Is It Possible for a Christian To Become the Enemy of God?

Ye adulterers and adulteresses know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
— James 4:4

How does God view a believer who once walked with Him and knew the power of the Holy Spirit but has now become so entangled in the world that he hardly ever picks up his Bible to read it, rarely prays, and comes to church only if it “fits” into his schedule of things to do? How does God look on it when a believer departs from the red-hot spiritual passion he once possessed and turns his devotion to other things?

James 4:4 says, “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” This verse tells us exactly how God feels about a believer who wanders away from Him.

I want you to notice the word “is” in this verse. It is from the Greek word kathistemi, which means to constitute or to render. This is very important, for it alerts us to the fact that when a believer chooses to take a worldly path, he sets himself in direct opposition to the godly path God desires for him. As a result of the choices he has made, he has rendered, constituted, or caused himself to become the “enemy” of God.

I know that the word “enemy” is strong, so let’s see what it means. The word “enemy” is the Greek word echthros. This word is usually used to describe enemies in a war or enemies in a military conflict. It is the picture of two nations who are in opposition to one another and have therefore engaged in a military conflict. They are warring nations. They feel hostility, antagonism, and even animosity toward each other.

In Luke 23:12, the word echthros is used to communicate the enmity and animosity that existed between Pilate and Herod Antipas before they became allies at the time of Jesus’ crucifixion. Prior to forming their new alliance, Pilate and Herod Antipas were fiercely hostile toward one another. Jealousy and competition raged between these two men. They were enemies.

So the meaning of the word echthros in James 4:4 is unquestionable. It is the picture of a hostile force. But now James uses this word to express the feelings and emotions that God possesses toward a believer who transfers his devotion and passion from Him to the world. By using this word, James tells us that if a believer chooses to make his relationship with the world a greater priority than his relationship with God, he is making a choice that will put him in direct opposition to God. In fact, the word echthros lets us know that God takes this decision so personally that He views it as an act of war! To God, this is the ultimate violation!

I realize that Romans 8:31 says, “…If God be for us, who can be against us?” But by the same token, if God takes a stand against us and our activities because our actions are wrong, our plans and pursuits will be frustrated and paralyzed, and we will not succeed in our endeavors. God is not against us being blessed or having a lot of possessions. But He is against whatever takes His place in our hearts. When the things of the world move from our hands into our hearts, that is the violation that concerns God the most!

In Matthew 6:24, Jesus said, “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” According to these words of Jesus, it is impossible for us to give our hearts simultaneously to two masters. We must choose whom we are going to serve: God or mammon.

“Mammon” was an expression used by the Jewish community of New Testament times to express the idea of worldliness. So when Jesus said it was impossible to serve God and mammon, He was actually saying that it is impossible to serve both God and worldliness.

The word “serve” is the Greek word doulos, which describes a servant or a slave. This word was used to denote a servant who had become a slave for the rest of his life. This servant’s lifetime responsibility was to “service” his master with all his attention, time, and energy. In other words, he catered to his master’s every wish, desire, or demand. He was there to help, assist, and fulfill his master’s wants and dreams to the exclusion of all else. This servant’s entire existence was to “service” his master in whatever way the master asked or demanded.

Let me give you this example. When you purchase a car or a washing machine, these machines will operate for a while without your attention. However, a time comes when you must give your attention to them in order to keep them in good working order. And if you own a house or apartment, you know that a home requires all kinds of time, attention, energy, and money in order to keep it in good shape. In other words, all these natural possessions must be “serviced.”

When Jesus told us, “…Ye cannot serve God and mammon,” He was telling us that both God and mammon require time, attention, energy, and money. Jesus knew that there is not enough of you and me to properly “service” both God and worldliness in our lives. Hence, we must choose which master we are going to serve. Once that decision is made, we must then “…hate the one and love the other….”

To truly serve God, you must spend time with Him so you can know His voice and develop a pattern of obedience in your daily walk. It will demand your fullest attention. The work of God must be “serviced’ with prayer, obedience, repentance, and worship.

If a person chooses to serve “mammon” (worldliness) instead of the Lord, he will have to turn his attention and devotion to the world. As a worldly person, he will be required to learn the ways of the world and to adapt to the thinking of the world. Serving the world and worldliness requires 100 percent of a person’s attention.

Just as serving God requires your time, attention, energy, and money, the world will demand the same from you. This is why Jesus said it isn’t possible to serve both God and mammon. You see, there just isn’t enough of you to serve both of these masters simultaneously, so you must choose whom you are going to serve.

So let me ask you this: Whom are you serving in your life right now? What most requires your time and attention? Can you truthfully say you are giving God your fullest attention and that the chief priority in your life is to serve and obey Him? Or must you confess that worldly pursuits, possessions, and corporate success consume your thoughts and energies?

If you are consumed with God, these other things will take a lower place on your list of priorities. But if you are consumed with the world, material things will dominate the landscape of your mind. So just stop and ask yourself, What do I think about more than anything else in life? Your answer will probably tell you whom you are serving the most with your heart.

James 4:6 tells us that God takes a stand against a believer who turns his devotion to the world and becomes worldly. In fact, it says God “resists” such believers. The word “resist” is the Greek word antitasso — a military term that means to militarily order one’s self against someone else. This is no accidental, fly-by-night plan of resistance but a well-planned, prepared resistance.

This emphatically declares that God takes it so personally when a believer turns his devotion from Him to the world that He sets Himself in opposition to that believer. Like a military commander, God reviews the situation; then He decides how to resist and frustrate the things this believer is trying to achieve and thus bring him to a place of surrender.

If this believer does not quickly surrender, repent, and come back to where he ought to be, God will continue to take a stand against his activities. The Christian can rebuke the devil all day long, but it will be to no avail, for his problem isn’t the devil — his problem is God!

It doesn’t matter how smart that person is, how many talents and gifts he possesses, or how hard he works to achieve his goals, things just won’t work out right because God is standing in opposition to him, frustrating every step he takes in order to get his attention and help him get his priorities back in divine order.

As terrible as this resistance sounds, it is a manifestation of God’s grace! By blocking our way and resisting our choices, the precious Holy Spirit endeavors to get our attention and to bring us to a sweet place of brokenness where sin is confessed and fellowship with God is restored.

You see, God is so passionate about your relationship with Him that He is unwilling to share you with the world. That doesn’t mean you can’t have a job or be successful. In most cases, you must have a job, and God wants you to be successful. But if you switch your allegiance from God to the world around you, God views that as the ultimate violation in His sight. It is the very act that causes Him to decide to rise up and to do something to bring you back to where you ought to be!

So I advise you to take a good look at your life and make sure your priorities are where they need to be! Make sure you are more aligned with the Lord than with the world around you! Otherwise, God may step forward to deliberately frustrate your plans in order to bring you back to where you ought to be!

My Prayer for Today

Lord, I am running to You! I want to be as close to You as I can possibly be! I don’t want even the smallest hint of worldliness in my life. I want to be like You, to think like You, and to please You in every part of my life — my family, my job, my relationships, and my finances. Holy Spirit, if there is any part of me that has been influenced wrongly by the world, I ask You to please show it to me and help me get it corrected.

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

My Confession for Today

I confess that I am on fire for Jesus Christ! I am alive to God and dead to the world around me. Nothing means more to me than pleasing Jesus. Every day of my life, I live to serve Him and to do His will. Although I live in the world, I am not of the world. I am a citizen of Heaven, living with eternity at the forefront of my mind!

