Repent (Rev. 3:19)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 04/06/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  Repent

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Revelations 3:19

 

            Message of the verse:  “Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent.”  (NAS95)  “I am the one who corrects and disciplines everyone I love. Be diligent and turn from your indifference.”  (NLT) 

            Christ tells this church to repent, which means to agree with Christ that what they are doing is wrong, and what they were doing was wrong because they were standing on the things that they used to do and the things that they were doing were being empowered by themselves which is not at all what Christ wants them to do.  This is Christ’s Church and He is the Head of it, and because of that He wants His children to obey Him and accomplish through Him the things He has planned, and Christ has plans for each church to accomplish, so all of the churches need to keep the line of communication open with Him through prayer and looking into His Word. 

            Christ loves the Church and He proved that by dying for her, and so because of this great love He has for the Church He wants them to accept His discipline when they do wrong so that they continue in working for the cause of Christ.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Because I am a part of the universal Church and because I am a part of Grace Baptist Church, Westlake, Ohio I am to keep myself clean and always be ready to follow my Commander and Leader in obedience to what He has for me to do.  I am also to be ready to repent of anything that is wrong in my life so that I can have real fellowship with Jesus Christ my Savior and Lord.

 

The Word of God was convicting to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To remember the promise that Christ will never leave me nor forsake me.

Check your Spiritual Eyesight (Rev. 3:18)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 04/01/2005

 

My Worship Time                                               Focus:  Check your Spiritual Eyesight

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Revelations 3:18

 

            Message of the verse:  “I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.”  (NAS95)  “I advise you to buy gold from me—gold that has been purified by fire. Then you will be rich. And also buy white garments so you will not be shamed by your nakedness. And buy ointment for your eyes so you will be able to see.”  (NLT)

            This church thought that they were rich, but Christ’s advice to them it to buy gold that was refined by fire for Him so that they will become rich in the proper way of being rich.  Christ also told them to buy white garments from Him that they may clothe themselves and thus not be ashamed of their nakedness, and also to purchase eye save form Him to anoint their eyes so that they can see.  This, of course, is all spiritual clothing which is more important that physical clothing.  Gold refined by fire could very well mean that this church was in need of some persecution to refine their character.  White garments means to be pure and this purity comes from the Lord through His power to be doing the good works for the cause of Christ.  Since this church lacked a true vision on what they should be doing they needed some “holy” eye save so that they could see properly. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  In the last chapter in Paul’s letter of 2Corthinians he advises his readers to check themselves to make sure that they are in the faith; it was kind of a check list to go over to determine that you are a true believer. By taking part in this process one can avoid the problems that are described in Revelations 3:18.  Psalm 139:23 & 24 asks the Lord to search my heart and see if there are any problems in my life.

 

The Word of God has brought conviction to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  As life seems to becoming more difficult, I need to continue to trust the Lord, because there is nothing else that is more proper to do. 

God Does Not Need our Help (Rev. 3:17)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/27/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  God does not need our help

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 3:17

 

            Message of the verse:  “Because you say, "I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing," and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked,” (NAS95) “While you say, ‘I am rich, I have prospered, and there is nothing that I need’, you have no eyes to see that you are wretched, pitiable, poverty-stricken, blind and naked.”  (Philips) 

            Jesus calls this the poor church, and they thought that they were rich, and Jesus calls the church as Sardis the rich church and they though they were poor.  “I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich), and the blasphemy by those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.”  (Rev 2:9)

            What can be seen here is that it is Jesus Christ who determines whether of not a church is what He wants it to be, and not up to those in the church.  Jesus does not need our help, but He desire our commitment to follow Him, and to listen to Him, and that is a good reason that at the end of all of these letters to these churches that he tells them to listen to what the Spirit has to say to the churches. 

            The Laodicean church has been described as a foolish church, and I think that it also could be described as a worldly church for it must have been into things like big buildings and things like that, and that is why they thought they were rich.  There is nothing wrong with money as long as it does not own you.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I think that it is important to understand what it is that Jesus wants me to do and then do it, and not to be like the people in the Laodicean church what believed that they were doing the correct thing and in fact were not doing the correct thing.  This is one reason that I need to be in the Word of God each and every day so that I can get my marching orders and then go out and do what He has shown me to do.

