21 Aug Here’s Your Sign
When I was young, I was a paper boy. When I was young, I also believed I was invincible. Bad combo. I’ll never forget riding my bike up to a sign one morning that read “Beware of dog.” Of course, I ignored it. I realized that was a big mistake the moment I locked eyes with a Great Dane. I took off as fast as I could!
Why do we ignore signs? Not just from neighbors or traffic workers, but from God too? It’s these signs that keep us out of trouble.
One of the most important signs we find is in 1 Peter 5:8. It says, “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”
There’s an enemy after us, and he’s much wiser than a dog. When you’re attempting to live for God, he works overtime.
So, here’s what God wants us to do. In Colossians 3:5 He says to “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature…” In other words, there are things we have to kill to keep ourselves safe from the enemy’s tactics.
Maybe it’s fear, lust or greed. Maybe it’s insecurity, anxiety or an obsession with people-pleasing. Whatever it is, we can have power over it. And we can walk away from the enemy’s fire unscathed.
Let’s take a look at a couple of examples in the Bible. Let’s contrast two people— one who killed off the things holding him back, and one who didn’t. Let’s start with Caiaphas.
Caiaphas was a high priest in Israel during the time Jesus was condemned, tortured and crucified. In fact, he was the one who came up with the idea! He was the head of the Sanhedrin, which meant he was likely the most powerful man in Israel at the time.
So, the very man who was supposed to be the spiritual leader over Israel was not only leading people away from their Savior, but he also crucified Him, breaking the sixth commandment: thou shalt not murder.
How did that happen? He didn’t kill things that needed killed on the inside of his heart. Most likely things like pride, jealousy and insecurity.
Now, let’s look at Abraham. Abraham was eventually esteemed as our Father of Faith, but Abraham’s start wasn’t great. His father was an idol worshipper who didn’t worship the one true God.
Abraham definitely had things to kill in order to walk into God’s best. Probably things like fear, unworthiness and insecurity. Because he did, he avoided the enemy’s traps, walking into all that God had for him.
Friends, God has an exciting plan for your life, but the enemy has one too— one to stop you from walking in God’s purposes for you. What do you need to kill so that you can avoid his traps and walk into God’s best?
I encourage you to start working on those things today, always remembering: you are called and chosen for great purposes!