Expect It

Don’t be led by what you expect.  Be led by the Spirit, and by God’s Word.

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Mark 5:2 – And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit,

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If you are a child of God, there are certain things you should expect.  The Christian should certainly expect the fulfillment of God’s Word in his life; salvation, healing and health, provision and plenty, deliverance, and peace.  At the same time, it should be expected of the Christian that he walk in obedience to the Word of God.  The truth is that there are many blessings of the Lord are, in fact, conditional upon one’s obedience to God’s commands.

But there are other things that should be expected.  And while they should be expected, they should NEVER be used as a measuring device of their walk with the Lord.  Sadly, there are many believers that gauge their walk with the Lord on attacks of the enemy, or perceived attacks of the enemy, on their life and ministry.  My friend, such thinking opens one to gross deception in their life.  Here is an example or what I am saying.  I have witnessed many Christians going through a difficult time in their life.  When confronted by what they are facing, they would often say, “Well, I must be doing something right; the devil is really trying to stop me.”  Dear reader, such thinking leaves one open for gross deception and ultimate defeat.  Since when should any believer gauge his obedience to the Lord based upon what the devil does?  Satan is not God’s accountant, banker, or bookkeeper.  He has come to steal, kill, and destroy.  Your obedience to the Lord should be based solely on what the Word says, and the witness of Holy Spirit with your spirit.

Should the believer expect to be attacked by the enemy?  Absolutely.  But if the believer gauges his obedience on Satan’s attacks, all Satan needs to do is leave the Christian alone and he’ll think he’s missing the mark with the Lord because Satan’s not attacking.  By the same token, the believer could be failing to obey the Lord, but if Satan attacks, he will think he is doing well in obedience to the Lord because Satan is attacking. 

What I am about to write may sound harsh, but it is not intended to be so, but rather to be an alarm call.  As I have already written, your obedience to the Lord should be based solely on what the Word says, and the witness of Holy Spirit with your spirit.  Anything less is on very shaky ground.  And such is generally the result of three things: (1) they are trapped by tradition; (2) they are held by fear of change; (3) they are too lazy to apply themselves to the hard work of searching for the truth themselves.  Child of God, wake up, get up, and move up to a fresh place of intimacy with the Lord through His Word.

Manna for Today – Mark 5:1-20; Mark 4; 1 Corinthians 10:13; John 10:10