YOU REALLY GOT A HOLD ON ME

Introduction

Well, I've got some good news and I've got some bad news. The bad news is that we are no longer children of God by birth. Instead of trusting in our Father, we believed the enemy's lie and followed him right into a trap—the sand pit of Satan. He led us astray, took us captive, and now we're stuck in our sins. We're standing on the quick-sand of our own merit and it seems like we just keep sinking deeper and deeper. There's nothing we can do to get ourselves out of this stinking, sinking situation. And, needless to say, things are looking pretty bleak. I'm not alone in the sand pit, though. I've got lots of company! The problem is that no one else in the pit has any rock of merit to stand on either. I could try to get help from them, but it's futile. They've got no more leverage for getting out of the pit than I have. We're all in the same boat, and that boat is sinking. What we really need is some outside help—someone outside of the sand pit to give us a hand—otherwise we're all destined to perish...

ccc The good news—otherwise known as the “gospel”—is that God sent His Son, Jesus, to stand on the edge of the sand pit and pull people out. He hasn't fallen into Satan's sandy sin trap. There are no restrictions on who He'll rescue. The only catch is that you have to believe in His strength to save you by reaching out and accepting His hand of salvation... In other words, as I said last week, God “has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves...” (Colossians 1:12-13). This is the gospel.

ccc The gospel is like a gem that you can rotate beneath a source of light. As you “rotate” the gospel, different facets of the gem light up, emphasizing different aspects of the wonderful truth of God's plan of salvation for mankind. There are many angles from which we could begin to look at how God has “rescued us from the dominion of darkness,” but this week, I will focus on two things: (1) Jesus' leverage to redeem us and (2) His defeat of Satan. This topic is related to our salvation and our eventual adoption back into God's family, but it's only one facet of the gospel truth, which we will continue to explore next week from another angle.

Possessed by Satan

I know what the title of this section—“Possessed by Satan”—most likely brings to mind. Right now you are probably taking the word “possessed” to mean “demon-possessed” and are therefore thinking about an exorcism. However, this is not the intended meaning. I doubt many people would consider themselves to be possessed by Satan, but would you concede that we were once Satan's possessions, children, or belongings? In a passage of Scripture that we explored last week, Jesus distinguishes between those who belong to God and those who belong to the devil. He says this: “He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God”... “You belong to your father, the devil” (John 8:47,44).

ccc The same basic truth is stated in 1 John 3:8-10, which says: “He who does what is right is righteous, just as [Jesus] is righteous. He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work. No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother.”

The Man, the Strong Man, and the Stronger Man

Now let's consider what Matthew 12:22-29 says about Satan's possessions: “Then they brought [Jesus] a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see. All the people were astonished and said, 'Could this be the Son of David?' But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, 'It is only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.' Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, 'Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man's house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can rob his house.'”

ccc The last verse of this passage of Scripture (Matthew 12:29) is the key verse here, but the previous verses provide the context for understanding this passage. Jesus performed an exorcism. The Pharisees' suggestion that Jesus used the power of Satan to drive out demons is absurd. As Jesus said, “If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? ...But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.” From Jesus' response, it is clear that He is claiming to drive out demons by the power of God. This is the context for understanding the last verse, which is recorded slightly differently in the gospel of Luke: “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe. But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up the spoils” (11:21-22). Who are the characters in this parable?

ccc From the context, we learned of a blind and mute, demon-possessed man who was under the control of Satan's kingdom. Satan was stronger than the man and was, therefore, able to possess him. But Jesus drove away the demons and freed the man from his captivity. We can therefore conclude that the “strong man” is Satan, the demon-possessed man was his possession, and Jesus was the “someone stronger.” This is the story of the man, the strong man, and the stronger man. In another sense, you and I are the man—the possessions of Satan—caught in the strong man's trap (cf., 1 John 5:19, Revelation 12:9). But Jesus is the stronger man (cf., Ephesians 1:20-22), who has come to set the captives free (Isaiah 42:7, 61:1). Jesus is stronger than Satan. He is the offspring of the woman who came to crush the serpent's head (Genesis 3:15).

