Devotions

“‘For whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives.’ If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten?” (Hebrews 12:6-7).

You are never more loved than when you are chastened or corrected by the Lord. In fact, the entire process of chastening has everything to do with God’s desire for you. It is all meant to take you into the knowledge and glory of Himself. And remember, God never chastens His children in anger.

Yet, make no mistake. The Bible calls these times of chastening grievous. They are in no way joyful. “No chastening seems to be joyful for the present” (12:11). Nevertheless, we’re told, “Afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” (same verse).

Over the years I have had to quench many of Satan’s darts and lies, yet today I proclaim with assurance, “God is not mad at me. And, dear follower of Jesus, He is not mad at you. Therefore, quench everything the devil says to try to convince you otherwise!”

This is the victory of the cross: Peace with God and the very peace of  God.

The scene at Calvary did not look like a victory. But that day something was at work that Satan did not know about. It was something he will never understand about our blessed Savior. I’m talking about the unfathomable mercy of God in Christ!

Something incredible happens when a person receives Jesus as Lord. Once they forsake the world and follow Him, they are forever bound to the Lord with unbreakable cords of love. Consider Paul’s description of this deep, unknowable mercy:

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? . . . Neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:35, 38–39).

Despite the disciples’ shameful failure, God’s mercy was fully at work in them through the Holy Spirit. And that mercy determined their victory after the dark day of the cross. A seed of faith had been implanted in Jesus’ followers, and their houses had been built on a rock. Their houses were shaken, of course, as satanic storms beat upon the walls and powerful waves pounded the foundations. But when the storms passed, it was obvious that those houses had stood the test.

We all have distractions in life, but let’s face it — men are the worst when it comes to sports. I don’t mean playing sports — which would actually be good for a lot of couch potatoes — but keeping up with sports. Smartphones and the ESPN app have turned once-attentive husbands into screen-gazers. All a guy has to do is silently press the refresh button and dozens of game scores are instantly updated. Every date night is at risk from constant under-the-table glances.

Now let me sing the praises of the refresh button in God’s kingdom. With just one touch of His amazing grace, everything old is wiped away — and life is renewed completely. There are times in all our lives when this needs to happen and, of course, the only One who can bring it about is Jesus. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17, ESV).

Just like a screen app, nothing in our life changes — everything remains frozen, stuck — until the refresh button is pushed. Are you stuck in patterns of old ways of living, ways that keep you from tasting the freshness of life in Christ?

Jesus has the power to change everything! And just like the woman who was healed by touching His garment, you can be healed and refreshed with just one touch from Him. 

"Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them" (Hebrews 7:25).

What does scripture mean when it says Jesus makes intercession for us? I believe this subject is so deep, majestic and beyond human understanding, I tremble even to address it. Biblical scholars hold various views on its meaning. But no book or commentary has satisfied my search. In fact, the more teaching I’ve read on the matter, the more confusing it all sounds.

Yet, through prayer and trust in the Holy Spirit's guidance, I’ve begun grasping just a little of this incredible subject. Praying very simply, "Lord, how does your intercession in heaven affect my life? Your word says you appear before the father on my behalf. What does this mean in my daily walk with you? I don't need to know what the great scholars have learned. Just show me a simple truth I can grasp and appropriate for my life."

The popular evangelical view of Christ's intercession is that Jesus returned to heaven to act as high priest on our behalf. There is no question about this. The Bible clearly states: "Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself” (Heb. 9:24)

I believe Jesus intercedes today to preserve his people, keeping us from sin and maintaining us in God’s love. He won't allow anything—any fear, any temporary fall, any accusation from Satan—to alienate us from the Father. In short, he prays for us in the same way he prayed for his disciple Peter: "that thy faith fail not" (Luke 22:32).

Our savior is alive in glory right now. And he's both fully God and fully human, with hands, feet, eyes, hair. He also has the nail scars on his hands and feet, the wound in his side. He has never discarded his humanity; he's still a man in glory. And right now, our man in eternity is working to make sure we're never robbed of the peace he gave us when he left. He's ministering as our high priest, actively involved in keeping his body on earth full of his peace. And when he comes again, he  wants us to "be found of him in peace'' (2 Peter 3: 14).

May this Easter be a day that you can celebrate that He is risen and the peace poured out on us because of it.

I am reminded of a time years ago when I was driving my middle son home from a hockey game. He had a couple of very hungry hockey players with him, so we stopped at McDonald’s. Standing in line behind them, I watched as the boys proceeded to take out the little bit of money they had. Suddenly I saw my son turn to his two friends and exclaim, “Put your money away, guys. My dad will pay!”

Now in those days, I was a pastor in a small country town and hardly made enough to pay the electricity bill of our house. I watched as the boys placed their orders — it was all “double-double, super-size me!” Yet I didn’t care if I had to dig into my gasoline fund for the next week — there was no way in my heart that I would embarrass my son.

The Scripture tells us, “If you know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask Him?” (see Luke 11:13).

You and I must be willing to boast of our Father’s generosity, just as my son did. But in order to boast of it, we have to know and experience it personally. We must not only open our hearts to Him, but we must also be willing to walk with Him.

The Father’s generosity is not given to those who choose to sit on the couch watching television all day. You must get up and walk with Him, and when you do, the floodgate of heaven opens and all the resources that Christ won for us suddenly become available.  

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.