allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will
provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it (1 Cor.
10:13).”
My Steps of Faith for Today: Trust the Lord to show me the way out when I
am tempted today.
Memory verses for the
week: Colossians 3:1-9.
1 Therefore if you have
been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is,
seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set
your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. 3 For you have died and your life is hidden
with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who
is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in
glory. 5 Therefore consider the members
of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and
greed, which amounts to idolatry. 6 For
it is because of these things that the wrath of God has come upon the sons of
disobedience; 7 and in them you once walked, when you were living in them. 8 But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech
from your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one
another, since you have laid aside the old self with its evil practices,
Answer to yesterday’s Bible
question: “Patience” (James 1:3).
Today’s Bible
question: “To whom did Jesus say ‘I am
the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father but by me?”
Answer in our next SD.
10/2/2014 9:17 AM
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