Have you ever sent off an email or a text with the jab of an angry finger? Have you ever slammed a door or punched a wall? Have you ever hung up on someone? We all have conflict in our lives. We encounter conflict daily: we have disagreements with our spouses, parents, children, co-workers, and neighbors. But how do we navigate conflict and come out the other side in one piece? How do we not become the worst version of ourselves during conflict? What if conflict provided an opportunity for us to grow as people and also to glorify God? There’s a passage in the Bible that shows just how well conflict can go when we respond out of humility instead of pride. A massive conflict is brewing in the early church that could destroy the church. Jesus has been resurrected, appeared to his disciples, ascended to heaven, and sent the church the Holy Spirit. The apostles have gone from cowering, fearful, proud men, to proclaimers of the most fantastic news the world has ever heard: God has sent his Son to rescue his people from their sin. The power of this good news is undeniable. Thousands believe that Jesus is the Son of God. The groups of these followers are joining into communities in Jerusalem that are marked by prayer and generosity. People are selling their possessions and giving them away to those who are needy. On top of this, massive racial walls are coming down. The Jews and the Hellenists, [i] those who aren’t Jewish by birth and who are a minority in the church, are being knit together into one body. A complaint comes forward—the Hellenist widows are being neglected in the daily distribution of bread. [ii] At the heart of this complaint is the accusation that the leaders are hypocritical, that the promise that the gospel is for the world and unites those across every ethnicity is a lie. The church is preaching a gospel of unity and that God welcomes everyone into his family, but if those who are non-Jews are given second-class status, then everything will crumble. The stakes of this conflict are high. This conflict has all the makings of a church split between the Jews and Gentiles. And yet, put yourself in the apostles’ shoes. You’re leading an organization that is exploding: it’s multiplying daily. You know one thing: how to preach the inspiring news of who this man Jesus is: how he changed your life and how he can change others’ lives. But you have no real organizational leadership experience. Yet, despite that, your organization is one of the most charitable organizations ever assembled on the planet: you’re feeding countless widows and poor. And these women dare to complain?! They have the audacity to claim that you are poor leaders?! They claim that you’re racist?! Seriously? There were a lot of reasons the widows could have been neglected: language barriers, geographical barriers, disorganization. This is almost surely not intentional. [iii] The apostles have every reason to be defensive. They have every reason to minimize the attacks against them. They have every reason to dismiss the accusations. But they don’t. Here is what happens: Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution.  2  And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables.  3  Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty.  4  But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” 5  And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch.  6  These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them. [iv] The apostles pull together the leadership and say they need to continue preaching the word of God. This is a shocking response. They don’t deny the accusations. They don’t defend themselves. They don’t make excuses. They don’t take it personally. They realize their priorities. Their ministry is about the good news of Jesus Christ going forward. This conflict is an opportunity to reset those priorities. And they don’t just hear the complaint; they act on it. They choose seven for the task. They pick not just any seven men, but seven men who aren’t just men of outstanding character, but each of these men shares something: each one of their names is Greek. These are seven Hellenists. They are from the group that has brought the accusation. [v] How humble is that? This is not just a Band-Aid to make it go away. They are putting their money where their mouth is. They are giving representation to the group who made the complaint. These servant leaders [vi] are essential not only in their function but in their voice and in the unity they bring. Let’s examine the seven ways the apostles humbly navigate this conflict: 1)      Make it about them: instead of taking things personally, they look to those bringing the complaint. 2)      Take ownership: instead of denying responsibility, they take ownership of their fault in the neglect. 3)      Right-size your ownership: instead of minimizing what they did, they look at their wrongdoing for precisely what it was. 4)      Right-size the complaint: instead of exaggerating it, they heard it for what it was. 5)      Make amends: instead of not fixing the problem, they made amends. Repentance isn’t just saying you’re wrong; it’s making changes. 6)      Make it about them: instead of making the complaint about themselves, the apostles made the complaint about the widows. This supernatural response requires the heart of Christ for other people. 7)      They saw God: instead of cutting God out of the picture, they realized that the conflict was an opportunity from God, and he is at the very center of it. Every conflict is an invitation. At the heart of each of these responses is humility: a heart transformed by the humble heart of Christ. How we grow in our ability to navigate conflict comes through a heart that is humbled before our humble God.   Our culture tells us that the way to navigate conflict is to learn techniques, but at the end of the day, if you’re heart isn’t changed, if you have pride in your heart, then you are going to fight poorly. The way to change your response to conflict is to change your heart. Our hearts change when we meet Jesus. We are sinners saved by grace. We are those who were in conflict with God, but he forgave us because of the sacrifice of his Son. The good news that the apostles were devoted to preaching is the very thing that had seeped into their souls, and created a humility to their very core that allowed them to respond the way they did. Has the gospel gripped your heart that way? The passage ends this way: Acts 6:7 “And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.” This conflict was an opportunity for the apostles and the church. Everyone was watching and seeing how they handled it. If I was there, I probably would have made it personal and tried to take on all the extra responsibilities just to prove them wrong. But that would have prevented others from being equipped and the church from growing. Conflict is an opportunity for us; let’s not miss it. Let’s enter in faithfully and humbly that God might be glorified through us. May conflict teach us to grow in humility so that God might use us more greatly for his purposes. [i] There is a significant amount of debate over who the Hellenists are, but most agree that they were a minority in the early church in Jerusalem who were Greek-speaking Jewish believers (Longnecker, Expositional , 327-9; Williams, NIBC , 118). [ii] Acts 6:1 [iii] Williams, NIBC , 118. [iv] Acts 6:1-6 [v] All of these names are Greek, whether they are Hellenists is less certain, but many think they likely are (Longnecker, Expositional , 331). [vi] The word used here is diakonein— serving. It is the same root as the word for deacon, but whether they had that title initially is less likely (although the duties are very much the same as those lays out for the office of deacon) (Marshall, Tyndale , 126; Longnecker, Expositional, 331). www.thebeehive.live

Have you heard from Heaven a calling for your marriage? It’s not a one-size-fits-all. God has a plan cut out just for you! With principles from the Marriage Devotional and themes from The Last Supper on the Moon, Pastor Levi highlights ten attributes that will keep your marriage strong, why it’s essential to hold onto them, and how to pick them up if any have been dropped. www.freshlife.com .

Question from a reader: If we are all co-heirs with Christ, then who are we going to be ruling over on the New Earth? Otherwise wouldn’t we all just be equal brothers and sisters? Who will we rule? Other people. Angels. If God wishes, he may create new beings for us to rule. Who will rule over us? Other people. There will be a social hierarchy of government, but there’s no indication of a relational hierarchy. In other words, the apostle Paul will be in a position of greater leadership than most of us, but that doesn’t mean he’ll be inaccessible. There will be no pride, envy, boasting, or anything sin-related. Our differences will be a manifestation of God’s creativity. As we’re different in race, nationality, gender, personality, gifting, and passions, so we’ll be different in positions of service. All of us will have some responsibility in which we serve God. Scripture teaches that our service for him now on Earth will be evaluated to help determine how we’ll serve him on the New Earth. The humble servant will be put in charge of much, whereas the one who lords it over others in the present world will have power taken away: “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” ( Luke 14:11 ). If we serve faithfully on the present Earth, God will give us permanent management positions on the New Earth. “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much” ( Luke 16:10 ). The Owner has his eye on us—if we prove faithful, he’ll be pleased to entrust more to us. We’ve been conditioned to associate governing with self-promoting arrogance, corruption, inequality, and inefficiency. But these are perversions, not inherent properties of leadership. Ruling involves responsibility—perhaps that’s why some people don’t look forward to it. Some people live in anticipation of retirement, when responsibilities will be removed. Why would they want to take on an eternal task of governing? But what they think they want now and what they’ll really want as resurrected beings—with strong bodies and minds in a society untouched by sin—may be quite different. Imagine responsibility, service, and leadership that’s pure joy. The responsibility that God will entrust to us as a reward can only be good for us, and we’ll find delight in it. To rule on the New Earth will be to enable, equip, and guide, offering wisdom and encouragement to those under our authority. We’ve so often seen leadership twisted that we’ve lost a biblical view of what ruling, or exercising dominion, really means. God, ruler of the universe, is living proof that ruling can and should be good.

Do you ever wonder why you make certain choices? Maybe you wanted to make a change in your life but just couldn’t stick to it. In this message, we’re getting to the bottom of why we do the things we do and learning how to overcome negative thoughts. www.lifechurch.tv/open

In the Garden of Eden, Satan first appealed to the lust of the flesh. The fruit looked good to Eve, so why not have a bite? “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” ( Genesis 3:1 ). Notice that the devil said “any tree” when God said only “the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (2:17). Satan distorts and questions the Word of God when he attacks the mind. The key to winning the battle for your mind is to recognize tempting thoughts for what they are and practice “threshold thinking.” Take that first thought captive to the obedience of Christ. It is not a sin to be tempted, but entertaining those thoughts will lead to sin. If you consider them in your mind, your emotions will be stimulated in the wrong direction and your will power will crumble. You should avoid any discussion with Satan’s mouthpieces, which Eve failed to do when she answered, “God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die’’’ (3:3). Notice that she added the restriction, “you must not touch it.” Don’t continue to dialogue with the tempter – the person pushing you for sex or to have another piece of pie. “Let your ‘Yes’ by yes, and your ‘No,’ no, or you will be condemned” ( James 5:12 ). Satan had piqued her appetite for the forbidden fruit, and she saw “that the fruit of the tree was good for food” (verse 6). Her initial “no” was now a “maybe.” It was through this same channel of temptation that the devil attempted to get Jesus to turn a rock into bread, which prompted Christ to quote Deuteronomy 8:3 : “Man does not live on bread alone.” There would have been nothing wrong with Jesus eating bread at the end of His fast, except that it wasn’t the Father’s will for Him to do so. He made His decision by verbally quoting Scripture, and that was the end of the dialogue. He was not about to act independently of the Father’s will. Eating is necessary and right, but eating too much – or eating the wrong kinds of foods, or allowing food to rule our lives – is wrong. Food sustains life, but it does not guarantee life, which is God’s gift to those who trust in His Word and live by it. When we fast, we suppress the most powerful appetite we have, because food is necessary to sustain life. In a similar way, sex as intended by God is beautiful and good, but sex outside of marriage, fornication and selfish sex are out of bounds and enslaving. If we give in to the temptation to meet our own fleshly desires independently of God, we are yielding to the lust of the flesh. We all have residual flesh patterns that become points of vulnerability, and Satan seems to know just what buttons to push. What could be tempting to one person may not be at all tempting to another. It is important that we recognize our weaknesses and not subject ourselves to unnecessary temptation. We should also restrict our freedom for the sake of weaker Christians. LUST OF THE EYES Eve saw that the food was “pleasing to the eye” ( Genesis 3:6 ). The “lust of the eyes” was the second channel of temptation through which Satan took advantage. Eve’s resolve was weakening. It looks good and I want it. What harm could possibly befall me if I took just one little bite? Seizing the opportunity, Satan said, “You will not certainly die” ( Genesis 3:4 ). “Don’t listen to God,” he hissed. “He is just trying to deny you some of life’s great pleasures. Do what is right in your own eyes. There are no serious consequences for choices that you make. The lust of the eyes subtly draws us away from the Word of God and eats away at our confidence in Him. We see what the world has to offer and desire it above our relationship with God. We begin to place more credence in our perspective of life than in God’s plans and promises. Fueled by the lust for what we see, we grab for all that we can get. Tempting lies have not changed since the original sin. Go ahead and do it. You know you want to. Everyone else is doing it. Why should you be denied? Who would know if you did? You will get away with it. With Eve, Satan questioned the Word of God. With Jesus, he quoted Scripture, but in a diabolical way. “If you believe God’s Word is true, prove it. Jump off the Temple wall. God will save you by sending His angels to bear you up. You won’t even come close to hitting the rocks below” (see Matthew 4:6 ). Had Jesus jumped to His death, everyone’s confidence in God would have been shattered. However, Jesus was not going to be seduced by a passage taken out of context. He countered the temptation with a passage of Scripture that exposed Satan’s ploy: “Do not put the LORD your God to the test” ( Deuteronomy 6:16 ). That verse follows the Shema (see Deuteronomy 6:4-9 ), which is still recited daily by orthodox Jews. Shema means “to hear so as to obey.” The righteous live by faith in the written Word of God and do not demand that God prove Himself in response to our whims or wishes, no matter how noble we think our cause may be. God is under no obligation to us – He is under obligation only to Himself. There is no way that we can cleverly word a prayer so that God must respond to our will. Such thinking distorts the meaning of prayer and puts us in the position of trying to manipulate God. A beloved man was once dying with cancer. Word spread throughout his church that four independent witnesses had all testified that the man was not going to die. The congregation believed these witnesses had heard from God and rejoiced. Three weeks, later the man died. Either those four “witnesses” were paying attention to a deceiving spirit, or God’s Word can’t be trusted. Counterfeit gifts of knowledge and prophecy spoken through false prophets and deceived Christians can destroy our confidence in God. If they give us a “word from the Lord” and it doesn’t prove to be true, God can no longer be trusted. The same thing happens if we pay attention to a deceiving spirit and think it is from God. Paul says that we will fall away from the faith if we pay attention to deceiving spirits and things taught by demons (see 1 Timothy 4:1 ). www.ficm.org

The dream was perfect. I was at a party and as I moved through the crowd I was really enjoying some sweet revenge by telling stories about someone who had seriously hurt me. Everyone was enjoying the ridicule I was creating and I knew I was changing their attitudes toward this person. And then I woke up. Nothing I did in my dream had been real, but my desire to hurt this person and turn others against him had been very real. When I woke up I realized the depth of my anger and the reality of my need to get rid of this festering bitterness that was now even robbing me of sleep. I don’t know if any of you have ever had a vengeful nightmare, but unfortunately, this was not the first time I have dreamed about someone I needed to forgive. I am not the most self-aware person you will ever meet, so God often speaks to me through my dreams. This doesn’t make me a Daniel or a Joseph. When I get hurt I have a bad habit of wanting to bury the pain, so far down that it makes me sick. I tell this story not to find pity. I tell this story because struggling to forgive someone is a common temptation. Today I want to write about forgiveness. What it is and what it is not. Specifically I want to talk about how we forgive when we can’t forget what someone has done. Forgiveness is not forgetting. If we have to fight our feelings to forgive we are normal. If we can’t forget what someone has done this is a very common problem. To begin with I want to make it clear I am not interested in judging anyone. God knows I could never do that in good conscience because I have wrestled with my emotions to forgive many times. Struggling to forgive is quite ordinary. But, somethings cannot be forgotten and somethings should not be forgotten. So, forgiveness is not forgetting. Forgiveness is letting someone off our hook, but our acts of mercy and forgiveness will never let someone off God’s hook. This is between them and God. We can’t control other people or their behavior. All of us have to repent to receive God’s forgiveness. As we go through life some behaviors will need to be remembered and some people will need to be held accountable for their behavior. Sometimes we have to go to the police because of what has happened and sometimes we have to separate and get the divorce because a spouse will not give up their infidelity. So, it is possible to forgive and not be able to forget. Jesus knows how hard it is to forgive. In Hebrews 2:14-18 the writer to the Hebrews wrote this about Jesus. 14) Now since the children have flesh and blood in common, Jesus also shared in these, so that through his death he might destroy the one holding the power of death—that is, the devil—15) and free those who were held in slavery all their lives by the fear of death. 16) For it is clear that he does not reach out to help angels, but to help Abraham’s offspring. 17) Therefore he had to be like his brothers and sisters in every way, so that he could become a merciful and faithful high priest in matters pertaining to God, to make atonement for the sins of the people. For since he himself has suffered when he was tempted he is able to help those who are tempted. CSB Jesus genuinely suffered when he was tempted. This savior who wants to strengthen us in our hour of need knows exactly how tempting it is to hold on to feelings of bitterness and anger because of someone else’s sinful choices. Another helpful passage to remember when we need to know Jesus is always on our side is Hebrews 4:14-16 . 14) Therefore since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens—Jesus the Son of God—let us hold fast to our confession. 15) For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way as we are, yet without sin. 16) Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need.  CSB Not only was Jesus genuinely tempted to not forgive people who hurt him, he is able to sympathize with us. To be tempted by sin is not the same as sinning. Jesus was tempted in every way that we are tempted yet was without sin. Jesus knows how costly our forgiveness will be to us. He suffered when he was tempted to not forgive just like we do. Remember the prayer Jesus prayed from the cross? It is found in Luke 23:34 … ”Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” ESV This prayer is still one of the most relevant prayers we can pray for those we are struggling to forgive. Most of the people who hurt us have no idea what their evil actions have unleashed in our lives. This doesn’t mean their actions weren’t premeditated it means they hadn’t counted the cost of their behavior. Certainly, the people who crucified Jesus had no idea what they were doing and who was using their willful choices. When we pray this prayer, “ Father forgive them, for they know not what they do,” we will look like Jesus. Forgiveness then is a spiritual exercise we do to obey God. Forgiveness is something we do for God. We don’t forgive because someone has changed. The person who traumatized us may never change. They may never ask for forgiveness or acknowledge the hurt they have caused. We forgive to have a better relationship with God. But we can’t forgive in our strength. We must rely on God’s Holy Spirit that lives inside of us to truly forgive. In Matthew 6:9-15 Jesus teaches us how to pray and in the last part of this prayer we see the need to forgive those who have hurt us.   9) Pray like this:             “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. 10) Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11) Give us this day our daily bread, 12)  and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. 