Revelation 5:1 And I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals.
2 Then I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to loose its seals?”
3 And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll, or to look at it.
4 So I wept much, because no one was found worthy to open and read the scroll, or to look at it.
5 But one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals.”
6 And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent out into all the earth.
7 Then He came and took the scroll out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne.
8 Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty–four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
9 And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation,
10 And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth.”
11 Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands,
12 saying with a loud voice: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain To receive power and riches and wisdom, And strength and honor and glory and blessing!”
13 And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: “Blessing and honor and glory and power Be to Him who sits on the throne, And to the Lamb, forever and ever!”
14 Then the four living creatures said, “Amen!” And the twenty–four elders fell down and worshiped Him who lives forever and ever.
How interesting it is to see that the above passage of Scripture describes our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ as “the Lion of the tribe of Judah” in verse five, and as a Lamb right below, in verse six. For what we know of these creatures in nature, they could not be any more opposite from each other.
Why is our Lord Jesus Christ called the Lion of the tribe of Judah? We know that our Lord Jesus was from the tribe of Judah, as His genealogy shows, see Matthew 1:1–17. In this particular genealogy, our Lord Jesus’ lineage is traced starting from Abraham, even though the lineage goes all the way back to Seth, third son of Adam and Eve, as mentioned in the book of Genesis. we see in this genealogy that the Lord Jesus is a descendant of king David, hence the Lord’s titles, “Son of David,” and, in verse five of the above passage, “root of David.”
In the Old Testament, we have a shadow image of Jesus as the Lion of Judah, when Jacob summoned his twelve sons in order to bless them shortly before his death in the land of Egypt. Notice Jacob’s blessing for his son Judah:
Genesis 49:8 “Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise; Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; Your father’s children shall bow down before you.
9 Judah is a lion’s whelp; From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; And as a lion, who shall rouse him?
10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people.
Notice how this ancient blessing talks about praise, victory, kingship and obedience to Judah, and how the image of the lion is used to represent him. Praise, victory, kingship and obedience are all given to our Lord Jesus Christ.
In the Scriptures, the lion represents different things. Here are some examples:
The lion as symbol of the unjust ruler and wicked men:
Proverbs 28:15 Like a roaring lion and a charging bear Is a wicked ruler over poor people.
Psalms 22:21 Save Me from the lion’s mouth And from the horns of the wild oxen! You have answered Me.
The lion representing Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon:
Jeremiah 4:7 The lion has come up from his thicket, And the destroyer of nations is on his way. He has gone forth from his place To make your land desolate. Your cities will be laid waste, Without inhabitant.
The lion as a representation of Satan:
1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
The lion also represents a mighty king, a champion or defender of his people, as in the following passages:
The lion as symbol of God, the champion of His people:
Isaiah 31:4 For thus the LORD has spoken to me: “As a lion roars, And a young lion over his prey (When a multitude of shepherds is summoned against him, He will not be afraid of their voice Nor be disturbed by their noise), So the LORD of hosts will come down To fight for Mount Zion and for its hill.
The lion as a symbol of strength, power and authority:
Amos 3:8 A lion has roared! Who will not fear? The Lord GOD has spoken! Who can but prophesy?
As the Lion of the tribe of Judah, our Lord Jesus Christ, in His righteous indignation, will bring judgement to the world at the appointed time:
Proverbs 20:2 The wrath of a king is like the roaring of a lion; Whoever provokes him to anger sins against his own life.
The following passages show the image of the lion as an instrument of judgement:
Jeremiah 5:6 Therefore a lion from the forest shall slay them, A wolf of the deserts shall destroy them; A leopard will watch over their cities. Everyone who goes out from there shall be torn in pieces, Because their transgressions are many; Their backslidings have increased.
Hosea 13:7 “So I will be to them like a lion; Like a leopard by the road I will lurk;
Hosea 13:8 I will meet them like a bear deprived of her cubs; I will tear open their rib cage, And there I will devour them like a lion. The wild beast shall tear them.
The Lion of the tribe of Judah, our Lord Jesus Christ, is our champion, the one who triumphed over sin and death. The Lion of the tribe of Judah comes to our defense when we are being attacked by the evil one. The Lion of the tribe of Judah sustains us and gives us His strength so that we may continue in faith on our journey towards our eternal and celestial home. In addition, the Lion of the tribe of Judah will judge in His holy sovereignty and will destroy His enemies in His holy justice.
Jesus as the Lamb of God is a truly extraordinary image. When we think about a lamb, we think about a completely harmless and docile animal, incapable of defending itself.
During His life here on Earth, our Lord Jesus was indeed very meek and docile, enduring the contempt and insults of men, and the ultimate humiliation of the cross in order to suffer the divine punishment for our sins and transgressions. Perhaps one of the best passages of Scripture that describes and explains our Lord’s death on the cross is found in Isaiah 53. The following is the familiar verse that refers to our Savior as a lamb:
Isaiah 53:7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth.
Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was the chosen, perfect sacrifice that God our Father foreordained to be the atonement for the sin of His chosen people. This truth was reflected in the sacrificial laws given by God to the people of Israel, starting with the Passover lamb:
Exodus 12:5 `Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats.
The lamb in the sacrificial laws, which, along with the Passover lamb, was meant to point forward to the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ:
Leviticus 1:3 `If his offering is a burnt sacrifice of the herd, let him offer a male without blemish; he shall offer it of his own free will at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the LORD.
