Repentance Rapture

We have come now, as a repentant people, turned away from our foolish ways of thinking that we can, in some form or fashion, augment the Words and Promises of God to us. Does this release from our human bondage, the grace and mercy of repentance, not bring us to rapturous joy in Jesus? When the Holy Spirit fixes us on the things of Jesus, reminding us of all that is of Jesus, how can we not repent and receive His promised joy?

However your joy has come, be it inner or outer joy or both, this much I know. Our Jesus has put His pleasure in us, even in the midst of our trials and human weakness, so that we are relaxed and stubborn in our now rekindled faith and trust in Him and Him alone. True pleasure looms high within us, as we receive our Lord’s forgiveness, without payment.

All these truths bring to mind this stanza from one of Charles Wesley’s great hymns.

True pleasures abound,

In the rapturous sound;

And whoever hath found it hath paradise found.

My Jesus to know,

And feel His blood flow,

‘Tis life everlasting, ‘tis heaven below.

Does this not reinforce the rapture, the heavenly joy that our Lord and Saviour, Jesus, gives through His life, His suffering, His death, His resurrection and His return in Spirit? Jesus is The Word made flesh for us. The very Name of Jesus is the sweetest sound in every believing sinner’s ear. The fact is that true pleasures abound in the sound of His Name and in the sound of His Word spoken to us. We have been given the privilege by Jesus to seek and the dead assurance that if we seek, we will find. What will we find, those who by faith and trust seek the Name of Jesus – the Way, The Truth and the Life? We find heaven right here on earth, in the abundant life He offers. Yes, indeed! To know Jesus and feel His precious, saving blood flowing in you, is everlasting life. It surely is heaven below.

How does this come about? Such assurance, peace and confidence in the promised life with Jesus, come in many different ways, forms, experiences, trials and more, but unless we believe, how do we expect to receive?

God’s Word is potent, powerful and productive. When we feed on God’s Word, it matters not who we are, as long as we feed. As gruesome as this is, it is factual. No matter how good or bad a person may be, regardless of age, colour and creed and whether or not he or she believes that poison kills, the poison will kill if it is ingested.

This is what I have been made to face and what you also must accept. The Word of God is indeed powerful and potent and if anyone feeds by faith on the Living Word, he or she will receive all that the Word promises. This brings us right back to where we started with Paul and the Word of grace given to him. Here it is again. My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. 2 Corinthians 12: 9a.

Take time to ponder this rapturous sound of grace, as the voice of the Spirit of our Lord rings sweetly in your ear. We continue this pleasure tomorrow, DV.