You Really Got a Hold on Me

The passages discussed above reenforce the idea from last week's devotion that there are two “invisible” kingdoms—God's Kingdom and Satan's kingdom—which are in conflict with one another (see Galatians 5:17). The Kingdom of God stands for life, light, truth, and righteousness, but the kingdom of Satan represents death, darkness, lies, and sin. As the passages above indicate, the kingdom—or rather the king—to which we belong is evident by our actions (see James 2:18-20). We are slaves to the one (the king) whom we obey (Romans 6:16). We can't belong to both kingdoms because they are diametrically opposed to one another. Submission to the devil is inherently disobedience towards God. And, in order to be obedient to God, we must resist the devil (see James 4:7). According to Romans 3:23, all of us have sinned. And by our sins we have inadvertently allied ourselves with Satan, who has claimed us as his possessions and has now taken us captive to do his will (2 Timothy 2:26). We are stuck in Satan's sand trap. Not only do we need someone to free us from Satan's hold on us (which he uses to torment and tempt us), but also we need someone to pay the price for our sins or else we will all perish—“For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).

ccc Because of our sins, Satan has a hold on us. Our sins give him a foothold over us (Ephesians 4:27). And with his foot in the door of our lives, he can slink inside and begin to build his strongholds of sin in our hearts and minds (2 Corinthians 10:4-5). We are slaves of sin and captives of his will. We have broken God's law (1 John 3:4) and are now facing the death penalty (Romans 6:23). Satan “holds the power of death,” and we are therefore “held in slavery by [our] fear of death” (Hebrews 2:14-15). And because our sins deserve death (Romans 6:23), our death accomplishes nothing (Psalm 49:7-9). It is simply the punishment that we deserve for breaking God's law and allying ourselves with Satan. This is the reason why we have no leverage to get out of the slippery sand pit of sin and death.

ccc But there is One who does have leverage to help us out of the pit—Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Galatians 4:3-5 says that “when we were children, we were in slavery under the basic principles of the world. But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons.” In John 14:30-31, just before His arrest and execution, Jesus said to His disciples, “I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me, but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.” Why did the devil—the “prince of this world”—have no hold on Jesus? Because Jesus was without sin (Hebrews 4:15; see also John 8:46, 2 Corinthians 5:21)! And when Jesus died to pay the ransom for our lives, death could not hold Him (Acts 2:24) because—having kept all of the commands of God's law—He was not deserving of death! Jesus lived a perfect life under the law and therefore has the leverage before God the Father to help us out of the devil's snare.

Satan's Defeat

Before His arrest, Jesus said, “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him” (John 17:1-2). “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work” (1 John 3:8). He will destroy “all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death” (1 Corinthians 15:24-26). Jesus also came to “seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:10)—to redeem the lost children of God. And “Since the [lost] children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death” (Hebrews 2:14-15).

ccc Because Jesus lived a perfect life of obedience, God the Father “raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way” (Ephesians 1:20-23). Although the strong man once held the power of death, Jesus—the stronger man—defeated him and now proclaims: “I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades” (Revelation 1:18). “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die” (John 11:25-26).

THE LOST CHILDREN OF GOD

Introduction

Before I begin this devotion, I want to make a special point of giving God the glory for it (and for the others as well). In writing these devotions—this one in particular—I have really felt guided by God. He used a television program to drop several Bible verses in my lap that I probably wouldn't have considered on my own. And He has given me some new insights—not new to everyone, but certainly new to me. Over and over again this week I have repeatedly run across many of the same Bible verses that I had already begun to work into this week's devotion. Having already completed a draft of the devotion by Saturday evening (June 26th), I then ran across some of the same “new insights” in a book I purchased on Sunday (June 27th). Though I must take credit for any errors, the point of all of this is simply to let you know that any good you receive from this devotion is not from me, but rather from God. “To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen” (1 Peter 4:11).

