Category: Strength for Today

Revelation 18:4
“And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.”

After the great destruction of Babylon in the Great Tribulation, God revealed their sins. God said this nation was filled with perversion, idolatry and drunkenness. God then stopped and sent a messenger to His people to say, “Come out of her, my people…” Why was it so imperative for the people of God to come out of her? God wanted them out because He did not want them to be “partakers of her sins.” God knew very well that if His people lived in the world, then they would become partakers of their sin.

This is part of the reason that Heaven is so wonderful. God says in Revelation 21:27, “And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” God knows that the only way that Heaven can stay sinless is not to allow anything that is sinful in it. Only those who are saved are allowed there. Just like God wanted His people out of Babylon so they wouldn’t partake of her sins, He also will not allow sin into Heaven so that it will stay sinless.

A very important lesson is taught in these verses for any Christian who desires to live for God. You will never have victory over sin by living in the world. The only way you will obtain victory over the world is to get out of the world and to control the influences that will cause you to live like the world. It is the coming out of the world that helps you to gain victory over the world.

Every year in January, I have preached for a good friend in Reno, Nevada. It always shocks me as I step off the airplane into the terminal to see the slot machines lined up in the airport. I mentioned this to the pastor and the church, and to them it had become common place. The shock of the slot machines no longer affected them the same way it affected me. This is no knock against their Christianity, but this only reveals how we can become inoculated with sin. Because they are around it all the time, their senses had gotten use to seeing the slot machines; thus, they were not as shocked about those slot machines as I was.

Friend, that is exactly what the Devil tries to do to you. He simply wants you to accept the presence of sin about you. He knows that if you will be around it long enough that the shock of sin will no longer be there. He knows that if he can take that shock away that he has a better chance of getting you to partake of those sins.

This is why God wants you to come out of the world. God knows that if you live in the world, then you will eventually partake of the world. Yes, you have to live in the world, but you don’t have to be partakers of the world. Coming out of the world is very important to the health of your Christian life.

Let this devotional encourage you to take a look at the influences in your life. Are the influences in your life going to cause you to partake of sin or live a holy life? If you are going to let your life be a taste of Heaven on this Earth, then you are going to have to remove the influences of sin from your life so that the holiness of God can be seen through you. Coming out of the world is the only way you will accomplish this.

Malachi 3:2
“But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap:”

It is amazing how the presence of a spiritual authority causes one to immediately do right. As a preacher, I’m amused how people apologize to me for accidentally saying a wrong word in my presence as if they sinned against me. I’ve seen people quickly get their beer cans out of sight and quench their cigarette all because the preacher showed up. The presence of God’s representative was enough to cause one to put sin away.

In the verse above, a rhetorical question is asked, “But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth?” God knows what His presence will do to the one to whom He appears. God knows that His presence is like “a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap:” It’s interesting that His presence and not what He says is like the “refiner’s fire” and the “fullers’ soap:” His presence alone causes four things to happen in the Christian’s life.

First, His presence alone makes us put those things away that hinder us from being used. Notice that God’s presence is like the “refiner’s fire.” The purpose of this fire is to remove the dross so the silver and gold become more valuable to its owner. There are many things in our lives that may not be wrong, but they hinder us from doing what God wants us to do. When you spend time in His presence, you will see what those things are and it will motivate you to get rid of them so God can use you in a greater way.

Second, His presence alone makes us purify our lives from those things that would hurt our testimony for Him. God’s presence is like the “fullers’ soap.” When the Christian dwells in the presence of God, the things of the world and the sins that so easily tempt us are no longer palatable. Why? Because the presence of God convicts us of their wrong and moves us to put them away. The easiest way to get rid of sin is to simply spend time with God.

Third, His presence alone makes us more aware of those things that displease Him. Just like the child knows what displeases their parents when they are in their presence, so the Christian becomes more aware of those things that displease their Saviour. Just spending time in the presence of God causes you to learn more of what pleases and displeases your Saviour. His presence has a way of changing our desires.

