Revelation 21:4

Verse of the Day Devotion: Revelation 21:4

“And He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” – Revelation 21:4

This verse denotes a time of rejoicing.  A time when the old order is done away with, and the blessed future eternal order will become the norm.  We all know the trials and tribulations that come to us from the enemy.  It seems like there is no rest from the hardships prevalent here on this earth.  People weeping from broken hearts, loneliness, hunger and constant pain, both physical and mental.  However, things will change, all will be made new, promised by God who is faithful in all things.

So, let’s look at what this life will be like.  First, God will wipe away every tear we weep.  This will be a wonderfully blessed state where sorrow and mourning will fade away and there will only be love, joy, peace and contentment.  There no longer will be any pain caused by illness, sickness and calamities because they no longer exist.  And even death will be done away with.   Isaiah wrote regarding this time, “He will swallow up death for all time, And the Lord GOD will wipe tears away from all faces, And He will remove the reproach of His people from all the earth; For the LORD has spoken.” Isaiah 25:8.

Such a different life then we have now.  We cannot fathom such a life.  In fact, we cannot even begin to understand what God has planned for us.  “But just as it is written, “THINGS WHICH EYE HAS NOT SEEN AND EAR HAS NOT HEARD, AND which HAVE NOT ENTERED THE HEART OF MAN, ALL THAT GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM.” 1 Corinthians 2:9.

There are a lot of gorgeous things on this earth.  Flowers that leave us speechless by their beauty.  Mountains that soar into the skies producing a wonderful landscape in the distance.  Birds just exploding with colors that work so well together.  The sounds of a flowing creek, the chirping of a bird, or the incredible echoes from the valleys as the words bounce off the hillsides back to our ears.

I am sure you have sights and sounds that just amaze you and allow you to relax in total contentedness.  I am sure we have thought of things that truly do not exist, but if they did would be beyond beautiful.  However, look what Paul said in the above verse.  Nothing we see here will come close in comparison to the beauty we shall see in the new heaven and earth.  No sounds here will ever compare to what is coming in our eternal existence.  And even our imaginations cannot conceive of what God has in store for us.  And the amazing thing is that there will never be an end to this wonderful life.

Yes, things may not be perfect here.  There is a lot of ugliness, anger, hatred, and pain in this life.  But a better time is coming.  The effects of the fall in the garden will be done away with.  All of creation will be remade.  Imagine, “And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, And the leopard will lie down with the young goat, And the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And a little boy will lead them. Also, the cow and the bear will graze, their young will lie down together, And the lion will eat straw like the ox. The nursing child will play by the hole of the cobra, And the weaned child will put his hand on the viper’s den. They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea.” Isaiah 11:6-9.

It is hard to imagine, but this, and infinitely more will be our life forevermore.  Praise God, I cannot wait.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries, Inc.

Revelation 2:18

Verse of the Day Devotion:  Revelation 2:18 

“And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: The Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet are like burnished bronze, says this:” – Revelation 2:18

Over seven days, I will be looking at what John wrote, by the inspiration of God, to the seven major churches in Asia Minor.  In these seven letters, God gives a message to each that is specific to each and speaks of issues that could fit the Churches throughout history.  It is important to look at these and examine our church and ultimately ourselves to see where we stand regarding these. 

We now come to the fourth church, the Church of Thyatira.  Thyatira was a wealthy town on the Lycus River in the Roman province of Asia Minor, or modern-day Turkey.  This is the only one of the messages to the seven Churches where the Jesus is called the Son of God. Its wealth no doubt came from the various industries that is found in the city, those being textile and clothing, coppersmiths, potters, tanners, leather cutters and bakers.  It was also a regional center in the Asian slave trade network.  An inscription mentions a slave trader who oversaw the public market at Thyatira and funded festivities for the imperial cult.  Worship in the city centered on the Greek gods Apollo and Artemis, the protectors of civic welfare.  They were originally Anatolian deities who were identified with Apollo and Artemis in the Greek pantheon.  In fact, the Greek gods were given great remembrance and honor among the people, which probably brought much difficulty to the Church in their work. 

The letter starts by, as in all the letters, declaring the good found in the Church.  “I know your deeds, and your love and faith and service and perseverance, and that your deeds of late are greater than at first.”  Revelation 2:19.  The works of the congregation are specified in four ways: “Love (agape)” which includes love for God and acts of compassion for others.  It means giving oneself for others as Christ did.  “Faith”, which includes faith in God and Christ and faithfulness to God and his people. The faithful bear public witness to God in the face of conflict.  “Service” which probably included actions ranging from witnessing to the lost and providing for the needy.  And He adds that they have grown in the works they do, in that the works they do now are greater than when they started.

