Articles
Greater Is He...
1 John 4:4 "You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world."
I was thinking this morning about all the people that I know that need God's help. The prayer list is long. A troubled marriage, a struggling teen, someone having surgery, someone just found out they have cancer, a church looking for a preacher, a family buried a loved one, a church that is struggling, a family drowning in financial debt, a preacher overseas who needs everything, new Christians, tired Christians, young families, college students getting ready to head off to campus - so many people. So many needs. I feel overwhelmed. Thinking about one person, leads me to thinking about another person. That leads me to thinking about yet another person. Then there are so many people that do not know Jesus. Most do not even realize that they need Him, but they do.
Do you ever feel this way? A few things come from this.
First, people need us to pray for them. Some never pray. Some don't know how to pray. Some are praying, but our prayers need to be added. Folks are scared, confused and hurting. God's help is the best that they can receive. God's help can get through doors that we think are closed and locked. Don't just pray for yourself. Don't keep God to just yourself. Share. Share your heart and share your God. When people say, "I just don't know what to pray about?" I think, "Really?" Open your eyes. Turn on the nightly news. There are things going on all over this planet. Pray. Pray. Pray. Prayer works. God wants us to pray.
Second, I suppose people needing help is nothing new. I suppose it has always been this way. I just finished reading a book about the European plagues during the 13-15th centuries. Terrible. Thousands died. There have been wars, plagues, disasters, violence in every generation. It's easy to believe that our times are the worst ever. We can see things from our little spot in the universe and believe that nothing like this has ever happened before. Probably not true. Our world is broken because of sin. The appointment with death brings crime, violence, wars, disasters and disease. Often the innocent and young are caught up in those things. Many look at these things and use this as proof that there is no God. Their theology has God putting man back in the garden of Eden where there are no weeds, thistles, or death. Because we do not live in a utopia they do not believe God exists. This twisted theology ignores Bible teaching. Jesus said that the rain fell, the floods came and the winds blew against both houses, the one on the sand and the one on the rock. Storms come. Storms come in many places. Storms come, often more than one at a time. It is God who tells us these things. Instead of removing the storms, God provides a shelter that is found in Christ. Withstand the storm. We want isolation. God provides insulation. There is a difference.
Third, from our verse today, God is greater. God, who is in us, is greater than he who is in the world. The "he who is in the world," may have been false teachers and antichrists, but eventually all fingers point to Satan. God is greater than Satan. Christ came to destroy the works of Satan. Satan is not an equal with God. He has never been and never will be. Forget all the junk found in movies and false books. Stick with what we know from the Bible. When Satan wanted to turn Job's world upside down, God put limits on what Satan could do. The first round, he could not touch Job. The second round, he could touch Job but not take his life. Satan sought permission to sift Peter like wheat. Why did he "seek permission?" Because Greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world. Satan is not God's equal. He is limited. He is bound by God. God will win. God always wins.
Fourth, did you notice where the writer placed God. He is "IN YOU." God is not just in Heaven above, but He is in you. This is our fellowship. He is in us and we are in Him. Because He is in us, there is never a time and never a place that God is not with you. Alone in the hospital room, God is in you. Taking that dreaded walk to the cemetery to bury a loved one, God is with you. You feel that no one gets you. God does. He is in you. What comfort and what help that ought to be for us. The world doesn't understand. The world doesn't get it. The next verse states, "They are from the world; therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them." They are speaking a different message than we are. They are interested in different things than we are. They are traveling a different direction than we are. We must not worry about keeping up with the world. We listen to a different message, the message of God.
Pharaoh thought that he could crush the escaping Israelites. Greater is God. The sea opened and they passed through safely. Pharaoh and his armies drowned. The king of Babylon thought he could destroy those rebels from Judah who refused to bow down to his idol. Thrown into the fiery furnace, God was greater than the king. They were safe. When Peter was locked in the inner prison, the local authorities thought that they had him and he could not escape. God is greater. Angels appeared. Doors opened. Peter walked out.
The world wants us to be a defeated, scared little flock. The world wants us to cower in fear. The world believes that it has questions that we cannot answer. The world believes that it has proof for its theories and hopes. Greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world. That's the answer! I don't have to have a PhD in science to know that God created the world out of nothing. I don't have to be an expert in climate change to know that we will not all die from some environmental disaster.
Confidence, trust, hope fills the heart that realizes greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. Of all the places that God could be, He chooses to be in you. This happens by faith. This happens by trust. I do not have to understand the ages of rocks, as long as I understand the Rock of Ages!
Greater is He who is in you...
