Abandon Your Own Plans

The Northern Kingdom, Israel, was overcome by the Assyrians in 722 B.C. and many of its people were carried away captive at that time. (Israel was divided into two kingdoms, Israel and Judah, after the reign of Solomon over 200 years earlier.) Known for their fierceness, the Assyrian armies had defeated many nations and, had grown into the dominant world power of that time. Once they defeated Israel, the Assyrians pushed their way into Judah and were threatening to do to them as they had done to Israel.

Many of the Jews were now looking to Egypt for deliverance, either by fleeing there or by hiring the Egyptian army as protection. God sent his prophet, Isaiah, to warn the people not to follow that plan. “Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are strong; but they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the LORD…now the Egyptians are men, and not God; and their horses flesh, and not spirit” (Isaiah 31:1,3).

In spite of this warning, Judah continued to seek Egypt as its protector. God again warned his people through his prophet. “Woe to the rebellious children, saith the LORD, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may add to their sin: that walk to go down into Egypt, and have not asked at my mouth; to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt…for the Egyptians shall help in vain, and to no purpose: therefore, have I cried concerning this, their [Judah’s] strength is to sit still” (Isaiah 30:1-2, 7).

The fault of Judah was their failure to seek God’s wisdom and trust in his power. They devised their own scheme and relied on their own wisdom to provide deliverance from their overwhelming circumstances. We are guilty of the same fault when we behave very much the same way in the face of our difficulties. We do not look to God nor trust him to guide and provide. Solomon’s wisdom remains profitable to this day. “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6; emphasis added).

We would rather trust our own faulty and unreliable judgement rather than rest in the unfailing wisdom of an all-knowing and all-powerful heavenly Father. How foolish! We would do well to heed Isaiah’s admonition to those in Judah. “For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; in returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength” (Isaiah 30:15). God invited his children to return from their own schemes and rest in him for their deliverance. When we rest in God, we do not contemplate a “plan B”. Rather, there is a stillness to our disposition and a confidence in the course provided because it is a path provided by our God who is unfailingly good and sovereign in all his ways.

Dear believer, perhaps, you are in the midst of challenging circumstances today. Your heavenly Father knows and is “a very present help in time of trouble” (Psalm 46:1). In light of that truth, the Psalmist offers God’s invitation, “be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).

I Will Have Mercy

When Levi (Matthew) began to follow Jesus, the Scriptures record that he “made him [Jesus] a great feast in his own house: and there was a great company of publicans and of others that sat down with them. But their scribes and Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying, why do ye eat and drink with publicans and sinners?” (Luke 5:29-30). Matthew, being a publican himself, had come to recently know the grace of God in Christ Jesus, and wanted his friends and fellow publicans to know that same grace likewise.

But the scribes and Pharisees were self-righteous and were loath to associate with such folk as those who attended the feast. Consequently, they found fault with our Lord and his disciples in such a social wrongdoing. In their minds, attending this gathering put our Savior in the same lowly standing at those wretched publicans.

The Lord backhandedly rebuked these high minded hypocrites by simply reminding them that “They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:31-32). Those who owned their sin and recognized their need, he would deliver. But he could do nothing for those who were righteous in their own eyes.

But the Lord gave them something else to bring focus to their condition that they might see their own need. Matthew (the same Matthew of this story) recorded this additional instruction from our Lord in his gospel account of this event. He referred them to the prophecy of Hosea and told them “But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice” (Matthew 9:13). These religious leaders had missed God’s standard for righteousness just as those had in Hosea’s day.

Hosea confronted a people who were in part blinded to their sin by their practice of religious ceremony. They offered the required sacrifices, but there was no changed life to accompany their worship. Hosea confronted them for their sins, not their sacrifices. God surely deserves worship for he is a great King (Malachi 1:14). But worship that does not come from a life lived daily in the presence of God is rejected and despised in the Lord’s eyes.

The Pharisees in Christ’s day were the same. They took pride in their adherence to the minor elements of the law, yet completely ignored the more substantive matters. They were wrapped up in themselves and had no regard for the great needs of their Jewish brethren. As our Lord declared, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgement, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone” (Matthew 23:23).

Micah spoke to the same issue in his time. “Wherewith shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before the high God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old…He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God” (Micah 6:6,8). May we do just that!