However, He has an issue with them as well.  “But I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads My bondservants astray, so that they commit acts of immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.” Revelation 2:20. Jezebel is a nickname that John gives to the woman at Thyatira in order to compare her to Queen Jezebel, the wife of King Ahab of Israel. “And it came about, as though it had been a trivial thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he married Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians and went to serve Baal and worshiped him.” 1 Kings 16:31.  This woman refers to herself as a prophetess, but her teachings are far from truth, specifically she seduces the servants of God to immoral conduct and to the eating of meats that had been sacrificed to idols.  He gave her opportunities to repent, but she did not. “And I gave her time to repent; and she does not want to repent of her immorality.” Revelation 2:21.  And since she did not repent of leading many astray with her evil teachings, “Behold, I will cast her upon a bed of sickness, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of her deeds. And I will kill her children with pestilence; and all the churches will know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts; and I will give to each one of you according to your deeds.” Revelation 2:22-23.  And as it says in the above verse, “I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of their ways.” Revelation 2:22b.

And to those who do not follow the ways of Jezebel but remain true to God He says, “I place no other burden on you. Nevertheless, what you have, hold fast until I come.” Revelation 2:24b-23. The faithful believers did not fall into Satan’s trap, and they only needed to remain faithful until Christ’s return.

Then Jesus lists His promises to the believers in Thyatira. “The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my father. and I will give him the morning star.” Revelation 2:26-28. At Christ’s coming the saints shall possess the kingdom over the whole earth.  These blessings include along with authority over the earth, victory over all the enemies, and the morning star.  And since Jesus is the morning star, this means He will give Himself to His Church, and be in fellowship with them forever. “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright morning star.” Revelation 22:16.  Is not this a wonderful blessing to us who remain true to Christ and oppose the ways of Satan and his followers?

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries. 

Hebrews 4:13

Verse of the Day Devotion:  Hebrews 4:13

“And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.” –  Hebrews 4:13 

This verse speaks to the all-knowing attribute of God, something we do not have.  David, in Psalm 139 says the following in viewing this attribute.  “If I say, Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, And the light around me will be night, Even the darkness is not dark to You, And the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You.” Psalm 139:11-12.  The word translated “overwhelm” has an additional meaning of cover, which verse 12 makes this meaning probable.  In fact, this is the same verse in the English Standard Version (ESV) which matches the way the KJV states it.  “If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.“   What David here is saying is that there is no way I can hide anything I do, even though I try to cover it up. 

And this is what the writer of Hebrews is saying.  God sees all things and hears all things.  As our focus verse states, there is no creature hidden from His sight.  He is infinitely wise and has infinite knowledge.  There is nothing our God does not know, and we can look at this as a good or a not so good thing.  However, either way you look at it, He knows us better then we know ourselves.  Therefore, we must realize that we can hide nothing from Him. 

God’s Word accurately and penetratingly expose what is in our hearts.  We can look at what His Word says about us, and if we look seriously at it, we will see things we may not want to admit.  And this is because God knows everything that is there.  We must never think we can hide anything from God, for His eyes see all because of His omnipresence.  “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, Watching the evil and the good.” Proverbs 15:3. There is nowhere He is not, therefore it is impossible to hide anything from Him.   

Before I was truly saved, I used to think in this way.  Essentially, if others did not know I did wrong, God probably did not as well.  But after sitting under an incredible pastor in Homestead Fl, I came to the understanding that nothing was hid from Him.  Not that I believed He did not know, but I did not give any thought to God knowing what I had done.  It was only after spending more intimate time with God did I begin to realize the fullness of His understanding.  I realized no matter whether anyone else knew what I did, whether good or bad, God knew.  So now, when I pray at the end of each day, I ask God to show me what I do not know or accept, so I can address it with Him. 

I want to encourage everyone to do the same.  It is easy for us to deceive ourselves, but it is impossible to deceive our loving and faithful God.  It is not always pleasant for God to open our eyes to who we really are.  It can be difficult to accept.  However, it is important for us to listen to Him, whether what He says is good or not so good.  It is important that we present ourselves fully and completely to God as we are, so that He can change us to what we ought to be.  “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”  Romans 12:1-2. 

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries.