2021-10-27
Psalm 32:8 NLT
Vincent van Gogh’s path to becoming an artist can teach us so much. At first, his passion for ministry led him to the Belgian coalfields where he preached to miners, fed the hungry, and earned a place in the people’s hearts. His church was filled to capacity with those eager to learn about Jesus. But his superiors weren’t happy because Vincent wore cast-offs, lived in a shack, and gave his salary to the people. ‘You look worse than the people you teach,’ they said. ‘Wouldn’t Jesus have done the same?’ Vincent asked. His bosses disagreed, and he was dismissed from the ministry.
He was hurt and angry. His only desire had been to build a church that glorified God, so why hadn’t God let it happen? Then one day he watched an old miner struggling under a load of coal. Moved by the sight, he began to sketch the bowed figure. And although he didn’t realise it at the time, he’d discovered his real calling. The young preacher who was rejected by his denomination eventually became an artist the world will long remember, inspiring many people through his work. David said: ‘It was my desire to build a Temple…but God said to me…”Your son Solomon will build my Temple”‘ (1 Chronicles 28:2-3, 6 NLT).
When God gives us a red light, we should be sensitive to it and pay attention. And when He overrules our plans to implement His own, we should say, ‘Your will be done.’ F.B. Meyer wrote: ‘Are you in difficulty about your way? Go to God…get direction from the light of His smile or the cloud of His refusal…Wait there silent and expectant, though all around you insist on immediate decision or action – and the will of God will be made clear.’
Ezra 6-8; John 6:52-71; Ps 114; Prov 24:23-25
2021-10-26
Acts 16:7 CEV
When God gives us a green light, we must go. And when He gives us a red light, we must stop. ‘Paul and his friends went through Phrygia and Galatia, but the Holy Spirit would not let them preach in Asia. After they arrived in Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not let them. So they went on through Mysia until they came to Troas. During the night, Paul had a vision of someone from Macedonia who was standing there and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us!” After Paul had seen the vision, we began looking for a way to go to Macedonia…sure that God had called us to preach the good news there’ (v.6-10 CEV).
After a series of green lights, God gave Paul a red light. Why? 1) Because the timing wasn’t right. Apollos had to go there first and lay the groundwork. 2) Because God needed Paul and Barnabas elsewhere. 3) Because God wanted them to be more seasoned before embarking on such a major mission.
Notice the words, ‘They tried to go…but the Spirit of Jesus would not let them.’ It’s so reassuring to know that God loves us so much that He’ll save us from our own misguided plans. The Canadian preacher A.B. Simpson said: ‘Often there’s nothing as godly as inactivity on our part, or nothing as harmful as restless working, for God has promised to work His sovereign will.’
Today, God might be saying to you, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted’ (Psalm 46:10 NKJV). Please pay attention to Him!
Ezra 3-5; John 6:35-51; Ps 127; Prov 24:19-22
2021-10-25
Exodus 33:14 CEV
When your computer starts freezing up, you know it’s time to turn it off and reboot. When a warning light flashes on the dashboard of your car, you wouldn’t dream of ignoring it. When the clock starts to lose time, you know what time it is – it’s time to change the batteries! But the serious point here is that all of these things have warning signs that alert us to a problem and prompt us to do something about it. And it’s the same with stress – stress overload doesn’t appear overnight; there have probably been warning signs for several days, weeks, or even longer.
The problem is that we can ignore them, push them aside because we think we’re too busy to deal with them right then, or not recognise them for what they really are. But God doesn’t want us to live in a place of stress. Jesus said, ‘Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid’ (John 14:27 NIV).
If we’re feeling overwhelmed with stress, it’s important that we get help from someone we trust, a doctor, or another medical professional who can support us. But God gives us some strategies as well. When we notice the warning signs of stress, or feel it building up inside us, we can: 1) Pray about it. ‘Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God’ (Philippians 4:6 NIV). 2) Hand it over to God. ‘Cast you cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken’ (Psalm 55:22 NIV).
