1 Cor 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
As He was impressing upon me what is in store for us, I understood it more than in just words, I kind of felt it/understood it if you know what I mean. It was as if He allowed me to peek behind the door of what is in store for us without actually peeking behind the door.
We know that we are to be kings and priests in our Lord's service but I do not think we are thinking big enough.
Rev 1.6 4John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne; 5And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, 6And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. 7Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.
There is a reason satan and his servants hate us so much. What the Lord has in store for us goes beyond what words can describe. The Lord has many times impressed this thought upon my mind: if satan has been granted rulership and authority over this entire world, how much more will those who love our Father be granted? Think about it. Whatever our hated enemy has been granted, how much more will our Lord grant to those who love Him.
In more simple terms, we should think in terms of worlds, not a mansion or a city. We serve an infinite God. Is anything too difficult for Him? How many of us will actually be kings over entire world(s) (plural)?
Ok brother D, so what? So when we understand how high the stakes are and what we are fighting for here it changes the perspective on everything (for me at least). What if the Lord told you that you are being tested and evaluated here for your fitness to rule an entire world like this one? Let me be clear first, primary is our love and faithfulness toward our Creator. An outward extension of that is our fitness to do other things (like be a king or priest). He is always primary. That said we are talking about rewards and what we are fighting for here on this earth.
Put things in perspective. If after all the striving and all the battles and all the scars and hurt and striving the Lord was to tell you "well done good and faithful servant, here is the world you will rule over for me," what would your reaction be? All the things the people of this world strive and lust after are absolute peanuts compared with what is on the table prepared for us. We just have to cross the finish line. We have to make it through that narrow road and small gate that leads to life (Matt 7:13-14).
When you put what is coming into perspective with what we are dealing with now here on this earth, everything makes sense. What is 70 or 80 years worth of battle on this earth when it is compared to an eternity in paradise? This place is a training ground. This short life we live is 'basic training' if I can put it in military terms for all eternity. The Lord sees things differently than we do:
| "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. |
He sees and knows from an eternal perspective. He is not as shortsighted as we are. Is anything written here a real 'revelation.' No, He has already told us the same things this nobody is writing to you right now, but do we believe Him. I will tell you that what He impressed upon my spirit this morning made His Word in the area of our rewards come alive. I really really "got it" and I could barely contain myself at the thought of it.
Don't believe a word I have written but do look for yourself at what the Lord has told us He is going to do. It is all right there in His Word and He meant every letter of it. There is a reason and a reward at the end of this great battle being fought all around us and in us. The stakes are much higher than the peanuts the people of this world fight over. The stakes are eternal life, glory forever and the ruling and reigning with Christ over worlds....Can you find in the Bible where our Lord said we would rule over world(s)? No? So forget what brother D thinks the Lord said and read what the Lord actually did say. He did say we would be kings and priests and He said this:
1 Cor 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
It has not even entered the heart of man how great the things are that our Lord has prepared for us. Let your imagination run wild with that for a few minutes and you will start to barely scratch the surface of what the Lord impressed upon this servant this morning. These thoughts I share with you as a means of encouragement to keep the faith, stay in the fight and never give up. Truly we serve a great GREAT God.
grace and peace
