DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- REJOICE!

DAD'S RAMBLINGS – REJOICE

"Then the seventh returned with joy, saying, 'Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.' And He said to them, 'I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because our names are written in heaven.'" (Luke 10 17-20)

Just imagine the exhilaration and excitement as the disciples returned to Jesus after such a successful ministry. They had received a mandate from the Lord Jesus and the authority to do miracles – to "heal the sick" (vs. 9a). Why, they even cast demons out of people. My, oh, my, that must have been glorious.

But Jesus reminded them that miracles were not the most important thing in their ministry. The miracles were only a prelude to the message – "The kingdom of God has come near to you" (vs. 9b). The most important thing is that people hear and receive the Gospel. We can get so wrapped up in the peripheral things that we lose sight of the most important – Salvation.

Perhaps this was also a warning against pride. It is so easy to get an inflated ego when we see people moved by our words and great miracles done by our hands. A special touch. A powerful word. Faith that seems to have no limits. But the greatest thing is not the crowds or miracles of healing and deliverance, but the miracle of salvation – names written in heaven.

May our message never be overshadowed by God's marvelous blessings. No matter how successful our evangelism outreach seems or how many people flock to hear us, the focus must always be the Gospel – that the Kingdom of God has come in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Our rejoicing is not in seeing great manifestations of God's power, but that our names are written in heaven.

Love, Dad