Leviticus 1:10 `If his offering is of the flocks––of the sheep or of the goats––as a burnt sacrifice, he shall bring a male without blemish.
We can be confident in the fact that, as a Jew and a Nazarite, John the baptist was very familiar with the sacrificial laws and understood their purpose. For this reason, he immediately and correctly identified our Lord Jesus as soon as he saw Him:
John 1:29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
John 1:36 And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, “Behold the Lamb of God!”
The apostle Peter draws a clear parallel between the lamb used in the ancient sacrificial laws and our Lord Jesus Christ:
1Peter 1:18 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers,
19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.
20 He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you
The last book of the Bible makes an explicit statement about the blood of the Lamb of God:
Revelation 7:13 Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?”
14 And I said to him, “Sir, you know.” So he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
So far, we have seen how the perfect Lamb of God became the willing sacrifice for the cleansing of our sins, and thus our justification before the Father. But now that the Lamb of God has completed His work of redemption by His death and victorious resurrection, He is no longer the meek and docile person He was when He walked the Earth. Now, the images of Lion and Lamb merge into one. To put it in a better way, the Lamb acquires the attributes of the Lion. See it in the book of Revelation:
Revelation 6:12 I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood.
13 And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind.
14 Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place.
15 And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains,
16 and said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!
17 “For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”
Verses sixteen and seventeen of the passage above talk about the wrath of the Lamb. I ask you now, have you ever seen a wrathful lamb? The answer to this is definitely no, it is more appropriate to think of a wrathful lion, and this is who the Lord Jesus is.
The Lord Jesus Himself will be a witness to the destruction of the reprobate:
Revelation 14:9 Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand,
10 “he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.
The Lamb of God, identified in the verse below as the Lord Jesus Christ, wages war against His enemies and prevails over them. Again, have you ever thought about a lamb waging war? Hardly:
Revelation 17:14 “These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful.”
If you go back to the verses about the lion as a representation of our Lord Jesus, you will be able to harmonize what the Bible says about Jesus the Lion and Jesus the Lamb.
As both Lion and Lamb, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ holds the scepter of rule and kingship. He is invincible and has vanquished all His enemies. He is the one who shall judge the whole Earth in His righteous indignation, and His enemies will experience His wrath. He is the one who receives, and shall receive for all eternity, all worship and praise. Lion of Judah, Lamb of God, may all Your holy angels and all Your saints sing to You and praise You forever and ever, Amen.
All blessings, adoration and praise be to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who is the subject of this post.
Last week, the news reported an item that, to this day, has me infuriated. The Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, N.Y., in its efforts to entice the young residents of this city county to fill its churches, launched a marketing campaign, (please notice the word, “marketing,”) portraying the Lord Jesus as, “The original hipster.” The ads that the Catholic Diocese plastered all around the county of Brooklyn show an image of a red pair of sneakers peeking out from under the robes of, presumably, the Lord Jesus Christ.
I called your attention to the phrase, “marketing campaign,” to show you how the King of kings and Lord of lords is being treated as the latest car model or McDonald’s meal combo.
But it gets even better. The ads portray Jesus as a hipster. A hipster is equivalent to a gangster, punk or thug. Nice of a Christian religious denomination to do that, eh? But hang on to your seats, there is more. The ads show a caption that reads as follows:
“The Son of God: He is like you. He smokes Parliaments. He reads Pitchfork. He rides a fixi.”
At least the ads call the Lord Jesus the Son of God, so I will give the Catholic Diocese that. From there it goes right down the toilet. Jesus is NOT like us. He is sinless, holy, pure, omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent. Okay, I think my little list pretty much covers this part of the argument.
The Catholic Diocese says that the Lamb of God is a smoker and reads trivial music magazines. Really? Wow, I can see His Majesty right now, sitting on His throne of glory, with a cigarette clenched between His teeth and with the latest issue of Pitchfork magazine in His hands, as opposed to the scroll of the seven seals. Thanks to this marketing campaign, now I know what produces the smoke in the heavenly temple.
By the way, please notice the name of the magazine the Diocese chose for its offensive ads: Pitchfork. As unbiblical, popular culture has it, the pitchfork is the tool that the devil uses to goad his damned souls into the torments of hell. Wether the Catholic Diocese deliverately used the name of this particular magazine or not, I will not say, lest I fall into falsely accusing them. But I will be totally honest here, I wonder.
The last line of this disgusting and insulting ad campaign reads, “He rides a fixi.” Please do not ask me what in the world is a fixi. I do not know, and I do not care.
So you can see what the Brooklyn Diocese has done here. It has taken the holy, sacred, righteous, sinless, Almighty person of the Lord Jesus Christ, violently wrenched Him down from His rightful place in the heavenly abode and, just as violently, has dragged Him through the mud, filth and dung of this world and this particular gangster culture. Instead of calling our Lord by His awesome and beautiful names and presenting Him as the most high God that He is, the Catholic Diocese calls Him a gangster and a thug and presents Him accordingly.
