THE GLORIFIED STATE

                   
"And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb.  In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever. Then he said to me, These words are faithful and true. And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must shortly take place. Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.  Now I, John, saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things. Then he said to me, See that you do not do that. For I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. Worship God."  (Revelation 22:1-9, NKJV)

Devotion 13 of 25

THEY SHALL SEE HIS FACE
"They shall see His face . . . "  (Verse 4A)

Who are "they"? These are the Lord's "servants" those who willingly embraced the Lord's revealed purpose when they were "in the body" (Heb 13:3), or "in the world" (1 Pet 5:9).

THE TEST OF A SERVANT

The test of a servant is whether of not he will serve the Master WHEN HE IS ABSENT – absent for a long time! The Kingdom of heaven is likened to "a man traveling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods" (Matt 25:14). Each servant was given something to do. The charge was in strict accord with each person's abilities. There was no option about whether the work was to be done or not. Each servant received something from the master. They all knew the master would return to bring them into account for their faithfulness. You will remember that even though all of the servants received something, not all of them were faithful. In particular, one servant did not serve his master's interest. He buried what was given to him, and straightway forgot about it. But the day of reckoning did come. Just as the unfaithfulness of that servant excluded him from the presence of the master, so the faithfulness of the other stewards became the occasion of blessing (Matt 25:15-30).

In this parable, the Lord accentuated His absence from the arena of service. "After A LONG TIME the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them" (Matt 25:19). That delay is what revealed the hearts of the servants! Time is the great tester of discipleship. Those who serve the Lord by fits and starts, not being reliable or consistent, are walking among fiery serpents and scorpions. Unless their hearts are made stable, and their service made more consistent, they have little hope of being forever with the Lord.

THEY SHALL SEE HIS FACE

This is the same as seeing "face to face" (1 Cor 13:12), or seeing Him "as He is" (1 John 3:2). It involves the removal of both veil and mirror, or dark glass. It is seeing the Lord without obscurity, comprehending His presence without the necessity of faith, as we now know it. It is seeing Him "as He is," in all of His resplendent glory and majesty.

A Synonym for His Person.  The "face" of the Lord is a synonym for His Person. When Moses asked the Lord to show him His glory, the Lord responded, "You cannot see MY FACE; for no man shall SEE ME, and live" (Ex 33:20).  Notice the parallel between "My face" and "Me." When the Lord spoke of seeking His Person, He said, "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek MY FACE . . . " (2 Chron 7:14).  Thus, when we read "they shall see His face," the promise of seeing "HIM," whom we presently "see not," is  being given (1 Pet 1:8; 1 John 3:2).

Psalm 105:4 gives this admonition: "Seek the LORD, and His strength: seek HIS FACE evermore." Hosea also spoke in this manner. "I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek MY FACE: in their affliction they will SEEK ME early" (Hos 5:15).  Again, note how the Lord's Person and His face are used synonymously. 

THE SERVANTS LONGED FOR THIS

While in this world, the servants of God long to see the Lord – to behold His "face."  If this were not the case, the promise would mean little or nothing to us. It assumes a fervent longing for this very thing on the part of the saints. David spoke of a special generation of people who sought the face of the Lord. "This is the generation of them that SEEK HIM, that THY FACE" (Psa 24:6). We know from Scripture that this is what the Lord desires – for His face to be sought. As it is written, "When You said, 'Seek MY FACE' My heart said to You, 'Your face, LORD, I will seek'" (Psa 27:8, NKJV). 

Two wonderful things are seen here. First, the Lord WANTS to be seen, and calls upon men to seek His face His Person and blessing. Second, tender hearts can respond to the Lord's request with joyful expectation that their desire will, indeed, be granted. 

Our text assumes the face of the Lord, or His Person, is now being sought by the saints. That is what gives weight to this promise. Where His face is not being sought, the promise falls unwanted to the ground.

PRAYER POINT: Father, the blessed Gospel You have vouchsafed to Your church has made me want to see Your Son – our Savior. Thank You in His blessed name for the glorious prospect of seeing His face, and the vision never being interrupted.

– Tomorrow: WHAT IS AN "EMPHASIS" –