Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!” Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.” (Matthew 16:22-23).

The disciples were known to argue among themselves as to who was greatest disciple. James and John had their mother petition Jesus to allow them to sit at his right and left hand in heaven. In all this jockeying for position, Peter must have felt quite puffed up, when Jesus told him that he was blessed and that he is the rock upon which He would build His church. Peter must have felt very important when Jesus said that whatever Peter bound on earth would be bound in heaven and that whatever he loosed on earth would be loosed in heaven. But when Jesus began talking about being tortured and killed, Peter thought he knew better than Jesus. So Peter took Jesus aside to tell him what he thought.

It is dangerous when we begin to think of ourselves more than we ought. We have the mind of Christ, the Bible says. If we believe we shall receive what we ask in prayer, Jesus said. There is so much authority promised to us as disciples of Christ. But we must never forget Who it is we serve. “You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.” Jesus’ words must have stung: “Get behind me Satan! You are a stumbling block to me.” When we serve in the Lord’s kingdom we must always humble our hearts and return to yielding to the Lord. “Is this Your will?” “As You wish.” That question and response should always be our heart-attitude. As a servant of the Lord, no matter how much authority God chooses to give us, our heart should always be bowed before Him in worship and surrender.

Lord, transform my mind to be filled with thoughts that are in alignment with Your thoughts. Make me into a humble servant who is always yielded to You in worship. Remove from me human worldly attitudes and ideas. Increase my faith and give me Your perspective that I may understand and follow Your will. Praise You, heavenly Father for giving me the chance to serve You.

And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. (Matt 3:17-4:1).

How shocking to realize that God allows His children to be tempted. Immediately after the Father God publicly commended Jesus as His Son at his water baptism, the Spirit of God led Jesus into the desert to be tempted by the devil. This makes me think of Job. Soon after God commended Job to the devil as a faithful servant, He allowed the devil to tempt Job with terrible disaster. There must be some good reason why God allows His loved ones to be tempted. There in the Garden of Eden, He allowed Adam and Eve to be tempted with the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Why did God put that tree there with a specific command not to eat the fruit of it? Why did He allow the serpent access to Eve in order that she might be tempted? At the time, neither Adam or Eve had sinned. No sin had entered creation so that it would suffer under the curse of sin. Yet the serpent was there. Jesus hadn’t sinned either, yet He was led away to be tempted by the devil. Jesus wasn’t led into the desert by the devil, but by the Spirit of God. And in the case of Job, I think that the devil would not have had permission to test Job unless God expressly allowed it. So we can only conclude that sometimes God wants His children to be tempted.

Not all temptation is specifically allowed by God. In fact, James says that when we are tempted we shouldn’t say, “’God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed” (James 1:13-14). For certain, God doesn’t tempt anyone. I think most of the time, people are tempted by their own evil desires. We are born as sinners and we will fight the temptations of the flesh for the rest of our days on earth. But still I think that God allows his children to be tempted by the devil.

If this is true, some of us may be tempted to get angry with God and accuse Him of being unfair to us. We might then want to blame God for all the times we have ever fallen into sin, thinking thoughts like: “If He truly loved us then He would never have let us be tempted in the first place.” But then we fall into the temptation of dishonoring God with our frustrations like Job did. Job cried out and accused God of bing unjust. But when God finally answered Job with a voice from the whirlwind, then Job realized that God is a sovereign God and answered, “I am unworthy–how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth. I spoke once, but I have no answer–twice, but I will say no more” (Job 40:4-5). If we will come to that place of surrender and trust in God no matter how difficult the trial, then we will learn the secret of His strength for our lives.

Paul learned this secret. But he had to learn the hard way. No one will disagree that Paul was a man who enjoyed quite a bit of favor with God and tremendous revelations. And yet beloved and chosen as Paul was, God allowed Paul to be tempted and tried in terrible ways. He suffered shipwrecks, severe beatings, homelessness, hunger, thirst, nakedness, imprisonment and stoning (2 Cor 11:23-29). On top of all this, God allowed an evil spirit to torment Him. Paul called the demon a thorn in his flesh. We aren’t told what the demon did to Paul. Did it afflict him with some illness or handicap. Perhaps it tempted him with evil. Perhaps this is what Paul was talking about when Paul wrote to the Romans, “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me” (Romans 7:15-17). How did Paul overcome these trials and temptations? He learned the secret of surrender when God said to him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor 12:9). Paul learned to trust in God even when he felt the weakness of temptation and then God gave Him the strength to overcome those temptations.

