Embracing God

In Genesis 32:22-28 we read the story of Jacob wrestling with God. Jacob is returning from his years with Laban to the land of promise. But as he approaches, he hears that his brother Esau is coming with an armed band of 400 men. Jacob sends some gifts of peace ahead of him to Esau and then splits his family and possession into two groups in hopes than one group will escape Esau. Finally, he does that which is most important, he pulls away from everything to spend time with God.

The Man whom Jacob encounters in verse 24 is believed to be a Theofony, an appearance of Christ in the OT. In verse 28 it says, “you have struggled with God …. and have prevailed.” The struggle Jacob had with God was not a wrestling match, but more accurately an embrace. Basically, Jacob wrapped his arms around God and would not let him go. Even after God touched his hip socket, his place of strength, Jacob would not let go until God blessed him with a new identity. Instead of Jacob the “deceiver,” he became Israel “Prince with God” or “He Strives with God.” Jacob would not settle for anything less than his full inheritance.

Why could God not get free from Jacob? How can a mortal man wrestle with God and prevail? THE KEY! God cannot break the embrace of faith. Jacob’s promise of blessing was established by God in Genesis 25:23 and declared by Jacob’s father, Isaac, in Genesis 27:27-29. Esau, who represents the flesh, was coming to take Jacob’s blessing. Jacob did not fight or wrestle with Esau, the flesh, natural man, circumstances, (we do not wrestle with flesh and blood) but Jacob embraced God, the true source of the blessing, and did not let go of God until the promise was confirmed and established.

2 Peter 1:4 says, “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” Like Jacob, we have been given exceeding great and precious promises. These promises allow us to escape the hold the world has on us so that we can be partakers of the divine nature. We can only enter into this divine nature and promises by embracing God and not letting go until his promises have been fulfilled in us.

“And He said, "Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed." (Genesis 22:28) Whatever challenges you are facing today, turn aside to embrace God in love and faith. As you do, He will change your nature, deliver you from your affliction, and fulfill His promises to you.

Andy Clark

Conquering the Darkness

Only one thing conquers and dispels darkness, and that is light. Isaiah declared, “The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light” (Isaiah 9:2). Likewise, John stated, “The light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not” (John 1:5).

Light represents understanding. When we say, “I see the light,” we’re saying, “Now I understand.” The Lord is about to open our eyes to receive new revelation of the greatness of God and what He is doing in the world today. We can not focus on what governments, the media and the world say, for they are in darkness and do not comprehend the light. We are people of the light. We should see things as God sees things and come into His understanding. We should not be influenced by the world, but we should be influencing the world.

1 John 1:5-7 says, “This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. ---If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.”

In the midst of a darkening world God wants to reveal Himself in a new way to us. He calls us not to focus on the darkness of this world, but on the glorious revelation of Himself. “God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.” God desires to dispel the darkness out of our lives. He wants to remove the darkness of fear, anxiety, doubt, discouragement and apathy, and replace it with the light of faith, hope and love.

It was during the stormy period marking the expansion of the Assyrian empire and the decline of Israel that Isaiah “saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of His robe filled the temple.” (Isaiah 6:1) It was when the Syrian army surrounded Elisha and his servant, that the servant’s eyes were opened and he saw “the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire.” (2 Kings 16:7) Paul prayed for us that “the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe.” (Ephesians 1:18-19)

It is only as the light of the revelation of Christ permeates our very being, expelling the darkness in us, that we can begin to bring light to the world. For it is the light of Christ in us that conquers the darkness. It was only after the revelation of the greatness of God that Isaiah said “here am I, send me!” Isaiah was saying, “Lord send me into the darkness of Israel to shine forth the revelation knowledge of yourself.” Later, Isaiah would pen these prophetic words, “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.”

Light always conquers darkness! May you receive a greater revelation of the glory of the Lord in you, and may it begin to affect those around you.

Andy Clark
www.worldhorizonsusa.org

Four Keys

We are going to look at four keys to receiving the promises of God from Joshua 1:1-9.

The first key to entering God’s promise is to hear from God.
“After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, it came to pass that the Lord spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' assistant, saying:” (Joshua 1:1) When David and his men arrived at their home, Ziklag, and found it had been burned by fire, their wives and children taken captive, and possessions stolen, the men talked about stoning David. And the Bible says “David inquired of the Lord.” (I Samuel 30:8) To whom do you inquire for guidance and information? The Bible says Moses turned aside to see the burning bush. (Exodus 3:3) God by His Spirit is calling us to turn aside from our daily activities and to seek His face and hear His voice. When He turned aside, Moses’ life was radically changed and God used him to deliver a nation in a demonstration of power. Just that word from God raises faith in our hearts to believe God for the impossible.

The second key to entering God’s promise is to take ownership of the promise.
"Moses My servant is dead. Now therefore, arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them — the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you, as I said to Moses.” (Joshua 1:2-3) “Moses my servant is dead.” God is saying, “Joshua, this is not about Moses but about you.” For forty years Joshua had been walking under Moses. God spoke to Moses, and Joshua did what Moses told him to do. But now God wanted to renew his covenant with Joshua. Joshua could not enter the land of promise based upon what God promised Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Joshua needed to hear the promise for himself. He by faith had to lay claim or take possession of the promise. You may hear a great sermon, receive a prophetic word, receive godly counsel but until it becomes alive in you, it is just a word from someone else.

