A
daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and
exhortation.
Friday,
October
15,
2021
After a week of cloud covered skies, on our way
to the Shady Maple Smorgasbord in eastern Lancaster
County, the sun finally broke through late yesterday
morning. What an uplifting sight and sudden surge of
energy came from that experience.
(Click on photo for larger image)
"The Forever Dynasty"
Listen
to this message on your audio player.
“You, O LORD, reign forever; Your throne endures from generation to generation” (Lamentations 5:19). “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns” (Revelation 19:6). Tom Brady has
been the dominant quarterback in the NFL for the last 20
years, having been in 10 super bowls or amazing half of the
super bowls in his career. He has essentially been a one man
dynasty and still plays very well in his mid-forties and
wants to keep on playing. But I have a prediction. His age
will eventually get the best of him and this dynasty will
end!
How many
recall when Duck Dynasty was an immensely popular "reality"
show here in America? It had a large weekly audience and
many men even grew their beards similar to the way they were
worn in the show. But like anything popular in this world
the Duck Dynasty show faded in popularity.
About 50 years ago John Lennon, of the Beatles, made an extremely boastful statement about the popularity of his band being more popular than Jesus Christ. We know how that turned out and his final accounting will be given to the Lord Jesus. The Beatles and all others who are reckoned as "famous" by this world’s standards will eventually be likened to a tiny grain of sand in recorded history, let alone throughout eternity. Such is
always the case with all worldly dynasties. They come to
an end. But today let us rejoice in a forever dynasty!
As God’s children we are heirs to a dynasty that will last forever. Jeremiah proclaimed in our first daily text that, "You, O LORD, reign forever; Your throne endures from generation to generation”. What tremendous assurance this should bring to every believer reading this message today. Today His reign endures and always will. Jeremiah didn’t make this proclamation of praise in the setting of an edifying worship service where people were excitedly lifting their voices in praise and thanksgiving. Instead he spoke these words as he was acknowledging the utter desperation of his people and confessed that they had turned their backs against God. They were spoken during a time of social and spiritual chaos, as Judah’s captivity to Babylon was imminent. The period leading up to the fall of Judah is instructive. During this time the nation slipped deeper and deeper into apostasy with this descriptive phrase: “The LORD,
the God of their fathers, sent word to them through His
messengers again and again, because He had pity on His
people and on His dwelling place. But they mocked God’s
messengers, despised His words and scoffed at His
prophets until the wrath of the LORD was aroused against
His people and there was no remedy” (2 Chronicles
36:15,16).
This verse is so instructive for the age in which we live. 2 Chronicles
36 is a solemn record of the fall of Judah and the onset of
the Babylonian Captivity. It records the final three Kings
in Judah who were each described as doing "evil in the
eyes of the Lord". It is not a pretty picture and
without a doubt the people of the land endured grave
consequences as a result of having wicked rulers that likely
endorsed their own personal wickedness.
The passage ends with a phrase that greatly intrigues me, "and there was no remedy". There came a point when it’s as if God essentially said, "Enough is enough". We see this at other times in the Bible such as the great flood and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. We also witness God's wrath unfolding as temporal earthly kingdoms fell (Daniel 5). One day we will see it at the culmination of the age. Where does America stand or any other country for that matter as it is being weighed in the balance of God’s holy vindication? When will it be determined by God as it was for ancient Israel, that there is no remedy? Only God knows, but those of us who seek to faithfully follow the Lord and walk in His ways must all be numbered among those the Scripture calls a "remnant". The remnant are those whose hearts remain true to God no matter the cost in times of deepest desperation. At the time of this writing, the remnant of true followers would have included Jeremiah, Daniel, Meshach, Shadrach, Abednego and surely many others whose names are not recorded in the Bible. In our daily text God gave Jeremiah spiritual eyes to see the eternal perspective that “You, O LORD, reign forever”. Now 2,600 years later all around the world we sing, "Our God Reigns". We will be making this proclamation throughout eternity and we will be living it out throughout the eons of eternity. In a glimpse
behind the veil in John’s vision, recorded in the book of
Revelation, we read: “The kingdom of the world has become
the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will
reign forever and ever” (11:15). The King of kings
will turn our days of mourning into days of joy and dancing.
Let us keep this extremely important perspective before us
today! “Hallelujah! For the Lord
our God, the Almighty, reigns” (Revelation 19:6).
Be encouraged today, (Hebrews 3:13)
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father, You
were King of the heavens before there was time and
You will be King for all eternity. What joy and
assurance that truth brings to our spirits today in
light of the increasing evil of our day. Our
temporal burdens are lightened when we transport our
hearts to the New Jerusalem where there is no temple
in the City because You, Lord God Almighty are the
City’s temple. The City won’t need the sun or the
moon to shine on it, because Your glory is its
light, and the Lamb is the City’s lamp. Nothing
unclean and no one who does shameful things will be
admitted. Only those whose names are written in the
Lamb’s book of life will enter the City. Keep us
fervent in our witness and faithful in our service.
In the blessed name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
(See
Revelation 21 for further encouragement)
Today's
Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources
"Our
God Reigns" Video The Maranatha
Singers
"Hallelujah,
Our God Reigns" Video Passion - feat.
Brett Younker
"In
Christ Alone" Video Shane and
Shane
Yesterday
our visits took us through eastern Lancaster
County
Autumn
display at the Red Caboose Motel east of
Strasburg, PA
This
interesting motel uses old railroad cabooses and
includes the Casey Jones restaurant
with seating in actual railroad dining cars.
(Click on photo for larger image) Amish
husband and wife harvesting corn together. It's
great to see families, often including the
children, working together at the harvest.
(Click on photo for larger image) This
doesn't look quite proportional! Like Brooksyne
maybe the driver was on the look-out for neck
pumpkins or butternut squash.
This
church sign in New Holland, PA has a good
message.
We
parked next to this "church bus" at the Shady
Maple, not quite sure what to make of it!
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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
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