Spiritual War

 

Last night I dreamed about a huge gathering of people to honor soldiers. These were not ordinary military but those in the song, “Onward Christian soldiers, marching on to war…” the members of God’s family who had been actively resisting sin and the enemy of our souls. In the dream I was aged enough to be an observer who prayed rather than being part of the army whose fight involved more than prayer. Today I’m thinking how apt for the NT writers to liken Christian life to that of a soldier.

First we are enlisted by the Holy Spirit to join up. Some think we volunteer and offer ourselves, but if that is so, it is only because the Spirit has been calling and the ability to respond was His doing.

Once in His army, we may have stereotypes about how to live as a soldier, but mainly no clue how a genuine soldier is supposed to behave. Status wise, we are soldiers, but in experience we need to be trained, put through bootcamp before we really know much about it. Not only that, learning comes at different rates and with different ‘lessons’ depending on each person’s background and former habits. Unlike a military army, our Commanding Officer takes this into consideration. He does not insist that everyone looks and acts the same. We progress according to individual mentoring as He knows best.

Yet we do progress. Each one IS a soldier, no matter if one marches out of step or another salutes with the wrong hand. Our identity in the army of God is the same — we belong to Jesus no matter how much we know about how to act or even how to go to battle. One thing is certain:

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6)

Sometimes a military person goes AWOL or drops out, or gets put out, but this is not true of God’s army. OT and NT believers are spoken of as God’s people who endure in faith and persist in obedience. Some “who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.” (Hebrews 11:33–34) And “No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.” (2 Timothy 2:4)

As I read books like “Born for Battle” and “Praying the Bible” God impresses on me the hard work of being in His army is not physical service (as hard as it can be) but prayer. After times of fervent prayer, I can feel as exhausted as if I had spent the day tending to the needs of those who have nothing. The “foreign armies” are not other belief systems or anti-God people but:

“We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12)

It is little wonder that the rest of Ephesians tells of the armor needed to fight this fight. If my head and heart are not protected by true thoughts, or if I’m not clothed in truth or using the Word of God which is my sword, I will experience no words to say, no perseverance in saying them in prayer or to others, and even no prayer at all. The enemy knows how to distract and disarm me, how to discourage and sidetrack me, even how to make me feel so tired that I’d rather sleep than do anything else, including battle him in prayer.

PRAY: Jesus, after years of civilian pursuits and trying to please myself or other people, You are putting my focus on my duties as Your soldier. Actually that dream was not quite the same as reality in Your army. Those who pray on the sidelines are warriors too, perhaps even in a greater sense than those more visible in ministry that involve physical effort in all sorts of serving. Right now, all I want is to be faithful in whatever You give me to do, not only in marching on to war, but making certain that Your cross and Your words go before to lead me, and that I am praising You and causing hell’s foundations to quiver. In this battle, the devil flees, and Your people are victorious and totally effective in defeating his lies and making You known. Amen!

Who is this Babe in a manger?

 

Can anyone adequately describe God? Or the Son of God who is the Word made flesh? Or the Holy Spirit who impresses truth in our hearts? Charnock tries, first by what the Bible says about their roles. All three had a role in creation. The Father is the lawgiver who presented His holiness to humanity and the way to our happiness. However, the fall into sin made us impotent to obey His law or experience the joy of union with Him. Redemption became necessary that humanity could be recovered. Jesus was given the task, but because humanity was blinded by sin and had turned to our own way, enlightenment was needed to change that condition. This work is assigned to the Holy Spirit.

In brief, the Father sends, and the Son is sent because God cannot properly send himself, so the Son acts, and the Holy Spirit applies it by purifying our souls to understand, believe, and love these mysteries. It is the wisdom of God to prepare and present these truths, then impress them on those He chooses.

As to the deity of Jesus Christ, God wisely “unites finite and infinite, almightiness and weakness, immortality and mortality, immutability, with a creature subject to change; to have a nature from eternity, and yet a nature subject to the revolutions of time; a nature to make a law, and a nature to be subjected to the law; to be God blessed forever, in the bosom of his Father, and an infant exposed to calamities from the womb of his mother — terms seeming most distant from union, most incapable of conjunction, to shake hands together, to be most intimately conjoined; glory and vileness, fulness and emptiness, heaven and earth; the creature with the Creator; he that made all things, in one person with a nature that is made; Immanuel, God, and man in one; that which is most spiritual to partake of that which is carnal flesh and blood; one with the Father in his Godhead, one with us in his manhood; the Godhead to be in him in the fullest perfection, and the manhood in the greatest purity; the creature one with the Creator, and the Creator one with the creature. Thus is the incomprehensible wisdom of God declared in the ‘Word being made flesh.’ ”

As Charnock says, this union of two natures in Christ is incomprehensible: and it is a mystery we cannot fully fathom. How can the Son who is the same nature as the Father and the Holy Spirit be united to human nature, without its being said that the Father and the Holy Ghost were made flesh? The Scripture speaks only of the Word being made flesh, and that He is “the only begotten of the Father.”

As the Bible affirms, deity is not changed into flesh, nor flesh transformed into God: they are distinct and yet united, conjoined and yet unmixed. It is impossible that the majesty of God can be altered or the “meanness of humanity” be changed into deity, yet the Incarnation of Jesus Christ unites the two so that the properties of both remain firm. Two become one person in two natures containing the perfections of the Divine, and the weaknesses of the human.

For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily. (Colossians 2:9)
Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. (Hebrews 2:14–15)

This Christmas season puts my focus even more on who Jesus is, this babe born in a manger. Reading the above explanations fills my heart with joy. I know that Jesus delivers from the power of sin as well as from the guilt of sin. I’ve learned how trusting Him keeps me from evil and delivers me from temptation. I do not need to rely on my own ideas or efforts for salvation because Christ is able and willing to keep me from falling and will restore me even when I do fall.

PRAY: Jesus, You have cleansed my heart and by grace continue to work through the power of Your Spirit to transform me into the person You intend me to be. I give myself to You because only You can purge me, cleanse me, and sanctify me. Your plan shows both my need and Your incredible ability to  meet that need, to change my heart and delivery me from both the penalty and the power of sin. I look forward to being with You and being delivered from even the presence of sin. You are able and willing and I am joyful.

