Devotions

In one of King David’s most quoted yet misunderstood psalms, he says, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me” (Psalm 23:4). I do not think David was asking God to remove this evil; he was asking to be pushed toward battle, to be forced to face the enemy head-on. He was ready to go to war with Satan, not hide from him!

When the apostle Paul was inspiring his brothers in the faith to remember their purpose as Christians and their reward in heaven, he told them to “comfort one another with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:18). In effect, he was saying, “Push each other forward in our battle against the evil one.”

And when Jesus promised His disciples that the Comforter would be coming after His death, it was an announcement of war. The Holy Spirit would both inspire and empower them toward frontline spiritual warfare. This is a dimension of God’s Spirit that is very real yet too seldom understood and embraced.

If you want to see God’s Spirit at work in full glory on earth, take a trip to the front lines of battle where the war between good and evil — the battle for human souls — is being fought with intensity. If you want to feel Satan’s wrath, just spend some time on his turf talking to the people he keeps in bondage and telling them about Jesus. Watch him raise his ugly head to try to intimidate and mock you.

Nothing makes Satan angrier or more nervous than having one of God’s people carry the flashlight of grace into the damp darkness of his dungeon. That’s when he fights the hardest and when we see the Holy Spirit shine most mightily.

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. 

Tragically, the religious world has been divided for centuries. Down through the generations, terrible divisions have pitted Christians against each other. Brother has come against brother, sister against sister, and entire denominations have been ruined.

The truth is, I honestly love my brother only when I can stand side by side with him in worship of Jesus. I know I truly love my brother when I can stand confidently before Christ’s throne knowing I have nothing in my heart against him. And I know I truly love my brother when I have the same love for him that Jesus has shown to me.

So how do we truly love one another as Christ loves us?

It happens when we forgive those who have hurt us, just as Christ has forgiven us.

It happens when we reach out to the backslidden, doing all in our power to restore them.

It happens when we esteem others better than ourselves.

Dear saint, I plead with you today: Lay down all bitterness, strife and disrespect. Do not hinder the blessing of God in your life and home. Obey His new commandment to you and remember His Word: “By this all will know that you are Mine — if you love one another!” (see John 13:35). The lost will see and know God’s love through His obedient, joyful, sacrificing people — the church. Amen!

“Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself” (Philippians 2:3).

The world needs illustrated sermons — powerful personal examples — of God’s love.

In John 17:21, Jesus prayed: “That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me” (my italics).

Think of it: Even in His final hours, Jesus was still yearning over lost humanity. And He was giving His church specific direction on how to win those lost multitudes. Consider His final words on the subject: “Be as one! Put aside all strife and division, that the world may believe in Me.”

You may think, “That sounds so simplistic. Is that really how the church is going to reach hardened hearts? Does simply loving each other truly provide supernatural power to combat hatred?”

The answer is yes, yes and yes — absolutely! According to Jesus, the powerful love of God is revealed most clearly to the world by the unconditional love between His people.

Right now, one of Satan’s primary strategies against the church is to plant division and strife. Everywhere I look in the Body of Christ worldwide, I am convinced hordes of demons have been sent on assignment within church walls. And their aim is to destroy the love of Christians for one another.

The devil’s strategy is subtle: He pits race against race and rich against poor in the Body of Christ. The racial strife, specifically, is being fed worldwide through television and other media. I have not seen such racial hatred spewed forth in years, and now it is infiltrating the walls of God’s house.

I thank God that Times Square Church was raised up with no color lines and no distinction between rich or poor. All who come through our doors are treated with the same respect and welcoming love. We have enjoyed God’s blessing for many years and I believe this is partly because we have obeyed Christ’s command to love one another as He has loved us.

During His time with the disciples just before His crucifixion, Jesus warned, “Some of you will be rejected, some will be imprisoned, some will be killed. And all of you will be persecuted” (see John 16:2). What a send-off message!

Yet, at the same time, Jesus gave them a word of direction about how to reach their generation after He was gone. This direction had nothing to do with methods for evangelism. Jesus had already told the disciples they were to go into all the world preaching the gospel, and it was clear that they would need the power of the Holy Ghost to do that.

Jesus told them plainly: “If you obey this new commandment, all men will know who you are. And they’ll know exactly where you stand. They may hate you, call you fanatics, and turn you out of their synagogues, but they will know you are Mine.”

Here is what Jesus told His disciples: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another” (John 13:34, my italics). This is not an option; it is Jesus’ commandment. And it is where every evangelistic effort must begin.

You see, Scripture makes clear that we are to feed the poor, and the church will always do so faithfully. We are to do many good works through which we preach Christ boldly. But to penetrate the “gross darkness,” we need to lay hold of this new commandment from Jesus. Christ explains: “By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (13:35, my italics).

According to Jesus, only this particular love — a love for fellow believers — will gain the attention of a lost generation. It is the same kind of self-denying, sacrificial love that Jesus shows to each of us. And such love for our kin in Christ cannot be accomplished in word alone, but must be in deed.

There is much talk these days about the fearful condition of our world. Nation after nation is troubled, on the brink of economic disaster. Yet amid all the fear and turmoil, God is still loving and saving lost souls.

His marvelous work of salvation never changes — it is not affected by the economy. His wooing, convicting Holy Spirit isn’t hindered by conditions on Wall Street or by teetering global finances. God’s saving power has never been limited by shrinking bank accounts.

The fact is, our Lord never amends His promises. They are always “yes and amen” at all times and in every circumstance (see 2 Corinthians 1:20). God didn’t promise to provide all our needs except when we are unemployed. And He didn’t promise to be Jehovah Jireh, our provider, except when economic times get scary.

Our Lord’s promises never change! And that includes His promise about saving the lost. When God commanded us to go into all the world to win the lost, He did not include an exemption clause. He didn't say, “Preach the gospel of my Son Jesus Christ to all nations — except in hard times.” And He never said, “Believe for the salvation of many — except when there is a great shaking in the world.”

Thank God, He has never said the world is too wicked, too hardhearted, too given over to lust to be reached by His Good News. At no time in history has the Lord ever limited His tender mercies — and He never will. Right now, America and the rest of the world could still be spared judgment — if there is true repentance. Of course, such repentance would require a great humbling and a mass return to the Lord. But our God has never rescinded His amazing offer of mercy.