Jesus was the perfect example of this. He did not stop trusting in the Father and the Spirit of God even after the Spirit led him into the desert to be tempted by the devil. He kept His faith in God and the truth of the Word of God. His body was weak with fasting, but His Spirit was strong to resist the temptations of Satan. He trusted in the grace of God and so successfully defeated every attack of the enemy.

Lord God, the next time I am tempted by the enemy, help me to continue to trust in You. Let me not doubt Your grace or goodness. Let me never fail to believe in Your love for me. Increase my faith Lord in Your faithfulness. In my weakness, let me surrender to Your grace that Your power may be made perfect. Show Your power in me, Lord Jesus. You said not to worry about what to say when we are confronted by our enemies. Lord Jesus, help me by the Spirit of the Living God to know what scriptures to use to destroy the lies of the enemy when he attacks me with temptations. Then speak out the truth of Your Word through me, Lord Jesus, to demolish any pretensions that sets itself up against the knowledge of Christ. Be exalted in me, Christ Jesus. I trust in You. 

They will act as if they are religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly (2 Timothy 3:5).

Paul warned Timothy to beware of people who act religious but are actually only lovers of themselves rather than lovers of God. Life in this world is a constant struggle between light and darkness. Going the way of the dark side is easy because almost all roads lead to it. But there is only one Way to the light of the Truth and He is Jesus Christ.

The defining quality of the godly is that they know and follow the Truth. In comparison, the ungodly do not know the Truth. Their minds are depraved and their faith is counterfeit (v. 8). These evil people are deceived and they go on deceiving others (v. 13). They think they are good but they reject the power that can make them godly (v. 5). As a result, they are boastful, proud, mockers, disobedient, ungrateful, unfaithful, and they persecutye the truly godly.

The only way to make sure we don’t fall into the trap of the deceived is to embrace the Truth. The Word of God is the power Paul was referring to that can make us godly. There is power in the Holy Scriptures. God created all things by speaking His Word. His Word gives us wisdom to receive salvation by trusting in Jesus (v. 15). Paul teaches that all Scripture is inspired by God in order to show us the Truth, teach us to do right, and equip us to obey. God’s truth gives us the power to be godly and escape the deception in the world.

So how can I apply this power to be godly in my life? First, I must get the Truth by studying God’s Word and then I must be faithful to it (v. 14). And what God has begun in me, He will be faithful to complete.

Holy Spirit, guide me into all truth and give me understanding as I embrace Your Word. Give me the grace to be faithful to what You have taught me. Equip me with Your strength to do every good thing You want me to do. I trust in You, Lord. You alone have the power to make me truly bear Your image. 

So why does God do it? Show us His glory, I mean. Or, why doesn’t He show us more? All He would have to do to convince this entire planet of weak minded wretches with poor morals of their necessity to repent of their sins and to worship God is to just unleash the brilliance of His unfettered glory upon the whole solar system, or entire universe for that matter. He could do it. We would probably be reduced to a thin layer of biological residue on the floor, but He could do it. God in His unapproachable wisdom obviously has other plans. In His understanding and in His perfect timing, He has given the human race time to mature and grow. He gives individuals time to repent and then to learn obedience. And in that slow, and sometimes painfully slow, process we have the potential to become pure. It’s a purity that is solely derived from the work of Christ on the cross. It is a purity completely devoid of self-reliance, but only simple trust and obedience. In the cosmic scheme of things, humans may have been roaming the earth for six thousand years or more. Only God knows how long, but it must be at least six thousand years according to biblical history. If it has taken God that long to even bring humanity this far, He must have a timetable for our lives as well. It may not be what we expect or want. But I suspect that much of our ability to grow is limited by our willingness to put aside our selfish ambitions and yield to the yoke of Christ and take up our cross daily.

