The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Revelation 2:7,
"To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God."
Here is an amazing promise! As Jesus had John write his letter to the church in Ephesus, he promised to give the right to the tree of life in God's paradise to those who are "victorious."
Victorious over what? Jesus commended the Ephesian believers for deeds of hard work and perseverance, for not tolerating "wicked people", ferreting out false apostles, enduring hardships without growing weary, and hating the practices of the Nicolaitans.
Yet, in spite of these very good things the Ephesian believers had done, they needed to address a shortcoming: they needed to repent from falling from the first love they had at the beginning of their walk with the lord. Those who continued to do the things Jesus commended them for as well as taking a different direction from their failing to continue in their first love for the Lord would be victorious.
Jesus had seven letters he had John write to these seven churches: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea. In these letters he pointed to good things the churches had been doing as well as their shortcomings.
Were these churches to overcome their shortcomings and be victorious, here are the things Jesus promised:
-- "To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God." 2:7.
-- "The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death [judgment day]." 2:11.
-- "To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it." 2:17.
-- "To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations— that one 'will rule them with an iron scepter and will dash them to pieces like pottery'—just as I have received authority from my Father. I will also give that one the morning star." 2:26-28.
-- "The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels." 3:5.
-- "The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name." 3:12.
-- "To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne." 3:21.
These are some pretty amazing promises! Would you be willing to make the effort to be victorious relative to Jesus' concerns in his seven letters in order to share in his promises?
A blog with my ruminations over the years can be found here: http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
"To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God."
Here is an amazing promise! As Jesus had John write his letter to the church in Ephesus, he promised to give the right to the tree of life in God's paradise to those who are "victorious."
Victorious over what? Jesus commended the Ephesian believers for deeds of hard work and perseverance, for not tolerating "wicked people", ferreting out false apostles, enduring hardships without growing weary, and hating the practices of the Nicolaitans.
Yet, in spite of these very good things the Ephesian believers had done, they needed to address a shortcoming: they needed to repent from falling from the first love they had at the beginning of their walk with the lord. Those who continued to do the things Jesus commended them for as well as taking a different direction from their failing to continue in their first love for the Lord would be victorious.
Jesus had seven letters he had John write to these seven churches: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea. In these letters he pointed to good things the churches had been doing as well as their shortcomings.
Were these churches to overcome their shortcomings and be victorious, here are the things Jesus promised:
-- "To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God." 2:7.
-- "The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death [judgment day]." 2:11.
-- "To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it." 2:17.
-- "To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations— that one 'will rule them with an iron scepter and will dash them to pieces like pottery'—just as I have received authority from my Father. I will also give that one the morning star." 2:26-28.
-- "The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels." 3:5.
-- "The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name." 3:12.
-- "To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne." 3:21.
These are some pretty amazing promises! Would you be willing to make the effort to be victorious relative to Jesus' concerns in his seven letters in order to share in his promises?
A blog with my ruminations over the years can be found here: http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
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