THE REFUGE DEVOTIONAL
Beloved of God, let us never forget that it is God who has saved us and called us with a holy calling. This will become the source of strength for us to persevere in the midst of trials and adversity.
The scriptures tell us, “For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.”
This is a supernatural work wrought in us by the work of the Holy Spirit. It’s not from our own strength that we have obtained eternal salvation, but it is a free gift from God, bestowed upon us through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and effected upon us by the work of the Holy Spirit.
The apostle Paul says concerning this, “In Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ; having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.”
This new birth that God gives us is an inner strength that is very jealous for God’s glory and His truth that has apprehended us when He called us to such great salvation. It is the power of God that reveals to us the death of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, hanging on a tree, bearing away our sins. When this is truly understood, it will give us the courage we need to flee youthful lusts and to wage war on all other besetting sins that so easily entangle us.
This love is aimed at bringing our body, emotions, and feelings under the discipline and influences of the truth, which is exclusive to the holy scriptures. God’s love for us is a love that is supernatural, and it fervently desires to free us from the corrupting influences of the world and to focus our minds on heaven, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
It is with this understanding that Paul reminds Timothy under harsh conditions, as he too was awaiting death for his unyielding devotion to Jesus Christ, to rekindle afresh these central truths of biblical Christianity and act upon them.
Timothy was called by God to be a messenger of God’s living word at a time when no one wanted to hear the truth concerning the cultural sins of his time. He told Timothy, “For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline. Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity.”
As a Christian, God has given you the spirit of unwavering devotion to him. He has not given you the spirit of fear, but of power, love, and discipline. So gird yourself with holy violence against sin and set your mind on the author and perfecter of your faith, Jesus Christ. For you have been called into a violent war against this world and sin. So, if in any way the lust of this world has distracted you from your complete devotion to Jesus Christ, it is crucial to rekindle your love for God through Jesus Christ and pursue Him with all your heart.
Remember the words of our Savior and remind yourself each day, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”
May the grace of God be with you, Amen.