OPEN HEAVENS Devotional – Thursday
October 20th 2016
TOPIC: I KNOW YOUR WORKS V
Memorize: Watch and pray, that
ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is
weak. Matthew 26:41
Read: Revelation 3:1-6,
1 And unto the
angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven
Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name
that thou livest, and art dead.
2 Be watchful,
and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not
found thy works perfect before God.
3 Remember
therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If
therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt
not know what hour I will come upon thee.
4 Thou hast a
few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall
walk with me in white: for they are worthy.
5 He that
overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out
his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father,
and before his angels.
6 He that hath
an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.
Bible in one year: Joel 1-3,
Psalms 82
MESSAGE
Our Lord Jesus Christ is the
most practical personality that has ever lived on the earth. This should not be
surprising, since He is both God and man; He came to show us the way to live a
victorious and fulfilled life. He affirmed that He came that we may have life
and to have it more abundantly (John 10:10).
In the Lord’s letter to the
Church at Sardis, He told the Church that they were living in self-delusion;
that they thought they were vibrant and full of life, whereas, they were half
dead and something must be done urgently to preserve the remaining half of
their lives, because their works were not perfect before God. They were to
watch and pray to rejuvenate their spirituality. Our compassionate Lord, who
would not want anyone, particularly those who have confessed Him as Lord to
perish is here in today’s reading appealing to and warning the Church to
remember how they started and hold fast the Word of truth. One lesson here is
that God is not interested in the death of a backslider but that the backslider
should repent and be saved.
“Turn, O backsliding children,
saith the Lord; for I am married unto you; and I will take you one of a city,
and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion.” Jeremiah 3:14
Another interesting lesson we
must learn from today’s reading is that the Almighty God knows the state and
details of our lives, both spiritually and physically. In spite of the
indictment of the imperfect works of the Church at Sardis, the Lord still revealed
the truth that not all the members of the Church were corrupt.
“Thou hast a few names even in
Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in
white: for they are worthy.” Revelations 3:4
The accurate judge said that
there are names (though few) that are worthy! I pray that you will be declared
worthy in Jesus’ name. However, you have to watch over your soul in this
pervert generation and pray always if you will be worthy at the end of the age.
Moreover, the Lord promised that He would judge individuals in the church,
according to each person’s deeds. There shall be no collective responsibility
when it comes to spiritual accountability.
“The soul that sinneth, it
shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father; neither shall the
father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall
be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.” Ezekiel 18:20
Action Point
Since the Lord knows your
works; take a self-examination of yourself and see where you need to repent,
watch and pray for restoration.
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