ccc Last week, we focused on our heavenly Father. This week I want to focus on His children. Generally speaking, there are two ways to become someone's child. You can be a child by birth or you can become a child through the process of adoption. This week I want to talk about the first of these two possibilities (being a child by birth) in order to set us up to talk about the second possibility (adoption) next week.

ccc Let me begin by reminding you of the story of Jacob and Esau. Jacob and Esau were brothers—they were twins in fact. Esau was born first with his brother Jacob clinging to his heel (Genesis 25:26). Genesis 25:29-34 tells us the following story: “Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. He said to Jacob, 'Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I'm famished!' ...Jacob replied, 'First sell me your birthright.' 'Look, I am about to die,' Esau said. 'What good is the birthright to me?' But Jacob said, 'Swear to me first.' So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left.”

Children by Birth

A birthright is something we are entitled to by birth. (For example, when a baby is born in the U.S.A., they are citizens by birth.) Adam and Eve were not “born” in the same way that you and I were. They didn't have any earthly parents. Instead, God Himself was their father. Because God was their father, their birthright consisted of the things given to them by God—both their present gifts and their inheritance. By birth (creation), they were children of God. Their status as God's children was a part of their birthright. In addition, God gave them authority over the earth (Genesis 1:28-30) and the right to eat from the Tree of Life (Genesis 2:16). But, in the same way that earthly parents set boundaries in order to keep their children safe, so also God sets boundaries for us. God's boundary for Adam and Eve came in the form of a command and a warning (Genesis 2:17): “you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.”

ccc Many people would criticize God for putting this dangerous tree in the Garden of Eden, but I believe it was necessary. You see, God wanted us to have free will. He didn't want us to be robots, programmed to do His will, but rather people with the freedom to chose. Because of the presence of the tree and God's command not to eat of it, Adam and Eve had the option of disobeying God. Without options, we have no choices to make and there is no free will. Without options, we are slaves by virtue of the fact that our circumstances are fixed and we do not have it in our power to change them.

ccc Anyone who relates to other people should understand this concept of choice. When you love someone, you want to be with them and you want them to love you back. But you don't want them to be with you because they have no other choice. Nor would you want to force them to be with you. But what if you could give them a love potion to make them love you? No, even that would take away the sweetness of love. Love does not enslave people, it sets them free—free to make their own choices. In the same way, God loved us so much that—in spite of the mistakes He knew we would make—He gave us the freedom to choose for ourselves whether or not to give our love to Him in return. In many cases, God's story is a story of unrequited love. It's a story of how He so loved the world (John 3:16), but how the people of that world have rejected Him time and time again.

The Land of the Lost [Children]

There is an analogy to be made between what happened in the Garden of Eden and what happened between Jacob and Esau. Just as Jacob tricked his older brother Esau into selling him his birthright (Genesis 25:29-33), so also the devil tricked Adam and Eve into disobeying God. They essentially did what Paul describes in the following verse: “They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator” (Romans 1:25). The created thing that they served was first of all themselves. Satan's false promise to Adam and Eve was “you will be like God” (Genesis 3:5). By eating of the tree, Adam and Eve sought to serve themselves by elevating their position. But Satan's “promise” was far from the truth. Humanity was much more like God before the fall. The second created thing that Adam and Eve served was the serpent—Satan. They believed his lie and acted upon it, just as we Christians are to believe the truth of God's gospel and act upon that (James 2:17, Titus 1:16). In acting upon the lie, Adam and Eve made themselves obedient to Satan. Essentially, in that one act, Adam and Eve—like Esau—sold their birthright to Satan for a meal (Genesis 3:6).

ccc By rebelling against God, Adam and Eve inadvertently gave up their God-given rights. They lost their status as children of God and, through their sin of disobedience, they gave Satan a new foothold over humanity (Ephesians 4:27). On that day, they also lost their right to eternal life (Genesis 3:22). In one day, humanity's great inheritance was lost. Therefore, although God created all people, we are no longer His children by birth. Adam and Eve's birthright came from God, but our birthright comes from Adam and Eve. Through them, we are born into slavery. But, unlike the Israelites' physical slavery in Egypt, ours is a slavery to sin. Through Adam and Eve we have inherited a world of sin and a life plagued by the power and influence of the devil.