The third key to entering God’s promise is that you have to know and live by the Book.
“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” (Joshua 1:8-9) We can hear the voice of God, by faith lay claim to what he has promised, but fail to succeed because we haven’t done it by the Book. So often we use worldly methods to try to achieve godly results. God’s ways are so different than our ways. His kingdom is not of this world. He calls us to give, lay down our lives, love our enemies, be the servant of all, and die to ourselves. He must increase and we must decrease.

The fourth key to entering God’s promises is to realize that only God can fulfill His promises.
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." (Joshua 1:9) Before Joshua lay the land of promise, filled with giants, massive armies and walled cities. The people whom God had called him to lead and possess the land were bedouins living in tents with families and herds of sheep and goats. The task was overwhelming and by man’s standards impossible. God’s promises are always impossible to fulfill with our resources. God is the only one who can fulfill His promises. He calls us simply to launch out into the deep and to believe and obey.

We serve an awesome God with awesome promises. May you discover Him anew today.

Andy Clark

Greater Works

John 14:12-14

"Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.”

I read this wonderful promise we are all familiar with in my daily Bible reading. Usually when we read this promise we focus on the faith aspect, “he who believes in Me.” Faith has been a huge teaching in the church in recent history and tends to catch our attention when reading the promise of God. While faith is a key element in receiving from God, there are two other important elements in this Scripture portion.

The second element to doing greater works that Jesus gives is “because I go to My Father.” He goes on to say in verses 15-17 that He is going to send the “Helper, the Spirit of Truth.” These two names that Jesus gives to the Holy Spirit are key to being able to “do greater works,” and to “ask anything in My name.” Our ability to do greater works, that is greater than we can do ourselves in our own power, talents or ability, depends on the Helper. Without Him we can do nothing of eternal consequence. Faith without the Helper has no value.

Jesus also calls Him the “Spirit of Truth,” for He will lead us into all truth. Jesus said of His own ministry that He could only say what the Father said and could only do what the Father showed him to do. (John 5:9) It is only out of revelation knowledge or Rhema word that we can truly ask in faith and see God work on our behalf. I am finding more and more in my ministry that God is simply asking me to be obedient to the prompting of the Spirit. In our busy world filled with information, programs and activities, we need to quiet our spirits to hear the Spirit, who wants to reveal to us the will of God, so that we can do the great works that He has for us.

The third element of doing great works is that “the Father may be glorified.” We need to develop a lifestyle in which we honor God in everything that we do. Jesus, whole focus in life and ministry was to glorify the Father. Honoring God is not something we do - it is a lifestyle that permeates every part of our being and waking moment. It is our all-consuming passion to glorify the Father. It is not about us, our organization, our church, our program or our plans. It is not about ourselves, our family or our friends. It is in Him we live and move and have our being. Greater works will follow when He is our everything.

As hard as it may be to wrap our mind around, Jesus wants to do greater works in us than He did. He wants to give us anything we ask in His name that the Father may be glorified. In the midst of the growing darkness that envelopes our world today, God wants to be glorified. But to do so, we have to get beyond ourselves, our ideas, our programs into the limitlessness of God through the same Spirit that enabled Christ to operate beyond his human limitations.

May you hear His voice today and respond in faith to the prompting of His Spirit and see His glory in your life and ministry.

Andy Clark

Do Not Fear

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9

Joshua stood on the edge of the Land of Promise facing the giants, fortified cities, and great armies that stood between him the promises of God. Here was a huge opportunity but great challenges. Really, an impossible situation, and I’m sure he had fear. If he didn’t have fear, then why did God show up and command him to “Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified.” The job God had given him was much too great for him and the people of Israel. Jesus constantly had to exhort his disciples not to be afraid. Why were they always fearful? Were they weak? I don’t think so. These were seasoned men in life who had faced lots of things. No, they faced fear because Jesus put them in impossible situations that were outside their control because He wanted to teach them to trust in him.

I spoke with a young man tonight at church who had always been able to have good jobs and make good money. Recently, he was out of work for about a year, and despite all his education, skills and effort, he could not find a job and lost his house and both his cars. The same God that showed up with Joshua, the same Jesus that spoke to the disciples in the tempest on Galilee, “Do not be afraid, I am with you.” This young man learned trust through the things that He suffered. God put him in an impossible situation to learn to trust Him.

In 1 Corinthians 16:8-9 Paul made a declaration, “But I will tarry in Ephesus until Pentecost. For a great and effective door has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.” In the midst of some of God’s greatest opportunities there are the greatest challenges and sometime opposition. Paul faced great opposition in Ephesus where one of the greatest revivals in early church history took place, so that “all those in Asia, heard the word of the Lord” and “the word of God grew mightily and prevailed.” It prevailed over the worship of Diana, idolatry and witchcraft that bound a city and a people group.

