Titus 2:11-13 – “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people. ¹² It trains us to reject godless ways and worldly desires and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, ¹³ as we wait for the happy fulfillment of our hope in the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.”

I encourage you to be confident that God’s love for you never fails. A new day is upon us, literal in the natural and equally literal in the spirit realm. Doors, crossroads, obstacles, and opportunities are present and about to become more prevalent.  That means that right choices must be made.

• Right choices require right relationships.
• Right relationships require right investments.
• Investment of ourselves into Jesus, His purposes, and others is of supreme importance.

As I read, prayed, and mused on the Word, the Psalms, I shouted to my heart, “Trust Him!”   The prayer was a constant cry for reception and preservation. It was a revelation that this life was temporary, and focusing on the wrong things destroys faith and leads to deception. Right focus puts it all in perspective, and we see eternity, and that provides hope!

In Titus 2:11-12, the apostle Paul unveils an incredible revelation: Grace is a Teacher!  Grace is a teacher, not just an experience of unmerited favor!  A teacher requires more than just getting the book being studied but to learn the principles and precepts contained therein.  We must learn to implement the principles and precepts.

God’s Grace introduces us to God, brings us salvation, and guides us in right living.  But it requires our participation.  Actions confirm the impact and presence of Grace. It gives us the information needed and equips us to implement those truths, transforming them into right actions (lifestyles). Our discipline and discipleship release the Power of a Grace Life that not only guides and guards us but becomes a testimony that draws others to Christ. It is not our words but our lives that are our true witness.

People may not remember or be significantly impacted by our words, but they will long remember our lives!  What we do speaks of who we are in a greater depth than our words. It’s easy to hide behind words but not actions. The adage, “The proof is in the pudding,” is applicable.   Saying, “I love you, or I love God, is proven by our actions.” I’m not promoting legalism or earning God’s favor but manifesting our hearts by our lives! God sees the heart!

Grace brings us into His presence, equips us to remain faithful, and guards us. Rest confidently, knowing He never abandons us.  A Grace-filled life is a life of peace, filled with God’s power and overflowing with love!

Let Grace Teach You Who He is and His Purposes, Precepts, and Principles to be applied in your life of present victory!

Deuteronomy 7:11-15 – “So keep the commandments, statutes, and ordinances that I today am commanding you to do. ¹² If you obey these ordinances and are careful to do them, the Lord your God will faithfully keep covenant with you as he promised your ancestors. ¹³ He will love and bless you, and make you numerous. He will bless you with many children, with the produce of your soil, your grain, your new wine, your olive oil, the offspring of your oxen, and the young of your flocks in the land that he promised your ancestors to give you. ¹⁴ You will be blessed beyond all peoples; there will be no barrenness among you or your livestock. ¹⁵ The Lord will protect you from all sickness, and you will not experience any of the terrible diseases that you knew in Egypt; instead, he will inflict them on all those who hate you.”

Deuteronomy 7:11-15 is capsulized in verse 11 – “Therefore you are to keep the (not a but the) commandment – both the statutes (boundaries) and ordinances (laws).”   In verse 12, we discover that obedience brought the promise of God to keep His Covenant of Kindness.   It promised God’s love (which is never earned), productivity, and fruitfulness.   There was a complete victory over all enemies.

Deuteronomy 7:20-22 reveals that God’s Hornets would lead the way for them, and a little at a time, God would give them possession of their Promised Inheritance.   We get frustrated over any delay.   God explained that wild beasts would overrun them because they were not ready to occupy fully.

God prepares us to receive and maintain blessings before He fully releases them.   If granted too soon, blessings can become a curse, a cause of pride, or an open door for wild beasts (demons).  Therefore, rather than lament and gripe about not having, ask God what preparation we need to make to receive and maintain the blessings!   Focus on our hearts, not the desired blessing.

In that condition, God will give us the desires of our hearts.  It will be a blessing if our hearts are one with His.  If not, He may give us what we ask, but with it will come leanness of soul.  We want God’s blessings in God’s timing so that we can not only be blessed but be blessings.   Deuteronomy 8:3, the wilderness experience taught them the value of God’s words…“In order to make you understand that man does not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of Adonai.”

