He Will Rejoice Over You!

Our Daily Walk with Christ Devotional – August 1, 2024

“The LORD your God is in your midst, the Mighty One, will save, He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.” —Zephaniah 3:17

There are many characteristics in the human persona, yet, the most important attribute is love. When we truly love God, we seek His will every day which invites the Holy Spirit to perform our lifelong spiritual transformation of Sanctification. The Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) are the Christ-like characteristics that proclaim His Righteousness and reveal the evidence of a converted heart.

The Life of Christ demonstrates that God, the Father was always His priority. Loving God is more than spoken words. Love reveals itself through daily consecration, surrender, faithfulness, obedience, and loving and helping others. Jesus’ earthly life shows that He continually prayed for God’s will to be revealed. Jesus trusted God and most importantly God trusted Jesus. Can God trust us with the perfect plans He has for our lives?

True Worship in Spirit and Truth is Obedience: “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” —John 14:15

God is love. Agape love is the foundation of true religion displayed by the heart converted by God’s love. Do we truly love God and His son, Jesus Christ? With spoken words, we may cry out, Lord, Lord, and faithfully attend church, pray, praise, sing, and study the Bible, yet our hearts are not filled with love and loyalty for God. On earth, Jesus consecrated Himself daily to God, therefore, we have the same requirement to consecrate ourselves daily by obediently seeking and abiding in Christ.

“Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, by their fruit, you will recognize them.” —Matthew 7:19-20

Pretense is an innate characteristic that even innocent children display. They pretend to have friends or pets they speak to who do not exist. Fastidious parental observation and involvement are needed to regulate a child’s imagination and exposure to animated characters and technology, or the child may develop a lasting fantasy world. Psychologists have developed theories to justify pretentious behaviors, but pretense easily evolves into adulthood destroying marriages and relationships including our relationship with Christ.

Are we pretending to love and obey God? Our gratitude for Jesus’ sacrifice on Calvary and the Plan of Redemption is revealed through faithful obedience. When we truly love God, we go above and beyond to pray, wait, and obey, ensuring that we are aligned with His plans for the given day. Our utmost service is obedience to God’s Sovereign Authority which includes obeying His Commandments and Righteous Precepts. To love God is to surrender our thoughts, desires, and free will to Him every day.

“Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations…” —Deuteronomy 7:9

The believers who truly love Christ never suffer from a contentious state of mind because their minds are spiritually joined to the mind of Christ. Much confusion resides in the minds of Christians who do not understand the Sanctified life and their role in their relationship with Christ. Since Jesus created us, we are in a Father and son or daughter relationship with Him. Just as parents raise their children with the expectation they will obey, God also requires unwavering obedience from us by abiding in His Son.

“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?” —Luke 6:46

Once we grasp the full meaning of being purchased by the blood of Christ then love is the catalyst to exercising our faith by continually seeking His will. Love and Loyalty to God supersede our dedication to church doctrines, cultural norms, religious creeds, family traditions, friendships, and even the opinions of our spouses and children. How do we obey governmental laws and employer policies but refuse to uphold God’s Commandments and Righteous Precepts? Still, God reaches out to us because he is not willing that any of us should perish.

The Holy Spirit uses various ways to reveal the truth to us. One of the most prevalent deceptions in today’s believers is the practice of Satan’s false doctrine that the Ten Commandments were nailed to the cross and abolished. God says, “I change not!” Jesus, God, the Son never disagreed with the Scripture because He spoke the Words of Truth [the Old and New Testament] through the Holy Spirit to men who were transformed into His image. Jesus wrote the Holy Bible.

Sadly Satan has convinced most of today’s Christian community to practice Compromised Christianity through disobedience to God’s Righteous Ten Commandments. If we are not in the right standing with God, can we expect the blessing of God upon our lives? When we are faithful and obedient as evidenced by daily surrender to God, our minds become one with Christ. Pray and ask the Holy Spirit to teach you the truth of the Holy Scriptures.

