The Privilege Of Prayer
[The disciples said,] . . . We will devote ourselves to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.
Acts 6:4 RSV
We must desire the will of God. Even our Lord, contrary to his own disposition at the moment, said, “O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done” (Matthew 26:42).
Prayer couples us with God’s true purposes for us and the world. It not only brings the blessings of God’s will to our own personal life, but it brings us the added blessing of being in step with God’s plan.
Remember, too, that our prayer must be for God’s glory. The model prayer which Jesus has given us concludes with, “Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory.” If we are to have our prayers answered, we must give God the glory. Our Lord said to His disciples, “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son” (John 14:13).
What a privilege is ours: the privilege of prayer! Christian, examine your heart, reconsecrate your life, yield yourself to God unreservedly, for only those who pray through a clear heart will be heard of Him. The Bible says, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” (James 5:16).
We are to pray in times of adversity, lest we become faithless and unbelieving. We are to pray in times of prosperity, lest we become boastful and proud. We are to pray in times of danger, lest we become fearful and doubting. We need to pray in times of security, lest we become self-sufficient. Sinners, pray to a merciful God for forgiveness! Christians, pray for an outpouring of God’s Spirit upon a willful, evil, unrepentant world. Parents, pray that God may crown your home with grace and mercy! Children, pray for the salvation of your parents!
Christian, saint of God, pray that the dew of heaven may fall on earth’s dry, thirsty ground, and that righteousness may cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. Pray, believing, with this promise of our Savior in mind, “What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them” (Mark 11:24).
“Satan trembles when he sees the weakest saint upon his knees”—so pray, Christian, pray!
Our Father and our God, take my doubting heart and convert it to unwavering faith. Forgive me, in Your great mercy, for violating my commitment to You. Search me and try me, Lord. Make my life a glorification of You and Your Son, through whom I pray. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
The Fruit Of The Spirit
And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.
Acts 4:31
What does it mean to be filled with the Spirit? It is not necessarily an emotional experience, nor will it necessarily bring us some type of spiritual experience that is obvious or open. To be filled with the Spirit is to be controlled by the Spirit. It is to be so yielded to Christ that our supreme desire is to do His will. When we come to Christ the Spirit comes to dwell within us—whether we are aware of His presence or not. But as we grow in Christ, our goal is to be controlled by the Spirit.
We should seek to produce the fruit of the Spirit in our lives.
You say, “I am powerless to produce such fruit. It would be utterly impossible for me to do so!”
With that I agree! That is, we can’t produce this fruit in our own strength. Remember, the Bible says, “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance” (Galatians 5:22–23). When the Spirit of God dwells in us He will produce the fruit. It is ours only to cultivate the soil of our hearts through sincere devotion and yieldedness that He might find favorable ground to produce that which He will.
I might have a fruit tree in my yard; but if the soil isn’t enriched and the bugs carefully destroyed, it will not yield a full crop.
As Christians, we have the Spirit of God in us. But ours is the responsibility to keep sin out of our lives so that the Spirit can produce His fruit in us.
Our Father and our God, fill me with Your Spirit. Control my life and my heart so that the fruit of the Spirit is obvious to those around me. I yield myself to Your wisdom and guidance. Forgive any blight on my soul that hampers my witness for You and Christ Jesus, in whom I pray. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
And The Angels Rejoice
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
Acts 4:12
The one and only way you can be converted is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as your own personal Lord and Savior. You don’t have to straighten out your life first. You don’t have to try to give up some habit that is keeping you from God. You have tried all that and failed many times. You can come “just as you are.” The blind man came just as he was. The leper came just as he was. The thief on the cross came just as he was. You can come to Christ right now wherever you are and just as you are and the angels of heaven will rejoice!
Some of the greatest and most precious words recorded in all of Scripture were spoken by Satan himself (not that he intended it to be so). In his discussion with God about Job, he said, “Hast not thou made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands and his substance is increased in the land” (Job 1:10).
