How do you see the things of God?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years,
(Genesis 1:14 (NIV))

Did you watch the solar eclipse? Are you glad that it is over? If you are like the majority of people in the United States, you have seen enough information about the solar eclipse to where you could probably write your own research paper solely from memory. To be honest with you, it was an amazing event to see.

I find it interesting that humanity is so obsessed with these types of events, yet they fail to recognize that these types of events are clearly defined and foretold in the Bible. Society tries to explain them based on scientific reasoning. Please don’t misunderstand me and try to draw any false implications. There is nothing wrong with science. Science allows us to explore and try to understand creation. It allows us to form a hypothesis about a particular subject and then test that hypothesis to see if it is accurate. Over the course of human history, scientific conclusions have often changed when addressing the same subject. In essence, a hypothesis is only an assumption that someone makes for the sake of argument. They then have to defend that assumption. What I find so perplexing, based on this definition, is that when someone comes to a different assumption and tries to have a civil argument over the different assumption, someone is always labeled as ignorant and uneducated. Based on historical record and the very definition of hypothesis, science is man’s attempt to correctly explain what we see when how we interpret what we see is influenced by our less than perfect ability to perceive the truth.

The solar eclipse was a fantastic example of humanity trying to explain what we see when what we see is so far beyond our comprehension. If Jesus delays His return, humanity might get better at explaining things. However, we will never understand creation the way that the Creator does. If God said that something is to serve as signs, then we should take that at face value. I, like may people, are intrigued by the “how” with respect to what God does, but it will never be more important than the “why.”

As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
(Isaiah 55:9 (NIV))

How do you see the things of God?

Copyright 1998 – 2017 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Will you be watching to see what God does?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth.
(Revelation 12:1-2 (NIV))

Do you believe in signs and wonders in the heavens? God does!

And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years,
(Genesis 1:14 (NIV))

He planned it that way!

How many noticed that they are to serve as signs for three distinct things? The first, and most prominent, is for marking sacred times. If that is the case, then when we are told that there will be a great sign, how should we react? How should we approach such an event?

For those who don’t know, there is a direct correlation between what is described and certain stars and planets in the zodiac. The woman is Virgo. The king planet, Jupiter, is the child that she carries. The crown is a combination of stars and planets, and the moon is under her feet. According to various sources, this has never happened before, will only happen once, and will never happen again. That one time that it will happen is later in 2017 and many are calling it the convergence. Everything lines up perfectly for this great sign to appear. It also lines up with the next Jewish feast in God’s timeline.

I, for one, will be watching this great sign with much fascination. I am not date setting. I am being observant, for as a follower of Jesus, we are to know the seasons. When God tells us that there will be a great sign, and we are also told by scientists and astronomers that this sign will only happen once in all of eternity, then we should pay attention. We should really pay attention since it will happen in our lifetimes. I just love how, as time passes, God unveils Himself and presents Himself just as He foretold. With that in mind, I will be watching the heavens as God’s plan unfolds.

He is giving us a great sign.

Will you be watching to see what God does?

(If you wish to study this for yourself, I recommend doing a search for Revelation 12 on YouTube as a starting point.)

Copyright 1998 – 2017 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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What signs do we see today?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.
(Matthew 27:51-53 (NIV))

Do you gloss over these words when you read about the crucifixion? Do you stop reading when it says that Jesus yielded up His spirit? That was not the end of the miracles!

The veil of the temple was so tall that no one could reach the top, yet it tore from the top down. The earth groaned and quaked at the death of God’s only Son. The rocks, and I would probably bet that they were huge stones, broke from the anguish of God the Father. What I find so amazing is that the graves gave up the bodies of the people who had longed for the Messiah to come.

Can you imagine what Jerusalem was like when this happened? The sun had already darkened, and then all of these things occurred after Jesus died. How would you have reacted?

What I find interesting is that all of these things happened at His death, yet, the account of the resurrection does not tell of anything like this happening. It is as if the world had been in grief and then all is peaceful and right. However, that concept makes me think about the correlation between the crucifixion and the second coming. If the world groaned when Jesus died, even though it knew that Jesus would arise, what will the world do when it knows that Jesus is returning? Can we expect more of what was seen at the crucifixion? Can we draw any correlation between the resurrection and the second coming?

Copyright 1998 – 2017 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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When you focus on the signs, you miss Jesus!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

I will show wonders in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood and fire and billows of smoke.
The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.
(Acts 2:19-20 (NIV))

Many people, including myself, believe that we are seeing things that indicate that the time of the Gentiles is coming to an end. This indicates that we are close to seeing the end times that are so frequently written of in God’s Word. These end times will usher in the worst times that this world has ever seen. It will also eventually lead to Jesus returning in the clouds and splitting the Mount of Olives.

On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south.
(Zechariah 14:4 (NIV))

I often see things in the news or read things that make me wonder what this means and what sign it points to. It is human nature to try to figure things out. As we are told, we are to know the signs off the times. Some people make a study of these signs a full time endeavor. It is fascinating to try to understand how God is working.

I want to stop and ask a question.

Have you ever loved something so much that you studied it, practiced it, or played it so much that you soon lost sight of your first love? In other words, you became so engrossed in the details that you lost sight of the reason you loved it to begin with.

Don’t let your study of the signs make you lose sight of Jesus. After all, He is the reason the signs will be and are happening.

There is an old saying that you can’t see the forest for the trees. Step back and see Jesus in the details. Step back and see Jesus in the moment.

I know that the signs that are still unfolding will come to pass. How do I know this?

We are about to celebrate the greatest sign of all this Sunday. Without the resurrection of Easter, we would have no hope that the signs of His Second Coming would ever come true!

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do we recognize God’s season?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

“Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it is near, right at the door. I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with his assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.
(Mark 13:28-34 (NIV))

We are told that no one knows the day or hour, but we are also told that we will know the season.

What season are we in?

I recently saw a report that indicated that 77% of the church in the United States believes that we are seeing the signs of the season of the end times. All of the people who are biblical scholars that I keep track of are also saying the same thing. They recognize the season. Many say that the season started when Israel became a nation after almost two thousands yours of nonexistence.

I could spend hours going over the things that I have seen reported. Signs and wonders in the skies, good being called evil, the persecution of the Body of Christ in all parts of the world, the sudden arise of the problems in Syria, Israel completely surrounded by enemies, the increase in unexplained mass animal, bird and fish deaths, a religion that is intent on killing all who do not convert, and many more all coming down to a single point in time.

I recently read that some state governments are preparing disaster drills for the consequences of very large earthquakes. I realize that these types of reports can be considered “prepper” talk and can often be taken at face value, but why all of the sudden talk about such things and how to prepare for them?

No one knows about that day or hour.

Sometimes I think that we, as humanity, are blinded to what is going on around us. We are focused entirely on what influences our lives directly and ignore all else. What are we ignoring that we should be paying attention to?

Do we recognize God’s season?

Copyright 1998 – 2013 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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