{"id":1565,"date":"2012-07-27T06:00:01","date_gmt":"2012-07-27T06:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/"},"modified":"2012-07-27T06:00:01","modified_gmt":"2012-07-27T06:00:01","slug":"revelation-through-others","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/","title":{"rendered":"Revelation through Others"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Weekly Overview:<\/h2>\n<p>One of the greatest privileges as a child of God is that we can have the heart of our heavenly Father. We don\u2019t have to wonder how he feels about us. We don\u2019t have to wonder if he will guide us. We don\u2019t have to question whether he loves us or cares about us. Through the Holy Spirit we have continual, free access to the heart of God. May your relationship with God go deeper and become freer as we learn how to have God\u2019s heart this week.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Scripture:<\/h2>\n<p><em>\u201cEach of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God\u2019s grace in its various forms.&#8221;<\/em> 1 Peter 4:10 (NIV)<\/p>\n<p><a name=\"worship\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Worship:<\/h2>\n<h3>We Sing As One by Young Oceans<\/h3>\n<p><\/p>\n<div style=\"display: block; margin: auto auto 30px auto; width: 100%; float:left;\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"display: block; margin: auto; float: left; border: 1px solid #000000; background-color: #484846; padding: 2px; -moz-border-radius: 3px; -khtml-border-radius: 3px; -webkit-border-radius: 3px; border-radius: 3px;\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/RQ49jaDYess?rel=0\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<h2>Devotional:<\/h2>\n<p>One of the chief ways God reveals his heart to us is revelation through fellow believers. Hebrews 10:24-25 says, <em>\u201cAnd let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.&#8221;<\/em> God has given us the ability to encourage one another\u2014to literally fill the hearts of fellow believers with courage to pursue fullness of life in the kingdom. He\u2019s given us the ability to <em>\u201cstir up one another to love and good works&#8221;<\/em> that we might fill one another with wholehearted devotion to Jesus both in word and deed.<\/p>\n<p>One of my favorite passages of Scripture is 2 Corinthians 4:5-7. Paul writes:<\/p>\n<div style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><em>For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus\u2019 sake. For God, who said, \u2018Let light shine out of darkness,\u2019 has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.<\/em><\/div>\n<p>God has given us his glory. He\u2019s given us the ability to proclaim not only ourselves, but <em>\u201cJesus Christ as Lord.&#8221;<\/em> The jars of clay Paul was referencing here were anything but perfect. They were fragile and easily broken. They were the material for the common person.<\/p>\n<p>God has chosen to display his power and love not through perfect carriers, but through us. He\u2019s chosen to use we who are common, we who are fragile and easily broken, that others might see his overwhelming grace and unconditional love.<\/p>\n<p>God knows the believers around you are imperfect. He knows they are weak and broken. He knows they have wounded you and oftentimes discouraged, rather than encouraged, you. But what encouragement can we find in God meeting those who are perfect? How could we possibly find hope if God only revealed himself through those without weakness? The greatest source of hope we have is that God would continuously offer grace to those who are undeserving. The greatest revelation of God\u2019s heart we have in others is that our Father never gives up on us but loves us unconditionally.<\/p>\n<p>Look to others for encouragement today. Look for the kindness of God revealed through the weakness and brokenness of fellow believers. And declare the grace of God to others today, not by seeking to appear perfect, but by proclaiming the goodness of a God who would fully love someone in their imperfection. May your heart be stirred today as God\u2019s heart is revealed through the earthen vessels he\u2019s filled with his glory.<\/p>\n<h2>Guided Prayer:<\/h2>\n<div style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">\n<p><strong>1. Reflect on God\u2019s desire to reveal his heart through others.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cFor what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus\u2019 sake. For God, who said, \u2018Let light shine out of darkness,\u2019 has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.&#8221;<\/em> 2 Corinthians 4:5-7<\/p>\n<p><strong>2. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you see God\u2019s heart in fellow believers.<\/strong> Ask him to teach you to see God\u2019s grace in the imperfections and brokenness of others.<\/p>\n<p><strong>3. Choose to reveal God\u2019s heart in your life today.<\/strong> Choose to encourage and stir up the hearts of others by declaring God\u2019s goodness even in your brokenness.<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cAnd let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.&#8221;<\/em> Hebrews 10:24-25<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cEach of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God\u2019s grace in its various forms.&#8221;<\/em> 1 Peter 4:10 (NIV)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>2 Corinthians 13:11 says, <em>\u201cFinally, brothers, rejoice. Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.