Devotions

According to Jesus, in God’s eyes Christ and his Church are one. Paul illustrates this with the analogy of a human body. He says Christ is the head and we are his body — bone of his bone, flesh of his flesh. “[God] put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all” (Ephesians 1:22-23). “For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones” (Ephesians 5:30).

The implication here is that when the Father loved Jesus before eternity, he loved us, too. Indeed, when man was still only a thought in God’s eternal mind, the Lord was already numbering our parts and planning our redemption: “Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love” (Ephesians 1:4).

In the Psalms, David writes that he was loved by God while still in the womb. “You are He who took Me out of the womb; You made Me trust while on My mother’s breasts. I was cast upon You from birth. From My mother’s womb You have been My God” (Psalm 22:9-10).

“Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them” (Psalm 139:16). In essence, David is saying, “Even before I was formed, you knew me, Lord. You had all my parts marked down beforehand.”

God loved you before the world began and there is no end to that love. “We have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him” (1 John 4:16). If we abide in God, we can expect his love to be renewed to us every day. What a wonderful thought! Even when you are in turmoil of some sort, you can know that through it all, the Father is still loving you.

One of the great tragedies of the Church in this generation, and one of God’s greatest griefs, is that so many Christians are not truly happy. They put on a good front — singing, clapping, smiling and praising. But lurking just beneath the surface is loneliness and deep misery.

These Christians are hot, then suddenly cold. They cannot cope with fear, and depression runs over them like a steamroller. One week they are high, the next week low. Many times their marriages follow that pattern as well. One day all is well between a husband and wife, and the next day they are miserable. Some days they cannot even talk to one another. They explain, “Well, that’s just the way marriage is supposed to be. You can’t expect to stay happy and loving all the time.”

Believers caught in this up-and-down cycle should heed the words of Paul to Timothy. He encouraged the young man to help others come to their senses and “escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will” (2 Timothy 2:26), or, as the King James Version puts it, “taken captive by him at his will.” This describes many believers perfectly: Because they give him access, Satan moves in and out of their lives at his own will. They exercise no authority to stop the devil at their heart’s door and he flaunts his hold of them. “You have no power of Christ in you to stop me,” Satan says. “You are my captive and will do as I wish.”

This lack of victory in Christ is appalling! Jesus did not die so that you continue to live under the power of Satan after you have given your heart to him. Be careful not get caught in this trap. Instead, set your heart on firmly walking with God and claiming his promises. Determine to seek him with all your might and he will fill your heart with true, lasting joy.

As the old prophet Elijah pondered his last day on earth, he invited his servant, Elisha, to go along with him as he visited the towns of Bethel and Jericho. On this “teaching journey,” they arrived at the bank of the Jordan River where Elijah removed his mantle — a wide, loose-fitting garment or gown — and smote the water with it. Supernaturally, the waters parted and the two men crossed over on dry ground (see 2 Kings 2:8).

On the other side of the river, Elijah turned to his servant and said, “Ask! What may I do for you, before I am taken away from you?” (2 Kings 2:9). Without hesitation, the younger man replied, “Please let a double portion of your spirit be upon me” (same verse).

Elijah appeared surprised by Elisha’s response: “You have asked a hard thing. Nevertheless, if you see me when I am taken from you, it shall be so for you; but if not, it shall not be so” (2:10). Elijah was saying, “If you see me as the Lord is taking me away, your desire will be fulfilled, but if you miss the action, you’ll have to go home disappointed.”

As they walked, suddenly a chariot appeared out of heaven and in a flash, Elijah was taken up. Elisha witnessed the whole scene and he cried out, “My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horsemen!” (2:12). Elijah was gone but his mantle dropped to the ground. Elisha picked it up and placed it on his own back. Then he returned to the Jordan and did just as his master had done: he struck the water with the mantle and immediately the waters parted and he walked over on dry ground. Thus began the young prophet’s remarkable ministry.

What does this passage have to say to us today? I believe God wants to do greater things with each succeeding generation. He wants to perform miracles and provide more of his Spirit for his people beyond anything seen in the past. He longs for us to prepare our hearts and see the Lord do a new thing in these last days.

“I looked for a man from among them who would repair the wall and stand in the gap before me on behalf of the land” (Ezekiel 22:30).

God says he is looking for someone who is willing to “stand in the gap,” that wide, empty place where something is missing. Evangelism, worship, teaching, preaching, good works, Sunday school, and youth ministry are well covered, but your church’s “gap” may be prayer.

The Lord calls his church to stand in the gap, no matter what the outcome might be. If you pray only to get success in your own life, you are just like the Pharisees — and Jesus called them hypocrites or pretenders. You may pretend to stand in the gap for somebody else but really you want something for yourself. If you don’t get what you want from God after fifteen minutes, you quit praying. The prayer meeting and seeking his face are no longer a part of your life — and you doubt that God will answer prayer.

God seeks persistent, faithful, heart-felt prayer. Standing in the gap in the secret place with God for fifteen minutes each day is a good start. You will find those fifteen minutes turn to twenty and then thirty. Don’t worry about how long you pray, just stay consistent.

The Bible clearly tells us he wants us to be filled with his love and power — and this only happens when we go into the secret place with him. If you are doing good works just to be seen by men, that is all you will see and your life will become consumed with questions: “Did they see me? Do they appreciate what I’ve done? Am I accepted? Am I loved?”

When you are standing in the gap and serving him, it will not matter what others say and you won’t be looking for that pat on the back. The Father’s eyes are on you and he is saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”                 

When Satan came down into the Garden of Eden, he came with a hatred for God that manifested every time he tried to bring to ruin that which was closest to the heart of the Lord: mankind. The devil ended up sowing a thought into the human race that would bring man to his own destruction — the idea that we can become as God in ourselves.

After Satan tempted Adam and Eve, God said to him, “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every best of the field; on your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel” (Genesis 3:14-15).

This is the first time in the Bible that we see the redemptive plan of God. Obviously, God was not caught by surprise in the Garden of Eden. He knew that humankind would be created in His image, would subsequently fail, and then would have to be redeemed. So God was essentially telling Satan, “Lest you should exalt yourself, know that I have a plan. You are going to live to conquer and devour those created in my image all the days of your life. I will put an act of opposition between you and the woman — but from the seed of a woman I am going to raise up the One who will actively oppose you and defeat you.”

The One from the seed of the woman was Christ. And as we know the story today, Jesus would be raised from the dead and would tread upon the devil’s imagination that he has the right to captivate those who have been created in the image of God, not just for time but for all eternity.

It is vital to remember that we have power over the devil — and the true source of our power is in prayer. It always has been, and it always will be.   

Carter Conlon joined the pastoral staff of Times Square Church in 1994 at the invitation of the founding pastor, David Wilkerson, and was appointed Senior Pastor in 2001.