Put off the dead stuff…

Imagine having a billion dollar bank account, getting statements each month, but not believing it, so you are working hard to keep afloat financially. If that seems silly, imagine having faith in Christ and being dead to sin, reading what God says and still not sure this is true, particularly each time you disobey God. In both cases, inner thoughts do not line up with facts like this:

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming. In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. (Colossians 3:1–10)

Key to both issues is what I am listening to? Is it the statements regarding my wealth? Is it the Word of God stating my status? Or am I looking at something else? The above passage asks, “If you have been raised with Christ” — a question puts those who hear it into a dilemma. How do I measure the answer?

I remember one man who claimed to be sinless. He said that salvation was death to sin and since he was saved, he no longer sinned. Anyone who knew him knew otherwise, but this man measured his answer by what he wanted to be true, and that desire blinded him to reality:

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. (1 John 1:8)

If I have money in the bank and yet insist I am poor and do not rely on that money, I would be like a person who claims to be saved, but is not relying on the Lord Jesus Christ to redeem him. I might be trying hard to redeem myself, or like the man I knew, denying I needed further work and denying there is any sin left to fight. What is true?

Today’s devotional talks about reckoning or considering. The Bible says that because of faith in God’s Word, I have died and my life is hidden with Christ in God. But it also speaks of earthly things in me, things to put off and not rely on or be involved in. I have to live according to what God says, not according to what I think or want.

The error comes by supposing “to live I must first die” or lose my life and find my life hid with God. However, the Bible says I am already dead. I don’t need to die, but to realize what I already am dead to that old life because of what Jesus has done. Reckoning is thinking the truth, not making it happen. When I think the truth, it shows up in the way I live, not the other way around. In other words, I don’t have to make a large income and deposit it in my account because that account is already full, established, there for me to live. Not ignore as if I didn’t have it and had to work hard to get it.

Putting off the old way is realizing the old way is a lie and no longer alive. Instead, I am not spiritual poor but very rich in the resources of my Redeemer!

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)

Losing the old life is key to discovering the new, but key to losing the old life is realizing and believing it is already lost, dead to God and useless. What I have in Christ is life and truth and reality, not a charge to go get it.

PRAY: Feelings, sinful behavior, any kind of selfishness can mess with truth, and Jesus, that is a big reason You tell me to shed that stuff and live in the joy You give. It happens by loving You and loving others and reckoning truth about me — truth that You proclaim and even put in writing for me to read and rejoice — to believe and obey. Sometimes this is difficult to explain, yet knowing the truth sets me free from that deceptive and useless self-effort.

 

Pray as Jesus prayed

 

The Lord has brought so much to my attention concerning prayer that I’ve been emotional as well as uncertain when I talk to Him. At times, just knowing His presence seems enough. He is sovereignly working out His purposes in this world, even using the evil for good (How can that be?) And hearing every thought, not just those spoken. He has shown me that He reaches people according to each one’s situation and nature, that He knows their hearts and where they are on their spiritual journey. I’m ignorant of all that, unless He reveals it to me. How then do I pray for others?

This morning, God directs me to how Jesus prayed. His prayer is longer, but these verses tell me more about communication with Him:

I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth. “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. (John 17:14–23)

His Word alone is filled with prayer instruction, not only the outline given in what we call “The Lord’s prayer” but the cry of His people is recorded from Genesis to Revelation. My prayer life is not always following those examples or using what the saints of old said to help me with what to say.

Because the world hates Christians, that also is instruction for prayer, not to ask that unsaved people love me, but ask that my life is so filled with the Spirit of God that I fall into that category. I must not let the ideas of the world stop me from prayer or influence the way I pray either.

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. (1 John 2:15–17)

 Fleshy desires could include prayers asking for personal comfort, for a new car, for that dress in the store window, for recognition, all sorts of ego boosters. With Jesus in my heart and oneness with Him, I recognize selfish I-wants when they pop up. Godly praying confesses such desires rather than asking God for them.

Sanctified by truth means reading it and praying it. Praying that I be set apart to serve Jesus and tell others about Him is also part of what Jesus asked for me. If I am one with Him, then my priorities in prayer need to fit with His priorities. He wanted the world to believe that God the Father sent God the Son to love them and to die for them. That is a high priority on His prayer list and should be on mine.

He prayed about giving me the glory that God gave Him — so people would know the truth. Praying that I live out that glory and not hide it out of fear because those who see it hate it. I don’t want them to hate me also but it can happen. So I need to pray for boldness and a deep desire to glorify Jesus and not myself.

PRAY: This prayer You prayed is filled with instruction on how to pray. I am not You, but am one with You and what better way to show it than praying for myself and for others as You prayed for us… so I will. Amen.

Justice or mercy — or both?

Loving parents fall into a quandary when they make a rule that requires strict obedience, their child breaks that rule, and the parent feels terrible about inflicting punishment. If there is none, rules will be meaningless. If inflicted, the relationship will likely suffer.

Think of God in Eden. “Do not eat that fruit” and when it happened, the justice of God pleads for punishment, but the mercy of God pleas for pardoning. What is a loving God to do? How does the all-wise God deal with this situation?

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)

Jesus died to take our punishment — “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” And the love of God sent Him to satisfy the demands of both justice and mercy. Justice is served by the shedding of His blood without one drop of our own.

As Charnock writes, the riches of grace are twisted with the terrors of wrath and the depth of God’s mercy is wound about the flaming sword of justice and that sword of justice protects and secures the depth of mercy. Because of what Jesus did, justice cannot complain for want of punishment, nor mercy for want of compassion. This infinite sacrifice satisfies justice and delights mercy and shouts out to us the wisdom of God.

How amazing that God is righteous without being cruel, and merciful without being unjust. His mercy shines in the midst of all that sin deserves. Yes, all have sinned and fall short, but we…

…are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. (Romans 3:24–25)

As Charnock points out in his section on the wisdom of God, both justice and mercy would be unknown if one of them been sacrificed for the other. Had we been solely fostered by mercy, justice would have forever been secluded. Had we being guilty and been absolved, mercy might have rejoiced, and justice might have complained; but had we been solely punished, justice would have triumphed, and mercy grieved.

Because of God’s wisdom, justice and mercy are both satisfied. The death of His sinless Son is a horror, but if God went one way or the other, we would face “either an unrighteous mercy, or a merciless justice.” Instead, His love gave us a righteous mercy, and a merciful justice.”

Not only that the wisdom of God comes in a great variety of ways, all mysterious and every example fillsl me with wonder. This list describes His redemption plan and how it brought the glory of God with the salvation of man, the defeat of the apostate angels, the discovery of the blessed Trinity in God’s nature, and all He does in combined and distinct acts and expressions of goodness. Salvation reveals the conjunction of three natures, infinitely distinct from one another; the union of eternity and time, mortality and immortality, and death is made the way to life, with shame becoming the path to glory.

