Following the Path to Blessingor Don't Think Yourself Out of It
Abraham (Gen.20:11)
"I thought, surely there is no fear of God in this place..."
Naaman the Leper (II Kings 5:11)
"I thought surely the prophet will come out to me...".
Paul as "Saul of Tarsus" (Acts 26:9)
"I thought to myself that I had to do many things hostile to the name of Jesus of Nazareth."
Abraham, Naaman, & Paul all have something in common. They did a great job missing God by analyzing their respective situations intellectually, instead of spiritually. Abraham got in trouble with a king. Naaman almost kept his leprosy. Saul was killing the very Christians he was about to join!
Intellectual Reasoning is based completely on our past knowledge and experiences. If in the past we had only filled our minds with the Word of God, thought on good things, and viewed life's ups and downs from a Scriptural perspective, it wouldn't be harmful to reason this way. But who besides Jesus has done that?!
To Reason Spiritually is to view all things from God's perspective. In the context of this lesson, it means to not have a preconceived idea of how God is going to do something or what it is going to look like. He may have promised an outcome, but He probably didn't tell you the path He was going to take. Many have quit prematurely, because their path to victory looked like defeat. The most common example was Jesus' resurrection weekend! Saturday didn't look too promising, but Sunday was coming!
Let's be real. When we look at life's circumstances, we can't be sure we know what is really happening. We can't know how God's going to work on our behalf. But we do know what He has promised in the Scriptures and has personally spoken to us. That is enough. From now on, when you look around you, do so in faith, knowing... "This is what it looks like when God is moving for me!"
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