S46P5 – A Father’s heart: power for protection
John 10:27-29
The sheep that are My own hear My voice and listen to Me; I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they will never, ever perish; and no one will ever snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater and mightier than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.
As a child, I cannot remember whether I said this more than I heard it. I was not one of the big kids, and I was not too strong. Sometimes I could protect myself, but other times I could not. There were times when the playing field was anything but level. When a kid twice your size and twice your age is the opponent, there is little you can do. Those were times when I would appeal to a power greater than mine for protection. Those were times when I would say that I was going to go get my dad. If I could not take care of my problem, I knew he could. It did not matter the adversary I faced, I always had confidence that my father could fix the problem just by his mere presence. In my eyes, he could defeat anyone.
In the current spiritual state of this world, we often may feel like vulnerable children ready to be plucked up by the enemy. The reality is that we are not sufficiently powerful to protect or deliver ourselves. It is no offense to acknowledge our weakness when confronted by the enemy as it is mere fact. We need our Father in Heaven to protect us from the devil’s tactics. And although some of us may take pride in a misplaced feeling of being able to protect ourselves, there is absolutely no shame in deferring to our Father in our time of need. In fact, when we are under oppression or attack by the enemy, it is God who should handle that battle. He is all-powerful and more than well equipped for the victory. It is the victory that we cannot gain but that He already has gained.
God’s protection is a guarantee because his power and might are guarantees. We must remember this when we encounter opposition so great that we doubt whether we will prevail. If we focus on ourselves and on our resources, we certainly will have cause for concern. If we focus on the Father and his resources, we have no reason to doubt. The enemy cannot snatch us from his hand; we are safe there. God’s hands are a hedge of protection, a hiding place, and they are impervious to the enemy’s attacks. Let us be grateful and confident in our Father’s hands, and let us be wise to trust his power to deliver us. Father, thank You for your all-powerful protection that keeps us safe and guarantees that the battle can be won.