As I look back over my life I remember the moment I came to Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. The angels rejoiced! Since then I have been in thousands of battles with Satan and his demons. As I yielded my will and committed myself totally to Christ—as I prayed and believed—I am convinced that God “put a hedge about me,” a hedge of angels to protect me.
The Scripture says there is a time to be born and a time to die. And when my time to die comes an angel will be there to comfort me. He will give me peace and joy even at that most critical hour, and usher me into the presence of God, and I will dwell with the Lord forever. Thank God for the ministry of His blessed angels!
Our Father and our God, I come to You just as I am—sinful, unworthy, like a pile of dirty rags before You. I need Your forgiveness, Your love, Your comfort. Build a tall hedge around me, Lord, to protect me from the evil forces in this world. Save me through Jesus Christ and His selfless sacrifice on the cross. In His matchless name I pray. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
Transforming Fire
This Jesus God raised up, and of that we are all witnesses.
Acts 2:32 RSV
Witness the transformation in Simon Peter. He was so weak before Pentecost that, in spite of his bragging to the contrary, he swore and denied Christ. He was cowed by the crowd, shamed by a little maid, and took his place with the enemies of Christ.
But see him after he had been baptized with fire! He stands boldly before the same rabble that had crucified Jesus, and looking into their faces, unafraid, says, “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ” (Acts 2:36).
Peter, the weak, was transformed into Peter, the rock. Saul, the slaughterer, was transformed into Paul, the missionary. All of the disciples were changed from ordinary individuals into virtual firebrands for God. Their faith and zeal started a conflagration which spread throughout Asia Minor, Europe, and the entire world. The world today still feels the powerful impact and influence of this little band of dedicated men who cared to expose themselves to the “Divine Flame.”
A bar of raw steel may be purchased for a few dollars. But when that bar of steel has been thrust into the fires and processed, when it has been tempered and forged and made into tiny watch springs for expensive watches, it is worth thousands of dollars. Fire and the skilled hands of the master artisans made the difference, enhancing the value.
Just as the sun by its heat and light performs a thousand miracles a day in the plant kingdom, God through the refining fire of His Spirit performs a thousand miracles a day in the spiritual realm. His regenerating power is ever at work in the world, taking the ashes of burned-out lives and changing them to dynamic channels, dedicated to winning the salvation of others!
Our Father and our God, I submit myself to Your empowering flame. Please make of me something more beautiful, something more enduring, something more valuable than I am by myself. I know that only You can do the miracle in my life I so desperately need. I come in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
The Church That Shook The World
They were filled with the Holy Spirit.
Acts 2:4 RSV
We read in the book of Acts that the early church was filled with the Holy Spirit. The had no church buildings, no Bible, no automobiles, no planes, no trains, no television, no radio. Yet they turned their world “upside down” for Christ. They instituted a spiritual revolution that shook the very foundations of the Roman Empire. They were young, vigorous, virile, powerful. They lived their lives daily for their faith in Christ. They suffered persecution and even death gladly for their faith in Christ. What was the secret of their success—even in the face of opposition and death? One reason beyond doubt is that they hungered and thirsted after righteousness. And those with whom they came in contact could not help but be impressed by the quality and purity of their lives and their love.
The reason certain false philosophies and religions are making such inroads in the world today is that somewhere along the line the people who were supposed to live Christian lives failed. We have failed to meet the standards and requirements that Jesus set forth. If we would live for Christ, we must be willing to count all else as “nothing but refuse” (Philippians 3:8). We must be as dedicated, as committed, and as willing to sacrifice all as some followers of false religions are.
The great masses of the unbelieving world are confused as they gaze upon the strife within and among religious bodies. Instead of a dynamic, growing, powerful, Christ-centered church, we see division, strife, pettiness, greed, jealousy, and spiritual laziness—while the world is standing on the brink of disaster.
The great need in Christendom today is for Christians to learn the secret of daily, wholehearted recommitment to Christ.