&#8221;<\/em> God\u2019s heart is for unity. His heart is that we would embrace one another, seek to comfort and restore one another, and thereby encounter his love and peace. Unity isn\u2019t an option in Scripture; it\u2019s a command. It\u2019s not an option to allow strife and slander. It\u2019s not an option to leave broken relationships unmended. Seek restoration today. Allow God to fill you with the courage to show love and unmerited grace to fellow believers. And as you grow in unity with others you will experience a deeper understanding of God\u2019s unconditional love and affection for you. May today be marked by a powerful revelation of God\u2019s heart through others.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Extended Reading:<\/strong>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/passage\/?search=2+Corinthians+4&#038;version=ESV\" rel=\"alternate\">2 Corinthians 4<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Weekly Overview: One of the greatest privileges as a child of God is that we can have the heart of our heavenly Father. We don&#8217;t have to wonder how he feels about us. We don&#8217;t have to wonder if he will guide us. We don&#8217;t have to question whether he loves us or cares about&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":636,"featured_media":1568,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1565","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-first15"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Revelation through Others<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Weekly Overview: One of the greatest privileges as a child of God is that we can have the heart of our heavenly Father. We don&#8217;t have to wonder how he feels about us. We don&#8217;t have to wonder if he will guide us. We don&#8217;t have to question whether he loves us or cares about&hellip;\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Revelation through Others\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Weekly Overview: One of the greatest privileges as a child of God is that we can have the heart of our heavenly Father. We don&#8217;t have to wonder how he feels about us. We don&#8217;t have to wonder if he will guide us. We don&#8217;t have to question whether he loves us or cares about&hellip;\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"First15 Daily Devotional\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2012-07-27T06:00:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/450\/2021\/07\/4.20-550x367.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"550\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"367\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cdenison\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Revelation through Others","description":"Weekly Overview: One of the greatest privileges as a child of God is that we can have the heart of our heavenly Father. We don&#8217;t have to wonder how he feels about us. We don&#8217;t have to wonder if he will guide us. We don&#8217;t have to question whether he loves us or cares about&hellip;","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Revelation through Others","og_description":"Weekly Overview: One of the greatest privileges as a child of God is that we can have the heart of our heavenly Father. We don&#8217;t have to wonder how he feels about us. We don&#8217;t have to wonder if he will guide us. We don&#8217;t have to question whether he loves us or cares about&hellip;","og_url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/","og_site_name":"First15 Daily Devotional","article_published_time":"2012-07-27T06:00:01+00:00","og_image":[{"width":550,"height":367,"url":"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/450\/2021\/07\/4.20-550x367.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"cdenison","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/","name":"Revelation through Others","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/450\/2021\/07\/4.20.jpg","datePublished":"2012-07-27T06:00:01+00:00","dateModified":"2012-07-27T06:00:01+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/#\/schema\/person\/ab397c9ca5ade37b7fc66fefa43eb0cf"},"description":"Weekly Overview: One of the greatest privileges as a child of God is that we can have the heart of our heavenly Father. We don&#8217;t have to wonder how he feels about us. We don&#8217;t have to wonder if he will guide us. We don&#8217;t have to question whether he loves us or cares about&hellip;","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/450\/2021\/07\/4.20.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/450\/2021\/07\/4.20.jpg","width":5472,"height":3648},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/2012\/07\/revelation-through-others\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Revelation through Others"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/","name":"First15 Daily Devotional","description":"Scripture, reflection, prayer and more","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/#\/schema\/person\/ab397c9ca5ade37b7fc66fefa43eb0cf","name":"cdenison","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/author\/cdenison\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1565","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/636"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1565"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1565\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1568"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1565"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1565"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/first15\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1565"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}