Devotions

The apostle Peter tells us, “Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven” (1 Peter 1:10).

We should note that these prophets knew what they were called to do — prophesy and speak God’s Word. They spoke a powerful word because they were certain of what was in their hearts and they wanted to be sure they understood its impact before they voiced it to the people. They “searched and inquired carefully,” patiently pursuing truth. If we are not careful, we can approach the Word of God casually and read only the parts we like. But if we do this, we will miss truths that he intends for us to grasp. Therefore, it is vital that we search the Word diligently.

Is there an area in your life that is out of control? It may be a problem with sin or relationships. Or it may be because you are not willing to open your heart to the fullness of the Word of God and ask the Holy Spirit to apply the Word to your heart.

I truly believe that God gave us all things in the Scripture for our profit, our benefit, our teaching, our rebuke and our correction. He wants us to become fully mature in him. But if we do not avail ourselves of the whole truth, we will not benefit from it. And if we do not listen to the Holy Spirit when we study the Word, we can believe things that are not actually there.

It is important that you not only know the Word of God, but that you know the God of the Word.

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though its waters roar and be troubled; though the mountains shake with its swelling. … Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge” (Psalm 46:1-3, 10-11).

“Be still and know that I am God!” is an incredible verse about which many songs have been written and countless sermons have been preached. But what exactly does it mean to be still? Does it mean that we simply do nothing?

Perhaps you are wondering how exactly you are supposed to be still when all around you is noise and flurry — even that which claims to represent God. How do you let down your hands and give up trying to figure everything out when that is all you have ever done?

In reality, the deepest work of God is that which takes place in the hidden man of the heart. It is not something that makes a lot of noise. The Lord Himself expressed this truth as He called to His own people through the prophet Isaiah: “For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: ‘In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and confidence shall be your strength’” (Isaiah 30:15).

In other words, “You would have found true strength by letting go of all human effort and putting your confidence in the work that only I can do.” That is the real essence of Christian growth. Remember, the Christian life is a supernatural life. None of us can make ourselves holy — we can only yield our lives to the One who does this sanctifying work within us.

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.

Former astronaut Charlie Duke once spoke about what it was like being in a tiny space capsule 28,000 miles from Earth, racing toward the moon. As the crew turned the craft to its side, someone exclaimed, “What an incredible sight!” They all looked and saw the planet Earth, hanging wondrously in black space — a huge, bright ball, supported by nothing at all. The whole crew was overwhelmed at the sight; they knew only an incredible Creator could have wrought that.

God beautifully used the reference to his creation when he was bringing Job out of his sufferings. “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? … To what were its foundations fastened?” (Job 38:4, 6). He was asking, “What holds the earth up in space?” And he goes further, “Who shut up the sea in its borders? Who tells the mighty ocean, ‘Come to this point but no farther’? What keeps the waves from overwhelming the land? And where is the spring from which the seas flow?

“How is the light parted from the darkness? How is the wind divided and scattered? How is rain born? Can man produce lightning, thunder, clouds? Who put wildness and tameness in the nature of beasts? Who do you think set all these forces of nature in place, Job?”

God literally took Job through a “power course,” revealing his past creation. Through it all, Job was being told, “You accuse me of neglect and you doubt my power to deliver you, yet I have shown you how I care for all my vast creation” (read this in Job 38 and 39).

Job was totally overwhelmed and when he looked at his problems again, he said, “I’ve been so foolish. I’ve had my eyes on the wrong things. I was concentrating on my pain when I should have been looking at you and your greatness. I know you can do everything and I also know that no thought can be withheld from you” (see 42:2).

If you keep your eyes on God and his greatness, fear and doubt cannot get a stranglehold on your heart.

In his letter to the church, Jude gives a dire warning: “To those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ: Mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you … I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ” (Jude 1-4).

Jude is forewarning us that false shepherds will steal into God’s house with one goal in mind: to pervert the Lord’s grace. He is saying, “Satan is sending a certain false doctrine to infiltrate the church and it is going to come through preachers, teachers and evangelists. They will take God’s grace and subtly twist it, manipulating it until it produces lasciviousness in God’s people.”

Every Sunday, professing Christians gather in God’s house to worship, hear his Word, and enjoy fellowship. Yet many of these same holy-appearing people lead lust-filled lives. The devil is probably not bent on hooking you with filth and tempting you with gross sin. However, if he can get you to see grace as an excuse for permissiveness, then he can start you down a path to bondage.

If you have a truly biblical understanding of grace, the enemy cannot deceive you and seduce you. Here are three safeguards against the seductions of Satan’s lies concerning grace:

1. Build up your faith by diligently studying God’s Word. Both reading and hearing it.
2. Pray in the Holy Spirit, not just in church but in private.
3. Be anxious for nothing, but look for our Lord’s soon return.

You have the ability within you to do all three of these and if you do them, Jude declares, you will reap the benefits: “[He] is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24). Hallelujah!

It is easy to take for granted the miracles God has performed in our past. Yet the Bible tells us to remember our deliverances. Moses’ exhortation to Israel after the miracle of the Red Sea was, “Remember this day in which you went out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage” (Exodus 13:3).

The Lord was telling them, in essence, “Guard these memories and every time you face a crisis, remember all the miracles I have provided for you. And be sure to tell your children so it will build your faith and the faith of generations to follow.”

The memory of our past deliverances helps increase our faith for what we are going through right now. When David volunteered to fight the giant Goliath, King Saul said to him, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are a youth, and he a man of war from his youth” (1 Samuel 17:33). But David had the memory of killing a lion and a bear with his bare hands when he was protecting his sheep. He told Saul about this and assured him, “Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God” (17:36).

David knew the danger of facing Goliath but he was not a novice, a naive kid full of bravado and looking for a fight. No, he was simply remembering his past deliverances and he was assured of victory. He looked his enemy squarely in the eye and stated, “The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine” (17:37).

Are you facing a giant in your life? Remember that time when God healed your body and raised you up? Remember the time he provided the finances you needed to get your through? Do not cower in fear, but think on his faithfulness and trust him to deliver you once again.