| “I know your deeds.” |
| —Revelation 3:8a |
We who are loved by God—the ones He has chosen before the foundation of the earth to belong to Himself, the ones to whom in due season He revealed His love through the Holy Spirit—are most fortunate, most blessed, and most driven to respond to God in obedience to His will and to His written Word. Our obedience is actually the only thing God requires of us. And yet, that obedience is the most important action we will ever take.
As a result of God enabling our obedience through the power of the in-dwelling Holy Spirit, with great joy we can read these words written to the Christians in the ancient city of Philadelphia, as recorded in Revelation 3:8, 10:
I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.
Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.
At the start of this new day, we can move forward along the pathway that God has laid out before us knowing that, in our weakness, we will find His strength. We can press onward and “endure patiently,” knowing that the trials we must face in this life are but for a little while.
Let us rejoice in the mercy, grace, and love of God. Let us celebrate that we belong to Him. Let us humbly receive the gifts He gives us, especially the gift of forgiveness for our sins and the gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord.
Based on a post from Thursday, March 5, 2015