Pushed Along by Our Feelings or Led by the Spirit

We have all been in that place where our reactions to our circumstances got the better of us and we said or did things that we regretted later. The Scriptures remind us “He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding; but he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly” (Proverbs 14:29). To be hasty of spirit is to be driven along by our emotions, our feelings, much like the wind moves a sailboat. These feelings propel us quickly to an undesired port, one that we would not desire had we given any thought to our actions. The result is folly, which is behavior characteristic of a fool.  

On the other hand, one who is slow to wrath understands the dangers of premature (hasty) and misguided reactions. Controlling our spirit is greatly commended in the Bible. “He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city” (Proverbs 16:32). This kind of self-control takes a strength that Scripture compares to armies in warfare. In essence, it is easier to overcome a host of external foes than the enemy that rules and reigns within.

In a practical sense, the imperative to not react hastily and unwisely requires that we somehow manage to stay calm and quiet. This requires not merely the training of our emotions, but also that we overcome them and subdue them. The benefits are clear. Solomon writes “The heart of the righteous studieth to answer, but the mouth of the wicked poureth out evil things” (Proverbs 15:28). The unguarded reactions of those governed and propelled by their emotions pour out of their mouths as unstoppable tidal waves of hurt. But the righteous are controlled and seek a response fitting to the occasion.

There is no power within ourselves naturally that is at our disposal to control our emotions and not yielding to a hasty spirit. James reminds us that “the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison” (James 3:8). The problem lies with our wicked heart, the seat of our emotions. Christ taught “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things” (Matthew 12:34-35).

The good man is able to bring forth good fruit because he has been made new by the blood of Christ. He has been given a new heart through the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit. “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation; old things are passed away, behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). A man cannot control his own heart until he gives it to Jesus Christ. Jesus taught “he that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water” (John 7:38). Instead of spewing forth the violent waves of anger and wrath, blessings of peace and gentleness shall flow out of our lives to those in our circles of activity. Who controls your heart?

The Custom of Jesus

Luke records that “when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from him [Jesus] for a season. And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him through all the region round about. And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all” (Luke 4:13-15).

John’s gospel gives some indication as to how Jesus’ fame grew after returning from the wilderness temptation. During this time, he turned the water into wine at the marriage in Cana (John 2:1-12); he cleansed the temple of the money-changers at his first Passover celebration (John 2:13-25); he met with Nicodemus, a Pharisee, at night to challenge his thinking with the necessity of the new birth (John 3:1-21); he revealed himself as the Messiah to the woman at the well in Samaria (John 4:7-40); and, he healed a nobleman’s son who was at the point of death (John 4:46-54).

It is evident that the fame of Jesus grew as a result of his miracles and his teaching for “he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes” (Matthew 7:29). After these things (and, no doubt, many others not recorded for us), “he came to Nazareth…and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Isaiah.” (Luke 4:16-17).

There are two simple yet very profound observations to be made from this text. First, it was our Savior’s custom to worship God in a regular and systematic fashion. One of the Ten Commandments was “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8). This is the only commandment that is not repeated in the New Testament. However, the principle of regular worship was nonetheless clearly practiced by the early church’s gathering together on the first day of the week, the Lord’s Day. This was in honor of our Savior’s resurrection.

We are admonished to “hold fast the profession of our faith…not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching” (Hebrews 10:23-25). Doing so ought to be our custom, but for many believers this is not so. The idea of participating in weekly corporate worship with other believers is far from a practice that could be counted as regular for many. We need to follow the example of our Lord.

The second observation is that the word of God must be central and preeminent. Christ read from the prophet Isaiah and then expounded on the significance of the passage (Luke 4:18-21). He did not address community activities nor current national events but ministered from the Scriptures. The apostle Paul urged this same practice upon his young pastor, Timothy. “Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine” (I Timothy 4:13). This charge sets forth the reading of God’s word, teaching its precepts and principles, and the exhortation to obey it. In fact, Paul’s final charge to Timothy from prison was “preach the word” (2 Timothy 4:2).

The pattern for the believer today is to gather faithfully and regularly with other believers for the preaching and teaching of God’s word. Is this your custom? Is it the practice of your church?

The Temptation of Jesus (Part 3)

Following his baptism, the Spirit of God led Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil for forty days. There are three avenues where temptation finds access to human nature to provoke us to sin. John records these in his first epistle and all of our sins tend to find their expression through these portals. He writes “all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world” (I John 2:16). The devil thought it possible to lead Jesus to sin by tempting him in these three areas. The short answer is that he failed.