I am not a Catholic, and I strongly oppose both the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox denominations on biblical grounds. However, the last people I ever thought would do a thing like this were the Catholics. Many evangelicals have prostituted themselves to this world for the sake of increasing the numbers in their churches, making more money and engaging in social agendas, instead of preaching the true gospel of the sinful condition of man and the only way to eternal salvation, which is the Lord Jesus Christ. Catholics were the last people I thought would stoop this low
I must say here that any church that does things like launching a marketing campaign like the one I wrote about here, or bringing rock bands to its places of worship, or filling its houses of worship with the things of the world, shows two things: One, such a church does not pursue the reading and study of the Scriptures, and two, in such a church, the Scriptures are NOT believed by its leadership, let alone the congregation.
May our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the Great I AM, lead His saints through this maze of apostasy and untruth, for He is the Chief Shepherd. May our Lord and Savior Jesus, the Great I AM, receive the prayers of His saints as our Father sits on the throne of heaven, before the celestial altar, for He is our Great High Priest and makes intercession for us. For He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last, Amen.
Zoraida
Hello, my awesome LORD,
It has been quite a long time since I last wrote to You. I know I created two blogs and dedicated them to You because I wanted to serve You by writing about You with the hopes that You would use these blogs as tools to draw Your elect to Yourself. I confess that I feel guilty about abandoning my blogs. I feel that I have let You down. But then, You have led me into paths that are, as always, unexpected, and these days I find myself serving You in the Sold Out Ministry forum.
You know that at times I feel lonely for Christian company, and I have talked to You about this in my prayers. I have asked You to lead me to a faithful church congregation, but then my physical limitations tell me that going out and travelling every week may not be possible. Well, my loving Almighty LORD, I guess You decided to give me the next best thing. You gave me a group of brothers and sisters in Christ over the Internet, so I do not have to worry about travelling anywhere. I know, I know, the forum is no substitute for church, but I have to say that, for me, it is the next best thing.
Now I find myself among these brethren, loving them, caring about their spiritual health and worrying about them. I love them because we all come together at the foot of the cross, and they are all so precious to You, for Your Son Jesus purchased them with His blood. I care about them because, as You Yourself told us in Your Scriptures, there is so much apostasy and deception out there in the religious world, and I do not want my forum brethren to fall into any traps of false doctrines or unbiblical beliefs. I worry about them because I want to see them grow and mature, I want to see them all become stronger and stronger in the faith, as we all go on our collective pilgrimage through this Earth towards that sweetest of destinations, our celestial dwelling.
My loving Father, these brothers and sisters may not know, but You certainly know, what they are doing for me as I try to serve them in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. I know You put me in this little group of brothers and sisters so that I may learn to be firm about the things of Scripture without judging, criticizing or looking down on others. You put me in this little group so that I may learn to share Your things in a loving, gentle way. Oh, my God and my LORD, please help me do this. Please help me to be gentle and humble, not critical or, heaven forbid, arrogant. I know You put me in this little group so that I may learn patience. Precious LORD of hosts, help me do this.
I wanted a congregation, I wanted to feel useful to You, and You heard and answered my prayers in a most creative way. I thank You for technology and the Internet, because these allow me to serve, and through these resources many people in the world, especially people like me, to whom it is difficult to leave the house, can access Your sacred Word and the true gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Funny, LORD, You know that, when I got ready to write this blog entry, I was going to write about how I was feeling sad today and how I was pleading for You to lift my spirit. You simply took me on a different direction as soon as I started to write. I do not feel sad anymore, no need to write about that. Thank You, thank You, thank You, blessed and most beautiful Holy Spirit, for Your sure remedy against my sadness wich never, ever fails.
Well, my sweet LORD, I guess this super long post is kind of making up for the long absence. Bless and keep my brethren from the Sold Out ministry forum and others who are also Your children. Please forgive me if, at any point, I have offended anyone, and help me avoid doing so. Give to each and every saint on Earth what is perfect for him or her, according to Your will and purpose. Thank You, oh LORD, for Jesus, our Great High Priest, King of kings and Lord of lords.
Your daughter forever,
Zoraida
Dear LORD,
What follows is what You started to say to me today as I read the Scriptures. You are so miraculous and so perfect, You always manage it so that the perfect Word from the Bible comes to me, according to my life circunstances at the time. My gifts of thanksgiving will never be adequate to express how I feel about the way You take care of my entire life.
NKJV
Psalm 121
1 A Song of Ascents. I will lift up my eyes to the hills––From whence comes my help?
2 My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth.
3 He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber.
4 Behold, He who keeps Israel Shall neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The LORD is your keeper; The LORD is your shade at your right hand.
6 The sun shall not strike you by day, Nor the moon by night.
7 The LORD shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul.
8 The LORD shall preserve your going out and your coming in From this time forth, and even forevermore.
Thank You, oh LORD, because of who You are and what You are.
Your child,
Zoraida
Dear God,
I think You are turning me more and more into the person You want me to be.
Thank You for helping me get out of bed every morning. I do not think I could do it without You.
Thank You for the fact that the street I live on is lined with trees, which are the homes of so many wonderful song birds and doves. I hear the song birds and the lovely doves in the morning and in the evening. Amazing that I have these representatives of Your creation, bringers of joy, so close to me, right in the middle of this crowded, noisy and polluted wild city.
I live between two large rivers, East and Hudson, and I hear the seagulls morning and evening, sometimes even late at night, as they fly across from river to river. They fly right by my apartment. Oh, God, what a beautiful thing it is for me to hear them fly by, especially late at night. I think they are singing to You, and they want me to hear, as a reminder of Your wonderful works.
