Listening to God is not a one-time event. We must continually keep His Word before us, or we’ll begin to listen to the wrong voices.
In Genesis 2:16-17, the Lord gave a command not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. But Eve began to listen to another voice and did not hold firmly to her Creator’s words. All that Satan had to do was plant a seed of doubt about God’s integrity and offer Eve one appealing advantage of doing things her own way—and she fell for it. He mentioned wisdom, but using her own reasoning, Eve added two more benefits to the temptation: the fruit is good for food and a delight to the eyes.
The schemes of the enemy have not changed. He still whispers lies and twists truth to convince us that God can’t be trusted and His ways are not the best. In every temptation, there is a deception about the character and motive of God, plus an attractive promise of a better way.
The world is filled with voices that vie for our attention and influence our thoughts and actions. Throughout the day, consider the messages that are sent your way through the media and people. Consciously begin to compare them to what Scripture says about God and His ways.
Remembering what the Lord says in His Word is our safeguard against deception and temptation. Devotions read during our quiet time won’t protect us if they’re quickly forgotten during the day. Follow Jesus Christ’s example: Be ready with truth in your mind and on your tongue whenever temptation strikes. (See Matt. 4:1-11.)
Many of us have heard since childhood that the Lord loves us. Yet it isn’t until we begin to understand the true nature of His never-ending love that our lives start to change dramatically—anxiety is exchanged for peace, depression for joy, and fear for confidence.
Today’s Bible verse tells us that while we were still living in rebellion against God, His love sent Jesus to the cross to pay the ultimate price for our redemption. In other words, He didn’t wait for our apologies or even our recognition of Him. No, the Almighty loved us so completely that He sent His Son to die for us while we were steeped in sin.
This doesn’t mesh with our human understanding of love. Much of our concern for others is conditional, hopefully with the exception of care for our children and families. We oftentimes project this imperfect image onto the Lord. It is hard for us to imagine that there actually exists a greater love than what we ourselves can give.
Thankfully, God is not restricted by our view of Him. So great is His care, in fact, that when we trust in Him, He calls us His children and adopts us! And our Father promises that nothing can separate us from Him (Rom. 8:38-39).
As you read Scripture, focus on verses about the heavenly Father’s love. Ask Him to help you start to grasp how great His love is. Document what you learn so that it is available to review when guilt or doubt creeps into your mind. What peace there is for Christians in the Almighty’s unfailing, unconditional care!
To understand the ways of the Lord, we need to comprehend His perspective of mankind. Oftentimes, we rely on our human viewpoint instead of trying to see ourselves through His eyes. All that He does on earth is guided by His care and love for the human race. Consider three elements of God’s perspective of humanity:
Created in God’s image. Of all the creatures that the Lord fashioned, only the man and woman were made in His image (Gen. 1:26-27). They had a mind, will, and emotions as well as a spirit, which enabled them to worship and relate to God. Being sinless and perfect, they were designed to live forever in intimate relationship with their Creator.
Corrupted by sin. However, an act of disobedience broke their relationship with the Lord (Isa. 59:2). The divine image was marred by sin, which infiltrated human nature and corrupted every person born thereafter. Mankind stood spiritually dead, without hope, and condemned before a holy God.
Worthy of redemption. Yet the Lord considered them worthy of restoration. Through the redemptive work of His Son, all who believe in Jesus are made spiritually alive again, and the broken relationship between God and man is repaired (Col. 1:13-14). One day—in heaven—sin will be no more, and a perfect environment will be reinstated.
Between life’s pace and trials, losing sight of divine viewpoint is all too easy. When we’re overwhelmed by criticism, trouble, or suffering, it’s vital to recognize our worth in the Lord’s eyes. That realization can energize our service and renew our love for the One who gave Himself to bring us back to God.
We all go through distressing times in life. These seasons of suffering may be brought about by relational difficulties, financial hardships, or other trials. But as God’s children, we can take heart in knowing that our pain is not wasted.
Sometimes our pain is for the eternal benefit of others—God uses it to reveal the genuineness of our faith so that others might see it and be drawn to His Son (1 Peter 1:7). By the way we respond to adversity, our belief in Jesus becomes visible to those around us. Believers will be encouraged, and seekers will ask us questions about our faith.
At other times, God uses trials to teach us to obey—Hebrews 5:8 tells us that even our Savior learned obedience from the things He suffered. Another purpose of hardship is to broaden our ministry. The apostle Paul’s imprisonment let him minister among the guards, resulting in the salvation of many.
Difficulties can also be the Lord’s tool in preventing a problem from happening—such as the unidentified ailment that kept Paul from becoming prideful. When disobedience threatens our walk with God, He will take whatever steps are needed to draw us back to Him. He may allow a need to remain unmet or something cherished to be removed. His purpose is that we confess our sin and return to Him.
We may not know the reasons for our heartaches, but the wisest choice we can make is to trust the heavenly Father. After all, He who saved us through the sacrifice of His Son has promised to use our suffering to bring about good (Rom. 8:28).
The Bible passage that says to turn the other cheek may confuse us. Are we to stand still while someone beats us up physically or emotionally? That’s not the message Jesus was delivering. When He gave the Sermon on the Mount, He was expanding outward obedience to the Law to include attitudes and motives.
The familiar expression “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” comes from Exodus 21:23-25, an Old Testament law describing appropriate penalties for injury. Some interpreted this as allowing retaliation by civil government. But Jesus was showing a better option—the way of love.
Pride will certainly trigger a desire for revenge if a coworker takes credit for our work or a family member repeatedly says unkind words. Yet we are not to “repay evil with evil or insult with insult” but should instead give a blessing (1 Peter 3:9 NIV).
In daily practice, the form a righteous response takes depends on the situation. We may need to ignore the other person’s actions, walk away from the abuse, or confront our enemy. Instead of trying to get even, we should seek to understand that person and the reason for any animosity toward us.
God has lessons for us to learn in these difficult situations. When we endure unjust treatment, we are following in Christ’s footsteps. No one was more unjustly treated than the sinless Son of God. Yet He “did not revile in return” and “uttered no threats” but kept entrusting Himself to His Father, knowing that He judges righteously (1 Peter 2:20-23). Surely God can also handle our grievances if we’ll respond as Christ did.
