Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD;
“Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for My holy name; after that they have borne their shame, and all their trespasses whereby they have trespassed against Me, when they dwelt safely in their land, and none made them afraid. When I have brought them again from the people, and gathered them out of their enemies’ lands, and am sanctified in them in the sight of many nations; then shall they know that I am the LORD their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen: but I have gathered them unto their own land, and have left none of them any more there. Neither will I hide My face any more from them: for I have poured out My Spirit upon the house of Israel,”
saith the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel 39:25-29
Face of God
What Do I Want For Christmas? Day 355
What do I want for Christmas?
Whenever I am prosperous, or whenever I am afflicted, and mourning, and without the material blessings of God; that I will always be before the “face of God”. That all those who are called Christian might always be aware that we are always “before the face of God”.
Many times, even as King David, when we are blessed we forget God; and it can be so when we are grieving too.
Now in my prosperity I said, “I shall never be moved.” LORD, by Your favor You have made my mountain stand strong; You hid Your face, and I was troubled.” Psalm 30:6-7 (NKJV)
Feeling Forgotten
“How long wilt Thou forget me, O LORD? For ever? How long wilt Thou hide Thy face from me?” Psalm 13:1 (KJV)
David was feeling much anxiety. No one knows the particular reason for his anguish in this Psalm, but it is here. It can apply to any circumstance of feeling forgotten, forsaken, and maybe a reflection of all the times he has felt this way.
Many may believe this is not the response the “Man after God’s own heart” ought to be experiencing; yet here we have it. David was a man, a human being.
Have you ever experienced this anguish? Have you ever felt that God has forgotten you, and it feels as though it will be for ever? You are in good company.
When we hear the question “How long will You hide Your face from me?” we should be reminded of His presence, and glory. We, like David should desire His presence, His glory – His face. Of course we know that no one can see the face of God and live. To look into the face of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is to look into the face of God.
He has not forgotten you. He has not forgotten us. He has not forgotten any who are His through the blood of His Son Jesus. Take the time you are experiencing this anguish, and think of the power, the glory, and grace and mercy of GOD. Be encouraged in Him today.
The Greatest Satisfaction
We are going to look at a verse today for Psalm 17. It is a Psalm and a particular verse that has been special to me for several years; upon the revelation of it to me. When the world and flesh of the world finds pleasure in things, material things, and things of others – dependence upon others for satisfaction – the greatest satisfaction for the Christian is in knowing Jesus.
“As for me, I will behold Thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness.” Psalm 17:15 (KJV)
There is no way possible for the unrighteous to see the face of the Righteous. That is made possible only by His grace, and His gift. The gift is the cross of Christ. When we behold His face it will be because that the righteous Lamb of God took our place, died the death of separation from God the Father, becoming sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21); and by God’s own declaration we are declared “Righteous”. When that has happened then we can say with the Psalmist, “I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness”.
The following is a note from the Treasury of David by Charles H. Spurgeon and a sermon he preached-
“I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.” The saints in heaven have not yet awaked in God’s likeness. The bodies of the righteous still sleep, but they are to be satisfied on the resurrection morn, when they awake. When a Roman conqueror had been at war, and won great victories, he would return to Rome with his soldiers, enter privately into his house, and enjoy himself till the next day, when he would go out of the city to re-enter it publicly in triumph. Now, the saints, as it were, enter privately into heaven without their bodies; but on the last day, when their bodies wake up, they will enter into their triumphal chariots. Methinks I see that grand procession, when Jesus Christ first of all, with many crowns on his head, with his bright, glorious, immortal body, shall lead the way. Behind him come the saints, each of them clapping their hands, or pouring sweet melody from their golden harps; all entering in triumph. And when they come to heaven’s gates, and the doors are opened wide to let the King of glory in, how will the angels crowd at the windows and on the housetops, like the inhabitants in the Roman triumphs, to watch the pompous procession, and scatter heaven’s roses and lilies upon them, crying, “Hallelujah! hallelujah! hallelujah! the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth.” “I shall be satisfied” in that glorious day when all the angels of God shall come to see the triumphs of Jesus, and when his people shall be victorious with him. – Spurgeon’s Sermons.
John the apostle wrote,
“Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. And every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as He is pure.” 1 John 3:1-3
The Greatest Satisfaction for the Christian is in knowing Jesus.
-Tim A. Blankenship
The Fire and Hammer 