Fourth, His presence alone motivates us to give more of ourselves. Verse 3 shows that the purpose of the refining and cleaning is so that one can offer “offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.” In other words, His presence stirs the Christian to be more willing to give of themselves and what they have to Him. It motivates them to do more for Him.

Friend, you need the presence of God in your life. This is why you need to daily spend time in the Scriptures and walking with Him in prayer, because it will change what you do and how you do it. Simply put, when you dwell in His presence, then His presence will change your world, your philosophy, your outlook and the world around you.

2 John 1:10
“If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:”

One of the struggles of many Christians is having the strength to separate. There are some who think that you must never separate from friends. This may sound good, but this is not scriptural. Scriptural doctrine always surpasses friendship.

God says in the verse above that there is a time when you should stop associating with people and avoid them. God says, “If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house…” In other words, when someone teaches or preaches wrong doctrine, you are not to spend any time with them. Titus 3:10 says, “A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject;” God says that those who have left Christ’s doctrine should not enter your house and should be completely rejected.

Moreover, God says in 1 Corinthians 5:11, that we are not to keep company with those who continue in sin. This is not a choice that God leaves up to us; this is God’s command! By continually allowing those who live in sin to have the privilege of spending time with you or coming over to your house, you are condoning their sin. Friend, these are not my words, but these are the words of God.

Why is God so adamant about avoiding these people? Because when you let these people in, you are telling those who watch you that everything they do is okay. You are saying that you approve of their lifestyle and doctrine by continually spending time with them or wishing them God’s speed. The next generation follows your actions of association.

With this in mind, let me encourage you to be careful about reading the books of those who are doctrinally wrong. Just because they may have some good content does not mean that you should read their books. God says to have “no company” with them. When you read their books, you are giving them “company” in your life.

Likewise, you shouldn’t attend any conferences they may have. It doesn’t matter how long they have been your friend, God says you are to have nothing to do with these people. I know there are some who feel uncomfortable with what they just read, but the only reason they would feel uncomfortable is because they are either guilty of this or they are having considerations of leaving what they know is right.

Moreover, don’t refer to statements made by those who are doctrinally wrong. You may think there is no damage, but God makes it clear that you are to completely reject them. When you refer to their statements, simple Christians will take that as an endorsement. When a simple Christian gets caught up in doctrinal error because of your references to those who are doctrinally wrong, then God holds you accountable for their error.

If you are a pastor, let me encourage you to be very careful about who you refer to in the pulpit, whose conferences you attend and who you have in your pulpit to preach. Always be sure that they are doctrinally right. Don’t let friendship cloud your judgment. Christian, the best thing you could do is to endorse and support those who are doing right. This lets the next generation know who they should follow and it will protect you from doctrinal error.

Zechariah 8:23
“Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.”

There is something missing in today’s Christianity. When you look at the works of Christianity in years gone by, you will clearly see that they had something that this generation did not have. They did not have the technologies that we have today, yet they seemed to reach more people than we are today. The one thing Christians from yesteryear clearly understood was that they needed God, and they were willing to do whatever it took to get His presence in their lives.

God told the Jews that the day would come when people would say, “We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.” Something happened that would cause people to want to go with them. You find out what it was in verses 20-21 where it says, “Thus saith the LORD of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities: And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts: I will go also.” They found out that the secret to get God with you was to “pray before the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts.”

These people understood that it wasn’t learning a new technology that would get God on their side, but it was getting alone with Him and seeking His face that caused it to happen. It wasn’t going to some Bible conference to learn systems and methods of growing a church that enabled them to get God on their side, but it was His people getting alone with Him and seeking His presence and power in their lives. That is what caused them to gather crowds from all nations. That is what caused God to get on their side.

People want to follow someone who has God working with them. People are eager to jump on the bandwagon when God is doing something through a person. All you have to do is look through the Scriptures and see that when God was working through a man the people followed.

Preacher, if you want people to follow you, then get God on your side and they will follow. Parents, if you want your children to follow you, then get God on your side and they will follow. Leader, if you want your followers to follow you, then get God on your side and they will follow.

