Sometimes, without even realizing it, we can begin to drift backwards. I don’t know about you, but for me this is one of the most alarming realities of spiritual life. In the beginning, when a new Christian is spiritually immature, and the hiccups of life catches them off guard, God surrounds them with what can seem to some to be an extra coating of His grace. They’re not yet developed in the faith, and the cocoon is still protective, but when you’re someone who’s got a few rounds under your belt, things are a little different. Think about Job in the Old Testament. The bible tells us that he was a Godly man of great integrity. He had seven sons and three daughters, and Job 1:5 says that in the mornings he’d offer burnt offerings to God because he was concerned that his children would sin. He feared that the consequences of their sin would be severe, so he offered these sacrifices to Heavenly Father frequently as a way of shielding them from the devil’s wrath. Job 1:5 declares that he made this a regular practice. This gives us an indication that a significant amount of time lapsed before it became apparent that what used to cover Job’s children would not cover them anymore.
As we watch some of the events unfolding in various places around the globe, some of us are becoming very fearful, like Job. We begin to think about all the ways that we might need to protect ourselves in case we’re faced with similar peril. Some folks are trying to learn as much as possible about water purification and survival techniques. Others are sinking in their hearts and minds, and walking around dazed from the shock of it all. No doubt the frequency of catastrophes and all this talk of wars is very concerning, but we cannot behave as though we haven’t been forewarned. All of what we’re seeing is in the bible, and the warning to our present day from Jesus Christ is that we shouldn’t stand in a corner somewhere shaking in our boots. He tells us to wake up, and strengthen ourselves in him.
While focusing on survival tactics and being prepared is wise whether we’re in good times or bad, God’s desire is that we achieve this by honing in on our relationship with Him through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. This should be our first course of action in all that we do. Rather than focusing on purifying water, we need to concentrate on purifying our hearts, so that our loyalty isn’t divided between God and the world.
In Job 1:6 (NLT), we get a small, but up-close and personal view of how the Courts of Heaven operate. This verse tells us, “One day the members of the heavenly court came to present themselves before the LORD, and the Accuser, Satan, came with them.” The court systems of humanity, particularly where democracies are in place, are considered by most to be fairly sophisticated. They operate according to the rule of law, and most citizens respect it. Our systems are inspired by the laws, statues, and commandments that Heavenly Father put in place. Everything flows from His divine order. Our courts are patterned after the Courts of Heaven, where there’s a Judge, jury, and witnesses. Our Mediator is Jesus Christ, and our accuser is the devil.
It is difficult for some to imagine that the enemy would be allowed to enter the Courts of Heaven, but indeed he is. We would do well to remember that he was once an angel of light, so he knows God’s laws very well, and from this verse we can ascertain that there must be some parts of heaven where he is indeed allowed access. The motive he seeks is always debauchery; it is to argue his cases against us, the sons and daughters of God. There can be no mistake, he is a destroyer, and he seeks to destroy US! But he cannot do so if we’ve given fear its walking papers, and saturated our hearts and minds with the Word of God.
God placed a hedge of protection around Job, just as He does us. We must never forget that the enemy’s aim is to poke holes through it legally, by finding some sin action or fear of which we’ve not confronted or repented from. God has given us the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit, and we can never exhaust the depth of his resources because they are unlimited and powerful. The Spirit is our Protector and Guide through the Lord. He knows what is happening in the courts because he is in constant communication with our Lawyer in the Courtroom, Jesus Christ.
When a case from the accuser comes against us, the Spirit will warn us, but so few of us are spiritually mature enough to perceive or understand it. The Holy Spirit is an inside or internal reality, and this is brilliantly strategic of our Heavenly Father. Jesus Christ informed us in John 16:14 that the Spirit “will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me.” This takes place internally, and we can’t afford to be without this information. The Holy Spirit will tell us how to avoid danger, and he will tell us when it is upon us.
Concerning God’s laws, there are only two ways of believing, faith and fear; there is no in between. Either we’re going to walk in faith, or we’re walking in fear. God’s command is very precise in this area. He commands us in 2Corinthians 5:7 to walk by faith and not by sight, because walking according to only what we can perceive with our physical senses is the equivalent of fear. It’s a flesh or soulish way of living, and it is not our destiny as members of God’s spiritual family. For every Christian, a time will come when our comfort with walking by what we can physically see and do will be challenged by the enemy. Disobedience to the law of faith will make his case against us.
Job assumed that his allegiance to ritual and routine qualified his relationship with God. He endured a litany of evil against him from the accuser. Knowing God as the omnipotent Judge, Job wanted to present his case before Heavenly Father, for in his mind he had been sorely misjudged. He thought he had been adequate and forthright in all his doings and dealings, but in truth he had been blinded by his own fears.
When Heavenly Father granted Job the conversation he desperately wanted, God told him in Job 40:7 to brace himself like a man; to cast off the comforts of self-pity and get ready to be schooled in the reality of God’s power and righteousness. In Job 40:8, God asked him, “Will you discredit my justice and condemn me just to prove you are right?” This is often the stance we take when the enemy accuses us in the Courts of Heaven, when he is allowed to send darts our way because of our fear and lack of trust in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We should not meet the situation with fear, but instead do all that we can to put God’s Word in our minds and hearts, and tighten ourselves up in the Spirit.
God’s extraordinary grace will never run out, but our ability to recognize it can and does. His hedge of protection does not fail, but He does not coddle us while we become too comfortable in an environment where our faith is not challenged to go higher. Our relationship with God is anchored through our trust and dependency on Him; not on things and not on other people. We would do well not to wait until such time we are caught in a situation of dire straits without the mental and emotional strength to conquer it through Christ. We must remember that God’s hedge is fortified by our faith in Him, and this faith must be increased continually.■
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“God’s Hedge of Protection” written by Reverend Fran Mack, edited by Kim Times for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2017. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.