And
the Books Were Opened
Have
you ever been reading through the Bible and thought about what it must be like
to have your name written in God’s Word? What an honor. David
comes to mind. And Abraham, Zadok (David’s priest—I love him.), John the
Baptist, Mary and Martha, and Paul. Their names and heroic acts, because of
their faith, will forever be written in the word of God. I admit it stirs me up
as I read through places like Hebrews 11’s exploits of faith’s heroes.
Do
you know God is writing more books? In Daniel 7, in the midst of this most intense
revelation, Daniel says:
“I
kept looking Until thrones were set up, And the Ancient of Days took [His]
seat; His vesture [was] like white snow And the hair of His head like pure
wool. His throne [was] ablaze with flames, Its wheels [were] a burning fire. 10
A river of fire was flowing And coming out from before Him; Thousands upon
thousands were attending Him, And myriads upon myriads were standing before
Him; The court sat, And the books were opened.”
Daniel 7:9-10
In Revelation 20 we again read of more books:
Then
I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth
and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. 12 And I saw the dead,
the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and
another book was opened, which is [the book] of life; and the dead were judged
from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.
Revelation
20:11-12
We
will be written in God’s books! Not only His book of life, but also His other
books. This is something to look forward to or to dread, depending upon how you
live your life. Not as to whether or not you won nations to Jesus or gave all you
had to the poor. But rather did you love Him, did you trust Him, were you
obedient, were you faithful? These are the things that He is writing about in
His books. David is remembered as the man after God's own heart. Rarely do I hear of David's military exploits unless someone is systematically teaching through the Bible. Usually it's his heart for the Lord that is heralded.
Rahab
is in the Bible. She was a harlot. She had faith. She is in the linage of Jesus
Christ—King David’s great great grandmother. Rehab didn’t conquer nations, she
didn’t win her city, but she did what was at hand; she hid the spies because
she had faith. And God wrote about her.
What
would God’s books that He is writing now say about you if you died tonight? Would God write
about how you had faith in the midst of trials? Would He write about you
giving that $5 or $50 or $500 to the needy even though it hurt? Would He write about how you leaned
into hearing the Holy Spirit in order to minister to others, how you waited on Him for the right message to feed your church, or how you loved the people who mistreated you? Would He write
about your pray-life and how He heard you and moved mountains and changed lives
because you prayed? Or would the books read, “Well she made it after all”?
What
will God’s books say about you when they are opened? You can change your story today, if you want
to.
