God called to him….And he said, “Here I am.” —Exodus 3:4
When God speaks, many of us are like people in a fog, and we give no answer. Moses’ reply to God revealed that he knew where he was and that he was ready. Readiness means having a right relationship to God and having the knowledge of where we are. We are so busy telling God where we would like to go. Yet the man or woman who is ready for God and His work is the one who receives the prize when the summons comes. We wait with the idea that some great opportunity or something sensational will be coming our way, and when it does come we are quick to cry out, “Here I am.” Whenever we sense that Jesus Christ is rising up to take authority over some great task, we are there, but we are not ready for some obscure duty.
Readiness for God means that we are prepared to do the smallest thing or the largest thing— it makes no difference. It means we have no choice in what we want to do, but that whatever God’s plans may be, we are there and ready. Whenever any duty presents itself, we hear God’s voice as our Lord heard His Father’s voice, and we are ready for it with the total readiness of our love for Him. Jesus Christ expects to do with us just as His Father did with Him. He can put us wherever He wants, in pleasant duties or in menial ones, because our union with Him is the same as His union with the Father. “…that they may be one just as We are one…” (John 17:22).
Be ready for the sudden surprise visits of God. A ready person never needs to get ready— he is ready. Think of the time we waste trying to get ready once God has called! The burning bush is a symbol of everything that surrounds the person who is ready, and it is on fire with the presence of God Himself.
We must recognize the difference between burdens that are right for us to bear and burdens that are wrong. We should never bear the burdens of sin or doubt, but there are some burdens placed on us by God which He does not intend to lift off. God wants us to roll them back on Him— to literally “cast your burden,” which He has given you, “on the Lord….” If we set out to serve God and do His work but get out of touch with Him, the sense of responsibility we feel will be overwhelming and defeating. But if we will only roll back on God the burdens He has placed on us, He will take away that immense feeling of responsibility, replacing it with an awareness and understanding of Himself and His presence.
Many servants set out to serve God with great courage and with the right motives. But with no intimate fellowship with Jesus Christ, they are soon defeated. They do not know what to do with their burden, and it produces weariness in their lives. Others will see this and say, “What a sad end to something that had such a great beginning!”
“Cast your burden on the Lord….” You have been bearing it all, but you need to deliberately place one end on God’s shoulder. “…the government will be upon His shoulder” (Isaiah 9:6). Commit to God whatever burden He has placed on you. Don’t just cast it aside, but put it over onto Him and place yourself there with it. You will see that your burden is then lightened by the sense of companionship. But you should never try to separate yourself from your burden.
Good afternoon Lord and thank you for this devotional and the music. The song seemed to put it in context for me; namely that You are my Deliverer not only for my salvation and right standing with You, but that You are also my Deliverer in all the difficulties, circumstances and uncertainty that tries to suffocate me. Sometimes I am overwhelmed by the vicissitudes of circumstances and concerns of this life, and then I remember that You are indeed my Deliverer. All I need do is let go of my circumstances and concerns, and surrender them all to You.
And God says…”I came to give you life and life more abundant however; I know it is easy to become overwhelmed by the trials of the world. But you have the Holy Spirit living inside of you, reminding you that you are mine. And you know that I work all things together for your good. You know that you never have to “measure up” in order to receive my blessings and gifts; Jesus has “measured up” for you. Seek first the kingdom of God, which is Jesus, and I will provide everything else you require for daily living. Knock and the door will be answered. Seek and you shall find. If I would not withhold My own Son, how can you imagine I would not also give you every good thing? When you feel overwhelmed by the world just remember, that Jesus overcame the world, and His victory is to be shared by and with all my children.”
Death no longer has dominion over Him.…the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God… —Romans 6:9-11
Co-Eternal Life. Eternal life is the life which Jesus Christ exhibited on the human level. And it is this same life, not simply a copy of it, which is made evident in our mortal flesh when we are born again. Eternal life is not a gift from God; eternal life is the gift of God. The energy and the power which was so very evident in Jesus will be exhibited in us by an act of the absolute sovereign grace of God, once we have made that complete and effective decision about sin.