Our Father and our God, I am Your slave to command. I turn my entire life over to You to direct. Show me the way You want me to go, and I will go. Here am I, Lord, send me. I give up any claim I have to my own life, and I surrender it to You because of Jesus, my example of humility and servanthood, through whom I pray. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
Life and Light
These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
John 20:31 NIV
C.T. Studd, the famous Cambridge cricketer and missionary pioneer, wrote the following couplet while still a student at Cambridge:
Only one life, ’twill soon be past;
Only what’s done for Christ will last.
Life is a glorious opportunity if it is used to condition us for eternity. If we fail in this, though we succeed in everything else, our life will have been a failure. There is no escape for the man who squanders his opportunity to prepare to meet God.
D. L. Moody said, “Let God have your life; He can do more with it than you can!” Moody also said, “A holy life will produce the deepest impression. Lighthouses blow no horns; they only shine.”
Look again at John’s words (quoted above): “These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” I trust that you have believed in Jesus and accepted Him as your personal Lord and Savior; if not, I urge you to do so today. But have you discovered the truth of the second part of that verse, that in Christ, we have life—not just physical life but life in all its fullness, as God intended it to be?
People today try to find happiness in a multitude of ways: wealth, prestige, education, sex, drugs, physical health, entertainment, relationships—you name it. Most of these aren’t necessarily wrong, if we follow God’s laws concerning them and keep them in their rightful place. But true life, life that gives eternal significance to everything we do, comes only from putting Jesus Christ at the center of our lives. Is He the center of your life?”
Our Father and our God, thank You for making my soul immortal too. When I think of eternity in heaven, I can see the rainbow of hope around my future, and I can feel Your comforting hand holding mine. Thank You for hope, Lord. I pray through Jesus, who is the anchor of my soul. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
Reduced To Robots
These are recorded so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God, and that believing this you may have life through his name.
John 20:31 JB
In Christ we can become new people. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV) God can produce great good out of any life dedicated to Him.
If God were to remove all evil from our world (but somehow leave man on the planet), it would mean that the essence of “humanness” would be destroyed. Man would become a robot.
Let me explain what I mean by this. If God eliminated evil by programming man to perform only good acts, man would lose his distinguishing mark—the ability to make choices. He would no longer be a free moral agent. He would be reduced to the status of a robot.
Let’s take this a step further. Robots do not love. God created man with the capacity to love. Love is based upon one’s right to choose to love. We cannot force others to love us. We can make them serve us or obey us. But true love is founded upon one’s freedom to choose to respond. Man could be programmed to do good, but the element of love would be lost. If man were forced to do good, suffering would be eliminated—and so would love. What would it be like to live in a world without love?
Thus we can see that God’s use of His power to eliminate evil would not prove to be a positive solution to the problem of suffering. The results of such action would create greater dilemmas. Either man would be reduced to the status of a robot in a loveless world or he would be annihilated. Given the choice, I would choose to be responsible for my actions rather than to be a robot without responsibility!
Our Father and our God, I dedicate my life to You. I bring it willingly and lay it at Your feet. Take my life and use it to magnify and glorify You and You alone. Make my life a conduit of Your love and compassion to the world through the strength of Jesus Christ, my Lord. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
The World’s Worthless Penny
[Jesus said,] I pray for them . . . for they are mine. And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.
John 17:9–10
I believe un-self-consciousness is characteristic of the fruit of the Holy Spirit. The person who says, “I am Spirit-filled” sets himself up for some pretty uncomfortable scrutiny. Did any apostle or disciple say of himself, “I am filled with the Holy Spirit”? But others would say of them, “They were filled with the Holy Spirit.” The person who is self-consciously loving, self-consciously joyful, self-consciously peaceful, has about him the odor of self. And as one Christian sagely observed: “Self is spiritual B.O.”
A little child playing one day with a very valuable vase put his hand into it and could not withdraw it. The father, too, tried his best to get the little boy’s hand out, but all in vain. They were thinking of breaking the vase when the father said, “Now, my son, make one more try. Open your hand and hold your fingers out straight as you see me doing and then pull.”
To their astonishment the little fellow said, “Oh no, Father. I couldn’t put my fingers out like that because if I did I would drop my penny.”
