Devotions

Do you ever wonder why the disciples were so ignorant of the ways of Christ and the eternal purposes of God? Why, after three years of sitting under the blessed preaching of the Savior of the world, they remained blind, unprepared for the things to come? Why was their understanding of the cross and the resurrection so limited?

It was because they did not hear with faith! On several occasions Jesus had to rebuke them: “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!” (Luke 24:25).

“Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” (Matthew 8:26). They had little faith — hearts that were slow to believe his Word. And they were left empty, unprepared, confused — blinded by unbelief!

If Jesus marveled at the unbelief of the disciples during his time on earth, what must he think of us today? Nineveh repented after only one sermon, believing every word Jonah preached. Yet America has heard thousands of such warnings from many prophets, but multitudes of so-called Spirit-filled believers do not heed them. They say, “I don’t want to hear that anymore.” And then they just put it all out of mind!

How much of what you have heard do you remember? How deeply has it worked into your spiritual fiber? If God’s Word is not assimilated by faith — if we do not ask him in faith to help us receive and use it — we will end up picking and choosing only what we like. And we usually pick the blessings, mercies and comforts and shake off the demands, reproofs and warnings.

Trust makes God’s Word work its way into our spirit. And faith stamps it into our personality and minds so that it is never forgotten.

Under the Old Covenant, the promise to the Israelites that God would bless them if they obeyed was all they had. But today, under the New Covenant, we have a “better promise.” “[Christ] is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises” (Hebrews 8:6).

This “better promise” means we all shall know Him. We do not just have a high priest who goes into God’s presence. No — a veil was rent in two so we could all come into the very presence of God!

Consider all the Lord has promised us:

• His law is written in our hearts. His Holy Spirit abides in us and Christ himself is with us always.
• Reconciliation with God: healing, mercy and forgiveness through simple repentance and faith.
• Power and authority to ask anything in Jesus’ name. Power over sin and Satan. No weapon will be able to prosper against us.
• Access to the Father. He provides a throne where we can run to in the hour of need. He delivers us from overwhelming temptations. And we enjoy a continual manifestation of the presence of Jesus.
• Rest by simply asking and trusting. Peace beyond all human understanding and freedom from fear all the days of our life.

He has promised all this to us! Yet still many Christians live in fear, doubt, confusion — always fretting. They do not believe him or appropriate his precious Word; in fact, they act as though he never made such promises.

The truth is, we have much less reason to doubt and fear than our forefathers did. Our enemies today are not physical armies; they are stress, fiery temptations of the flesh, weariness of body and mind, a violent and complex society, new and subtle evils that no other generation has faced. But God has promised that where sin abounds, we have more grace to do battle than any other generation in history.

On the night before his crucifixion, at the Last Supper, Jesus told his disciples, “Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me” (John 14:19). What an interesting statement for Jesus to make. One of them asked, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?” (14:22).

Of course, Jesus had a lesson in mind. He answered, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. ... Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. ... And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father” (14:23, 27, 29-31).

Jesus’ response here brings into focus a theme he is driving at throughout this passage — separation. In these few verses, Christ makes three clear distinctions between his kingdom and the world:

• “The world will see me no more, but you will see me” (14:19).
• “My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you” (14:27).
• “The ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me” (14:30).

Until the past few years, separation was a defining characteristic of Christ’s church. Being set apart was a clear command from God’s Word and a part of every Christian’s calling. Today, however, there seems to be very little distinction between the church and the world. Let us remember that we are set apart for his kingdom purposes, to be instruments of change.

What if the Body of Christ as a whole could come together in unity, put away our differences of opinion and our social and doctrinal disputes, and focus on one specific goal — to reach the lost? What if we called on the Holy Spirit to heal wounds and bring forgiveness to our hearts and souls, forgetting the past and concentrating instead on the future? What kind of spiritual revival would the world experience when they saw us standing together before them in a united front?

That is the kind of love and unity that Jesus prayed for just before he went to the cross: “I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. ... May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me” (John 17:20-23).

Jesus prayed for unity among his followers because he knew that without it we would be helpless in the midst of an angry and hostile world. It is only through a unified spirit, through standing together as one against the attacks of the Evil One, that we are able to effectively bring God’s message of love and hope to a world steeped in sin. We cannot offer peace and love to a chaotic culture if we don’t have it within our own ranks.

I long to see the day when Christians everywhere “rise up in unity” and ask every person on this planet to bow their knees before our merciful Savior. That would be a day humankind would never forget — the day Jesus’ followers came together with one heart, one mind, one Spirit, and one purpose: to release one holy fire upon the world.

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

After years of service you may find yourself still being trained by the Lord. We never stop learning about following his clear direction, especially when he leads us into hard places. I am still learning not to say, “That’s it, God. I’ve had enough.” Instead, I’m teaching myself to say, “Lord, I don’t see the way ahead; I don’t know where I’ll find the grace to get through this. But you promised to be my strength.”

This is the place of true faith. It is also where we find our rest — by fully trusting in the Lord’s love for us. As Paul states, what else do we have to present to him but our faith? Not works or performance (see Ephesians 2:8-9). We have only our belief in him and our reliance on him to provide all we need.

Dear one, he is going to bring you through and he wants to take you to a place of incredible blessing. You may have to be willing to do seemingly insignificant things — although they are not insignificant to him! You will face tests and trials that will be hard, some even seemingly beyond your ability to endure. Yet that is the training ground God has set apart for multitudes of his most beloved, chosen ones. It is where you will learn his nature, his character, his blessing, and his goodness.

It may be hard to comprehend and understand that in spite of your failures, you are cherished by a holy God. But you are loved with the same love he has shown his Son. And he has a holy purpose for you, just as he did for Jesus. Therefore, accept the peace that passes all understanding and rest, knowing that his blessing lies ahead of you.

At the end of the day, you will be able to bow your head and say, “Lord, you did it again. You brought me through in victory!”