Not only that, the weakness of the cross is the reparation of man, and the creature is made wise by the foolishness of preaching. Fallen man grows rich by the poverty of the Redeemer, and we are filled by the emptiness of God. The heir of hell is made a child of God by God taking upon Himself the “form of a servant” and children of men advanced to the highest degree of honor by the Son of God becoming of “no reputation.”

For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. (Hebrews 2:10)

And Jesus in the garden praying with drops of blood and saying: “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” (Luke 22:42) Was there no other way? Had the sinless Jesus something else in mind? Likely not, but even if He did, He yielded to death that we might live.

PRAY: I cannot fathom Your wisdom, Lord God, nor question it. You choose the only way to punish sin yet save sinners. My heart rejoices at the great decision You made so I could be set free to love and serve You. Not my will but Yours be done.

 

The nature of saving faith…

Human faith is knowing the lights will turn on when the switch is flipped because we have tried it and proven to our minds that it is true. Human faith is also deciding to believe the salesman because we have done our homework and found that the product he pitches has been tested and approved by 99% of other customers. Human faith is based on evidence.

What about spiritual faith, the faith that gives us a relationship with Jesus Christ and the sure promised of eternity with Him? The Bible says this is different:

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1)
And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. (Hebrews 11:6)
By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. (Hebrews 11:8)
By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back. (Hebrews 11:17–19)
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Ephesians 2:8–9)
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. (Romans 10:17)

Human faith requires proof and a decision. However, faith in Christ is a gift from God through hearing Him speak.

However, God also says of those who heard: “But I ask, have they not heard? Indeed they have, for ‘Their voice has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world.’ But I ask, did Israel not understand? First Moses says, ‘I will make you jealous of those who are not a nation; with a foolish nation I will make you angry.’ Then Isaiah is so bold as to say, ‘I have been found by those who did not seek me; I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me.’ But of Israel he says, ‘All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people.’ ” (Romans 10:18–21)

Israel rejected what they heard. Their faith was in themselves rather than in the Lord, and their response to Him was clouded by their DIY determination, as the NT explains:

For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. (Romans 10:2–4)

Human faith trusts all sorts of things, but the faith that saves sinners from God’s wrath is about not trusting myself or anything I do or think. It is trusting Jesus Christ and what God says about Him. He took my penalty for sin and died in my place. This faith is about the object, about who or what we trust.

“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6)

He rose from the dead. He promises that all who trust Him are set free from the law that says ‘sin and die.’ He grants His righteousness to all who believe and in Him. We are no longer condemned.

The only thing that can keep anyone from the punishment sin deserves is that “do it yourself” attitude. God says no one can be saved that way because that way is actually sinful — it is a declaration of “I don’t need God” and a denial of His gift, even if the person who thinks that way has never heard about Jesus.

Today’s reading says, “A large proportion of God’s children never get beyond these hopes and longings. “I hope my sins will be forgiven some day”; “I hope I may be favored to reach heaven at last”; “I hope God loves me”; “I hope Christ died for me.” How can these be called “God’s children” for without faith, they are only His by creation and not part of His forever family because they lack genuine saving faith.

PRAY: Jesus, Your Word says it plainly to me, yet it seems many are filled with doubts rather than assurance of eternal life. You know who belongs to You and who makes the claim without genuine faith. You also know what to do about it. So again I pray for those who are unsure and leave them in Your capable hands. Turn them from ‘hope so’ to ‘know so’ as You see fit and as only You can do.

God’s power over evil…

Someone I know well is a member of a cult. His faith is not in Jesus as God in human flesh who took our punishment for sin. He believes Jesus died to give us the right and power to earn our salvation. While that idea is not biblical, he also believes a few things that do agree with the Bible. One of them is the confidence that God will defeat evil, yet not realizing that He already has.

Today’s chapter in “Born for Battle” says that despite the suffering in the world and the severe persecution of genuine Christians and even of those who claim to be but are not, the power of God will overcome Satan. Actually, He already has. This enemy is now on a short leash, and as the reading says, he is merely a pawn in God’s will, as are those who hold firm to their sin.

Surely the wrath of man shall praise you; the remnant of wrath you will put on like a belt. (Psalm 76:10)

That book’s author also quotes this verse to show that the storm of hate that evil stirs up is used for God’s purposes: "This Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men." (Acts 2:23)

The very worst evil could do actually turned out to be the very best that ever happened. And because of that, I need to be careful how I evaluate the events of life. Peter was not thinking right when he heard and responded as Jesus told him what would soon happen:

From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” (Matthew 16:21–23)

The idea of God killing Jesus was foreign to him and still is for many. The Jews did it, or the jealous Pharisees, but how could God crucify His sinless Son?

Yet He did. There was no flaw in His plan. For a time, Peter thought so and became Satan’s mouthpiece. Eventually he learned that God’s redemptive purpose moves along a path of suffering and sacrifice — and as my reading says, any diversion from that is from Satan. For that reason, I’m learning to be careful how I think about the world news and God’s will. We Christians tend to want heaven on earth, a return to Eden in our lifetime. However, the Bible does not promise this and we  remain in a spiritual battle.

Jesus has defeated the enemy, yet this enemy still thrashes about, injuring and deceiving, destroying and duping even sincere people away from faith in the true Savior, salvation that could be theirs by the grace of God. Yet the God who makes the wrath of man praise Him can also take the evil done by their wrath and use it to bring those who fight Him to their knees at the foot of the cross. For me, this is truth that instructs me how to pray for hardened sinners. God can use their sin to save them. Nothing is too difficult for God.

PRAY: Lord Jesus, even my own sin drives me to You. May the sin in the world have that effect on many, that Your goodness is recognized and glorified, even in the mess we humans insist on making. You rebuked Peter for setting his mind on ‘comfortable’ yet You also made of him a strong testimony to Your grace. How badly I need that same power in my life that You may be exalted and the enemy resisted.

God uses calamity for good…

My husband is spiritually gifted as a leader and drawn to watch the daily news. I’m an ‘information gatherer’ yet have little desire to gather that information. The difference between us is intriguing. He is big picture and I am details. However, today’s readings from Charnock give me more interest in world events. This writer explains how God, in His wisdom, brings disasters for His purposes.