 

The Word of God has been convicting and also a challenge to my heart as I read it and studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To continue to trust the Lord, that He will lead me and guide me and take care of me as He has promised, for He said that He will never leave me nor forsake me. 

Being Lukewarm is not Good (Rev. 3:16)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/25/2005

 

My Worship Time                                          Focus:  Being lukewarm is not good

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 3:16

 

            Message of the verse:  “So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.”  (NAS95)  “But since you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, I intend to spit you out of my mouth!”  (Philips)

            In this verse Jesus gives the consequences for being lukewarm, and they are not at all good if one’s desire is to serve the Lord.  Jesus goes on to say that if they continue to be lukewarm in their church that He would spit them out of His mouth, and the word in the Greek means to vomit:  “To vomit, vomit forth, throw up.”  It could be said that He was sick over this church as seen by His reaction to their lukewarm condition.

            When a person is lost and comes under conviction by the Holy Spirit of his sinfulness he can do something about that by confessing his sin and ask the Lord Jesus Christ to forgive him of his sins, so that he might be saved, but if that person does not recognize his problem he cannot be saved until he does recognize it.  This church was not living by the power of the Holy Spirit because they thought that they had no problems, but Jesus tells them that they indeed had many problems, and that they surely needed to do something about them.  Jesus will tell them what they should do in the proceeding verses.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I believe that if I take the time to get with the Lord each and every day so that He can speak to me and I can speak to Him that I will not, (by His grace), get into this problem of being lukewarm.  I also think that if I keep a short list with the Lord that that will be helpful too.  I believe that the Lord is saying to me this morning that I need Him to search me each day for sin, because while I am in this body there are many times when I do not recognize sin in my life.

 

The Word of God was convicting to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  “Investigate my life, O God, find out everything about me; Cross-examine and test me, get a clear picture of what I’m about; See for yourself whether I’ve done anything wrong—then guide me on the road to eternal life.”  

Lukewarm (Rev. 3:15)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/24/2005

 

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Lukewarm

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 3:15

 

            Message of the verse:  “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot.”  (NAS95)  “I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish you were one or the other!”  (NLT)

            There is not much use for lukewarm things in this world, and according to Jesus Christ this is the worst possible place that a believer could be, for He says in this verse that “I wish that you were cold or hot.”  One may ask why the Lord would want someone to be cold as apposed to being lukewarm.  When a person is cold then he can see his need for the things of the Lord, and of course when a person is hot he is relying upon the Lord to work in his life to accomplish the things that the Lord has for him to do.  When a believer is lukewarm he thinks that he needs nothing, and is not relying upon the Lord because he does not think that he needs the Lord influence in his life.  Few people like lukewarm things, like coffee, or like tea, and if you are trying to produce electrify from steam you certainly would not like lukewarm water.  How does the water stay hot to make the steam?  It has to have an outside source of power, for it can stay hot on it’s own, and that is the same with the believer’s Christian walk, he too has to have an outside influence, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I believe that there are far too many times in my life when I do not rely upon my Lord to give me the power to live the Christian life in a way that is pleasing to Him.  One of the culprits of course is pride, pride that tells me that I can do it on my own, pride that tells me I have no need of Christ’s intervention into my life to supply the power to walk with Him in a pleasing way.

 

The Word of God has challenged my heart as I studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Trust in the Lord with all of my heart and lean not upon my own understanding, in all of my ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct my path.  

The True Witness (Rev. 3:14)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/23/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  The True Witness

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Revelations 3:14

 

            Message of the verse:  “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, says this:” (NAS95) “Write this letter to the angel of the church in Laodicea. This is the message from the one who is the Amen—the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation:” (NLT)

            “The word "amen" is a most remarkable word. It was transliterated directly from the Hebrew into the Greek of the New Testament, then into Latin and into English and many other languages, so that it is practically a universal word. It has been called the best known word in human speech. The word is directly related—in fact, almost identical—to the Hebrew word for "believe" (amam), or faithful. Thus, it came to mean "sure" or "truly", an expression of absolute trust and confidence.” (HMM)

            This is the first part of the description of the description that Christ gives of Himself in this letter to the church at Laodicea.  Christ goes on to call Himself the faithful and the true Witness, and that is exactly what this church needed to hear was the truth, for this church was surely blinded to the truth about the way that it was operating.  He thing goes on to say that He is the Beginning of the creation of God, and this does not mean that Christ was a created being, for that is not what the word means.  “The person or thing that commences the first person or thing in a series, the leader.”  To be sure Christ was born of the Virgin Mary and that is how He became human, but He was with the Father from all of eternity and has always been, and will always be God the Son, the second person in the godhead. 

