Jan 26, 2017
Based on the True Story of Bill Porter, a man afflicted with cerebral palsy, is desperate to find a job despite his condition. He uses his sense of humor, determination and winning spirit to convince a manager to hire him as a door-to-door salesman.
For thus says the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel: “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and confidence shall be your strength.” Isaiah 30:15a
Society offers us a path to success, but God invites us to leave that enticement behind and embrace His safety and security. We can rely on our sight and interpretation of events, or we can continually return to God, asking for His insight and wisdom. When we pause and seek God’s perspective, we acknowledge that He is in control and does not miss a thing.
Although society is performance driven and applauds those who are constantly striving for more, God invites us to rest. Our value and worth are established in Him. He lavishes His love on us and gives us purpose. Our souls can be filled with peaceful quiet as we remain focused on Him.
During Jesus’ earthly ministry, He was marked by enduring confidence in God the Father. Even though society was encouraging Him to rely on Himself and strive for more, He knew the power of waiting on and following God. This same power is available to us. Return to God’s rest and put your confidence in Him today!
The Christian does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us. C. S. Lewis
May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. 1 Thessalonians 3:12
“Is God doing something new in your life?” was the question the leader asked in a group I was in recently. My friend Mindy, who is dealing with some difficult situations, responded. She told of needing patience with aging parents, stamina for her husband’s health issues, and understanding of her children and grandchildren who have not yet chosen to follow Jesus. Then she made an insightful comment that runs contrary to what we might normally think: “I believe the new thing God is doing is He’s expanding my capacity and opportunities to love.”
That fits nicely with the apostle Paul’s prayer for new believers in Thessalonica: “May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else” (1 Thess. 3:12). He had taught them about Jesus but had to leave abruptly because of rioting (Acts 17:1–9). Now in his letter he encouraged them to continue to stand firm in their faith (1 Thess. 3:7–8). And he prayed that the Lord would increase their love for all.
During difficulties we often choose to complain and ask, Why? Or wonder, Why me? Another way to handle those times could be to ask the Lord to expand His love in our hearts and to help us take the new opportunities that come to love others.
I’ve got my own list of things I could worry about, Lord. Change my thinking. Open my eyes to love.
Our troubles can fill our prayers with love and empathy for others.
INSIGHT:Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians is filled with warmth and tenderness for dear friends. He ministered in the midst of suffering, imprisonment, and persecution, but his passion for seeing people (like the Thessalonians) enter into relationship with Christ was undeterred. As a result, Paul endured these almost continuous hardshipswithout losing his focus on the needs of people. This is clearly seen in 2 Corinthians 11:22–33, where Paul catalogues the price he paid for the gospel and for them. While we may never suffer as the apostle did, how might we wisely respond to the trials we do encounter so that others can be touched by God’s love?
For more on navigating through trials check out the Discovery Series booklet Change: Following God Through Life’s Crossroads at discoveryseries.org/q0734.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We are not fundamentally free; external circumstances are not in our hands, they are in God’s hands, the one thing in which we are free is in our personal relationship to God. We are not responsible for the circumstances we are in, but we are responsible for the way we allow those circumstances to affect us; we can either allow them to get on top of us, or we can allow them to transform us into what God wants us to be. Conformed to His Image, 354 L
Proverbs 2:1-5
Learning to listen to God is an essential part of following His will. The Lord regularly speaks to His children through…
Scripture. The Bible is our guidebook to God’s thoughts and actions. It is the primary source for Christians to discover His character and learn to trust Him. This means we ought to read more than just a little bit every day. Our goal should be to absorb the message and then listen for God to offer instructions on how and where to apply His Word.
Prayer. Like all real friends, the Lord desires give-and-take in His relationships. Therefore, prayer is not complete when we’re done talking. We must quiet our mouth and thoughts so that our spiritual ears can open.
Circumstances. In the Bible, the Lord often revealed His ways to men and women through their circumstances. He still works that way today. Situations differ, but our God does not change. He uses everyday life to reveal errors in thinking, to open or close doors of opportunity, and to prove His promises true.
Others. Pastors, friends, and mentors can all speak truth into a person’s life. The Lord places believers in community so they can be supported and helped by those nearby. He doesn’t hesitate to send a message from the mouth of someone we know and trust.
God does not use just one or two of these methods to reach a believer; He speaks through all four. We need to attune our spiritual ears, always remembering that a message from the Lord must agree with His holy Word. The Father is talking to you. Are you listening?