“You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you…” (Acts 1:8)— not power as a gift from the Holy Spirit; the power is the Holy Spirit, not something that He gives us. The life that was in Jesus becomes ours because of His Cross, once we make the decision to be identified with Him. If it is difficult to get right with God, it is because we refuse to make this moral decision about sin. But once we do decide, the full life of God comes in immediately. Jesus came to give us an endless supply of life— “…that you may be filled with all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:19). Eternal life has nothing to do with time. It is the life which Jesus lived when He was down here, and the only Source of life is the Lord Jesus Christ.
Even the weakest saint can experience the power of the deity of the Son of God, when he is willing to “let go.” But any effort to “hang on” to the least bit of our own power will only diminish the life of Jesus in us. We have to keep letting go, and slowly, but surely, the great full life of God will invade us, penetrating every part. Then Jesus will have complete and effective dominion in us, and people will take notice that we have been with Him.
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Journal DJR
Good Morning, Lord,
So is it a one time decision or a continual deciding to surrender? I guess I don’t need to ask that… of course it’s “Both” But how the continuing surrender works out, provides a lifetime of adventure. Adventure with grand success, and also failures and fallings… but always with the invitation to get back up and go again. And never condemnation. Thank you for Grace. I need it.
Don’t get the idea that surrender means you abandon your will power and become a lump of Jello. I need your will power. Think about the apostles or the prophets of old. Their will was strong … but submitted to and empowered by my Spirit. It takes practice. Once you decide to live this way, you will have successes and failures. Your reliance on self dies hard. But keep at it. I don’t condemn you when you go another way… Like the prodigal son. I am the prodigal father, waiting for you to come to your senses and return to this way of living. Come on, we’ll have a party. It’s the best way to live. Surrendered, Connected, Curious, Ready and Excited about the next step in the Adventure.
If we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection… —Romans 6:5
Co-Resurrection. The proof that I have experienced crucifixion with Jesus is that I have a definite likeness to Him. The Spirit of Jesus entering me rearranges my personal life before God. The resurrection of Jesus has given Him the authority to give the life of God to me, and the experiences of my life must now be built on the foundation of His life. I can have the resurrection life of Jesus here and now, and it will exhibit itself through holiness.
The idea all through the apostle Paul’s writings is that after the decision to be identified with Jesus in His death has been made, the resurrection life of Jesus penetrates every bit of my human nature. It takes the omnipotence of God— His complete and effective divinity— to live the life of the Son of God in human flesh. The Holy Spirit cannot be accepted as a guest in merely one room of the house— He invades all of it. And once I decide that my “old man” (that is, my heredity of sin) should be identified with the death of Jesus, the Holy Spirit invades me. He takes charge of everything. My part is to walk in the light and to obey all that He reveals to me. Once I have made that important decision about sin, it is easy to “reckon” that I am actually “dead indeed to sin,” because I find the life of Jesus in me all the time (Romans 6:11). Just as there is only one kind of humanity, there is only one kind of holiness— the holiness of Jesus. And it is His holiness that has been given to me. God puts the holiness of His Son into me, and I belong to a new spiritual order.
Good morning God and thank you for this day, and devotional. Chambers writes about how the Holy Spirit must occupy our entire being, not just one area…..”The Holy Spirit cannot be accepted as a guest in merely one room of the house— He invades all of it. And once I decide that my “old man” (that is, my heredity of sin) should be identified with the death of Jesus, the Holy Spirit invades me. He takes charge of everything. My part is to walk in the light and to obey all that He reveals to me.” I understand this concept and agree, however the last sentence where he writes about “My part” does not ring true in my own experience. Historically, I have never been able to “live up to my part”. Whenever I try to grit my teeth and try to be a better Christian, more obedient, more compliant, it never seems to work out. The only thing that has worked out is my complete surrender; giving up all my rights to myself, allowing You to live through me. My only ability is the ability to surrender. It seems that my only role is one of surrender, letting You then live out the Christian life through me. Is this right?
