When facing the challenges of standing for restored marriages, there’s a very important truth that we need to believe and understand, which is found in what Jesus said in John 10:10 (NKJV), where He said The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. That means we don’t have to settle for the death and destruction Satan wants for us, or let him steal the abundant life Jesus came to give us, because Jesus came to give us victory over Satan and so much more! But we have to understand that there is a choice to be made, and that it is ours to make. I often tell women that if I were to give them a hundred dollar bill, and they take it without spending it, they might as well not take it in the first place, because it won’t do them a bit of good. And it’s the same way with Jesus. If we have accepted Him as our Savior and made Him Lord of our lives, something is wrong if we’re NOT experiencing abundant life, or lives filled with the fruit of the spirit as described in Galatians 5:22-23, which says But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Most of us have heard (probably repeating it ourselves) and believe the Bible says “If you know the truth, the truth will set you free.” But like so many other verses in the Bible, that’s not even close to the whole story, because John 8:31-32, actually says To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” So the REAL truth is that we can’t KNOW the truth and be set free unless we BELIEVE Jesus, HOLD TO HIS teachings, and are REALLY His disciples. So we can’t just leave out the important words “If” and “Then” when proclaiming this awesome promise! But when we believe Jesus, hold to His teachings and really are His disciples, we WILL truly understand and experience the fulfillment of His promise in Luke 4, which says:
17 The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him,
21 and he began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

So I struggle sometimes with understanding how women who profess a close walk with the Lord remain under so much bondage to pain, anger, bitterness, resentment, unforgiveness, self righteousness, and despair. And that’s when I’d give just about anything to be able to do that mind link thing Mr. Spock used to do! But I know there’s nothing I can do about it, because it always comes down to the same decision we all have to make at some time or another in our lives. And that’s whether or not we REALLY believe and trust, and have a hunger to understand the word of God. Because we either believe that it’s ALL true, or it’s ALL a lie. And when we read the Bible, expecting the Lord to speak to us, to show us His REVEALED word, we’ll always find something we hadn’t seen or understood before, which should make it VERY exciting to read and study. Yet, the truth is that not many of us are very serious or even that interested in reading and STUDYING the Bible. It’s a lot easier to have someone else read it and tell us what it says or what it means, but receiving the word that way doesn’t have the same impact as when we read it for ourselves and the Holy Spirit speaks to us through it.

On the other hand, whenever we have a conversation with our husbands, or receive a letter, email message or text message from them, how much time do we spend trying to understand it, by trying to read between the lines, desperately looking for a glimmer of hope, analyzing, hanging on and remembering EVERY word, or even considering the tone of voice? We don’t miss anything he said, or even what was NOT said. Yet, when was the last time we considered God’s word, HIS love letter to us, that way? Ouch!

Obviously, one of my favorite passages of scripture is Psalm 37:4-7, which says Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun. As we stand for the restoration of our marriages in obedience to the Lord, everyone of us wants the desires of our hearts, our righteousness to shine like the dawn and the justice of our cause to shine like the noon day sun, but what are we doing to delight ourselves in the Lord? What are we doing that proves we’ve committed our way to Him? And is there evidence in our daily lives that we trust Him? The bottom line is that we can NOT claim that awesome promise from the Lord without looking for the “ifs” and thens” in that passage, which applies to ALL scripture. Other than God’s unconditional love, I haven’t found ANY special blessing, promise, protection or provision from the Lord that is Not conditional. And since I say that so often, I’m sure someone would let me know if and when they find something disproving it! So it’s very important for us to understand that many verses are often misquoted or quoted without their complete context, and it’s not possible to fully understand them without reading them in context or in the context of the entire Bible.

For example, Ephesians 6:10-18 gives us a much better understanding of the battle Jesus spoke of in John 10:10, as well as providing the instruction we need to be victorious as we stand in HIS mighty power, because it says Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. And it’s not possible to understand the true and deadly nature of this kind of warfare, or that in most cases, our husbands and children are Satan’s intended targets, much less the power and proper use of our armor without reading, studying and understanding our owner’s manual, the Bible, as it was written by our Manufacturer, our Creator, our loving Father, God!

Then, even though Paul’s instructions concerning spiritual warfare in 2 Corinthians 10:2-5 seem very simple, most of us know how difficult they are to practice, because he said I beg you that when I come I may not have to be as bold as I expect to be toward some people who think that we live by the standards of this world. For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. While that sounds simple, we all know that it’s definitely a lot easier said than done, and most of us wouldn’t have a clue how to begin doing it, but we find the answer to that by reading Philippians 4:4-9, which says Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. In my opinion, this passage of scripture holds the key to living the abundant life Jesus came to give us, because If we’d learn to CONSISTENTLY practice the instruction it provides, we’d have the peace of God and we’d be victorious in EVERY battle the devil wages against us! And before saying it’s not possible, we need to read Philippians 4:13 (NKJV), which says I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

So, in the end whether or not we live the abundant life Jesus died to give us is a matter of whether or not we believe, study and understand His word, as found in our Bibles. I’m sure anyone involved in marriage restoration ministry would agree that there is a very direct and evident connection between those who experience victory as they stand for their marriages and how much time they spend studying God’s word. The power of God’s word transforms us as nothing else can, because it has the power to renew our minds, which we know pleases the Lord, according to Romans 12:2, which says Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. And it’s through the process of that transformation that we experience the freedom we seek, AND glorify our Lord and Savior, as revealed in 2 Corinthians 3:17-18, which says Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. So let’s not miss out on the abundant life Jesus came to give us by neglecting and ignoring His love letter to us!

Since Charles Stanley’s TV broadcast message this past Sunday was about living an extraordinary life, here’s a link to Washington Rally – The Extraordinary Life – Week of July 16, 2006, which I encourage everyone to take the time to watch.

Posted Wednesday, July 19th, 2006 at 1:09 pm in Seeds Of Faith.