Devotions

Paul speaks of a certain ministry calling that every Christian has. This ministry does not require particular gifts or talents; rather, it is to be undertaken by all who have been born again. In fact, this ministry is every believer’s first calling. All other endeavors must flow out of it because no ministry can be pleasing to God unless it is birthed out of this calling.

I am talking about the ministry of beholding the face of Christ. Paul says, “We all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord” (2 Corinthians 3:18). What does it mean to behold the Lord’s glory? Paul is speaking here of devoted, focused worship — time given to God simply to behold him. And the apostle quickly adds, “Therefore, since we have this ministry” (4:1). Paul makes it very clear that beholding the face of Christ is a ministry we all must devote ourselves to.

The Greek word for “beholding” is a very strong expression; it indicates not just taking a look, but “fixing the gaze.” It means, “Before I do anything else or try to accomplish a single thing, I must be in God’s presence.”

Many misinterpret the phrase “beholding as in a mirror” (3:18). They think of Jesus’ face being reflected back to them. But Paul is speaking of an intensely focused gaze, as if peering at something earnestly through a glass, trying to see it more clearly. We are to “fix our eyes” in this way, determined to see God’s glory in the face of Christ. We are to shut ourselves in with him and commune with such devotion that we are changed.

Paul continues is 2 Corinthians 3:18: “[We] are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” By being in the presence of Christ, we are being changed by the work of the Spirit. How wonderful to know that the Holy Spirit will work a progressive increase of the character of Christ in us as we focus on him.

Isaiah 16:6 vividly describes what happens to a proud nation that falls under God’s judgment: “We have heard of the pride of Moab … of his haughtiness and his pride and his wrath; but his lies shall not be so.” Throughout Scripture, the nation of Moab serves as a symbol representing all self-reliant people who turn their backs on God and fall under his judgment.

In biblical times, harvest was always a time of great celebration, yet after judgment fell on Moab, there were no shouts of “Harvest!” ringing through the streets. Any trace of joy in Moab became a thing of the past and a cloud of sadness and grief hung over the society.

Let’s consider the landscape in America today. What do you see and hear? Our proud, haughty nation has fallen under God’s divine wrath and there is a great deal of fear. When destruction hit the Twin Towers in New York City, the cry was, “This is going to change our nation forever,” and that was true. The innocence, joy and gladness that many Americans once knew are gone forever and will never be recaptured.

What we need to know is that Jesus Christ alone is the source of all joy. The Psalmist says of him, “God … has anointed You with the oil of gladness more than Your companions” (45:7). The oil mentioned in this psalm represents the Holy Spirit. The writer is saying, “Only those who press in to a closer walk with Jesus will obtain the joy of his Spirit.”

We who know Christ’s righteousness are not to live as those who are without hope. We have been blessed with both the love and the fear of God and he is saying to us, “The ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing” (Isaiah 51:11). In other words, “I’m going to have a people who return to me with trust, faith and confidence. They’ll take their eyes off their conditions and the calamities surrounding them and get back their song of joy.”

Jesus sits at the right hand of God and “He is always living to make petition to God and to intercede with Him” (Hebrews 7:25). Isaiah 56:7 says, “There is joy for him in the house of prayer.”

Let me ask you some personal questions:

• Are you following Jesus into the house of prayer?
• Are you following him into a “usual” place where you pray?
• Do you pray regularly?
• Do you pray daily for your spouse and your children? Jesus says to his disciples, “Pray that you don’t fall into temptation” (Luke 22:46).

Fathers, do you pray for your children that they don’t fall into temptation? Wives, do you pray for your husbands, that God’s hand will be upon him? Children, young people, teenagers, are you seeking the Lord’s face so that you won’t be swayed by the temptations of the world? Single persons, do you take some of the time in your busy days and schedule a “usual” time when you cry out to God?

Jesus’ own life was a model of what he wanted to see established in his disciples (and this means us, because we are his disciples). If we are honest, many of us must admit that we don’t have “usual” times of prayer. Sometimes we may go days without a consistent time and place of prayer where we can openly and transparently commune with God away from the distractions of the world.

The lover of your soul covets time alone with you. He wants you to praise and exalt him — day in and day out. Unless you schedule significant time to be alone with God, the busyness of life will keep you from meeting with him. God doesn’t care what time of day you meet with Him — after all, he is available all the time! Make this time a priority because it will be the most important time in your life. Make a commitment to the Father and then say “no” to everything else.

In the Old Testament we read the story of Jacob’s wife, Rachel, and her desperate desire to have a child. She could no longer bear the thought of living without knowing the joy of childbirth, without experiencing all that was intended for her as a woman in the Jewish culture. Rachel’s pain was unbearable and she cried out to Jacob, “Give me children or I’ll die” (Genesis 30:1).

Bringing a soul to Christ is very much like giving birth. The Holy Spirit conceives the desire in our hearts, and we then begin to nurture the process, praying for souls regularly. We long to see our new baby delivered and when it is born, we don’t want to ever put it down. We play and cuddle and mentor God’s new creation. We plant and water, praying that God will give the increase. All we can think about is helping our child grow and flourish and take on the image of Christ.

If only every follower of Christ felt this same sense of passion and urgency to bring a new child into God’s kingdom! If only we each decided that we could no longer live with the thought of being barren. If only the desire burned within our hearts until we could no longer contain it, until we finally kept crying out to God, “Give me a spiritual child or I will die.”

Everywhere I go I meet Christians who have never felt the joy of leading a soul to Christ. They come to me asking for advice, usually with eyes cast downward in embarrassment. I tell them not to be ashamed by this fact but instead excited that the Holy Spirit is convicting their hearts.

“The first step in sharing your faith is developing a burning desire to do so,” I tell them. We can count on the Holy Spirit to ignite this desperate desire within us, for this is exactly what he wants to do.

Nicky Cruz, internationally known evangelist and prolific author, turned to Jesus Christ from a life of violence and crime after meeting David Wilkerson in New York City in 1958. The story of his dramatic conversion was told first in The Cross and the Switchblade by David Wilkerson and then later in his own best-selling book Run, Baby, Run.

To enter into God’s rest, we must renounce our own efforts. Faith alone admits us into this perfect rest: “For we who have believed do enter that rest” (Hebrews 4:3). Simply put, we are to set our hearts to believe that God is faithful to deliver us in every circumstance, no matter how impossible it may seem.

“For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His” (4:10). When we are at rest in Christ, we no longer try to put on a brave face in times of trouble. We don’t pump up some phony acceptance of our crisis and we don’t worry that we might cave in to fear and begin questioning God’s love. In short, our “works mentality” ceases and we simply trust the Lord.

How do we develop such trust? We seek the Lord in prayer, meditate on his Word, and walk in obedience. You may object, “But these are all works.” I disagree. They are all acts of faith. As we observe these disciplines, we are trusting that the Holy Spirit is at work in us, building up a reservoir of strength for our time of need. We may not feel God’s strengthening going on inside us, or feel his power being built up in us. But when our next trial comes, these heavenly resources will become manifest in us. In fact, this is the foremost reason I seek the Lord diligently — fasting, praying, studying, looking to obey his commandments through the power of the Holy Spirit.

As long as you are serving the Lord, the devil will never give you rest. You will face intense warfare, surprise attacks, and in spite of all your past victories, you will always need heaven’s resources to help you endure.

Determine to be a soldier who is fully prepared for the battlefield. When the enemy suddenly comes at you, you are going to need all available ammunition. You will want to have reserves to draw on; you will have won the battle on your knees before God, prior to the conflict.