ccc In spite of the rotten inheritance that Adam and Eve left for us, we still have a choice. Because of Adam and Eve's sin—and the authority that Satan gained over the world through that sin—perfection is no longer attainable (1 John 1:8). However, we can still chose who we want to obey (see Romans 1:5, 6:16). The Bible makes it clear that there are two options: obedience to God or obedience to the devil (Romans 6:16, James 4:7). There are two fathers: the Father of truth (Psalm 31:5, John 14:6, 16:13, 17:17) and the father of lies (John 8:44). There are two kingdoms: the Kingdom of Light and the kingdom of darkness (Colossians 1:12-13)... Truth or lies, light or darkness, sons or slaves, life or death...

Two Fathers—Two Kingdoms

When Jesus was being tempted, the devil “led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And he said to [Jesus], 'I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to'” (Luke 4:5-6). In this passage, the devil is claiming authority over the earth. Jesus Himself confirms this reality by referring to Satan as “the prince of this world” (John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11) and by making reference to Satan's kingdom (Matthew 12:26, Luke 11:18). Within this kingdom Satan has power over all those who have been made subject to him. As 1 John 5:19 says, “We know that... the whole world is under the control of the evil one.” And in Ephesians 2:2 we read that “the ways of this world” are governed by “the ruler of the kingdom of the air [Satan], the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient [to God].” So we see that Satan's kingdom is a worldly kingdom—a kingdom that has power over those who are disobedient to God.

ccc After Jesus was arrested, He was interviewed by Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor. John 18:33-37 reveals a conversation that took place between them regarding Jesus' kingdom: “Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, 'Are you the king of the Jews?' 'Is that your own idea,' Jesus asked, 'or did others talk to you about me?' 'Am I a Jew?' Pilate replied. 'It was your people and your chief priests who handed you over to me. What is it you have done?' Jesus said, 'My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.' 'You are a king, then!' said Pilate. Jesus answered, 'You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.'” So we see that Jesus' kingdom—also referred to as the “kingdom of God” (e.g., Mark 1:14-15)—is “not of this world.” Instead, it is—at present—a heavenly kingdom (e.g., Matthew 4:17, 6:9-10). And yet this kingdom is coming to earth right now through those who live in obedience to God's will (Matthew 6:10). We also see that Jesus' kingdom stands for truth. In contrast, the enemy's kingdom is based upon lies. This is what Jesus is talking about in John 8:43-47:

“Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me! Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don't you believe me? He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.”

These may seem like harsh words, but Jesus is simply expressing the true nature of things. “Why is my language not clear to you? ...If I am telling the truth, why don't you believe me?” Jesus poses these questions in order to explain to the people the truth of their reality. And this is the truth: Because of our fallen state (Romans 3:23), we belonged to the devil and were, therefore, unable to accept the truth on our own. We have been deluded by Satan's lies. As 2 Corinthians 4:4 says, “The god of this age [Satan] has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”

Captives of the kingdom of darkness

In 2 Timothy 2:26, Paul indicates that Satan's kingdom is like a trap. Those belonging to this kingdom have been taken captive to do Satan's will and are therefore enslaved by him. This is what Jesus means in John 8:34-36 when He says, “...everyone who sins is a slave to sin.” Paul adds an extra dimension to this concept in Romans 6:16: “Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?” What does Paul mean in saying that you “are slaves to the one whom you obey?” Whom do we obey when we sin? Satan. Whom do we obey when we do what is right? God! We are slaves to the one whom we obey.

ccc There is, I believe, a basic principle in this passage. Sin is submission to Satan and disobedience towards God. When we sin, we make ourselves subject to Satan's will. In other words, by our sinful actions, we show ourselves to be subjects of the “prince of this world” (e.g., John 12:31) and slaves of his “dominion of darkness” (Colossians 1:13). This is why sin is so damaging to the Christian life. Through sin, we are showing Satan—rather than Jesus—to be our true master because, as the Scripture says, we are slaves to the one whom we obey. Although we (as Christians) claim Christ as our Lord, Master, and King, when we sin, we are essentially handing the reins of our life over to Satan and giving him the authority to once again reign over our lives! Our sins give Satan renewed influence over us. This is why in Ephesians 4:27 Paul warns the believers: “...do not give the devil a foothold.” What is a foothold? It is something for Satan to stand on as he accuses us (Zechariah 3:1, Revelation 12:10). Our sins give Satan a foothold! The title of this section is “captives of the kingdom of darkness.” This is what we would be without God's intervention.

