ESOCS Devotional 9 January 2021
TEXT: DANIEL 7:1-14
MEMORY VERSE: “The court was seated, and the books were opened.” Daniel 7:10 NKJV
We are gradually moving towards the end of all things, and the end of all times. The heavenly court would sit. We would all be summoned to give various accounts. We would be required to give account of our time on earth, how we used it; our wealth, how we spent it; our life, what we did with it; our positions, how we utilised them; our spouses, how we treated them; our marriages, what we made of them; our children, how we trained them; our parents (the elderly), if we treated them with all honour, dignity, and respect; our friends and acquaintances, how true we were to them; our neighbours, if we were their keepers indeed; our enemies, how good and Christlike our attitude was towards them; the poor, how we received and helped them; the widows and the helpless, whether we attended to their plight or oppressed them; the sick and the prisoners, if we visited them; the word of God, what we did with it; the Church of God, what we made of it; the flock of Christ, what we did to them, and with them; the Blood of Jesus that was shed on the Cross for us, whether we maintained the cleansing and purification we received; the gift of the Holy Spirit, if we listened to His counsels constantly, followed, and obeyed them; the gifts or talents God gave us, how we invested them, for the Lord or for the evil one; our calling, what we did with it, and were we faithful in it? These and many more queries would be put forward to us. The court would sit. Judgement would definitely take place. The Book of Life would be opened. Would your name be found written in it? Would you be numbered among the saints?
Read yesterday’s ESOCS Devotional here
Unfortunately, there is largely lack of consciousness for these things. The thought of judgement, heaven, or hell has been completely cast aside. People live for the present. They live for themselves and not for God. Like the Bible says, “… through the pride of [their] countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all [their] thoughts” (Ps 10:4 KJV). There is little consideration for eternity, where we might spend it, even amongst professed Christians. Sin and evil increase by the day. People glorify and gloat over them never like before. Corruption everywhere, has become a norm. Uprightness, honesty, truth, and integrity are strangers in our present world; they are like things from other planets, probably. The pursuit for righteousness and holy living is out of it. The world has gone out of its joint, or rather its senses. However, the court would certainly sit; the book would be opened; and judgement would take place, surely.
We need constant self-appraisal. The time to decide what we actually want is now! There is no better time, nor indeed can be. The testimonies we see everywhere tell the old loud story: The Soon Coming King will song appear. There is little time left. Almost all the prophecies concerning the things that were to take place before the Lord comes have been fulfilled. He said, “Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect” (Matt 24:44 NKJV). Many people would be caught unawares; and for them, there would be no opportunity to redeem the time (Eph. 5:16). There would be cries of regret, weeping, and gnashing of the teeth (Matt. 8:12). Do you want to be among such people? You should answer the question for yourself, and mean it. Time is far spent!
The right thing to do now is to think right so that we would do the right things, which include true repentance from our sinful life, turning to God through Christ with an honest and contrite heart and spirit, abandoning the world and all its pleasures, enter into true relationship with God in Christ, and begin to worship God with a pure heart and clean hands (Ps. 24: 3-5). There is no other way.
CHALLENGES
Think about the times in which we live and begin to keep and maintain clean record in life.
PRAYER POINT
Lord, help me to live a true life in Christ for you, and that I might make heaven.
FURTHER READING: Isaiah 5:1-7; Matthew 9:29-34; Revelation 21:1-8
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ESOCS Devotional 9 January 2021
