For by You I can run through a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall.
- Psalm 18:29
Throughout the Bible, we find the commands of God always come with the promise of reward. God is not a taker; He is a giver. He never tells us to do anything unless it is for our ultimate benefit. I assure you: Everything God ever asks you to do, even if it is difficult, He asks because He has something great in mind for you—but in order to experience it, you will need to press through the hard place.
Don’t think or say, “This is just too hard” when you know you need to do something. Be grateful that God never requires you to handle more than you can bear. With every difficulty, He always provides a way to overcome. You never have to say, “There is no way,” because He is the way (see John 14:6) and He makes a way for you. You can do whatever God calls you to do in life! You have what it takes!
Prayer of Thanks: I am grateful, Father, that You won’t ask me to handle more than I can bear. Today, as I press through the difficult areas in my life, I thank You that I am not pressing through alone—You are with me!
Victory Is Worth the Cost
by Joyce Meyer - posted October 17, 2016For by You I can run through a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall.
- Psalm 18:29
Throughout the Bible, we find the commands of God always come with the promise of reward. God is not a taker; He is a giver. He never tells us to do anything unless it is for our ultimate benefit. I assure you: Everything God ever asks you to do, even if it is difficult, He asks because He has something great in mind for you—but in order to experience it, you will need to press through the hard place.
Don’t think or say, “This is just too hard” when you know you need to do something. Be grateful that God never requires you to handle more than you can bear. With every difficulty, He always provides a way to overcome. You never have to say, “There is no way,” because He is the way (see John 14:6) and He makes a way for you. You can do whatever God calls you to do in life! You have what it takes!
Prayer of Thanks: I am grateful, Father, that You won’t ask me to handle more than I can bear. Today, as I press through the difficult areas in my life, I thank You that I am not pressing through alone—You are with me!
Betraying Jesus
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“And while he yet spake, behold a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss him. But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss?”
Luke 22:47–48
For two thousand years, the name Judas has been synonymous with betrayal and shame. We condemn the man who after three years as a disciple, walking everywhere with Jesus and hearing and seeing Him work, heal and pray, was willing to betray Him for just thirty pieces of silver. The outward Judas was a perfect disciple. In the Upper Room when Jesus announced that He was going to be betrayed by one of the men there, the other disciples did not question the loyalty of Judas.
Even when Judas left them to go to the Pharisees to lead them to Jesus, the others did not understand that he was a traitor. “For some of them thought, because Judas had the bag, that Jesus had said unto him, Buy those things that we have need of against the feast; or, that he should give something to the poor” (John 13:29). But despite his outward appearance as a faithful man, Judas was not. And eventually that became clear to everyone.
The effect of sin in our hearts is corrosive. It eats away at us from the inside, and even if we manage to conceal it from the world for a time, as Judas did, it is only hidden and not dealt with. Like an undiscovered cancer that grows and grows, sin destroys everything it touches. And yet too often we think we can manage our sin and keep it at an “acceptable” level. That never works. We need to regard sin with hatred and fear, realizing that any sin we allow in our lives is a monstrous betrayal of Jesus.
Luke 22:47–48
For two thousand years, the name Judas has been synonymous with betrayal and shame. We condemn the man who after three years as a disciple, walking everywhere with Jesus and hearing and seeing Him work, heal and pray, was willing to betray Him for just thirty pieces of silver. The outward Judas was a perfect disciple. In the Upper Room when Jesus announced that He was going to be betrayed by one of the men there, the other disciples did not question the loyalty of Judas.
Even when Judas left them to go to the Pharisees to lead them to Jesus, the others did not understand that he was a traitor. “For some of them thought, because Judas had the bag, that Jesus had said unto him, Buy those things that we have need of against the feast; or, that he should give something to the poor” (John 13:29). But despite his outward appearance as a faithful man, Judas was not. And eventually that became clear to everyone.
The effect of sin in our hearts is corrosive. It eats away at us from the inside, and even if we manage to conceal it from the world for a time, as Judas did, it is only hidden and not dealt with. Like an undiscovered cancer that grows and grows, sin destroys everything it touches. And yet too often we think we can manage our sin and keep it at an “acceptable” level. That never works. We need to regard sin with hatred and fear, realizing that any sin we allow in our lives is a monstrous betrayal of Jesus.
Today’s Growth Principle:
Every time we choose to sin we are turning our back on the Saviour who gave His life for our salvation.
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