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

Questions to Answer

1. Has there ever been a time when you unintentionally allowed your devotion to slip away from the Lord as your attention was drawn to the world around you?

2. What did you do to get back to where you needed to be with the Lord?

3. During that time when you wandered away from the Lord, did you sense that God was supernaturally working behind the scenes to get your attention and to bring you back home spiritually?

Don’t Throw Away Your Confidence!

Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward.
— Hebrews 10:35

Have you ever gotten so exhausted from waiting for God’s promise to come to pass that you were tempted to say, “Forget it! I’ve waited long enough! I’m not going to sit here and wait any longer. I’ve given enough of my life to this, and I’m tired of it. I’m going to toss the whole thing away and move on with my life!”

If this is a temptation for you, then you need to read Hebrews 10:35 — God’s strong warning that urges us never to quit and never to give up. This verse says, “Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward.”

The words “cast not away” are taken from the Greek word apoballo, which is a compound of the words apo and ballo. The word apo means away, and the word ballo means to throw something, such as a ball, rock, or some other object. When these two words are compounded together, the new word means to throw away; to discard; or to get rid of something no longer desired, needed, or wanted.

A vivid example of the word apoballo is used in Mark 10:50. Jesus had just finished His ministry in the city of Jericho, and He and His disciples were about to leave the city, along with a great number of people who were following Him. As Jesus passed down the road, he walked right past a blind man named Bartimaeus.

Mark 10:47,48 says, “And when he [Bartimaeus] heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me. And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou son of David, have mercy on me.” Jesus was so struck by Bartimaeus’ insistence that Mark 10:49 tells us, “And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called.…”

The word apoballo is found in the next verse. It says, “And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus” (Mark 10:50). The words “casting away” are from the word apoballo. It means that Bartimaeus didn’t simply take off his garment and lay it aside; rather, he quickly jerked it off his body and hurled it down to the ground. He tore himself free of that garment!

You see, Bartimaeus’ garment was so tightly wrapped about his body that it restricted him from getting to Jesus. To free himself, he took hold of that garment and threw it out of the way. He discarded it. It was a nuisance that was hindering his mobility, so he pitched it out of the way. That garment constricted his movement and stopped him from going where he wanted to be, so he grabbed hold of it and cast it away.

Blind Bartimaeus wanted to quickly get up and get to Jesus, but he was so annoyed, aggravated, and exasperated by the garment that was hindering his movement that he removed it and got it free from his legs so he could move. The Greek word apoballo describes this removal process in Mark 10:50.

Why is this example of blind Bartimaeus so important? Because the verse we started with today was written to believers who had suffered much for their faith. They endured hardships but still remained faithful to the call of God and to their firm belief in God’s promises. But by the time the book of Hebrews was written and they read this verse for the first time, they had already been believing for God to turn their tragedies into victories for multiple years. It is quite possible that they began to wonder:

• Is God ever going to turn our mourning into rejoicing?
• Is He really going to turn our ashes into beauty?
• How much longer do we have to wait for the promises of God to come to pass?
• Did we misunderstand the promises of God?
• Are we waiting for something that is never going to happen?

This is why Hebrews 10:35 warns these believers, “Cast not away therefore your confidence.…” Because the words “cast not away” are from the word apoballo, this verse suggests that they were so tired and frustrated with waiting for God’s promise to come to pass that they were tempted to chuck “this whole faith thing” and forget the promises of God they had been holding on to for so many years. They were beginning to think that living by faith was what had restricted, bound, and kept them in the same place all those years.

The use of the word apoballo suggests that the Hebrew Christians were thinking, If we hadn’t stood so firmly on the Word of God all these years, at least we could have done something else with our lives. Let’s just forget the promise God gave us. We’ve held on long enough! Let’s just toss it aside and forget about it. At least then we can begin to move on with our lives and do something different. Enough of this fantasy that God is going to do something miraculous for us! Let’s chuck this promise that has held us back and move on with our lives!

Hebrews 10:35 is God’s response to these kinds of lying thoughts, accusations, and doubts. God cries out to them to hold tight and to never let go of the promises He had made to each of them. And God is saying the same thing to us today!

The word “confidence” is the Greek word paressia. This word means boldness and depicts a very bold, frank, outspoken kind of language. It carries the meaning of being forthright, blunt, direct, and straight to the point. In this verse, it refers to the bold, brave, fearless declarations and faith confessions regarding God’s promises that these believers had been making.

They had been professing, declaring, and laying claim to the promises of God’s Word for their personal lives. They had done it boldly, audibly, and publicly. What they believed, they had declared loudly! However, now that the results weren’t forthcoming and they were growing tired, they were feeling tempted to toss it all away and count it as nonsense. But this verse urged them to hold tight and to keep believing! And now you must hang on to God’s promises just as these Hebrew Christians were told to do.

Hebrews 10:35 could be rendered to read:

“Don’t discard, dispel, dismiss, dump, or cast off your bold declaration of faith, because it has great recompense of reward.”

Today I am urging you — don’t let the devil talk you into tossing away your faith. You’ve waited too long and have invested too much of your life into this promise for you to walk away from it now. If you walk away from what God promised you after waiting all these years, it will mean that all those years were for nothing!

The manifestation of your dreams is probably just around the corner. That is why the devil is working overtime right now to discourage you! He wants you to discard your faith now because he knows that if you hang on much longer, you’ll see your dreams come true! So it’s time for you to hang tight, hold on, and keep believing, because it won’t be much longer until you are standing in the middle of your dreams!

 

My Prayer for Today

Lord, help me hold on tightly to the promises You have given me in Your Word. When I get physically tired or spiritually weary, please refill me with Your Spirit and recharge me with Your power so I can keep believing until I finally see the manifestation of my prayers. I know that You are faithful and that Your Word never fails, so help me remain steadfast until I see all Your promises come true in my own life. With the assistance of Your Spirit and Your power, I can and I WILL stand firm to the end.

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

My Confession for Today

I confess that I have a faith that is unwavering! I stand firmly and solidly on the truths God has given me. The storms of life may come against me and the devil may try to move me, but I am not moving off the promises in God’s Word! Those promises belong to me, and I claim them right now by faith! I am strong, and I am filled with the Spirit’s power! Hell moves out of the way for me, because I take my stand on God’s Word and refuse to move!

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

Questions to Answer

1. Have you ever had the heartbreaking experience of seeing a believer toss away his faith after he had believed and waited for many years for something to come to pass?
2. After that believer walked away from his long-held stance of faith, did his life improve or deteriorate?
3. If that person you are thinking about is you, how has your life progressed since you let go of the promise God made to you? Have you regretted that you didn’t stand firm a little longer? If so, why don’t you go to the Lord and repent so you can “reapprehend” that word from God and start pursuing it again?

Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that friendship with the world is enmity with God…?
— James 4:4

As we saw yesterday, James began James 4:4 by calling his readers “adulterers” and “adulteresses” — which is strong language to use when addressing believers! James obviously wanted to get their attention. In some way, they had violated their relationship with Christ. They had been unfaithful; they had crossed the line and given a part of their hearts and souls to the world around them. By calling them “adulterers” and “adulteresses,” James was saying that whatever they were doing was the equivalent of spiritual adultery.