Christian, you will never get God on your side and people to follow you when you never spend time alone with Him seeking His face. When is the last time you got away from everything and fell on your face before God to seek His presence in your life? Don’t you long for God to do something through you? You can try everything to get people to follow you, but the answer is to get God on your side. When people see that God is with you, then they will follow. If you truly want God’s presence in your life, then get alone and beg Him to get involved with you. You may get a few people to follow you without God’s presence, but His presence in your life is what will cause people to say, “We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.”

Nahum 1:3
“The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.”

Every spring when the temperatures begin to rise, storms rise up as the clash of cold and warm air collide. There is nothing like going through the night with the lightening flashing and the thunder rolling. It is always amazing to me the power of the thunder as you can feel the vibration of the sound in your house. There is no doubt that it can be intimidating at times when the thunder sounds as if it is directly overhead.

In the verse above, God addressed the city of Nineveh. Nahum was to prophesy against this city for their wickedness and God warned the people that He would destroy the city. Yet, God says as He talks about His judgment, “…the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm…” God was showing that He would have His way when the storm of judgment came. Though this verse is talking about His judgment to the city of Nineveh, I believe there are other applications we can apply to our own lives.

First, God is in the storms of our lives. You will always find God’s presence in the storms mentioned in the Scriptures. He was in the storm when the disciples were out at sea and facing what seemed to them impending death. He was in the whirlwind and storm when Elijah was alone in the desert feeling sorry for himself. Likewise, no matter what storm you face in life, you will always find the presence of God. You don’t need to fear when you go through life’s storms, for God’s presence will always be present to guide and protect you from the damage they could cause.

Second, the storm listens to God. I would hate to think that the storms which have no soul listen to God better than we do. Friend, you should be listening for the voice of God during the storms. Don’t argue with Him during the storm; instead, be quiet and listen to what He tells you to do. It would be terrible if the storms were more tuned to the voice of God than His own children. When storms come your way, don’t argue, complain or whine about the storms; rather, be quiet and listen to what God is telling you to do.

Third, the storm allowed God to have His way with them. Are you willing to let God have His way in your life through your storms? I can’t always tell you why God allows His children to go through the storms, but if you will allow Him to have His way in the storms then you will soon understand why He allowed the storm. You can fight God and let the storm destroy you, or you can let Him have His way through every storm you face.

If God is in every storm, then that means every storm is for your good. Let me encourage you not to let the storms intimidate you, but when they do come listen for the voice of God so you can obey Him and allow Him to have His way in your life. When God has His way in the storms of your life, then the storms become faith’s building blocks to make you more useful in God’s will for your life.

1 Peter 5:7
“Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”

There comes a time in everyone’s life when the load that they carry seems so heavy that they are about ready to explode. It is in these times when you feel that nobody can help or understand what you are going through. It is in these times when people often make drastic mistakes with their decisions and life.

Fortunately, for the Christian, you have someone you can go to Who can help you carry that load. God says, “Casting all your care upon him…” The word “casting” is literally throwing your cares upon the LORD. In other words, you don’t have to worry about asking God if He will help you, He is telling you to boldly come and throw it upon Him so that He can carry your load. God shows us several cares that He wants to help you carry.

First, He wants to help you carry the care of leadership. God says in verse 2, “Feed the flock of God which is among you…” The answer is not becoming the type of leader who forcefully leads because you can’t get people to follow you. The answer is to throw your leadership problems upon God. God can help the leader lead if they will simply ask for His help. You don’t have to use your position as a trump card to force someone to follow you. You don’t have to carry the pressures of leadership all by yourself. All you need to do is go to God and cast those pressures upon Him and ask for His help.

Second, He wants to help you carry the care of followship. It’s very interesting that after God talks to the leader that He says in verse 5, “Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder…” There are times when followers don’t feel the leader truly understands their plight. It is in these times when you are to submit to your leader, but run to God and ask for His intervention. The answer to being misunderstood by leadership is not rebellion. The answer to being misunderstood by leadership is doing right, and going to the One Who can work on your leader’s heart. God is the only One Who can truly change the follower’s situation. You may feel completely misunderstood and helpless, but God truly wants to help you carry the load and fix the situation.

