ICS Daily Devotions
Our Free Will
God has given us a most precious gift—our free will. Unfortunately, this gift can be used for both good and evil. Like Adam and Eve, we can stop God’s perfect plan for us.
Gen 3:1-4 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ” Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die.
The devil twisted God’s words when he tempted Eve with the question “Did God really say?” followed by a lie that she would not die. Today, the devil still uses the same tactic of twisting the Word of God to make us feel like we are not sinning even when we are. If we don’t know what God says, and if His Word is not the final authority in our lives, we will be susceptible to the enemy’s lies.
In relation to sin – “You will surely not suffer if you…” or “Did God really say you shouldn’t …?”—The enemy will try to tell us we can do whatever we want even if it is not in line with the Word of God, with no consequences.
In relation to how God sees us – Others may tell us “You are not good enough”. Alternatively, the enemy may whisper to us things like “Did God really say those good things about you?”
In relation to His promises – “Has God really said that He will provide for (or heal) you?”
Although God has forgiven us for our sins when we believed in Christ, painful consequences remain if we choose to walk outside His will. God wants us to choose to follow His will and His ways for our own good. He has given us His Word as a weapon to defeat the enemy’s lies, and the power of sin that used to reign in us has been broken at the cross. The more we realise what we have been given, the greater victory and authority we will walk in!
Sermon Series: CG Campaign – A Transformed Life