            It is also interesting that Christ uses things from the city in His letters to these seven churches, for instance Christ will talk about being blind and this city manufactured eye save, and was even famous for it.  Christ is still using things to teach spiritual lessons, and so churches need to listen to what the Spirit has to say to them.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Jesus Christ described Himself as being the Truth in John 14:1, and He is also described as the Truth in this verse, so it is good to know what (Who) the truth is.  By knowing this I do not have to fear that Christ of His Word can ever take me in the wrong direction, that He and His Word, through His Spirit can guide me into all truth so that I can live a life that is pleasing to Christ, my Savior and Lord.

 

The Word of God was again a challenge to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:   Continue to trust the Lord each day to lead me, and to make me available to do what He wants me to do.

Hear What the Spirit Says (Rev. 3:13)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/22/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  Listening to the Spirit

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 3:13

 

            Message of the verse:  “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”  (NAS95)  “Anyone who is willing to hear should listen to the Spirit and understand what the Spirit is saying to the churches.” 

            As stated before this same verse is repeated after each letter to these early churches, and it is even repeated in one of the later chapters of Revelations without having “what the Spirit says to the churches.”  I think that because these words are said at the end of each letter to these churches it can be concluded that this is something important for the readers to understand, and that is that the Holy Spirit’s message must be heard because it is important.  Each of these letters to these churches has somewhat of a blue print for churches to follow throughout the church age, and if they pay attention to all of these things that Christ has spoken about here, both the things that should be done, and the things that should not be done, then the churches will be better off because of their obedience to the Lord.  The message of this verse is to have you spiritual ears open so you can hear what the Spirit has to say to you.  This can be done by following some things that are in the other parts of Scripture, such as confessing all sin so that one can be in proper fellowship with the Lord, to treat one’s wife in a godly manner, to read the Scriptures each and every day for this is one of the main ways that the Spirit can speak to one’s heart, to attend church services and pay attention to what the Pastor is saying because he is God’s messenger to the church, to have an active prayer life with both praying and listening, and be attentive to your circumstances for at times the Spirit uses them to speak to those that are His.  I’m sure that there are other things that I have missed, but to follow these that are written here will make a difference in one’s spiritual walk with the Lord.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I think that because this verse has said to listen to what the Spirit has to say to the churches, and as stated above that one of the ways that the Spirit speaks to the churches is through the Pastor’s message that I can say that the Spirit has spoken to my heart through the message that Dr. Warren delivered on Sunday evening, and that is that I must forget what has happened on our wonderful life these past six months in Aruba, and to move on to do what the Lord now has for us whatever that may be.  There may be times when some of the things that happened will be good for someone to hear, but I must do what Paul spoke and wrote to “press on,” and there are two times he has spoken about that:  “Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus.  I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”  Phi. 3:12 & 14

 

The Word of God has been both convicting and also challenging to my heart this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Forget what lies behind and press on towards laying hold of what Christ has for me to do.  To listen to what the Holy Spirit has to say to me, and by His grace to obey it.

Pillars are Saints (Rev. 3:12)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/21/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Pillars are Saints

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Revelations 3:12

 

Message of the verse: “He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore; and I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God, and My new name.”  (NAS95)  “All who are victorious will become pillars in the Temple of my God, and they will never have to leave it. And I will write my God’s name on them, and they will be citizens in the city of my God—the new Jerusalem that comes down from heaven from my God. And they will have my new name inscribed upon them.”  (NLT)