I have a friend who is in a lot of health trouble, and I am not sure that he will come out of it too well. Even so, I sit in the knowledge that every detail of the created universe, every little thing that happens in our lives, is under Your will and purpose, no matter how terrible the event might be. I pray for my friend, I ask You to rescue him from sin and death, and I also ask You to heal him completely. I speak to my friend about my Lord Jesus, and he listens to me with polite respect, but I know very well that only You can open his heart and his spiritual eyes to You and to the truth. Even though I pray You to give him the best outcome, I am so assured in the fact that, whatever happens, it is all for Your glory and Your purpose, and this is a tremendous thing to be assured of. To be sitting in this assurance, to have You take me in Your arms and be covered by Your wings has definitely put me in a different place. LORD, I want to go home, oh, how I want to go home, and, as Your Word says, I wait in eager expectation. Thank You so much.
Bless this day and fill it with Your presence and Your love.
Your child,
Zoraida
Good afternoon, my dear LORD,
Here I am, in another day that You have made, according to Your will and purpose. I have to say that it is quite wonderful to have the assurance of the fact that every single detail of existence, no matter how minute, is under Your control. How wonderful it is to know without a shadow of a doubt that there is a definite will and purpose in absolutely everything that happens on this Earth, and everywhere else in the entire universe, even though we may not understand what Your will and purpose may be at times. Satan’s doctrine is the opposite one, that events in this world happen at random, and that there is no purpose for anything, including life itself. Sadly, this is the doctrine of the world, of atheistic science, of those who reject You and Your sovereignty.
I digress as I write to You this afternoon, I guess my meditation travels from my spirit down to my fingertips, onto the keyboard. I came here this afternoon to ask You to forgive me for not coming here more often to write about You and share the teachings of the Scriptures. As You know, my struggle with my health is a tough one, a war waged day after day. Nobody sees this because I seldom leave the house, and when I do, I keep the struggles and difficulties invisible to all. I guess I can say that the ones who witness every minute of my life are Your holy angels and our opponents, Satan and his demons. Well, at least they get to see that I call upon You every day, I cry out to You first thing in the morning, I acknowledge You, I bow to You and worship You, no matter how tough things might get. To humankind, I present and share the Lord Jesus whenever the opportunity arises.
To my readers I say, read the Word. Read the Scriptures every single day, study them very carefully and meditate upon them, for this is the food of the spirit. Pray every single day, pour your heart out to the LORD, as the psalmist says, for this is our lifeline to You, oh merciful God. Thank you so much for everything You are, oh God of my salvation, for everything You give me every day, even though I do not deserve any of it.
Your worshipping child,
Zoraida
My dear LORD,
How true it is, that the perfect prescription for stress and anxiety is prayer and the reading of Your Word. These things gave me perfect results yesterday, and are doing the same today. The problem is past, and now I can look forward to the restoration of my calm routine and quiet waters in my soul. Thank You, Jesus, for calming the waters.
And now, allow me to present this small offering of worship as I take refuge in Your Word and are blessed by You:
Psalm 116:5 Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; Yes, our God is merciful.
How wonderful it is, oh LORD, that Your Word is eternal, and we have it available to feed upon.
Your hopeful child,
Zoraida
Hello my dear LORD,
You know how I am feeling today. Suffice here to say that, no matter what my circumstances might be, You are the glorified One, You are the magnified One, You are the blessed One. I refuse to fall into bitternaess or recrimination.
I want to recommend to my readers today to read the book of Acts. Well, I really recommend to my readers to read the whole Bible, but today I want to underscore the book of the Acts of the apostles, so that we may all get encouragement from reading about the lives of the followers of the Lord Jesus, especially the apostle Paul. The book of Acts gives a lot of details about the life of Paul. We can read in this book how many trials and tribulations did Paul go through. Paul is my human hero, Jesus being, of course, my Divine Hero of all time.
In this world, we humans love our celebrities. We admire and follow people who are famous, powerful or wealthy. But these celebrities belong to the world and live lives of sin. They behave in outrageous ways. They use drugs. They rob the people they are supposed to serve in political office, they parade themselves almost naked in public. I believe, oh God, this is why You wrote books like Acts for us, so that we followers of Christ may turn away from the things of the world and emulate those of Your servants who preceeded us. In Your Scriptures we have the instructions on how to conduct ourselves as Christians, living in the world but not being of it, so that we may shine in the midst of the dirt of sin.
This is the day the LORD has made. Thank You, God, for giving me this day.
Your child who needs You,
Zoraida
My dear LORD,
Last evening I read a long entry in wikipedia about something called the emerging church movement, yet another invention of man that seeks to mold You to what we want, the way we want it. My Almighty LORD, I am tired of so many false doctrines and religions in our world that teach error and mislead millions. Allow me here to enumerate the false teachings that I can remember off the top of my head at this time, because I have to get this off my chest:
1. Not everybody will be saved and go to heaven. The Scriptures clearly teach that many will be destroyed in hell for all eternity.
2. People do not accept Jesus Christ as personal Lord and Savior. The Scriptures state that it is You, oh God, who has chosen those You want for Yourself from before the time of creation. As it is written, “We love God because He loved us first.” You, God, choose us, so You make us feel inclined to want to have You in our lives, not the other way around.
