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Arise Shine!
The Lord calls us not just to
endure the darkness but to arise in His manifest glory!
.
Some of us feel defeated; others are worn out
and weakened by the increasing gloom in the world. Yet it is here, where
depression would otherwise capture our souls, that we are commanded to rise. To
throw off oppression is not just an act of faith; it is an act of obedience.
.
It
is time to cancel our plans to be miserable! Through the blood of Christ, we
break our covenant with death and darkness; we obey the voice of our destiny! Right
at this moment, new life from the presence of God is descending into your
spirit. Receive it! Accept it! Obey it!
By
Francis Frangipane
"It was for this He called you through our gospel,
that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ" - (2 Thessalonians
2:14).
Speaking
through the prophet Isaiah, the Spirit of the Lord orders His people:
Arise, shine;
for your light has come,
And the glory
of the Lord has risen upon you.
For behold,
darkness will cover the earth,
And deep darkness the peoples;
But the Lord
will rise upon you
And His glory
will appear upon you.
Nations will
come to your light,
And kings to
the brightness of your rising. --- Isaiah 60:1-3
But let me ask: Will "darkness . . . cover the
earth" in the millennium? During the glorious reign of Christ when death,
sin, and sorrow are banished, will ‘deep darkness’ still rest on ‘the peoples’"?
The
fact is, while Isaiah's prophecy does indeed conclude in the millennium, it
begins during the last hours of this age.
Clearly
these first three verses of Isaiah 60 are a pre-Rapture, pre-millennial command
from God.
The
Lord calls us not just to endure the darkness but to arise in His manifest
glory!
People
argue about the timing of the Rapture, but what I am presenting here does not
disturb any popular eschatology.
I'm
saying between now and whatever scenario you believe, there will be a time of
increasing glory for true Christ followers.
Some
of us feel defeated; others are worn out and weakened by the increasing gloom
in the world.
Yet
it is here, where depression would otherwise capture our souls, that we are
commanded to rise.
It
is time to cancel our plans to be miserable!
Through
the blood of Christ, we break our covenant with death and darkness; we obey the
voice of our destiny!
One may argue, "But you do not know my
difficulties."
Listen to how the
Amplified Bible renders the Lord's command: "Arise
[from the depression and prostration in which circumstances have kept you --
rise to a new life]!"
Right
at this moment, even as you read these words, new life from the presence of God
is descending into your spirit.
Receive
it!
Accept
it!
You
see, God's plan is that here on Earth, in us, the glory of the Lord will be
revealed.
The
luminous, radiant light of His presence, as it shone from Moses' face and
flooded Solomon's temple at its dedication, as it radiated from Jesus and
bathed His disciples on the Mount of Transfiguration -- that light of God's presence
shall arise from within us at the end of the age!
This
same divine glory shall, in ever-increasing degrees of brightness, appear upon
us in the years prior to the Lord's actual Second Coming.
In
truth, this great work of grace has already begun.
We are part of the Holy Spirit's expansive
preparation.
God
is gathering together His people. We are learning to humble ourselves in
repentance and prayer; we are finding friendship and unity with other
Christians.
Indeed,
our reconciliation across denominational and ethnic barriers has an
immeasurable reward attached to it.
As valleys are "lifted up, and every mountain and hill
. . . made low . . . then the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all flesh
will see it together" (Isaiah 40:4-5).
God
is qualifying us to receive His splendor!
Nations shall come to His light and kings to the brightness of His rising!
Adapted from Francis Frangipane's book, The Days of His Presence, available at www.arrowbookstore.com.
Francis Frangipane is the author of
numerous bestselling books, including "The Three Battlegrounds" and
"Holiness, Truth and the Presence of God." He is also the founding
director of In Christ's Image Training (ICIT), an online ministry school with
students in over 120 nations. ... Google
Books
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