We need to focus on fully surrendering and developing the heart to receive and maintain, not just getting what we want when we want it.  When done in God’s way, preparation always precedes blessing.  With prepared hearts, we can receive all God has for us and become all He desires for us to be. We can live as overcomers and mighty weapons in His hands!  Today is our day of Victory!

We can have Victory over All our Enemies!

Numbers 33:55-56 – “ But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land before you, then those whom you allow to remain will be irritants in your eyes and thorns in your side, and will cause you trouble in the land where you will be living. ⁵⁶ And what I intended to do to them I will do to you.’”

As I read, prayed, and pondered, two major streams of thought captured my attention.    I can only deal with one in this devotional.   One was in the Old Testament, and the other was in the Book of Revelation.   As intriguing as the revelation from the Book of Revelation was, I will hold it for a later time after more thorough meditation.

In Numbers 32:23, Moses addressed the 2 1/2 tribes that stayed on the other side of the Jordan.   He made a statement that has a context but is universal. “Be assured! Your sin will find you out!”  The God who sees all sees all.  Did you hear me?   The God who Sees All – Sees All!

Moses instructed them regarding dealing with the enemies who were occupying their inheritance or promise.   In Numbers 33:55-56, he spoke a universal truth.   You cannot leave the enemy (sin) unchecked and undealt with and try to coexist with it.    Every sin (wrong attitude and behavior) must be driven out.  Otherwise, it will hinder progress and block the fullness God desires.

In Deuteronomy 1:6, Moses reminded them that God had instructed them to stop circling the mountain and move toward the inheritance.  Deal with the attitudes and actions and move from carnality to Him!

They faced giants (seemingly insurmountable problems) and learned God’s infallibility.  They witnessed His love and mercy.   They learned the value He places on His Covenant (promises).

Then Moses said something that resonated powerfully in Deuteronomy 6:23: “He brought us out so that He could bring us in.”   God’s deliverance has a purpose.   He sets us free so we can be!   He sets us free so we can set others free.   He brings us out of the world to bring us into His Kingdom.

In His Kingdom, there is no room for self, selfishness, bitterness, hate, or unforgiveness.  In His Kingdom, there is Peace!   Peace cannot exist where sin is allowed to survive.   We can try to justify our sin, but sin separates and blocks the full inheritance of our blessings.

If sin is permitted, it will “find us out.”   Priding ourselves in fleshly victories that satisfy our carnality will block us from the eternal inheritance.   Which is more important, victories over people or eternity with God?   If we pursue the wrong pathways to what we call a win, we will find out that we have been found out and left out.

We must banish all sin and let Jesus in!   God’s love is extended to us all, and He is always faithful.

Let’s face our giants and lay them at the foot of the Cross!

Revelation 5:5 – “Then one of the elders said to me, “Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has conquered; thus, he can open the scroll and its seven seals.”

Hold this in your hearts.  God Is!   His Promises are certain!   He loves us, and He sacrificed His Son for us.   He loves us totally.   You are loved in heaven and on earth.

Revelation 4:1 John saw an opening, portal, or door between this dimension and the dimension of heaven.    Jacob saw it containing a ladder, and Stephen saw it as he awaited stoning.   Many have seen it, so I do not question the existence of a portal or portals into that heavenly dimension.

John was instructed to ascend.   How?   We do not know, but we know that he did.   There, he saw, heard, and interacted with the inhabitants of that realm.   What he saw and heard had a forever impact on him.  God’s presence does that!

In Revelation 5, we read of the scroll that nobody could open.  The Worthy One, as described by the elder with John, was the Mighty Lion of Judah. Then, when John saw Him, he saw a ‘young lamb.’ That reveals the difference in reference points.  John was flesh, a redeemed man, while the elder was of the eternal realm.   John looked forward to Calvary while the elder looked back from Calvary.  The sacrificial lamb becomes the conquering lion.

