Sunday Devotional - What is Slavery Today?

When the Israelites first arrived in Egypt, it was for freedom sake. They were friends of Pharaoh (through Joseph), and they settled in the land of Goshen because the rest of the world was in the midst of a drought and they would die if they didn’t. They weren’t told what they couldn’t do. (Genesis 47)

But after a while, Pharaoh died, Joseph died, and everyone who knew any of them died, and soon the Israelites became slaves. They were stripped of the right to leave or to decline work. They lived in back breaking labor day in and day out, and were given no rest—after all, who gives rest to slaves?

So when they were finally given freedom, God instituted a day of rest, and they were given the right again to say “no” to work and enter into the stillness and peace that can only be found by allowing God to be ruler in their hearts again.

Deuteronomy 5:15 - Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out of there with a strong hand and an outstretched arm. That is why the Lord your God has commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

Today slavery doesn’t look much different. It promises freedom because it will take care of us and fulfill our need without telling us what we can’t do or shouldn’t do. Smoking promises to keep us relaxed and help us stay thinner. Alcohol promises to help us forget our worries and become a more fun person. Caffeine promises to help us stay alert and awake so we can work or play longer and need sleep less. Food promises to comfort us and keep us from ever feeling hungry. 

But once we continue to live with our newfound friend and addiction, we’ll find it’s not easy to leave or even decline it when we have an urge to continue. And what’s worse is that we have to pay or work harder in order to keep up with the demands of the addiction. We have to smoke or drink or eat more in order to get the same promise out of them, and that costs more money. And not to mention the toll that these things take on our health. Cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and other organ disfunction awaits the person who remains enslaved to these addictions. We soon find that the freedom promised by these things were actually just another form of bondage. It didn’t tell us what we couldn’t do at first, but eventually we found that we couldn’t stop.

Galatians 5:1 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

Christ has set us free from every bondage, every enslavement, so there is no need to live in slavery today to anything. No addiction can hold us if we abide in Christ and live in obedience. We have a promised land, a land of freedom promised to us in God’s word. But, just like the Israelites after they were freed from Egypt, they still had to fight to take the land that was promised to them.

Deuteronomy 1:8 - Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which the LORD swore unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them.

Joshua 1:3 Every place where the sole of your foot treads, I have given you, as I promised Moses.

Even though God made these promises to Joshua and Moses, they Bible shows through most of the book of Joshua that they had to fight to gain ground and to take possession of the land and freedom God said was theirs. Likewise, freedom is ours, it’s already promised to us, but it’s up to us to fight and take it.

But isn’t it difficult to now battle against our addiction? It’s easy to remember the “good times” when the enslavement didn’t seem so bad. Wasn’t it nice to us before? Didn’t it kind of keep some of its promises? But unless we want to go back to Egypt, back to being told we can’t leave and we can’t stop while it slowly kills us and works us to death, we must fight.

Numbers 14:40-45 - Early the next morning they set out for the highest point in the hill country, saying, “Now we are ready to go up to the land the Lord promised. Surely we have sinned!” But Moses said, “Why are you disobeying the Lord’s command? This will not succeed! Do not go up, because the Lord is not with you. You will be defeated by your enemies, for the Amalekites and the Canaanites will face you there. Because you have turned away from the Lord, he will not be with you and you will fall by the sword.” Nevertheless, in their presumption they went up toward the highest point in the hill country, though neither Moses nor the ark of the Lord’s covenant moved from the camp. Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down and attacked them and beat them down all the way to Hormah.

However, if we try to fight in our own strength, we will be beaten time and again, just like the Israelites were each time they tried to fight without God’s provision. The truth is that if we were strong enough to free ourselves and battle on our own, we would have done so. And just because we are children of the omnipotent King doesn’t mean that we can do things without Him with us. 

Gaining ground is a struggle, but if we rely upon the Lord’s strength, ground will be gained. We must pray before every battle, realizing that this is not our war, it’s His. Rely upon His strength each and every time we need to resist the urge to give in to our slavery. God alone can defeat our enemy, we need to leave it in His hands, and worry about only about abiding in Him.

My personal paraphrase of the promises from Isaiah 30:18-21(TPT) - Entwine your heart with His. Wait for Him to help and He will answer you when you cry out. Through hardship and difficulty, He will be with you—He will not hide from you. And you will hear his once behind you saying, “This is the way, walk in it.”

John 15:7-8 - If you remain in me and my words in you, that is if we are vitally united and my message lives in your heart, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified and honored by this, when you bear much fruit and prove to be my disciples. (AMP)

So my prayer today is that we take hold of the freedom to say “no” to whatever we are enslaved to today. That we will believe the promises of strength and boldness that we are granted in God’s word and march forward with Him in front of us and behind us and telling us where to go and how to get there. That our hearts will be entwined with His and that He will help us with the battles that we are facing to take hold of the freedom that is ours. In Jesus name.