3. Good works, or ceremonies like baptism, do not save anybody. The only thing in this universe that can save is Your grace, oh God, which is the sacrifice, death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ in order to save those You chose from the foundation of the world. Once we are cleansed by the blood of Christ, once we are indwell by the Holy Spirit, then we do the good works, not the other way around.
4. Being a Christian, in the true sense of the word, simply means that we follow Christ, but we humans have turned the following of Christ into all kinds of religions that are wrong. We think that we will be saved if we do certain things or recite certain prayers by rote. We pray to virgins, people that some church says are saints, even angels, in direct and gross violation of Your very clear commandment: “Thou shall not have any other gods before me.”
Very few people want to say that each and every human being is evil and wicked by nature of sin, by the fact that all of us, without exception, are born in sin, meaning that we are all in rebellion against You, oh God. We are Your enemies. If this were not the case, then we would not need the saving grace of Jesus, right? Very few want to admit that we once lived, or are living at present, in spiritual filth.
We humans do not want to accept the fact that You, oh LORD, are the Owner of everything in the universe, so You may do with Your creation as You please, as You Yourself said in the Bible. And what You said You are going to do with Your creation is to save some, condemn the rest to hell because of their sins, destroy the entire creation and keep Your chosen ones in Your kingdom for all eternity. Because most people can not stomach this, humanity has come up with all these mushy, watered down gospels and misinterpretations of your Holy Word. People want to believe that all religions are good, that all Christian denominations are good and that Christians can relate to You in their own terms. People want to believe that You love everybody and that everybody will go to heaven, whether they accept Your sovereignty and commandments or not. People want to believe that it is okay to believe in virgins and saints designated by men, and that being a nice person will get them into heaven. It is difficult for me to live in a world where all of these forms of disobedience against You, dear LORD, are practiced. On the other hand, this is exactly what I should expect, because You explain it so clearly in Your glorious Word. I am assured in the fact that I am following Jesus, not a religion or a church, and I hope and pray that others come out of their wrong religions and beliefs by Your grace. You will choose whomever You choose, King of kings, and that is that.
Well, my LORD and Savior, enough said. I thank You for this opportunity to put this out here in the open, I feel better now. May these words, as well as the rest of my life, be of service to You, in whatever way You please.
Your servant,
Zoraida
My dear LORD,
Thank You for Your Word, and for everything revealed in it. Today I wish to exhort the readers of this blog to read Acts chapters 6 and 7, where we read about Steven, a faithful servant of Christ full of the Holy Spirit, who so eloquently did an exposition of the teachings of the Old Testament before the Jewish Council. We read that Steven gave his life for the Lord Jesus. LORD God, I have asked myself the question: “Would I give my life for You, the way Steven, and all the faithful servants before him, did? Do I have that much courage?” I have the feeling that there are many believers out there who ask the same question.
Again, to the readers, read Acts chapters 6 and 7.
May I feel Your presence and Your blessings in a strong, wonderful way, LORD of my salvation.
Your child,
Zoraida
Dear LORD,
Below is the chapter of the Bible I read today. I want to share this portion of Scripture and to say here that, in this one chapter, there are so many truths expressed, truths about salvation, truths about how to behave here on this Earth, truths about Your absolute sovereignty. For the moment, I want to write about the great drama that unfolded at the supper described below. I want the readers to first read the Scripture, so that I may write about it afterward:
The Gospel of John Chapter 13 NKJV
1 Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour had come that He should depart from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.
2 And supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray Him,
3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God,
4 rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself.
5 After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded.
6 Then He came to Simon Peter. And Peter said to Him, “Lord, are You washing my feet?”
7 Jesus answered and said to him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this.”
8 Peter said to Him, “You shall never wash my feet!” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”
9 Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!”
10 Jesus said to him, “He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean, but not all of you.”
11 For He knew who would betray Him; therefore He said, “You are not all clean.”
12 So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you?
13 “You call me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am.
14 “If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.
15 “For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.
16 “Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him.
17 “If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.
18 “I do not speak concerning all of you. I know whom I have chosen; but that the Scripture may be fulfilled, `He who eats bread with Me has lifted up his heel against Me.’
19 “Now I tell you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe that I am He.
20 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who receives whomever I send receives Me; and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.”
21 When Jesus had said these things, He was troubled in spirit, and testified and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me.”
22 Then the disciples looked at one another, perplexed about whom He spoke.
23 Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved.
24 Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask who it was of whom He spoke.
25 Then, leaning back on Jesus’ breast, he said to Him, “Lord, who is it?”
26 Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it.” And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon.
27 Now after the piece of bread, Satan entered him. Then Jesus said to him, “What you do, do quickly.”
28 But no one at the table knew for what reason He said this to him.
29 For some thought, because Judas had the money box, that Jesus had said to him, “Buy those things we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor.
30 Having received the piece of bread, he then went out immediately. And it was night.
31 So, when he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in Him.
32 “If God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in Himself, and glorify Him immediately.
33 “Little children, I shall be with you a little while longer. You will seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, `Where I am going, you cannot come,’ so now I say to you.
34 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
35 “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
36 Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, where are You going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going you cannot follow Me now, but you shall follow Me afterward.”
37 Peter said to Him, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake.”
38 Jesus answered him, “Will you lay down your life for My sake? Most assuredly, I say to you, the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times.