And God says…” Paul wrote about this in Romans (7:21-25). Trying to do the right thing, he found a war going on inside of himself. And he concluded that the battle was already fought and won by Jesus; your requirement is simply to surrender and acknowledge this fact. Your only part is surrender. A one-time “born again” surrender and a daily, hour by hour, minute by minute living surrender. Acknowledge the Lord in all your ways, do not rely on your own understanding, and I will make your paths straight. Seek first the kingdom of God, which is Jesus, and I will provide everything else you require, including the Holy Spirit to guide you in your daily living. When you let go of the notion that you have any good thing to add to the cross of Christ, I can then begin to work it all out for your good. Delight yourself in the Lord, and I will give you the desires of your heart.”
He commanded them that they should tell no one the things they had seen, till the Son of Man had risen from the dead. —Mark 9:9
As the disciples were commanded, you should also say nothing until the Son of Man has risen in you— until the life of the risen Christ so dominates you that you truly understand what He taught while here on earth. When you grow and develop the right condition inwardly, the words Jesus spoke become so clear that you are amazed you did not grasp them before. In fact, you were not able to understand them before because you had not yet developed the proper spiritual condition to deal with them.
Our Lord doesn’t hide these things from us, but we are not prepared to receive them until we are in the right condition in our spiritual life. Jesus said, “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now” (John 16:12). We must have a oneness with His risen life before we are prepared to bear any particular truth from Him. Do we really know anything about the indwelling of the risen life of Jesus? The evidence that we do is that His Word is becoming understandable to us. God cannot reveal anything to us if we don’t have His Spirit. And our own unyielding and headstrong opinions will effectively prevent God from revealing anything to us. But our insensible thinking will end immediately once His resurrection life has its way with us.
“…tell no one….” But so many people do tell what they saw on the Mount of Transfiguration— their mountaintop experience. They have seen a vision and they testify to it, but there is no connection between what they say and how they live. Their lives don’t add up because the Son of Man has not yet risen in them. How long will it be before His resurrection life is formed and evident in you and in me?
who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree… —1 Peter 2:24
The Cross of Christ is the revealed truth of God’s judgment on sin. Never associate the idea of martyrdom with the Cross of Christ. It was the supreme triumph, and it shook the very foundations of hell. There is nothing in time or eternity more absolutely certain and irrefutable than what Jesus Christ accomplished on the Cross— He made it possible for the entire human race to be brought back into a right-standing relationship with God. He made redemption the foundation of human life; that is, He made a way for every person to have fellowship with God.
The Cross was not something that happened to Jesus— He came to die; the Cross was His purpose in coming. He is “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8). The incarnation of Christ would have no meaning without the Cross. Beware of separating “God was manifested in the flesh…” from “…He made Him…to be sin for us…” (1 Timothy 3:16 ; 2 Corinthians 5:21). The purpose of the incarnation was redemption. God came in the flesh to take sin away, not to accomplish something for Himself. The Cross is the central event in time and eternity, and the answer to all the problems of both.
The Cross is not the cross of a man, but the Cross of God, and it can never be fully comprehended through human experience. The Cross is God exhibiting His nature. It is the gate through which any and every individual can enter into oneness with God. But it is not a gate we pass right through; it is one where we abide in the life that is found there.
The heart of salvation is the Cross of Christ. The reason salvation is so easy to obtain is that it cost God so much. The Cross was the place where God and sinful man merged with a tremendous collision and where the way to life was opened. But all the cost and pain of the collision was absorbed by the heart of God.
