Devotions

Any believer who wishes to please God with his prayer life must first settle this question: “Does God really hear my prayers and will he answer?” While this appears to be a simple question — one that shouldn’t even need to be asked — most Christians would immediately answer, “Yes, of course I believe God answers my prayers.” But the simple fact is, many are not fully convinced.

There are times when we feel that God is absent from our lives, that he is not listening to our cries. Questions and doubts exist deep within us and the Lord wants to settle them in our spirit. In Luke 18:2-8, Jesus spoke a parable about the persistent widow and the unjust judge to teach his disciples “that men always ought to pray and not lose heart” (18:1).

In the Jewish community, a judge was expected to be impartial, but the judge in this story was incompetent and unqualified for the job. Justice definitely was not being served. According to Jewish law, widows deserve special protection under the justice system, but this judge ignored the widow who came to him. Nevertheless, she refused to give up and came before him so often that he lost patience with her and granted her request.

This widow got the justice she was seeking because of her tenacity! Jesus explains in verse 8 that if an unfit, ungodly judge answers with justice in the end, how much more will our loving, holy Father give what is right to his children?

Many Christians know that God has all they need, and they admit he cares, but they are not convinced he is willing to come quickly to help them. When God does not answer their cry right away, they imagine hindrances and inner blockages in themselves. And they think of all kinds of reasons the Lord must not be willing to come to their aid.

“Oh, how great is Your goodness, which You have laid up for those who fear You, which You have prepared for those who trust in You” (Psalm 31:19). Be assured that God has given you all you need to be free and victorious. Rejoice in the Lord for you are a delight to his soul. Hallelujah!

“You are witnesses, and God also, how devoutly and justly and blamelessly we behaved ourselves among you who believe” (1 Thessalonians 2:10).

Paul was an effective preacher who could stand boldly before people and testify, “My co-workers and I have lived blameless lives before you and God. Our conduct was righteous and pure. I always walk as if his eyes are on me and you are also witnesses to the way I live.” He wanted every believer to have the same power he had in directing people toward God through living a blameless life. But how can anyone live blamelessly, and what characterizes such a life? 

1. The blameless Christian is one without deceit in his heart. Paul asserted that he was not a fraud, preaching one thing and yet living another. But he also warned that certain men were going about claiming to be apostles. “[But] such are false prophets, deceitful workers” (2 Corinthians 11:13). Paul said, “You can’t fake a blameless walk.”

2. The blameless Christian lives a clean life. “Our exhortation did not come from error or uncleanness” (1 Thessalonians 2:3). Paul’s emphasis here is on sensuality, lust. He is saying, “Nothing unclean came out of my mouth. My conversation was pure, coming forth from a clean heart.” Someone whose heart has been cleansed should not tell dirty jokes, make sexual innuendoes or have roving eyes.  

3. The blameless Christian is without guile, which means he is not deceitful or manipulative. There is no hidden agenda with an honest and open believer. “For neither at any time did we use flattering words … nor did we seek glory from men, either from you or from others” (1 Thessalonians 2:5-6).

What distinguishes a blameless walk is a consuming desire to honor the name of Jesus before all men. Such a Christian would rather die than do or say anything that would bring reproach on the Lord. Although he is not perfect, he is pursuing the righteousness of Christ by faith.

Set your heart to be blameless now — today! Desire it with everything in you and soon you will discover God’s great favor upon your life. Your words and actions will have an impact on others as you find yourself focused totally on Jesus.

With all the talk in the church about spiritual warfare, too many Christians have not learned how to resist the enemy. In fact, few believers know how to stand up and fight, and they become real pushovers for the devil.

The book of Judges tells us, “The children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord. So the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian for seven years” (Judges 6:1-2). Every year at harvest time, the Midianites moved over Israel’s land with thousands of camels, sheep and cattle that ate everything in sight, leaving Israel completely impoverished. They were driven to living in dark caves and damp dens, starving, scared and helpless. Then something happened! After seven years of this, the Israelites cried out to the Lord (6:6-7).

A man named Gideon had grown weary and exasperated at the situation. The Angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, “The Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor!” (Judges 6:12). Gideon questioned this Angel: “Well, if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? How long should we just put up with it? We’ve been told we have a God who moved for our fathers, but look at us — helpless, living in constant fear.” The Angel said, “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat the [enemy]” (6:16).

Gideon gathered his army but then God made a strange request: “Send home every soldier who is afraid” (7:3). In other words, God said to Gideon, “I must have men of faith and courage! All others must pray until they develop a backbone.” That thinned out the army considerably. Still, before it was all over, Gideon had an army of strong, focused, determined fighters.

Scripture commands us to stand up, be strong, and do battle: “Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong” (1 Corinthians 16:13, NAS). Jesus has promised us, “I am with you always” (Matthew 28:20). God is looking for believers today who will fight their own battles with faith and courage. He says to you, “Why do you fear? You can trust me to bring victory to your life. You are stronger than you think and, remember, I’m always with you.”

“The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them’” (Numbers13:1-2).

Moses chose twelve men to explore the Promised Land, one from each tribe of Israel.  Each of these men was an outstanding leader with exceptional skills, power and authority. All of them are listed by name in Numbers 13 and yet only two are known by us today: Joshua and Caleb. There is a definite reason for this.

After the spies fulfilled their reconnaissance mission, they brought back a bounty of luscious fruit and described a land that “flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit” (13:27). However, in reporting their findings to Moses and Aaron, ten of them said, “The people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. … We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are” (13:28, 31). Full of doubt and misgivings, they were overwhelmed with a fear of being slain by the powerful enemies in Canaan.

A majority of the Israelites were ready to go along with the advice of these men, but Joshua and Caleb strongly disagreed with their assessment. They urged Israel to move on in faith, knowing God would prepare the way. These two faithful men stood apart within their faith community and the difference in them was clear in God’s eyes. He voiced it in these words to Moses, “My servant Caleb … has a different spirit and has followed Me fully” (14:24).

Both Joshua and Caleb had a right attitude exemplified by faith and courage. Because of their trust in the promises of God, they led the Israelites into the Promised Land, obtaining a rich reward. However, the unbelief of the other ten spies led them back into the wilderness, where they faded into oblivion. 

Choose to believe the Word of the Lord and his promises today. Put your trust in him and he will lead you into your own promised land. 

Bearing fruit is the underlying purpose behind the gift of God’s Son. Christ suffered, died, and rose again so that we would die to the law and “belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God” (Romans 7:4).

A new believer in Christ will always exhibit a change in behavior as proof that the fruit-bearing process has begun. Paul told the Colossians, “All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth” (Colossians 1:6).

A growing number of churches, afraid of “scaring” people away, have become more intent on being seeker-sensitive than on trusting God to transform lives, as he has been doing for over two thousand years. We need not worry about the power of the gospel, for it still is the power of God for salvation. We just need to be bold enough to communicate it in simplicity and love.

Jesus said, “By their fruit you will recognize them … every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit” (Matthew 7:16-17). Although Jesus offered this teaching in the context of a warning about false prophets, its application is universal. The only indisputable proof that God’s grace is at work in us is the spiritual fruit we produce. This is neither legalism nor mysticism, but a fact of life in the kingdom of God.

Remember, Israel was rejected by its own Messiah because it did not bear fruit: “Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit” (Matthew 21:43).

The Holy Spirit was sent to tenderly draw people to Christ. As you respond to his voice and humble yourself in the presence of God, ask him for a personal revival that will bear fruit to the praise of the glory of his grace. 

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