James probingly asked his readers, “…Know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God…?” The word “know” is oida. It refers to firsthand knowledge that these believers should have already possessed. In this case, it means, “Don’t you know?” “Don’t you understand?” “Haven’t you grasped by now?” Then he continued, “…Know ye not that friendship with the world is enmity with God…?”

The word “friendship” is the word philia, a noun taken from the word phileo. The word phileo describes affection, attachment, devotion, endearment, or familiarity. It can be used to portray the intense sentiment between two or more people. It was most often used to denote a relationship that was dear, precious, and valuable. In fact, it carried such a feeling of endearing affection that the word philema comes from it, which is the Greek word meaning to kiss. There is no doubt Paul meant that these believers’ tie to the world had never been fully severed. In some manner they were still being attracted to the world — to such an extent that its influence was encroaching on their relationship with the Lord.

Worldliness is a serious thing with the Lord, and it tries to wrap its arms around all of us. If we begin edging in on worldliness with the way we live our lives, the Holy Spirit will warn us to break that wrong relationship with the world and return to Him.

If you want to have a quick wakeup call, just take a little time to think of the things you tolerate in your life today that you would never have tolerated ten years ago. For example, do you watch movies today that you would have considered a sin ten years ago? Are you more permissive in your thinking about sin now than you used to be? Are there any areas of your life where you used to be more on fire and less compromising than you are right now? Do you pray and witness as you much as you once did? You may as well be honest with God because He knows your real spiritual condition anyway.

You can’t bluff God by making up excuses. At least when you’re honest with God, you put yourself in a position where He can deal with your heart. Once you’re being truthful with yourself and with Him, you can begin to repent and return to being on fire for Him the way He desires you to be.

We could all admit worldliness in some area of our lives, but if we don’t deal with the areas as the Holy Spirit leads us, over time we will become more conformed to the world than to Jesus Christ. Being a friend of the world doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time. It’s a very slow, seductive, and methodical process as our thinking, behavior, and outlook on life grows to look more and more similar to the world than to that of Jesus.

The Bible says that a Christian who is entangled with the world is at “enmity” with God. The word translated “enmity” is the Greek word echthra, meaning hostility or enmity. Allowing the world to encroach on your relationship with God is a very serious thing in His view. The word “enmity” tells us that this is very serious!

Today I want to ask you: Are you on fire for Jesus as you once were? Or have the things of the world slowly begun to douse the flames that once burned so brightly for the Lord? Are you free of the world, or has its attraction lured and seduced you from Christ? Would Jesus say that you are completely committed to Him, or would He say you are sharing His rightful place with other things? Who or what is the central focus of your life? If you consider yourself to be a serious Christian, these are very important questions for you to answer today!

MY PRAYER FOR TODAY

Father, I want to burn brightly and live on fire for You. I ask You to search my heart. If worldliness has found a place in my heart and soul, today I repent of it. I turn toward You to walk in holiness and sanctification unto You. I can see how worldliness can slowly creep up on me, and I ask You to forgive me for allowing the lure of the world to affect me. It wasn’t intentional. I repent for allowing myself to become distracted and for not keeping first things first. I got busy and involved, and before I knew it, I had sunk to a spiritual low that I detest. I ask You to refire me and help me return to my first love and to keep You in that position for the rest of my life

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

 

MY CONFESSION FOR TODAY

I declare by faith that I am on fire and burning brightly for the Lord. I live in the world, but I am not a part of it. It has no lure on my heart and soul. Every day I am growing more passionate to know Christ practically, through experience for myself, and to become more fully committed to Him. Jesus Christ is the Object of my heart’s desire — and I refuse to ever live the kind of life that would make Him want to say I am guilty of spiritual adultery.

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

 

QUESTIONS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER

1. Are you burning as brightly as you once burned for the Lord? If not, what happened to cause you to lose the fire that once burned so brilliantly in your heart?
2. In order for you to return to that place of spiritual fire and passion for Christ, what do you need to change or sever from your life? The Holy Spirit has already been speaking to you about it, so it shouldn’t be hard for you to answer this question. So what do you need to change?
3. If you were asked to describe a worldly Christian, how would you do it?

Do You Need Some Convincing?

And when he is come, he will reprove…of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more.
— John 16:8,10

Have you ever complimented someone who responded by arguing with you — rejecting your compliment and essentially questioning your judgment in the matter? For example, after you told someone that he looked as if he had lost weight, did he respond by telling you how fat he is rather than by thanking you for the compliment? “Well, I’ve gained a lot of weight,” the person may have said, “and I look so fat now. I wish you could have seen me three months ago when I really looked good! I don’t look as good now.”

This is the equivalent of throwing the compliment back in your face. It would have been far more polite and gracious to say, “Thank you. I’m so glad you noticed. I appreciate you telling me that I look better.”

Here is another example that I think will make the point. A person stands before the church and sings a beautiful solo that deeply stirs your heart. At the end of the service, you make your way through the congregation to find the soloist because you want to express how much his singing moved you. After opening your heart and thanking him for allowing God to use him, the soloist responds to your compliment by saying, “Thanks for the compliment, but I thought I did a hor-rible job tonight. I can’t believe I sang so badly. I don’t know how you got anything out of it.”

It’s rude to respond like this to someone who is trying to thank you for being a blessing. Although you are probably not deliberately intending to be ill-mannered, your response is still equivalent to a rejection of the love, admiration, and appreciation God is expressing through someone else to you. It’s the same as saying, “I appreciate the fact that you gave me that compliment, but we both know it isn’t true, so you don’t have to say it.” In effect, you are calling the person a liar!

We sometimes respond this way to one another, not meaning to be rude. But did you know that we also do this to God almost every day? Consider, for example, what Second Corinthians 5:21 declares: “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”

This verse says that God sent Jesus to the Cross to take upon Himself our sin, to die in our place, and to give us His standing of righteousness in God’s sight. Yet if there is any subject about which Christians will get bent out of shape, it is this question of their being “righteous.” Most believers are so conscious of their old sinful nature that they can’t embrace the truth that they’ve been declared righteous! Tell them that they are righteous before God, and they will respond by telling you how bad they are.

Sinful nature always clings to the worst and to what is most negative. It will always gravitate downward, never upward. That is the nature of the mind that is not under the control of the Holy Spirit. If abandoned to your flesh, you’ll never believe a good report; you’ll never believe God is doing a good work in you; and you’ll certainly never believe that you have been made “the righteousness of God in him.”

Negative, base, sinful thinking has been a part of humanity for so long that it requires some special convincing to make us realize what God has done inside us. For us to really believe that we have rightstanding with God, it will take the work of the Holy Spirit to convince us! Otherwise, when God says, “You’re My child. I have made you righteous. You are beautiful to Me,” our negatively charged minds and emotions will retort, “It’s not so! I’m unworthy. I’m unholy. I’m so pitiful!”

But here is the good news: Just as the Holy Spirit convicts a sinner of his sin, He is also sent to convince believers of their new rightstanding with God! Jesus told us this about the Holy Spirit: “And when he is come, he will reprove…of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more” (John 16:8,10).

