Christian Crier
Here are my top seven Bible verses about rising above our present circumstances.
Isaiah 26:3 “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.”
There is no peace in this world except that which comes from God. Before Jesus went to Calvary and would later ascend back to the father, He told His disciples, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me” (John 14:1). Jesus knew they hearts; He knew they were deeply troubled about His coming death and then His leaving them. The trouble is, many people trust their feelings over trusting in God. What you feel may or may not be true but that which Jesus says, always is. Isaiah writes that God will keep them in perfect peace, but it is conditional; this peace is for those whose mind is stayed on God. They have peace because they trust in Him. We already trust in a lot of things every day that give us peace of mind so we know that we can trust Him and His Word more than our feelings.
Daniel 3:17 “If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king.”
Just before King Nebuchadnezzar was about to throw Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego into a burning furnace, they told the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter” (Dan 3:16) because the “God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace” so they knew that if they died, it’s God’s will and what’s the worst thing that could happen to them? They’d be with God! These three young Jewish men refused to compromise and God did deliver them out of the fiery furnace. God never promised to keep them out of the fire and He doesn’t promise us that but He does promise to go with us into the fires and be with us through the fires.
First Peter 2:21 “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps.”
Did Peter really say that we’ve been called to suffer? Yes, because in the preceding verse he writes “For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God” (1st Pet 2:20). Suffering for God is good in His eyes so even during our suffering we can know that if it’s for the right reasons, then we are participating in God’s will for our lives. Knowing this might give our minds the ability to rise above the suffering which we’re experiencing at the moment.
Psalm 40:17 “As for me, I am poor and needy, but the Lord takes thought for me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God!”
This might be a verse that has application in your life. Are you in dire financial straits right now? Well then “the Lord takes thought” of you! He is your Deliver and its okay to pray for God to speedily answer your request for help (e.g. “do not delay”). The psalmist wrote from experience, “I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread” (Psalm 37:25).
John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
The Gospel of John is my favorite gospel and much of the reason is that I know I have and you have the peace that Jesus left with the disciples. At least you have it if you’ve repented and trusted in Christ. Those who trust in God have the peace of God (Rom 5:1) but this peace is not from you nor I but it is “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil 4:7). God is the source of this peace; we are not. Jesus left us with His peace; He didn’t say, “Try and figure it out.”
Romans 8:38-39 “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
If you want to know how to rise above your present circumstances, then consider this; death, life, angels, rulers, powers, height, depth, things now or yet to come nor anything that is created can separate you from the love of God in Jesus Christ our Lord. That covers fallen angels and fallen mankind.
Job 3:25-26 “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God.”
This is the hope of every believer or at least it should be. Even death can’t separate us from God (Rom 8:38) but neither can the decay that takes place after death in our bodies. Job was absolutely certain that even when his skin was destroyed, in his flesh he “shall see God” and that’s a wonderful hope to have. Remember that Job lost everything but his wife who told him to “curse God and die.” Instead, Job said even “Though he slay me, I will hope in him; yet I will argue my ways to his face” (Job 13:15) because “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD” (Job 1:21).
Conclusion
The psalmist wisely wrote “Great peace have those who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble” (Psalm 119:165) because this is “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil 4:7). I want that peace. Make peace with God and Jesus will give you the same peace that He gave to His disciples and to us. That peace can enable you to rise above any and all circumstances.
Article by Jack Wellman
Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.
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