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Oh, the dreadful condition of being artificial! Many people know only the appearance and not the reality of Jesus Christ. Do you know the difference between appearance and reality? God does! In every generation He has had to pronounce this woe against certain ones: “These people draw near Me with their mouths, and honor Me with their lips, but have removed their hearts far from Me” (Isaiah 29:13).
Think of the excruciating eternal impact of being busy and active in the church— but ending up unknown by Jesus Christ! Is your heart in the same place that your mouth is saying you are? You talk and sing about the Lord, and perhaps even teach a class, but does your heart belong to Him? My Prayer for You This Week: Dear Lord Jesus, as You wrote this letter to the church at Sardis, You warned about the danger of those who professed something they never possessed. And while You were here on earth, one of Your constant emphases was dislodging people from a false sense of security—those who thought they were in the kingdom because they were Abraham’s seed, circumcised, going to the temple, sacrificing, giving, and serving—but had no heart for change. We pray that You would show us that the only true riches are in possessing Jesus Christ. To profess knowledge of You, and yet to not possess that life-giving, life-changing, born-again relationship with You, is the most horrible deadly condition we could be in. Oh Lord, open our eyes to behold Your wonderful truths! Thank You for the blessing of Your Word! Let Your Spirit pierce our hearts with the assurance of true riches in Christ. We pray in the lovely name of Jesus, and for His glory. Amen.