Smile if you will—but thousands of us are like that little boy, so busy holding on to the world’s worthless penny that we cannot accept liberation. I beg you to drop that trifle in your heart. Surrender! Let go and let God have His way in your life.
Now after you have given yourself completely to Christ in surrender to Him, remember that God has accepted what you have presented. “Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:37).
You have come to Him; now He has received you. And He will in no wise cast you out!
Our Father and our God, Your kindness and compassion overwhelm me. Fill me with Your Spirit, Lord. Show me how to let go of the world and its trinkets. Teach me to find contentment and peace in You in every situation of my life, whether joy or sorrow. I love You, Father. Through Christ. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
Not Of The World
[Jesus said,] I have given them thy word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
John 17:14 RSV
We Christians are not to be conformed to the world socially. The world tries to absorb us into its secular society and to conform us to its earthly image, but Christ urges us not to conform. Clearly He says of those who believe in Him, “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.”
The Gulf Stream is in the ocean, and yet it is not a part of it. Believers are in the world, and yet they must not be absorbed by it. The Gulf Stream maintains its warm temperatures even in the icy water of the North Atlantic. If Christians are to fulfill their purposes in the world, they must not be chilled by the indifferent, godless society in which they live.
Much of our talk as Christians is worldly, not spiritual. It is easy to fall into the conversational conformity of the world and spend an evening discussing politics, the new-model cars, and the latest entertainment. We often forget that our conversation should be on heavenly, and not exclusively on earthly, things.
It is true that Jesus dined with the publicans and sinners, but He did not allow the social group to overwhelm Him and conform Him to its ways. He seized every opportunity to present a spiritual truth and to lead a soul from death to life. Our social contacts should not only be pleasant, but they should also be made opportunities to share our faith with those who do not yet know Christ.
Our Father and our God, don’t let me conform myself to this world. Help me, rather, to influence my world to follow You and Your Son. Forgive me for my useless conversations and my idle words. Teach me to seize every opportunity to talk about You and the glory of Christ, through whom I pray. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
We Are In The World
TheIf ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
John 15:19
The Christian, of course, must live his life in this world. He must infiltrate this world with a purpose—to help win the world. But he does not need to participate in the evils of the world. It is impossible for us to escape from the world, the flesh, and the devil, even in a monastery.
We cannot possibly influence the world unless we live in it and give evidence of the power of the Gospel in our lives. As citizens we must vote and participate in political affairs. We are to participate in civic activities, and most certainly we are to be loyal and faithful to the church.
However, we are not to compromise with the world, the flesh, and the devil. We are not to participate in the sins of the world. There are certain things to which a Christian must say no—in politics, in the shop, in the office, even in the neighborhood. He must often show that he is a citizen of another world, and many times suffer persecution and misunderstanding because of it.
We should refuse to support anything which does not meet with the approval of our Christian conscience. There are thousands of professing Christians who are betraying their Christian principles because they are more concerned for the world’s smiles than the commendation of Jesus Christ.
I have found that the casual Christian has little or no influence upon others. I am finding that it is only the Christian who refuses to compromise in matters of honesty, integrity, and morality who is bearing an effective witness for Christ. The worldly Christian is prepared to do as the world does and will condone practices which are dishonest and unethical because he is afraid of the world’s displeasure. Only by a life of obedience to the voice of the Spirit, by a daily dying to self, by a full dedication to Christ and constant fellowship with him, are we enabled to live a godly life and have a positive influence in this present ungodly world.
Our Father and our God, I want to be pure and holy as You are holy. Please let my witness for Christ be strong. Keep my honesty, integrity, and morality intact, no matter what happens. Help me learn to say no when I should. Give me courage and the fortitude to be obedient at all times. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).se things I command you, that ye love one another.
John 15:17
What is the great overwhelming evidence that we have passed from death unto life? It is love! Our Lord prayed, “That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me” (John 17:21).
Jesus Christ clearly was speaking of visible unity, such as can be seen by the world. His motive for praying was that the world might believe and the world might know. He prayed for unity among believers. There is a kind of unity in diversity, a unity compatible with variety, and it is this pattern which Christ lays down for the church.
