Weekly Devotional 9-4-17 Who’s Camp Are You In
Life is not abstract. It is not disassociated with all else. Life cannot be lived isolated, not having an influence or from being influenced. Life is a participation sport, so to speak. Everything a person does has an impact on someone else. This is true of both the natural and spiritual realms. Actually, a natural life cannot be disassociated from the spiritual realm. Man is a spiritual being. That is, man was created with a body, soul and spirit. We read for instance from Genesis 2:7 NKJV; “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.” And from the book of Hebrews we read; “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12 NKJV). The spirit of man is that part of him that connects him with God. True, because of sin that connection was severed. Still, man remains a spiritual being. Thanks to God He has restored that connection in many, and has made it possible for all to be restored. This having been said, we now come to the point of this little work. In which camp are you in, God’s or Satan’s?
That question is probably confusing to some (maybe you), but by way of explanation I refer you to Jesus’ response to the Pharisees who had accused Him of healing people by the power of Satan. He answered, “25bEvery kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. 26If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? 27And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. 28But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29Or how can one enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house. 30He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad” (Matthew 12:25b-30 NKJV). And in His parable concerning riches Jesus said to His disciples, “19Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; 20but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 22″The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. 23But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness! 24No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:19-24 NKJV).
The principle of both passages is that one cannot be in two camps. One is either in God’s camp or in the camp of the world whose head is Satan. Another passage that addresses this is Luke 9:57-62 NKJV. “57Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, ‘Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.’ 58And Jesus said to him, ‘Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.’ 59Then He said to another, ‘Follow Me.’ But he said, ‘Lord, let me first go and bury my father.’ 60Jesus said to him, ‘Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.’ 61And another also said, ‘Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.’ 62But Jesus said to him, ‘No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.’ Does not this passage teach that to be a true follower of Jesus one must be fully committed to Him, placing Him ahead of all else? Yes, it does. In support of this truth I draw your attention to Jesus’ words to those who claimed to be followers. “24bIf anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. 25For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. 26For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”(Matthew 16:24b-26 NKJV).
In context, Jesus had just admonished Peter for not wanting to accept that He (Jesus) would soon be executed. Knowing that His execution would be on a cross, He used the opportunity to tell the apostles, and indirectly to us, what being a follower of His meant. They were, and we are, to be completely committed to serving him, even to the point of death. Later, after His execution, the apostles would come to understand more fully what being a true follower of Jesus meant. They knew that many times Rome demanded that a person who was to be executed by crucifixion drag the cross upon which he was to be crucified through the streets of whatever locale it was to take place as a demonstration of his being completely under the authority of Rome. That was to be the extent of the apostle’s commitment to the leadership of Christ. We too, are to commit ourselves to His leadership, and all things pertaining to His kingdom.
Remember there are only two camps; the camp of God, and the camp of the world. How you live your life and how I live my life is a testimony of which camp we belong.
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