The Source of Our Adversity - Isaiah 45:5-10

When we experience hardships, we usually wonder why God allows these painful situations to come our way. It just doesn't seem to fit with His role as our loving heavenly Father. We struggle to reconcile our suffering with His love for us and His power to prevent or stop it. In order to understand what's going on, we need to consider the possible sources of adversity.

A Fallen World: When sin entered the world, suffering came with it. God could have protected us from these harmful effects by making us like puppets who could not choose sin, but that would mean we'd also be unable to choose to love Him, because love must be voluntary.

Our Own Doing: Sometimes we get ourselves into trouble with our foolish or sinful choices. If the Lord stepped in and rescued us from every negative consequence, we'd never grow into mature believers.

Satanic Attack: The Devil is our enemy. To hinder anything the Lord wants to do in and through believers, Satan will never cease to harass us. His goal is to destroy our lives and our testimonies, thereby making us weak and useless for God's purposes.

God's Sovereignty: Ultimately, the Lord is in charge of all adversity that comes our way. To deny His involvement contradicts His power and sovereignty over creation.

For us to accept that God allows--or even sends--afflictions, we must see adversity from His perspective. Is your focus on the pain of your experience or on the Lord and His faithfulness? As believers, we're assured that no adversity comes our way unless He can use it to achieve His good purposes.

No Condemnation

Romans 8:1-4

Some believers are plagued by feelings of condemnation. Either they think they'll never live up to God's expectations for them or they're nearly drowning in guilt over past sins. These men and women cannot seem to shake the sense that God is displeased with their puny efforts at being Christlike.

The book of Romans confronts this lie head-on: "There is therefore no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 8:1). When the Savior went to the cross on our behalf, He lifted the blame from our shoulders and made us righteous before God. Those feelings of condemnation do not belong to us; they are from Satan. He amplifies our guilt and feelings of inadequacy and then suggests that's how the Lord feels about His "wayward child." Nothing could be further from the truth. Our sins are wiped clean, and we are chosen and loved by God.

Condemnation is reserved for those who reject the Lord (John 3:36). Sin is a death sentence (Rom. 6:23). Anyone who chooses to cling to sin instead of seeking divine forgiveness must pay the penalty, which is an eternity separated from God. Two synonyms of condemn are 'denounce' and 'revile.' Those words certainly describe Jesus' statement to unbelievers in Matthew 25:41: "Depart from me, accursed ones."

There is no condemnation for those who receive Jesus Christ as their Savior. The believer's penalty for sin is paid, and he can stand blameless before God. Trust in the Lord's love and let go of Satan's lie. God's beloved children are covered by His grace and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

Our Divine Teacher

1 Corinthians 2:9-16

One of the reasons that many people—including believers—don’t read the Bible is because they can’t understand it. We would expect that to be the case for those who don’t know Christ, but why do so many believers fail to comprehend the truths of Scripture? Maybe it’s because they haven’t asked for help from their divine Teacher. One of the Holy Spirit’s chief responsibilities is to enable Christians to understand the things of God.

When looking at believers who know more than we do, we’ll sometimes think, I will never be able to reach that level. The issue, however, isn’t how much knowledge you have right now, but whether you are growing in your understanding. The Spirit will teach you what you need to know, not necessarily what others know. Because He wants to make us godly people, He’ll give us enough truth each day to change our lives. He will interpret the meaning and give an application designed specifically for each person.

The Spirit’s goal is not to fill your mind with information but to bring you to a deeper level in your relationship with the Lord. He wants you to understand the truth so you will fall in love with Jesus. Then you’ll long to spend time in the Word, thereby getting to know Him even better.

But all these treasures of God’s Word could remain out of reach if you never ask the Teacher to unlock them. Each time you read your Bible, ask the Lord for understanding. A wonderfully intimate love relationship with Christ awaits those who let the Spirit reveal to them the thoughts of God.

The Power of a Discerning Spirit

Hebrews 5:11-14

In a world filled with endless sources of information and opinions, believers need to develop a discerning spirit. Otherwise, how will we know what is true? Much of what we see and hear is based on a worldly perspective that is influenced by Satan, the Father of Lies. Deception is found even in the religious realm: cults mix lies with enough truth to make some people consider them legitimate Christian institutions.

The only way believers can guard against deception is to ground themselves in God's Word. The more time you spend filling your mind with the Lord's thoughts, the more discerning you will be. However, just knowing biblical truth isn't enough. You must put what you learn into practice so that it becomes more than head knowledge.