Therefore the Lord has kept ready the calamity and has brought it upon us, for the Lord our God is righteous in all the works that he has done, and we have not obeyed his voice. (Daniel 9:14)

First, His timing is always perfect. The judgment on Sodom was suspended until Lot was safe. The early church was not invaded by violent persecutions until established in the faith. Paul was secured from Nero’s chains and the nets of his enemies until he had broke off the chain of the devil from many cities of the Gentiles.

God’s wisdom brings good out of evil using even sin and punishment. The church is more like heaven when most persecuted; the storms of trials have often cleansed it. Job’s integrity was clarified when the devil was permitted to afflict him. God outwits Satan when He uses his temptations to purify us. He brings the clearest light out of the thickest darkness, makes poisons to become medicines. Death itself, the greatest punishment in this life, God has made to his people the gate of heaven, our entrance into immortality.

More examples: The Jews bind Paul and send him to Rome. His mouth is stopped in Judea, but opened in one of the greatest cities of the world, and his enemies unwittingly contribute to the increase of the knowledge of Christ by those chains where he was faithfully “proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.” (Acts 28:31)

His bonds also encouraged others: “And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.” (Philippians 1:14) How often has God used suffering which appears like judgment to gain favor to the gospel among sinners? How often has He multiplied the church by death and massacres and increased it by those means used to annihilate it?

God could use supernatural means, but often does not. For instance, when Jacob’s family was facing starvation in Canaan, He could have turned the stones of their country into bread, but He sends them to Egypt opening a way for their their removal from that place and revealing His saving power.

God could have struck Goliath with a thunderbolt from heaven when he blasphemed His name, but He used the natural strength of a stone and the motion of a sling by the arm of David to confront the giant and free Judea from this enemy.

God can use anything from the veering of the wind to change the results of a naval battle or even the accidental stumbling of a horse to fling a leader in battle. The wisdom of God uses the natural order to work out His intended preservation of His people.

I form light and create darkness; I make well-being and create calamity; I am the Lord, who does all these things. (Isaiah 45:7)

Charnock changed my interest in the news by saying “troubles and wars among a people are many times not destroying, but medicinal” and intended to cure people of the sin that is going to destroy them, sin often contracted during a long term of peace. This is not obvious, yet it makes sense and fits with God’s goodness.

PRAY: Jesus, I now better understand how and why the world is in such a mess. It seems to me that You are saying “You want to run your own lives? Let’s see how that works.” Yet this goes farther. You allow the turmoil to correct, or to bring out good, that many people will not experience the wrath yet to come. May Your will be done.

 

Read Carefully

When reading the Bible, I’m seeing the importance of word order. For instance, one verse says to yield to God and resist the devil and he will flee from me. It does not say God will flee or that I can resist the devil first and then yield to God. If I’m not yielded to God, I have no power to resist the devil.

Another passage, quoted in today’s devotional, has a sequential order too. Without paying attention to it, I could make a serious error:

At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 18:1–4)

Several versions interpret “turn” as repent or “be converted” which definitely comes first according to the rest of Scripture. Being reborn begins the transformation to child-likeness and that new birth is the entrance to God’s kingdom. After that, the humbling process of spiritual growth makes the new Christian greater than he/she was before that conversion, and more like a humble child. Those who are humbled in that childlike way become great in God’s kingdom.

Unfortunately, some will interpret this passage to say that getting into the kingdom is only for those who first become like little children. One example: “Become a little child, then, by laying aside all your greatness, self-assertion, self-dependence, wisdom, and strength, and consent to die to your own self-life and be born again into the kingdom of God.” This makes salvation a matter of assuming the right attitude, doing the right things, all good works, yet the NT repeatedly affirms that doing the right things is the ‘result’ of salvation. No one is saved by their own efforts.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Ephesians 2:8–9)

I’ve met those who attend church, serve in various ways, and speak often of “I decided to follow…” or “I did…” They seem to mean well yet their salvation is about their choice to follow Jesus. However, Jesus said:

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. (John 15:16)

This topic of genuine salvation seems to come up often. It reminds me repeatedly how Jesus came into my life and surprised me. I don’t remember the date but vividly recall the day. He changed my life. I’ve nothing to boast about. Since then, He keeps dealing with my stubborn pride, showing me how helpless I am without His Spirit, and that being like a child is impossible as a decision or an action. As my King and my Savior, He must do this in me. Those who speak of laying aside self don’t seem to realize that that kind of statement comes across as a do-it-yourself project and is in total contradiction to:

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)

How did I get to this understanding? It was not by choice. The Holy Spirit and circumstances of life, the thorns in my flesh, the trials and failures, the love of God — all teach me that I am nothing and Jesus is everything. He is wisdom and grace and goodness. Without Him, I can do nothing and am merely a blip in the passage of time.

PRAY: Jesus, these claims of being able to choose and to turn our lives around make me incredibly sad. As long as a person thinks that way, the humility of a child cannot describe them. Isn’t childlikeness being aware of my limitations, not that ‘I can do it myself’ attitude? Isn’t trusting You about leaning on You for everything, even the ability to lean on You? Oh Lord, enable me to pray rightly for those who twist Your Word to justify their self-effort, but also never to fall into that same misunderstanding. If pride in self shows up, deal with it quickly — that You are glorified and never me.

Motivated by a new life…

 

Today’s reading from Charnock’s amazing book describes how God reaches those who are not yet His people and uses their ‘nature’ as part of His offer. He begins by saying how the devil tempts us by offering that which appeals to our corrupt nature. For instance, if a person is violent, the temptations will fit that temperament. If they are gentle, the temptation will not be the same, but more suited to the nature already in that person.

He then says that the wisdom of God does not destroy a person’s nature or try to change it to a radical opposite, but makes it correspond to our faculties. His example is Saul, who wanted what he thought was right and vigorously went after it. Then on the road to Damascus, God confronted this man and revealed to him what genuine rightness was (Christ) and this man vigorously went after it, not in His own strength but in the power of the Holy Spirit. His motivation was still there but transformed to God’s will.

I’ve taken courses in spiritual gifts that say those seven motivational gifts in Romans 12 are present before salvation — a part of human nature but corrupted by sin. When Christ comes in, these motivations are activated, and in the power of the Holy Spirit, they form the way God uses that person.

Charnock describes the process of God in clearing our understanding of dark principles so we may see his truth, our own misery, and the source of true happiness. He bends our wills according to this light, to desire and move to this end of our calling “efficaciously, yet agreeably; powerfully, yet without imposing on our natural faculties; sweetly, without violence, in ordering the means; but effectually, without failing, in accomplishing the end.”