“The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding.” —Proverbs 4:7

King Solomon states that wisdom is more valuable than the finest jewels. To obtain wisdom, we must fully surrender to Christ. The Apostle James proclaims we should pray for godly wisdom, yet to receive it, we must have steadfast faith. A life dedicated to prayer receives continuous spiritual understanding and is empowered by the Holy Spirit to develop a healthy dependency on God. Just as earthly parents rejoice when their children lovingly obey them, our Heavenly Father also rejoices over us with singing.

“And without faith, it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” —Hebrews 11:6, ESV

When we understand that obedience is our highest worship to God, our perception of living faithfully also changes. From abiding in Christ, we recognize the magnitude of God’s love and the privilege of being saved by His Grace. The reward of God singing over us produces overwhelming joy, we receive an outpouring of His amazing love, grace, mercies, and strength. Obedience allows the Holy Spirit to transform our minds, characters, and personalities into the likeness of Christ and we begin to reflect on our future heavenly life.

“As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, ‘Follow Me.’ So he arose and followed Him. Matthew 9:9

From the creation of Adam and Eve to the present, following Jesus has always required an obedient life of self-denial and sacrifice. Following Christ costs us our free will of choice. According to the Scriptures, the tax collector Matthew represents the believers who give up everything to follow Christ. Are we willing to dedicate ourselves as disciples who will stand down our desires, thoughts, and inclinations?

To stay on the path of righteousness is to be led by the Shepherd. To follow Jesus, in humility, we consecrate ourselves to become like sheep who renounce self-directed behaviors by praying for wisdom and guidance. The behavior of sheep reveals they do not follow their thoughts, they follow the Shepherd or wander and become lost. With steadfast determination, when we persevere in the power of His might our hearts are linked to Christ’s heart and we become one with Him.

From the moment we open our eyes, we have already decided whether or not we will pray the prayer of surrender for the given day. “I, the Lord, search and examine the mind, I test the heart, To give to each man according to his ways, According to the results of his deeds” (Jeremiah 17:10). We stand as unclothed babes before God, He knows the true condition of our hearts.

The decision to surrender our will results in God rejoicing over us. King David reminds us that even when we fall, if we confess and repent of our sins, God always hears and answers the prayers of the righteous. Through our faith, obedience, and surrender to God, we praise His Holy Name by honoring and reverencing his Sovereignty. And for our concerted efforts of giving our best to God, He sings over our lives by opening the windows of Heaven upon us.

“Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know”. —Jeremiah 33: 3

God’s invitation to pray and ask for wisdom and discernment from Him is a precious promise that He will reveal a deeper understanding of His Holy Word, His purpose, and His love. Throughout the ages, God has always had dedicated believers willing to give their all to Him. Our Heavenly Father rewards those who give Him their hearts through love, loyalty, faith, and obedience. From our obedience, we have the confidence that we are in the right standing with God.

“The LORD says, ‘I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.’ ” —Psalm 32:8

The righteous believers who consecrate their lives to Christ, deep within our minds, we receive God’s melodious songs showering blessings in our lives. Yes, the faithful know our reward of eternal life is close, and we are preparing to receive our Crown of Life from Jesus, our Triumphant King. Despite the daily struggles and suffering we face, for our love and loyalty, the Holy Spirit imparts Jesus’ supernatural strength, joy, and peace, empowering us to persevere and keep moving forward.

From doing our part in working out our salvation, we are blessed with spiritual peace and the contentment of knowing Jesus has promised to finish the work of sanctification in us (Philippians 1:6). We must think beyond this ordinary life and prepare to receive our Heavenly reward! With a made-up mind, and on bended knees, we proclaim daily, “Lord, I give myself to You and ask You to speak to me and guide me in the way I should go.

Let Jesus lead you day by day in this journey called life, it is the only way God can rejoice over us, and we receive the Holy Spirit’s transforming power. One day soon for our love, loyalty, and obedience, we will rejoice with God, the Father, King Jesus, the angels, and the righteous in the New Heaven and New Earth. Hallelujah! Amen!

“For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of god. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the lord. First Thessalonians 4:16- 17.

Lord God, we thank You for singing and rejoicing over us with love, we love You and praise Your Holy Name. In Jesus’ Righteous and Holy Name, Amen.

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