            The phrase for overcomers is speaking about true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, as John wrote about in his first letter.  In the days when this letter was written when someone from the Roman Empire did something special they would erect a pillar for him in a temple, and so this would be familiar to John’s readers.  Jesus said that for those who were His true followers he would make them a pillar in the temple of God, which will be in the city of the New Jerusalem.  As John was describing the New Jerusalem in the 21st chapter of Revelations he has this to say:  “I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.”  (Rev 21:22)  In Paul’s letter to the Galatians he writes about pillars as being people:  “James, Peter and John, those reputed to be pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the Jews.”  (Gal. 2:9)  As you compare these two verses and others from the Scripture it can be seen that the believers are the pillars.  Jesus goes on to say that He will write the name of His God on these pillars and the name of the city of God on them, which is the New Jerusalem. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As I look again at what Christ has to say about this church I am challenged to obey the commands that He has given to me in His Word, and also challenged to listen to what the Spirit has to say to the churches so that I can live a life that is pleasing to Him, and will be good for the cause of Christ.

 

The Word of God has been a challenge to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Listen to the Spirit by reading His Word and obeying what He has to say to me each day.  Jesus Christ is my Commander and Chief, and He is the One who give me my marching orders each day of the week. 

Do Not Lose Your Crown (Rev. 3:11)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/20/2005

 

My Worship Time                                          Focus:  Don’t Lose your Crown

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 3:11

 

            Message of the verse:  “I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”  (NAS95)  “Look, I am coming quickly. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take away your crown.  “Look, I am coming quickly. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take away your crown.”  (NLT)

            When Jesus says the He is coming quickly this means that when the time comes for Him to come that that events will be quick.  Jesus told His disciples that only the Father knew the time of Christ’s second coming and it has been nearly 2000 years, so that would not mean that this event was quick from the time Jesus gave John this letter. 

            Jesus goes on to tell this church to hold fast to what they have, and what they have is really something special, which was described in the previous verses.  Jesus tells them if they do not hold fast that they could lose their rewards, and those rewards are in the form of crowns.  This could very well mean that a believer can do good things for the Lord, and then fall away from doing those good things so far that he will loose his rewards that will be given him when he gets to heaven.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  This verse encourages me to keep on doing the things for the cause of Christ that I am suppose to be doing.  Jesus has certainly expressed some of those things in His Word, and I can also understand what the will of God is for my life from reading His Word, from praying, from listening to His Word being taught, from friends, and from circumstances.

 

The Word of God was challenging to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Trust the Lord to give me the grace and the mercy for living the Christian life for the cause of Christ today.

Obeying the Word of God (Rev. 3:10)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR03/19/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  Obeying the Word of God

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Revelations 3:10

 

            Message of the verse:  “Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.”  (NAS95)   “Because you have obeyed my command to persevere, I will protect you from the great time of testing that will come upon the whole world to test those who belong to this world.”  (NLT) 

            Many Bible scholars believe that this verse is referring to the “tribulation” which is described in chapters 6-19 of this book, and that it means that the church will not go through the tribulation period, but will be ruptured sometime before the tribulation starts, as it states in this verse that “I will keep you from the hour of testing.”  I can safely say that there was a time when I would have argued this point with great vigor, but now even though I still believe this to be true I will not argue about it to the point that I once would, because there is always that possibility that I would be wrong, and I do not want to ruin any friendships because of disagreements of this type.  It seems that one of the major points of this verse is the example of the obedience of this church to the Word of God, and that is what one can take out of this verse to help them walk in obedience with the Lord. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As stated above the thing that I can take away from this verse is that I am to obey the Word of God no matter what the circumstance; because that is one of the things that Christ calls me to do.

 

The Word of God was a challenge for my heart as I read and studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To trust and to obey the Lord Jesus Christ, and to obey His Word no matter what the cost.

 

Christ is Always in Control (Rev. 3:9)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/18/2005

 

My Worship Time                                          Focus:  Christ is always in control

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 3:9

 

            Message of the verse:  “Behold, I will cause those of the synagogue of Satan, who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie—I will make them come and bow down at your feet, and make them know that I have loved you.”  (NAS95)  “Look! I will force those who belong to Satan—those liars who say they are Jews but are not—to come and bow down at your feet. They will acknowledge that you are the ones I love.”  (NLT)

            The first obstacle for this church was seen in verse eight, and that was they were weak, but they chose to obey Christ’s Word.  The second obstacle is seen in this verse, and that is the Jews, who were only Jews in the flesh, and not of Spiritual Israel as Paul describes in Romans 2:27-29.   “27  In fact, uncircumcised Gentiles who keep God’s law will be much better off than you Jews who are circumcised and know so much about God’s law but don’t obey it.  28  For you are not a true Jew just because you were born of Jewish parents or because you have gone through the Jewish ceremony of circumcision.  29  No, a true Jew is one whose heart is right with God. And true circumcision is not a cutting of the body but a change of heart produced by God’s Spirit. Whoever has that kind of change seeks praise from God, not from people.” 

