Wednesday, December 03, 2014

A Thought for Wednesday 3 December 2014

“Those who feared The Lord spoke to one another, and The Lord listened and heard them.  So a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear The Lord and meditate on His Name.  ‘They shall be Mine’, says The Lord of hosts, ‘on the day I will make them My jewels.  And I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him’.  Then you shall again discern between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him.”  Malachi 3:16-18

This assurance came to the people of The Lord as some had begun to question the need to follow The Lord; “It is useless to serve God.  What profit is it that we have kept His ordinance …?”

I suppose it is a daily question we ask ourselves more often implicitly by the way we choose to conduct ourselves, believing we fall under the umbrella of “grace” but with little or no regard for how others outside of the Covenant may see us and perceive the God we claim to serve.  We must never forget that what many people know about The Lord has been gleaned from our conduct, we who claim to believe.  This most especially includes our own children and grandchildren!

Yet in Malachi’s context, there were still faithful persons who distanced themselves from the many who took the easy road, the road that appears to hold more promise than the unknown road traversed in faith.  For their faithfulness and for their fellowship (“those who feared The Lord spoke to one another”), they were “remembered” and then claimed by The Lord; “They shall be Mine.”

Jesus never said following Him would be easy, but we do have the assurance that our perseverance in faith will one day find its own reward; “Those who endure to the end will be saved” (Matthew 10:22).  And the value of the fellowship and support of the Church can never be overstated!  We need one another as surely as we need The Lord; to guide us, to direct us, to support us, and even to correct us when we veer from the righteous Path.

So shall we face the future unafraid, knowing The Lord will not turn His back on His faithful – and counting on one another until the Final Trumpet sounds!

Blessings,

Michael

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