Revelations 22:12-21

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Read Revelations 22:12-21 Verses for meditation: Revelations 22:12-13, 16, 20-21 ESV: 12 "Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” 16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” 20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon." Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! 21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen. Reflect How does it feel to be reading the very last few verses of the bible? What do the proclamations, the last few of them, say about Christ? Come, Lord Jesus! Does this really express our desire? How does the greatest book end, and on what note? But is this really the end? Relate With mixed feelings, I'm writing this last devotion based on the final ten verses of the greatest book, the bible. What a journe...
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JEREMIAH 18, 19

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 TEXT FOR REFLECTION

But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.

5 Then the word of the Lord came to me. 6 He said, “Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?” declares the Lord. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, Israel. 7 If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, 8 and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. 9 And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, 10 and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it.

JEREMIAH 18:4-10

REFLECT

God gave Jeremiah a stark object lesson. Taking him to a potter's workshop, God showed Jeremiah how a potter having made a defective pot, reshaped the pot to something that he wanted. God then explained His nature to Jeremiah: God's plans are not irrevocable. Even if He had plans to hurt Israel, if the nation repented, God would change His plans and do good to the nation. Conversely, even if God's original plans for the nation were to bless that nation, if that nation turned away, God would also redirect His plans. One's future blessedness or doom was not permanently determined at any point of time, but would evolve as one changed one's mind and intentions.

While this truth about God's nature may be unsettling for those who prefer to hold on to the notion that "once saved always saved", and insist that God's plan for one's good cannot change even if the person turned against God, it is actually good news for all. It means that God is a God of many, if not infinite, chances. A person could mess up one's life many many times, and be headed for disaster. Yet the moment he decides to turn around, God's plans also will change and God will bless.

God's intention is never to destroy forever. Isaiah 57:16 says, "I will not accuse them forever, nor will I always be angry..." Rather, God disciplines us with the aim of changing our minds. In fact, God disciplines those He loves. The writer to the Hebrews puts it very succinctly, "My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son." Being disciplined by God is an assurance that God loves us and wants to point us the way to go. It is like a parent promising an outing to his son; but when the son fails to complete his homework, the parent cancels the outing until the son has finished the homework. The intention is not to deprive the child of his time out with his parent, but to push the child to complete his homework on time.

RELATE

On a larger scale than an outing, God allows our dreams and ambitions to fail even when those ambitions are godly. Someone may be called to serve God powerfully in a certain area. But because of his disobedience, God stops him altogether from being effective in what he does. God's intention is not to destroy that person's future, but to redirect his heart to God. Such a failure is good. It first shows that God is committed as a Father to disciplining and guiding that person as His child. Secondly, that person can be assured that God does not chastise forever, but that he will have chance after chance to change. That God's plans for us are actually not irrevocable is wonderful news for us. Failure and discipline are not permanent. Nor are they signs that God has given up on us. On the contrary, they are indications that God loves us and is committed to work for our good. And we can find rest in this truth about God. 

REST

Change my heart oh God

Make it ever true

Change my heart oh God

May I be like You


You are the potter

I am the clay

Mold me and make me

This is what I pray


Change my heart oh God

Make it ever true

Change my heart oh God

May I be like You


Change My Heart O God

Eddie Espinosa

Maranatha Praise


Chiu Ming Li

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