The word “reprove” is the Greek word elegcho. It means to expose or to convict, such as to convict someone of a crime or a sin. This word was used to describe legal proceedings during which a person was examined and cross-examined in a court of law until the court issued a final ruling. If the person was deemed guilty, he was unmistakably convicted of his crime. In this sense, the word elegcho describes the work of the Spirit to completely and thoroughly convict a sinner of his sin. When the Holy Spirit is finished opening the eyes of a person to his sin, that person knows he is a sinner. There is no escaping the truth for the unbeliever once the Holy Spirit has revealed truth to his heart!

But the word “reprove” is also used in a positive sense to convince someone of something positive. Again in a legal sense, it was used to denote lawyers who worked very diligently to convince people of a new way of thinking or a new way of seeing things. Perhaps they were entrenched in a wrong mindset or had a distorted perception, so the attorneys would go to work to change their opinion. In this case, they weren’t trying to convict someone; they were working to convince someone!

Referring to the Holy Spirit, Jesus said, “And when he is come, he will reprove…of righteousness…” (John 16:8). After the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin and God declares us righteous, it takes a supernatural work of God to make us comprehend our new condition in Jesus Christ. This realization is just as supernatural as the moment we recognized we were lost. Only this time, we are being supernaturally awakened to the fact that we are righteous!

I can remember when I woke up to this truth many years ago. I was driving down the street, feeling totally unrighteous while listening to a teaching tape on the subject of righteousness. Suddenly my mind began to grasp what I was hearing. It was as if someone took blinders off my eyes and earplugs out of my ears! For the first time, I was seeing and hearing the truth about my new righteousness in Christ Jesus.

This truth was going straight to my heart by the power of the Holy Spirit! I not only heard the words, but I also understood them. My inward man leaped for joy when the Spirit of God illumined my understanding about righteousness. He convinced me of the truth, and I was set free!

If you struggle with a poor self-image and a constant feeling of condemnation, you need the Holy Spirit to do His convincing work in your life. Only He can open your eyes to see who you have become in Jesus Christ. Once your eyes have been opened and you understand you are righteous, you will never again throw the truth back in God’s face and argue with Him. When the Holy Spirit reminds you that you have been declared righteous, you will cry out with joy, “Thank you! That’s exactly who I am!”

This means you don’t have to be negative about yourself all the time. You don’t have to beat yourself over the head, constantly reminding yourself of how unworthy you are, because Jesus made you worthy! He made you righteous!

On the other hand, if you don’t have a grasp of this God-given righteousness, a negative self-image will most likely rule your life, inhibiting your ability to pray with the confident trust that God will answer your prayer. That sense of unworthiness will cause a cloud of heaviness to hang over your life, hindering your ability to walk in the joy and victory of the Lord.

So don’t you think it’s time to let the Holy Spirit open your eyes and ears to see and hear the truth about who God has made you to be? It may seem hard to believe that you’re righteous, and it may take a lot of convincing for you to finally believe it. But the Holy Spirit was sent to be the Great Convincer! He is on the job and is ready right now to start convincing you of the truth regarding who you are in Christ!

My Prayer for Today

Lord, I need the Holy Spirit to open my eyes and convince me that I’ve become righteous through the blood of Jesus Christ. I’ve read and heard this truth, and I know it intellectually, but I need a revelation of it in my heart. So Holy Spirit, go to work in my heart. Open the eyes and ears of my spirit to see and to hear that I am the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ. Free me from religious thinking that holds me in bondage to feelings of unworthiness. Please do it today!

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

My Confession for Today

I confess that I am the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ. Jesus became sin for me so I could become the righteousness of God in Him. The Holy Spirit is the Great Convincer, and He is busy convincing me that I am free from defects and from sin, no longer the person I used to be. Because Jesus’ blood touched, washed, and cleansed me, I am now free!

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

Questions to Answer

1. Are you consciously aware that you are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus?

2. Do you struggle with feelings of unworthiness, sinfulness, and shame, even though you are a child of God? If your answer is yes, what steps can you take to walk out of those lying emotions that try to hold you captive?

3. Can you remember an instance in your life when you suddenly and supernaturally were illuminated with the understanding that you had been declared the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus? When did that happen, and what was the immediate result of this revelation in your life?

Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
— James 4:4

Up to this point, we have covered Jesus’ teaching on the ministry of the Holy Spirit in John 14, 15, and 16, and we’ve learned how to develop a more intimate and personal relationship with the Holy Spirit. Now we’re going to shift our focus to another vital aspect of the Holy Spirit’s ministry found in the New Testament.

As you will see in the days to come, the Holy Spirit lives within us like a Divine Lover. When believers allow the things of the world to usurp the place that should belong only to Him, the Holy Spirit — like a violated spouse — feels hurt and grief. It’s therefore vital that we gain a deeper understanding of how sin affects the indwelling Holy Spirit so we can purpose to change any permissive attitude toward sin that may linger in our lives and to live holier and more consecrated before Him in love.

In James 4:4 and 5, James referred to the nature of the believer’s relationship with Christ and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in the believer’s heart. He wrote, “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.”

Throughout the New Testament, believers are most often referred to as “brothers and sisters.” Yet here James referred to his readers as “adulterers” and “adulteresses.” Imagine if a great spiritual leader wrote to you and called you an adulterer or adulteress! This is especially strong language when you consider that James was writing to Jewish believers, who could have been stoned for committing adultery. In fact, James couldn’t have said anything more shocking or outrageous to his audience! However, this adultery he was referring to was not a physical act, but rather a spiritual adultery that they had committed by giving their hearts to things other than Jesus Christ.

The Greek word for “adultery” is moichalis, and it carries all kind of connotations. Unfaithfulness, impurity, and violating a commitment to marriage are just a few. This word paints the picture of a wounded spouse who feels rejected, betrayed, misled, and deceived because the sanctity of his or her marriage relationship was recklessly thrown away by the act of adultery. All of these ideas are embedded in the Greek word moichalis.

So what had these believers done to be addressed in such a way? James explained, “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye know not that friendship with the world is enmity with God…?”

To illustrate James’ point, let me share an example from my own life. In the early years of our marriage, Denise and I led a single-adult ministry in a large denominational church. During this time, we developed a program to help single adults who had recently gone through a divorce. As we listened to the concerns of these precious believers, we discovered that most of these people felt like they were outcasts from the Church. So we made it a point to open our hearts and emphasize “life after divorce” as a primary message of our ministry. Soon newly divorced people came to us from all over to receive ministry, love, acceptance, and healing. It was one of the most gratifying, yet troublesome, periods of ministry we had ever experienced.

It was gratifying to see people who had been so rejected and wounded being healed by the love of Jesus Christ. However, it was very troublesome to hear the pain many of these believers felt as a result of being betrayed by someone they loved and trusted. Day after day, we would sit and listen as each one shared his or her story. Out of approximately 100 cases, nearly all sounded similar — so similar, in fact, that eventually I could almost finish most of their stories for them.

Again and again, these emotionally bruised people lamented, “I just don’t understand how he could do that to me. After all these years of being faithful to him, raising our children together, and working to help him through school, I don’t understand how could hurt me like this.” Or, “How could she do this to me after I’ve given her so much? I gave her my love, my attention, all that I knew to do. How could she do this to me?”

These intense, painful emotions are exactly what Jesus felt toward the believers James addressed in James 4:4. After all that He had done for them, they had been unfaithful to their sacred relationship with Him as the Bride of Christ by embracing a sinful relationship with the world.

