Faith: The Power of Heaven

Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs. — Exodus 7:12

From the pen of Charles Spurgeon:

This story is a wonderful example of the sure victory of God’s work over all opposition. Although the Devil may produce counterfeits, often attempting to overwhelm us with opponents, whenever God is in the work, you can be sure it will always swallow its foes. As long as God’s grace has possession of a person, the world’s magicians can throw down their rods all they want, and though every rod may be as cunning and poisonous as a serpent, Aaron’s rod will always swallow their rods.

The glorious attraction of the cross will woo and win the believer’s heart, and he who once lived only for this deceitful earth will begin to focus on the heavens above, yearning to fly away to those celestial heights. Once God’s grace wins its victory, even those in the world begin to look to the world to come. And certainly this is true in the life of the believer. Consider, for example, the multitudes of foes our faith must face. The Devil throws down our old sins before us, turning them into serpents. And how many there are!

But the cross of Jesus destroys them all, for faith in Christ quickly removes all our sins. The Devil also throws down numerous serpents in the form of worldly trials, temptations, and unbelief; but faith in Jesus is more than a match for all of them, overcoming them all.

The same “swallowing” principle shines brightly when it comes to faithful service to God. When we have an enthusiastic love for Jesus, our difficulties are surmounted, sacrifice becomes a pleasure, and suffering is an honor. If faith is truly a consuming passion in the heart of the believer, then it follows that there are many people who profess to have faith but do not, for what they have will not pass this test.

So, dear reader, examine yourself in light of this truth. Aaron’s rod proved it had the power of heaven. Is your faith doing the same? If Christ is anything to you — He must be everything! Never rest until the reigning passion of your soul is love and faith in Jesus!

From the pen of Jim Reimann:

How do we know if Jesus is the reigning passion of our soul? If He is, His gospel will also be a passion burning within us. Note the response of Peter and John to the Sanhedrin after being commanded “not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus” (Acts 4:18). They boldly replied,

Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to obey you rather than God. For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard. — Acts 4:19–20

It is no wonder that even the unbelieving religious leaders of that day knew they were facing something unique, for we are told:

When they saw the courage of Peter and John… they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. — Acts 4:13

Paul proclaimed much the same sentiment as Peter and John:

I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! — 1 Corinthians 9:16

In the same way, may the words of Jeremiah be true of us as well:

If I say, ‘I will not mention Him or speak any more in His name,’ His word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot. — Jeremiah 20:9

Excerpted with permission from Evening by Evening: The Devotions of Charles Spurgeon by Jim Reimann, copyright Zondervan.

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Your Turn

Today, let’s pray that God would grace us with an enthusiastic love for Jesus that pours out of our lives so that “our difficulties are surmounted, sacrifice becomes a pleasure, and suffering is an honor.” We want our faith to be known as a truly a consuming passion in the heart as a witness to others! Come join the conversation on our blog! We want to hear from you! ~ Devotionals Daily