The drama I mentioned at the beginning of this post is the interaction between the Lord Jesus and Satan. In verse 2 of this chapter, You, oh God, write that the devil had already put it in Judas Iscariot’s heart to betray Jesus. As we read on, we see the Lord Jesus washing the feet of the disciples, the exchange between Him and Simon Peter, we read the precious words spoken by the Lord as He teaches. Interspersed with His teachings, in verses 10 and 18, the Lord Jesus makes subtle referencess to the one who will betray Him, the one who is unclean. Finally, in verse 21, He clearly states that He will be betrayed. The disciples enquire who it is, and in verse 26 the Lord Jesus explains how is He going to identify the betrayer. Now, we read in verse 27 that, right after the Lord gave the bread to Judas Iscariot, Satan entered into him, and the Lord Jesus gave him a commandment.
My sovereign God, this is howI am looking at this. The devil is mentioned at the start of this chapter. We do not know when did the devil put the idea of betrayal in Judas’ heart, but the fact that he is mentioned early in this chapter makes me think that he was actually in the room, observing the supper, watching as the Lorde Jesus washed the feet of His disciples and spoke to them. I have reason to believe that Satan was in the room given how quickly he entered into Judas Iscariot, taking, as it were, his cue from the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus, of course, knew very well that Satan was there, the Lord Jesus could see him as easily as sighted people can see one another. The Lord Jesus saw clearly when Satan entered, in other words, possessed, Judas. So here we have the Lord Jesus, the Christ, the Almighty, God of hosts, the Alpha and the Omega, sitting at the same table with the great adversary of God and man, Satan. The hour of Jesus’ suffering and death on the cross was at hand. The Lord Jesus was troubled in the spirit. Even so, we know that Satan was sitting there at the table with Him, not because the Lord Jesus was weak or frightened, but because he had been summoned by Almighty God to do so. We know well that Satan can do nothing without the permission of the LORD God. Satan, after all, is an angel, a creation, and, as such, subject to the will of the Father. We also know that the whole plan of salvation was designed and implemented, as the Scriptures put it, “from the foundation of the world.” So even the devil was commanded to play a part in the divine plan that brings salvation to those that the LORD Almighty chooses to save. At that supper table, we see Satan being subject to the sovereign will and lordship of our Christ. Praise be to You, oh God Almighty, may we Your children praise You continually, as You command out of Your good pleasure.
The child who wants You every day,
Zoraida
Dear LORD,
Here is the Lord Jesus, Commander of commanders, General of all armies of the heavenly host. He is perfect in strength and health, there is no weakness or failure in Him. He rides on a sturdy steed, at the head of the host, clad in impregnable armor. He leads His host and they faithfully follow into all victories. As they march, over their heads they triumphantly carry this great big banner that boldly proclaims:
Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Truly awesome, eh?
God, thank You for this day.
In adoration,
Zoraida
Hello, my dear LORD,
You know how ill and lousy I am feeling today. Thank You, oh LORD, for being who You are, for being in my life, for having saved me. Thank You so much because, no matter how bad I may feel, the reality of Your glorious existence and Your powerful presence in my life make me victorious, rising above adversities and pain.
Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Thank You, my Christ.
Your child,
Zoraida
Dear LORD,
On January 6, the people of Spain, Latin America and the Spanish Caribbean will be celebrating what is known as the Day of the Epiffany, or Three Kings Day. This tradition conmemorates the wise men who sought the Child Jesus in order to worship and offer Him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.
But LORD, I have learned that we people have the story wrong in several respects. First, many believe that there were three men, second, that they were kings, third, that their names are written in the Bible, and fourth, that when they went to see the Savior Jesus, He was still a baby. Oooooops! Forgive us, oh LORD, for getting it wrong yet again. Below is the full account, as found in Your Scriptures:
Mathew Chapter 2
1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem,
2 saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”
3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
5 So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:
6 `But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.’”
7 Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared.
8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.”
9 When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.
10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.
11 And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
12 Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.
13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him.”
14 When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt,
15 and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”
16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.
17 Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:
18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, Refusing to be comforted, Because they are no more.”
19 But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,
20 saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child’s life are dead.”
21 Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.
22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.
23 And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”
Throughout this account, the men who seek the Lord Jesus to worship are referred to as wise men, not kings. In some Bible versions, they are referred to as magi, from the original Greek magus, a term that described the priestly and learned cast of men from the tribes of Midion. The term magi does not mean king.
Nowhere in this account does it say that there were three men, we do not know how many were there. Also, no names are given for any of these wise men.
Throughout the account, the Lord Jesus is referred to as a young Child, not a babe, as in the accounts of His birth. We also see that the wise men were led by the star of the East to a house, not to a stable or cave where Mary gave birth, then placed the Child in the manger. The shepherds who were visited by the angel of the Lord and the heavenly host saw the Savior as a newborn, but not the wise men.
When You, God, warned the wise men not to return to Herod, he carried out his evil intent by having all male children of a certain age killed, since he could not discern which one was Jesus, as was his original plan when he asked the wise men to return to him when they found the Savior. The fact that Herod had all males two years old and under killed, as Your Scripture says in verse 16:
“according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.”, also tells us that the Lord Jesus was no longer a baby.
Dear God of hosts, there are a lot of false beliefs floating around in this world, false beliefs that contradict Your Word, and the thing about the three kings kneeling before baby Jesus in a stable is one of them. I pray that You will open the spiritual eyes of many of Your true children, and that the truths of Your Scriptures may be disseminated so that others come out of error and follow the correct path.