Final Thoughts

Let me be clear. What I have said in this devotion is only part of the story. My purpose in writing it is (1) to help you understand why we are no longer God's children by birth and (2) to set the stage for next week's devotion. It is also important to recognize that the loss of our status as God's children was not because of anything God did, but rather, it was the result of our own rebellion against Him. As I have tried to show in this devotion, sin is not only rebellion against God but also submission to the devil. As such, our rebellion against God has given Satan the authority to rule over our lives. Make no mistake! There are two kingdoms, and we all belong to one or the other. We either submit to God and resist the devil (James 4:7) or we submit to the devil and resist God. One of these kingdoms is ruled by a King of love, life, truth, and peace (Jesus). The other kingdom is ruled by a tyrant who represents hate, death, lies, and torment (Satan). Understanding the helplessness of our situation gives us an appreciation for what God has done for us. And this is what He has done (Colossians 1:12-13): (1) He “has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,” and (2) He “has qualified [us] to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.” This is what we will talk about in next week's devotion.

THE HEART OF A FATHER

Introduction

There are many titles we could use to describe God—Creator, Savior, Comforter, King, etc—but this week I want to consider God's role as our “Father.” Not only did God create us and, figuratively speaking, give birth to us, but also He is our Father (Deuteronomy 32:6). What does it mean to be a father? To be a father is to have a child, to care for a child (Deuteronomy 32:10), to raise a child (Isaiah 46:3)—if necessary, to discipline a child (Hebrews 12:5-6). It is to provide for your child (Nehemiah 9:19-21), to sacrifice for your child (1 John 4:9-10), to experience your child's heartaches and wipe the tears from their eyes (Isaiah 25:8). To be a father is to delight in your child and to rejoice over them (Zephaniah 3:17). And sometimes, to be a father is to endure a broken heart. Your child may rebel (Isaiah 1:2)... They may despise and reject you (Isaiah 1:4)... They may run away from home (Luke 15:11-13)... But, to be a father—to be a parent, really—is to pour your love out onto your child, regardless of whether or not they love you back. I hope in this week's devotion you will marvel at how God has the heart of a Father—that He loves us unconditionally and that, like any good Father, He only wants the best for us.

Foreknowledge

I can only imagine the emotion of the father of an unborn child. All the hopes and expectations rolled up into some very big questions: “Who is my child going to grow up to be? What is he or she going to be like? Will they disappoint me? Will I disappoint them? Will they love me? Will I love them?” Even though the father may fall instantly in love with his child the moment they are born, still he cannot say, “I chose you.” This is why, no matter how great our human fathers may be, God's love for us is always better. Why? Because God, knowing who we would be and all the mistakes we would make, still chose to make us. As Psalm 139:13-16 says: “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb... My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”

ccc God did not use an assembly line to create you. You were hand-crafted, uniquely and individually shaped in the hands of the Potter. You are a custom piece that God was delighted to make. There is no one else quite like you, and you can be sure that God wanted you, individually, to be born. The same thing cannot be said of our earthly fathers—as wonderful as they may be. So, what is the difference between our earthly father and our heavenly Father? In a word—foreknowledge. For each one of you, God can say, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you” (Jeremiah 1:5).