            It seems from God’s Word that the Jewish race of people will be held accountable for the things that they have been given, yet not understood, and other “religious” people who think that they are doing the right thing, but are not, will also be accountable for there miss beliefs and miss actions, and miss understanding of the truth. 

            This church at Philadelphia had little strength, and opposition from the Jews, yet Christ gave it an open door to preach the Gospel, probably because they held true to the Word of God, and because of that Christ promised that one day He will cause those who were giving them the opposition to bow down at their feet, and then they will realize that they were wrong, and that the church was right.

 

The Word of God was refreshing to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To continue to trust the Lord in this latest trial that He has seen fit to send my way, that He will work it out for my good and for His glory. 

An Open Door For Ministry (Rev. 3:8)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/17/2005

 

My Worship Time                                          Focus:  An Open Door For Ministry

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 3:8

 

            Message of the verse:  “I know your deeds. Behold, I have put before you an open door which no one can shut, because you have a little power, and have kept My word, and have not denied My name.”  (NASB)   “I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can shut. You have little strength, yet you obeyed my word and did not deny me.”  (NLT)

            Jesus begins this verse by saying that He is the one who knows their deeds.  He must have been satisfied with their deeds for He goes on to tell them that He has placed and open door before them to ministry before them, and Jesus Christ is the One who puts these opportunities in front of whoever He chooses to put them.  Jesus goes on to say that no one could close this open door, for no one has more power than Christ.  Next thing in this verse to be said is that they had little power, and this reminds me of Paul’s writing in 2Corthians where he wrote, “that when I am weak then I am strong.”  This seems to apply here, as this church was weak in it’s self, yet they were strong in the Lord, and that is where all believers should be strong.  The thing that these people have done is to keep the Word of Christ not matter what they were going through, and through all of this they have not denied His Name. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  There are many important things in this small verse that can be applied to my life, not only for this day, but for all days of my life.  Taking opportunity of an open door that Christ sets before me when He sets one before me; Not relying on my own strength, but relying on Christ’s strength; Stay true to the Word of Christ no matter what the circumstances are; and never deny His name. 

 

The Word of God has been a challenge to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Follow all of the things that are in this verse.

The Faithful Church (Rev. 3:7)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/16/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  The Faithful Church

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Revelations 3:7

 

            Message of the verse:  “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: He who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens, says this:”  (NAS95)  “Write this letter to the angel of the church in Philadelphia. This is the message from the one who is holy and true. He is the one who has the key of David. He opens doors, and no one can shut them; he shuts doors, and no one can open them.”  (NLT)

            Jesus describes Himself as the One who is holy and true, and these are qualities of God alone, which is who Jesus Christ is.  Only God can be holy and true, for fallen man could never be holy and has a hard time being true, even after he has been regenerated.  Jesus goes on to say that He has the key of David, the One who opens and no one can shut, and the One who shuts and no one can open.  There is a story in the book of Isaiah that helps to explain this part of the verse.  Isaiah 22:15-25 gives the account:  15 “Furthermore, the Lord, the LORD Almighty, told me to confront Shebna, the palace administrator, and to give him this message:  16 “Who do you think you are, building a beautiful tomb for yourself in the rock?  17 For the LORD is about to seize you and hurl you away. He is going to send you into captivity, you strong man!  18 He will crumple you up into a ball and toss you away into a distant, barren land. There you will die, and there your glorious chariots will remain, broken and useless. You are a disgrace to your master.  19 “Yes, I will drive you out of office," says the LORD. "I will pull you down from your high position.  20 And then I will call my servant Eliakim son of Hilkiah to replace you.  21 He will have your royal robes, your title, and your authority. And he will be a father to the people of Jerusalem and Judah.  22 I will give him the key to the house of David—the highest position in the royal court. He will open doors, and no one will be able to shut them; he will close doors, and no one will be able to open them.