13) And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. (For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen) 14) For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, 15) But if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. ESV Jesus desires that we forgive, and he even ties our ability to receive his forgiveness, to us practicing forgiving others. I say practicing, because sometimes forgiveness can be a process. So, forgiveness is not forgetting and it is something we do for God. Forgiveness is something we do to protect ourselves. In Matthew 18:21-35 we have another important passage on forgiveness. God is diligent about growing within us a heart of mercy. Look at Matthew 18:21-35 . 21) Then Peter approached him and asked, “Lord, how many times must I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? As many as seven times? CSB Do you think that Peter thought he was being generous when he asked Jesus if he should forgive his brother or sister seven times? Maybe. Jesus’ next words are going to expose Peter’s rule keeping heart. Like Peter, we are often looking for a rule, or a spiritual principle, while God is looking for our complete transformation. 22) I tell you, not as many as seven,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven. CSB Why does Jesus give him such a large number? Did he believe Peter really had a heart of contrition? This enormous number was, so Peter would know he should never keep a record of the wrongs that had been done to him. Look at this parable that comes next in Matthew 18:23-35 . 23) “For this reason the kingdom of heaven can be compared to a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24) When he began to settle accounts, one who owed ten thousand talents, was brought before him. 25) Since he did not have the money to pay it back, his master commanded that he, his wife, his children and everything he had be sold to pay the debt.” 26) “At this, the servant fell facedown before him and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27) Then the master of that servant had compassion, released him, and forgave him the loan. 28) “That servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him, started choking him, and said, ‘Pay what you owe!’ 29) “At this, his fellow servant fell down and began begging him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’ 30) But he wasn’t willing. Instead he went and threw him into prison until he could pay what was owed. 31) When the other servants saw what had taken place, they were deeply distressed and went and reported to their master everything that had happened. 32) Then, after he had summoned him, his master said to him. ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. 33) Shouldn’t you also have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you? 34) And because he was angry, his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured until he could pay everything that was owed. 35) So also my heavenly Father will do to you unless every one of you forgives his brother or sister from your heart.”  CSB Again from this passage we see how critical forgiveness is to God. A talent and a denarii were coinage used by the ancient Romans. A talent was worth about six thousand denarii and a denarii was how much money a day laborer would make after one day working in the fields. So the first servant in this parable owed about sixty million denarii. Do you think he had the means to pay back a loan of this size? Probably not. But, his fellow servant only owed him one hundred denarii, which was about one third his yearly salary. This amount would be hard to pay back, but not impossible. The contrast in this parable between the two servants is supposed to awaken us to how foolish our bitterness is. Within this passage Jesus is trying to grow the frequency with which we forgive and the amount we are willing to forgive. The most important character trait he is looking for on this earth is his mercy. He wants our mercy to mirror his heart of mercy. Parables can be hard to interpret, but Jesus seems to be saying with this parable in Matthew that those who don’t forgive invite a special kind of torture into their lives. Christians who refuse to forgive have literally chosen to walk in darkness and not in the light that Jesus’ teaching brings.   If we have experienced an extreme hurt forgiveness will be a challenge, but not impossible.  We will probably need to see a professional counselor to get there. If we are having nightmares like I was and other troubling thoughts we need to talk to a counselor about our trauma. We need to pay attention to what our minds are dwelling on and talk to someone. No class, writing or speaker should be a substitute for professional counseling. We also need to learn to listen to our bodies, the effects of trauma are often first manifested in physical symptoms. Modern medicine is important, but don’t rule out that some symptoms you are experiencing maybe aggravated by emotional and spiritual issues.   Forgiveness is not forgetting, it is something we do for God, and forgiveness is something we do to protect ourselves.

We often define our lives by the big moments. But most of our lives consist of ordinary chapters. They may not feel significant, but ultimately end up changing everything. In our new series, The Book of Ruth, we’ll discover the hidden beauty of life’s small moments. www.lifechurch.tv/open

Do ghosts exist? Do we have access to the spirit world? If so, what does that mean for our spiritual life? Not long ago I was asked by a congregant to make sense of the bizarre story of Saul and the Medium at En-Dor.  This story is understandably confusing, and one of the strangest in scripture. At the heart of this text is a critical question: will you obey God? Here is the story:   The Philistines assembled and came and encamped at Shunem. And Saul gathered all Israel, and they encamped at Gilboa. When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly. And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams, or by Urim, or by prophets. Then Saul said to his servants, “Seek out for me a woman who is a medium, that I may go to her and inquire of her.” And his servants said to him, “Behold, there is a medium at En-dor.” So Saul disguised himself and put on other garments and went, he and two men with him. And they came to the woman by night. And he said, “Divine for me by a spirit and bring up for me whomever I shall name to you.” The woman said to him, “Surely you know what Saul has done, how he has cut off the mediums and the necromancers from the land. Why then are you laying a trap for my life to bring about my death?” But Saul swore to her by the Lord, “As the Lord lives, no punishment shall come upon you for this thing.” Then the woman said, “Whom shall I bring up for you?” He said, “Bring up Samuel for me.” When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice. And the woman said to Saul, “Why have you deceived me? You are Saul.” The king said to her, “Do not be afraid. What do you see?” And the woman said to Saul, “I see a god coming up out of the earth.” He said to her, “What is his appearance?” And she said, “An old man is coming up, and he is wrapped in a robe.” And Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground and paid homage. ( 1 Sam. 28:4-14 ) Desperate for guidance, Saul disobeys the law and seeks out a medium. Witchcraft and mediums are clearly forbidden in scripture  as the represent pagan worship ( Lev. 19:31 ). The deceased prophet Samuel appears. Samuel then, sounding very much like himself, grumpily chastises Saul because of Saul’s disobedience: “the Lord will give Israel also with you into the hand of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons shall be with me. The Lord will give the army of Israel also into the hand of the Philistines” ( 1 Sam.28:19 ). Many questions surface from this text. Is this really Samuel? It sure sounds like him. This does not seem to be a false word from the mouth of Satan (as one might suspect). In fact, the prophecy comes to pass, but there is no other place in scripture (except, perhaps the Transfiguration) where dead people are summoned to appear. So, is this a demonic presence? If it is, then why would a demonic presence speak words of truth and warning that sound so much like what Samuel would say? Wise and godly minds fall on both sides of this debate. On the one side, we have the possibility that this is a demon controlled by God to deliver this message to Saul. On the other side, we have the possibility that this is actually Samuel whom God uses to speak truth to Saul. Given the numerous times (especially during Jesus’ ministry) that demons speak through humans counterbalanced with the lack of times we see people speak from the dead, it seems more likely to me that this is a demonic manifestation, though I don’t completely disregard that this could be Samuel. Regardless, it is clear God is intervening to warn Saul. Saul pays a dear and dire price for his disobedience:  his very life.  “So Saul died for his breach of faith. He broke faith with the Lord in that he did not keep the command of the Lord, and also consulted a medium, seeking guidance. He did not seek guidance from the Lord. Therefore the Lord put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.”  ( 1 Chronicles 10 : 13-14) While most of us are probably not in jeopardy of disobeying God’s commandment to consult a medium (please don’t!), many of us are in danger of what led Saul to this place: an over the top longing for God’s direction. What could be bad about wanting God’s guidance? Isn’t that a good thing? It doesn’t seem like there would be any danger in seeking after what God wants for your life. And yet, can danger lurk here anyway. Saul first seeks God’s guidance through prayer, then through dreams, then through Urim (a way God spoke to the priests), then through the prophets. God did not answer Saul. Only then does Saul turn to the Medium at En-dor. What Saul’s quest belies is that Saul cares more about what God can provide than God himself. Saul is gripped with the fear of the Philistines, not the fear of the Lord. How are we like Saul? We are more concerned about God’s will for our vocational life: “Lord, should I take this job?” We are so worried about whether God wants us to have children: “God, why can’t we get pregnant?” We feel lost about what school to go to or whether we should go to school at all. Or “God, is this person I’m dating the one you want me to marry?” These healthy questions become unhealthy to us when getting an answer becomes bigger than the Giver of that answer. We pray, we churn, we beg for God to give us clarity. We feel forgotten in his felt silence. Why would God do this? Why would he leave us high and dry? Doesn’t he care? In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus urges us not to be anxious. He points us to the lilies and the sparrows and to the fact that we can entrust ourselves to our sovereign and compassionate God. As he closes, Jesus urges us that instead of focusing on our anxieties, we should look to God and his kingdom, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” ( Matt. 6:33 ). In other words, attend to the Gift Giver, not the gifts. Why would God not respond to our pleas for clarity? Perhaps it is because he is not interested in being a cosmic GPS, telling us what our next turn is. Perhaps it is because he wants us to turn from wanting his provision to wanting a relationship with Him. Perhaps it is because he wants us to worship him simply for who he is regardless of our circumstances. Perhaps he’s calling us deeper into trust, perseverance, and long suffering. Are your prayers consumed by trying to shake free from God an answer about his direction for you? There is nothing wrong with asking God for his will in a situation. But if he doesn’t answer, remember Saul. Are you willing to forsake seeking other gods to stay locked on God even if he seems silent? www.thebeehive.live . Used by permission.

