J.A. Matteson
The greatest robber of joy is a practical denial of God's sovereignty in the present. "Hallelujah! For the LORD our God, the Almighty reigns" (Rev. 19:6). We keep waiting for God to do the miraculous, the extraordinary, when in every moment His divine presence holds all things together by the power of His word. Each sunrise, beat of the heart, breath, birth, all providences direct the eyes of the soul to the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the beginning and end of all things, seen and unseen. We live and move and have our being in Him, and as a goldfish in a bowl of water the familiarity of His providential care is such that we can easily overlook the miraculous and extraordinary in our daily experience. God drove home this point for Job who lost sight of His reign. Can you create the beauty of the sunrise? Can you comprehend the eagle riding the currents of wind beside majestic cliffs of basalt, or the salmon returning to spawn and die at the location of its birth? These are unseen testimonies of His reign over the natural world. His reign in the spiritual sphere is witnessed through the power of His word in transformed lives, uttering His praises and giving glory to God. At the present time satan holds the world under the power of his deceit. But his doom is sure, for in the fullness of time Jesus Christ will return and finally throw down opposition to His reign. By His power in the present order of all things we are confident, with absolute assurance, He will bring to pass that which He promised in the future. The dawning of the reality of God's reign in the past, present, and future is the saints joy. If joy is evasive to you this day, perhaps the supreme reign of Jesus Christ in and through all things has been obscured by the fog of the cares of this world. Take a moment to lift up the eyes of your heart and consider Him who was and is and is to come. The grandeur of His person and promises will again fill your heart with joy to overflowing.
Copyright © 2013 Immutable Word Ministries ("…the word of our God stands forever." Isa. 40:8).