All through the book of Acts there occurs a key phrase: “with one accord.” The apostles were not given to quarreling over secondary points of doctrine. When difficulties did arise, every attempt was made to settle them in a reasonable and charitable spirit under the direction of the Holy Spirit.
God, who wills man’s unity in Christ, is a God of variety. So often we want everyone to be the same, to think and speak and believe as we do. Ephesians 2:19– 20, Philippians 2:1–4, and many other passages could be called to witness that love is the real key to Christian unity.
In the spirit of true humility, compassion, consideration, and unselfishness—which reflect the mind of the Lord Jesus—we are to approach our problems, our work, and even our differences.
James says that even the demons believe—and shudder. He is protesting against the barrenness of the orthodoxy which is divorced from love and good works. It is possible to be right theologically and yet to be lacking in a spirit of love.
John filled his epistles with the love that we are to have one for another: “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren” (1 John 3:14)—not because we are sound in the Christian faith and believe the Bible from cover to cover. The one great test is love!
Our Father and our God, thank You for the beautiful variety You created in the world—and among your people. Help us develop the spirit of true humility, compassion, consideration, and unselfishness that reflects the mind of Christ. In His name I pray. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
Make Love Your Motive
These things I command you, that ye love one another.
John 15:17
What is the great overwhelming evidence that we have passed from death unto life? It is love! Our Lord prayed, “That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me” (John 17:21).
Jesus Christ clearly was speaking of visible unity, such as can be seen by the world. His motive for praying was that the world might believe and the world might know. He prayed for unity among believers. There is a kind of unity in diversity, a unity compatible with variety, and it is this pattern which Christ lays down for the church.
All through the book of Acts there occurs a key phrase: “with one accord.” The apostles were not given to quarreling over secondary points of doctrine. When difficulties did arise, every attempt was made to settle them in a reasonable and charitable spirit under the direction of the Holy Spirit.
God, who wills man’s unity in Christ, is a God of variety. So often we want everyone to be the same, to think and speak and believe as we do. Ephesians 2:19– 20, Philippians 2:1–4, and many other passages could be called to witness that love is the real key to Christian unity.
In the spirit of true humility, compassion, consideration, and unselfishness—which reflect the mind of the Lord Jesus—we are to approach our problems, our work, and even our differences.
James says that even the demons believe—and shudder. He is protesting against the barrenness of the orthodoxy which is divorced from love and good works. It is possible to be right theologically and yet to be lacking in a spirit of love.
John filled his epistles with the love that we are to have one for another: “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren” (1 John 3:14)—not because we are sound in the Christian faith and believe the Bible from cover to cover. The one great test is love!
Our Father and our God, thank You for the beautiful variety You created in the world—and among your people. Help us develop the spirit of true humility, compassion, consideration, and unselfishness that reflects the mind of Christ. In His name I pray. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
The Measure of Real Love
This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
John 15:12–13
Much of the world is callous and indifferent toward mankind’s poverty and distress. This is due largely to the fact that for many people there has never been a rebirth. The love of God has never been shed abroad in their hearts.
Many people speak of the social gospel as though it were separate and apart from the redemptive gospel. The truth is: There is only one Gospel. Divine love, like a reflected sunbeam, shines down before it radiates out. Unless our hearts are conditioned by the Holy Spirit to receive and reflect the warmth of God’s compassion, we cannot love our fellow men as we ought.
Jesus wept tears of compassion at the graveside of a friend. He mourned over Jerusalem because as a city it had lost its appreciation of the things of the spirit. His great heart was sensitive to the needs of others.
To emphasize the importance of people’s love for each other, He revised an old commandment to make it read, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart . . . and thy neighbor as thyself ” (Luke 10:27).
St. Francis of Assisi had discovered the secret of happiness when he prayed:
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console,
To be understood as to understand,
To be loved as to love;
For it is in giving that we receive;
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
It is in dying that we are born to eternal life!