Revelation 5:9-10, the song of praise, contains a revelatory phrase, veres10 – “You have chosen us to serve our God AND formed us into a kingdom of priests who reign on earth.” The word ‘formed’ indicates a progression.  What begins in new birth culminates in the formation of a kingdom of messengers who have God’s ruling authority on earth.

Let me extract that and acknowledge that this is not the full explanation or interpretation but what the Holy Spirit challenged me with.   The word ‘formed’ means to reign or exercise authority on earth.    Jesus gave us authority over ALL the power of darkness.  Why don’t we use it?  It was not figurative authority but actual, as demonstrated by the disciples.

The lamb has become the lion, and He is “in” us, so it is time to become (formed) the reigning priests on earth.   We put up with things God said we have authority over.  We wait for God to do what He told us to do.

We have Jesus.   We have His authority.    We have the Holy Spirit.  Therefore, let us use our authority and resist the darkness.   No more intimidation, no more hesitation, no more apprehension.   Take Action Now!   We are formed and being formed, and the more we exercise our authority, position, and condition, the more proficient we become in pulling down strongholds.   The time is now!

The Lamb is coming as a Lion, and we are more than Conquerors!

Numbers 14-1-4 – “Then all the community raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night. ² And all the Israelites murmured against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt, or if only we had perished in this wilderness! ³ Why has the Lord brought us into this land only to be killed by the sword, that our wives and our children should become plunder? Wouldn’t it be better for us to return to Egypt?” ⁴ So they said to one another, “Let’s appoint a leader and return to Egypt.”

I woke up this morning with heaven on my mind, and that produced overflowing gladness in my heart. Life is for living, and living is for life. We need to seize the day and squeeze every ounce of joy out of it.

As I read, prayed, and mused on the Word, I was drawn to the realization that unredeemed human nature is never satisfied. Even among believers, the cravings of the flesh sometimes are stronger than the surrender to God.

In Exodus, we see Israel’s wonderful deliverance, the incredible manifestation of God’s power, patience, and love. Yet human nature kept surfacing and revealing the depravity of the heart.

God would respond to their grumbling with a miracle, and within days, they had forgotten the provision and wanted more. The unregenerate heart is never satisfied. It becomes, “What have you done for me lately.” They kept losing focus, and their confidence in God was pressed to the back of the bus by their desire for more and ease. Difficulties quickly shifted their focus from God and what He had done to what they perceived they lacked.

Numbers 14:4 powerfully reveals this.   When difficulty came, they said, “Let’s choose a leader, and let’s go back to Egypt.”  They preferred bondage, where they knew what to expect, over facing the unknown. They lost sight of God’s love, demonstrated power, and promised. Too often, if it’s difficult, we draw back.

Moses repeatedly had to stand in the gap for rebellious, carnal Israel. The result of his intercession reveals God’s heart. It also illustrates the power and importance of just one person standing in prayer! Imagine if a whole church did that!

If we follow God’s directives implicitly, we receive God’s blessings powerfully.

Difficulties are not signs of being out of God’s will nor signs of being in it. They can be either. Sometimes, they are tests whereby we learn obedience and trust. In Revelation 3:19, Jesus spoke prophetically to and through John to the church at Laodicea and to us – “All those I dearly love I unmask and train (rebuke and discipline). He followed that with an amazing promise that applies to us in verse 20. “Behold (Attention), I’m standing at the door (of the heart), knocking.”

He promises to guard, guide, equip, enable, and empower us to live in the midst of difficulty with a settled confidence that He Is!   It is not an easy path; we should be seeking Him in the midst of trials.   When we are fully united with and to Him, we have no sense of lack, even in times of apparent need. He Is, and because He Is, we are always protected and provided for.

Trials make us strong or wrong.   We always have a choice.  We can trust God and be content or let the flesh cravings make us lament and resent.   But my God shall supply ALL your needs by, in, and through Christ Jesus! 

His provision is already done. We need to provide Him with a receptacle He can fill. When things get tough, the tough step into His presence, resist the flesh and rest in Him. This is temporary. He is eternal! Victory is yours if you are His!

Victory is promised to the faithful who persist and do not give up!