Times of Refreshing

A. This is one of the greatest promises of God in the Bible.

'Fear not, for I am with you;
Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you, surely I will help you.
Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.'

Comments:
1. Fear and faith are contradictory. If you fear, you have no faith. Fear is a powerful weapon of Satan. God says, Fear not. Why? Because God is with us; He is our Immanuel God. He will never leave us, nor forsake us. He is with us, as He was with Joseph in Egypt, and Israel in the wilderness. Lo, I am with you always, Jesus tells His disciples. Always.

2. Don't be anxious. Don't look here and there. Don't look at the circumstances. Look unto Me. Looking unto Jesus. 'They looked unto Him and were radiant, and their faces were not ashamed.' [Ps 34]. Keep your eyes on the Lord.

3. I am your God. He is my God. The Lord Jesus is my Saviour. He is mine, and I am His. He is God, God Almighty, the El Shaddai God, the all-powerful God, the Omnipotent God who reigns forever.

4. I will strengthen you. He will strengthen your heart, Ps 27. Your heart will be established by His grace, Heb 13. His grace is abundant; His grace is sufficient. When we come to the throne of grace, we will obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need, Heb 4.16. God will never fail.

5. He will uphold us, or hold us up. There is no fear of falling. Underneath are the everlasting arms, Deut 33. Nobody can snatch us out of His hands, John 10.28,29.

6. The right hand of His righteousness. He means what He says. God is true and righteous. He is a faithful God. He is the everlasting Rock. The eternal God is our refuge. He will surely perform what He has promised.

7. Oh, that we would keep trusting in Him at all times! That we would keep 'looking unto Him'. That we would keep praising Him for this great promise.

8. This promise will never fail. Haven't you noticed? God is saying, 'Surely', 'surely'! This is more than a promise, it is an assurance. Thank you, Lord Jesus. Amen.

The Lord Jesus Christ speaking in Rev 3.7 refers to Himself as the One 'who has the key of David, [the One] who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens.’ He opens and no one shuts. So He set before the church at Philadelphia an ‘open door, and no one can shut it.’

But the same Jesus shuts and no one opens. There are many doors that He shuts in our lives – doors which we would gladly go through, not realizing that they are portals to self-seeking and self-gratification, avenues which are outside the will of God. God has a plan for us, and if we desire to be in the will of God and in the plan of God, then He will shut the doors that we would fain open. Often we feel frustrated because the doors are not opening. We never ask, ‘Is this the will of God? Is this the plan of God for me?’ We have many aspirations and ambitions, but we never seek to know the will of God.

God teaches us in practical ways and through painful experience. The difficult circumstances are allowed by Him in our life, even the ‘shut doors’. This is how He chastens us, and makes us learn to wait on Him.

What do we do when we confront a ‘shut door’? Try knocking on the door. God doesn’t want us to be passive. He says, Ask, Seek, Knock. Prayer is not just asking, not just seeking, but knocking. Keep knocking.

We want something from God, we desire it earnestly, we plead with God; and if our heart is really in it, and if it is God’s will, then surely He will do it. However, if it is not God’s will, then He will not answer. And He will take away the desire for it, so that our knocking becomes half-hearted and slack as the days go by. But where we are in earnest and where God wills, it will surely be done.

There is something called a ‘burden’. This is a weight put on the heart. We are burdened about the matter. As we pray earnestly the burden increases. And not just that! But our prayer increases. Our dependence on the Lord increases. It becomes an issue that is ‘according to His will’ and accomplished ‘by His grace’.

So the Friend at Midnight kept knocking, because his need was great [he needed food for himself and his family, as much as for his friend] – and the God who supplies every need according to Philippians 4.19 met that need promptly and abundantly. The door opened to fervent and persistent knocking. The question is: ‘Do we know what we need?’ Is it ‘Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness’ or is it ‘Seek worldly riches, worldly name and fame, worldly security – the things of this world’?

May we know what to pray for, may we desire the things that are above, may we glorify God in all that we do, may we enjoy the abundance of His grace, may we be blessed in every way and become a blessing to many - through the power of persistent prayer! Keep knocking.

Stand still.
Don't go back, don't give up.
Don't run hither and thither. Don't fret. Don't worry.
Don't rush forward.
Just stand still.

In times of uncertainty, wait.
If you have any doubt, wait.
Don't force yourself into a fret or hurry.
If you have a restraint in your spirit, wait.

Wait till all is clear.
Things are bound to clear up.
God is faithful.
He will do it.

God moves in mysterious ways,
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.

William Cowper, 18th century, English poet and hymn-writer.

This is Asaph's Psalm. He wrote some powerful psalms. They come from the bottom of his heart. When we pray do we really mean what we pray? Do we put our heart into our prayers?

'My voice rises to God. I will cry aloud. And He will hear me.' How intense can you be? He is crying out from his heart. He wants God to hear him. He says, God will hear me. When you put your heart into your prayers, you get the assurance that God has heard you.

What was his trouble? This is anguish at night. He 'stretched out his hand without weariness'. How soon we give up! We can't pray for long.

His soul refuses to be comforted. This is really anguish. He is praying earnestly, crying out to God, yet there is no comfort. He is touching the point of despair. Where is God's grace and mercy? Where is His loving-kindness and compassion? Is it to going to be only wrath and darkness?

Then he remembers God. He remembers, remembers. Do you remember the past? The great Red Sea experience in your life. Not just coming out of Egypt, but passing through the Red Sea. This is the experience of every true child of God. We have to pass through the Red Sea. That promise, the great promise of Exodus 14.13,14, has to be tested and proved in our lives. Not just once, but twice...and again and again, till we know that God is true, that God is faithful. And though we pass through the waters, He will be with us.

How was I saved? Was it by mere mental acceptance? No, it was the truth that went into my heart. I was saved by the sheer grace and mercy of God. And I experienced the power of His deliverance, even as the enemy pursued me as I left his kingdom. Our faith is a battle. The Christian life is a battle. There is spiritual reality and spiritual forces are working behind this life of circumstances. But, praise God, He fights our battles and we only have to hold our peace.

Eventhough God's ways are unsearchable - His footsteps are not known - we know that He cares for us, even as a shepherd cares for his sheep, even as He led us out of Egypt and through the Red Sea and through the Wilderness into the Promised Land.