SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 1/30/2019 9:59 AM
My Worship Time Focus: “The
Privilege of the Mystery”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Ephesians
3:12-13
Message of the verses: “12 in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him. 13 Therefore I ask you not to lose heart at my tribulations on your behalf, for they are your glory.
Now
we have been talking about this “mystery” for a long time, learning that this
mystery that Paul is writing about is that the Jews and the Gentiles who become
believers in Jesus Christ are now one in Christ. Now in verse 12 Paul speaks of “boldness”
that we have as believers in Jesus Christ, boldness and confidence because of
our new position that we have in Christ.
When we look back at the Jewish “religion” we see that only one person,
the high priest, could come into the presence of the Lord as he went into the
Holy of Holies once a year for a very short time in order to put blood onto the
Ark of the Covenant, and then he left.
No other Jew had the privilege of going into the presence of God unless
they died. As a part of this mystery we as born-again believers can
go into the presence of God at any time to find grace to help in our time of
need, and that is the privilege of the mystery.
“15 For
we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One
who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. 16 Therefore
let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so
that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need (Heb.
4:15-16).”
John MacArthur writes “We are not to be flippant or irreverent but are to come to the Lord with an honest, open heart—in freedom of speech and freedom of spirit. ‘Confident access’ is trust that knows no fear of rejection, because we belong to Him (cf. 1 Tim. 3:13).” “For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a high standing and great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.”
Now it is because of such a great privilege that Paul then writes verse 13 “Therefore I ask you not to lose heart at my tribulations on your behalf, for they are your glory.” MacArthur adds “In and through every circumstance of His children, God works His goodness, blessing, and glory.” As we look at the last part of verse 13 we probably can understand that many believers were grieving over Paul’s extended years of imprisonment and over the almost continual suffering that he was enduring due to the ministry that God had given to him. In Romans 8:18 we read the following that Paul had written “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.” We will close this portion of our SD by looking at Philippians 1:12-14 “12 Now I want you to know, brethren, that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel, 13 so that my imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else, 14 and that most of the brethren, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear.”
We
have just finished looking at the first thirteen verses in the third chapter of
Ephesians and learned that Paul was actually beginning his prayer for the
believers in Ephesus, but then once again went back to talk about the mystery
once again. Now we will move, Lord
willing, to talk about a part of the prayer that Paul began in 3:1 as we look
next at verses 14-21 of Ephesians. John
MacArthur entitles this ninth chapter in his commentary on Ephesians “The
Fullness of God.” I look forward to
studying these verses.
Spiritual meaning for my life today: I have to say that I am so very thankful that
I can enter into the presence of God by praying to Him, as I desire to bless
the Lord each day, to confess any known sins to Him, and to make requests to
Him for others and also for myself. It
is a privilege that I never want to take lightly.
My
Steps of Faith for Today: Continue to dwell on Romans 12:3, and to
continue to learn truth from my study of God’s Word so that I can stand in the
truth and not necessarily rely on my emotions which can vary, unlike God’s
Truth.
Quotation for today: President Calvin Coolidge said “Press On: Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not…Genius will not…education will not…persistence and determination alone are overwhelmingly powerful.”
We will look at a verse that goes along with this
quote in our next SD.
1/30/2019 10:38 AM
No comments:
Post a Comment