Almost everyone in the world of American religion has spent the last couple of weeks thinking through what  Gallup just revealed : that, for the first time since they’ve been surveying the topic, less than half the country belongs to a church of any kind. My first thought was grief. But what came after that was a strange sort of almost survivor’s guilt. When I was fifteen years old, I considered suicide—and it was because I didn’t want to lose my religion. As I’ve  written about elsewhere , I went through a prolonged spiritual crisis then because of what I was seeing all around me in Bible Belt Christianity. Not only were the televangelist scandals all over the news, but also I knew that this wasn’t the half of it. Just as those in political journalism have long known how to interpret “Sen. Smith has decided to spend more time with his family,” I knew how to interpret “The Lord has called Brother Jones from the pastorate into itinerant evangelism.” I knew of “Christian people” who beat their children for listening to “secular music.” I knew of “Christian people” who denounced the vulgarity in the culture but seethed with racism. I heard prediction after prediction after prediction tying current events to Bible prophecy that was all “just about to happen.” But nobody ever said, “Remember when I said ‘Gog and Magog’ of the Bible is the Soviet Union? I was wrong about that” or “Mikhail Gorbachev, I told you was probably the antichrist, but, my bad” or “Now that I also am using these supermarket scanners, maybe they’re not the Mark of the Beast after all.” These folks just moved on with the next confident assertions, as though the last never happened at all. And this was even more the case with the politics. Even as a teenager, I could see that the “voting guides” that showed up in Bible Belt America were kind of like the horoscopes one could find in the newspaper. The horoscope could say, “Today you will find a surprising new opportunity,” and a certain sort of credulous person would be amazed at how this just happened to be true—without ever thinking about the fact that this is true of virtually every human being at virtually every moment, if one just pays attention to it. Likewise, the voter guides lined out the “Christian” view from the “anti-Christian view” on a list of issues that just happened to line up with the favored party’s platform that year. Somehow the Bible suddenly gave us a “Christian view” on a balanced budget amendment or a line-item veto, things that, like the European common market as a sign of the last days, were never noticed in the text until the favored candidates started emphasizing such things. And along with all that came apocalyptic warnings that if these candidates weren’t elected, or these policies weren’t enacted, we would “lose our entire culture.” But when those candidates lost, no one headed for the bunkers. The culture didn’t fall—at least not any more than it had before. I started to wonder whether religion itself—or at least the kind of Christianity that showed up in the slogans all around me—might really be about something else: southern culture or politics. If so, I thought, that would mean that Jesus is not the Way, the Truth, and the Life, but a means to an end. And that would mean that the gospel is not “You must be born again,” but “You must be one of us.” All that was terrifying to me because I really believed that Jesus was the Son of the Living God. I really believed that Jesus loved me…for the Bible told me so. And if the gospel I had been given was really just about finding ways to get voters to back party bosses or to fund prostitutes and cocaine for some preachers on TV, then that would mean more than just an adolescent cynical awakening. It would mean that the universe is a random, meaningless void—red in tooth and claw. It would mean that the preacher who beat his daughter for dancing wasn’t an aberration but was instead the way the cosmos is, right down to the core. And that was a horrible thought. Obviously—since this isn’t a horoscope coming to you from beyond the grave—I came through this teenager crisis. And obviously—since I’m an evangelical Christian—I came through it with my faith not just intact but deepened. That’s due, ultimately of course, to the grace of God. But, in terms of secondary causes, it’s due to the fact that I found a copy of C.S. Lewis’  Mere Christianity on a bookstore shelf and, having read to the point of memorization  The Chronicles of Narnia  as a child, I recognized his name. And it’s due to the fact that listening to Christian music led me to a Christian bookstore where I found, amidst all the kitsch, a copy of  Christianity Today magazine, where I found columns by Philip Yancey and J.I. Packer and John Stott and Chuck Colson. These people seemed to take the reader seriously as someone who could think, and they seemed to be filled, not with anger and outrage and manipulation, but with what I recognized as the fruit of the Spirit—peace, joy, kindness, gentleness, self-control, etc. There seemed to be something there that bore witness to a Jesus who was not a means to an end but who was the Alpha and Omega of everything. But my fifteen year-old self haunts me. I know that the reason I even went looking for C.S. Lewis and the others is because I had been taught the Bible—in a good, loving church. I had seen genuine love and community and authenticity there, week by week in Sunday School and Training Union and worship services and Vacation Bible Schools—to know that it could exist, and what it would look like when I found it. But I wonder what would have happened to fifteen year-old Russell Moore had I been born in 2001 instead of 1971? Would the things I saw have even prompted a crisis at all? Or would I just have walked away altogether? Would I have ended up the sort of atheist or agnostic or “deconstructing ex-vangelical” that I find myself counseling almost every day now? Who can know—and I suppose I should just conclude that, with apologies to Paul Simon, I was Born Again at the Right Time. But I think about this literally every day of my life. And maybe more this week than ever. Back to Gallup. The number of Americans now affiliated with a church is just 47 percent. What’s significant is not just the low number, but the speed of the plummet —from 68 percent of Americans twenty years ago to 47 percent now. And the numbers are even worse than they appear. Generation X is less affiliated than Baby Boomers and Millennials less than Gen-X and Generation Z looking to be even less affiliated than them all. In recent years, even some who were less apocalyptic about the prospects of evangelical Christianity—because of growth in the Global South or because of the cyclical nature of revivals and awakenings—have grown more foreboding about the prospects of evangelical Christianity in the twenty-first century. Referring to the “Nones,” those claiming “no religious affiliation,” sociologist Philip Jenkins contends: “The future of the USA is None.” Indeed, the most reliable studies available show us that as little as 8 percent of white Millennials identify as evangelicals, as compared to 26 percent of senior adults. With Generation Z, the numbers are even more jarring—with 34 percent identifying as religiously unaffiliated, and that number is growing. What’s more, the “culture wars” narrative of this secularization is increasingly demonstrated to be false—at least in the way presented by and to American evangelicals over the past fifty years. Some of the disaffiliation, to be sure, is due to liberalizing cultural norms, decreasing fertility, and increasing mobility. But the evidence is mounting that a significant amount of secularization is accelerated and driven not by the “secular culture,” but by evangelicalism itself. Many of us have observed, anecdotally, a hemorrhaging of younger evangelicals from churches and institutions in recent years. What seems different about this quiet exodus is that the departures are heightened not among the peripheries of the church—those “nominal” or “cultural” Christians who grow up to rebel against their parents’ beliefs—but instead among those who are the  most  committed to what were previously thought to be the  hardest aspects of Christian religion in modernity: belief in “the supernatural,” the rigorous demands of discipleship, and a longing for community and accountability in a multigenerational church with ancient roots and transcendent authority. Where a “de-churched” (to use an anachronistic term) “ex-vangelical” (to use another) in the early 1920s was likely to have walked away due to the fact that she found the virgin birth or the bodily resurrection to be outdated and superstitious or because he found moral libertinism to be more attractive than the “outmoded” strict moral code of his past or because she wanted to escape the stifling bonds of a home church for an autonomous individualism, now we see a markedly different—and jarring—model of a disillusioned evangelical. We now see young evangelicals walking away from evangelicalism not because they do not believe what the church teaches, but because they believe the  church itself  does not believe what the church teaches. The presenting issue in this secularization is not scientism and hedonism but disillusionment and cynicism. Many have pointed to compelling data—from Robert Putnam and David Campbell and countless other sociologists, political scientists, and demographers—showing that the politicization of American religion is a key driver of people away from religious affiliation. Some would point to the fact that most of those leaving would identify politically as somewhere from moderate to progressive, to suggest that such people are better off outside the church in the first place. Let’s just assume for the sake of argument that such is true, which comes first here—the demand to line up politically in order to follow Jesus or the decision to reject the politics of those making such demands? Moreover, it seems to me that the controversy is not actually even over the specific political planks or ideas or personalities as the fact that many have come to believe that the religion itself is a vehicle for the politics and the cultural grievances—and not the other way around. And it’s not difficult to see why. I watched twenty years ago as people suggested that those waving away a president’s sexual behavior as irrelevant to his public office were the result of liberal forms of Baptist theology, and then lived long enough to watch the same people suggest that those who  did not  wave away such behavior from another president might not be “real Christians.” People can change their minds, of course. I certainly have done so on many things. But—as with the prophecy charts a generation ago—there is no talk of minds changing, just certainties in one direction and then certainties in the opposite direction, with the only difference being the tribal affiliations of the leaders under discussion. The trends in secularization mean that people do not  need  the church in order to see themselves as Americans or as good people or even as “spiritual.” And they certainly do not need the church in order to carry out their political affiliations—even when those political affiliations are those preferred by the church. If evangelicalism is politics, people can get their politics somewhere else—and fight and fornicate and get drunk too, if they want. A religion that calls people away from Western modernity will have to say, with credibility, “Take up your cross and follow me,” not “Come with us, and we’ll own the libs.” One can do the latter on YouTube and one