Charnock says the Scripture calls it teaching, alluring, and calling. Teaching is an act of wisdom: “It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me.” (John 6:45).

Alluring is an act of love: “And there I will give her her vineyards and make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. And there she shall answer as in the days of her youth, as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt” (Hosea 2:15).

Calling is an act of authority: “You have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, Lord, do I seek.” (Psalm 27:8).

He says, and I agree, that none of these are violent constraints. God moves in them and the human will concurs. He changes the moral nature but not the physical. He lets the nature remain, but changes the principle in it: the understanding remains understanding, and the will remains will. But where there was before folly in the understanding, He puts in a spirit of wisdom; and where there was before a stoutness in the will, He forms it to a pliableness to his offers.

There is more, but this is enough to fill me with awe. A book on spiritual gifts lists what appeals to each of the gifts. For instance, those gifted as teachers are information gatherers and want to know facts that make sense. Those gifted in compassion are concerned about feelings rather than logic and want to experience God’s love.

This information hits me as I am praying for many who do not know Jesus. However, they are motivated in various ways. I know the servers and exhorters among them, and now God shows me how He works with these motivations so giving me ideas for how to pray for them.

PRAY: Jesus, there are times when You answer my prayers about how to pray for others and Your answers leave me stunned, yet eager to get at it. This is one of those times. My heart is almost dizzy to see the connection between human nature and the varying ways that You teach, allure and call people to Yourself. My desire for information and for knowing the right way to do things, has always been part of who I am. Now I understand much more about who others are and how to pray for them in ways that fit with Your wisdom. This is amazing, and I’m so thankful.

Eagles or Horses?

Writers love using familiar events or illustrations from nature, science and other human experiences to illustrate spiritual truths. The Lord is my Shepherd is a familiar one. Some verses liken the care of God to a mother hen spreading her wings over her chicks. Today’s devotional uses horses and eagles.

I have both positive and negative memories for both. My horses were my best friends, but one of them took a notion to run under a tree. My head hit a hefty branch and I lost my memory for a time. Another stepped in a badger hole and both of us went head over heels.
As for eagles, my best memory is seeing one in Alaska being harassed by a crow. Finally the eagle convulsed as if hurt, but it wasn’t. It had tightened its talons and the crow dropped from the sky.

Today’s devotionals cites two passages. One is about eagles…

Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:28–31)

This powerful bird illustrates the strength God gives to those who wait for the Lord rather than moving forward without His guidance or strength. Like an eagle, we rise above our fatigue and the feeling of being weak and unable.

The other passage is about horses…

For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.” But you were unwilling, and you said, “No! We will flee upon horses”; therefore you shall flee away; and, “We will ride upon swift steeds”; therefore your pursuers shall be swift. A thousand shall flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five you shall flee, till you are left like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain, like a signal on a hill. (Isaiah 30:15–17)

Instead of waiting, if I pick something else that I think will accomplish the task at hand, I will find that I cannot escape the problem. These word pictures not only spell out the folly of taking matters into my own hands, but that God can use me as an example for others to show them what not to do — like a flag or a signal on a hill.

Another passage comes to mind...

Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses, who trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel or consult the Lord! And yet he is wise and brings disaster; he does not call back his words, but will arise against the house of the evildoers and against the helpers of those who work iniquity. The Egyptians are man, and not God, and their horses are flesh, and not spirit. When the Lord stretches out his hand, the helper will stumble, and he who is helped will fall, and they will all perish together. (Isaiah 31:1–3)

Egypt points to bondage and the power of sin to enslave. If I trust the things of my old life that appear to be powerful and fail to consult the Lord, I’m relying on flesh rather than Spirit. Another prophet warns: “Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord.” (Jeremiah 17:5)

The NT states this clearly:

For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. (Romans 8:5–8)

PRAY: Thankfully, the next verse says, “You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness.” (Romans 8:9–10) Jesus, I rejoice in the new life and in Your gift of being able to soar like an eagle and see the trials of life fall beneath me and into Your hands. Thank You so much.

The war begins with me…

Spiritual warfare is a struggle between light and darkness. God has secured the victory, but Satan still attempts to wage war against God and His people. Light is sourced in God and infuses all that is good; darkness is sourced in Satan and permeates all that is evil. Many verses speak about this:

For it is you who light my lamp; the Lord my God lightens my darkness. (Psalm 18:28)
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone. (Isaiah 9:2)
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:5)
And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. (John 3:19)
Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12)
To open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’ (Acts 26:18)
For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (2 Corinthians 4:6)
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? (2 Corinthians 6:14)
Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. (Ephesians 5:11)
He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, (Colossians 1:13)

All believers face spiritual warfare, sometimes very clear and evident, but often subtle and elusive. The victory is in direct proportion to our obedience to Jesus Christ, not at all by our own strength or  strategies. Romans 6:16 says, “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?” Putting on the full armor of God is also key in battling against evil. It is described in Ephesians 6:11-17. This is not a magical formula but truth in a word picture. For example, the belt of truth is knowing and obeying the truth in God’s Word.

However, stepping out of God’s will opens the door to Satan’s destructive power, even though he also attacks when I am right in the middle of God’s will. “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7) is the promise to lean on. Also, I’m not to give up too quickly. Resist until victory comes.

Since I can only wage this war from a point of strength, I need to keep short accounts with God regarding sin. Three areas need discerning and protection…

A strong mind takes every thought captive…

We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:5)
So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 2:1–5)
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. (Philippians 4:8)

A pure heart involves emotions and attitudes…

See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled. (Hebrews 12:15)
Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” (Romans 12:19) Also James 1:14-27.

Guard my mouth because…

Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits. (Proverbs 18:21)
For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body…. And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell… but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing…(James 3:2–12)

PRAY: Jesus, just reading these verses shows me the importance of obedience to getting my prayers answered for others. If I’m not right with You, You will deal with me before You respond to my requests. Not only that, praying has far greater power than many realize. If my prayers are selfishly motivated so I will be more comfortable, shame on me. Purify my heart and may I be properly clothed in the armor of prayer — always — and for Your glory!

All things means all things...

