The Heritage

 

    

Isa 58:13-14

 

14 Then you shall delight yourself in the Lord ;

And I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth,

And feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father.

The mouth of the Lord  has spoken."

NKJV

 

 

Today's verse is a Word of affirmation, promise and blessing. But it is a benediction spoken over people who were willing to consecrate themselves for a holy fast, to do justly, and to relieve the affliction of the needy.  People who humbled themselves to call out to God, to seek His face and to follow His will.  These were the ones given the promise.

 

So many times people, even Christians, go through the spiritual motions.  We crack open our Bibles and scan the words as our minds plan our day.  We bow to pray, but instead, think about what we need to do on the job.  We fast lunch, while sharing gossip with a co-worker.  What good do we receive from half-hearted spiritual disciplines? 

 

God understands that we are weak humans.  He knows that we struggle.  But if we truly want to receive from Him, we have to be willing to really incline our hearts to seek Him. If we have to get a little desperate, dig a little deeper...then He will turn His face to us and pour out a blessing.

 

This verse talks about the promise of blessing- riding on the high place.  It speaks about eating from Jacob's heritage.  And it is confirmed with the solemn oath, "...the mouth of the Lord has spoken."

 

When God makes a promise, it is as good as money in the bank.  He will, without a doubt, perform what He says He will do.  I need the Lord to help me ride on the high places.  I need to enjoy the heritage that He has prepared for me.  His blessings in my life are so abundant.  But what if I really went after Him consistently, with my whole heart?  I can only imagine all the glory that He would reveal in any person who truly sets their heart to follow hard after Him.

 

 

  Dear God, forgive me of the times that I am just going through the Christian motions.  Help me to live in obedience, authentically and passionately.  Allow me to walk in the blessings and inheritance You have provided for me.  In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

 

 

 

The Promise

 

"Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come.   This is how we know it is the last hour.  They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us.  For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.  But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.  I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth.  Who is the liar?  It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ.  Such a man is the antichrist- he denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.  See that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you.  If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is, what he promised us- even eternal life."  I John 2:18-25

 

I'll admit it. I like to make a production of things.  I like to build up suspense for surprises, occasions and holidays.  I work hard, and I want to celebrate hard as well.  I like to give teasers to the kids.  Like, "Ooh, we are going to do something fun today.  You are going to like it a lot!" And my promo's go on and on.  That is why, you can imagine my disappointment, when after planning a big outing for the boys, one of them said to me, "This is it?  This was the surprise?"  (This was said incredulously and with disappointment.)  I felt lower than a snake's belly.  What I thought to would be a wonderful afternoon for them, bombed.  One such surprise was when I took them to see "The Nutcracker" ballet performance as a field trip. My oldest let me know next time, he would prefer to stay home and do his schoolwork!  Then he reminded me that they were boys!

Sometimes we build things up, but in the end, they are not all that great.  The jaw-dropping truth of Jesus' promise to us, is just as fabulous as we can imagine and more! He has promised- and delivered on- eternal life.  We are promised eternity in heaven in the presence of Almighty God!  A place where we will never be sick, we will never be stressed out, we will never be grieved or disappointed.  Heaven is a glorious place and beyond our wildest imagination of its grandeur.

My grandmother suffered for years with Parkinson's disease which left her beautiful expressive face, mask-like.  But in heaven?  She is whole and grinning from ear to ear!  My step-dad lost his eye as a child, in heaven he is beholding all of the beauties of glory with perfect vision! My great-grandmother was  so stooped over she would need a Sears catalog to see over the dashboard of the car.  But in heaven, she is standing tall.

What Jesus has saved us from is more than we will ever comprehend, but what he has saved us to will take an eternity to fully take in!

Take some time today to reflect on these great and precious promises.  Eternity of joy, peace, love and worship.  A time to be rejoined to loved ones who went on before us.  We have much to look forward to!

Dear Lord, thank you for the promise of eternal life.  Your matchless gift of salvation is beyond what my mind can comprehend!  Thank you for loving me so much.   In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

Sherri