Third, He wants to help you carry the care of influence. There will be times when both the leader and the follower truly want to do more, but they don’t know how to increase their influence. It is in these times when God says in verse 6, “…that he may exalt you in due time:” There will come a time in your life when you may desire to have more influence so you can do more for God. You may feel that you are trapped where you are and don’t see anyway that you can help more people. It is in these times when you need to cast your desire to be used in a greater way upon God. You don’t have to carry that burden by yourself. You don’t have to try and work things out yourself. All you have to do is to simply go to God and tell Him of your desire to be used in a greater way.

Are you carrying the pressures of these cares by yourself? Let me encourage you to cast them upon God because “he careth for you.” Don’t go another minute carrying these pressures. Daily run to the throne of God and let Him carry them for you. When you cast them on God, that means you walk away without any pressure on yourself. Don’t tell God about your cares and walk away still carrying them; instead, tell God your cares and give them to Him, and let Him carry them for you. This is how you can live stress-free.

Jonah 1:4
“But the LORD sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken.”

Wind is something you either like or dislike. In the cold of winter the wind can be the adversary that makes the cold seem to go right through you and in the hot of summer it is the opportunity to refresh one from the heat of the day. Wind, to the pilot, can either be the adversity that slows down a trip or causes a bumpy flight or it can be the opportunity to help the plane take off and rise above a cloudy or stormy day. The winds one faces in life’s circumstances are either adversarial or opportunities.

Jonah must have seen the winds as an adversary. The winds he faced caused the ship he was on to be caught in the middle of the storm. It is amazing that the adversarial winds caused Jonah to go into the bottom of the ship and fall into a deep sleep. Instead of using the adversarial winds as an opportunity to show his ship mates the power of His God, he instead let these winds lull him to sleep and missed using the opportunity for the glory of God.

On the other hand, there were many other people in the Scriptures who took the adversarial winds and turned them into opportunities to show the power of God. I think of the Apostle Paul who took the adversarial winds and used them to show those on his ship and those on the island called Melita the power of His God. There was Peter in the boat with the rest of the disciples facing the winds when Jesus told him to come to Him on the waters. It was the winds that gave him the opportunity to walk on the water to go to Jesus. The Scriptures are filled with stories of people using the wind to show God’s power to a lost world.

Everyone is going to face adversarial winds in life, but your heart will ultimately determine whether they stay adversarial or become opportunities. If your heart is not right with God, then you, like Jonah, will complain about the winds and be lulled to a unspiritual sleep and miss the opportunities to show the world the power of God. Instead of complaining about the winds in life, you should be calling on God in those winds and asking Him to show you what He is trying to do through your life. Too many Christians complain about the adversarial winds and miss the great opportunities that God has for them.

A heart that is right with God will take the adversarial winds of life and turn them into opportunities to rise above the circumstances to see the power of God. The one thing Jonah missed in these winds was that God prepared the wind; however, God prepared a wind for Moses and parted the Red Sea. The winds you face in life are prepared by God and can become opportunities to see the miraculous if your heart is right with Him.

What are you going to do with your adversarial winds? Are you going to allow them to lull you to an unspiritual sleep and complain about them, or are you going to let them help you rise above the storms of life and see the power of God work through you? It all comes down to your heart. If you have a heart for God, then you will ask Him to help you rise above those circumstances and to use your adversarial winds for His glory. Let your adversarial winds be God’s opportunity to work greatly through your life.

Hebrews 1:9
“Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.”

One of the themes liberals usually trumpet about God is that He is a loving God. There is no question that God is a loving God. But, when you study the Scriptures you see that the love of God also causes Him to hate sin. It says in the verse above, “Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity…” The unpleasant side of God that many do not want to talk about is that He also hates sin. Yes, He is a loving God. Yes, He loves righteousness, but His love of righteousness forces Him to hate sin.

Moreover, we love that God is a righteous God. We oftentimes talk how God is willing to accept any person in any condition. This is absolutely true! But, the unpleasant side of God that we don’t like to talk about is that He is also a judgmental God. Psalm 97:2 says, “Clouds and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne.” Notice, God’s righteousness forces Him to have to judge people. God must judge whether or not someone is doing wrong. If God is going to be righteous, then He has to be judgmental about someone’s actions.