Ezra 1-2; John 6:25-34; Ps 98; Prov 24:15-18
2021-10-24
2 Timothy 3:5 NIV
Here are three more important lessons from the seven sons of Sceva: 1) Those around you aren’t necessarily with you. Just because somebody hangs out with you, admires you, and tries to emulate you, doesn’t mean they’re with you. These men followed Paul, studying his every move and trying to do what he did. But they had the wrong motives. They were never ‘with’ him at all. Are you concerned about losing certain people and are always trying to keep them happy, because you’re not sure if you can manage without them? John wrote, ‘They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us’ (1 John 2:19 NIV). When God removes a person who doesn’t belong in your life, trust Him; He knows what’s best.
2) Greater numbers don’t always mean greater effectiveness. These seven men together couldn’t do what one Spirit-empowered apostle did. And remember, their father was a chief priest, so they knew how to ‘do church’. They fulfilled the Scripture: ‘Having a form of godliness, but denying its power.’
3) Success isn’t as easy as it looks. Sceva’s sons showed up towards the end of Paul’s career. They weren’t there in the beginning when he was humbled on the Damascus Road, or trained for three-and-a-half years in the Arabian Desert. They were looking for shortcuts. Just because someone writes a book about success doesn’t mean we can achieve overnight what took years of experience on the part of the author. It’s not that God can’t give us instant success; it’s that we need time, training, and in some cases, a major overhaul to prepare us for it.
Exo 34:29-35; Mark 9:2-27; 2 Cor 3:7-18
2021-10-23
1 John 4:4 KJV
There are two very important things we can learn from the seven sons of Sceva: 1) Satan knows who you are (and who you aren’t). The demons in this man spoke to the sons of Sceva, saying, ‘Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?’ (Acts 19:15 NKJV). We need to ask ourselves if we have the kind of relationship with God that causes Satan to know our names, and acknowledge that we’re a force to be reckoned with. When God asked Satan, ‘Have you noticed my servant, Job?’ he replied, ‘Yes, and every time I come up against him I hit a force field I can’t penetrate’ (Job 1:8-12, paraphrased). If we can only focus on our own inadequacy, think we’re not up to the job, or that we’re not good enough, we need to take note of this fact: it’s not you the enemy’s afraid of – it’s God’s Spirit within you.
2) When ‘the evil day’ comes, you discover if you have what it takes. Paul said, ‘Put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground’ (Ephesians 6:13 NIVUK). The demons in the man recognised the weaknesses in the seven sons of Sceva and stripped them of their pretence. We can only survive if our faith is genuine, because one day we’ll have to walk with God when we can’t understand or explain where He’s taking us. Our own strategies and talents won’t get us through. We’ll have to stand on His Word when it doesn’t look like it’s working for us. That’s when we discover it’s ‘”not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,” says the LORD’ (Zechariah 4:6 NIV).
Zeph 1-3; John 6:1-24; Ps 85; Prov 24:11-14
2021-10-22
Acts 19:17 NKJV
The Bible says: ‘Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. Then some itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.”
Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so. And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and…they fled out of that house naked and wounded. This became known…and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified’ (v.11-17 NKJV).
This story should act as a warning to those who think, ‘If they can do something, I can do it!’ It’s not always true. Unless God calls and equips us to do it, the chances are that we’ll get it wrong and get ourselves in a mess. God doesn’t empower us to do our own thing; He empowers us to do His thing.
The truth is, we can only use the name of Jesus effectively: a) When we acknowledge Him as our Saviour and Lord. b) When we have an intimate relationship with Him. c) When we stand on His Word and practise its principles in our everyday lives. When we do that, every time we use the name of Jesus, we’re protected and supported by the authority that’s in His name.
1 Tim 4-6; John 5:31-47; Ps 126; Prov 24:10
