We think our Lord gets enough pleasure from what we do for him, but there is so much more. Consider this verse: “Which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’?” (Luke 17:7-8, NKJV).
Power to not yield to temptation does not come from stuffing our minds with scripture verses, making vows, spending hours in prayer, fasting or even giving ourselves over to a great spiritual cause. These things are all commendable and normal for Christian growth, but that is not where our victory lies.
Temptation is an invitation or an enticement to commit an immoral act. Right now, Satan is raging over the earth as a roaring lion trying to devour Christians through powerful enticements toward immorality. No one is immune. In fact, the closer you get to God, the more Satan will desire to sift you.
I have a special word for all who face impossibilities: A recovery of faith depends on a fuller revelation of the love of our heavenly Father toward us.
“The Lord your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing” (Zephaniah 3:17, NKJV). Here is a glorious revelation of the steadfastness of God’s love for his people. Scripture tells us he rests and rejoices in his love for us!
When I asked the Holy Spirit to show me how to guard against neglect, he led me to consider Peter’s drifting and his eventual renewal. This man denied Christ, even cursing and telling his accuser, “I don’t know him.”
What had happened? What had brought Peter to that point? It was pride, the result of self-righteous boasting. This disciple had said to himself and others, “I could never grow cold in my love for Jesus. I’ve reached a place in my faith where I don’t have to be warned. Others may drift, but I will die for my Lord.”
Of all 150 psalms, Psalm 34 is my absolute favorite. It is all about our Lord’s faithfulness to deliver his children from great trials and crises. In it, King David declares, “I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. …The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear him, and delivers them. …The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles. …Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all” (Psalm 34:4, 7,17,19).
God had promised Abraham that he would have a son, one who would become the seed of many nations. Remarkably, Abraham didn’t flinch at this promise, even though he was well past the age of siring children. The essence of true faith is found in this single verse. “And not being weak in faith, he [Abraham] did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb” (Romans 4:19, NKJV).
I am writing this message for all who are on the brink of exhaustion, about to faint and overwhelmed by your present situation. You’ve been a faithful servant, and you’re confident that God can do the impossible. However, you have some lingering doubts about his willingness to intervene in your own struggle.
“Then Jesus lifted up his eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward him, he said to Philip, ‘Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?’ But this he said to test him, for he himself knew what he would do” (John 6:5-6, NKJV). Jesus took Philip aside and said, “Philip, there are thousands of people here. They are all hungry. Where are we going to buy enough bread to feed them? What do you think we should do?”
Do you know it is possible to walk before the Lord with a perfect heart? If you are hungering for Jesus, you may already be desiring and earnestly trying to obey this command of the Lord. I want to encourage you that it is possible, or God would not have given us such a call. Having a perfect heart has been part of the life of faith from the time God told Abraham, “I am Almighty God; walk before me and be blameless” (Genesis 17:1, NKJV).