August 30, 2021

Sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear.  1 Peter 3:15

King Jesus has done everything possible to fit us for Heaven! He is “the Lion of the tribe of Judah” (Revelation 5:5) who brought defeat to another lion, “a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). With the help of the Holy Spirit, I am to always be in readiness to lovingly and logically offer my testimony of how His love has changed me! My prayer is for others to freely choose to love Him! The ability to reason is a gift from the Creator, who said, “Come now, and let us reason together . . . Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool. If you are willing and obedient . . .” (Isaiah 1:18-19a). As the righteous King, Jesus desires for His kingdom to steadily grow. He longs for each of His children to be saved! The figure of Jesus as a Lion tells us what He did, while the figure of Jesus as a Lamb tells us how He did it.

At the end of His earthly ministry, one of the most shocking exclamations ever heard came from the lips of those leaders who had been chosen as “light-bearers” in the world:

Now it was the Preparation Day of the Passover, and about the sixth hour. And [Pilate] said to the Jews, “Behold your King!” But they cried out, “Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!”  John 19:14-15

That exclamation of the religious leaders carries a prophetic significance for the last days. There is a great controversy in progress which is bringing the human race to a precipice. Soon, the world will come to a point of having to choose between Jesus or Rome. The time to grow in your relationship and intimate knowledge of Jesus is now. His Word and His Holy Spirit will fortify you against the dangerous mix of blatant and subtle misrepresentations of Him in the world.

The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.   2 Thessalonians 2:9-10

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  1 Thessalonians 5:23