Today’s devotional speaks again about what God expects of me and how that is based on the assured knowledge of my reconciliation with God. I know that God wants me to serve Him as an heir, not as a servant, yet I am His, like a slave belongs to his owner, not working for wages as the reading suggests, but as one released from bondage and staying on as a servant to my new Master. I am more than that; I am also His child and His heir. Being a Christian is multifaceted with greater definition than one comparison… just as God Himself cannot be described by one metaphor.
The devotional writer seems to think that all readers have doubts about their faith and the eventual outcome of that faith. While the reading says “the assurance of faith is the only normal condition of a child of God” and it “comes simply by believing God” rather than relying on feelings, my assurance of faith is a solid matter after fifty years of reading His Word. From what God says, I know this:
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. (John 3:36)And I have known it from day one. As for feelings, the song says, ‘the joy of the Lord is my strength” and that joy is so distinct and different from human ‘happiness’ because it does not depend on circumstances. For that reason, joy has become the only feeling that I do rely on. In other words, if His joy is missing, then I’m not filled with His Spirit for joy is the Spirit’s fruit. When joy is missing, I have some praying to do, including confession of all sin including doubt. Joy is one feeling that assures me that my life is on His path and I’m not doing my own thing.
This is not about the feelings warned about in the reading. The author points out that Scripture never says, “He who feels has …” and states that feelings are no guide whatsoever in our assurance of faith, adding that in all matters regarding facts it is folly to depend on feelings. We must rely on faith, on whether something is true or not.
That statement “assurance of faith” cannot be answered by feelings anyway, because faith is “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1) Faith does not consist of a convincing feeling because it is its own assurance… a ‘knowing’ that comes from believing what God says, of realizing and agreeing that His word is true, and nothing but facts. If I doubt that, then I have sin to confess — and my feelings of joy are missing.
I cannot disregard joy. It is the only ‘state of my feelings’ that gives me a clue about what is going on in my spiritual life. God gave me Himself and His wisdom. My goal is to know Him and His will. Joy tells me that I am in the right path. Other emotions may come and go. Some of them are okay, like righteous anger, spiritual sorrow, etc., and others need to be confessed as fleshy and of no consequence at all except to indicate I’m walking in the flesh. Mere human feelings have no power to ruin my assurance, only to reveal that I’ve wandered off God’s path.
PRAY: Lord, You have brought me to a far different attitude toward feelings than ‘don’t trust them’ as I can now see how just one ‘feeling’ can inform how my walk with You is going. Joy, or the lack of joy, tells me much about what I need to do. It also gives me strength for the tasks ahead — and today that task involves a whole bunch of boxes.