In tomorrow’s Sparkling Gem, I will explain in depth what the believers did to prompt James to refer to them as “adulteresses” so that you never have to cross that line yourself. But today, why don’t you take a moment to look inwardly and carefully examine your life. Do you see anything that would cause the Holy Spirit to feel violated by your actions? After all He has done for you — regenerating you, filling you, and sanctifying you — I know that you would never want to intentionally cause the Spirit of God pain and sorrow. So make sure that you are living in such a way that will always give Him pleasure, not grief!

MY PRAYER FOR TODAY

Holy Spirit, I repent and ask You to forgive me for all the times I’ve walked too close to the world and violated Your holy indwelling presence by allowing sinful actions and attitudes to persist in my life. I am truly sorry, and today I repent before You. I ask You to strengthen me with Your mighty power to walk with a higher discernment and with the spiritual awareness to know when I am doing something that is grievous to You. I want to honor Your presence and honor You by the way I treat You with my life.

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

 

MY CONFESSION FOR TODAY

I confess that I live a life that is pleasing to the Holy Spirit. When I do something that hints of displeasure to Him, I quickly recognize it and repent of it. I do not permit wrong attitudes and actions to rule me. Instead, I surrender to the fruit of the Holy Spirit, and it produces the life and character of Christ in my own life. Day by day, I am becoming more sensitive and spiritually aware of the things that displease the Lord, and I am learning to walk a higher walk in Him.

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

 

QUESTIONS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER

1. Are there any areas of your life that are out of sync with the Holy Spirit’s indwelling presence? What are those areas? If you are aware of them, is there a reason you have tolerated them instead of repenting and getting your heart right with the Holy Spirit?
2. When the Holy Spirit is grieved because of our attitudes and actions, our own spirits are grieved as well. Have you felt grief and sorrow in your own heart when you did things that were displeasing to the Lord?
3. What are some of the areas in which you’ve made progress and no longer habitually repeat sins as you once did? If you’ve had victories, you need to remember them and thank God for them!

Isn’t It Time for You To Tell Your Flesh To Shut Up?

Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
— Romans 6:11

Left unchecked, your flesh will try to run you over, take charge of your emotions, and promote laziness in your life. It will tell you that you’ve done too much; that you’ve already done more than anyone else; that you don’t need to do any more than you’ve already done; and that you’re not as appreciated as you ought to be. Your flesh will advise you to kick back, take it easy, and cut yourself some slack. It will scream that if anyone deserves to do nothing for a while, it’s you.

Your flesh always tries to take everything to an extreme. If you allow it to control you, it will carry you into a state of laziness that sedates your whole outlook and destroys your productivity. You’ll lose your joy, hope, victory — even your very reason for living. In the end, you’ll become weak, powerless, and devoid of the desire or energy to pursue anything, let alone the high calling God has for your life.

When your flesh rises up and tempts you to be slothful about your dream, your business, or your relationship with God, what should you do? Or when your flesh coaxes you into believing you are too poor, too stupid, too ugly, too uninteresting, or too “run of the mill” to be used by God, how should you respond?

Should you cry and complain that you’re just not as talented as others? Should you grieve that you’re not as skinny as someone else? Should you whimper that you weren’t born into a more prestigious family? Should you lament that you were never able to finish your education? Will your complaining put a degree on your wall?

It’s time to tell the flesh to shut its loud mouth! Then grab hold of the power of God to change you and the way you are thinking. As long as you allow that rank, stinking flesh to produce a “poor me” mentality, you will not make any significant contribution to the world. And that’s such a pity because God wants to use you! Instead of letting the flesh rule you, it is time for you to do as the apostle Paul ordered in Romans 6:11 when he said, “Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive to God through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

The word “reckon” comes from the Greek word logidzomai, which means to consider, to think, to deem, to regard, or to count something as done. This means the verse could be translated, “Once and for all, deem yourselves to be dead to sin.…” But it is important to note that the Greek tense means this reckoning must be done on a continual basis. With this in mind, it could be translated, “Once and for all, deem yourself dead to sin. After that, keep it up! Keep counting yourself as one who has died to sin….”

The word “dead” comes from the word nekros, which is the Greek word for a human corpse. It is the picture of an actual dead person, whose lifeless body has no heartbeat and no breath in his lungs. This person is declared clinically dead; he is now a corpse. By using the word nekros, Paul tells us that we are to deem ourselves as dead — non-responsive to sin. We are to be just as non-responsive to sin as a dead person is to life! Dead people don’t respond to anything because they are dead!

These powerful words in Romans 6:11 could be interpreted this way:

“Once and for all, deem yourself dead to sin. After that, keep it up! You have to keep counting yourself as one who has died to sin.…”

When I served as an assistant pastor in the Southern Baptist church, the senior pastor wanted to teach me how to conduct funerals, so he took me to funeral after funeral. He wanted me to learn how to conduct myself in delicate and difficult situations. One funeral I attended was an unforgettable experience. Even now I can vividly see it as I write about it. It was a funeral conducted for an unsaved family whose son had tragically died in an accident. The sorrow and remorse in that room was so thick, it could almost be cut with a knife.

Nothing is sadder than a funeral with a family of unbelievers. They have no faith and no hope. When they lose a loved one, it is truly a catastrophe because their lack of hope overwhelms them. But even worse than attending such a funeral is to be called upon to conduct one!

I watched as the mother approached the casket to tell her son good-bye one last time. She was so overwhelmed with grief that she crawled into the casket! She clutched and held tightly to her son’s dead body, pleading, “Talk to me! Talk to me! Don’t leave me like this!” Funeral-home workers had to pull the mother out of the coffin and escort her to the limousine that awaited to take her and the rest of the family to the cemetery for the burial.

That early experience is etched forever in my memory. I’ve never forgotten that pitiful sight as the mother gripped that dead body in her arms and begged it to speak to her one last time. But that body was not going to talk to her. It was dead.

The empty shell that lay in that casket was the deceased, expired, finished shadow of a young man who had once lived but was now gone. There was no heartbeat, no breath in his lungs, no pulse to feel in his wrists. The clock had quit running for that man’s life, and there was no turning back the clock to make it start ticking again. It was a “done deal.” This man’s life had expired. His body was mortified.

Well, your flesh needs to be mortified in the same way. As Paul says in Romans 6:11, it is time for you to reckon, deem, consider, regard, and count as a done fact that you are dead to sin and to its lying insinuations! To continually count yourself dead to sin, you may have to speak to yourself often and take authority over your flesh. Command your flesh to shut its mouth, and remind yourself that the flesh lost its power at the Cross and no longer has the right to rule and reign in your life!

You don’t have to allow the flesh to lord itself over you any longer. You don’t have to let your flesh and emotions give you the run-around. Instead of focusing on what you can’t do, it’s time to start thinking about what you can do when you become yielded to the Spirit of God.

That’s why Paul went on to say that you must now start looking at yourself as one who is “…alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.” You see, sin is no longer your master; now you are the servant of Jesus Christ! When your body, mind, and emotions are submitted to Him, you cease to be a slave to your body and emotions. Instead, your body and emotions become your servant — instruments of righteousness to help you achieve the dreams God has put in your heart.

The only way you and I will ever accomplish what we were born to do is to put aside the lies of the enemy; tell our lazy, complaining flesh to keep its mouth shut; take charge of our emotions; and yield ourselves as instruments unto God. Then as we start speaking the truth of God’s Word, drawing upon His power that works in us and through us to do His will, we’ll start seeing supernatural results and achievements!

