Sunday, February 23, 2020

God's Promises and You

“Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5 

No Bible promise is of a private interpretation. Whatever God has said to any one saint, He has said to all. When He opens a well for one believer, it is done so that everyone might drink. When He opens a storehouse to give out food, one starving person may be the reason, but every hungry saint can come and eat too. Oh, believer, it doesn’t matter whether He gave the word to Abraham or to Moses; He has given it to you as one of the children of the covenant. There is not a lofty blessing too high for you, or a wide mercy too extensive. Lift up your eyes to the north and the south, to the east and the west, for everything you see is yours. Climb to Mount Pisgah’s top as Moses did (Deuteronomy 34:1), and view the farthest limits of the divine promise—for the land is all yours. There is not a brook of water from which you may not drink. If the land flows with milk and honey, eat the honey and drink the milk, for they are both yours. Be bold to believe, for God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” In this promise, God gives His people everything. “Never will I leave you.” That means no attribute of God can ever cease to work for us. Is He mighty? He will show himself strong on behalf of those who trust Him. Is He love? Then with lovingkindness He will have mercy on us. Whatever attributes may compose the character of Deity, every one of them—to its fullest extent—will be engaged on our side. There is nothing you can want or ask for, there is nothing you can need in time or eternity, there is nothing in living or in dying, there is nothing in this world or the next, there is nothing now or at the resurrection-morning or in heaven, which is not contained in this text: “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” - C.H. Spurgeon Morning and Evening 

We live in a backwards world. We have the means of the greatest ever ability to communicate yet more and more suffer from being alone. Suicides increase.  

There is no difference within the Church or outside of it.   People worry so much about looks, about impressing others.  Who you are a fan of, who you are not.  Who you follow, who you look to.  

My friend, there is only one to whom you should look. It's nobody on Earth.  Many years ago I was at a crossroads in what some would say is something ridiculous to even have a problem with.  

I was looking around at the things that I had and realized that God was telling me that I was setting up mini-temples in my life.   

I was up to my neck in idolatry. What people would say about the things that I collected would upset me but not when they spoke ill of my God. 

That's an eye opener.  Because it connects to Spurgeon's devotional.  It wasn't that Christ ever left me, it was me making Him sit in a corner while I lived my life my way. Only calling on Him like a butler.  If I had needs then I would call on Him. When people would swear and use His name in vain, it wasn't bothering me.  Not surprisingly my life wasn't going anywhere.  I wasn't succeeding at the carrying my cross thing.  I wasn't useful to Him.  He never left, that's His promise, but I wasn't looking to Him as the one to lead in my life.  

It's really a painful thing to me to clearly see what God is doing or wanting to do in others, but they don't want to hear it.  My friend as Scripture says about taking the log out of my eye etc, so it is with others.  Until they are ready to acknowledge their need, there's little you can do.  

I know of several that it's very clear what God's telling them to do. But they are not letting go so that God can do more both with them and their situations.  It's an awful truth but more often than not fear becomes a comforting blanket to some.  They are used to it so they tolerate it. They are more afraid of the unknown that is on the other side of letting go than they are of the situation they are in. 

My friend, please recognize when God is indeed telling you it's time to let go. That it's time to trust Him in your future.  Don't cast Him into a corner to stand, awaiting your next request.  Place Him on the Throne of your heart, you take His place standing to the side waiting on Him. 

It's really grieves me more than people know when I can have an understanding that others don't want to accept and I know with all my heart that that understanding is from God. 

We set our sights on what we see and not on what could be if Jesus were leading the way.  Psalm 23 is pretty clear...He leads me.  When He does, obstacles crumble.  When He is on the Throne, fears run and hide.  When we stop trying to avoid what it is He is wanting to do, and just obey, we see God working in ways that stagger the imagination.  My friend 6 and a half years ago my life was in shambles because of a Supervisor at work. My fears were destroying me. I just couldn't see any way forward anymore.  I have always adhered to the principle that I would stay working where I was until God made it impossible to stay.  I was watching everything I helped create be destroyed by this man.  Little did I know it was necessary for my future that this happened.  I had desired to go back to school.  We couldn't afford it.  So from this apparent failure, God took me through a half dozen jobs to give me schooling and be paid to learn. Then a day came that I never believed would have been possible. God brought me back to where I had been broken.  He began putting me back together in front of those who remembered my broken past.  Mountains were being obliterated. Why? What changed? 

He never left me. 

His promises are as true today as they were back then.  He used those years to perform Spiritual surgeries on me.  He taught me of the need to remove things from my life and to focus more on Him.  

God's promises never fail.  They are new every morning.  You may be in serious circumstances.  Doesn't matter.  He is still there.  You may only see the stains of sin. But He is still there.  You may only see the grief of sin.  He is still there.  You may fear many things or only a few...He is still there.

My friend, stop thrashing about with Jesus.   Let go of what He says to let go of.   Trust Him.  That's how to succeed in this life.  This world is dying.  It's lifespan is set.  Global warming isn't happening. This world is alive and believes in the promises of God more than we do. The animals, birds, things of the sea, all believe the promises of God more than we do.  
They live in obedience to their Creator.  

Isn't it time you do too?

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