Inspiriation

Power Belongs To God

By Dr. James R. Miller

"Knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee?... Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above."

John 19:10-11

Authority is one of the intrusted talents. Men talk very boastfully of their power, forgetting that it is delegated power which they hold, and that they must wield it for God, and must give account to him for their use of it. No man's power belongs to himself to do with as he pleases; it is given him from God, the source of all power. This is true of the authority of parents and teachers, of the power possessed by civil magistrates, and of all power whatsoever.

Men are eager to obtain offices in the city or nation; and they do not always realize the responsibility which attaches to such positions. Power belongs to God, and must be used for God, or its misuse will bring sore penalty. It is a talent which is given to us to be accounted for, and no treason is worse than malfeasance in the employing of power. This is true all the way from the power of the child on the playground to the power of the president of the nation or the king on his throne. "Thou couldest have no power... except it were given thee from above."

There is a comforting thought suggested by the words in this sentence, "Thou couldest have no power against me." Christ in this world was under the protection of his Father, and no one on earth could lift a finger against him but by the Divine permission. What was true of him, the Son of God, is true of each one of the sons of God in all their earthly life. Each believer, the humblest, the weakest, is kept in this world as the apple of God's eye. No one can touch one of God's little ones save by Divine permission. This shows how safe we are, amid all the world's dangers and enmities, while we trust ourselves in our Father's keeping.

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Transforming Power

Simon, to whom he gave the name Peter; - Mark 3:16

In a gallery in Europe are shown, side by side, the first and the last works of a great artist. The first is very rude and most faulty; the last is a masterpiece. The contrast shows the results of long culture and practice.

These two names are like those two pictures. “Simon” shows us the rude fisherman of Galilee, with all his rashness, his ignorance, his imperfectness. “Peter” shows us the apostle of the Acts and the Epistles, the rock firm and secure, the man of great power, before whose Spirit-filled eloquence thousands of proud hearts bow, swayed like the trees of the forest before the tempest; the gentle, tender soul whose words fall like a benediction; the noble martyr witnessing to the death for his Lord. Study the two pictures together to see what grace can do for a man.

It is not hard to take roses, lilies, fuchsias, and all the rarest flowers, and with them make forms of exquisite beauty; but to take weeds, dead grasses, dried leaves trampled and torn, and faded flowers, and make lovely things out of such materials, is the severest test of skill. It would not be hard to take an angel and train him into a glorious messenger; but to take such a man as Simon, or as Saul, or as John Newton, or as John Bunyan, and make out of him a holy saint or a mighty apostle, that is the test of power. Yet that is what Christ did and has been doing ever since. He takes the poorest stuff, despised and worthless, outcast of men ofttimes, and when He has finished His gracious work we behold a saint whiter than snow.

The sculptor beheld an angel in the rough, blackened stone, rejected and thrown away; and when men saw the stone again, lo! there was the angel cut from the block. Christ can take us, rough and unpolished as we are, and in His hands our lives shall grow into purity and loveliness, until He presents them at last before the throne, faultless and perfect.

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Life-Giving Knowledge

This is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and him whom you sent, Jesus Christ. - John 17:3

Any one, therefore, who truly knows God has eternal life. Knowing God, however, is more than knowing about Him. One may have all the doctrinal knowledge of God's character, attributes, and works which the Bible reveals, and yet not know God at all in the way that gives life. We may know all about some great man biographically, and yet not know the man at all personally. But suppose we then meet him, and become intimately associated with him, and he becomes our dear friend, and we learn to love him and trust him; then we really know him. It is this personal knowledge of God that is meant in these words. We first learn about Him, and then we seek Him and find Him; and He receives us into His family, and sheds abroad His love in our hearts, and gives us His Spirit. Then we learn to trust Him and to love Him. This is the knowing God which gives eternal life.

But how can we meet God, and get personally acquainted with Him, and form this intimate friendship with Him? There is another word in this verse which helps us to the answer. “That they might know thee … and Jesus Christ.” We are clearly taught elsewhere that we can know God only through Jesus Christ. “Neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him.” Jesus Christ is the revelation of the Father to men: “He that hath seen Me hath seen the father.” We can get acquainted with Christ in His humanity, and thus know God, and have Him for our nearest Friend. M'Cheyne said: “I seem to know more of the Lord Jesus Christ than of the most intimate friend I have on earth.” Should we not all seek after Christ's personal friendship? The more we trust Him the more shall we know of Him, and the better shall we love Him.

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It Takes Trust
Proverbs 3:5,6

The basis of my relationship must be trust. Trusting God with your successes isn't much of a challenge. The real test is sharing secrets, your inner failures and fears.