We face grave and challenging times that are going to try many of us. We may face what seems like insurmountable situations. The giants of opposition may seem too great and the storms of life may be swirling around us. Just as with Joshua and the disciples, God wants to show up and say, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” The place of greatest challenge is the place of greatest opportunity, where God can show His power and fulfill His promises.

May you see the greatness of God in your situation today and know that He is with you. He does not take you where He cannot deliver you, and may He use you for His glory.

Andy Clark
www.andyclarksdevotionals.blogspot.com, www.worldhorizonsusa.org

Provision for the Promise

After I had written my devotional on “Receiving the Promise” and before I sent it out I received a note sent out by Rachel Tainsh, WH International Prayer Coordinator, with some Scriptures God had given her to use in prayer for the Global Council. These Scriptures dovetailed with and confirmed what the Lord had given me.

The first one was Deuteronomy 11:10-14 “For the land which you go to possess is not like the land of Egypt from which you have come, where you sowed your seed and watered it by foot, as a vegetable garden; 11 but the land which you cross over to possess is a land of hills and valleys, which drinks water from the rain of heaven, a land for which the Lord your God cares; the eyes of the Lord your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year to the very end of the year. And it shall be that if you earnestly obey My commandments which I command you today, to love the Lord your God and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul, then I will give you the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the latter rain, that you may gather in your grain, your new wine, and your oil.

I shared last week that the challenges of entering into the promises seem oftentimes overwhelming and impossible. God intentionally makes His promises too great for us because He wants to fulfill the promises as we trust and obey Him. To receive the promise we must maintain faith that He who is faithful will fulfill the promise. It is only out of that position of faith that we can be led by the Sprit to walk out in obedience today what God wants us to do in order to receive the promise. In the above portion from Deuteronomy God gives us a glimpse of His provision for the promise.

In verse ten, God said that the land of promise is not going to be like Egypt where “you sowed your seed and watered it by foot, as a vegetable garden.” In Egypt they were limited as to how much they could grow because it had to be watered by hand. It took a lot of work with minimal results. But God said that in the land of promise He will provide “water from the rain of heaven.” This takes the limitations off of us. We are no longer bound by our ability to water what we have planted. In fact, we can plant as much land as we can possess. God says in verse fourteen, “I will give you the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the latter rain, that you may gather in your grain, your new wine, and your oil.” The early rains were for planting, and the latter rain was for harvest. I believe we are entering the time of the latter rain of harvest. Our job is to plant as much seed as we can, for God has promised to provide the rain that will bring in the harvest.

I believe our response to this awesome promise of provision is in the second scripture Rachel gave, which is Philippians 3:13-14, “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” We cannot continue to do things as we have in the past. God by His Spirit wants to move us past the limitations of our past into His limitless provision. We must reach forward and press into the promises that God has given us in faith that God will provide. “He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.”
1 Thessalonians 5:24

Andy Clark
www.andyclarksdevotionals.blogspot.com

Receiving the Promise

In Genesis 26:3-5 God reaffirms to Isaac his covenant with Abraham, “Dwell in this land, and I will be with you and bless you; for to you and your descendants I give all these lands, and I will perform the oath which I swore to Abraham your father. And I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven; I will give to your descendants all these lands; and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; because Abraham obeyed My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws."

Over six hundred years later Israel stands on the bank of the Jordan River preparing to receive the promise God had given Abraham. For forty years they had walked under God’s provision in the wilderness, but now was the time to move from provision into promise. They faced great challenges of fortified cities, giants and great armies with chariots. Forty years earlier their fathers had stood on the banks of this very Jordan. But because of a bad report of ten spies, they retreated from the promise back into the comfort of provision.

Oftentimes in our lives we fail to move from provision into God’s promises for us. As I mentioned last week, we often let the promises that God gave us die in us because of time and circumstances. The challenges of entering into the promises seem often times overwhelming and impossible. God intentionally makes His promises too great for us because He wants to fulfill the promises as we trust and obey him. Notice God’s word to Isaac, “I will be with you, I will give you all these lands, I will perform the oath which I swore to Abraham, and I will make your descendants multiply.” To receive the promise, we must maintain faith that He who is faithful will fulfill the promise. Because it is only out of that position of faith that we can be led by the Spirit to walk out in obedience today what God wants us to do in order to receive the promise.

God told Isaac, “I will give your descendents all these lands --- because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge.” Abraham was not some great preacher or evangelist. He was a herdsman who most of his life led a nomadic life like many in his day. But when God asked him to do something, He immediately did it whether it was leaving his home and country, or being asked to sacrifice his son Isaac. In the midst of all Abraham’s wandering, he never forgot his charge, what God had charged him to do, his destiny. In all the places he traveled, all the challenges he faced and things he did, he never lost sight of the faithfulness of God and the promises God had given him.

As Joshua stood on the banks of the Jordan facing the giants of Israel’s past, the Lord appeared to him and said to Joshua, “Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. --- Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you. --- Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:3,6,9

“Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise:” Heb. 10:35-36
“For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.” I Corinthians 1:20

Andy Clark
www.andysdevotionals.blogspot.com