Week 43
2 Corinthians 11:2-3 “For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his trickery, your minds will be led astray from sincere and pure devotion to Christ.”
There is no greater indication of the spiritual state of the human soul than to see one’s attitude toward Jesus Christ. To be saved means that one is betrothed to Jesus, and the Christian exists with the vivacious pulsation of sweet love for Jesus, whom we eagerly and earnestly long to see and meet.
The deep and persistent desire of the Christian is to love Jesus purely and totally. This is driven by a number of desires. First, we know intuitively that this is right. Second, this fits perfectly with who we are as “new creatures” in Christ (See 2 Corinthians 5:17). Third, we instinctively desire to draw closer and closer to Jesus, seeking to love and enjoy Him more and more.
Conversely, this holy desire is exactly what the devil wants us to avoid. Although the serpent in the Garden of Eden presented himself as Eve’s friend, and his suggestions to Eve were given couched in the language of compassion and wise concern for her, the real game was to draw Eve away from the Lord in every way possible. And the tool the devil used was “trickery.” As he did with Eve the devil seeks to siphon off our love for the Savior; he seeks to divert our loyalty and commitment to Christ to something else, anything else. This is the first order of business in evil; it is to turn away our attention, and indeed our love, from Jesus.
It is vital to note that the language of this passage helps us to recognize the nature of true faithfulness and obedience to Christ…LOVE! Look at the words in the passage again: “jealous…godly jealousy…betrothed…husband…pure virgin.” This is the language of love and intimacy. This is the nature of the relationship the redeemed have with their Savior, and we might add, this is the nature of His relationship with us. To love God with all the heart is not only our goal, but it is also the fabric of regeneration. When the heart is changed by God’s saving grace through the power of the Holy Spirit the moral and spiritual “tastes” of the soul are transformed into love and joy in Christ. It is this that the devil seeks to remove from our conscious Christianity. And he does this by deception and trickery. He does this by convincing us that our joy and heart satisfaction can be found somewhere else other than Jesus. This is pure evil!
Christian friend, your soul can only be satisfied in Jesus Christ. You can only feel and find this satisfaction in loving Him and having joy in Him. Nothing in this world can or will bring you joy and love; it is Christ, Christ alone! Continue to seek Him and love Him with all your heart; this is where deep and abiding joy is found.
Prayer: Dear Lord, please keep me from looking elsewhere other than Jesus for my joy and satisfaction in life. Please grant to me the grace to focus my heart’s love on You today and always. Amen.