Title: The Forgiving and Waiting Lord
Revelation (23) The Forgiving and Waiting Lord
(Rev 3:19-22)
"The Lord Who Allows Suffering"
The seventh time the Lord exhorted the church of Laodicea to repent, he said that he still loved the church of Laodicea (verse 19). Two of the seven churches that received only rebuke were the church of Sardis and the church of Laodicea, and among them, the church of Laodicea was the most severely reproved, so I knew that the Lord would greatly hate the church of Laodicea. I thought it was such a hopeless church, but the Lord said that he loved it too, and because he loved it, he rebuked and disciplined him (verse 19).
When a child of God is rebuked and disciplined, it means that God loves him and that God cares and expects him and does not forsake him. So the Lord says. “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and sup with him, and he with me” (verse 20).
If the Lord hated Laodicea, there would be no reason to stand outside and knock on the door waiting for it to open, and there would be no reason to sit down and eat together. Also, when the church of Laodicea repents and returns to the Lord with zeal, it promises to bless it, and the content of that blessing is bigger and more vivid than the blessings given to other churches (verse 21). Even though the Laodicea church showed disappointment, the Lord did not give up on his love and expectation for the Laodicea church. In the same way, the Lord sometimes allows suffering even for the saints he loves.
In Mark 4, there was a storm in the boat the Lord was on. The storm at that time was not because the disciples had sinned. Rather, the storm revealed the Lord's power and became a channel for the disciples' faith to upgrade by that power. When you have such hardships, don't despair just by looking at the hardships, but look to Jesus who is beyond the troubles. Jesus blesses us through suffering and trials. There is a small gift for a small exam and a big gift for a big exam. Believe in it and persevere no matter what trials and tribulations you face.
The church of Laodicea is a symbol of the modern church. If you look at the appearance of the modern church and its members, compared to the early church and the early church members, the environment is good and life is better, but they are far behind in terms of faith, so there are many things that will be rebuked in the sight of God. However, God's love and expectations for the modern church are by no means low. Even in a situation where it is difficult to live the life of faith because it is so easy, if you seek the Lord and draw closer to the Word and prayer, the Lord will be more pleased.
<Lord who forgives and waits>
No matter how great a sin you commit, if you truly return to God, God is always ready to welcome you. How strong and courageous is this fact? Even in the church of Laodicea, which receives the most criticism, if God has opened the door to such wonderful opportunities and possibilities for such blessings, there are still many opportunities and possibilities for such blessings. There are times in life when you are disappointed with yourself. Each time, think of the Lord's love and expectation for the Church of Laodicea, and turn your disappointment into hope.
God is a God of forgiveness. God has already forgiven us and is waiting for us to turn around. Cain was jealous and killed Abel, whom God loved, but God forgave Cain and gave him a mark of forgiveness to escape his death. God responded with non-violence to human violence. In a word, Christianity, which worships the God of forgiveness, is a religion of forgiveness. In other words, having confidence in God's forgiveness and forgiving someone is a key element of being a Christian.
The image of the Lord knocking at the door in verse 20 is not the scene of knocking at the door of an unbeliever. In other words, it is not a knocking on the door of an unbeliever outside the church, but a knocking on the door of a believer inside the church. If you listen to the knock of the Lord and open your heart wide with confidence in the God of forgiveness and go toward your dreams and visions, you can become the protagonist of a blessed position again, no matter what your current appearance, situation, or environment.
The source of happiness lies in receiving God's love, knowing God's love, and sharing that love with each other. The only way to make this difficult world happy and new is to accept God's love, thank God for His love, and share that love. The reason many people today are unhappy is because they do not have the love of God. They say they love and know love, but human love without God's love does not give people's hearts a higher level of joy and happiness.