Lord, I am not sure how to interpret this devotional. Like the devotional from yesterday and Dave’s journal entry, the complex discussion and elements about the role of the Son of Man compared to the Son of God….and, what that entire discussion means, escapes me somehow. Or perhaps I am just too simple? Should I really be concerned about the role of Jesus as God and as man in this context? Is it important to understand the complexities and nuances? Or is it enough to recall what Chambers wrote in the last paragraph? “The heart of salvation is the Cross of Christ. The reason salvation is so easy to obtain is that it cost God so much. The Cross was the place where God and sinful man merged with a tremendous collision and where the way to life was opened. But all the cost and pain of the collision was absorbed by the heart of God.”
And God says… “Chambers also wrote in this devotional; God came in the flesh to take sin away, not to accomplish something for Himself. The Cross is the central event in time and eternity, and the answer to all the problems of both. I do not want you to try and intellectualize or understand all there is to understand about the cross and the question…. was Jesus the Son of Man and or the Son of God during the crucifixion? I want you to simply understand that He made it possible for the entire human race to be brought back into a right-standing relationship with Me. He made redemption the foundation of human life; that is, He made a way for every person to have fellowship with Me. When you fix your eyes and heart on Jesus, and surrender your rights to understand, it all becomes clear. Acknowledge the Lord in all your ways and do not rely on your own understanding and I will make your paths straight. “
Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples….”Stay here and watch with Me.” —Matthew 26:36, 38
We can never fully comprehend Christ’s agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, but at least we don’t have to misunderstand it. It is the agony of God and man in one Person, coming face to face with sin. We cannot learn about Gethsemane through personal experience. Gethsemane and Calvary represent something totally unique— they are the gateway into life for us.
It was not death on the cross that Jesus agonized over in Gethsemane. In fact, He stated very emphatically that He came with the purpose of dying. His concern here was that He might not get through this struggle as the Son of Man. He was confident of getting through it as the Son of God— Satan could not touch Him there. But Satan’s assault was that our Lord would come through for us on His own solely as the Son of Man. If Jesus had done that, He could not have been our Savior (see Hebrews 9:11-15). Read the record of His agony in Gethsemane in light of His earlier wilderness temptation— “…the devil…departed from Him until an opportune time” (Luke 4:13). In Gethsemane, Satan came back and was overthrown again. Satan’s final assault against our Lord as the Son of Man was in Gethsemane.
The agony in Gethsemane was the agony of the Son of God in fulfilling His destiny as the Savior of the world. The veil is pulled back here to reveal all that it cost Him to make it possible for us to become sons of God. His agony was the basis for the simplicity of our salvation. The Cross of Christ was a triumph for the Son of Man. It was not only a sign that our Lord had triumphed, but that He had triumphed to save the human race. Because of what the Son of Man went through, every human being has been provided with a way of access into the very presence of God.
Journal DJR
Good morning Lord,
Chambers says that at least we don’t have to misunderstand Christ’s agony in Gethsemane… I’d say I’m a long way from understanding all of the intricacies of that event. But I have been clear, ever since Mel Gibson’s movie, that Jesus, stomping the snake in the Garden, was in a way, the central point of the story and all of history. After that, You seemed to just march thru the pre-determined script …. The purpose of your coming was dying. But the part done as the Son of Man and the Son of God, the powers and limitations and results of each…. I’m still working on that.
It’s OK. Theologians have for 2000 years, and Pharisees even longer than that. I’m not saying that understanding those things has no value. I’m saying don’t let them distract you from the main thing, which is relationship and intimate connection with me. That comes thru the things I’ve been teaching you, not intricate theological understandings. As Paul said,
1 Corinthians 8:1 (NIV)
… But knowledge puffs up while love builds up.
Eugene Petersen amplifies in the Message…
We sometimes tend to think we know all we need to know to answer these kinds of questions—but sometimes our humble hearts can help us more than our proud minds. We never really know enough until we recognize that God alone knows it all.
