MEMORISE:
Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me. 2 Peter 1:14
READ: 2 Timothy 4:5-8
5 But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
6 For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.
7 I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.
MESSAGE
As we journey through this would as pilgrims, there is the tendency for us to get too comfortable with our temporal earthly dwelling and forget the permanent home in heaven that God is taking us to. For some children of God, after being blessed on all sides here on earth, they forget to prepare for the heavenly mansions that the Lord has gone to prepare them (John 14:1-3). This is the reason why the Holy Spirit says to us in Deuteronomy 6:10-12:
“And it shall be, when the LORD thy God shall have brought thee into the land which he sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give thee great and goodly cities, which thou buildedst not, And houses full of all good things, which thou filledst not, and wells digged, which thou diggedst not, vineyards and olive trees, which thou plantedst not; when thou shalt have eaten and be full;Then beware lest thou forget the LORD, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.”
One of the children in the Lord once shared his own experience in this regard. He said he was thinking about the horrible situation in the world today and how world governments are failing their people. He then began to think of the divine intervention that could make things work so that people can be comfortable all the days of their lives. He imagined how pleasant the world would be if roads were fixed, power supply was uninterrupted, and hospitals were adequately staffed with qualified medical personnel having the medications needed to combat diseases, especially in developed countries like his. He also imagined education be coming free at all levels and so on and so forth. While he fantasized, the Holy Spirit suddenly interrupted his thoughts and asked him that if all he had been fantasizing about happened to be true, how many people would appreciate the heavenly mansions that Jesus Christ had gone to prepare for the elect? I believe many children of God would be satisfied with what they had here on earth and would not bother to get prepared for heaven at all!
The question is, how prepared are you for heaven? In today’s memory verse and Bible text, we see two Christian who were prepared to go home: Peter declared his preparedness when he said he had fought a good fight and had finished his course- the essence of his time on earth. Yes, there is a fight to fight because there is a crown to win. As part of our preparedness, we must ensure that we are not entangled with the affairs of this world (1 John 2:15-17, 2 Timothy 2:4-7). Beloved, I charged you to always be prepared.
ACTION POINT:
Are you so overwhelmed by the cares of life that you have forgotten God? Do you have cues around you that remind you of heaven? Examine your level of preparedness for heaven today.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 2 Corinthians 11-13
Jeremiah 3:6-23
AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 17: HOLD THE FORT
- Ho, my comrades, see the signal, waving in the sky!
Reinforcements now appearing, victory is nigh.
o Refrain:
“Hold the fort, for I am coming,” Jesus signals still;
Wave the answer back to Heaven, “By Thy grace we will.” - See the mighty host advancing, Satan leading on;
Mighty ones around us falling, courage almost gone! - See the glorious banner waving! Hear the trumpet blow!
In our Leader’s Name we triumph over every foe. - Fierce and long the battle rages, but our help is near;
Onward comes our great Commander, cheer, my comrades, cheer!