“And he shall judge the world in righteousness, he shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness.” (Psalm 9:8)
Judgment is coming for every person, “as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). Many people don’t believe it, and still more don’t seem to care, but judgment is coming! Be certain of this. We must all meet God our Maker someday.
Furthermore, “he shall judge the world in righteousness,” for He is “of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity” (Habakkuk 1:13). “He shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth” (Psalm 96:13; also note Psalm 96:10; 98:9).
All is lost if God judges righteously, however, for “there is none righteous, no, not one” (Romans 3:10), and “cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them” (Galatians 3:10).
But “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, . . . hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (2 Corinthians 5:19, 21). The Lord Jesus, the Son of God, our Creator/Redeemer, has taken our judgment on Himself, and “there is therefore now no [judgment] to them which are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).
Consequently, “the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son” (John 5:22). God can both judge righteously and yet graciously save all who receive Christ by faith: “Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead” (Acts 17:31). Jesus Christ is not only our Creator and righteous Judge, but also our Redeemer, Mediator, Advocate, and Savior! HMM
David, for a while, concealed himself in the fastnesses and forests of Ziph. The Ziphites wishing to curry favour with Saul, betrayed the fugitive leader.
1 Samuel 23:19-21
He had come to regard himself as the injured party, and he dared to introduce God’s name into his hypocritical speech; thus shewing that he had lost all moral sense, and was under a strong delusion to believe a lie. By a course of sin a bad man may at last convince himself that he is right, and even fancy that God himself is in league with him. The Lord save us from so terrible a state of mind. Saul further instructed the Ziphites how to act, so as to secure David.
1 Samuel 23:22-26
Now, indeed, David was hunted like a partridge on the mountains. Saul, with his three thousand men, chased him, and the treacherous Ziphites beat the bushes before him. It seemed to be all over with the young chieftain, but in his extremity, the Lord interposed.
1 Samuel 23:28
The pursuer and the pursued were within sight of one another, and yet the victim escaped. The memory of this deliverance was preserved in the name of the Cliff of Divisions, given to the rock down one side of which David climbed while Saul was surrounding the hill on the other side, and was suddenly called away by a panic of the Philistine invasion.
At this time David wrote Psalm 54.
Psalm 51:3
Perhaps the Ziphites were a remnant of the Canaanites, and so were “strangers”; at any rate they were enemies to David without a cause. If any treat us in this fashion, our best resort is prayer to God.
O lead me to the Rock
That’s high above my head!
And make the covert of thy wings
My shelter and my shade.
Within thy presence, Lord,
For ever I’ll abide:
Thou art the tower of my defence,
The refuge where I hide.
John 16:13
Occasionally when people visit Moscow, my wife and I give them a tour of the Kremlin. Because people usually want to see the Kremlin, we have been there hundreds of times and we know all the routes and shortcuts. Often as we visit this historic complex of buildings with our guests, I am amazed to see people in other groups taking the longest, most difficult route on that extensive tour. I always think, They are taking the longest and hardest route possible! If I were leading them, I could save them a lot of time and energy. These people ultimately get the same tour as they keep exploring on their own, but the route they take requires twice the time and energy as the tour I could give them.
As I was pondering this one day, I started thinking of all the times each of us could have avoided wasting precious time and energy if we had only allowed the Holy Spirit to lead us. We may eventually get to the same point, but if we try to go it alone, that usually means we will take twice as long to get there and the journey will be much harder. The Holy Spirit sees everything. He knows every nook, corner, and bend on the road of life. If we reach out and take His hand, He will lead us on shortcuts that will save time, energy, and many tears.
The Holy Spirit wants to guide us through life. He wants to guide us as we walk into the future. In John 16:13, Jesus used this illustration of a guide to describe the ministry of the Holy Spirit. He said when the Spirit came, “… he will shew you things to come” (John 16:13).
The word “show” is the Greek word odegeo, and it is the word for a guide who shows a traveler the safest course through an unknown country. This means Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to be our Guide! The Holy Spirit knows the way we should go. He knows how to avoid every trap and every attack; He knows the safest and fastest route for us to take. When we are stepping into territory that is new to us, it is imperative that we let the Holy Spirit lead us, for He wants to show us the precise route to take so we can successfully reach that place God has put in our hearts. This is part of the Holy Spirit’s ministry in our lives—to get us safely to our God-ordained point of destination.