He first tempted Christ along the lust of the flesh by suggesting that our Lord turn the stones into bread to satisfy his hunger. Failing in his first attempt, Satan appealed to the lust of the eyes by showing Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. If Christ would only worship him, he could have them all. Again, the devil failed. In both instances our Lord relied on the Scriptures to overcome the temptation presented.

In his last attempt, the devil sought to stir the pride of life. “Then the devil taketh him [Jesus] up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, and saith unto him, if thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. Jesus said unto him, It is written again, thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God” (Matthew 4:5-7).

Satan’s thinking was along these lines. Surey, Christ could rely on his special and unique position as the only begotten Son of God for the Father’s protection. But our Lord relied again on the Scriptures which affirm that we must not put God to the test. It did not belong to Christ to make the Father responsive to him, but to submit himself to the Father’s will.

We struggle in these same three areas that are common to all mankind, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. We are no better than our progenitors. “And when the woman [Eve] saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the furth thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat” (Genesis 3:6).   

The Lord could not sin and proved himself sinless by overcoming all three of Satan’s invitations to act independent of the Father’s will. Consequently, Jesus knows how to deliver us from temptation. “Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succor them that are tempted” (Hebrews 2:17-18; emphasis added).

Are you struggling with sin? Jesus knows how to deliver. He alone gives victory. As the old hymn says, “He breaks the power of cancelled sin and sets the prisoner free.”

The Temptation of Jesus (Part 2)

We noted previously that the Spirit of God led Jesus into the wilderness following his baptism to be tempted of the devil for forty days. The devil first tempted Christ to turn stone into bread to satisfy his hunger. This seemed a reasonable suggestion since Christ was the Son of God and had the power to do so. (Most temptations are “reasonable” suggestions!) Jesus denied himself that prerogative choosing to trust instead in his heavenly Father to meet that need.

The devil’s first temptation failed, so he moved on to a different approach. “And the devil, taking him [Jesus] up into a high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto him, all this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will give it. If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine” (Luke 4:5-7). He sought to entice Jesus to worship him (instead of God) by offering him the kingdoms of the world.

In the first place, the kingdoms of the world were not Satan’s to offer. He lied about this, but then the devil is the father of lies. Jesus knew this. He declared of Satan that “there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it” (John 8:44). More importantly, the Scriptures remind us that it is God that “removeth kings, and setteth up kings” (Daniel 2:21) and that “the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will” (Daniel 4:17).

Satan knew that Jesus had been sent by the Father for the express purpose of settling the debt of our sin. On the cross of Calvary, he would suffer the wrath of God that belongs to us and through his shed blood pay the price of redemption that we could not pay. Christ, indeed, would rule the world according to God’s plan, but first he must endure the cross. Jesus, having become “obedient unto death, even the death of the cross…God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess the Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:8-11).

Satan wanted Jesus to depart from the Father’s plan and by-pass the cross. This Christ would not and could not do. Jesus again showed that the way to overcome temptation is through the word of God. He responded to Satan’s invitation by quoting from the Old Testament “it is written, thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve” (Luke 4:8).

The temptation to sin though rooted in falsehood always seems reasonable. But sin always promises more than it gives, takes you farther than you want to go, keeps you longer than you want to stay, and costs you more than you are willing to pay. James warns us that “every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death” (James 1:14-15). God’s word delivers from sin. Trust it and walk in it.

The Temptation of Jesus (Part 1)

Immediately following his baptism “Jesus being full of the Holy Spirit returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being forty days tempted of the devil” (Luke 4:1-2). This temptation of the devil occurred at the very beginning of Christ’s earthly public ministry. Note that the devil is a real person, not some evil force. Many, if not most, people in our society today do not believe in a real devil. Yet the Scriptures are plain in attesting to the devil’s personhood.

During this time in the wilderness, Christ was tempted of the devil in three specific matters. The first of these temptations sought to take advantage of the Lord’s hunger, a natural physical condition following his fasting for forty days. “And in those days, he [Jesus] did eat nothing: and when they were ended, he afterward hungered. And the devil said unto him, if thou be the Son of God, command that this stone be made bread” (Luke 4:2-3).