This week a twelve-year-old child told me that when a Christian sins, it draws them closer to God. In the context of that conversation, how amazing that a child figures out what many adults do not get.  Charnock’s book says the wonder of God’s wisdom is that He can take a sin that we consider fits us for hell and use it as an occasion to fit us for heaven. He can use it to produce in us a more humble faith and a more thorough sanctification. Such growth in grace prepares us for a state of glory. He is an awesome God.

Charnock illustrates saying how the stirring of corruption makes all the mud at the bottom appear, mud that I did not suspect was there. It comes out with the stirring and this discovers and separates it so I can confess it. Sin makes my conscience more tender. I am more watchful and realize that my enemy has more strength than I suspected. I become more diligent, more aware of the deceitfulness of my heart and better able to watch for and resist sin, “more careful of anything that may contribute to the resurrection of an expired disease.”

Another illustration is how a scorpion or a bee loses its sting when it bites, it becomes incapable of a second attack. Like Peter after his gross denial, he never denied his Master afterwards. That sin lost its power. In the same way, any sin that is undiscovered and then, by a fall, becomes visible, becomes more horrible to me and others, and causes those who sin to take a tighter hold on Christ and a greater determination to defeat sin. His forgiveness and cleansing results in more zeal and more strength because of have less confidence in myself, and more in God.

Charnock notes that David prayed, “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.” (Psalm 51:3) He was not praying for his single sin with Bathsheba, but realized more of his general sinfulness.

Also, a great fall sometimes becomes the occasion of a person’s conversion, just as God uses the sins of His people to bring a more extensive sanctification. The only wise God makes poisons in nature to become medicines in His grace and wisdom. Through the mighty working of the Spirit, He makes us more humble and humility fits us to receive even greater blessings: “He gives more grace…. God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6)

In describing true repentance, the Bible says:

For see what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you, but also what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what punishment! At every point you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter. (2 Corinthians 7:11)

I’ve realized that If evil were not in the world, we would not know what good is, nor would we understand the power of God’s wisdom, just as without night we could not understand the beauty of the day. Even though God is not the author of sin because of his holiness, He uses sin by His wisdom, and accomplishes His purposes by the iniquities of his enemies, and the lapses and infirmities of his friends.

PRAY: Jesus, just as You make this clear and as Ephesians 1 points out, You work all things according to the counsel of Your will, even our sin, so we might be praise of Your glory. May my faith in You run so deep then whenever sin strikes, I respond by confessing it and listening for what You are saying. Enable me to obey You accordingly, rather than making excuses or doing anything else that sinfully neglects to honor You.

God’s joy is our strength and even more…

Last night, Christian friends came for supper, friends whose lives are transparent and joyful and who understand the deeper things of God. They came from much persecution to this country and now work with homeless and often dangerous people. Their joy is infectious and time with them fills us with the same joy. The Spirit does that, even as the trials and problems remain. Paul wrote this:

Working together with him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For he says, “In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation. We put no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; by truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; through honor and dishonor, through slander and praise. We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.” (2 Corinthians 6:1–10)

Amazing that all we would call discomfort and persecution did not ruin the power of God to fill him with and his coworkers with praise, honor, a good reputation and ministry, and even rejoicing. This is a deeper truth.

I’ve noticed how often today’s church-goers pray for removal of such things as affliction, hardship, sleepless nights and so on. Paul knew (and our friends know) that the Holy Spirit can give joy even in those situations. That is our victory. Being filled with His power. Nothing may get “fixed” but the sense of well-being and joy is fully ours.

As I write this, my emotions are those that come with faith. The devotional writer says not to rely on or depend on our emotions, but for me, I do rely on joy to tell me something. I’ve learned that if joy is not there, it means the Spirit is not filling me — and when that happens, I’m filled with some selfish idea or depending on myself rather than the Lord. He is often quick to show me what I need to confess. Doing things my way always blocks God’s way and when it does, the joy of the Lord fades into the background.

This joy isn’t about circumstances. Nothing that is difficult or sends me to my knees in prayer has changed. The unbelief of some that are close family member or friends has not changed. The world is still in a mess. But God’s joy is not about all things being right; it is about me being right with God.

PRAY: Lord Jesus, time with others who understand the power of Your Spirit to give joy even in trials is edifying and we are so grateful for the transparency and love that flows out of their lives and out of ours back to them. This kind of fellowship is rare and precious and such a great blessing. Thank You for these friends and for Your joy that not only is our strength, but also binds us together with those who realize the same wonder of Your grace and goodness to us. You care for us, no matter what.

God uses ALL things...

 

When I don’t want to admit unloving attitudes, it is easy to rename them so they seem okay. I might be ‘righteously indignant’ about sin, or even excuse bad behavior because I am tired. This happens to many. Today’s devotional reading says: “The root and cause then of our wavering experience is not, as we may have thought, our sins, but is simply and only our doubts.”

The Bible clearly indicates that doubt and unbelief are indeed sins, the very sin that is the opposite of faith and trusting God. This is the same as any other sin and needs to be confessed as such. Merely moaning over such a lack does nothing. Nor does trying harder. Like any other sin, it must be confessed as such.

This ties to another reading, more from Charnock’s book in the section about why God allows sin. He describes how God uses it in our lives. Renaming it and calling it something else is a mistake that keeps us from experiencing His power to change our lives. Charnock gives many examples.

Without sin, I would have no humility or compassion for others to speak of them about salvation. Holy sorrow would have no fuel nor would God need to exercise His patience, nor would I. Charnock and the Bible say patience is one of the noblest virtues.

God also uses sin to produce the sense of need to depend on Him. Sin causes me to run to Him for refuge, to lower my self-confidence and trust Him instead. It brings me closer to God. He actually used it to bring me receptive to the gospel and also to further His work in changing my life.

By permitting lapses, the Lord shows me the folly of trying to live for Him in my own strength and teaches me to rely more and more on Christ. No one knows the nature of Paul’s thorn in the flesh, but God used it to bring this Christian leader to greater confidence in God and less in himself.

So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:7–10)

Just as God permitted sin to enter into the world to honor and reveal Himself in the Redeemer, we daily battle sin and even in losing that battle at times, I discover the greatness of His love and the persistence of His redemption, also the wisdom of imputed righteousness. If I had become sinless, I could easily boast in that and have no need for His continual saving power. If God removed all  remainders of sin and guilt, I would forget that I am a fallen creature and that He is my Redeemer. Sin reminds me of my condition without Him and of His perpetual care. God also lets me see what filth yet remains in me and how He keeps cleansing me so I do not forget about His blood that washes it away.

