Thursday, December 17, 2020

Orange Moon "The Candle of the Lord"

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe… 

 

"The Candle of the Lord"

 

       Those who do things to be noticed or admired by others sometimes achieve their purpose.  This can result in a temporary sense of happiness.  However, one thing notoriety never does is satisfy the heart, nor does the failure to garner notice actually hinder the experience of true peace and joy.

 

    "And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men" (Matthew 6:5). 

   "Not unto us, o Lord, not unto us, but unto Thy name give glory" (Psalm 115:1).

 

    God made human beings to bring honor to the Person, work, and Name of His Son.  

 

    "Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Philippians 2:9-11). 

"He that glorieth let him glory in the Lord" (II Corinthians 10:17).

 

   The genuine fulfillment of our hearts lies in how devotedly we determine to live, think, speak, act, and relate in ways that reflect well on the Lord Jesus.  God made us to absorb and reflect His light, shining forth as moons to the sun of His character, nature, and way.  Conversely, if we attempt to shine forth with our own light, failure is inevitable, whether our deluded purposes seem to be successful or not.  The Lord Jesus stated it plainly: "If the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!" (Matthew 6:23).  Illusory human glory is fleeting and nebulous, and again, completely unfulfilling to the hearts of those who fail to realize the blessedness of shining as the lamps of Another's wondrous light.  

 

    I sometimes think that those who seek glory and fail to find it may be in a better place than those whose names, faces, and actions glimmer in the spotlight.  Such ones are far more likely to  realize the futility of seeking the honor that belongs to God alone.  Whatever the case, born again believers in the Lord Jesus Christ know that absorption and reflection of His light fills our hearts with the reality of serving our God-intended purpose.  We are moons and not the sun.  We are lamps and not the light.  And we are meant to flicker with the flame of Another, even as the Psalmist declared…

 

"The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord."

(Proverbs 20:27)

 

Weekly Memory Verse

"Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?"

 (I Corinthians 3:16)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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