The goal is to let God's Word become such an integral part of your thinking that it guides all your decisions. Even if the situation you're facing isn't specifically addressed in the Bible, scriptural principles provide the needed wisdom for every choice. In addition, the Holy Spirit was given to each believer as a Helper, whose job is to guide you into all the truth (John 14:26; 16:13). However, your responsibility is to put God's Word into your mind so that He can bring it to your remembrance. If you neglect the Word, you'll lack discernment.

What are you allowing into your mind? Is Scripture high in your priorities? Unless you're careful, worldly thinking will overpower spiritual discernment. It's difficult to keep God's perspective in the forefront if you spend two or three hours in front of the television and only ten minutes in the Bible.

The Ultimate Father-Son Relationship

John 5:19-20

God is called by a variety of names in the Bible, and each one sheds light on an aspect of His nature. Jesus' favorite title for Him was Father. Surprisingly, this name for God is used only 15 times in the Old Testament, but in the New Testament, it's recorded 245 times!

Many of God's names speak of His majestic and lofty attributes that separate Him from mankind, but Father conveys intimacy. Jesus used this name not only because He was God's Son, but also to help people realize that Jehovah isn't some unapproachable Deity gazing down on them from a distance. Rather, He is their loving heavenly Father, who cares about them and wants to be involved in their everyday lives.

Throughout His time on earth, Christ revealed by example what this kind of love relationship was like. He depended completely on His Father for daily direction, power, and provision and obediently carried out every instruction. He often left the demands of ministry just to find a secluded place to be alone with Jehovah. We know Jesus successfully conveyed the riches of this relationship to His disciples, because in John 14:8, Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father"—he wanted to know Him the way Christ did.

What Is Your True Purpose

1 Samuel 16:6-13

What do you live for each day? A pay raise? Retirement? Then perhaps you've discovered the reality that basing aspirations on getting ahead in this world typically ends in disappointment. People with a misguided sense of direction often wonder why they feel unfulfilled.

Maybe you've already realized a goal of saving for the future or moving up the corporate ladder. You give to charity and volunteer at church, but somehow still feel a sense of insignificance or aimlessness. If so, there is a truth you need to hear: God gives each of us life for a very specific reason: to serve Him. Nobody finds inner peace without reconciling this fact. Our society teaches us that pleasure, prosperity, position, and popularity will make us happy--but living in the service of self always leaves an emptiness no earthly reward can fill.

Besides, worldly philosophy won't stand the test of time. Few of us are going to live even 100 years. So whatever we'll become in this life, we're in the process of becoming that right now. Consider David: he was anointed king long before actually assuming the role (1 Sam. 16:12). He spent many years serving the purpose of God in insignificant places while developing into a great man. As his story shows, discovering God's purpose for your life is the surest path to success.

Our heavenly Father's purpose for our lives comes from His heart of love--which is perfect. None of us can foretell the great things He has in store for us, but we can trust His plan completely. Surrender to Him today and say, "Not my will, Lord, but Yours be done."

Defeating the Devil's Strategies

John 21:15-19
All of us make tracks through the valley of failure. Then the key question is, What we will do next? Sadly, many believers who stumble give up a vibrant kingdom-serving life for a defeated existence. But failure can also be a chance for a new beginning of living in Christ's strength.
In pride, Peter thought his faith was the strongest of all the disciples' and swore that even if the others left Jesus, he never would (Mark 14:29). Yet when the time of testing came, he denied even knowing Christ--and did so three times (Matt. 26:69-75). Satan hoped the disciple would be so wounded by his own disloyalty that his faith would be undermined by shame, condemnation, and despair.
Likewise, when the Enemy sifts believers today, his goal is for us to become shelved and ineffective for God's kingdom. That's why he goes after our strengths, especially the areas in which we proudly consider ourselves invincible. But if we're willing, the Lord can use our failures to do spiritual housecleaning, as He did in Peter's life. After the resurrection, Jesus met with the disciple personally and restored him, preparing him to become a great leader in the early church. He made it clear that Peter's potential to serve was defined, not by failure, but by his unwavering love for Christ.

Peter laid down his pride, received the healing Jesus offered, and put on courage with the Holy Spirit's help. He then risked his life fearlessly to further the gospel, and many came to Christ through his example. Failure was the catalyst that grew in him a stronger, more authentic faith.