God has something awesome for you to do. Absolutely nothing can keep you from doing what He has put in your heart — not your education, status in society, political affiliation, or physical appearance. None of these factors will have any impact on God’s call on your life.

The one factor that does impact God’s ability to use you is your own obedience to Him. Your heart must be willing. You must take authority over the flesh that would take you down a lazy path. And you must yield your body to God’s Spirit as an instrument of righteousness. That’s when you’ll find yourself on the path that leads to being used by God!

 

My Prayer for Today

Lord, I reckon myself dead to sin! It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me! Since this is who You have made me to be, I ask You to help me say no to my flesh and to temptation and then to count myself alive unto You! Holy Spirit, energize me with Your strength and power to walk in the resurrection power of Jesus Christ!

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

My Confession for Today

I boldly declare that I reckon, deem, consider, regard, and count as a done fact that I am dead to sin! I take authority over the flesh and command it to shut its mouth, and I refuse to give it the right to rule and reign in my life! I am alive unto God through Jesus Christ. Sin is no longer my master; now I am the servant of Jesus Christ!

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

Questions to Answer

1. Are there areas in your life that you haven’t yet reckoned to be dead? What are those areas, and what are you going to do about them? Are you going to allow those unyielded areas to keep calling the shots, or are you going to count them as dead and powerless in your life?

2. Do you have any sinful habits that used to be non-active and non-responsive and are now trying to wake up again? If yes, what are you going to do to “remortify” those areas of your life so you can stay free?

3. In what area does your flesh try the hardest to speak to you and to rule over you?

He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.
— John 16:14

Do you find the ability to express yourself in worship to God easy or difficult? Is it easy for you to lift your arms and audibly worship the Lord, or do you feel self-conscious and think about the possibility that people might be watching you? Do you hesitate to worship in the presence of others but find it easy to worship at home when no one is watching?

As Jesus prepared to depart from this world and sat in that upper room teaching His disciples about the Holy Spirit and His various roles, one of these roles He stressed that the Holy Spirit would carry out is the ministry of glorifying Jesus. Jesus said in John 16:14: “He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.”

The word “glorify” is the Greek word doxadzo, which can be translated in a variety of ways depending on its context. It can be rendered to extol, to praise, to magnify, to worship, to give honor, to give adulation, or to express one’s fame or repute, and in John 16:14, it actually encompasses the full range of these meanings.

Thus, when Jesus said, “He [the Holy Spirit] shall glorify me…,” He expressly meant that the Holy Spirit’s role is to extol, magnify, glorify, and worship Him. In fact, one of the Holy Spirit’s chief roles is to give adulation and fame to Jesus — to glorify that name that is exalted above every other name (see Philippians 2:9). The Spirit of God doesn’t seek to draw attention to Himself in any way. Rather, He points everyone toward Jesus and leads us in rapturous worship of our exalted Savior.

Because the Holy Spirit is an invisible, non-material Spirit Being, He cannot glorify Jesus in the way the Lord desires without using someone as a vessel through which to work. By now, I’m sure you can guess that the vessel He chooses is the one in which He lives — you! How does the Holy Spirit fulfill His responsibility to glorify Jesus through you? He heals the sick, casts out demons, leads lost people to a saving knowledge of Jesus, and so on. However, one of the most effective, magnificent avenues through which He glorifies Jesus is in those moments when your heart is full, your hands are raised, and your whole being is caught up in worshiping Jesus the Lord.

By His very nature, the Holy Spirit is a Glorifier and a Worshiper, and when He is free to work in your life as a believer, it’s very obvious because you will glorify Jesus. If you will allow the Holy Spirit to be loosed inside your life, you will find yourself wanting to throw your hands in the air, move your feet, and lift your voice to Heaven with praise and worship — completely oblivious to who might be watching or judging you. The Holy Spirit seeks to glorify Jesus in every aspect of your life, including your conversations, your behavior, and your relationships. He wants your lips to be filled with Jesus, Jesus, Jesus.

The Holy Spirit’s primary task is to reveal Jesus to you — and He’ll take you to Jesus on a level that you’ve never known before. He’s just waiting for you to surrender and to take the plunge into this spiritual experience. Believe me when I tell you that you’ll never be the same.

If you’ve had a hard time abandoning yourself in worship in the past, today is the day for you to begin. I urge you to take a moment right now and pray, “Holy Spirit, You are a Worshiper, so I yield to You. I ask You to help me remove all my inhibition as I do. I ask You not only to glorify Jesus in my behavior, my conversations, and my life, but right now in a time of worship, I ask You to glorify Jesus through me.”

If you prayed this prayer, just yield to the Holy Spirit and watch what He will do in you. Right now while no one is watching, lift your arms to Heaven and begin to express your thanksgiving to Jesus. Allow the Holy Spirit to fill you and take you into a realm of worship that you’ve never known before.

The Holy Spirit’s primary task is to reveal Jesus to you — and if you let Him, He’ll take you to Jesus on a level that you’ve never known before. He is there with you in this moment, and He’s just waiting for you to surrender and to take the plunge into this spiritual experience. The time and place for you to start is right now in the privacy of your own home. He’s waiting for you — so why not start today?

MY PRAYER FOR TODAY

Father, I thank You that the Holy Spirit reveals Jesus — and I ask You to help me abandon my inhibitions and enter into the freedom of worship. I know that there are realms of worship that I have never experienced, but today I am opening myself to those realms and asking that the Holy Spirit unleash worship in me as never before. I surrender myself to be an instrument of worship and, Holy Spirit, I ask You to take me on an adventure as I learn to worship Jesus as You reveal Him to me on a level I’ve never experienced before.

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

 

MY CONFESSION FOR TODAY

I declare that my entire body — all that I am — is an instrument that the Holy Spirit uses to magnify and to exalt the name and Person of Jesus Christ. Inhibitions have no part in my worship. I am free to express my adoration and love for Jesus — the One who is higher than all others and whose name is more highly exalted than any other name. Inhibitions must go from me in Jesus’ name, for I am liberated to worship Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit!

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

 

QUESTIONS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER

1. Has there been a moment when you threw off all restraint and worshiped Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit? When did that experience occur, and has anything stopped you from entering into that type of worship again?
2. What happened inside you when you threw off those restraints and fully entered into the worship of Jesus? What did the Holy Spirit do inside you that changed you forever?
3. What would you say to someone who has never experienced freedom in worship? What has it done for you, and what will it do for them?

God’s Delivering Power Is Yours!

For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life: But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead.
— 2 Corinthians 1:8,9

Everyone has had to endure hardness at some point in life, including the apostle Paul. He describes some of the hardships he endured in Asia in Second Corinthians 1:8,9: “For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life: But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead.”

Notice the first part of verse 8, where Paul says, “For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of the trouble which came unto us in Asia.…” The word “trouble” is the Greek word thlipsis, which was used to convey the idea of a heavy-pressure situation. In fact, at one point this word was used to depict a victim who was first tied up with rope and laid on his back; then a huge, heavy boulder was slowly lowered upon him until he was crushed! This, indeed, would be a very heavy situation for the man underneath the boulder! He would be in a tight place, under a heavy burden, or in a great squeeze.

