Ransomed

April 12

For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the

man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all men.

1 Timothy 2:5

The voicemail sounded like a line out of a Hollywood movie. “Bring five hun-

dred thousand dollars to the mall parking lot tomorrow at two-thirty or your

kid dies! Small bills, none in sequence, nothing larger than a twenty or smaller

than a five. Drive to the southwest corner of the lot. Pull in beside the dark blue

van with tinted windows. You’ll see a NY Yankee’s pennant on the antenna.

Even trade: your daughter for the money. Don’t do anything stupid. Tell any-

one and she dies!” There was a muffled “Mommy!” cut off as the caller hung up.

Terrifying thoughts threatened to overwhelm Jennifer. She fought for

focus. How were they supposed to come up with that kind of money? Who did

these people think they were? Five hundred thousand dollars was impossible!

How did they get Beth? She speed-dialed Peter’s cell and franticly told him

about the message and ransom demand. Peter immediately called his father, a

city police officer, and explained the situation.

At two-thirty the following day, the SWAT team converged on the van

just moments after the switch was made. Beth was safe! The kidnappers were

on their way to jail.

h

There are two states of existence: captive or ransomed. We experience one or

the other. Every day, Satan takes hostages. Jesus waits for their cry to be set

free. Many of us live in fear of Satan’s authority, believing his power can keep

us in bondage. But Jesus didn’t die for us to remain ignorant of the enemy’s

limitations. We have authority to break the chains of oppression.

Satan is running a bluff ! Jesus’ authority over sin is superior to Satan’s hold

on our lives. But we have to ask for the deliverance. Jesus paid the price for our

freedom. Satan is counting on you not understanding that when Jesus gave

Himself as a ransom for all men, He did it for you!

Prayer

“We cry out for freedom, Lord. Come break the chains that bind

us, Holy Spirit. The enemy says we can never get victory. Show

us the way to walk into Your power. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”

 Do You Know My Jesus?

April 11

As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.

John 20:21

Wilson was a big man with a gentle heart. He spoke with an impediment, yet

was undaunted by people asking him to repeat himself from time to time. He

was uneducated, yet in spite of that, was not ignorant. Wilson was a godly man.

He loved Jesus.

When Wilson’s eyes were open, he had one thing on his mind: to intro-

duce everyone he could to his Jesus. With a humble spirit and a smile that lit

the room, he would look you straight in the eye and ask, “Do you know my

Jesus?”

Wilson understood the spiritual death sentence that hangs over every

nonbeliever. He couldn’t bear the thought of allowing anyone to suffer eternal

separation from the One Who could save them from their sins.

God took him home not so long ago. At his funeral, there were tears of

sorrow. But you could hear people say with profound sincerity and a catch in

their throat, “Well, he’s with his Jesus now! You know, he asked me if I knew

his Jesus! That’s why I’m here.”

h

The man this gentle giant spoke of isn’t a fictional character in a fairy tale, as

some would believe. He is a Savior and the door to salvation to those who are

perishing. In John’s gospel, we can almost see Jesus imparting the Holy Spirit

and all His power to the disciples in anticipation of Pentecost. He commis-

sioned them to tell everyone they met about His gospel of grace. Wilson heard

Jesus’ commission. He responded with the faith and conviction of someone

who knew his Commissioner firsthand.

Jesus has issued the same offer to all who believe, the offer to look some-

one in the eye and ask, “Do you know my Jesus?” With an eternal death sen-

tence hanging over those who have never claimed the Name of Jesus, can we

refuse the commission and look in the mirror?

Prayer

“Cause us to be weak in our own power and to stand

strong in Yours, Lord Jesus. When we are afraid,

when we would be embarrassed, help us remember

that unless we ask them, ‘Do you know my Jesus’, they

may spend eternity alone without You. Amen.”

   Labor Together

April 10

We proclaim him … teaching everyone with all wisdom. To this end I

labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me.

Colossians 1:28, 29

Cora had stood by Jake’s side through thirty-one years of marriage and minis-

try—sometimes silently, sometimes not so silently. As Jake sat in his study, he

raised a heartfelt ‘thank you’ to heaven. As he reflected back over the years, he

began to smile. Through every trial, every difficult situation, in every moment

of joy and occasion of celebration, there were two constants—God and Cora.

God had been Jake’s strength; Cora had been his balance. God had provided

a strong work mate to help Jake walk out what He had placed in Jake’s heart;

He had placed an unconditional love that would forever support Jake in Cora’s

heart.

