“So the people shouted, and the trumpets were blown. And as soon as the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted a great shout and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they captured the city.”
—Joshua 6:20
Before Joshua and the children of Israel could enter the Promise Land there was a huge massive obstacle to overcome. It was a place known as Jericho.
Now if you were going to enter into the promises of God, you need to be aware that you will face obstacles. There will be Jerichos in your own life!
A Jericho can be anything in your life that says, “Keep out from the blessings of God,” that massive wall that stands between you and what
God has given you. Your Jericho could be an aging body. It could be a cancer diagnosis. Your Jericho could be a broken relationship, a broken marriage. Your Jericho could be a fear or worry.
God is bringing every one of us to a place of surrender because this is how we win. Before we can defeat our Jericho we must give ourselves unconditionally to Him, unreservedly to Him.
A lot of times we want God to be on our side. But the question is not: Is God on my side? The question is: Am I on the Lord’s side?
God wants to do something great in your life, but you must surrender to Him and trust Him. What we need to do is get God’s Word, believe it and act on it! Even though the world doesn’t get it, even though some of your friends may not get it, you trust God and watch God work!
OUR GOD WILL LEAD US TO VICTORY IF WE FOLLOW HIM!
Wednesday, March 06, 2019
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“These things I command you, that ye love one another. If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.”
John 15:17–20
In 1754, Benjamin Franklin’s newspaper, the Philadelphia Gazette, published what is considered to be the first political cartoon in America. It was still more than twenty years before the American Revolution, but already divisions and disputes among the colonies were creating serious issues. The cartoon showed a snake cut into eight parts, each labeled for a colony or region of the country. Below the snake was this caption: “Join, or Die.” It graphically highlighted the importance of unity in the face of difficulty. Franklin expressed the same sentiment just before the Declaration of Independence was issued when he said, “We must, indeed, all hang together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately.”
Christian love and unity are always important, but never more so than in times of opposition and persecution. It was in the context of the hatred they could expect to receive from the world that Jesus told the disciples to love each other. As we see persecution and animosity more and more directed against those who are remaining true to what the Bible teaches, we should do more than ever to build strong relationships within the body of Christ. The love that we share and express and demonstrate will be a vital resource when severe tests arise. By sticking together we encourage each other and maintain the strength to hold fast to the truth.
Today's Growth Principle:
The struggles of life should drive God’s people closer together rather than driving them apart.
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