Daily Devotional For Tuesday, April 8, 2025
Good morning Southside on this terrific Tuesday. Today, we are going to look at a passage from Isaiah 66:1, Thus says the Lord, ‘Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest?” (NASB). When you think about the distance between heaven and this earth physically, this text makes it clear our God is a very BIG and powerful God.
In an age when we as Christians see the world in chaos and confusion, when it seems there is no control, and we are tempted to fall into despair and depression, Scriptures affirm our God is in control. Things are not as they seem. We see and experience this alot in our lives and in Scripture. There is a term Bible scholars use called phenomenology. This means “how things appear to be.” Let me give you an example: let’s say this weekend you decide to drive to the beach before sunrise and sit on the beach to watch the sun “rise.” From your knowledge, does the sun rise? NO! It only seems to do that based on the rotation of the earth.
Yet, we still use these terms – sunrise and sunset and when we do, everyone, ourselves included, understands what we mean. This requires no faith at all, but when the world is chaotic, sinful and evil, it does take faith to say in spite of how things appear to be, that God is still in control. We are not waiting for God to take control or be in control. God is already in control.
When we see the chaos of our world today, we may be tempted to despair. But things are not what they seem. The same God who governs the galaxies is overseeing the times—and He ordains all our steps too. His throne is in heaven, and earth is His footstool. Give thanks today that Jesus Christ is now and forever the Lord of all. I say all the time about history – History is His-story.” It is. God has a plan and everything is on the perfect schedule to fulfill that plan.
Think of it this way: when someone commits a crime that does not mean the Law has ceased to exist. Just the opposite: nature and we abhor a vacuum and thus the crime that has been committed is dealt with by those in control of the Law and Judicial systems.
On the first anniversary of the Battle of Lexington – the beginning of the American Revolution on April 19, 1775, a local pastor in Lexington by the name of Jonah Clarke preached a sermon. His wife’s cousin was John Hancock and he was best friends with John Adams. The first American blood was shed here and his sermons along with other pastors called for freedom. This is why in history, Jonas Clarke is called “the pastor who fired the first shot heard around the world” when the American Revolution began.
The first American soldiers had been trained by Pastor Jonas Clarke not just in warfare but also in a theology that tyrants have to be opposed or freedom being vanquished. As the church bell rang calling for more soldiers, these early Americans held their ground and won this battle. This motivated more American men to join in defeating the British and the victory at Lexinton led to the defeat of the British at Concord as well.
My point is this: The battle over sin and evil has already been won by Christ’s death and Resurrection. As with many battles, some of the enemy does not want to surrender to defeat, so they continue to wage in warfare. Our battle is not against “flesh and blood, but against spiritual powers” (Eph. 6:12). King Jesus is yet to sentence them to eternal banishment in hell, but do not fear or question, their doom is already sealed. Jesus’ death and Resurrection was “the shot heard around the physical and spiritual world.” Therefore, there is no need for us to surrender to fear, hopelessness and a belief we cannot win. We can.
The Apostle Paul writes this in Romans 8:27, “In all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us” (NASB). What things? Read Romans 8:31-36. The battle has been won. King Jesus is still King and He still is in control. When you feel weak, He is strong and stronger. Pastor and author John John Stott shares the following story from 1958 when he was leading a university outreach in Sydney, Australia. The day before the final meeting, Stott received word that his father had passed away. In addition to his grief, Stott was also starting to lose his voice. Here's how Stott describes the final day of the outreach:
It was already late afternoon within a few hours of the final meeting of the mission, so I didn't feel I could back away at that time. I went to the great hall and asked a few students to gather round me. I asked one of them to read … "My grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness," (2 Corinthians 12:8-9). A student read these verses and then I asked them to lay hands on me and … pray that those verses might be true in my own experience.
When time came for me to give my address, I preached on the [broad and narrow ways from Matthew 7]. I had to get within half an inch of the microphone, and I croaked the gospel like a raven. I couldn't exert my personality. I couldn't move. I couldn't use any inflections in my voice. I croaked the gospel in monotone. Then when the time came to give the invitation, there was an immediate response, larger than any other meeting during the mission, as students came flocking forward …
I've been back to Australia about ten times since 1958, and on every occasion somebody has come up to me and said, "Do you remember that final meeting in the university in the great hall?" "I jolly well do," I reply. "Well," they say, "I was converted that night."
Stott concludes, "The Holy Spirit takes our human words, spoken in great weakness and frailty, and he carries them home with power to the mind, the heart, the conscience, and the will of the hearers in such a way that they see and believe” (Source: John Stott).
Questions To Consider
- Do you ever doubt that God is in control? If you do, when are you most likely to think and feel this way?
- According to the Apostle Paul in Romans 8:27-31, we are conquerors. Do you see yourself in that light or as something else? Why?
- It does seem that tragedy comes at the most inappropriate time, as if there was an appropriate time. When has this happened to you and did you question God’s sovereignty, power and being in control? Why or why not?
- Since the battle over sin and evil has been won, why do we think we do not live this reality?
Scripture To Meditate On: Joshua 1:9, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (NASB).
Prayer To Pray: “Dear Lord, I thank You for being in control. Thank You that no matter what happens to me or the people I love, You are still a loving and caring God. Forgive me when I live as a defeated disciples when You have in fact made me a conqueror. I thank You that neither life nor death, neither pains nor problems, neither hardships nor struggles, You have this. As Job said in his hardships in Job 13:15a, I say to You Lord: “Though He slay me, I will hope in Him” (NASB). I love You Lord. I pray this in Your name, Amen!”
I love you Southside – PK