2002-01-01
Good Morning Dear Ones,
As we deal with the dirty work of Satan, the accuser, we can see from our study of God’s word that we don’t do it without the proper armor, and spiritual support from Him and the Son. We are fitted for victory as long as we are willing to endure in our faith. I have to keep saying that repeatedly, not to bore us but to emphasize why we need to have the courage of our convictions to go through all this trouble without giving up and letting Satan establish a stronghold over our lives. We all began in the manner described in EPH 2: 1-5, “In the past you were spiritually dead because of your disobedience and sins. At that time you followed the world’s evil way; you obeyed the ruler of the spiritual powers in space, the spirit who now controls the people who disobey God. Actually all of us were like them and lived according to our natural desires, doing whatever suited the wishes of our own bodies and minds. In our natural condition we, like everyone else , were destined to suffer God’s wrath.” I’m virtually certain that every real believer came to the decision that he wasn’t happy living that way, even if he didn’t really understand why. He knew something was wrong and wanted to take action to fix it.
In my own life, it was a dawning awareness of a kind of emptiness that no material gain, educational achievement, or human source could ever fill. Competent psychologists realize that we have needs in these four areas: our intellect, our emotions, our physical selves, and our spiritual selves. I wasn’t smart enough in the beginning of my walk with the Lord to understand that while my intellect and physical needs were being met, my emotional and spiritual needs were being starved. For each person his way of coming to faith is unique. I can only speak about mine with any first-hand knowledge, which is why I’m using myself as an example. What I didn’t know at the time was that God loves me so much that even though I didn’t know to pray in the beginning, He would gradually take me to where I became aware of my need and where I would learn to look to Him to fulfill it. His way of doing this was to create in me a hunger for His word and to send my dear husband, Peter, into my life. You all know that my path to faith was strange and has taken me through four religious denominations until I finally figured out that I am a Messianic Jew, blessed and privileged by knowing her Messiah is Jesus Christ. The point of this devotion is not an expose on Lynn Johnson’s life, but more to reveal the magnificent love that God shows any of us who learn to love Him. Some people learn about His love through illness; others through loss; still others by suffering or simply by one day awakening to their need for Him. One way or the other, God brings us to brokenness, so that we are able to listen for His commands and act on them. JN 3: 16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that all who believe in Him shall not perish but will have eternal life.” RO 6: 11, “We are dead to sin but alive in Christ.”
We saw yesterday when I cited EPH 1: 21 how Christ has been given authority over all rulers, powers, authorities, and lords of the spiritual world and how His title is superior to all of theirs. Of course, that gives Him authority over all earthly rulers and authorities as well. But, as members of His Body, the church, we need affirmation of His connection to us as well. This is found in EPH 1: 22-23, “God put all things under Christ’s feet and gave Him to the church as Supreme Lord over all things. The church is Christ’s body, the completion of Him Who Himself completes all things everywhere.” This same teaching is supported by EPH 5: 29-30, “No one ever hates his own body. Instead, he feeds it and takes care of it, just as Christ does the church: for we are members of His body.” We must come to understand that Christ’s power is so much greater than Satan’s, that it will be used to resurrect all those who endure in faith despite the devil’s efforts to interfere with and stop that. All of Satan’s accusations, lies, deceptions, efforts to bring pain, suffering, and loss-everything he does in his fits of hatefulness-are to no avail.
If we stay the course despite the challenges to our faith that Satan delivers, it won’t matter how fierce the combat gets, we will be on the winning side-the Lord’s side. I know that the horrors of John the Baptist and Paul being beheaded, Peter being crucified upside down, all those innocents being gassed to death in the Holocaust, or even the suffering of our Savior on the cross leave wounds in our minds of the suffering they went through. However, every one of them has discovered that their suffering is a small and short-lived matter in comparison to the glory the Father reveals to them in eternal life with Him [RO 8: 18]. We must not allow this kind of suffering deter us from the faith that is so crucial to eternal life. PHIL 1: 4-6, “…And every time I pray for you all, I pray with joy because of the way in which you have helped me in the work of Gospel from the very first day until now. And so I am sure that God, Who began this good work in you will carry it on until it is finished on the Day of Christ Jesus,” Paul said to the Philippians. He has begun a good work in us when He first gave us a hunger for His word, sacrificed His Son on the cross for us, gave us the gift of the Holy Spirit, and commanded us to live holy and consecrated lives. The goal is worth it, and we can win over evil.
PRAYER: O Lord, When You called Isaiah to become a prophet, You must have been thrilled with his answer to Your question, “Whom shall I send? Who will be my messenger?” Isaiah replied, “I will go! Send me!” [IS 6: 8]. When Christ suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane in LK 22: 42, His words were, “If You will, take this cup of suffering away from Me. Not My will, but Your will be done.” While a part Your heart was breaking at the enormity of the pain You knew He would suffer, a part of it was delighted at the example of obedience He was showing and at the thought that Your plan for mankind’s salvation was being carried out. Dearest Lord, You have called us to a life of holiness, trust, and obedience to You. We answer that call by saying today, “Here I am Lord, to carry out Your will.” You are counting on us to serve You and to be Your friends. In return there is ample evidence in the Scriptures to show that You are there to support us in our time of pain, suffering, and loss. Your support comes in the form of enormous power to battle to victory against the devil, understanding imparted to us of Your perspective on our troubles, and love that takes the form of devoted guidance, correction, and encouragement. You teach us to seek You out for our needs and then deliver them to us when we obey. Our love for You is measured by our willingness to obey Your commands [JN 14: 21]. We utter the same words that David teaches us to say in PS 34: 4-7, “I prayed to the Lord, and He answered me; he freed me from all my fears. The oppressed look to Him and are glad; they will never be disappointed. The helpless call to Him, and He answers; He save them from all their troubles. His angel guards those who have reverence for the Lord and rescues them from danger.” We acknowledge our helplessness without You and place our trust in You. Our praise and thanks are unbounded for all You are and all You do for us. We pledge Your our eternal adoration and worship. In Christ’s name, amen.
Tomorrow, we will look at some wonderful citations which address our position as being “on earth but of heaven.” We will see from them how privileged we are to be God’s children and have the power He imparts to us to deal with spiritual warfare. All around us is evidence of our Abba’s love. We are truly a blessed people. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn