Revelation 2: 12 “To the angel of the church in Pergamum write:
“This is the message from the one who has the sharp
two-edged sword. 13 I
know where you live, there where Satan has his throne. You are true to me, and
you did not abandon your faith in me even during the time when Antipas, my
faithful witness, was killed there where Satan lives. 14 But there are
a few things I have against you: there are some among you who follow the
teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak how to lead the people of Israel into sin
by persuading them to eat food that had been offered to idols and to practice
sexual immorality. 15 In the same way you have people among you who
follow the teaching of the Nicolaitans. 16 Now turn from your sins! If you
don't, I will come to you soon and fight against those people with the sword
that comes out of my mouth.
17 “If you have ears, then, listen to what the Spirit says to
the churches!
“To those who win the victory I will give some of the
hidden manna. I will also give each of them a white stone on which is written a
new name that no one knows except the one who receives it.
============
Wanting to fit in,
I decided that humor would be my entrance into the in-crowd. I learned how to
insult people to make others laugh. But after a while, I was known as a clown
and was not taken seriously when I desired it.
- I created an identity that I thought was funny, but had an edge of meanness.
- I thought people would gravitate to the identity I created for myself.
- I did not consider the unintended consequences of my hurtful words.
John, the disciple
JESUS loved, wrote to believers in Pergamum that all believers can gain wisdom.
The warning from JESUS was about being wishy-washy and allowing any philosophy
to be spoken and followed. JESUS then warns to turn away from identifying with
those who speak against HIM otherwise HE would speak judgment on them.
My Observations:
- At some point I had to realize that I am a creation of GOD and I need HIM for everything.
- My identity should clearly point to GOD.
- JESUS will give me a new identity that only HIM and I know.
Identifying with
JESUS may cause the world to fight instead of joining in. I mean, as soon as I
say “JESUS is my LORD and Savior”, the enemy wants to fight against me.
Pressures to fit into the world that hates JESUS would grow more intense. BUT
GOD has a remedy.
JESUS wants me to
give up my identity so I can say “I belong to HIM.” Instead of making a name
for myself, HE wants me to point to HIS name which has all the power. I no
longer seek the accolades from the crowd.
Challenge
- What following does the writer speak about?
- Have you ever wanted to fit into a group that was possibly against CHRIST?
- Will you seek to identify with CHRIST so HE can use you to being many people back to HIM?
No comments:
Post a Comment