08-19-24-DAILY READING-ENG.

EXPERIENCING THE SPIRIT

                             SEEING SPIRITUAL ACTIVITY

The Bible has many stories of people being made aware of God's activity. One of our favorites is that of the prophet Elisha and his servant in 2 Kings 6. Elisha was being hunted by the king of Syria, who was at war with Israel. The Syrian king was determined to do away with Elisha, because he had a special God-given ability to forewarn the Israelites about the Syrians’ every move. Sent by the king, a Syrian force came by cover of darkness and surrounded the city where Elisha and his servant were spending the night. The two men had no hope of escape. Early in the morning, as Elisha's servant got up to make breakfast, he realized they were surrounded by “horses and chariots and a great army” (6:14). An entire army had been sent after one man! Terrified, the servant cried out, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” (6:15) But Elisha saw something much different than what the servant saw. The prophet's response to their situation was not fear, but confidence in God.

He told his servant, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them” (6:16). You can imagine what the servant must have thought: “The old guy has lost it! There are only two of us against a mighty army. We don't stand a chance!” He might have turned to the prophet and asked, “Are you seeing what I'm seeing?” And that was the critical question, for they were not perceiving the same thing. The servant had the ability to see only his physical surroundings. But Elisha was enabled by the Holy Spirit to see the whole spectrum of reality. The servant saw the activity of men; Elisha saw the activity of God. Elisha prayed, “LoRD…open his eyes that he may see.” Immediately the Lord opened the servant's spiritual eyes, and he saw what Elisha saw. “And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (6:17). What a difference it makes when you see God's activity! Fear turns to courage. The Spirit of God turns a hopeless situation into an assured, overwhelming victory. It's all dependent on the difference between seeing the circumstances from a human point of view or from God's eternal perspective.

What was true for Elisha is also true for us today: God is actively at work all around us—and if we learn to walk with Him and are willing to adjust our lives to His activity, we'll recognize His activity and live with confidence and hope. What would you see if God “pulled back the curtain” and let you know what He's doing? One thing you would see is a raging spiritual battle. As Paul said, We are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12, NLT) Only God can bring the victory in this spiritual battle. The key to that victory is not what we're doing for God, but what He is doing around us. Once we learn to recognize Him, we can join Him in His great plan of salvation.