2 minute read.
Daily Reading: Amos 4:1-6:14 ESV, Revelation 2:18-3:6 ESV, Psalm 130:1-8 ESV, Proverbs 29:21-22 ESV
Daily Verse: “‘I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first.” (Revelation 2:19 ESV)
DIAKONIA (1248): “Attendance (as a servant, etc.), aid (official) service (espec. Of Chr. Teacher, or techn, of the diaconate) ministry.[1]
Official service.
John, addressing the church in Thyatira, commends them for their work. Through service, they shared their love of Christ, their perseverance evident in the trials and tribulations they faced without giving up hope.
Like the Thyatirans, God knows our works. When we take steps of faith, trusting God more despite our circumstances, God notices. Trusting Jesus, depending on His guidance through the storm, know God sees and rewards our efforts with His divine presence.
Accepting the temporary nature of the world around us helps keep our priorities straight and our eyes fixed on Jesus.
Serve with love.
As Christ’s followers, we share the task of loving God and others. Through our actions, people will know us. When we become known more for our love than our judgment, Jesus’s church will begin to grow.
The Thyatirans love for Jesus showed in their service to each other and their community. Finding ways to bless the people in our lives, especially those who don’t know Jesus, will help you share your faith.
My women’s small group talked about ways to share Jesus. “Thank God,” I said; it always works to start a conversation. When we give God the glory for the work He does in our lives, whether quieting a fussy baby, providing a parking spot, or healing a sickness, from big to small, God’s presence never leaves us. Thanking God for what He does opens the door to sharing our knowledge and faith with others.
Persevere well with Jesus. Cling to Him during the difficult days, glorify Christ as you survive the storm, trusting His promises. In this life, we will have trouble, but Jesus overcame the world so we could find the peace that surpasses all understanding, now and forever.
[1] Strong, J., & Strong, J. (2010). The New Strong’s expanded exhaustive concordance of the Bible. Greek Dictionary of the New Testament (p. 65) Thomas Nelson