But they were blessed, too. In response, they turned to God and fell faced down in the ground before the Lord. And the Lord appeared in His glorious presence and spoke to them. If I was given the awesome blessing of God’s glorious presence and was given the privilege of hearing His audible voice, I think I would be stunned and overwhelmed. For sure, I’d be grateful and would be telling everyone about that experience until the day I died. But for Moses, I think this experience was kind of “old hat.” God had spoken to him untold numbers of times. He had spent 40 days on the mountain with God, two times. Perhaps Moses had become familiar with God’s presence and voice. Perhaps he was just too frustrated. But unfortunately for Moses, he did not exactly obey what God told him to do. God did not tell Moses to criticize the people or pronounce judgement on them. He just said to command the rock to pour out water. But Moses when and berated the people verbally and then struck the rock twice with his staff. Water did come out, but God told Moses and Aaron that they did not trust Him enough to demonstrate His holiness to the people of Israel. As a result, their punishment would be that they would not lead the people into the promised land. What a severe punishment. The adults of that generation also received the same punishment of not being allowed to go into the promised land. God promised that they would die in the desert before God allowed the people to enter the promised land. Now because Moses did not represent God well and the Waters of Meribah, He pronounced the very same judgment on Moses and Aaron.

What a severe punishment! They did not trust God enough to demonstrate His holiness to the people. They did not trust God enough. What was it that they did not trust God for? Was it that they took their eyes of God and put them on the people? Perhaps they were so overwhelmed with the burden of leadership and the people’s complaints that they did not trust that God could help them continue in leadership. What is this about demonstrating His holiness? What is it to be holy? It is to be set apart for God’s use. Definitely Moses and Aaron were set apart by God to be used to lead the people. I suppose that leaders in God’s house are to be set apart to represent God to the world, to the congregation. They are God’s spokesmen, their representatives. They were to accurately represent God’s intentions and desires and mood and purposes. They are like ambassadors. Moses did not represent God well to the people. Instead of commanding the rock to give its water, he yelled at the people: “Listen, you rebels! Must we bring water from this rock?” He used the work we, which I take to mean Aaron and himself, rather than him and God. Instead of representing God, they represented themselves. It may because of frustration or it may because of incredible pressure, but they did not trust God enough to demonstrate His holiness to the people.

Lord, as a leader, please help me to trust You enough to demonstrate Your holiness to the people. Please help me to represent You well and to be an accurate and very clear vessel for Your Kingdom. Shine Your light and words through me. Let me totally fade out and let Your glory shine through that You may be glorified in me. Help me to trust in You completely. Give me the strength to trust in You even through incredible pressure. Help me to believe in You even when everyone that I have been trying to love does not love me in return. Help me to truly serve only You. You alone are my God. 

“You must always keep the special Bread of the Presence on the table before me” (Exodus 25:30).

“Aaron and his sons will keep the lamps burning in the LORD’s presence day and night. This is a permanent law for the people of Israel, and it must be kept by all future generations.” (Exodus 27:21).

There is something eternal about His presence. There’s something that God wants me to understand about His presence. What is it about His presence that is so powerful? Why is His presence to important? What is presence? Presence is to be in close proximity. So is it just being close to God? To be near God? His presence is a sense of His awesome power. It is an overwhelming revelation of His greatness and my smallness. How does His presence relate to the bread and the lamps? Lord, please give me wisdom.

In chapters 25 to 27 of Exodus, God gave very exact instructions on how to build the Tabernacle. These were very precise measurements and plans. And among these instructions were two things that were to be perpetually present. The Bread of the Presence was on the table. And the table and lampstand were just outside the curtain to the Most Holy Place. So the Bread of the Presence and the lamps on the lampstand were perpetually there very close to the Holy of Holies. And the special bread was always there and the pure olive oil was always to be replenished for the lamps. This Bread of the Presence was to be replaced regularly with fresh bread (1 Samuel 21:6). Once Ahimelech the priest gave this holy bread to David and his men to eat, as long as any of them hadn’t slept with any women recently. Apparently this special bread was reserved for the priests to eat (Matthew 12:4). But David and his men ate it, breaking the law. But I suppose they did so understandably for some higher purpose. Anyway, I’m getting off on a tangent here. There is something important about the Bread of the Presence and the lamps.