Furthermore, we love the peace that God gives. You will hear how God is a God of peace, and those who say this are right; however, the unpleasant side of God is that He is also a God of holiness. In other words, you can’t have peace without holiness. Holiness is separation. God wants us to have peace, but you cannot have peace without standards that make you holy. There must be a separation from wrong.

There are two truths that we must understand about the unpleasant side of God. First, you cannot have one without the other. You can’t have love without hatred; righteousness without judgment; peace without holiness. Each side is important to the other. If you love someone, then you must hate the sin that will hurt them. If you want to live a righteous life, then you must judge people so that you will know with whom you should not associate. If you want peace, then you must live a separated life from those who would live a life that causes turmoil. There must always be another side to one side.

Second, you cannot be close to God without both sides. Hebrews 12:14 says, “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:” The only way you can see the LORD is to be close to the LORD. God sets having both side as the parameters for seeing Him. Those who are one-sided Christians are not close to God. They may like to portray they are close, but they cannot be close because God demands the Christian to have both sides for closeness to be achieved.

This moves me to ask you, how close are you to God. Do you find yourself having one side without the other. It doesn’t matter which side you fall on in God’s parameters, it takes both sides to be close. Don’t let the one-sided religious crowd shame you into changing. You will never be close to God without having the unpleasant side in your life. We all like the pleasant side of God, but what makes the pleasant side pleasant is the unpleasant side of God. You will find that you will be able to help more people if you can acquire the unpleasant side to your pleasant side.

Psalm 91:1
“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.”

Dwelling in the shadows is a phrase that normally talks about someone who does not like to be the one being noticed. They are the ones who work behind the scenes and truly don’t want any recognition. It is those who dwell in the shadows that oftentimes make things happen.

God wants His children to dwell in His shadow. When we dwell in His shadow, then He is the One Who gets the recognition for anything that is accomplished. That is how it is supposed to be. Dwelling in the shadow of the Almighty has some great benefits for those who are willing to live this way.

First, dwelling in the shadow of the Almighty gives victory. Anyone having difficulty overcoming sin should realize that if you would simply dwell in God’s shadow then sin would never be a temptation. When you are in His shadow, you are in His presence. Sin flees whenever the presence of God arrives. Those who continually struggle with sin are only revealing their lack of a walk with God. As long as you dwell in His shadow, you will never struggle with sin or temptation. The struggle comes when you leave His shadow. If you want true victory over sin, then you must dwell in God’s shadow.

Second, dwelling in the shadow of the Almighty gives protection. You need not fear the enemy’s attack when you are in God’s shadow, for He will protect you. It is like a child in the presence of their father, they are safe because their father protects them from all harm. You will always be protected from the enemy as long as you dwell in God’s shadow.

Third, dwelling in the shadow of the Almighty gives security. The peace that comes from being around God is tremendous. God has a way of calming the drama of life. If you find your life in constant drama, then let me encourage you to get under God’s shadow and find the peace that His security gives. God gives security to the married couple who dwell in His shadow. They can have the security that their marriage will make it as long as they dwell together under His shadow. The home, church or business that chooses to dwell under His shadow can have the security that He will help them through any hardships they may face. True security, which gives peace, comes from dwelling under God’s shadow.

Fourth, dwelling in the shadow of the Almighty give power to the Christian. One of the greatest reasons we don’t see great works today is because too many Christians have left God’s shadow for man’s methods and philosophies. Whenever you study the lives of those whom God used, you will realize that the one common denominator that caused them to be used greatly was their willingness to live under His shadow. You will never see God do great works through your life until you decide to dwell under His shadow.

Are you dwelling under the shadow of the Almighty? Living in the shadows is a great place to live as long as the shadow is God’s. If there is something you must be sure that you do daily, it is spending time with God in prayer. It is that time in prayer that will allow you to dwell under His shadow and for these four things to become a part of your life. Stop trying to avoid the shadows, and start dwelling in His shadow.