Jesus Heals You All Ministries

In our past lives before salvation, we usually fought for ourselves when there was enmity, and we also took stands for decisions that were operated by our carnal mind. Sometimes those decisions brought us good results and failures, too.

So, the moment after salvation, we start taking things very spiritually.

Most people, when they face these kinds of odd situations where they are suffering for the right reasons, tend to escape from them, thinking that this is not the will of God to stay here. So, they quit that season of their lives.

But as men of God, we should not jump into a decision immediately without inquiring with the Lord. Whether to wait or move

1 Peter 2: 13-15 says

“Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor[c] as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people”

Wait there, so that they may transform and acknowledge the likeness of Christ in you, which may lead them to Christ.

1 Peter 5:6-7 says

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.

2 Corinthians 13:5-7 says

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? —unless indeed you fail to meet the test!

As per the pattern mentioned in the above scripture, we have to validate the current situation by following these three steps:

Examine, test and evaluate before taking any step

We will see two references from the Bible

First , Samuel at Eli the High Priest

The sons of Eli are wicked and plundering the temple of God. 1 Samuel 2:12 “Eli’s sons were scoundrels; they had no regard for the Lord.”

God spoke to Samuel regarding his plan and purpose for his life. 1 Samuel 3:11 “And the Lord said to Samuel: “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it tingle. But he waited there until God exalted him to the promised position. He had learned all that God was teaching him and equipped himself to be worthy of the promised position. 1 Samuel 3:19–21 “The Lord was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of Samuel’s words fall to the ground. And all Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, recognised that Samuel was attested as a prophet of the Lord. The Lord continued to appear at Shiloh, and there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word.”

In the meantime, we could expect a situation in the house of Eli where there is a close encounter between the sons of Eli and Samuel. Here, we can clearly perceive that the wickedness of the sons of Eli did not affect the vision and life of Samuel. It is clear that Samuel opposed the odd things done by the sons of Eli with the help of God and stood his ground for the word of God.

Taking a stand for yourself is often described as a rude way of dealing with things, but from the perspective of God, one has to obey the authority while dealing with things politely and not compromise with the plan of God as well. Being a man of God, one must handle these two things.

So God, in his time, exalted him.

Second – Israelites and the prophet Samuel

Second, the Israelites and the prophet Samuel

Sons of Samuel turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice. 1 Samuel 8:1-3 “When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as Israel’s leaders. The name of his firstborn was Joel, and the name of his second was Abijah, and they served at Beersheba. But his sons did not follow his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice.”

So, the people of Israel immediately jumped to the decision that they needed a king to lead them. 1 Samuel 8:4-5 “So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. They said to him, “You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have.”

Now we have to understand how God responded to their expectations while they faced suffering and odd situations in their lives.

Their expectations and decisions dissatisfied God. 1 Samuel 8:7-9 says,

“And the Lord told him: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights.”

If we see the reality, the sons of Samuel who were appointed as leaders to lead them have gone astray, and their decision seems legit, but here comes the perspective of the Lord.

Before jumping into a decision immediately, one must inquire of the Lord, and based on his word and time, we have to act. Do not go where your soul leads.

Here, the Israelites did not inquire of the Lord but found that the kingship of gentile nations is good. So, they demanded the decision, and this decision implied unbelief in God that he could help them in that situation and also implied that God is unaware of what is happening. This displeased God.

Let me use a human argument: if you are escaping the given situation without the approval of God, it impacts your life as mentioned below.

1) You are rejecting the plan of God.

   This may be a season of learning in your life according to his plan for the given time where God is equipping you, but you just denied this season.

2) Rejecting the counsel of God.

    This may be a season of edification in your life where God is working on your nature and character, but you just denied this season.

3) Unbelief in God

    In this season, you did not believe God that he can turn any situation around and that he is in control of life.

4) Decide on your own

    Likewise, with others and their responses in these kinds of situations, you also decided and acted

I would like to emphasise that if you skip this season without the approval of God, then God will put you back in the same kind of situation again and again until you learn.

So, whenever you face bitter experiences around you, start inquiring at the Lord, wait for his decision, and move.

But, at the same time,

You must not compromise with that situation and go astray from the plan and purpose of God. You stand your ground and politely deal with things from the perspective of the Bible.

Let me take an example from the Bible. The life of David the King

God anointed him as king, but he did not take the throne of king immediately. After many years, he started his reign, and until that time, he had faced bitter experiences with King Saul. Here, we must understand David’s attitude and his way of handling things. He was running from Saul and defending himself from him, and on the other hand, he was not compromised by the plan of God. If he had compromised by not being a king, then Saul would not have chased him to kill him. But David did not compromise with the Word of God and also dealt with Saul biblically. Later, David became a successful king of Israel.

So wait until God moves you.

In his time, God will move the coin. Isaiah 60:22 says

The least of you will become a thousand, and the smallest will become a mighty nation.

I am the Lord; in its time I will do this swiftly.”

You’ve got to stand for God, and at the same time, you’ve got to deal with things biblically.

That is the life of a Christian.