So focus on me and our relationship and I will reveal things to you in due time. Time when you won’t abuse them but humbly weave them into your life, knowing that you’ll never know it all… until you get here. When my truths are revealed in humble surrendered connected living, they are sweet in your soul and make you bright amongst your company. When you dig them out with hard intellectual labor, they make you hard and cold and divisive and judgmental, like those Pharisees… So rest in me. Press in, but rest. When you are perplexed by a question like how much I did as the Son of Man vs what I did as the Son of God … just press in, and rest. Know that I love you, died for you, have plans for you, plans for good, and will make all things work together for good for you. Don’t mess yourself up by over thinking and over expounding on things that are secondary. I can reveal everything to a humble heart. I reveal nothing to a proud Pharisee.
Indeed the hour is coming…that you will be scattered… —John 16:32
Jesus was not rebuking the disciples in this passage. Their faith was real, but it was disordered and unfocused, and was not at work in the important realities of life. The disciples were scattered to their own concerns and they had interests apart from Jesus Christ. After we have the perfect relationship with God, through the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, our faith must be exercised in the realities of everyday life. We will be scattered, not into service but into the emptiness of our lives where we will see ruin and barrenness, to know what internal death to God’s blessings means. Are we prepared for this? It is certainly not of our own choosing, but God engineers our circumstances to take us there. Until we have been through that experience, our faith is sustained only by feelings and by blessings. But once we get there, no matter where God may place us or what inner emptiness we experience, we can praise God that all is well. That is what is meant by faith being exercised in the realities of life.
“…you…will leave Me alone.” Have we been scattered and have we left Jesus alone by not seeing His providential care for us? Do we not see God at work in our circumstances? Dark times are allowed and come to us through the sovereignty of God. Are we prepared to let God do what He wants with us? Are we prepared to be separated from the outward, evident blessings of God? Until Jesus Christ is truly our Lord, we each have goals of our own which we serve. Our faith is real, but it is not yet permanent. And God is never in a hurry. If we are willing to wait, we will see God pointing out that we have been interested only in His blessings, instead of in God Himself. The sense of God’s blessings is fundamental.
“…be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Unyielding spiritual fortitude is what we need.
If anyone sees his brother sinning a sin which does not lead to death, he will ask, and He will give him life for those who commit sin not leading to death. —1 John 5:16
If we are not heedful and pay no attention to the way the Spirit of God works in us, we will become spiritual hypocrites. We see where other people are failing, and then we take our discernment and turn it into comments of ridicule and criticism, instead of turning it into intercession on their behalf. God reveals this truth about others to us not through the sharpness of our minds but through the direct penetration of His Spirit. If we are not attentive, we will be completely unaware of the source of the discernment God has given us, becoming critical of others and forgetting that God says, “…he will ask, and He will give him life for those who commit sin not leading to death.” Be careful that you don’t become a hypocrite by spending all your time trying to get others right with God before you worship Him yourself.
One of the most subtle and illusive burdens God ever places on us as saints is this burden of discernment concerning others. He gives us discernment so that we may accept the responsibility for those souls before Him and form the mind of Christ about them (see Philippians 2:5). We should intercede in accordance with what God says He will give us, namely, “life for those who commit sin not leading to death.” It is not that we are able to bring God into contact with our minds, but that we awaken ourselves to the point where God is able to convey His mind to us regarding the people for whom we intercede.
Can Jesus Christ see the agony of His soul in us? He can’t unless we are so closely identified with Him that we have His view concerning the people for whom we pray. May we learn to intercede so wholeheartedly that Jesus Christ will be completely and overwhelmingly satisfied with us as intercessors.
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Journal DJR
Good Morning Lord,
Chambers says that we must “awaken ourselves to the point where God is able to convey His mind to us regarding the people for whom we intercede.” OK, I agree with that, but it seems like he’s referring to our connection with you and we need to continually be strengthening that all the time anyway. Our connection with you is our lifeline and our source for everything we do, not just intercession. So I think being “good intercessors” is a by product of our good connection. If something is important to you, then we’ll pick up on that thru our connection and proceed as we are led. So what we intercede for comes not so much from study and comparisons, but from how you lead us thru our connection.