Thank You, LORD, for allowing me to share this post with others today. To You be the glory!
Your child and follower,
Zoraida
Dear LORD,
The amount of scientific facts mentioned in Your Word is amazing. Today I wish to post here a verse that teaches us that the Earth is round:
Job 26:10 He drew a circular horizon on the face of the waters, At the boundary of light and darkness.
LORD, You wrote this through Your servant long, long before the development of any sophisticated scientific instruments, so no one can say that this particular knowledge was “discovered” by, or came out of, humans. The mention of a circular horizon teaches us that the Earth is round, not flat, as was the belief for centuries, particularly during the Dark and Middle Ages. Ironically, these periods in human history were perhaps the most religious, yet, in terms of people’s knowledge of Scripture, they were the worst. For one thing, most people were illiterate, and in addition to this, the institution of the church exercised opressive power and total control. The high authorities of this church were opposed to the verse I posted above. I say this because I am sure that the priests, bishops and archbishops of the day, even the Pope himself, were familiar with this verse, and with the entire Bible, for that matter. Yet, they chose to perpetuate the falsehood that the Earth was flat, contradicting You and Your Word, oh God of hosts. They did this for their own wicked purposes.
This reflects the sad reality that, to this day, humans refuse to accept Your Word as truth, not only when it comes to spiritual issues, but also in terms of facts about the physical world. Today the Bible is attacked by non-believing scientists and philosophers, and what is worse, it is still perverted by many churches. You, my LORD, are being attacked from all flanks! What can I say, except that we the true believers must guard the purity of Your Scriptures, and deliver Your message as You gave it to us.
Enough said. Thank You, God, for giving me this day to meditate in Your Word and share this today.
Your servant,
Zoraida
Hello, my LORD,
Well, it is a few days after Christmas, so the world and popular culture have dropped all the secular signs that they use to mark the season. All the ornaments and Christmas trees have been taken down. Thank You, oh God, that radio stations have stopped playing Frosty the Snowman and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. Stores have moved on to the POST-Christmas sales.
All of these things reflect the world’s lack of spirituality, knowledge and understanding about what Christmas is really about. Sadly, though, the same can be said for many Christians, who do not know that the story of the LORD Jesus coming to this Earth does not end at the manger. Today I want to start posting the rest of the story, as told in the Scriptures, with the hopes that others may learn more about our LORD Jesus and thus grow in knowledge of the Bible, Your Holy Word.
So, we all know about the announcement and birth of the Savior. Now, eight days after the birth, to be exact, another event occurred, an event that may seem small and even non important to some. Here is what Your Word says:
Luke Chapter 2
21 And when eight days were completed for the circumcision of the Child, His name was called JESUS, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.
It is important to remember that the laws given by You, God, through Your servant Moses, were the moral laws of the land, and it was the correct thing to follow them, as Mary and Joseph did, even though the laws of Moses were not, and are not, the way to salvation. So, according to the laws of Moses, on the eighth day after His birth, Jesus was circumcised and named, the same way it was done for every male child born at that time.
And then more things happened shortly after the birth of the LORD, as the Bible teaches us. The following events occur forty days after the birth of the Messiah:
Luke Chapter 2
22 Now when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought Him to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord
In this verse, the days of her, that is, Mary’s, purification, were forty days after giving birth, as stated in Your Word:
Leviticus Chapter 2
1 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
2 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: `If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her customary impurity she shall be unclean.
3 `And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.
4 `She shall then continue in the blood of her purification thirty–three days. She shall not touch any hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary until the days of her purification are fulfilled.
So, Mary and Joseph went to the temple in Jerusalem to present Jesus forty days after His birth. The story continues:
Luke Chapter 2
23 (as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male who opens the womb shall be called holy to the LORD”),
24 and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, “A pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”
25 And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.
26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
27 So he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law,
28 he took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said:
29 “Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, According to Your word;
30 For my eyes have seen Your salvation
31 Which You have prepared before the face of all peoples,
32 A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.”
33 And Joseph and His mother marveled at those things which were spoken of Him.
34 Then Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His mother, “Behold, this Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which will be spoken against
35 ”(yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”
36 Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity;
37 and this woman was a widow of about eighty–four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.
38 And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem.
39 So when they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own city, Nazareth.
LORD, if the world knew how much there is to the story of the first years of the LORD Jesus on this Earth, everyone would be amazed. I personally feel that Christmas is so diluted, the only thing that is spoken and sung about is the babe in the manger, and yet there is so much more. As I said before, even many of us believers are ignorant of these things, including the story of the three kings. I will come back later to write about this one.
Thank You, LORD,
Zoraida
Dear LORD,
It is that time of year again, when we believers focus our spiritual perspective on the earthly birth of Christ, His coming into our world in human fashion, being born of a woman, even though His birth was like no other before or since. Even the secular world celebrates, to some degree, the birth of the Child Jesus and the joy and hope this brought to the world. Part of the story, as it is told in the gospels of Mathew and Luke, is the announcement of the angel Gabriel to Joseph and his virgin wife Mary that she would conceive of the Holy Spirit and bring forth a Son, the Son that would bring salvation to those He chose for eternal life. What not too many people seem to know or remember, though, is that Gabriel was by no means the first one to announce the virgin birth of the Messiah. The Old Testament is peppered with prophecies about this awesome event. Here are a couple of examples:
Isaiah 7:14 “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.
