2024-12-06
Good Morning Dear Ones,
As you know, we are taking a closer look at EPH 6: 11-18, the full armor of God. The Holy Spirit commands me to write today about EPH 6: 16, which tells us, “Take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” The very first step here is to be able to have the discernment to know what is evil and what is good. It’s more difficult in some cases than one would imagine. We don’t always know immediately what some people’s motives are. Most often when evil is done, it is due to jealousy, greed, desire for power, desire for prestige, anger and/or grudge holding. Those are things that God addresses in the Scriptures, but how many people do you know who take the time to read them?
Let’s look at what He says about discernment. PR 1: 7, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” PR 3: 5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.” JAS 1: 5, “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, Who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”
We must understand that there are some people we may encounter who are adept at hiding their true motives. They appear one way when their motives are very different. This demands that we are careful in the process of how much we reveal about ourselves in the beginning of a relationship. It’s my personal feeling that young people meeting for the first time should learn to do this until they gain spiritual, emotional, and intellectual maturity. This doesn’t mean the relationship must remain in this mode indefinitely, but it does mean caution in the beginning is wise. “Pre-Cana” counseling for young people thinking about marriage is a great help. Maybe, there would be fewer divorces if this were widely done. Sadly, churches and synagogues are experiencing more movement toward secularization in our society.
Long ago, Jeremiah wrote: JER 29: 11-13, “’For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you not to bring you disaster, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and you will find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.’” DT 31: 6, “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God Who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.” God never lies; He knows the truth and always tells it. Christ’s words in JN 15: 13-17 are powerful! “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life friends. You are My friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I have learned from My Father I have made known to you. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask for in My name the Father will give you. This is My command: Love each other.” There is nothing empty or with evil motives about these promises! We can have faith in them. I can testify that my own strong faith is what allows me to keep on overcoming the trials I have and have a good quality of life. Without it, I would have sunk long ago. Of course, there are times when I feel despair, but our Lord always takes me by the hand and leads me out of that slimy pit [PS 40: 1-3].
PRAYER: O Lord, while it’s impossible to write everything there is to say about having faith in You, we must acknowledge the blessings that You bring into our lives. 1 JN 1: 5, “This is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light; in Him, there is no darkness at all.” Our own faith in You is so succinctly stated in RO 8: 28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” It is wise advice that we find in 1 PET 5: 7, “Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.” We stand before You and offer You our praise and thanksgiving for all You are and all You do, in the holy/mighty name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
NEXT WEEK: The Holy Spirit orders me to write about “the helmet of salvation” and if space permits, “the sword of the Spirit,” from EPH 6: 17 next week. In the meanwhile, if we ask God for ability to discern if something is evil or good, He has promised to give it to us. Of course, any wisdom I might have about almost anything is wisdom from hindsight because of my advanced age. I should say that I’ve made my share of stupid, unwise mistakes in my life. One of then was NOT coming to faith in our Lord, Jesus Christ! Nor was another marrying Peter Johnson. But that leaves a lot of room for the mistakes I have made. God has told us there will be no marriage in heaven [MT 22: 30]; however, I believe I will see my dear Lord Jesus and my husband, Peter, again. God’s power to do good is seen all over the Scriptures. That alone is valuable use of our time to read them every day. Every week, our pastor closes the service with RO 15: 13 for the benediction. It is my wish for you too. “May the God of hope fill you with all joy ad peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Thanksgiving and praise be to Him!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn, JS 24: 15
© Lynn Johnson 2024. All Rights Reserved.
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