The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Hebrews 12:22-24,
"But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel."
"But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel."
As we turn to Jesus Christ, we may have to leave some friends behind. We might even have to leave some family behind. We also leave behind some things that are incompatible with our new life in Jesus Christ. Vices, addictions, things that appeal to our own sinful natures. We might even have to give up some of the places we enjoyed, activities we engage in, and possibly some things we may have been working toward. We might have to abandon some of our goals and some of those things we devoted time and effort toward.
In the passage above, as the writer of Hebrews discusses the struggles and difficulties we face as those who have turned to Jesus Christ due to the discipline God brings into our lives (shame on Christian leaders who speak of our new life in Christ as "life on easy street" with no more cares and concerns!) he encourages us all in what we have come to as believers. God will bring difficulties into our lives (for our good!), but in light of what we have come to, his rewards are so much greater that it pales in comparison!
We have come to Mount Zion, the city of the living God! The heavenly Jerusalem!
We have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly!
We have come to the company of those whose names are written in the book of life!
We have come to the company of those whose names are written in the book of life!
We have come to God, the judge of all!
We have come to the spirits of the righteous!
We have come to Jesus Christ who gave his blood as a ransom for us!
What we have come to is simply breathtaking and those difficulties we face as believers fade in the magnificence of it!
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 reply and let me know.
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 reply and let me know.
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