John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”
Testimony can be powerful, especially when it is unbiased.
In the book of Daniel we see the ancient King Darius, full of himself, drunk with power and yet when a faithful servant comes along, the Lord turns his reality upside down.
Darius was familiar with the gods of his culture but only heard about the God of Israel. When he witnessed the miraculous way God preserved Daniel’s life, he was taken back by the fact that there was a God who intervened carefully in the affairs of man.
Daniel 6: 25-27 is the statement by this godless king after watching God’s miraculous faithfulness.
Then King Darius wrote:
To all peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you. I make a decree that in every dominion of my kingdom men must tremble and fear before the God of Daniel. For He is the living God,
And steadfast forever;
His kingdom is the one which shall not be destroyed,
And His dominion shall endure to the end.
He delivers and rescues,
And He works signs and wonders
In heaven and on earth,
Who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.”
This statement is by a man who came to the realization that there is a King greater than he. Darius had to see God work in Daniel to be able to relate God’s greatness practically.
Do you ever wonder why God uses His people on this earth? The example of Daniel as well as countless others gives reason for God to allow His people to represent Him. The world struggles to see God, they attribute greatness to His Creation, they marvel at the size of His Universe, and they are intrigued by the complexity of life but they fail to see God in the fullness of His majesty.
It is through God’s people the world not only relates to the personal nature of God but it is through faithful believers they discover His love.
You have a purpose as a child of God.
God’s Display
The revelation of God has been made abundantly clear, the ways God displays His majesty seem to encompass every aspect of His Creation.
*Within His Creation, first and foremost God displays His greatness through His people.
Psalm 100:3 “Know that the Lord, He is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.”
The image of God has been imprinted upon mankind, but it is through His leading He forms us to His nature. As we follow Him we find ourselves taking on the form of His shaping. He molds us to love, to show compassion, to have patience, to be gentle, to grow in knowledge and have wisdom, to display His joy, to walk in peace, and to exhibit self-control. Oh, how I wish I was able to display these qualities in full, without the flesh getting in the way. I am so looking forward to the day when the curse will be broken and I can walk in Christ without inhibition.
*Within God’s Creation the waters and the earth proclaim His glory.
Ezekiel 43:1-2 “Then he led me to the gate, the gate facing east. And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east. And the sound of his coming was like the sound of many waters, and the earth shone with his glory.”
What we see now is an earth that awaits within the darkness of sin. The moment the Lord descends upon it, it will be like it awakens to the form for which it was created.
Isaiah 11:6 “In that day the wolf and the lamb will live together; the leopard will lie down with the baby goat. The calf and the yearling will be safe with the lion, and a little child will lead them all.”
We have only dim reminders of God’s original glory and yet still we are amazed, imagine how glorious it will be when Jesus establishes His throne and God reigns upon the Earth. We have such a limited ability to comprehend what lies ahead, what we see now is often how we perceive God. If we form our image of God from what we see and know, we limit God to nothing more than an idea or image that can easily be dismissed.
The way we represent Christ to the world may be the only view of Christ they will ever see.
Our Testimony
The miracle of the incarnation was evident when Jesus walked the Earth.
Today, we are to be the incarnation of Christ. We must live our lives in such a way that people can see Jesus in us.
Romans 8:3 “For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh,”
Through Christ’s condemnation of sin, we are brought to life as we trust and believe. The life of Christ in us doesn’t stop with our initial redemption but it continues…
We have been redeemed, we are being redeemed, and we will be redeemed in the end.
With belief we are redeemed from sin, as we walk in the Spirit He leads us in that redemption, then one day we will stand before the Lord and the curse of sin will be finally vanquished. Our redemption will be made complete once the final judgement has concluded.
Like Daniel lived before Darius and the persian empire, we must not be afraid to live our faith out loud. No matter what laws the world tries to enact, no matter how much people accuse us or bring accusation, the Lord will provide through it all.
Live Faithfully
How we live makes a difference as to whether we are effective in our testimony or not. It’s easy to blend in, it takes courage to stand out.
Pray for opportunity to be a light in your world, look for opportunity, and when the Lord brings those moments be bold in your faith and glorify Christ in your life.
When you act faithfully, you will experience the joy of the Lord, you will find fulfillment in your life, and you’ll realize that this is what life is really all about.
U.T. 