Jesus told a story about the wise and foolish virgins and their lamps. They needed to have enough oil in the lamps to last until the Lord came back to open the door and invite them into the wedding feast. We also need to have enough oil in our lamps. We need to oil so that our lamps will be brightly lit until that final day. In Revelation, the blindingly bright and shining Son of Man was standing in the middle of seven gold lampstands, which are the seven churches. I can’t imagine that there with Jesus’ face shining as bright as the sun, that the lampstands would be out. No, they’d be shining brightly, too. Jesus taught on earth that if we are given a light, we shouldn’t hide it but let it shine. We are to be the light of the world, the salt of the earth. Day by day, in the desert God provided the manna. He provided this daily bread. This daily sustenance is what God provides. I believe that today, He wants me to eat the Bread of His presence, which is for the priests. But His vision is for a kingdom of priests. And by the blood of His Son, I am redeemed and may eat of the true Bread from Heaven: the flesh of His Son. And I may drink the true drink, the precious blood of the Lamb. I must commune with God. I must be with God in His presence. He must live in me. I was bought at a price and I am not my own. I am crucified with Christ and no longer live. It is Christ who lives in me, who loved me and bought me with His own blood. This is the bread, His flesh which I must eat always. Lord, let Your Word dwell richly in me! And I must have pure oil to burn brightly. I must have the Holy Spirit’s anointing oil to flow freely within me that I may shine brightly for the Lord’s glory, like Stephen did, like those lamps did perpetually. I must shine brightly like our Lord did when He was transfigured, when He rose from the dead, when He was seen in Revelation. When the Israelites fled Egypt, God gave them light no matter whether it was night or day. They had the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night. They could travel whether night or day (Exodus 13:21).

Lord, let me eat the Bread of the Presence daily. And let the pure oil flow within me that I may burn brightly for You. I want to stay close to You. I want to live just outside the Most Holy Place. Actually, I open my heart: Live and reign in me, Lord! Come closer, Lord. I draw near to You. 

“For you who fear my name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in His wings. And you will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture” (Malachi 4:2).

One day God is going to arrive suddenly in His Temple to judge His people. “Who will be able to stand and face Him when He appears?” the Bible asks (Malachi 3:2). On that Judgment Day, the Lord will be like a blazing fire, like the intense, super white-hot nuclear fusion reaction of a sun. But He won’t be far away like a twinkling star in some distant part of the galaxy. He will be right here on earth in His Temple in all His awesome and fearsome power. We who believe in Christ are Christ’s body; we have become His Temple here on earth. When Christ returns every eye will see. God will return in unimaginable power. His fire will burn away wickedness to purify His people. “The arrogant and wicked will be burned up like straw on that day. They will be completely consumed” (Malachi 4:1). The Day of the Lord will be a terrible day for those who do not fear God.

But it will be a day of healing and exuberant joy for those who fear God’s name. In heaven, God has a Book of Life (Rev 20:12) with the names of those who fear God and love to think about Him. They listen when God’s sends His messengers and they talk with each other about what God says (Malachi 3:16). When God finally comes in power, on that Judgment Day, He will rise as the Sun of Righteousness, the scripture says. For the people who fear Him, the intensity of His Righteous Light will not burn or destroy, but bring healing. And like calves that were penned up but then are released, so we shall also burst out with joy when we are finally released. In a blink of an eye our earthly mortal bodies will be instantly transformed into heavenly immortal bodies that will never die. We will be like those heifers frolicking for joy because that “healing in His wings” will finally give us eternal life. And then we will completely free from the power of sin and death (1 Corinthians 16:51-57).

Lord, You are so righteous and awesome. Help me fear Your name as I should. Let me love to think about You like those do whose names are written in the Book of Life. I can’t wait to be forever released from sin and death. Lord, thank You so much! Words cannot express the joy and freedom we will have on the Day You return in power. Come, Lord Jesus. Come soon!