Jake had been wise enough to understand that had it not been for Cora,

he would not be the man he was today. He thought of some of the more dif-

ficult decisions they had made over the years. Cora had never tried to force her

perspective or opinions on Jake. Her spirit was not offensive; she was endowed

with wisdom. God had used Cora to help Jake appreciate what it meant to

labor together for God.

h

The definition of labor is to exert physical or mental effort; work; toil. Labor-

ing is strenuous, not to be undertaken lightly or with little regard. None of us

is capable of meeting every need we encounter by ourselves. We all need help

when the world relentlessly pounds on our door. Jake was the recipient of a

wife who possessed strong character and influence, a worthy help mate. Yet

even as a couple they were incapable of meeting the needs that Jake’s ministry

presented. Knowing this, they relied on the power and direction of the Holy

Spirit.

Paul spoke about the power of the Holy Spirit as a tangible and mighty

force. As we wisely surrender our own strength, as Jake did by admitting he

benefited from Cora’s help, we begin to learn how to possess our inheritance—

a life lived in the Spirit.

Prayer

“Father, we thank You for the power of the Holy

Spirit. Teach us to lay hold of this power by

means of surrender. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”

 Blue Collar Apostles

April 9

We worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while

we preached the gospel of God to you.

1 Thessalonians 2:9

Roger had just come off a ten-hour shift at the plant he’d worked at for the past

twenty-seven years. His friend Marcus was quizzing him on how he managed

to work full-time and pastor a church of some ninety parishioners. Roger continued, “Paul did it. This is God’s call, not mine. When Paul, Silas, and Timothy were in Thessalonica, Paul realized that he and the disciples’ presence could be a burden on the resources of this young church. Rather than strain them and cause reason for grumbling, they paid their own way, attempting to teach the Thessalonians that hard work was something to be embraced, not shunned, as they were in the habit of doing; they would rather employ slaves than do manual labor themselves.” 

Then Roger added, “In the same way, Grace Community can’t afford to pay me a full-time salary right now.”

Marcus persisted. “So how long are you willing to do this? I mean, do you

actually think this is God’s plan for your life—working yourself weary?”

Roger smiled and replied, “God’s desire is that our little church would

flourish and grow doing the work of the kingdom. Until they can afford a full-

time salary, I intend to ease the burden as much as possible.”

h

In his first Epistle to the Thessalonians, Paul reminded them of how hard they

had worked among them in order to have an opportunity to preach the gospel.

He wasn’t complaining about the work; he was teaching them that God calls

us to be laborers with Christ.

Many, today, believe that God will provide everything they need on the

basis of belief in Jesus Christ. And although God loves His children, He wants

them to understand that hard work is synonymous to kingdom work. We can-

not say, “God will take care of me” and do nothing to assist Him.

Prayer

“Teach us to embrace co-laboring with You, Jesus. May we never

allow ourselves to become a burden that would cause grumbling.

Move us from our perspective of entitlement to a right-minded

understanding that we must labor in Your employ. Amen.”

 Free Yourself!

April 8

Free yourself from the chains on your neck, O captive Daughter of

Zion.

Isaiah 52:2

Britton watched as the wild mustang walked right up to where the fence had

been, and stopped, refusing to take another step. This was the result of an

extended conditioning experiment to see if he could teach the horse to respect

imaginary boundaries.

First, Britton strung a heavy page fence around the small pasture; its

woven-wire a strong barrier against the mustang’s efforts to escape. Once

the mustang grew weary of straining against the fence, Britton strung dou-

ble strands of electric fence just inside the perimeter of the page fence, and

removed the higher, stronger fence.

The mustang, noticing the enclosure looked different, edged cautiously up

to the thin strands of wire. Seeing less of a barrier, he sniffed, and then placed

his nose against the top strand … wham! The charge of electricity hit his nose,

causing him to lunge away! He returned and tested it again receiving the same

unpleasant jolt of electricity. Twice more he tested the fence before keeping his

distance.

Britton then removed the top strand, and waited to see what the mustang

would do. Seeing the wild horse had no inclination to approach the final bar-

rier, he removed the fence altogether. For all intents and purposes the mustang

could run free if he so desired. But due to the fear of impending pain, he did

not move past the imaginary boundary.

h

Pain, regardless of its form, is a powerful deterrent. It can render the strong

powerless. Jolted by life’s pain-filled circumstances, some of us refuse to risk

freedom from captivity for fear of the pain.

God wants us to know He will remove each bar from the cage until there

are none left. Yet, even with all His help, at some point we must take a step

toward freedom. For even God cannot make us submit ourselves to our greatest

fears in order to trade imaginary pain for true freedom.

Jesus came to redeem us, to set us free from oppression, real or imagined.

But He will only come so far. We must decide to be free.

Prayer

“I come today, Lord Jesus, trusting that You will lead me

to safety. Set me free as I take this first step. Amen.”