Devotions

Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart” (Matthew 11:28-29, NKJV). Christ tells us very plainly, “Do not attempt to take on a walk with me until you are at rest in your soul.”

If you do not have this wonderful confidence in what the Word of God says Jesus did for you, his yoke will not be easy or light. On the contrary, you will spend your time striving in the flesh to please God. You will go from hot to cold, living with unnecessary guilt and shame.

I believe the key to this verse lies in the words “learn from me.” Jesus is speaking here of the discipline of learning who he is and what he accomplished on the cross. He is saying, “You must have a knowledge of what I have done for you. Then, once your soul is at rest, you can take on my yoke. So learn from me!"

We do not want this kind of discipline. We want to take the easy way. We are like schoolchildren on the playground at recess who do not want to go back into the classroom.

Perhaps today, you say, “I’m reading my Bible now and praying a little each day. I'm trying hard to do better!” This is all good, but I assure you that these things will not keep you through the coming storm. It is not enough to try hard, to make promises to God, to strive to be better; nor is it enough to say, “I’m more diligent than before.” No, it is all about going after a revelation of what Jesus did for you at the cross.

Something should cry out in all of us, “Jesus, your Word says I can live in total rest, peace and security. I don't have to strive in my flesh or be tossed about by guilt or fear. You have set before me the promise of a life at rest, but I don't have that rest. Oh, Lord, I want your rest with everything that's in me. Teach me by your Spirit; I want to learn from you."

God has promised his people a glorious rest that includes peace and security for the soul. The Lord offered this wonderful rest to the children of Israel, which meant a life full of joy and victory without fear, guilt or condemnation. 

Up to the time of Christ, no generation of believers ever walked fully in this blessed promise. Why was this? The Bible makes very clear that it was because of their unbelief. “To whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who did not obey? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief” (Hebrews 3:18-19, NKJV).

Because of their unbelief during the period of the kings and prophets through David’s generation, God's people went through life full of misery, doubt, fear and restlessness. In every generation, the rest was promised, but it was refused and never appropriated or understood.

That is why, when we read further in Hebrews, we find this glorious life of faith still unclaimed. “There remains therefore a rest for the people of God” (Hebrews 4:9). Yet we also read, “Since therefore it remains that some must enter it…” (Hebrews 4:6). The Bible admonishes present-day believers with this warning: “Therefore, since a promise remains of entering into his rest, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have come short of it” (Hebrews 4:1).

Thousands upon thousands of believers claim to be filled with the Spirit of God, yet few have entered into this promised rest. Many are tossed about by winds and waves of doctrines, restless and guilt-ridden with no security in Christ. Jesus said, “I will give you rest, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light" (see Matthew 11:28-30).

My prayer is that today you will enter into the rest God has for you. Reach up by faith, and receive because it is his free gift!

Genesis tells us that the more man multiplied on the earth, the more violent he became. “The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth” (Genesis 6:11-12, NKJV).

There is another, different kind of violence taking place in this last day. Indeed, I see a godly people with an aggressive faith being raised up. This holy remnant is full of Jesus, loving him with all their hearts. These believers see a mad devil coming at them with everything in his power, and they know they have more of hell to face than any other generation before them.

Jesus said, “The kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force” (Matthew 11:12). This remnant is going to rise up and say, “I’m not going to let the devil steal my joy and peace. I will not let him plant seeds of grudges, murder, hatred or violence in me. No! I’m going to rise up in Jesus’s power and live victoriously above this demonic filth.”

Dear saint, God wants to put a fight in you! If you have been guilty of any of these forms of violence, quickly repent before the Lord and obey his Word. That's all he asks. May God put a holy zeal and faith in you beyond anything you have ever known. He wants you to be able to stand against Satan's wicked devices.

The only spirit of violence we are going to have is a violent faith. It will be a strong, holy violence that comes full force against the gates of hell and the strongholds of the enemy. By the power of God, we will bring them all down in Jesus’s name!

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit” (Jeremiah 17:7-8, NKJV).

Consider the one who trusts God in the hard places: “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord.”

This Christian is “planted.” He has roots, stability, a reservoir of living water. He is always spreading out, fruitful and green with fresh life. Consider again where scripture says, “[He] will not be anxious [fearful] in the year of drought…” (Jeremiah 17:8). When things get intense and bothersome, he will not be afraid.

This person says, “Jesus, I give up looking to any person to bring me out of my trial. You are my only hope. I look to you to bring me out of this.” The Lord desires this kind of faith from us in everyday matters. You may object, “But, Brother Dave, I'm still unemployed, still having trouble.” We still must believe God's Word when it says, "Trust me, and you'll be blessed!"

You may answer, “I don't know what I'm going to do. It looks so hopeless. I don't see any sign of help or deliverance.” To all these things, God still says, “Trust me, my child, and you'll be blessed.”

It does not matter whether your trial is with your family, with your business or with provision. If you put your total trust in his Word and his faithfulness, God has promised to bless you; and he cannot lie. When the heat comes, you won't even be bothered. When the wind comes, you'll stand strong because you will have learned to trust him. You'll be a green tree bearing the abundant fruit of confidence, and everyone around you will be given hope and encouragement as they behold your quiet trust.

As a young pastor, I was very ambitious. There’s a publication called Outreach Magazine, and it has a category for the top 100 fastest growing churches in America. When I was early in my work as a pastor, I wanted to be on that list. I wanted to build a megachurch. 

One day, though, I realized that the Bible on my nightstand was underneath a book about how to build a church, which was underneath a book about how to build your staff, which was underneath another book about how to preach great sermons. I’m pretty sure my Bible was still somehow getting dusty underneath all of these other books. 

I’m reminded of the verse that says, “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, ESV). The glory of God is what should really matter to God’s children. When we see the face of Christ, what else really matters beyond that?

Sometimes the things of this world start to shine a brighter light in our lives, though, than the things of Christ. Look at your nightstand or end table and see where your Bible is. It should have more to say to you than any book on counseling or inspiration or spiritual growth.

The Old Testament commands, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success” (Joshua 1:8). Hundreds of years later, the Apostle Paul wrote to believers, “For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope” (Romans 15:4). 

If your Bible is near the bottom of the pile like mine was, you need to refocus on Jesus. Go after the Bible, and you will help yourself and other people far more than you will with a thousand other books.