The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my mind and heart in Luke 10:20,
"Do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."
Seventy-two disciples had been empowered by the Lord and sent out in pairs to the towns and places he was about to go to. Upon returning to the Lord, in joy they told Jesus, "Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name." Luke 10:17. These were disciples of the Lord that experienced the thrill and joy of being set apart by him for his purposes and given special ability to do things that were otherwise not possible. Of them, it can truly be said, they were right in the middle of doing what the Lord wanted in the way he wanted it done, having been empowered by him.
Today we have all kinds of groups who claim to be just so. There are those who claim to have the inside scoop with the Lord because they talk in tongues. They say we should all join them because they are the ones who experience what God has to offer by way of empowerment. Some purport to have found the fulfillment of what the Lord intends for us all because they have found the key to success in life. "You can have that job..." "You can find happiness in your marriage..." "You can raise successful children..." All we need do is join their ministry and we can experience that success as well. Some claim to have the right theology, the right interpretation of Scripture because they can experience miraculous healing. The rest of us get sick and die because we don't subscribe to their doctrine, so we miss out on this special empowerment of God. And, of course, don't forget about the ones who offer financial blessings as the reward of godliness.
It seems there is a determined effort to lay claim to having the special blessing and empowerment of the Lord, that which provides us joy, by manifesting the different, the miraculous, the unusual, that which differentiates. I wonder if Jesus' response to these seventy-two might be instructive here. The specific issue here is power over demons, but I suspect what Jesus had to say extends to the genuine manifestations of any kind of empowerment he provides. It may be great to talk in tongues, it may be wonderful to experience miraculous healings. It may be unique and fantastic to be able to relieve folks who might be plagued by demons. But, according to the Lord's own words, regardless of any of these miraculous activities, this is the little stuff. There is something far greater than having demons submit, there is something that transcends any of these things, something that is a genuine miracle in and of itself that goes well beyond it all: salvation!
The voluntary sacrifice of the Son of God in payment for our sins, the credit for that payment being offered solely on the basis of faith, the reality that our names are written into God's book of life transcends anything. Here is where we should be exulting. Here is where our joy should flow. Here is where our hope and satisfaction in life should find both its origin and its fulfillment.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
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