needn’t even give up a Sunday morning. Almost every survey of disaffiliating people has also emphasized the scandals within the church—most notably the sexual abuse cover-ups and predatory behavior. This is about more than just the standard trope of “Don’t judge the church by the hypocrites in it.” Every generation has had idealism shattered by scandal within the church. That’s why J.R.R. Tolkien wrote to his own disillusioned son to encourage him not to give up on the church, despite hypocrisies, as “the virtue of loyalty” is one that “only becomes a virtue when one is under pressure to desert it.” This is far more than just that. We might reassure ourselves when we see the proliferating “Nones” among our youth that the reason they are leaving is because they want to run their own lives and pursue the sexual hedonism the church (rightly) forbids. Some of that is no doubt the case. But if one believes the Bible, one knows that wanting to run one’s own life is not a new development with modernity. And one need only know a little bit of high school biology to know that the desire for sexual hedonism didn’t start in the Obama Administration. First-century Athens, Greece, was just as intellectually averse to Christianity as is twenty-first century Athens, Georgia—and far more sexually “liberated” too. And the gospel went forth and the churches grew. The problem now is not that people think the church’s way of life is too demanding, too morally rigorous, but that they have come to think the church doesn’t believe its own moral teachings. The problem is not that they reject the idea that God could send anyone to hell but that, when they see the church covering up predatory behavior in its institutions, they have evidence that the church believes God would not send “our kind of people” to hell. If people reject the church because they reject Jesus and the gospel, we should be saddened but not surprised. But what happens when people reject the church because they think  we  reject Jesus and the gospel? If people leave the church because they want to gratify the flesh with abandon, such has always been the case, but what happens when people leave because they believe  the church  exists to gratify the flesh—whether in orgies of sex or orgies of anger or orgies of materialism? That’s a far different problem. And what if people don’t leave the church because they disapprove of Jesus, but because they’ve read the Bible and have come to the conclusion that the church itself would disapprove of Jesus? That’s a crisis. Will the church die? No. The church moves out into the future not on the strength of its culture or its institutions but because of the promise of Jesus at Caesarea Philippi. And—however buffered the modern self might be from the so-called supernatural—the tomb is, in fact, empty. The apostles were telling the truth. The stories are true. And that means Jesus is alive—and seated in heaven until the kingdom of God has come on earth as it is in heaven. That truth, though, doesn’t mean that the institutions as they are will continue to exist. Any church can lose its lampstand—and any church “culture” can lose its credibility and die. The church will be reborn in every generation, but, as the prophet Jeremiah warned Jerusalem, “Don’t be fooled by those who promise you safety simply because the Lord’s temple is here…Do you really think you can steal, murder, commit adultery, lie and burn incense to Baal and all those other new gods of yours, and then come here and stand before me in my Temple and chant, ‘we are safe!’—only to go right back to all those evils again?” ( Jer. 7:4 , 8-10 NLT). The church will survive—even here in America—but, along the way, a lot of fifteen year-olds will be hurt. A lot of them will conclude that the gospel is just one more aspect of political theater or outrage culture or institutional self-perpetuation or worse. They will be wrong, of course, but, as Jesus put it, “woe to the person through whom the stumbling block comes” ( Matt. 18:7 NASB ). We are losing a generation—not because they are secularists, but because they believe we are. What this demands is not a rebranding, but a repentance—meaning, as the Bible does, a turnaround. Stranger things have happened, and that’s good, because we will need it. We need to be the people of Christ and him crucified, the people of a Word that stands above all earthly powers and, no thanks to them, abides. Somewhere, there’s at least one fifteen year-old who needs to see if we’re such a people. Maybe, even, his life depends on it. www.russellmoore.com .paatheculture

The heart, in biblical terms, is not part of who we are, but rather the center and core of who we are. So when it comes to Jesus describing who he is – he does so as saying he is ‘gentle and lowly’. (See Matthew 11:28-29). The Scriptures then bear witness to the fuller and deeper description of all that means in how Jesus relates with us. Tonight, we see how He is one who will never cast us out or aside. Gentle and Lowly: Discovering the Heart of Jesus Jack Schull Quote:“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”-A. W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy As we get to know Jesus more clearly, intimately, and have him shape us more intentionally - we will begin to reflect his kind of heart more consistently… So, it’s important for us to know what Jesus is really like. Matthew 11:28-29 CSB 28 “Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, because I am lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Only place in Scripture, where Jesus describes himself. One thing to get straight right from the start is that when the Bible speaks of the heart, whether Old Testament or New, it is not speaking of our emotional life only - but of the central animating center of all we do. It is our motivation HQ. GENTLE: Meek. Humble. Gentle. == Jesus is not trigger-happy. He is NOT harsh, reactionary, easily exasperated. He is the most understanding person in the universe. The posture most natural to him is not a pointed finger — but open arms. LOWLY: The point in saying that Jesus is lowly is that he is accessible. For all his resplendent glory and dazzling holiness, his supreme uniqueness and otherness, no one in human history has ever been more approachable than Jesus Christ. This is who he is: Tender. Open. Welcoming. Accommodating. Understanding. Willing. Quote: "The cumulative testimony of the four Gospels is that when Jesus Christ sees the fallenness of the world all about him (and within you), his deepest impulse, his most natural instinct, is to move toward that sin and suffering, not away from it." --Dane Ortland Jesus doesn’t walk away from people, he walks toward — even if they choose to walk away. John chapter 6 - I AM the Bread of life... probably the hardest sermon Jesus ever preached - trying to point to WHO he really is and how people must trust in Him. So many followers walk away from him at the end of the sermon -- but listen to this GEM he promises in v.37 37 Everyone the Father gives me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will never cast out. (CSB) We naturally think: “expiration date” in all things… it’s just a matter of time before all things spoil/fade. Fallen and anxious sinners are limitless in their capacity to perceive reasons for Jesus to cast them out. ALL THROUGHOUT SCRIPTURE there is proclaimed over us - an everlasting connection that cannot be disconnected from God’s end… John 10 - Matthew 28 - Romans 8 - Revelation 3 We cannot, will not or ever discover a reason for Christ to finally close off his heart to his own sheep. No such reason exists. We can find rest in this assurance from our gentle and lowly Savior who will never abandon us, never walk away from us, never give up on us, never cast us out… he continually invites us to come near to him… It’s the very core of his heart. Quote: “I am here to tell you that the Father's heart is open wide: you are welcome to come in.” —Richard Foster www.elementscitychurch

“War in Heaven Brings Wrath on Earth!” That could be the headline of Revelation 12 . The ongoing battle of the ages that began in heaven and has played out on earth will reach fever pitch in the coming years. If you’re asking What’s Next?, the answer in part lies here. The cosmic battle becomes a global battle that will be filled with both woe and worship, both fury and freedom. Let’s get more insight into the motivations and actions of the archenemy of God’s people. 7/17/23, 1:46 PM Satan's Global Conflict | SkipHeitzig.com Skip's Teachings > What's Next? > Satan's Global Conflict MESSAGE: Satan's Global Conflict - Revelation 12:7-17 Taught on Sunday, March 13, 2016 | Topic: Satan | Keywords: Devil, Satan, torment, hell, tribulation, heaven, earth, war, spiritual warfare, chaos, temptation, attack, battle, angels, archangel, demons, Israel, evil, rapture, dragon, serpent, enemy, tyrant, cunning, adversary, deceive, pastor, shepherd, accusation, salvation, tribulation, wrath, judgment, banishment, Antichrist, anti-Semitism, eagle, earthquake, flood, blood of the Lamb, Advocate, sins, testimony "War in Heaven Brings Wrath on Earth!" That could be the headline of Revelation 12. The ongoing battle of the ages that began in heaven and has played out on earth will reach fever pitch in the coming years. If you're asking What's Next?, the answer in part lies here. The cosmic battle becomes a global battle that will be filled with both woe and worship, both fury and freedom. Let's get more insight into the motivations and actions of the archenemy of God's people. SERIES DESCRIPTION OUTLINE I. Satan Is Persistent (vv. 7-12) II. Satan Is Perverse (vv. 9-10) III. Satan Is Pernicious (vv. 12-17) IV. Satan Is Preventable (v. 11) STUDY GUIDE DETAILED NOTES TRANSCRIPT Hello and welcome to this message from Pastor Skip Heitzig of Calvary Albuquerque. We pray God uses these messages to reach people around the world. And we're thankful to hear stories of lives being changed by his love. If this message impacts you, we'd like to know. Email us at mystory@calvaryabq.org. And if you'd like to support this ministry financially, you can give online securely at CalvaryABQ.org/giving. In our series, "What's Next," we explore the Book of Revelation to see what the future holds. As we approach the second coming of Jesus, Satan continues to war against Christ's church. In the message, "Satan's Global Conflict," we get more insight into the motivations and actions of the arch enemy of God's people. Now we invite you to mark your bibles in Revelation chapter 12 as Skip begins. Revelation chapter 12-- we've been doing a series in the Book of Revelation. And we're calling it, "What's Next." And we're looking at what's ahead. And honestly, to be quite frank, it's shocking as we discover what is actually written there as to what is next. So you're going to need to get your minds in the game now and your hearts in the game as we look at Revelation 12, this week beginning with verse seven. Before we even read or consider anything, let's pray. Father, we now want to give you our attention. That's not easy to do in an age where attention spans have been cut short by so many options that we have-- instantaneous gratification by little screens that we project in front of us and any number of things. We just pray that you will give us ears to hear, and hearts to rejoice that ultimately you are in charge, even with the horrendous things that we read about are coming to this earth. Give us grace, give us patience. Strengthen our walks as we live to serve you. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen. So this crusty old guy from Massachusetts dies. And he doesn't go to heaven. He goes to the other place. And there in hell, the devil wants to make things really miserable for him, so he gives them a horrible job of breaking rocks with a sledgehammer. And he turns the heat up and the humidity, and checks on him a couple weeks later just to see if the punishment is adequate enough. And he goes and he finds this man from Massachusetts singing, seems happy with a smile on his face. And the devil goes, "hey, I've given you the worst possible job in the worst possible place. How can you be so happy?" And he says, "well actually, this hot, humid weather reminds me of being home in Massachusetts. It's like an August day back in Massachusetts. So I sort of feel like I'm back home." So the devil didn't like that and he decided to change his course of action, and he brought rain and wind to that hellish place, and checked up on this man a couple of weeks later, slogging his way through the mud with the rocks wheel barrel. And yet the man is happy, smiling, singing. The devil goes, "how on earth can you be so happy?" And the man said, "well, actually this is very much like an April day in Massachusetts. This is like the spring time out 1/6 skipheitzig.com/teachings_view.asp?ServiceID=4052&detailednotes=0&relatedmessages=0&transcript=1&print=1 7/17/23, 1:46 PM Satan's Global Conflict | SkipHeitzig.com on the farm, and it just is so reminiscent of me being back home." So the devil goes away, decides one last ditch effort to make this man miserable. And he brings the temperatures so low, subzero. He goes back to check on this man. This time he's not only singing, he's dancing, he's swinging the sledgehammer around. He's just happier than ever before. The devil says, "now wait a minute. It's 40 degrees below zero. There's snow and ice everywhere in hell. How can you be so happy?" And the man said with a big smile-- the man from Massachusetts, "hell has frozen over." That can only mean one thing. The Patriots have won the Super Bowl. [LAUGHTER] Now I share that crazy little story to make an illustration. People have many misconceptions when it comes to the devil. Number one, that he is not real at all. He is not a being at all. He is a fictional character to be used in silly little stories and jokes like the one I just mentioned. Or he is a symbol of evil. When we deal with those shadier parts of our character, we sometimes say, I am battling with my demons. That's all the devil really is. He's not a real entity. That's misconception number one. Misconception number two is that if the devil is real, he's hanging out in hell waiting to torment people who go there. Nothing could be further from the truth. Would it shock you to know that Satan is not in hell? Would it further shock you to know that Satan has never been to hell? And that he won't go to hell until the end of the tribulation period. And when he gets there, and he will get there, he will not be the chief tormentor, he'll be the chief target. He'll be the one who's the greatest victim. In Revelation 20 verse 10, we read, "the devil who deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever." When I was growing up I didn't give the devil much thought. I believed I guess, that he existed, but I didn't really think of the devil or demons. I mean, I had parents to contend with. I had teachers to contend with. At that age, that was bad enough for me. It wasn't easy for me. But as I grew older and I got into high school-- some of you know my testimony. I got involved with some very dark practices and it was though I met the devil face to face. And as Bible-believing Christians, we come to understand by reading our bibles that this devil has a certain amount of freedom and access, not only to the earth but to heaven itself. For when we read the Book of Job, and it says, "one day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord and Satan was with them. And the Lord said to Satan, 'where have you come from?' And Satan said, 'from going to and fro on the earth and walking back and forth on it." So Satan has been on earth but now he is standing before God in heaven to give some kind of an account for his actions. So he has enjoyed some kind of access, not only to earth but to heaven. With that in mind, we're going to jump into Revelation 12, beginning in verse seven, where there are two major themes that confront us in this paragraph. The themes are war in heaven, wrath on earth-- war in heaven, wrath on earth. And one is the consequence of the other. Because there is war in heaven, something happens that causes there to be wrath on earth. It's sort of like when you were in school and you learned Newton's third law that every action has an equal and opposite reaction. It's sort of like that here. Now as we go through our text today, in chapter 12 of Revelation, we're going to learn some character traits about the devil, Satan, our arch enemy. And believe me, this is my least favorite subject to talk about. And yet the Bible says we are not ignorant of his devices. So I want to add to your knowledge so that you are not ignorant of his devices. And here's the first notable character trait about Satan. Satan is persistent. Watch this, verse seven. It says, "and war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought with the dragon and the dragon and his angels fought. But they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out-- that serpent of old called the devil and Satan who deceives the whole world. He was cast to the earth and his angels were cast out with him. Then I heard a loud voice in heaven saying, now salvation and strength and the kingdom of our God and the power of his Christ have come for the accuser of our brethren who accused them before God day and night has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. Therefore rejoice oh heavens. And you who dwell in them, woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea for the devil has come down to you having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time." Verse seven is a shocker. War in heaven? Now when you think of heaven, do you think of heaven being a war zone? Nobody does. You think of heaven as a worship zone. You have angels and music and joy and glory. But John, in symbolic form looking at what's next in the future, sees war in heaven. Something else that's a shocker-- this is not referring to a past war. This is referring to a future war in heaven. You see, the past war in heaven has already been discussed back in verse four. We saw that last week. Back in verse four, Satan has already fallen from heaven. He's already tried to eliminate the male child which is Christ. That's verse four. He failed to do so. Jesus grew up, died, resurrected, ascended into heaven. That's verse five. And now we're well into the great tribulation beginning in verse six. So the future war in heaven is what John sees, sometime during the Great Tribulation period. Which leads me to make an obvious point-- Satan finds it really hard to give up. I mean he's lost the battle in the past, why on earth would he think that he would stage another coup in the future? What brings this on? And before we get to that, just dwell on that thought. Satan is persistent. He finds it really hard to give up. He knows he's going down. He's fighting a losing battle. He knows that, but he wants to create as much chaos and bring as many people down with him as he can. It's sort of like-- picture a summer day. And I'm standing by the swimming pool, not that I have one. But let's say I'm at your house, standing by your swimming pool. And I have a burger in my hand and I'm right on the edge of the pool. It's just like, I'm not going to go in but it's just there. 2/6 skipheitzig.com/teachings_view.asp?ServiceID=4052&detailednotes=0&relatedmessages=0&transcript=1&print=1 7/17/23, 1:46 PM Satan's Global Conflict | SkipHeitzig.com And then I turn around and I notice a group of guys with that look in their face coming at me. I know what's in their minds. They want to throw me into the pool. I know I can't escape it. They're too close. They're closing in. So you know what I'm going to do? If I'm going down, I'm going to drag as many of them with me into the pool as I can. You say, you would do that? So would you. Satan finds it really hard to give up. He is persistent. There was a woman who was having a conversation with a friend, and this gal always paid people compliments. She never said a bad word about anybody-- almost to a fault. And her friend said, "you know, I'm convinced. If the devil were here you'd pay him a compliment." And she smiled and said, "well, you gotta admit he is persistent." And we all know, that don't we? Know he's persistent. Jesus knew he was persistent. We read in the New Testament that Satan came personally to Jesus to tempt him in the wilderness. But then he left him. And let me ask you this, when Satan left him, did Satan give up? Was that the end of it? It's not the end of it. Luke chapter four, verse 13. "Now when the devil had ended every temptation he departed from him until an opportune time." Did you get that? He's looking for an opportune time to strike. Peter said, Satan is like a roaring lion roaming around seeking whom he may devour. What kind of a picture is that? Like a lion stocking its prey and studying it, trying to find the right time to attack. So he is persistent. I think back to that passage in Job. I just mentioned it. When the devil appears before God to give an account, God says to Satan, "have you considered my servant Job who is upright? There is none like him in all the earth." And actually in Hebrew it's more of a rhetorical question. It's, you have been considering or studying my servant Job, haven't you? You've been keeping an eye on him. You've been looking at him carefully, haven't you? Or how about the time when Jesus told Peter, "Peter, Satan has been asking for you. He wants to sift you like wheat." Boy, that would be unnerving, would it not to hear that? You know, I don't know if you've ever had the experience of being in a public place only to discover that that person across the room has been staring at you for several minutes now. When you find that out, it's spooky. It's like, I'm getting out of here. Satan is persistent and he studies our character and fashions his attacks based upon the information that he knows about each of us. So here is John. He sees war in heaven. It's yet future, it's not referring to the one past. At some point in the future then, Satan is going to attempt one final takeover of heaven. And I want you to notice this battle in specific. It's against Michael and his angels. Do you read that? Michael and his angels against the dragon and his angels. I hope you take a little bit of comfort in the fact that the battle is between angels. It's not God and the devil. One of the biggest lies Satan tries to perpetrate is that he, the devil, is the opposite of God. He is the evil opposite of righteous God. And so we have this concept floating in our heads that there is this cosmic battle of the universe going on. And in this quarter, ladies and gentlemen, is God. And in this corner is the devil. And they're at it. And who's going to win this round? No. First of all, God doesn't fight. He just wins. There's really no battle. I mean that-- it's as ludicrous as putting Justin Bieber up against the Rock. I think you know who's going to win the battle-- not really a contest here. So this is a battle against Michael and his angels and the dragon and his angels. By the way, it's not the first time they have squared off. They have fought in times past. If you know your