There is much to learn through Christ’s encounter with the devil in this first temptation. First, the devil knew that Jesus was the Son of God. The word “if” speaks to a condition that is true. We might use the word “since” to make the statement clearer. The devil was not tempting Jesus to prove he was the Son of God, but rather to cause him to act independent of God’s will for him. The Spirit of God led him into the wilderness, and it was the Spirit’s filling that enabled him to fast those forty days.

Second, note that it is possible to sin while satisfying natural desires. Hunger is a natural condition that we all experience frequently in our lives. Yet satisfying our hunger can easily get out of hand and lead to outright gluttony if we are not careful. Sexual desires are likewise natural. However, satisfying those urges outside the boundary of marriage is sinful and condemned in Scripture. “Marriage is honorable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge” (Hebrews 13:4).

The devil will have us believe “if it feels good to do then do it”. But nothing could be farther from the truth. Christ gave the right response. “And Jesus answered him [the devil], saying, it is written, that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God” (Luke 4:4). Jesus quoted the Old Testament words of Moses to the children of Israel, Deuteronomy 8:3. The Israelites were soon to cross the river Jordan into the promised land and Moses reminded them how God fed them for forty years with manna in the wilderness.

Jesus’ example revealed that our choices are shaped by God’s word and are obeyed through the enabling of the Spirit of God in our lives. God created us with natural desires, but even these desires must be harnessed and exercised in accordance with God’s truth. Many lives and labors have been destroyed by failure to govern these natural desires rightly. The Apostle Paul acknowledged the necessity for such self-control when he likened his own preaching ministry to a race and himself a runner. He testified “I keep under my body and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached unto others, I myself should be a castaway” (I Corinthians 9:27). Our society is characterized as a people that have abandoned restraint. Such abandonment is at the root of many of society’s ills today.

The Baptism of Jesus

John the Baptist came preaching repentance as a necessary preparation for receiving the coming Messiah. Those who received his message came to be baptized as a testimony of such repentance. Yet the Scriptures record that Jesus himself came to be baptized by John even though he had no need of repentance. “Then cometh Jesus…unto John, to be baptized of him. But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? And Jesus answering said unto him, suffer it to be so now…then he [John] suffered him” (Matthew 3:13-15).

The Gospel of John further explains the significance of Jesus’ baptism. John said of his own ministry, “I baptize with water; but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not; he it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe’s latchet I am not worthy to unloose” (John 1:26-27; emphasis added). John’s ministry of baptism would reveal this one of whom he spoke. John testified “I knew him not: but that he [Christ] should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water” (John 1:30-31).

John recognized that Jesus was the Christ because he “saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him [Jesus]. And…he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. And I saw, and bare record this is the Son of God” (John 1: 32-34).

There are three attributes significant to the ministry of this one whom John was sent to reveal. First, Jesus was affirmed by the Father Himself to be the Son of God. After John baptized Jesus there came “a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:16-17). The deity of Jesus was essential to his role as the Messiah of Israel, the one who “would save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). Paul, in his Epistle to the Romans, connected Jesus’ Sonship with his resurrection from the dead, essential to the gospel of our salvation. He testified that he [Paul] had been “separated unto the gospel of God…concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was…declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Romans 1:3-4).

Second, John’s baptism gave witness to the fact that Jesus is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. This baptism began at Pentecost when the promised Spirit was sent by Christ upon his disciples in Jerusalem (Acts 2:1-4). Every believer who puts their faith and trust in Jesus Christ since that day is given the gift of the Holy Spirit who dwells within them forever. This is the promise of Christ as the one who baptizes with the Holy Ghost. “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever; even the Spirit of truth” (John 14:16-17).

Finally, a third characteristic is bound up in John’s testimony at Christ’s baptism. He declared of Jesus, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). It is not possible that the “blood of bulls and goats should take away sins” (Hebrews 10:4). Only the blood of the eternal Son of God could pay the price of sin before a holy God. Is Christ Jesus your Lamb?

The Leading of the Lord

After the LORD delivered the people of Israel from Egypt, he brought them to Mount Horeb (Sinai) where he gave them his laws and statutes. It was there at Sinai where God entered into covenant with his people giving them his ten commandments. The LORD then said to Moses, “Depart, and go up hence, thou and the people which thou hast brought up out of the land of Egypt, unto the land which I swore unto Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, unto thy seed will I give it” (Exodus 33:1).