God's Fatherly Qualities

I titled this section “God's Fatherly Qualities.” But really I should call it “a fathers' godly qualities,” because God does not take after fathers, but rather, fathers take after God. The Bible says that we are made in God's image (Genesis 1:27)—not vice versa. It also says that we love because He first loved us (1 John 4:19). In the same way, all of the good qualities that we see in our earthly fathers are qualities that come from God. Our heavenly Father is the perfect picture of what a father should be.

ccc Hosea 11:1-9 provides us with a beautiful picture of how God feels about His children (in this example, Ephraim and Israel): “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. But the more I called Israel, the further they went from me. They sacrificed to the Baals and they burned incense to images. It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms... I led them with cords of human kindness, with ties of love; I lifted the yoke from their neck and bent down to feed them... How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? ...My heart is changed within me; all my compassion is aroused... I will not come in wrath.” I hear, in this passage, a deep longing. I sense how God's heart aches for His rebellious children. Not only have they gotten in with the wrong crowd and put themselves in harm's way, but also they have forsaken their Father... their Father, who raised them from birth, who gave them His love, who taught them to walk, and stooped over to feed them.

ccc Several times in Scripture we hear that God “will never leave... nor forsake” His children (e.g., Deuteronomy 31:6). There are few things a father wouldn't do to help his child. A father would jump into a raging river to save his drowning child. And if his child were lost, he would stop at nothing to find them. The story that I am going to share with you is not quite so dramatic, but I think it illustrates my point. When I was in High School, I decided to get involved in caving. (Some people are more familiar with the term “spelunking.”) Being the impulsive young adult that I was, I wrote to all of the caving groups in my home state of Illinois (and even a few in some of the surrounding states as well). Receiving a good response from one of the groups in particular, I decided to become a member. The meetings for this group were held on Friday evenings. Unable to drive myself at the time, my dad drove me to the meetings so I could pursue my passion for the underground. (Did I mention that the meeting place was 2 hours from home one way?) I quickly started going on caving trips, but I was still underage. As a result, the leaders of the cave trips required my father to come with me. He did.

ccc Of all the caves I dragged my father into, perhaps the one most worthy of mention is “Wayne's Cave.” Although the first little stretch of the cave is fairly mild, it quickly reaches an apparent dead-end. The astute caver, however, would probably notice the small hula-hoop-sized opening at foot level. The only way to continue on into the rest of the cave is through that opening... so my dad got down on his hands and knees—and at times on his belly—to navigate his way through “the crawlway” towards the more open cave passages on the other side. The length of the crawlway is 1500 feet—that is to say, all crawling and no standing for 1500 feet. At the tightest point of the crawlway, your belly touches the floor, your back touches the ceiling, and—at least with the typical caving helmet on—you have to decide which wall (right or left) you would like your head to face as you squeeze through on your belly. In total, it takes about 45 minutes to an hour of crawling—30 minutes if you're in good shape—just to get yourself through the crawlway. One way in... one way out. And it always took longer once you had worn yourself out. It certainly wasn't something my father would've chosen to do on his own. But out of love for me, he got down on his hands and knees—and even on his belly—and made his way through that cold and mucky stone-encased crawlway.

ccc This story of my father's love for me is a picture of God's love for humanity. The Bible says that “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way” (Isaiah 53:6). We have rebelled against our heavenly Father (Isaiah 1:2). We have run away from home. We—like the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-24)—have spent our inheritance of eternal life on worthless things and have gotten ourselves stuck in the crawlway of our own muck and sin. No more inheritance—no more eternal life. But God said of us, “How can I give you up? How can I hand you over to death?” And so God came down to earth, joining us in our mucky crawlway, just as the Bible says (John 1:1,14): “The Word”—who also “was God” (verse 1)—“became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (verse 14). God the Son took on flesh and died that He might redeem us from the entrapment of our sin: “For God [the Father] so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son”—God the Son—“that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). God did not abandon us to our fate. As He has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5).

Final Thoughts

This week, I hope you will join me in giving thanks to God for your earthly fathers and all of their God-given qualities. Not only that, but I hope you will also be thankful that God Himself is your father—He is a father to the fatherless (Psalm 68:5-6). Please know that God holds you close to His heart (Isaiah 40:11) and cares for you deeply. For those whose earthly fathers have passed away, may God give you comfort in His unfailing promises (Isaiah 46:4): “Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.” Happy Father's Day!