Resigning yourself into God’s care is an act of faith. It’s easy for Christians to say in a general way, “The Lord’s will be done,” but it’s another matter entirely for us to resign ourselves into the Lord’s hands about a specific circumstance. In the Bible when someone approached this walk of self-resignation, it was done with great seriousness of thought.
Moses was convinced that without God’s presence in his life, it was useless for him to attempt anything. When he spoke face to face with the Lord, he said, “If Your presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here” (Exodus 33:15). He was saying, “Lord, if your presence is not with me, then I’m not going anywhere. I won’t take a single step unless I’m assured that you’re beside me!”
* Editor's Note: Given the widespread news regarding the Coronavirus, this timely devotional is a reminder that when our hearts want to fear, God is with us.
As the world becomes increasingly violent, decadent, and uncertain, some Christians struggle to keep fear out of their hearts. They sense intuitively that conditions in the world are disintegrating, and some kind of ominous disaster may be looming on the horizon. As they hear all the terrible reports of what’s happening in America and around the globe, they struggle to rest in the promise of God’s keeping power.
Jesus is faithful and caring through every season of our life, and he is touched by every feeling we endure during our hard times. The apostle Paul addresses this when he writes, “We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us” (2 Corinthians 4:7). The treasure Paul refers to is the knowledge and presence of Jesus Christ — and we hold this precious treasure in our bodies. Just imagine! Yet the Greek word Paul uses for “earthen” is “frail clay” meaning, “weak, easily broken, and easily tempted.”
What does God look like? We know he is spirit and that he is invisible to us; in fact, the Word says, “No one has seen God at any time” (John 1:18).
Part of Jesus’ mission on earth was to reveal the heavenly Father to us. When Christ was about to return to heaven, he told his disciples that they knew where he was going and they knew the way. However, Thomas countered, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?” (John 14:5). In other words, “If you leave us, how will we ever get to the Father? You told us yourself that you’re the only way to him.”
When the prophet Isaiah foretold the coming of Christ and his kingdom, he outlined what Christ’s true ministers would be like. In doing so, he defined our ministry in these last days when he said, “I want you to know the marks of the true people of God, those who will be ministering just before the Prince of Peace comes to reign.”
God spoke to Isaiah about a certain servant who delights his heart: “Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights” (Isaiah 42:1). Who is this one whom God sustains and upholds, guarding his every step? Who is his chosen, his elect — the one in whom he so delights?
Sundays used to be the day set aside as the Lord’s Day, a day to worship God and rest from all other activities. Today, however, Sunday is no longer a hallowed day. Sadly, many Christians no longer look on Sunday as a day to prioritize Christian activities. Millions of believers can be seen heading for their family hideaway — a cabin in the mountains, a house in the country, a chalet at the lake. For them, Sunday is one big play day of boating, swimming, skiing, going on cruises or outings.
“We, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another” (Romans 12:5). By faith, we are the very members of Christ’s body, adopted into one family. There is no longer black, white, yellow, brown, Jew or Gentile. We are all of one blood — one new man — in Christ Jesus! And because of Christ’s work on the cross, man couldn’t become holy by good works, righteous deeds, human effort or strivings of the flesh.
God the Father enthroned Christ as king over all nations and all nature, and as Lord over the church. It doesn’t matter what things look like on the outside. Everything may seem out of control and look like the devil has taken power, but the truth is, God has put all things under Jesus’ feet.