Before the people departed, God gave instruction for the construction of the tabernacle, the anointing of the priests, and the census of the people. “And on the day that the tabernacle was reared up the cloud covered the tabernacle…and at even there was as it were the appearance of fire, until the morning. So it was always: the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of fire by night. And when the cloud was taken up from the tabernacle, then after that the children of Israel journeyed: and in the place where the cloud abode, there the children of Israel pitched their tents. At the commandment of the LORD the children of Israel journeyed, and at the commandment of the LORD they pitched: as long as the cloud abode upon the tabernacle they rested in their tents” (Numbers 9:15-18).

Would to God that we would profit from this simple example of how to respond to the leading of God! The Scriptures record for us that the people moved when God lifted the cloud and not before. When the cloud remained in place, the people rested and stayed put. “And when the cloud tarried long upon the tabernacle many days, then the children of Israel kept the charge of the LORD, and journeyed not…whether it was by day or by night that the cloud was taken up, they journeyed. Or whether it were two days, or a month, or a year, that the cloud tarried upon the tabernacle, remaining thereon, the children of Israel abode in their tents, and journeyed not: but when it was taken up, they journeyed” (Numbers 9: 19, 21-22).

God’s timing is not our timing and his ways are not our ways. We desire the Lord’s leading, but we often grow impatient when we don’t sense his guidance and direction. We are tempted to follow our own way, but by doing so we forfeit God’s blessing and his best for our lives. During those periods of time when it seems that God is silent, rest assured that he has not forgotten his child. How much better it would be if we just quietly waited for his sure leading whether it be days, months, or years. Remember, God works from the vantage point of eternity and his interest lies in the unfolding of our good for his glory in Jesus Christ. Waiting on the Lord is both right and best.

David admonishes us on how to deal with those times of uncertainty. “I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD” (Psalm 27:13-14).

Is God There?

I’m sure that every child of God has experienced a time when they longed for that confirming presence of God and yet felt very alone. Does that mean that God was not there? Do we interpret the silence as meaning that he, perhaps, does not care?

The Old Testament records the experience of a godly saint, Job, that gives us great insight into this matter. God himself testified of Job that “there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil” (Job 1:8). Even so, God permitted Satan to attack Job with the only condition that his life be spared. Consequently, Satan destroyed his flocks and herds, took the lives of his children, and plagued Job with grievous sores. Satan took all that Job had except that he spared his life according to God’s instruction. (The fact that Satan is limited by God in what he can do is a lesson in itself that should bring great comfort to the believer.)

Job’s friends were convinced that the evil occurring to him was due to his sin and that Job needed to acknowledge this to God to gain relief. After all, they were not privy to the exchange between the Lord and Satan. They saw the troubles of Job through human eyes untampered by a true knowledge of God. Job, however, maintained his innocence and throughout his suffering longed for an audience with God in order to understand what had transpired and to declare his defense. “Oh, that I knew where I might find him [God], that I might come even to his seat! I would lay my case before him and fill my mouth with arguments, I would know what he would answer me and understand what he would say to me” (Job 23:3-5).

The absence of a response from God troubled Job. Ultimately, however, he declared that though he could not sense his presence, he knew that God’s purpose was not abandoned. “Behold, I go forward, but he is not there, and backward, but I do not perceive him; on the left hand when he is working, I do not behold him; he turns to the right hand, but I do not see him. But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold” (Job:23:8-10). The truth of the matter is that God is not known or discerned through the senses, but by faith. Frankly, this is the problem with many modern churches. Their worship services are designed to provoke an experience rather than proclaim the word of God that gives birth to faith.

Faith does not need to feel God’s presence to know that he is there, but rests in the very character of God as revealed in his word! Believer, are you feeling alone in your circumstances? Do your prayers seem as though they are falling on deaf ears? Remember, Jesus declared “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). When you are tempted to think you are alone, remember Christ is with you, even as he promised. When you feel that your path is insurmountable and the way forward is unknown, remember that he will never, no never, forsake you. He is unfailingly present with his children and always working to bring them through to the desired haven.

True faith never demands proof, but always rests in promises already made. When the path is rocky, and silence serves as a shroud, let this truth govern. God is teaching you to rest in what he has already said. Let his promises fill your heart with hope and your steps with strength.