Jesus once told the woman at the well, "True worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth; for the Father is seeking such [real people, flawed people like you] to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth" (John 4:23,24).

You have nothing to fear, for your honesty with the Father won't reveal anything He doesn't already know. His intellect is so keen that He doesn't have to wait for you to make a mistake. He knows about your failure before you fail. His knowledge is all-inclusive, spanning the gap between time and incident. He knows your thoughts even as you subconsciously gather them in your own mind.

Once you realize this, all your attempts at silence and secrecy will seem childish and ridiculous. He is "the all-seeing One," and He knows perfectly and completely what is in you. When you pray, and more importantly, when you commune with God, you must have the kind of confidence and assurance that neither requires nor allows deceit. Although my Father abhors my sin, He loves me. His love is incomprehensible, primarily because there is nothing with which to compare it.

There is a balance in the awareness of His holiness, which would condemn you, and His love, which esteems and redeems you. He is far too holy for you to be arrogant about your humanity, yet He is far too loving for you to be frightened by the emotional dysfunction that comes from being raised by a father you could never seem to please.

God does not change; neither does His compassion. One thing we search for at every level of our relationships is to be understood. When I am properly understood, I don't always have to express and explain. Thank You, Lord for not asking me to explain what I can scarcely express!

We quickly grow weary of people who demand that we constantly explain ourselves. We'd rather be around those who are able to read the meaning of a touch, a brief hug, a sigh emitted in the stillness of a moment. Real communion cannot be typed or taught; it must be understood. At this level, there is a communication so intense that those who understand it can clearly speak it, even through closed lips. As with lovers staring at each other across a crowded room, words are unnecessary when there is true understanding. It is this kind of understanding that God clearly perceives your every need.

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Be Careful What You Commit To!

Which is the greatest commandment?...
Matthew 22:36 NIV

When Jesus was asked, 'Which is the greatest commandment?' He answered, '"Love the Lord… and… Love your neighbor as yourself2' (Matthew 22:37-39NIV). So our greatest commitments should be based on the two greatest commandments. The problem is we get involved with things that keep us from doing this. The Bible says: 'No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs; he wants to please his commanding officer' (2 Timothy 2:4 NIV). In other words, be careful what you commit to. There are three types of commitment:

1) Dramatic commitments. Like getting married or buying a home. Unfortunately, we don't consider the hidden costs. When we buy a house we think only of the additional square footage, not the extra hour each day commuting to work or the time taken away from our family.

2) Routine commitments. These may look mundane, but don't underestimate their power. Any parent who's signed up their child for a sports team knows the time-consuming potential of the routine commitments.

3) Unspoken commitments. These are the commitments we make to ourselves, but often fail to keep. In life, the dramatic commitments receive most of our attention, but the routine ones end up controlling us. Because there are so many of them and because they come on a daily basis and individually look so small, we don't sense the gap growing between what we say matters most to us, and what we're actually doing with our lives. So Jesus simplified it: '"Love the Lord… and… Love your neighbor… ' (Matthew 22:37-39 NIV). When you measure your life by that yardstick, you've a better chance of living by the right commitments.

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The Seed Needs Water

For the earth bears fruit: first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. Mark 4:28

It doesn't matter how fertile the soil is, if the sun does not shine upon it and if there is no rain from heaven, the seed will never germinate. The human heart is the soil in which the seeds of truth grow; but it must have the sunshine and rain of divine grace upon it before it will produce any spiritual fruit.

A man once tore down an outbuilding that had stood for many years in his yard. He smoothed over the ground, and left it. The warm spring rains fell upon it, and the sunshine flooded it; and in a few days there sprang up multitudes of little flowers, unlike any that grew in the neighborhood. Where the building had stood was once a garden, and the seeds had lain in the soil without moisture, light, or warmth all the years. So soon as the sunshine and the rain touched them they sprang up into life and beauty.
So very often the seeds of truth lie dormant in a human heart because the light and warmth of the Holy Spirit are shut away from them by sin and unbelief. After many years the heart is opened in some way to the influences of the Divine Spirit and the seeds which are still living shoot up into beauty. The instructions of a mother may lie dormant in someone's heart their entire life without bearing any fruit, and yet in the end may still save the soul.

When we have sown the heavenly seed we should continually pray that God would pour his Spirit, like rain and sunshine, upon the heart where it lies to bring it to life. In the same way for ourselves, we should seek always to keep our hearts open to every life-breathing influence of the grace of God. We need to pray constantly for the rain to come down otherwise our hearts will lie bare and sterile even though they're filled with the divine seeds.