Will your heart keep you from seeing the glory of the Lord?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

The moon will be abashed, the sun ashamed; for the Lord Almighty will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before its elders, gloriously.
(Isaiah 24:23 (NIV))

When we think of something that shines, we always think of the best that it can be. Consider what is said when someone does extremely well at something. It is said that they really shine at that task or undertaking.

What do you think of that shines the brightest? If you are like most people, you probably answered the sun and then the moon. These two celestial bodies give us light by day and by night. We compare everything that we know of as good to these two bodies. However, they pale in comparison to the way that our Lord will shine when He reigns on this earth and in eternity.

The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.
(Revelation 21:23(NIV))

What a glorious place we will be in! There will be no need for the sun or the moon, for the glory of the Lord will shine brighter than anything that is created. Who will get to see this glory? Only those who call upon the name of Jesus, God’s only Son, as their Lord and Savior.

Remember that the light of God looks beyond the outward appearances and sees the heart. What is in your heart? Will it keep you from seeing the glory of the Lord?

Copyright 1998 – 2014 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Pray!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

And afterward,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your old men will dream dreams,
your young men will see visions.
Even on my servants, both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days.
I will show wonders in the heavens
and on the earth,
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 dreadful day of the LORD.
And everyone who calls
on the name of the LORD will be saved;
for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
there will be deliverance,
as the LORD has said,
among the survivors
whom the LORD calls.
(Joel 2:28-32 (NIV))

This passage has been quoted for many years to bring both fear and hope to those who hear it.

For those people who do not have the grace and mercy that is freely theirs through the gift of salvation brought by Jesus Christ, it is a time to fear. All who do not believe in Jesus as God’s only begotten Son choose to reject these words as the false ramblings of an old book that no longer has any meaning in the world today. They choose to believe that they are in control of themselves and they only have to answer to themselves. These people do not know that they have anything to fear, yet, they should be very fearful for what they will surely face.

For those people who know the grace and mercy freely given to them through the blood of Jesus, and who study God’s Word to know Him, they know that God always keeps His word. They know that He has promised salvation to those who call upon His name in earnestness and honesty. They know that they will not face this, but will have deliverance. These people know the hope that these words speak of.

Which of these two groups honestly knows the fear that these words speak of? It is not those who do not believe, for they are in a false peace brought about because of their ignorance. It is the body of believers who also know the fear. They fear, and hopefully pray, for the those who do not believe, for ignorance will not save them.

Pray for those who are trapped in their own ignorance of their sin and their need for grace and mercy through our Savior, Jesus Christ!

Copyright 1998 – 2012 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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