Sunday Devotional - This Easter, am I Judas or Peter?

It’s Easter Sunday, and I’ve had Judas on my heart. He walked closely with Jesus, saw the miracles, heard His voice and His teaching, even shared meals with Him, but Judas didn’t submit to Him. Even though he was that close to Him, Judas didn’t allow Jesus to change him. Am I the same? Even if I’m around Jesus, going to church, reading my bible, listening to worship music, am I surrendered? Am I allowing Jesus to change me and make me more like Him?

John 12:6 - Now Judas said this, not because he cared about the poor [for he had never cared about them], but because he was a thief; and since he had the money box [serving as treasurer for the twelve disciples], he used to pilfer what was put into it. 

Judas couldn’t be trusted with the little things. He made compromises on little things. What was the big deal? As long as they had enough money to do what the disciples wanted to do, did it really matter if he took a little bit of something for himself? Small compromises weakened his integrity and made it easier for him to make bigger ones. It opened the door for the enemy to work. When I make small compromises, what am I setting myself up for? Every choice I make draws me closer to God or further away. Every choice is a battle for my soul, so what will I choose today?

Luke 22:3 Then Satan entered Judas, the one called Iscariot, who was one of the twelve [disciples].

Because of Judas’s sin and his lack of repentance, Satan found a way into his heart and caused the ultimate betrayal of Jesus. But even after this horrible mistake, Judas could have changed, he could have repented and run back to Jesus, but the enemy lied to him, and Judas believed him. When am I guilty of believing the enemy’s lie that my mistake is too bad for the Lord to forgive? Or that I can’t face the Lord now that I’ve failed in resisting temptation. God’s mercy is always stronger, coming to Him dirty and broken is expected. My mistakes aren’t final if I turn to the Lord and let Him forgive me. Who will I choose to believe? 

Matthew 27:3-4 When Judas, His betrayer, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was gripped with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders,  saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” They replied, “What is that to us? See to that yourself!”

Even though Judas felt guilty, he didn’t turn to the Lord for forgiveness, and he didn’t repent. Instead of going to Jesus, he went back to the religious leaders, and they offered him no forgiveness, no grace, and no mercy. They didn’t care. So the guilt that he had drove him to despair. 

Matthew 26:74-75 Then Peter started to curse and to swear with an oath, “I do not know the man!” Immediately a rooster crowed, and Peter remembered the words Jesus had spoken, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly.

Peter also betrayed Jesus that night be denying Him three times. Adamantly, with curses. But with his regret and guilt came repentance. He sought the Lord, and when Peter finally saw Him, he leapt from his boat and swam to shore, coming directly to him rather than letting the enemy have the final word.

John 21:17 He asked him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved that He asked him the third time, “Do you love Me?” He said, “Lord, You know everything! You know that I love You.” “Feed My sheep,” Jesus said.

And the Lord gave him the opportunity to repent and say that he loved Him three times. One for each time Peter had denied Him. Each followed up with the command to feed His sheep. And Peter did as he was asked. He didn’t let his story end with his betrayal, but found repentance, love, grace, and redemption by coming back to the Lord.

Even when we mess up, Jesus loves us. He doesn’t quit just because we failed. He already knows everything bad we’ve ever done or are going to do and He still offers us forgiveness and grace. Even though Jesus already knew what Judas was going to do before he’d even started plotting, Jesus still washed his feet. He still looked at him lovingly at the Last Supper. His grace and love go beyond betrayal and denial. And He gives us the opportunity for redemption and repentance through is mercy and grace. 

Hebrews 4:16 - Therefore let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us at the proper time.

So my prayer today is that we will be more like Peter than like Judas. That we will turn directly toward God when we make a mistake. That we will listen to Him rather than the enemy so that He can show us the mercy, kindness, and a love that can make us bold, even when we betray Him. Let us never let Satan have the final word and make us believe that we’re unworthy of even trying to come to Him. Of course we’re unworthy, but we’re not unloved. Let us remember that He already knows what we we’ve done, and there’s no reason to hide. He invites us instead, as always… to come.

Sunday Devotional ~ How is God not Disappointed in Me?

 

16 Proverbs 24:16a - for though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again

When God chose us to be His, He knew everything we’d ever done and everything we were ever going to do. Nothing we do shocks Him or surprises Him. And nothing we do could separate us from His love. So what happens when we fail to resist temptation. What happens when we sin… again?

16 Joshua 1:9 - Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

Sometimes our reaction to our sin is similar to Adam and Eve’s reaction in the garden. We made a mistake and we want to hide from God. We don’t want to face Him. How could we be anything but a disappointment to Him? We don’t feel strong or courageous. Instead we feel weak and cowardly. How can we go to Him in prayer and ask for forgiveness again? And again? How can He not get tired of us?

