There are some positive things from which disciples should be kept. This devotional reading looks at how walking with God keeps us from error and delusion.
Nuggets
- The path of life leads to life of the body.
- We can only find joyful pleasures when we are in God’s presence.
- Our destination is Heaven, which will be endless and perfect.
The first series in this study looked at evil from which disciples shouldn’t be kept. This devotion starts the series of things from which disciples should be kept.
Wilcox begins his list by saying disciples should be kept from damning error and delusion.
Let's Put It into Context
To read devotions in the Habitual Holiness of Heart and Life theme, click the button below.
Here is a running list of nuggets for the theme.
Devotions in the Habits to Keep Us from Evil study
Here is a running list of nuggets for the study.
We are using Wilcox’s sermon as the foundation for this series.
Resource
The Path of Life
“You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Ps. 16: 11 ESV)
The path of life leads to life of the body.
The psalmist, in this part of the psalm, began to prophesy. The prophesy regards the path that leads us to eternal life. Let’s break it down.
We have seen many times where our lives are represented as a path. We call our journey down this path our walk.
- “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few” (Mt. 7: 13-14 ESV).
- “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Ps. 119: 105 ESV).
- “Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths” (Ps. 25: 4 ESV).
- “In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths” (Prov. 3: 6 ESV).
- “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight’” (Mk. 1: 3 ESV).
- “For we walk by faith, not by sight” (II Cor. 5: 7 ESV).
- “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Mic. 6: 8 ESV).
There are two pathways. One leads to life; the other, death.
There is only one way to navigate the narrow pathway. “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me’” (Jn. 14: 6 ESV).
Jesus leads to God. It is our choice. We must choose to walk with Him daily.
When we walk in submission to God, this life has its perks. It has joyful pleasures.
In God’s Presence
We can only find joyful pleasures when we are in God’s presence.
Our walk with God must bring us into harmony with Him. Being in His presence means submitting our lives and will to Him.
No, being in God’s presence doesn’t necessarily mean being face to face with Him. True, that day will come.
We have to be in God’s presence now, according to Turner, in His knowledge and energy. I love how the Homiletic Review explained this. In The Power of a Presence, we read, “Not necessarily a spoken word or an act performed — simply a presence. There is a Divine presence, distinct from any word, or act, or exercise of Divine power; the charm is found in this, that God is there; it is what He is, not what He does or says, which His presence [emphasizes].”
Resources
Presence can be much more than a physical presence. That is where faith has to come into play. Faith is a gift from God and a work of the Spirit that enhances the conviction that the doctrines revealed in God’s Word are true, even if we do not understand all aspects of them, a belief which impacts our lives and distinguishes us from others.
Glossary
This is also where the knowledge comes in.
Since we are made in God’s image, we were made to communicate with God. That means in prayer with Him. Worship is another way to communicate — and to make Him a reality.
In both, we can find joyful pleasure.
Sandercock reminded us we aren’t looking for true happiness here. Happiness is a worldly emotion. Joy comes from God.
Resource
God’s presence is even more than that. Turner reminds us that God delights in us when we are obedient. That speaks of the connection with us for which God is looking.
God knows us individually. “But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine” (Isa. 43: 1 ESV).
That should bring us tremendous joy. Our Creator, Sovereign God, loves us and is with us always.
Pleasures Forevermore
Our destination is Heaven, which will be endless and perfect.
Why is Heaven so perfect and joyful? God is there.
Perowne had a great insight that segues from the last section to this one. He wrote, “‘Life,’ in the only true sense, is union with God, and from that springs, of necessity, the idea of immortality.”
Resource
We can only live the perfect life when we walk with God. Only when we walk with God do we get rewarded with eternal life. “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life” (Jn. 5: 24 ESV).
When correcting the Saduccees about resurrection, Jesus told them, “He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are quite wrong” (Mk. 12: 27 ESV).
What do we expect Heaven to be like? One thing we know is we will have the fullness of joy.
Every part of our lives will be filled with joy. Gardner told us that is because the glorified disciple is changed in every way except our identities. We stay who we are — we become like Him.
Resource
Okay. Let’s stop a second – chase a rabbit – whatever you want to call it.
This life is to be a trial run for the next life. That would mean we need to find God’s joy here.
Too many disciples don’t seem to have found it. Berguer told us why.
- Our faith is weak.
- We aren’t growing like we should.
- Sin has too much of a stronghold in us.
- We choose to abandon God during difficult times.
- We don’t cast our cares on God.
Resource
We can only experience eternal life when we worship God in spirit and truth. We cannot lose our salvation when we have made a true profession of faith.
Just think how unencumbered we will be when we get to shed these sinful bodies. That will bring us a lot of joy!
Only communion with God can sustain eternal life.
Making the Connections #1
Okay. I have to process what Perowne said. He wrote,
“And though probably there would be many fluctuations of belief, though the spiritual eye would not always be clear, it seems impossible to doubt, when we read passages such as this, that there were times at least when the hope of life beyond the grave did become distinct and palpable. At the same time, in the utterance of this confident persuasion and hope David was carried beyond himself.”
Resource
- Remember that meme where we think growth goes in a straight line? Instead, there are a lot of circles and backtracking until we get to where God wants us to be. That could be caused by fluctuations in belief.
- Our spiritual eye won’t always be clear. God doesn’t reveal everything to us at once. We may have to grow to get to clarity. But we grow because of the muddy veil. (If we understand everything, there would be nowhere to grow.)
- We aren’t going to understand and know what Heaven is like until we get there. Until then, we have the hope and assurance in God’s Word. We can be as confident as David was when we are men and women after God’s own heart.
Making the Connections #2
Sandercock said something I really love. He wrote, “We must die before we can thus live. Death will transmit the children of God to the glorious presence of their heavenly Father, and there shall they be blessed.”
Resource
Too many people think this world is where the living happens. In a way, it does.
But eternity is going to last a whole lot longer. It is there on which we must focus.
Making the Connections #3
We really haven’t touched much on the delusion part of Wilcox’s point. Maybe I am thinking about this because of the Matthew 7: 21 devotion we did a few devotions back.
But what Gardner had to say really struck me as being appropriate to that discussion. He wrote, “Another source of happiness is the fact that the believer has now entered into more exalted society than he enjoyed on earth.
Resource
When we get to Heaven, only true disciples will be there. Goats won’t be there, but neither will the Matthew 7: 21 people. That means there won’t be any delusional sheep there.
The family of God will truly be unified and of one accord.
How Do We Apply This?
- Go through the open narrow gate to God as He reveals it to us.
- Don’t buy stock in this world.
- Focus on being heirs for eternity.
- Diligently walk with God.
Resource
Father God. We want to diligently walk with so that we will be kept from sin and delusion. We want to be totally in Your Will. Amen.
What do you think?
Leave me a comment below (about this or anything else) or head over to my Facebook group for some interactive discussion.
If you don’t understand something and would like further clarification, please contact me.
If you have not signed up for the email providing the link to the devotions and the newsletter, do so below.
If God has used this devotion to speak with you, consider sharing it on social media.