Bible, in Jude, verse 9 we are told, "Michael the Archangel contended with the devil over the body of Moses." Question-- why Michael? Who is Michael? Well he's called an archangel. And whenever Michael appears in the scriptures-- interesting, we see him as a protector or the defender of the nation of Israel. In Daniel chapter 12, we are told, "at that time Michael shall stand up. That great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people, the Jewish people, the nation of Israel." Now here's the key question, or least one of them-- what's this war all about? This future battle, what's going to happen? What causes the war? Well I'm not certain but here's a possibility, it could be triggered by the rapture of the church, something we've already talked about. It could be that rapture believers, as they pass through these demons realm, the air, that these demons try to hinder their passage. Remember, Satan is called the prince of the power of the air. That rapture could trigger this war that involves Satan and his angels and Michael and his angels. Let me throw something else in there. In Jude verse 9, which I just read, Michael is called an archangel. There's only one other reference in all of the scripture to an archangel and that's in the rapture passage-- First Thessalonians chapter four. "The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with a trumpet of God. The dead in Christ shall rise first then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together to meet the Lord in the air." It could be that this shout is the archangel Michael, and the shout is the confrontation that takes place with Satan and his angels. I'm not certain, just piecing the things together. That's a possibility-- war in heaven. Satan is persistent. Now let's look further. Look at verse 9 and 10. We discover something else about Satan-- he is perverse. So the great dragon, he's described as, was cast out. "That serpent of old called the devil and Satan who deceives the whole world. He was cast to the earth and his angels were cast out with them. And then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, now salvation, strength, and the kingdom of our God and power of his Christ have come for the accuser of our brethren and who accused them before our God day and night has been cast down." Now there are several names and descriptions given to the devil in these two verses that are sort of stacked up. Notice them-- he's called a dragon. Do you know that the Book of Revelation is the only book that calls Satan a dragon? He's called a number of other things. But 13 times in the Book of Revelation he's referred to as a dragon. Why? Because that will be his character revealed in the end times. A fierce tyrant-- a dragon. He's also referred to here as the serpent of old, now reaching back to Genesis three speaking of how cunning he was and crafty and subtle and treacherous. He's also given the most common name we know him by, the devil. The devil is a word that means slanderer. You might say gossiper, one who defames another, Diabolus is the word. He is also called in this passage, Satan, which means enemy or adversary. So just put those names together and here's what you have, the composite description of the devil. He's a fierce tyrant who is very subtle, very crafty, who slanders and 3/6 skipheitzig.com/teachings_view.asp?ServiceID=4052&detailednotes=0&relatedmessages=0&transcript=1&print=1 7/17/23, 1:46 PM Satan's Global Conflict | SkipHeitzig.com defames you and is your enemy. That should make you happy. And I'm serious about that. That should make you happy. Because if you want any kind of relationship at all with the devil, you want to make sure he's your enemy not your friend-- your enemy. Charles Haddon Spurgeon wrote, "there is something very comforting in the thought that the devil is an adversary. I would sooner have him for an adversary than for a friend." Notice also in that little passage that we just read, that he deceives the whole world. Now just let that sink in. Satan is the world's pastor. He shepherds the flock of the world and he sends them any possible type of deception it takes just to get people not to think about spiritual things, not to think about salvation or Christ-- any distraction or deception possible. He deceives the world. Then finally in verse 10 he is called the accuser of our brethren. Interesting. Satan, who has access both to earth and to heaven to appear before God, can accuse people before the throne of God. And it says, he does so day and night. He spews out his accusations. Just so you have another reference text, Zechariah chapter three-- you know that book in the Bible in the Old Testament where he sees all those visions? Well he sees one vision of Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord and Satan standing on his right side to accuse him. He's the accuser. And I bet-- I just bet that you have even heard the spillover of some of those accusations in your own mind. Thoughts have come to you in your own mind, in your own spirit-- thoughts like, who do you think you are? You're not a child of God. How can you say you're a Christian? You don't belong here. How can you pray to God? You think he's going to answer you? You've heard all of those accusations. You know, Satan really is a creep. I mean, think about it. He tempts us and before we sin, he just tempts us to do it and says, go ahead, you can get away with it. And then as soon as we do that, and we seize and we sin, then Satan comes on and goes, you'll never get away with that. You creep. You horrible person. That's what he's a master of, the accuser of the brethren. He is persistent and he is perverse. As we keep on reading, and we will, find out something else about Satan. He is pernicious. Look what he does, verse 12. "Therefore rejoice, oh heavens, and you who dwell in them." Why? Because Satan is being cast out. There's going to come a time where he has no more access to the heavenly realms like he has had and still enjoys to this present day. "Rejoice, oh heavens, and you who dwell in them." But notice this, "woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea, for the devil has come down to you, having great wrath because he knows that he has a short time. And when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth he persecuted the woman." Remember the woman from last week? Who is that? Israel-- the nation of Israel, who gave birth to the male child. We discover that is Christ. "But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle that she might fly into the wilderness to her place where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time from the presence of the serpent. So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. But the earth helped the woman and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. And the dragon was enraged with the woman and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring who keep the commandments of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ." Verse 12 is a powerful woe given to the inhabitants of the earth. Rejoice heaven, woe earth. Singing in heaven, shuttering on earth. Rejoicing in heaven, recoiling on earth. Because now this being, this malevolent being who has had access, even to the heavens itself, is cast down. Now I believe this is something you really have to understand. If you want to know why the Great Tribulation is such a great tribulation, here's why. There's two reasons. It's a double whammy-- God's wrath and Satan's wrath. God will pour out his judgments upon the earth in an unprecedented manner. It is called Chapter four, the wrath of the lamb, mentioned twice in the Book of Revelation-- the wrath of the lamb. But I mention there's the double whammy. Here we see the arrival of Satan and his minions on earth en masse. And we are told here that the devil is having great wrath. So it's double wrath. So the battle in heaven becomes the battle on earth. And we're now dealing with the second half of that seven year tribulation known as the Great Tribulation, the last three and 1/2 years, called here a short time. Three and 1/2 years is not a long time. It's a short time. But notice something. Look back in verse six so you get the time frame. "The woman fled into the wilderness where she has a place prepared by God that they should feed her there 1,260 days." That's three and 1/2 years in a day time frame. Then verse 14, "time and times in a half a time." That's Daniel the prophet's way of saying three and 1/2 years. And then just so you make no mistake about it, go down to chapter 13, look at verse five, speaking about the future ruler, the anti-Christ. "He was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies. And he was given authority to continue for 42 months." All of those are the same exact time frame, whether you want to say days or months or time and times and half a time. It's three and 1/2 years. "During that time, Satan will be filled with wrath." Notice the word wrath. It means a violent outburst of rage. What makes him so wrathful? He just got expelled from heaven. Now there is no more access to heaven and to the air. It's just confined to the earth. One scholar, John Phillips, in his commentary writes, "Satan is now like a caged lion, enraged beyond words by the limitations now placed upon his freedom. He picks himself up from the dust of the earth, shakes his fist at the sky and glares around, choking with fury for ways to vent his hatred and spite upon humankind." Do you see this? Having no more access to heaven, he now vents all of his anger on the people of this earth. And he's going to use a ruler to do it, an anti-Christ, a leader who will have made a pact, a protection pact with the Jews for seven years, according to Daniel chapter nine. He will break that pact in the middle of it, at the three and 1/2 year mark. Daniel called it the abomination of desolation. And that's when Israel is to flee into the wilderness where she will be protected by God, according to what we just read. Now listen to the words of Jesus. They'll suddenly make sense. In Matthew 24, Jesus said, "and when you see the abomination of desolation as spoken of by the prophet 4/6 skipheitzig.com/teachings_view.asp?ServiceID=4052&detailednotes=0&relatedmessages=0&transcript=1&print=1 7/17/23, 1:46 PM Satan's Global Conflict | SkipHeitzig.com Daniel, you who are in Judea flee to the mountains and pray that your flight be not on the Sabbath day." Because in Jerusalem the transportation is shut down on the Sabbath. It makes it very difficult to get around. So now it all starts to come together as we see. The dragon, Satan, confined to the earth will pour out his fury on the earth, but especially targeting the woman, Israel. There will be a wave of anti-semitism like the world has never seen. According to Zechariah chapter 13, 2/3 of the Jews alive will be slaughtered and only 1/3 will escape. And those are the ones we're talking about. And Paul said in Romans 9, and all Israel will be saved. They will be protected during this time. Now where they flee to is uncertain. Some people like to get very specific and say it's going to happen in a place called Petra. There is an old Nabatian capital southeast of the Dead Sea known as Petra. It was easily defensible in ancient times. It has a very narrow opening to get into it. It widens out. It can take a large population and some people think that they will be brought to this place of Petra. We're not exactly told. Some even get so specific-- notice when it says here, "wings of an eagle." They say, well maybe that's our air force protecting them. It could even be the sixth fleet