Devotions

I believe every episode or story in the Old Testament is full of truth for New Testament believers. Whenever I have difficulty understanding a New Testament truth, I turn back to its foreshadowing in the Old Testament. One such example concerns Moses at the burning bush. I believe this particular story is full of profound New Testament truth regarding holiness.

Alone on Mount Horeb, Moses was herding the sheep of his father-in-law when suddenly a strange sight caught his attention. A nearby bush was burning brightly — yet it was not consumed!

“Then Moses said, ‘I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.’ So when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush” (Exodus 3:3-4). Going in for a closer look, Moses heard God call out to him from the bush — living proof that God was present, a visual representation of His holiness. Indeed, wherever He is, that place is holy!

“As He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, ‘Be holy, for I am holy’” (1 Peter 1:15-16). In other words, “It is written, recorded, settled once and for all that we are to be holy, even as our God is holy.”

“For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness” (1 Thessalonians 4:7). God has not called us just to salvation, or to heaven, or to receive His pardon. Rather, these are benefits of our one true call — which is to be holy as He is holy. 

Every believer in Jesus Christ is called to be holy — to be pure and blameless in God’s sight. So, if you have been born again, holiness must be the cry of your heart: “God, I want to be like Jesus. I truly want to walk holy before You all the days of my life.”  

“Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time” (Revelation 12:12).

This passage from Revelation tells us that Satan has declared all-out war on God’s people. It also mentions that the devil has a deadline to complete his work: Because he knows that he has a short time.

As followers of Jesus Christ, we are constantly to be aware that the devil is out to destroy us. Therefore, Paul says that we need to know as much as we can about the enemy’s tactics and plans: “Lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices” (2 Corinthians 2:11).

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). This does not mean the devil is hovering in the cosmos somewhere giving orders to his demonic hosts. We know that Satan was cast down to earth when Christ defeated him at the cross. Thus, the devil’s kingdom is limited to the here and now (see Revelation 12:12).

Some Christians believe that Satan is omnipotent (possessing all power) but he has been defeated by Jesus and stripped of all authority. And Satan is not omniscient (he cannot read minds!) nor is he omnipresent. He cannot be everywhere at one time.

But Satan does have principalities and powers stationed throughout the earth and these hosts of demons feed him intelligence at his beck and call. They hear you when you pray, and they see your obedience to God. That is what stirs up Satan’s wrath against you!

When the Word says the devil has only a short time, it is not referring to the time he has before the return of Christ. It is about continual deadlines, a series of short times he has in which to accomplish his work and make war against God’s saints.  

Sincere Christians have asked me, “Whom do we believe? I have read the works of many ministers through the years who seemed convinced that the end was very near. Yet over and over they’ve missed it. I think some were just trying to sell their book while others truly thought God was telling them the end was upon us.”

At times I have been utterly broken before God, loudly crying out to Him, “Lord, for many years I’ve been preaching that judgment is at the door. I’ve delivered warnings about a coming economic crisis, yet I only see the opposite happening. I see America prospering and going cheerfully on its way while killing babies in the womb, sliding into the pits of filth, and pushing you out of every institution. How long, Lord?”

Jeremiah spent years faithfully prophesying events that had not yet been fulfilled. He cried out, “O Lord, You induced me, and I was persuaded; You are stronger than I, and have prevailed. I am in derision daily; everyone mocks me. For when I spoke, I cried out; I shouted, ‘Violence and plunder!’ Because the word of the Lord was made to me a reproach and a derision daily” (Jeremiah 20:7-8).

But Jeremiah could not stop warning God’s people. Even though his prophecies seemed to be unfounded, he kept prophesying. I feel the same fire burning in my soul that Jeremiah felt and I’m more convinced than ever that God has “set His face” against this nation for its bloodshed and arrogance against His name, and His judgment is due!

On the other hand, I thank God for the many promises in His Word to protect and bless His people in and through all storms. God’s praying people do not need to fear, nor should we worry or fret.

“The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. And those who know Your name will put their trust in You; for You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You” (Psalm 9:9-10). 

“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us” (Ephesians 1:7-8, ESV).

We in the church haven’t even begun to scratch the surface of grace. We take only tiny sips from the cup of grace from time to time in our walk with God before we begin to rely on our own abilities.

When Jesus says we are to be born again, have faith, pray, seek His face, and love our neighbor, His every command is yes and amen. We are required to do what He calls us to do, not pick and choose our areas of obedience.

Some churches prefer certain areas of obedience over others. They emphasize evangelism, social justice, political activism, serving the poor, or prayer. But no church is pleasing to God when it runs on one cylinder instead of eight. Any person or church that is not obeying God’s commands is living in disobedience! He simply will not allow us to ignore certain of His commands.

Yet perfect obedience is not possible; it isn’t within the realm of our ability. The reason we choose certain areas of obedience is because they are easier to fulfill than others.

Having a life of joy and victory does not hinge on whether we succeed or fail at obeying God’s commands; it has everything to do with how we go about obeying His commands. When I was young, one of my youth leaders told me, “You can change yourself so that temptations don’t return. You have the ability to pull yourself out of anything.” Really? It doesn’t take long to see how futile that really is.

We cannot make changes in ourselves. We must allow God’s grace to empower us and bring transformation — in ourselves and in our world. 

The Bible has several symbols for the Holy Spirit. One is wind, which in the original Greek in the New Testament is the same word as breath. Wind helps us to visualize the invisible and mysterious movement of the Spirit (see John 3:8).

A dove symbolized the Spirit during Jesus’ baptism. “Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove” (Mark 1:10). The Holy Spirit is all-powerful yet strangely gentle and sensitive in His dealings with us. We can all too easily grieve Him.

Oil is a symbol often used for the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament. The anointing of the Holy Spirit is likened to the oil that was put on almost everything in the tabernacle. When it was built as a place of worship, not only were the temple objects anointed with oil, but so also were the priests. Later the elders of the early church were instructed to pray for the sick and to anoint the ailing believers with oil as a symbol of the Holy Spirit (James 5:14).

Fire is one of my favorite symbols for the Holy Spirit. It is used to represent the power and presence of God. When John the Baptist came on the scene before Jesus appeared, he said, “I baptize you with water. But one who is more powerful than I will come . . . He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Luke 3:16, emphasis added).

Jim Cymbala began the Brooklyn Tabernacle with less than twenty members in a small, rundown building in a difficult part of the city. A native of Brooklyn, he is a longtime friend of both David and Gary Wilkerson.