Tears shed for self are tears of weakness, but tears of love shed for others are a sign of strength. I am not as sensitive as I ought to be until I am able to “weep o’er the erring one and lift up the fallen.” And until I have learned the value of compassionately sharing others’ sorrow, distress, and misfortune, I cannot know real happiness.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
Covered By Christ
[Jesus said,] Abide in me, and I in you.
John 15:4
Personal salvation is not merely an occasional rendezvous with Deity; it is an actual dwelling with God. Christianity is not just an avocation; it is a lifelong, eternity-long vocation. David, thrilled with the knowledge that his life was in God, said in Psalm 91:1, “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.”
If you read and reread this beautiful Psalm, you will discover that in Him we have a permanent abode and residence, and that all of the comfort, security, and affection the human heart craves are found in Him.
Modern psychiatrists say that one of the basic needs of man is security. In this Psalm we are assured that in God we have the greatest of security: “There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways” (Psalm 91:10–11).
Many years ago in China, two Christian missionaries were undergoing a bitter persecution. One night as they were getting ready to retire, they heard the sound of voices outside the compound. They lifted the blinds to find their home surrounded with belligerent men who had gathered there to terminate the couple’s ministry.
The missionary husband and wife, realizing that God was their only refuge, dropped on their knees and prayed for those who would harm them, and reminded God that He had promised to be with them even unto the end. When they arose from their knees, they noticed that the crowd was dispersing, and the excited murmuring of the departing mob indicated that something unusual had happened. The missionaries thanked God for answered prayer and retired. The next morning as the sun cast its rays upon the compound, a native Christian came to the door and begged an audience with me.
“Do you know why the mob did not kill you last night?” he asked. “Our God answered prayer,” replied the missionary. “Yes,” said the native man. “When you were on your knees last night, four creatures like angels dressed in robes of white appeared, and one stood at each corner of your house. The mob trembled and fled, and we Christians who stood helpless in the crowd knew that once more God had intervened.”
Our Father and our God, I run to You for shelter from my enemy, Satan. He stalks me day and night and wants to tear me away from You. Close me in, O Lord, with You, Keep me safe from spiritual harm. Be a city of refuge for me where I am surrounded and covered by Jesus Christ, my Savior, in whose name and power I pray. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
The Holy Spirit Forever
And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him; but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
John 14:16–17
During His lifetime on earth, Christ’s presence could be experienced only by a small group of men at any given time. Now Christ dwells through the Spirit in the hearts of all those who have received Him as Savior. The apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians: “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16).
The Holy Spirit is given to every believer—not for a limited time, but forever. Were He to leave us for one moment, we would be in deep trouble.
Walter Knight tells the story about a little boy who had recently received Christ.
“Daddy, how can I believe in the Holy Spirit when I have never seen Him?” asked Jim.
“I’ll show you how,” said his father, who was an electrician. Later Jim went with his father to the power plant where he was shown the gyrators. “This is where the power comes from to heat our stove and to give us light. We cannot see the power, but it is in that machine and in the power lines,” said the father.
“I believe in electricity,” said Jim.
“Of course, you do,” said his father, “but you don’t believe in it because you see it. You believe in it because you see what it can do. Likewise you can believe in the Holy Spirit because you see what He does in people’s lives when they are surrendered to Christ and possess His power.”
Thus, by faith you accept the fact that you are indwelt by the Spirit of God. He is there to give you special power to work for Christ. He is there to give you strength in the moment of temptation.
He is there to produce the supernatural fruit of the Spirit, such as “love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance” (Galatians 5:22– 23). He is there to guide you over all the difficult terrain you must cross as a Christian.
Our Father and our God, I believe in You and in the Holy Spirit. I believe He lives in me, guides me, teaches me, and comforts me. Every day I can see the mighty works You do on the earth and in my own life through the Holy Spirit. Thank You for living and abiding in me. Through Jesus, my Lord. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
The Right Side of Heaven
There are many rooms in my Father’s house; if there were not, I should have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you, and after I have gone and prepared you a place, I shall return to take you with me; so that where I am, you may be too.