in the Mediterranean Sea coming to their rescue. Maybe. But you know, I don't like to get that specific. This is a book of symbols, speaking about a reality that will happen but in symbolic language. So in the Old Testament, in symbolic language, listen to what God said to his people, the Jews. Remember how I bore you on eagle's wings and brought you to myself. That's just a beautiful, poetic way of saying, I, God himself have protected you. God will protect them. He'll protect them during this time. It says also here, that the earth helped the woman. It opened up and it swallowed up this great flood. That could be simply speaking of the flood of attackers sent from the anti-Christ to destroy the remaining remnant of the Jewish people. And the earth will help them. How? Well, possibly by an earthquake. Can't be certain. But five times in the Book of Revelation on five different occasions is the mention of specific earthquakes that happen, some greater than others. Jesus even said in the period called the tribulation that there will be earthquakes in different places. So it could be that the earth opens up and swallows the attackers. Don't know exactly, but we do know that Israel's darkest hour will be followed by Israel's brightest dawn. She will be protected by God. Now look at verse 11. Let's close on this note. It's the best note to close on. Because though he is persistent and perverse and pernicious, Satan is conquerable. He is preventable. Look at verse 11. "They overcame him." They, believers in the tribulation period, overcame him, him being Satan, by the blood of the lamb and by the word of their testimony. And they did not love their lives. Now I know this is referring to tribulation believers, but don't you think we could apply this to our own experiences now? What do you do when you're tempted? What do you do when you're tempted? What do you do when you're accused and hassled and harangued and depressed, and you feel the pressure of satanic force on you? What do you do? I just get in a fetal position and give up. No. You can overcome him. How? Well notice what it says, "by the blood of the lamb." You remember back in the Old Testament? The children of Israel put the blood of a lamb on the lintels and the door post of their homes in Egypt and judgment passed over them-- lentils and doorpost in the shape and the sign of a cross. Blood of the lamb was applied and death passed over them. Apply the blood of Jesus Christ to your life, to all of those accusations that come from Satan. You're not worthy. You're not good enough. You're this, you're that. Apply the blood of the lamb. God will bless you, not on your ability to be perfect or devoted or read your Bible 24 hours a day, but he will bless you by your understanding that you are unworthy but he blesses you and loves you because of the finished work of his son for you, on your behalf. That's the blood of the lamb. That's the blood of the lamb. You have a prosecuting attorney. That's Satan. He accuses you before God. But you also have a defense attorney, an advocate. First John chapter two verse two, we have an advocate with the father, Jesus Christ the righteous. So the prosecuting attorney can come into the courtroom and walk up to the bar judgment of God, at the judgment bar and say, God, Skip is a creep. He doesn't deserve your favor, your blessing. He's done this. He's thought that. He has said this and that. The fact is he's right. He's right. I have no defense. He's accurate. Everything he said was accurate. But I have an advocate. I have a defense attorney who can walk right up to the judgment bar, lean in and say, hey, dad, do you remember the time I shed my blood for that creep, which makes him your child? So it is my blood that covers his blunders. And he can overcome all of those accusations. Spurgeon was right. He said, "nothing provokes the devil like the cross." So you remind him of the cross. Second, the word of their testimony-- the word of their testimony. You have a testimony. You have a story, how you came to Christ. What God has done in your life, how he has changed your life. I suggest that you prepare a two, three, four, five minute version of what God has done in your life, your testimony, how you came to Christ, how you are saved, and have that ready to remind yourself and to tell others of. So that when you hear all of that spillover of these accusations, you say, you know what though, God has been a work in my life. I have a testimony. And it might lead others to Christ as well. And finally, "they did not love their lives to the death." They did not love their lives to the death. The blood of the lamb, word of the testimony, and spiritual loyalty was more important than physical life itself. Years ago, a missionary named James Calvert went to the Fiji Islands, then a very hostile region. The captain of the ship taking these missionaries toward the Fiji Islands tried to stop Calvert, and said to him, "don't go to those islands. They will kill you. You will be dead if you go." James Calvert turned to the captain and said, "we died before we came." I suggest to you, people who live that way are unstoppable people. Nothing can threaten them. They love their lives, or they love not their lives unto death. Jesus said, "whoever loves his life, will lose it. Whoever hates his life in this world will keep it." Once you know how to die, you know how to live. We died before we came. That was our resolve. So as we close, remember these two things. Satan hates you and has a miserable plan for your life. But God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. Satan studies you and will craft attacks in temptations based upon your flaws and your character, your nature. 5/6 skipheitzig.com/teachings_view.asp?ServiceID=4052&detailednotes=0&relatedmessages=0&transcript=1&print=1 7/17/23, 1:46 PM Satan's Global Conflict | SkipHeitzig.com But God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life and Satan must operate under divine parameters by permission-- by divine permission. Satan was not allowed to attack Job unless he got permission from God-- if you remember the story, Job chapter one and chapter two. And God allowed him to attack under certain strict parameters. Well, why would God allow Satan to attack me at all? To strengthen you. To make you better-- turn up the heat a little bit, to make you tempered. That's why. So think about it. Everything Satan will ever do is anticipated by God and predicted in scripture. So he operates under very strict divine parameters, which means when you're going through the trial, the temptation, the accusation, the desperation, remember this, God will always keep his eye on his children and his hand on the thermostat. He knows what you're going through. He hasn't lost track of you, and he won't let you become a crispy critter. So I don't know, Patriots winning the Super Bowl or not, who cares. The ultimate truth is one day Satan will be drop-kicked into hell and incarcerated there forever and ever. That's the end of the story. [APPLAUSE] Let that put a smile on your face. Father, thank you that you have given us insight for those who care to read and to apply. These things become all important as we get a little bit of further insight into the character of the one who hates us so, and wants to make our walk depleted and wants to make us discouraged because he is so persistent and perverse and pernicious. But Lord, I pray that we would overcome, like these future tribulation saints will, by the blood of the lamb, by the word of our testimony. And rather than focusing on our lives, our life would be hidden with Christ in God. We would seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Loving you even more than life itself, in Jesus' name we pray, amen. As believers, we do not have to fear Satan because we know the story ends with defeat. Does this encourage you to share about your salvation with others? Let us know. Email mystory@calvaryabq.org. And just a reminder, you can give financially to this work at CalvaryABQ.org/giving. Thank you for joining us for this teaching from Skip Heitzig of Calvary Albuquerque. © Copyright 2023 Connection Communications | 1-800-922-1888 6/6 www.connectwithskip.com

When John and I were first married, things proved far more difficult than either of us had imagined. In our youthful naiveté, we thought that because we were in love with each other the transition into marriage would be a smooth one. Shortly into our married life, we were blindsided by reality. Marriage, as much as it can be a well of deep joy, has a way of highlighting our deepest flaws. If we are not careful, our focus on our spouse’s shortcomings can become fatally toxic. This quickly became an issue for me. Early in my marriage, I became intimately aware of a number of areas where John needed significant growth—and I made it my mission to change him. I was among those guilty of saying, “I’ll forgive you  when  you change.” Until John altered his behavior, my running list of his offenses would continue to grow. I thought withholding forgiveness would motivate him into transformation, but it left him feeling condemned, hopeless, and disempowered. Everything changed when God showed me how He forgives. His forgiveness is not a reward for modified behavior. It is a vote of confidence. As God renewed my understanding of forgiveness, He replaced the words in my mouth with ones that reflected His heart: “I believe you want to change, and I forgive you.” At the time, I didn’t understand how important it was for me to forgive John. I later realized that my bitterness toward my husband was warring against his ability to change, for Jesus said: “If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” ( John 20:23 ) For centuries this verse has been misappropriated and twisted into a tool to propagate fear and oppression. This was not Jesus’ intention. When we study the entire body of His ministry, we can understand the purpose and significance of these words. Jesus, more than anyone else, understands the power of forgiveness, for through it He reconciled the irreconcilable. According to 2 Corinthians 5:17-20, we are the ministers of reconciliation through whom God makes His appeal to the world. We are meant to affirm and extend the forgiveness offered in Christ. When we instead choose to maintain an offense, we cease to declare God’s hope and instead agree with the one who is called the accuser of the brethren. We articulate condemnation to those whom God wants to offer a new start. In his commentary on Jesus’ words, G. L. Borchert put it this way: “There needs to be a recognition of the significant role that declarations of forgiveness can have in freeing people to set aside their past sins and feelings of guilt and turn their attention to the joy of living with the risen Christ under the direction of the Holy Spirit.” Forgiveness is a divine act. No other virtue requires such a great sacrifice of self. It is a conscious choice of vulnerability instead of vindication. But in the sacrifice of self we find God’s embrace. By choosing forgiveness, we refuse to worship our feelings and instead submit ourselves to God’s truth. And by forgiving our spouses, we create the opportunity for them to recognize and receive God’s invitation to be reshaped by His grace. When we come to God in repentance, His response isn’t, “I’m God, and I know you’re just going to do this again in two weeks.” He simply says, “I forgive you,” and offers us the empowerment to change. God doesn’t speak failure into our futures; He declares hope and promise over every struggle. Let us do likewise for each other. www.lisabevere.com .