23 He will bring honor to his family name, for I will drive him firmly in place like a tent stake.  24 He will be loaded down with responsibility, and he will bring honor to even the lowliest members of his family."  25 The LORD Almighty says: "When that time comes, I will pull out the stake that seemed so firm. It will come out and fall to the ground. Everything it supports will fall with it. I, the LORD, have spoken!"

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Philadelphia means brotherly love, and it is evident that those who attended this church did love not only the Lord and their brothers in the Lord, but they also had a love for the lost.  In committing to go and speak to those kids who are in jail I believe that I need the Lord to fill me with His love for them, it is not enough to just tell them about the love of Christ, but I must show them the love of Christ in action. 

 

The Word of God was a challenge to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To trust the Lord to forgive my sins, and also to cleanse me so that I can serve Him with a clean heart, and so I can be able to listen to what the Spirit says to the churches, as I am a part of the church.

Listen to the Spirit (Rev. 3:6)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/15/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Listen to the Spirit

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Revelations 3:6

 

            Message of the verse:  “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”  (NAS95)  “Anyone who is willing to hear should listen to the Spirit and understand what the Spirit is saying to the churches.”  (NLT)

            This is the same Words that Jesus Christ, the Head of the Church, gives to each of His churches at the end of His letter to them.  Even though these words are the same the message to each of the churches is different, and so there is something different for each of the churches to listen to.  Each of these letters were read to each of the churches and they have now been read to churches for almost 2000 years, so those who have a desire to listen to what the Spirit says to the churches have that opportunity to do so.  Jesus may also be pointing out that the churches need to have their ears open to other things that the Spirit has to say to the churches.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  The Lord Jesus Christ is the Head of the Church, and as a believer in Him I am one of His soldiers, and as I read His Word each day, and as I study it and think upon it the Holy Spirit gives me marching orders for each day of my life.  The orders are from Him and may not be a lot different from day to day, but there are times when He has something special for me to do and I need always to have my ears open to hear what the Spirit has to say to me, a part of the Church.

 

The Word of God has been challenging to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To listen to what the Holy Spirit has to say to me, to have a clean heart so that there is nothing between God and me, and to obey what the Spirit has to say to me each day.

The Overcomers (Rev. 3:5)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/14/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  The overcomers

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Revelations 3:5

 

            Message of the verse: 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.  (AV)  He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels.  (NIV)

            As mentioned before overcomers are the true believers in Jesus Christ, those who are born-again.  True believers are the ones who have been purchased by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ when He died on the cross, and because He died for them, and because His Father choose them before the foundation of the earth, and because the Holy Spirit of God called them, they will never be lost, and once there names have been written in the Lambs Book of Life it will never be removed.  All of those who have been written in this book will be clothed in white raiment one day. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  To have my Lord acknowledge my name before my heavenly Father and His angels is something that I could never earn or deserve, but it is only given to me because of God’s grace and because of God’s mercy.

 

The Word of God has been refreshment for my soul as I read it today:

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  I fully trust the Lord to bring me up out of this depression that I am going through after coming down from the mountain that He set me on while living in Aruba.

A Worthy Walk (Rev. 3:4)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/13/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  A Worthy Walk

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                 Reference:  Revelations 3:4

 

            Message of the verse:  But you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments; and they will walk with Me in white, for they are worthy.  (NAS95)   Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy.  (NIV)

            The Bible teaches that once a person is saved he is always saved, yet even a saved person can do things that are sinful and at times will be disciplined for such behavior.  The Bible speaks of people who are believers who will receive a white garment, but there will be a smell of smoke in it because they did not live a life that was at all pleasing to the Lord.  A believer who practices holiness in his walk with the Lord will receive a white garment that will not smell of smoke, for he will be worthy as this verse speaks of.   

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  The Christian life is impossible to live if I try to do it on my own.  The power must come from the Holy Spirit, and I must keep my eyes on the Lord and my ears open to hear what the Lord has to say to me as I read and meditate upon His Word, and thus apply it to my life.  The goal of all Christians is to be conformed to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ, to live a life that is pleasing to Him so that when I see the Lord He will say to me “well done my good and faithful servant.”

