Many Christians think that once they’re saved, their struggles are over, that life will be smooth sailing. Nothing could be further from the truth. God not only allows our battles, but he has a glorious purpose for them in our lives.
Here on the streets of New York City, you can buy a Rolex watch for as little as 15 dollars. As every New Yorker knows, though, these watches aren’t truly Rolexes. They are simply cheap copies of the real thing.
Paul was completely captivated by his Lord, and yet he wrote, “What things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ” (Philippians 3:7-8, NKJV, emphasis added).
The story of Esther is one of intense spiritual warfare. The devil was trying to destroy God’s people on earth, this time through the evil Haman. This wealthy, influential man persuaded the king of Persia to declare an edict calling for the death of every Jew under his rule, from India to Ethiopia.
If we didn’t have conflict, pressure or trials, we would become passive and lukewarm. Decay would set in, and our temple would lie in ruins. That’s why the enemy’s plan against us is clear: He wants to take us out of the battle.
We find all our resources for strength to go on and power over the enemy in our spiritual battles. On that day when we stand before the Lord, he will reveal to us, “Do you remember what you went through in that awful battle? Look at what you accomplished through it all. It was all secured through the battles you won.”
Paul was often harassed by demonic powers. In one particular case, he was preaching on the isle of Paphos when demons attempted to interfere: “Now when they had gone through the island to Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew whose name was Bar-Jesus, who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man called for Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. But…the sorcerer…withstood them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith” (Acts 13:6-8, NKJV).
Paul wrote to the early church, “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh” (Galatians 5:16, NKJV). This command to walk in the Spirit is given to all, not just a few super-saints. Here are three steps for how you can obtain this walk.
The Father loves you; it is at this point that multitudes of believers fail God. They are willing to be convicted of sin and failure over and over again, but they will not allow the Holy Ghost to flood them with the love of the Father.
The legalist loves to live under conviction. He has never understood the love of God or allowed the Holy Spirit to minister that love to his soul.
The Holy Ghost is the one who teaches us to say, “Abba Father.”
This phrase refers to a Middle Eastern custom from Bible days regarding the adoption of a child. Until the adopting papers were signed and sealed by the adopting father, the child saw this man only as ‘a father.’ He had no right to call him abba, meaning “my.”
A foretaste is an advance taste or realization. The Bible calls it “the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:14, NKJV). It means to experience a taste of the whole before we have the whole. Our inheritance is Christ himself, and the Holy Spirit brings us into his very presence as a foretaste of being received as his bride, enjoying everlasting love and communion with him.