Category: Weekly Word of Encouragement

“The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne” Rev. 3:21 (ESV). If we will persevere and be faithful to the end then we will actually have the privilege on sitting with Jesus on His throne. This means that we will reign with Jesus! This is an important biblical theme and John just promised it in Rev. 2:26-28 and we see it fulfilled in Rev. 22:5. Jesus reigns with love, power, wisdom and humility and we will do likewise. Maybe Jesus will give us a city to preside over or maybe He will invite us to create new cities using our own creativity. Maybe we will design new types of buildings or create new inventions to bless God’s people. Whatever we do as leaders we will do with Jesus. We will Continue Reading →

“To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.” Rev. 2:7b (ESV). Surely the Christian life is one of conquest: in Christ we conquer the destructive enemies of our life and help others to do the same. Sometimes conquest is hard but he makes us “more than conquerors” (Rom. 8:37) and if we persevere God will reward us with the great privilege of feasting from the tree God created to give true life. In Genesis 3:24 God put an angel at the Garden of Eden to guard against people eating from the tree of life. But in the next age God provides the tree of life again so that we can have the amazing life He originally intended for us. This is the certain hope that we set our hearts on. I Am A Child Of God Continue Reading →

“[Jesus] has made us a Kingdom of priests for God his Father” Rev. 1:6 (NLT) Way back in Exodus 19:6 God tells the Jews that they “shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (ESV). I Peter 2:9 says believers are “a royal priesthood.” One of the key principles of the Reformation was that all believers were priests, as these Scriptures state. As priests we are all directly serving God in Christ, we have no need of human intermediaries for a direct relationship with God. We are elevated to a high position of dignity, higher than any earthly office, higher than any President or Prime Minister. We are also God’s kingdom, his nation, we belong to him which is a greater honor than belonging to any other nation or group of people. So we are encouraged that we have the highest dignity regardless of our status on Continue Reading →

“But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.” II Pet. 3:13 (ESV) We do not have to be distressed about this present age nor doubt that God will judge the good and the bad. Those who have received the Son will have life in the next age, the New Creation. We will dwell on a new earth underneath new heavens and society will be as God originally meant it to be. So our hearts now dwell in the place of constant anticipation of the New Creation. This destiny gives us peace and motivates us to remain united with God now and to do His work on this earth. Whether our efforts produce much visible fruit now or not, what matters is that we abide in His will. For this God will richly reward us in the New Creation. I Continue Reading →

“For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” II Pet. 1:11 (ESV) II Peter 1 lists virtues we should seek such as faith, self-control, endurance, godliness and brotherly kindness. Then God promises that if we practice these qualities that we will have a “rich” entrance into the kingdom of Jesus! In other words, if we will diligently become like Christ then we will be tremendously blessed in the next age. Just imagine actually entering into the kingdom and experiencing a big celebration for you personally because you dedicated your life to being like Jesus in your relationships and actions on earth. It might seem like God is going overboard to promise us a rich entrance but that is how He is. Thus, it is more than worth it to dedicate ourselves to God in Continue Reading →