You don’t need to look for people or things to intercede for. I have plenty. And if you get them from me and let me direct your prayers, you will be more effective. If you choose them yourself through your research or your emotions, it won’t work as well. You will be tempted to intercede for something based on your human feelings. I have something higher and better for you.
He…wondered that there was no intercessor… —Isaiah 59:16
The reason many of us stop praying and become hard toward God is that we only have an emotional interest in prayer. It sounds good to say that we pray, and we read books on prayer which tell us that prayer is beneficial— that our minds are quieted and our souls are uplifted when we pray. But Isaiah implied in this verse that God is amazed at such thoughts about prayer.
Worship and intercession must go together; one is impossible without the other. Intercession means raising ourselves up to the point of getting the mind of Christ regarding the person for whom we are praying (see Philippians 2:5). Instead of worshiping God, we recite speeches to God about how prayer is supposed to work. Are we worshiping God or disputing Him when we say, “But God, I just don’t see how you are going to do this”? This is a sure sign that we are not worshiping. When we lose sight of God, we become hard and dogmatic. We throw our petitions at His throne and dictate to Him what we want Him to do. We don’t worship God, nor do we seek to conform our minds to the mind of Christ. And if we are hard toward God, we will become hard toward other people.
Are we worshiping God in a way that will raise us up to where we can take hold of Him, having such intimate contact with Him that we know His mind about the ones for whom we pray? Are we living in a holy relationship with God, or have we become hard and dogmatic?
Do you find yourself thinking that there is no one interceding properly? Then be that person yourself. Be a person who worships God and lives in a holy relationship with Him. Get involved in the real work of intercession, remembering that it truly is work— work that demands all your energy, but work which has no hidden pitfalls. Preaching the gospel has its share of pitfalls, but intercessory prayer has none whatsoever.
Good morning Lord and thank You for this devotional. However, I must say, this devotional confused me a bit. When Chambers writes; …. Are we worshiping God in a way that will raise us up to where we can take hold of Him, having such intimate contact with Him that we know His mind about the ones for whom we pray? Are we living in a holy relationship with God, or have we become hard and dogmatic? I am perplexed. You have taught us that we “take hold of You” by simply surrendering ourselves, and our own ideas to You. How can we know Your mind about someone else, when we are to be surrendered about everything, including our thoughts and ideas about everything including ourselves? And when we intercede on behalf of someone else, we often do not know the issue or circumstances, we just know through our surrender, that we are to pray for that person.
And God says…”Acknowledge the Lord in all your ways, and do not rely on your own understanding and I will make your paths straight. Seek first the kingdom of God, which is Jesus, and I will provide everything else you require for daily living including your prayer schedule and focus. Surrender and connect with Me each morning and as part of your surrender and connection, listen for that still small voice providing directions for intercessory prayers. As a part of your morning devotional, prayer, surrender and connection, take a moment and listen for my direction and guidance for your prayers. Believe that I will give you direction, and I will. Knock and the door will be opened. Seek and you shall find. You will “just know” when and for whom to pray as you give up your own ideas and thoughts and seek mine.”
This CO2- (Church Of 2) is where two guys meet each day to tighten up our Connections with Jesus. We start by placing the daily “My Utmost For His Highest” in this WordPress blog. Then we prayerfully select some matching worship music and usually pick out a few lyrics that fit especially well. Then we just start praying and editing and Bolding and adding comments and see where the Spirit takes us.
It’s been a blessing for both of us.
If you’d like to start a CO2, we’d be glad to help you and your partner get started. Also click the link below to see how others are doing CO2.Odds Monkey
Steve Harvey Introduces Jesus To A Secular Audience
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