John 14:2–3 JB
When Jesus said, “In my Father’s house are many mansions,” we find a very interesting meaning for the word mansion. The Greek word used does not mean an imposing house but a resting place. The expression is translated in the margin of the American Standard Version as “abiding places.” This comes from the same stem as the English word remain.
During Christ’s ministry on earth He had no home. He once said, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head” (Matthew 8:20 NIV). But His home in heaven will last forever.
The early disciples and other Christian pilgrims suffered in many ways, and Jesus knew it—for He suffered more severely than any of His followers. But they were all eagerly anticipating the beauty and permanence of a never-ending home that would last throughout eternity.
A little girl was taking a walk with her father one evening. Looking up at the stars she exclaimed, “Daddy, if the wrong side of heaven is so beautiful, what must the right side be!”
Our Father and our God, anywhere away from You must be the wrong side of heaven. Lead me and guide me, Lord, through this life until I can come to You on the right side of heaven. Until then, keep me safe from the evil one and help me to remember that my eternal abiding place is with You because of Christ, through whom I pray. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
Many Mansions
In my Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
John 14:2
Heaven is a home which is permanent. One of the unfortunate facts about the houses men build for themselves is that they are not permanent. Houses do not last forever. It is true of the house, the outer shell, and it is true of the family. How quickly the children grow up and leave home.
As much as our homes mean to us, they are not permanent. Sometimes I look at my own adult children and can hardly believe that they are all grown and on their own. The house that once rang with the laughter of children is now empty.
Those who for Christ’s sake had given up houses and lands and loved ones knew little of home life or home joys. It was as if Jesus had said to them, “We have no lasting home here on earth, but my Father’s house is a home where we will be together for all eternity.”
The venerable Bishop Ryle is reputed to have said, “Heaven is a prepared place for a prepared people, and they that enter shall find that they are neither unknown or unexpected.”
Our Father and our God, this world is not my home, for I know it is a fleeting place. I look forward to my home with You. I long to be there now, but I know You have work for me to do here until that appointed day. Help me to work and wait patiently, Lord, just as Jesus did. In His name I pray. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
An Example Of Love
By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
John 13:35
Our popular music talks constantly about love, and yet divorce rates skyrocket, child abuse is rampant, and our world is shaken by wars, violence, and terrorism. Major news magazines feature cover stories on “The ‘Me’ Generation.” This generation, it seems, would rather see a prizefight than fight for a prize. Not only has the song “Rescue the Perishing, Care for the Dying” disappeared from most of our songbooks; its theme has disappeared from our hearts, except for victims of physical famine, oppressive regimes, and tidal waves. And these are terribly important. It is just that the spiritually perishing need to hear the Gospel.
Several years ago we were visiting India. While we were there a terrible tidal wave hit a fifty-mile section of the coast, killing thousands of people and completely destroying scores of villages and towns. Indian officials graciously provided a helicopter and accompanied us to the area, and we were among the first to view the devastation. I will never forget the terrible destruction and the stench of death—it was as if a thousand atomic bombs had gone off at the same time.
The disaster was virtually ignored by the rest of the world. Why? Because there is so much suffering in the world already that the media cannot cover it all.
Abraham Lincoln once said, “I feel sorry for the man who can’t feel the whip when it is laid on the other man’s back.”
Our Father and our God, give me Your eyes of concern for this lost and dying world. Help me to really see the blank stares and lonely faces I pass on the street. Let me reach out in love with Your Word to rescue them from perishing. I want to be a channel of Your compassion to hurting people. In Christ’s name. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
Is He Your Lord - Or Just Your Savior?
If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
John 8:36
During the national observance of the one hundredth anniversary of the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, I was struck by the great emphasis on the number of immigrants who had often left everything behind, coming to America with nothing but the clothes on their backs, risking their very lives for something they valued more highly than everything they had left behind: freedom.
This is a picture of what we must do when we come to Christ. We must forsake allegiance to the things of this world and all that this world has to offer and become immigrants in the Kingdom of God. His statue of liberty is in the form of the cross.