This verse from Isaiah is the one quoted in the gospel of Mathew:
Mathew 1:21 “And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.”
22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:
23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”
Here is another prophecy, also from the book of Isaiah:
Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
There are many other references in the Old Testament to the birth of our LORD Jesus Christ. The Old Testament also contains many references to the LORD‘s miracles while You, oh LORD Jesus, were here on Earth. References to Your betrayal by Judas Iscariote, and details of Your suffering before and during Your crucifixion. LORD of hosts, thank You for Your wonderful Word, for the fact that the announcement of Your earthly birth had been done way long before Gabriel visited Mary and Joseph. My only regret is that so many Jewish people have never understood the very scrolls You Yourself gave to them for knowledge and understanding. But then again, this is all according to Your will, for not all will come to a true understanding of the Scriptures. I do hope and pray that more people are moved by Your Spirit to search the Word as You commanded us, so that we may get to see You in Your heavenly kingdom.
Your child,
Zoraida
Dear LORD,
In Your Word, we find a wonderful invitation You extend to us your faithful children:
Hebrews 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
And in a later chapter of this same Bible book, You complete the previous thought by saying:
Hebrews 13:6 So we may boldly say: “The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”
I noticed the word, “boldly,” in both these verses. So how bold, oh LORD, do You want us to be? I think I found the best possible answer in the following account:
Genesis 32:24 Then Jacob was left alone; and a MAN wrestled with him until the breaking of day.
25 Now when HE saw that HE did not prevail against him, HE touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as HE wrestled with him.
26 And HE said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” But he said, “I will not let YOU go unless YOU bless me!”
27 So HE said to him, “What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.”
28 And HE said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.”
29 Then Jacob asked, saying, “Tell me YOUR name, I pray.” And HE said, “Why is it that you ask about MY name?” And HE blessed him there.
30 And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.”
31 Just as he crossed over Penuel the sun rose on him, and he limped on his hip.
32 Therefore to this day the children of Israel do not eat the muscle that shrank, which is on the hip socket, because HE touched the socket of Jacob’s hip in the muscle that shrank.
Oh, God, may we be as bold and courageous as Jacob in seeking Your blessing. May we be just as daring, even if we come out with some injury, which, in itself, would be one of Your blessings, the proof of our struggling and wrestling with You, the testimony of how we held on to You and did not let go until we received the blessing You may have reserved for us. Thank You, LORD of Hosts.
Your servant,
Zoraida
Dear LORD,
The other morning, my memories took me to my college graduation day. My mom was with me that day, and I wished that my brother had been there also. One of my good friends had been chosen as class valedictorian, and I was very proud of him. In my mind’s eye, I could see him up there at the podium giving his speech. Mom took photos that day, photos of me with my friends, and, again, in my mind’s eye, I could see very clearly a particular photo of me with my Russian professor. Oh, I can see this photo as I write these lines. I remembered the style and color of the dress I wore that day.
As I went down memory lane, I grew sad because, at some point in my life, I lost my sight and, therefore, the capacity to have visual memories. Oh, LORD, I confess that I do miss being able to see all of those gorgeous colors You painted the world with. I miss seeing the movement and the images of the world around me. As You know, there are mornings when I wake up, open my eyes and feel weird because I know that something is supposed to happen, I am supposed to receive light and color in my eyes, yet nothing happens. I still feel this way sometimes, after so many years of being blind.
Yet, even though I felt sad the other morning as I remembered my youth, thoughts came in to comfort me. I became glad to think that You, LORD, are invisible, so I may never feel sad about having seen You before, and not being able to see You anymore. Thankfully, we can only feel You, and boy, do I feel You! At the moment I thought of this, I gave You thanks, as well as thanks for having allowed me to see before. I may not see the beauty of Your creation anymore, but I have the precious visual memories of it, Your gift to me, and You do remind me that Your creation is still very much out there, even though I can not see it. So yes, I may miss my sight from time to time, but I am very grateful and thankful for what I had then. Even far more important, however, is what I have now, the most precious possession that nothing and no one can take away from me, which is You, oh LORD. Thank You, thank You, thank You. I await Your return with great hope and expectation.
Your child,
Zoraida
Dear LORD,
Today I started a careful reading of the book of Hebrews, which is quite beautiful because of the mysteries it talks about. In the first two chapters, You teach us about your servants the angels, which is a subject that we, humans, are very attracted to.
In the third chapter, the following verse caught my attention:
Hebrews 3:5 And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward,
LORD, You tell us here what a wonderful servant Moses was in everything, and when You say that he was faithful, “for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward,” You are teaching that the things that will be spoken afterward are not at all praises to Moses, but the sacrifice of Christ and His triumph over death for our salvation. This verse not only reminded me that we are called to be your obedient servants, but that our service and faithfulness to You should not be performed in order for people to praise us and to say how great we are, now or in the future, when we are gone. Moses was faithful to You throughout his life for Your glory, and long after he died, what was spoken of was Your glory and power, not his good works or qualities as a man. Beautiful lesson for us to learn, that what must be reflected in our lives is You, for a testimony to those who see and know us today, and what must be spoken of in the future, long after we are gone, is not what great people we were, but how the grace and salvation of the Lord Jesus Christ was reflected through our lives, as You illustrate with Moses in the verse above.
Thank you for everything, my God.
Your servant,
Zoraida
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