Arise, Shine for your Light has come!

"Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people; but the LORD will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you." (Isaiah 60:1-2 NKJV)

Perplexities

The world is currently going through a global economic crisis and with news of doom and gloom bombarding us from the media it is easy to become fearful during these difficult times. Along with the other kinds of disasters we hear about on a weekly basis (earthquakes, freak weather conditions, pestilences etc) this economic disaster was prophesied in the bible "..upon the earth [there will be] distress (trouble and anguish) of nations in bewilderment and perplexity [without resources, left wanting, embarrassed, in doubt, not knowing which way to turn].." (Luke 21:25 AMP).

Anyone who knows a thing or two about economics will tell you that this is just the beginning. The USA has made plans to kick start their economy by spending trillions of dollars which at this present time doesn't actually exist! They will have to print more currency which could inevitably mean hyperinflation of the US currency in the coming years. This could of course give rise to a whole host of problems such as ordinary items like bread and petrol becoming far too expensive for the ordinary person to afford as currency begins to lose its value (Rev 6:6). One solution to this global crisis was put forward by the Russians at the recent G-20 summit - a single one world currency..

The Light

Despite the alarming global crisis, children of God should not fear for the future. Instead we ought to be strong and courageous in the face of adversity. Isaiah 60:2 says "For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and dense darkness [all] peoples, but the Lord shall arise upon you [O Jerusalem], and His glory shall be seen on you. (AMP). Indeed economic darkness is covering the earth but the Lord will use these days to shine forth His glory in the lives of His children like never before! He will use His children as beacons of light in this dark world and many shall come to that Light (Isaiah 60:3).

Days of Famine in the Bible

The bible prophesies a time of increased famines in the last days (Luke 21:10). In the Old Testament these were times when resources were scarce, productivity was low and economies suffered. One such instance is recorded in Genesis 47:13-31 where there was a severe famine in Egypt whilst Joseph was there. In the bible Egypt is representative of the world and we see that whilst Egypt suffered, Joseph in fact prospered more than ever. Joseph was a direct descendant of Abraham- his physical seed- and the blessing of the Abrahamic Covenant was upon him.

Now, in Christ, we are the seed of Abraham - his spiritual seed - by faith and therefore heirs according to the promise God made to Abraham (Galatians 3:14, 16, 29). Abraham never suffered in times of famine, neither did his son Isaac. The bible states that during a famine "..Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year a hundredfold; and the LORD blessed him. The man began to prosper, and continued prospering until he became very prosperous.." (Genesis 26:12-13) (Galatians 4:28).

Your Inheritance in Christ

The key to partaking in this blessing is to first realise that it is part of your inheritance in Christ. You must be conscious of it or else you run the risk of suffering alongside most of the population of the world when you ought to be prospering and blessing others. You must be aware of it, believe it and say it! You see, if you're not aware of an inheritance you cannot enjoy its benefits. "The heir, as long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all, but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father. Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world.." (Galatians 4:1-3). Notice that this scripture comes immediately after the scriptures above which make mention of the promises to Abraham.

Imagine a situation whereby a person dies and leaves all of their wealth to their child as an inheritance. The child is automatically entitled to the inheritance upon the death of the testator but the child is not able to claim the money until he reaches the age of eighteen; at which point he is deemed mature enough to handle it. If that child is not aware of the testator's wishes and nobody tells him, he will not be able to claim it; even though he is entitled to it. Similarly if the child is aware of the inheritance and does nothing about it, he will not enjoy its benefits.

A newborn babe in Christ may not be aware of their inheritance. As you grow in maturityand understanding in the faith you begin to become more aware of your rights in Christ. As you become more aware of your inheritance in Christ you will begin to lay a claim on the blessings by exercising the right principles.

We will look more at these godly principles in a later blog...

Your Hope

For a child of God there is hope in the midst of this global crisis. The bible says "blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, and whose hope is the LORD. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit." (Jeremiah 17:7-8). This is not the time to fear or be anxious. This is the time to trust and put your faith in the Lord not in the failing economies, world leaders or the financial experts. Your hope is in the Lord your Provider. There is no recession in Heaven! One thing is for certain - the Kingdom economy can never fail, therefore make the wise decision to remain connected to the Source that can never run dry. In a later blog we will look at how you can stay connected to this Source and reap the financial benefits of being a child of God.

"The LORD knows the days of the upright, and their inheritance shall be forever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time, and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied." (Psalm 37:18-19)