By using this word, Paul is saying, “We were under a heavy load — an unbelievably heavy amount of stress and pressure! We were in very tight circumstances. Our minds were being ‘squeezed.’ It felt like our lives were being pushed right out of us!”

You might think Paul is referring to physical suffering. Of course, physical suffering is difficult, but the greatest suffering of all always occurs in the mind — mental suffering. A person can live with pain in his body if his mind is still in control. However, when the suffering begins to work on that person’s mind, both his body and his mind could eventually break and fold.

Paul’s greatest suffering was not physical, but mental. This is why he goes on to say, “…that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life” (v. 8). Particularly pay heed to that first phrase, “that we were pressed out of measure.” This is the Greek phrase kath huperbole, and it is extremely important in Paul’s testimony. It literally means to throw beyond, to excel, to exceed, or to go beyond anything normal or expected. It also describes something that is excessive and beyond the normal range of what most would experience.

By using this word, Paul says, “We were under an amount of pressure that is not normal. It was FAR BEYOND anything we had ever previously experienced. It was excessive, unbelievable, unbearable, and far too much for any one human being to endure.”

Paul goes on to tell us that this pressure was “above strength.” This word “above” is also important. It is the Greek word huper, which always conveys the idea of something excessive. In order to explain how bad his situation was, Paul is piling words on top of words, all of which accurately portray how terrifically bad the ordeal in Asia was for him and his traveling companions.

It is almost as though Paul is saying, “Normal human strength never would have been sufficient for this situation. The strength it required was far, far beyond human strength. This predicament required strength in a measure I had never previously needed. It was beyond me!”

Then Paul says, “…insomuch that we despaired even of life.…” The Greek word for “despaired” is the word exaporeomai. It was used in a technical sense to describe no way out. It is where we get our word exasperated, and it describes people who feel trapped, caught, up against the wall, pinned down, and utterly hopeless. Today we might say, “Sorry, but it looks like this is the end of the road for you!”

Then Paul continues in verse 9, “But we had the sentence of death in ourselves.…” The word “sentence” is the Greek word apokrima, which in this sense speaks of a final verdict. Paul is saying, “It looked to us like the verdict was in, and we were not going to survive.”

When all these different phrases and words are looked at together, it becomes very plain that Paul’s primary suffering at this moment was mental, not physical. He is describing mental agony on a measure that few of us have ever experienced.

Because of all these Greek words, the following could be taken as an interpretive translation of these verses:

“We would not, brethren, have you ignorant of the horribly tight, life-threatening squeeze that came to us in Asia. It was unbelievable! With all the things that we have been through, this was the worst of all. It felt like our lives were being crushed! It was so difficult that I didn’t know what to do. No experience I’ve ever been through required so much of me; in fact, I didn’t have enough strength to cope with it. Toward the end of this ordeal, I was so overwhelmed that I didn’t think we’d ever get out! I felt suffocated, trapped, and pinned against the wall. I really thought it was the end of the road for us! As far as we were concerned, the verdict was in, and the verdict said, ‘Death.’ But really, this was no great shock, because we were already feeling the effect of death and depression in our souls….”

Paul doesn’t tell us exactly what happened to him and his team when they were in Asia. But whatever it was, it was the most grueling experience they had ever been through until that time.

You may ask, “Why would Paul want us to know that he had been through such difficult times? Did he want us to feel sorry for him?” Absolutely not! Paul wanted us to know that everyone endures hardness from time to time. Even the greatest, most well-known, celebrated spiritual leaders are confronted with situations that are devastating or challenging.

You see, even with all his knowledge, revelation, and experience, Paul was still assaulted by the devil. That assault was so aggressive that Paul wrote “we despaired even of life,” describing the intense emotions he felt as he went through these extremely difficult circumstances.

But Paul didn’t break, and he didn’t die! Likewise, if you’ll hold on and fight right where you are, you also won’t break or be destroyed! Like Paul, you will win the victory. Then you’ll be able to say that the ordeal happened in order that you would not trust in yourself, “…but in God which raiseth the dead: Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver…” (2 Corinthians 1:9,10).

God’s delivering power is yours! He has rescued you in the past; He will rescue you now; and He will rescue you again and again in the future. All He asks is that you “stay put” right where He called you — refusing to move, rejecting every temptation to give up, and deciding never to give in to the pressure that the devil wants to pile on top of you. If you’ll be faithful and slug it out with the power and armor of God, you’ll discover that God will be with you all the way through to a successful conclusion!

My Prayer for Today

Lord, You have never abandoned me, and You never will! When the devil tries to crush me with stress, I throw the weight of my cares upon You. I can’t thank You enough for taking all those pressures off my shoulders and freeing me to walk in peace! My heart is simply overflowing with gratefulness for the strength and power You have released inside me. I know that with Your continued help, I shall be victorious, and these problems will flee!

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

My Confession for Today

I confess that God’s delivering power is mine! He has rescued me before; He will rescue me now; and He will rescue me when I need His power again in the future. I am “staying put” right where God called me. I refuse to move; I reject every temptation to give up; and I will never give in to the pressures to stop doing what God has told me to do. I will be faithful, and God will empower me to make it all the way through to my place of victory!

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

Questions to Answer

1. Can you think of a time when you underwent circumstances so difficult that you wondered if you would survive the situation? You obviously survived, so what was the one thing that most helped you get through that ordeal?

2. As you think of others who are going through hard times right now, what is the most effective thing you could do to help them get past their difficult circumstances?

3. Why don’t you make a list of ten practical things you can do to encourage these people and to remind them that you are standing with them in faith until they come through this ordeal in victory?

Howbeit, when he, the Spirit of truth is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
— John 16:13

There is no second-guessing when it comes to the leadership of the Holy Spirit. That’s what Jesus stressed as He continued teaching His disciples about the ministry of the Holy Spirit. In John 16:13, Jesus said, “Howbeit, when he, the Spirit of Truth is come, he will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will shew you things to come.”

The word “shew” in this verse is the Greek word anagello, which means to announce and describes a vivid showing or a pronouncing of events. So we see that part of the ministry of the Holy Spirit is to announce future events to us — and to show them to us with great clarity. The Holy Spirit does not portray a blurry picture of the future. If we listen to Him, He will vividly show us things to come so we can plan our lives according to His will.

This aspect of the Holy Spirit’s ministry is evident in nearly every book of the Bible. For example, when the apostle Paul described the events that will occur in society at the end of the age (see 2 Timothy 3), he was writing under the prophetic ministry of the Holy Spirit. Likewise, the Holy Spirit is the One who imparted the vivid details to the apostle John concerning endtime events recorded in the book of Revelation.

However, this “revealing” ministry of the Holy Spirit is not relegated to Scripture. Jesus was speaking to every believer when He spoke of the Holy Spirit showing us things to come. If what Jesus taught is true — and it is — a significant part of the Holy Spirit’s ministry is to reveal details about future events. He wants to prophetically speak to you and prepare you for your future. He wants to show you details about your future and the future of your family that He believes you need to know.

Open your heart today to the revealing work of the Holy Spirit. If anyone wants you to be prepared, it is the Holy Spirit, your Helper and Coach. He does not want you to be taken off guard by any situation you might encounter in life.