Again, sin reminds me of my impotency. I cannot expiate it, nor conform to the law. I must wrap myself in grace and say: “Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.” (Romans 7:24–25) and “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set (me) free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.” (Romans 8:1–2)

Sometimes my courage for God is sharpened by the shame of my sin. I want to serve Him more and be less apt to fall for Satan’s lies or the world’s temptations. He let the original fall happen for that end. Not only that, my errors and disobediences beat down pride. Charnock points to Hezekiah who was more humbled by his fall into pride than by all the distress he experienced (2 Chronicles 32:26) and  Peter whose confidence before his fall gave way to humility after it.

PRAY: Jesus, I don’t always understand all You do, yet realize if I make excuses for my sin, I will miss the wonder of You using even it to change my heart and realize the incredible value of Your wisdom and love for me. You desire a life change — and I need to admit what changes are needed, not rename or make excuses for what You call sin. Keep my eyes on You too, not only when I need instruction but also when I need rebuke and correction.

Fasting is not always about food…

 

The Bible speaks about fasting as a way of self-denial to focus on the Lord, particularly in prayer. It is said to be humbling as well as an occasion of repentance and complete dedication. Like any other pious activity, it can be imitated in the flesh and used to draw attention to “how devoted I am” or how religious. This hypocrisy is rebuked a few times. The OT says:

‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’ Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure, and oppress all your workers. Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to hit with a wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high. Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Will you call this a fast, and a day acceptable to the Lord? (Isaiah 58:3–5)

This passage goes on to say that a true fast is one in which the intent is to minister to needy people. It includes prayer for them, but also action whenever possible that takes care of needs.
The NT rebukes fasting also. Note that Jesus did not forbid it, but strikes out against the fleshy motivation that seeks honor for outward actions that appear to be pious…

And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (Matthew 6:16–18)

Jesus always looks at the heart. I’m planning dinner for a family this weekend and as I searched for recipes, found myself thinking, “This dessert is impressive” or “That salad looks heavenly” when I realized this dinner was not to impress them with my culinary skills; it is to feed them and be hospitable to them. This attitude does not fast from food on my part, but denies self-glory. It is obedience to Christ who calls me to love His people.

For me, the actual fast where food is not eaten is very difficult. Not long into it, I get such a severe headache that I cannot continue. Forgetting self in other ways is more achievable, but I still need to rely on the Holy Spirit. With God’s help, I can spend a day making food, etc. and praying for friends and others much more effectively than denying food for myself.
That said, Jesus denied food. His situation becomes an example for me, not about fasting as much as it challenges me to not rely on physical sustenance or my ‘I-wants’ as much as on His Word.

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ” (Matthew 4:1–4)

His self-denial was Spirit-led, not motivated to impress others or seek any other personal gain. He became hungry after the fast lasted a long time, revealing the depth of His focus. The devil appealed to His humanity, the human need for food, but also challenged His identity and power as God the Son. Jesus responded by truth from Scripture and with that, the devil had to try a different tactic.

The hypocrites do not get a word (rhema) from God to fast and are not led into self-denial where they face temptation. Besides that, fasting just to impress others has already brought them into disobedience. And like the tempter, when that does not work, sinful people come up with other ways to impress people (like spectacular stunts or great financial gains).

Jesus’ answer to such nonsense is simple and profound: If you want life, real life, listen to God. Rhema means a word fit for the moment. It is about guidance for each situation. As the next two temptations and His responses reveal, seeking any sort of self-glory is not what God wants from His sons and daughters. I’m not to test His love with demands to prove Himself or any form of  ‘gimme the world’ prayers.

PRAY: Jesus, You make it clear that real life involves taking up my cross (death to self) whether it is in fasting or spending time and effort with others, or anything else You ask me to do. It also involves listening. You will give precise directions, sending me into the wilderness or elsewhere, and You will also give me answers when the temptations come, answers that make the devil give up and leave. Thank You.

 

Miserable Christians?

 

The devotional book I selected for this year has taught me much, yet not directly. The author wrote much about Christians who are miserable because they do not believe God. Some of it made me wonder if any of the people referred to were even saved. Most Christians I know are not ‘miserable’ in their walk with Jesus but experiencing much joy. Even when times are tough, they are trusting Him. Some complain but seek His will and are growing in grace and faith.

After eleven plus months, I began to wonder if the writer was striking at the tiny branches and missing the root of the problem. After doing a bit of research, I found that root and now understand this focus. This writer was part of what is called the “Holiness” movement consisting of a teaching that “no one could actually be born-again unless they had a ‘second blessing’ that made them perfect” meaning no more sin. No wonder many of them were miserable. While we are called to perfection, our perfection is in the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ. As we work out what that means, He works in us with the goal of perfection, which is true of our position in Him but not constant in our practice in life. Besides that, being perfect is not a requirement for new birth; it is a gift of God’s grace:

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:4–10)

After becoming His through faith and given new life in Him, that new life is to be lived out. The biblical term is “worked out” — yet He does the work in us.

Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. (Philippians 2:12–13)

God works in me and my part is to cooperate, to stop grumbling as the next verse says, showing that the source of my life now is the Spirit of God, not that old selfish and fleshy person that He died for. New life in Him makes this possible. I do not change because I’m ‘trying harder’ or thinking rightly about God. He makes the changes and they show up!

I write about this because many Christians are miserable because they are Christians but have somehow began thinking that their changed life depends on themselves. The book of Galatians addresses that issue of beginning in the Spirit and trying to be perfected in the flesh.

In contrast, some think they are Christians because they go to church, believe that Christ existed, and doing good is important. Instead of being saved by faith, they are going through the motions.  Jesus did say: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ “ (Matthew 7:21–23)

The Christian life is about having a personal relationship with the Christ. Without it, no one can be a Christian, no matter what they call themselves:

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. (Romans 8:1–8)

PRAY: Jesus, this is a longer than usual post because the gospel requires clarity, and because I don’t know if any readers are caught in the trap of “I’m not good enough” and feeling miserable. You know how to change that and even to use it to draw them to Yourself.

Why did God allow sin?

 
Today’s reading from Charnock’s book is so profound that I’m tempted to copy/paste most of it instead of putting it in my own words. In writing about the wisdom of God, this author answers the question I’ve often been asked: Why did God allow Adam and Eve to sin? It ruined everything.

Charnock agrees that sin is “altogether black and abominable” but quickly adds that in His wisdom God allowed it that we might see His mercy and grace displayed in the incarnation and death of his Son for the atonement of sin.