The statue in New York Harbor lifts her lamp “beside the golden door.”
The statue of liberty on that Golgotha hill lights the way into the eternal life. That light is ours if we will only come to God through the One who said, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” (John 8:12).
This light gives freedom to men and women in the darkest of prisons in nations that are intolerant of the preaching of the Gospel. One can have political freedom and still be a prisoner of sin, while one who is in a political prison and knows Christ can be freer than his jailers.
Freedom in Christ is the ultimate freedom to be celebrated not only on special days, but all year around.
Our Father and our God, thank You for the great liberty I have through Jesus Christ. I recognize that my freedom came at an enormous price to You and Your Son. And I bow in humble gratitude to You for that amazing gift. Help me to take the Good News about Him to the tired, the poor, the lonely masses who are longing to breathe free. Through Christ, the Liberator. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
Our Statue of Liberty
If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
John 8:36
During the national observance of the one hundredth anniversary of the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, I was struck by the great emphasis on the number of immigrants who had often left everything behind, coming to America with nothing but the clothes on their backs, risking their very lives for something they valued more highly than everything they had left behind: freedom.
This is a picture of what we must do when we come to Christ. We must forsake allegiance to the things of this world and all that this world has to offer and become immigrants in the Kingdom of God. His statue of liberty is in the form of the cross.
The statue in New York Harbor lifts her lamp “beside the golden door.”
The statue of liberty on that Golgotha hill lights the way into the eternal life. That light is ours if we will only come to God through the One who said, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” (John 8:12).
This light gives freedom to men and women in the darkest of prisons in nations that are intolerant of the preaching of the Gospel. One can have political freedom and still be a prisoner of sin, while one who is in a political prison and knows Christ can be freer than his jailers.
Freedom in Christ is the ultimate freedom to be celebrated not only on special days, but all year around.
Our Father and our God, thank You for the great liberty I have through Jesus Christ. I recognize that my freedom came at an enormous price to You and Your Son. And I bow in humble gratitude to You for that amazing gift. Help me to take the Good News about Him to the tired, the poor, the lonely masses who are longing to breathe free. Through Christ, the Liberator. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).
Abundant Living
I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
John 10:10
Only those who have been truly converted to Jesus Christ know the meaning of abundant living.
The Bible teaches that worldliness is a force, a spirit, an atmosphere of the cosmos that is in opposition and in contradiction to all that is godly and Christian. Its goal is selfish pleasure, material success, and the pride of life. It is ambitious, self-centered. God is not necessarily denied; He is just ignored and forgotten.
Three times Christ designated Satan as the prince of this world. He said, “The prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me” (John 14:30). In John 16:11, He again said, “Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.” In John 12:31, He said, “Now shall the prince of this world be cast out.”
Thus the Bible is clear that the world’s inhabitants are either under the influence of this world with its cunning, deception, and spell; or they are in Christ and under the direction of the Spirit of God. There is no neutral ground. The lines are drawn by the Bible.
Paul wrote to the Ephesians, “Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience. . . . Even when we were dead in sins [God] hath quickened us together with Christ” (2:2, 5).
Now the words “course of this world” carry the meaning of current or flow. There is an undertow, a subtle current, which runs against and in contradiction to the will and the way of God. Its eddies are deep and treacherous. They are stirred and troubled by Satan and intended to trap and ensnare those who would walk godly in Christ Jesus.
Satan employs every device at his command to harass, tempt, thwart, and hurt the people of God. His attack is relentless. Paul wrote, “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:12).
However, the Christian is not left defenseless in this conflict. God provides the power to give us victory over Satan. Paul said, “We are more than conquerors through him that loved us” (Romans 8:37). And John wrote, “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4).
Our Father and our God, I know Satan is the prince of this world now. But I also know Your Son will come again and put Satan in his place for eternity. I long for that day, Lord. Please keep me near until then. And as that day comes, I will praise You for saving me in Your great mercy. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Billy Graham, Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2010).