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For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. ~ Ephesians 6:12 NLT
Our Revive and Restore November meeting will finish our fall theme, Kaleidoscope. The core of what we have been discussing deals with our calling as true believers, to reflect Christ by testifying to his nature and presence around and through us. We are made in God’s image and likeness and placed on earth with a unique combination of specific beautiful characteristics that, when manifested, reveal flashes of our maker and his awesome Son Jesus. Amazingly, we were created to reflect his glory! To be able to do that, we have the responsibility is to seek more of God, get to know him through his Word and presence. In doing so, we position ourselves to receive and respond to his love and enjoy his glorious presence forever. But almost immediately, even in the womb (abortion), we begin to experience opposition. The devil and his demons know our calling better than we do, and they are out to block us from coming to know the truth of who God is and who we are created by him to become. By blocking us they hope to prevent Jesus’ Kingdom from coming into its fullness on the earth. After all, Satan is now enjoying the evil, violence and chaos he is causing as the prince of this world! He parades it as evidence to the lie that he is winning. If we are honest, we can be distracted and discouraged in this life by the troubles, harassment, accusation and danger that threatens us and our loved ones. Understandably, it causes many to fall away from God, become negative, angry, and resentful. We must remember that, as believers, we have access to a higher, larger perspective, one found in the Bible. Satan does not want us to know, believe and stand on the truth that Jesus has already won the war for us. Our futures are secure. Our King will never be defeated. As followers of Jesus, we have been given authority to stop the devil in his tracks before he invades our territory. We need to grow more confident that we can hear God. The Holy Spirit can lead us to the truth that we need to combat deception and fear, if we ask him. We have been given the all-powerful name of Jesus to use in our defense. In Ephesians 6:10-18, Paul tells us how to protect and arm ourselves with spiritual armor. Are you praying it regularly for yourself and your family? We need to realize that we all can be deceived. After all, Adam and Eve knew God, and they knew how precious they were to him. Up to their fall they were sinless and ruling over the territory given them. Even so, Satan won that battle by deception. He still wields deception today, along with the sharp dagger of fear. Where are you being discouraged, made fearful, being prevented from becoming who God created you to be? You were created glorious. When God looks at you through Christ’s blood, he still sees the glory and wants to call the real, beautiful you out so you can reflect his Son in the world. You are invited to know Jesus personally. With him leading you, you can do all things. Refuse to let the darkness hide your glory! You are a child of the light. Dear friend, be blessed as you grow in your understanding of who you are as a new creation in Christ. May you increasingly experience the love of God and commit to seek more of him. May the Holy Spirit enable you to discern the spiritual reality you live in and arm you with powerful spiritual weapons to defend yourself and others. As you do, be blessed with great peace and joy. Amen. Mary Sumner ~ October 26, 2021
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May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. ~ Ephesians 3:19 NLT
Ephesians 3:14-21 is a prayer that I keep going back to over the years to pray for myself and others. It not only is powerful and encouraging, it often challenges me to meditate on God’s love. What is it really? Recently I heard a radio Bible teacher say that God’s love is not a feeling, but a commitment. Yes, it is not just a feeling, I agreed, but how do we experience it? We can believe God’s Word when it tells us God loves us. We can see the way his presence in our lives creates transformation, new life, bringing peace and healing, and so much more. So, I was anxious to hear what God wanted me to learn about his love being commitment. Two weeks later I sat in a beautiful garden and watched as our son was married to the love he had been waiting for all his life. Both the bride and the groom were radiant with happiness and love. They stood before the group of friends and family and promised each other to be faithful, steadfast in their love and made a covenant, a commitment with and before God, to honor each other till death. There it was! I witnessed love experienced as commitment, a solemn promise to each other. After the emotions of the day, I knew this was my answer. Look at Ephesians 3:19 with me. “May you experience God’s love”, not feel. “Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.” We are empty, lacking, incomplete, until we experience God’s love. Experiencing here does not just mean knowing about it or feeling something. Can you look back and acknowledge proof of God's commitment to you personally? Experiencing God’s love, his commitment to us, leads to fullness of life and power. I want that! Don't you? I remembered that from the first covenants, or promises, God made with humankind, our relationship depended on God alone, not us. (Gen. 9, 15). They only depended upon God’s faithfulness and power, since he knew his people were fallen, proven untrustworthy. The Old Testament covenants were mere foreshadowing of God’s fulfillment of his intentions all along to rescue his people from all the power of sin and death through the Messiah, Jesus Christ our Lord. Only one man would be sinless and able to sacrificially pay our debt. Viewed from that lens, we experience our heavenly Father’s love through his eternal, unbreakable commitment, his eternal plan, to save us, redeem us, free us and adopt us as his beloved children. Father God’s love, his commitment to us, is culminated in the Cross of Christ. Paul describes marriage as a picture of how Christ and the Church are one. (Eph.5:32) The husband commits to serve his wife in sacrificial love, just as Jesus proved his love to his people. To God, love and commitment are inseparable. We are commanded to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, minds and strength. It is only as we experience his loving commitment to us, as undeserving broken people, that we might be able to show him the same commitment, that is, total surrender. Let’s ponder our commitment to the Lord. He is worthy of all our love. Where could we love God better? Where do we need to increase our commitment? Dear friends, be blessed as you commit to love God better this week. As you listen to the Holy Spirit, be blessed as he guides you to a deeper understanding of God’s commitment to you. May every little surrender to Jesus fill you with great peace and joy. Amen. Mary Sumner ~ October 14, 2021 |
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