FEARLESS FAST DEVOTIONAL - DAY 13

WINNING THE WAR

‘He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James and John the brother of James’. Mark 5: 37 (NIV)

Yesterday, we looked at Jairus breaking out of the crowd and making a declaration of faith. Today we conclude on the story of Jairus. Jesus told Jairus that He would come home with him, to pray for his daughter who was at the point of death. As they made their way, Jesus was interrupted by the ‘woman with the issue of blood’. While taking His time to address her situation, news came that Jairus’ daughter had died. They told Jairus, “Why bother the Teacher? Your daughter is dead.” What a blow! The ‘bleeding’ woman had distracted Jesus, and now his daughter was dead. Jesus overheard what they said, encouraged Jairus to keep believing and urged that they continue the journey. The crowd eager to see what would happen, followed as well.

The words came as a shock; “Why bother the Teacher?” It was a move by the enemy to prevent Jesus from getting to Jairus’ house. There was a spiritual battle going on in Jairus’ home. A war was raging between the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of God. Demonic powers had struck a fatal blow, and a young girl was dead before her time. Jesus’ plan was a counter attack. Engage the demonic powers, release the power of God and raise the girl back to life. This spiritual war zone was not the place to be surrounded by fearful and unbelieving people.

Jesus first stopped the crowd from following Him. Then as they got to Jairus’ house, He did not permit some of His disciples in either. Of the 12, only 3 were permitted to remain with Him. The girl’s parents along with Jesus’ core group of Peter, James and John, were allowed in. It is important we screen the people we surround ourselves with. It is crucial we carefully choose those we listen to in the days ahead. There are exploits that we are to perform that would require strong faith. Life is a battle that has to be fought constantly with the weapon of faith. Faith is a shield that quenches the fiery darts of the wicked one. Fear is very contagious and quickly spreads. And once fear slips in, faith is dowsed. Notice, when a few people are discouraged or fearful, it is easy to spread that discouragement and fear to the others. That is what the 10 unbelieving spies did. Having seen the giants in the Promised Land, they spread fear through the entire congregation. That was the reason why God did not permit Gideon to keep his army of thirty two thousand. Twenty two thousand of them were already paralyzed with fear, and would have cost them the battle against the Midianites.

In the matter of Jairus’ daughter, Jesus wanted people of faith around Him. Arriving Jairus’ house, it was full of people mourning the young girl and wailing loudly. When they perceived Jesus’ intention, they mocked Him. Jesus did not waste time showing them out of the house. With the girl’s parents and His inner group, He entered the girl’s room, performed a miracle and raised her back to life. Jesus stopped the crowd from following Him, shut out some of His own disciples and threw out those who came to mourn with the bereaved. Jesus was determinedly on a mission. And so must we!

We cannot walk by faith and walk by feelings at the same time. Jesus’ plan was to do everything required to surround Himself with people of faith and courage. It was the atmosphere of faith and courage that provided the breeding ground for the miraculous.

NEXT STEPS

Constantly create an environment of faith for the miraculous.
Keep hope alive, speak words of faith.
Surround yourself with fearless and courageous people.
Avoid those who only see problems and never see possibilities.
Reject negative influences from social media, television or any other source. Do not let them deter your faith.