THE HOLY BIBLE (Good News Translation – Revelation 3:3-5): ³
Remember, then, what you were taught and what you heard; obey it and turn from your sins. If you do not wake up, I will come upon you like a thief, and you will not even know the time when I will come. ⁴But a few of you there in Sardis have kept your clothes clean. You will walk with me, clothed in white, because you are worthy to do so. ⁵ Those who win the victory will be clothed like this in white, and I will not remove their names from the book of the living. In the presence of my Father and of his angels I will declare openly that they belong to me.

THOUGHTS: Before I can invite anyone to my home, I must get clearance from my wife, because she wants to make sure that our home is in order and presentable to our guests, without creating embarrassment to her! If auditors are preparing to come into my workplace, we spend time getting everything in order, so that we might obtain best results from their audit, and look good in their sight. In these verses today, Jesus is declaring that some in His church will be presented proudly to His Father because He is proud of how well they are doing in staying clear of, or clean from, sin. Friends, I want to reiterate that these verses are referring to the ‘CHURCH’ at Sardis, not the marketplace. Please be reminded that going to church will not save you from the pits of Hell, even though church attendance is the best thing you can do. Hanging out with the right friends (even Godly friends) might be very pleasing to your parents, but their goodness, or even their Christianity, will not rub off on you and clear the way for you to be accepted in Heaven, even though they may influence you towards accepting Jesus as your Savior. Now for those who have accepted Jesus as Lord, I must ask, as a result of this passage, are you ready, or do you feel like you will be a good candidate for Jesus to include in His parade and be bubbling with pride to present you to His Father? Are you ashamed of anything that you would rather get straight before feeling comfortable for Jesus to do this? Jesus said He will come unannounced – like a thief in the night. This means that you will not have time to further prepare, or to clean up your act, or better align yourself with Him. This means that we must remain in a state of readiness – our lives always clean and presentable to Him. Here on earth we burst with pride when we are lifted up by family, when recognized by our employer, or bragged on by friends. Can you even imagine the unbelievable pride that will fill our hearts when Jesus, the resurrected Savior of the world, presents us to His Father – God, and He tells Him how proud He is of you and how well you kept the faith, obeyed His commands and represented Him so well while living here on earth, even among the temptations of sin and evil? I tell you what, I cannot think of prouder moment that could ever be my fortune. How is it with you friend? Got a few things that you need to work on today? Remember, Jesus could come today!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, You provided the sacrifice and the means by which we could be saved. You promised to be our protector and strength so that we might live life pleasing to You, yes even among the evil of this world and its leader, Satan. Unfortunately we are a people who love to procrastinate, so we often feel like there will be time for us to seek forgiveness and depend on You – later. This is a deceit of Satan, because You have declared that no man knows the day or the hour of Your return, so Lord Jesus, I pray that You will allow Your Word to penetrate the hearts of Christians who are playing with sin, and I pray that You will penetrate the hearts of those who feel like they can wait for the trumpet call before surrendering their lives to You. Please help us to be a people ready for Your return, even if it happens today. May our lives always be pleasing in Your sight and may we be presentable before You and by You oh Lord. I ask this in the precious name of Jesus, AMEN!

 

FOOTNOTE: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or read through Biblical truths on How To Know Jesus, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, Sebring, FL! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!