Hebrews 4:16 - Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Come boldly. Don’t let fear or worry hold us back. Without fear, and with confidence, not letting guilt or failure stop us. We didn’t surprise Him, and we cannot hide from Him, so there is no reason to withdraw from Him because we are dirty or broken. In fact, He expects us to come then. It is required. He tells us to “Come…” and wants us to seek Him instead of hiding. He wants us to be focused on Him and take His hand and His help when we fall so that we can rise again.

Our brokeness doesn’t scare Him, and our dirt doesn’t make Him shrink back. He is there to give us the mercy and grace that we need to rise again. Staying down in the dirt doesn’t make us more humble. Self-punishment doesn’t help us to stop sinning. Wallowing in our misery doesn’t get us back on track. Hiding from the Lord doesn’t help us be less of a disappointment to Him. But coming to Him without fear and asking for help is exactly what He wants from us. 

This message is best summed up by the Psalmist in Psalm 139 (1-18):

O Lord, You have searched me and known me. 

You know when I sit down and when I rise up; 

You understand my thought from afar. 

You scrutinize my path and my lying down and are intimately acquainted with all my ways. 

Even before there is a word on my tongue, 

Behold, O Lord, You know it all. 

You have enclosed me behind and before, and laid your hand upon me. 

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; 

It is too high, I cannot attain to it.

Where can I go from Your Spirit?

Or where can I flee from Your presence?

If I ascend to heaven, You are there;

If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there.

If I take the wings of the dawn,

If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, 

Even there, Your hand will lead me,

And your right hand will lay hold of me.

If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me,

And the light around me will be night,”

Even there darkness is not dark to You,

And the night is as bright as the day. 

Darkness and light are alike to You.

For you formed my inward parts;

You wove me in my mother’s womb.

I will give thanks to you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.

My frame was not hidden from You. When I was made in secret

And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;

Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; 

And in your book were all written the days that were ordained for me,

When as yet there was not one of them.

How precious also are your thoughts to me, O God!

How vast is the sum of them, they would outnumber the sand.

When I awake, I am still with You.

So then, if God knows everything we were ever going to do, how can we surprise Him? How can we disappoint Him? He already knew everything before we were even born. Yet He chose to love us anyway. He has seen everything we will do or say, and yet He died for us anyway.

No matter what we are going through or how dirty or broken we are, let us still come to God boldly and not hide from Him or let distractions and guilt keep us from Him. It’s my prayer today that we will always look to Him for help immediately upon falling so that we can rise sooner rather than later and keep moving forward, day by day, toward our prize.

Fear of Fasting

 

Whenever I think about starting a fast, my mind quickly jumps to thoughts of unpleasant deprivation. Jesus fasted forty days and nights — yet how did he survive that long without food? Could I survive that long without it? Could I survive that long even in a partial fast?

The Daniel Fast is a partial fast where a person gives up processed sugar and carbohydrates, meat, and dairy for a time so that they can draw closer to the Lord. At this time of year, many people are declaring a church wide fast or doing things individually, to jumpstart the new year and declare it for the Lord.

But could I be capable of such a thing?

Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it?  For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’ (Luke 14:28-30)

What if I start and I’m not able to finish? What if I give into temptation and quit early? What if I fall and can’t get back up again?

Fear is full of what if’s - its goal is to get you to be so worried about failure that you never even start a task at all. 

When it comes to fasting, Jesus has told us that we should all fast - He said: “WHEN you fast…” in Matthew 6:16

When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.  (Matthew 6:16-18)

So what Jesus describes here is the cost of fasting. The cost is that we should not look for the approval of others but for God’s approval alone. To remember that fasting is between us and the Lord, and no one else. If we can’t “afford” that, then we shouldn’t even start. Otherwise, we should fast. Talk to the Lord and see what kind of fasting you should do, and how long. The Lord knows what you’re capable of and that we have to crawl before we can walk… and before we can run.

Yes, Jesus was capable of a 40 day fast. But without the kind of abiding relationship that Jesus had with the Father, we would not be capable of that sort of feat. And this kind of abiding relationship is fertilized through fasting and prayer. Without absolute reliance upon the Lord, we are not capable of feats of faith and fasting, bringing our flesh under God’s control, but it is one of the ways we cultivate our reliance upon the Lord.

God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. (1 Corinthians 10:13b)

So if God has promised to provide a way out of temptation when it comes, and to not let us be tempted beyond what we can bear, then we can step out in faith and do the fasting we need to to draw closer to Him. Pray about it, decide on a set amount of time and type of fast, and then trust in the Lord to help you endure it, to draw closer to you, and not allow you to be tempted beyond what you can bear. Today it is my prayer that I will be braver than my fear of fasting.