 

The Word of God has been convicting and challenging to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Trust the Lord to get me through this valley that I am going through after returning from Aruba on Monday. 

The Complacent Church (Rev. 3:3)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/11/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  The complacent Church

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Revelations 3:3

 

            Message of the verse:  “So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent. Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you.”  (NAS95)  Go back to what you heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly and turn to me again. Unless you do, I will come upon you suddenly, as unexpected as a thief.  (NLT)

            I would suppose that this church was the hardest one to understand of all of the seven churches.  This letter does not contain the things that the others do, as there are no words concerning what they were doing right or wrong, but there are words that explain what they should be doing.  The church seemed to be standing on its past reputation and had little effect on the people around them so Christ tells them to remember where they came from, to go back to what happened when they first began, and to repent for falling into the place that they were in right now.  I guess the best word to describe this church is complacent.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  It is not a good thing to be complacent with my faith, for if I am not moving forward then I am moving backwards, for there is no neutral in my walk with the Lord.  The enemy would like me to think that there is a neutral, but there is not.  Each day brings new challenges and new opportunities to do the work of the Lord and I need to have my eyes open to see them and my ears open to hear what they are.

 

The Word of God was convicting and challenging to my heart as I read them this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Trust in the Lord with all of my heart and lean not upon my own understanding, in all of my ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct my path.

Strengthen What Remains (Rev. 3:2)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/10/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                    Focus:  Strengthen what Remains

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelation 3:2

 

            Message of the verse:  Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God.  (NAS95)  Now wake up! Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is at the point of death. Your deeds are far from right in the sight of God.  (NLT)

            There were some things that were acceptable in the sight of the Lord Jesus Christ that this church was doing, yet there were many things that were not acceptable and the Lord Jesus Christ tells them that were to strengthen the things that were.  Jesus goes on in the next verse to name some of the things that He is talking about in verse two that they are to strengthen. 

           

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I am reminded of the verses at the end of Psalm 139 where David asks the Spirit to search him to see where he had sinned and not remembered it so that he could confess it and have again fellowship with the Lord.  Sometimes I too, don’t remember all of the things that I do not do correctly and need the Spirit of God to search me.

 

The Word of God has been a challenge to me as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Ask the Lord to search my heart and to cleanse me from sin so that I may have wonderful fellowship with Him.

Sardis "The Dead Church" (Rev. 3:1)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 03/07/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                          Focus:  Sardis the “dead” Church

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Revelations 3:1

 

            Message of the verse:  "WRITE this to the angel of the Church in Sardis: These are the words of him who holds in his hand the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars: I know what you have done, that you have a reputation for being alive, but that in fact you are dead.”  (Philips)  "Write this letter to the angel of the church in Sardis. This is the message from the one who has the sevenfold Spirit of God and the seven stars: "I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive—but you are dead.”  (NLT)

            Again when Christ mentions writing to the “angel” this means to the Pastor or Leader at the church.  The word means messenger, and at times it can mean an angel, and this does not say that the Churches do not have certain angels assigned to them, but it is the Pastor who must be giving the messages to the church, and therefore is who Christ is talking about here.  Christ description of Himself comes from the first chapter of this book, for His description of Himself is an important tool in understanding what He is talking about here.  “Rev: 1: 4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne,” and Rev. 1: 16 In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword; and His face was like the sun shining in its strength.”  (See verse notes on verse Rev. 1:4 & 1:16)

            This church had the reputation of being alive, yet in fact Christ reports that it is dead, as seen in this verse.  The church was living on its past reputation, and that is not good at all, for if you stop growing as a church then you go backwards, and then you can give opportunity for the enemy to come and slow the work completely.  It is uncertain if there were many true believers here who were doing carnal works, or works in the flesh, or if there were actually many unbelievers attending this church, however the fact remains that the churches reputation was life, when in fact it was dead.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I think that what I have learned from this verse, and others like it is that in order to please the Lord you must live by the Spirit, and get your directions from Him, and one of the best ways of doing that is to read His Word each and everyday to get direction for my life.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Continue to trust in the Lord in spite of the circumstances that we find ourselves in with the plane problems.  God is still on His throne and is still in charge of all things.