In the life of Jesus, we see this guiding work of the Holy Spirit very clearly.
When you study the book of Acts, you will find that the Holy Spirit constantly guided people through hard and difficult territory. In each case, He would protect people from danger or from making mistakes; He would help them avoid those who wished to hurt them; or He would lead them away from a fruitless situation to a place of blessing. Here are some instances where the Holy Spirit warned the Early Church in advance about persecutions, famines, and other trials, guiding them safely through and around many treacherous moments.
Being led by the Spirit is one of the privileges we receive as children of God. Romans 8:14 says, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” As noted earlier (see July 3), the word “led” is the Greek word ago, which is the picture of someone gently leading someone else. This means the Spirit will lead us, but we must extend our hearts and hands to Him first, for without our cooperation, He cannot guide us anywhere.
Without the Holy Spirit’s guidance, we are left to find our way on our own. This no doubt means we will waste valuable time, energy, and money, not to mention shed a lot of unnecessary tears along the way! The Holy Spirit sees what we can’t see; knows what we don’t know; and understands the best routes, the most efficient shortcuts, and the safest paths to take. Since this is the kind of Leader the Holy Spirit is, we would be wise to let Him lead us!
Oh, if you only knew how many times the Spirit of God has wanted to be your Leader in the situations of life! He knew exactly how to lead you past every attack. He knew how to avoid each strategy that the devil arrayed against you. But even if you didn’t accept His guidance in the past, you don’t have to continue making that same mistake, trying to forge your way through life by yourself. You can extend your heart to the Holy Spirit today. Let Him take you by the hand—and He will safely guide you to the place where God wants you to go!
Lord, I thank You for the leadership of the Holy Spirit. I am so sorry that I’ve wasted time, energy, and money trying to find my way on my own when You have already sent me the Holy Spirit to be my Guide. Holy Spirit, please step into my life and take Your place as my Teacher, my Leader, and my Guide. I extend my heart and my hand to You today so You can begin to guide me through life. I thank You, Father, for providing the most wonderful Guide in the whole universe to help me make it successfully through life!
I pray this in Jesus’ name!
I confess that I am led by the Spirit of God! Because I cooperate with Him, I don’t waste valuable time, energy, or money, and I don’t shed a lot of unnecessary tears. I gladly let the Holy Spirit lead me, since He sees what I can’t see; knows what I don’t know; and understands the best routes, the most efficient shortcuts, and the safest paths to take. As a result, He leads me past every attack; He helps me avoid each strategy of the devil; and He safely guides me to the place where God wants me to be!
I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!
Remember as kids how we played, “King of the Mountain”? The toughest guy would bully his way to the top of the hill, and maintain his exalted position through intimidation, pushing, and shoving.
Little did we realize the game was a portent of things to come. Adults, it turns out, also play “King of the Mountain.” For keeps. The game is usually played subtly through manipulation, applying financial pressure, maligning others’ reputations, mentally pigeon-holing people, pouting, withholding love, intimidation, etc.
The disciples also liked to play “King of the Mountain.” When Jesus informed them that He would soon be beaten up, openly mocked and murdered, their first thought was not of their great loss, but who among them would rise to become “King of the Mountain”:
After giving them the bleak news of his impending death, the Master inquired of them,
JESUS: “‘What were you arguing about on the road?‘ But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest.” (Mark 9:33b, 34)
Later, Christ again tells them he is to be betrayed, mocked, and condemned. Their response? Two of them plead with him to help them become “Kings of the Mountain”:
“Then James and John… came to him. ‘Teacher… We want you to do for us whatever we ask… Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.‘” (Mark 10:35, 37)
Jesus however, gave them no guarantee of such future glory:
“You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with.” (That is, you too will experience a cross in your life.) (Mark 10:39)
Christ’s answer to the self-serving disciples does not go down easily for most of us. Surrounded as we are by strutting peacocks who are impressed by the sound of their own vacuous vapor, choosing to serve, rather than claw our way to “King of the Mountain” goes against every human inclination.
It just happens to be His way. The way of the cross.
“Should you then seek great things for yourself ? Seek them not… I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me… ” (Jeremiah 45:5a; Galatians 2:20a)
QUESTION: Judging by your attitudes and actions, are you jockeying to become, or to maintain your position as “King of the Mountain”? Or are you seeking to live out the life of the cross?
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