With goosebumps, I stop there and say, “Of course. Without sin we would not see the mercy and power of God. We would only have a small view of His glory and miss His incredible love and power shown in what He did about our sin…

So that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 5:21)

He permitted Adam’s fall so we could have a fuller discovery of His nature and unbounded goodness. It would not have otherwise appeared. His goodness in rewarding innocent obedience would have been manifested; but not his mercy. Without sin and its production of misery, God’s mercy in sending his Son to save his enemies, could not have appeared.
Nor would we know the power of God in the changing of hard hearts nor His vindictive justice that reveals His wrath against sin. We would not experience imputed righteousness and the glory of knowing it through faith in Christ:

For the Lord is righteous; he loves righteous deeds; the upright shall behold his face. (Psalm 11:7)
For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Without sin, this perfection, whereby God draws good out of evil, would have no reason to happen and been utterly useless.

Instead, sin became an occasion of God glorifying himself as He used it to communicate the knowledge of all these perfections of His nature, which otherwise would not be seen. His justice would have nothing to punish, His mercy obscure, and a great part of His wisdom would remain silent without the presence of sin to order and even use for His purposes.

The OT example is Joseph. God permitted the sin of Joseph’s brethren, that he might use their evil to a good end. Because of his holiness, God never wills sin as an end; but in regard of His great wisdom He wills to permit it as a means and occasion to draw good out of those things which are in their own nature most contrary to good.

As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. (Genesis 50:20)

The NT example is like it, but with implications for far more than one family. This was for all of humanity:

This Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. (Acts 2:23)

The devil inspired men to kill Jesus yet God ordered it to accomplish His own design of redemption in the death of the His Son. The devil had diabolical ends, and God overpowers his actions to serve His own divine ends. Divine wisdom uses sin to accomplish His will.

PRAY: Because my sin did this to You, Jesus, I abhor sin, even though it still draws me out of fellowship with You. Yet because of God’s wisdom, mercy, and grace, You continually draw me back to Yourself, using everything for good in my life. You are utterly amazing to use the sin that I hate as a means whereby I am able to know Your great love and grace.

More than a conqueror…

The enemy hit yesterday and with force to the point that I took a Covid test. This was an attack against my health, not fully realized until I prayed, until there was only one red line on the test, until the feelings of dying went away. This happens after acts of obedience and makes me feel like a gazelle being chased by a big cat.

Today’s devotional was a familiar topic: “you must die to self” but the reading from “Born for Battle” was more helpful. It talked about winning the battles, not because I am able but because of what Christ has done to enable me. It refers to instructions for war that begin with:

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. (Ephesians 6:10–13)

Yet this is not the beginning of this battle plan. The entire book of Ephesians speaks to what Christ has already done. As yesterday’s devotions pointed out, I am already seated in heavenly places with Christ. This book on spiritual warfare says, “The true order of faith is not that we have to live an earthly life with a view to heaven, but that we are called to a heavenly life with a view to earth… So we go into battle not from the perspective of our circumstances here on earth, but from our position above in Christ.”

I am already at the top of this mountain, placed there in Christ that His will might be done here. I do not have to fight for victory, because He says I am more than a conqueror through Him that loved me. From this exalted position secured in Christ, and by being clothed with the armor of God, the powers of evil must back off as I resist the enemy. I will not win if I try this from a human perspective as in getting in a panic when trials come and not looking at them from God’s perspective. This puts me below the powers of darkness instead of abiding above them in Christ.

While this may sound more philosophical than reality, the events of yesterday and what happened before this attack came is my evidence. God asked me to do something, and when I did, I invaded enemy territory and brought to it the love of Christ. The enemy was not happy with that. However, God gave me words to say and the attack on my body stopped. No other explanation.

Born for Battle points out that concentration on the first part of Ephesians is vital to be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. It is filled with powerful descriptions of what Christ has done. I must think about those truths rather than falling into fear or having a ‘poor me’ attitude. While Christians get messages about prayer, too often they are “fix my problem” messages rather than “yield to God and resist the devil” messages. No wonder he does not flee when our concerns are for personal comfort rather than Spirit-filled resistance based on the fact that he is already a loser.

PRAY: Jesus, You have done it all. Fear of death is conquered, as are Satan’s schemes to take Your people out of Your hands and into His. We are seated in heavenly places and this enemy can never undo what You have done. I am Your child — now and forever, and as I pray Your will, You give me confidence that You not only hear but will answer. The enemy cannot stop You; You have totally defeated him.
 

My eternal home

Yesterday someone asked about our move, then said, “When all is in order, then it will feel like home.” I told her that the first time I saw it, even before we made an offer, this place seemed like home. However, today’s reading reminds me of something Jesus said:

Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. (John 14:1–3)

Years ago, I was grumbling about tedious housework. God used these verses to remind me that my Savior knew all about homemaking. He was building a most glorious place — a forever home with no sorrows, no bad memories, no troubles or tears. My task is not quite like that, but knowing He is doing this replaced my grumbling with a glad heart.

Today I read it again with joy, also realizing another parallel. For the past few weeks, our home has been upside-down, not just this one we are now working on to settle in, but the former one that went through a whirlwind of decluttering and downsizing. We are still doing that homemaking and even though I am an organized person, these rooms do not look like it — yet.

Apply that to the world around us. Contrary to many thoughts about ‘heaven’ and it being ‘out there somewhere’ the Bible says God’s people will experience eternal life in a restored new home here:

For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. (Isaiah 65:17)
For as the new heavens and the new earth that I make shall remain before me, says the Lord, so shall your offspring and your name remain. (Isaiah 66:22)
But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. (2 Peter 3:13)
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. (Revelation 21:1)

The NT also says this odd thing about where I live now:

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus… (Ephesians 2:4–6)

In a spiritual sense, I am already home, seated with Jesus in an eternal place. While the sense of this is hard to explain, it does describe the reality that this being at home with Him is experienced before actually getting there. I know where that home is, just like I knew this new address was my home before we actually purchased it and moved in. And it is perfect for us right now, even though there are boxes to empty, touch-ups needed, pictures to hang, and furniture that is not quite in the right place. It is still already home.

PRAY: Jesus, the sense of being home is lovely regarding this physical house, and much like the sense of knowing where my heavenly home is and what it will be like. I am so blessed to know that You, the perfect Homemaker, are preparing a place for me, a place perfect in its design and layout, but even more so because it is where You are — and I will be with You, perfection personified, for eternity.