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SATISFACTION GOOD AND BAD
A job well done brings satisfaction. We have all experienced that. And there are things in the Christian life that bring satisfaction. The child of God is satisfied with Him and His workings. To be otherwise indicates a lack of faith in His ability or His goodness. Psalms says: “Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even of thy holy temple.” In a nutshell this verse is about salvation. The Bible speaks of God's satisfaction. The sufferings and death of Christ satisfied the holy nature and justice of God. It is written: “Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities,” (Isaiah 53:10-11). God saw the travail (pain) of His Son on behalf of sinners and was satisfied! Christ bore their sins! But the child of God should never be satisfied with himself. One of the seven churches mentioned in Revelation was satisfied with themselves. Christ's message to that congregation in part was this: “Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked,” (Revelation 3:17). Self-satisfaction, then, can be based upon the wrong things! One's true condition may be terrible and yet a person deceived by satisfaction with things of no permanent value. The Psalmist wrote: “As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness,” (Psalm 17:15). The child of God should never be satisfied with himself nor with this world or its pleasures and possessions. Ah! But God's chosen ones shall indeed be fully and completely satisfied when they are holy: when they are fully conformed to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ. And when shall that be? John wrote: “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure,” (1 John 3:1-3). Because God has set His love upon His chosen ones He shall see to it that they are one day holy: like Jesus: conformed to His image. When? When we see Him (Jesus) as He is! |