Simply avail yourself to Him by spending time in prayer every day without distraction. Linger in God’s presence long enough to get your mind quiet and your heart open to hear. Then ask Him, “Holy Spirit, show me things to come in my life, in my business, and in my family. Reveal to me what I need to know to navigate every future situation that I will face with Your wisdom. I purpose to follow Your leading every step of the way.”

MY PRAYER FOR TODAY

Holy Spirit, today I receive You as One who speaks into my life to show me things to come that I really need to know. I’ve tried hard to figure out things on my own. Forgive me for not developing my trust in You the way I should have in this area of my life. Starting right now, I ask You to fulfill the prophetic role of Your ministry in my life and to show me things to come. I know You want me to know how to plan my life, how to circumvent demonic attacks, and how to be prepared for every phase of my journey in You. Your Word promises that as I keep my spiritual ear tuned to You, You will show me exactly what I need to know about every step in front of me. I believe You and I gratefully receive Your ministry in my life day by day.

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

 

MY CONFESSION FOR TODAY

I confess that my ears are open and that my spirit is attuned to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Jesus said that He would show me things to come, and by faith, I embrace the prophetic ministry of the Holy Spirit in my life to show me everything I need to know about my future. I am not left to figure anything out on my own. The Holy Spirit speaks to my heart about things to come. I listen to His directions, and I make plans to do what He shows me. This spares me wasted time, helps me avoid mistakes, and puts me on a solid path that leads to His highest will for my life.

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

 

QUESTIONS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER

1. One of the Holy Spirit’s roles is to show you things to come. Have you learned to let the Holy Spirit speak prophetically to you about your future, or have you just tried to figure it all out on your own?
2. Can you think of a time when the Holy Spirit did tell you something about your future and you believed Him — and as a result, it gave you direction and saved you lots of valuable time and effort?
3. Can you think of a time when the Holy Spirit clearly spoke to you, impressing your spirit with vital information, and you discounted and ignored it — only to understand later that it really was the Holy Spirit trying to show you something about your future that you really needed to know?

Howbeit, when he, the Spirit of truth is come, he will guide you into all truth….
— John 16:13

In most Middle Eastern countries, ancient ruins are scattered throughout the land, dating from biblical times. To visit these sites, it is required that a person be accompanied by an “official guide.” These guides are certified by the government and undergo a rigorous certification, which must be renewed annually. The process requires guides to receive ongoing education and training in a variety of subjects, such as history, art, and archeology, in addition to earning their initial degrees. Official guides are not simply individuals who snapped a “tour guide” badge on their shirt or jacket; they are highly trained specialists who invested years of study in order to obtain and maintain that hard-earned status.

To make a tour interesting for a group, a guide must know how to communicate effectively and give clear instructions concerning where to go, what to stay away from, and so on. Hiring good guides can be expensive because they have spent so many years studying and training. However, their expertise is invaluable. As they lead people through a site, tour guides impart information that can be obtained only through many years of studying — a commitment that most people obviously cannot make.

In many large, complex sites, such as the ancient ruins of Ephesus and Pergamum in modern-day Turkey, it would almost be foolish to try to see these sites without a certified guide. These sites are huge, and parts of the ancient roads are deteriorated, twisted, rocky, and potentially dangerous. In fact, there are so many paths to take that an uninformed person could easily get confused and lost along the way. However, with a good guide at your side, you can rest assured that you will not get hurt or lost as you explore, and you’ll conclude your experience with a wonderful memory of a trip well executed.

With this example in mind, let’s look at John 16:13, where Jesus told His disciples, “Howbeit, when he, the Spirit of truth is come, he will guide you into all truth.…” In this verse, Jesus used the example of a tour guide to describe the guiding ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Just as a guide leads a group through a historical site, the Holy Spirit wants to guide us through life.

The word “guide” in John 16:13 is the Greek word odega — a word that describes a tour guide or one who would lead you on an excursion. As we have seen, a tour guide is a professional who has gained an intimate knowledge of a site you want to see through years of dedication and experience. He knows all the shortcuts and all the points of interest, and he can relate its history in depth. Your willingness to allow the guide to lead and your willingness to follow his directions will save you from making mistakes and drawing incorrect conclusions about where you are, where you are headed, and what are you are seeing.

This Greek word odega describes the guiding ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Jesus was informing us that if we are willing to listen to the Holy Spirit and to follow His instructions, He will act as a Guide for our lives. Like the tour guides discussed in the example above, the Holy Spirit knows what lies ahead of us. He knows the obstacles we should avoid; He sees our ultimate destination; and He knows God’s plan for our lives down to the smallest detail. The Holy Spirit knows every route God desires for us to take — and if we are willing to follow the Spirit’s leading, He will give us a wonderful and memorable experience along the path of life.

My friend, I want to tell you that the Holy Spirit deeply desires to guide you in life. If you’ll let Him lead you, He will offer you sound guidance in every sphere of your life. If you listen to His voice, He will tell you the career you should choose, the person you should marry, and the place you should live. He is the only One who knows the future; therefore, He is the only One who is truly qualified to lead and guide you.

Divine guidance is one of the biggest challenges we face in the Christian life. However, Jesus explicitly said that the Holy Spirit is here to lead and guide us every step along the way. What a relief and security it affords us to know that God the Father has charged the Holy Spirit with the responsibility of leading and guiding us to the right place at the right time — every single time. And He also warns us away from certain people, places, and situations. This is His job! Without His direction, we are incapable of discerning where we should go in life, the people with whom we should surround ourselves, and the best timing for our endeavors.

However, in order for this to happen, we have to make an effort to listen to the Holy Spirit’s voice and be willing to follow His instruction. If we will do that, we’ll find that the Spirit of God is leading us, just as He did the apostles in the book of Acts!

Today I urge you to open your heart to the guiding ministry of the Holy Spirit. Trust that He is the Spirit of Truth who will not mislead you. “Take the hand” of the Holy Spirit and tell Him from your heart: “Holy Spirit, I trust You from this moment forward to be my Guide every step of the way!”

MY PRAYER FOR TODAY

Holy Spirit, I open my heart to Your leading and guiding in life. I repent for foolishly having tried to lead myself through difficult decisions and questions, when you were always right there, wanting to lead me along the way. You know the plan of God for me down to the smallest detail, and from this time forward, I will do my best to consult You and to yield to Your guidance for my life. You know everything about me, my future, and which steps I need to take next. Rather than try to figure it all out on my own, I entrust myself to you as my official Guide to lead me each step of the way!

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

 

MY CONFESSION FOR TODAY

I declare by faith that I am led by the Holy Spirit. He was sent to lead and direct me, and I am learning to hear His voice, to recognize His leading, and to allow Him to be the Senior Guide in my life. I know that as a result of being guided by the Spirit, my life is going to be more adventuresome and filled with less mistakes, for the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth, and He will never lead me down a wrong path. Holy Spirit, I’m ready — let’s get started today!

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

 

QUESTIONS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER

1. Can you think of a moment in your life when the Holy Spirit supernaturally led you through difficult decisions and questions? When was that experience, and have you ever shared it with anyone else?
2. How do you recognize the guidance of the Holy Spirit? If someone asked you to describe what it is like to be led by the Holy Spirit, how would you put it into words? Why don’t you practice describing it so you’ll be ready to help someone else understand what it is like to receive guidance from the Holy Spirit?
3. What situation are you facing right now that requires supernatural direction? How will you let the Holy Spirit guide you down the path that lies before you?