Written by Mark Driskill:
Tuesday March 15, 2011
Acts 10:9-16
Don’t let what you’ve always done keep you from the greatest move of God in your life! That’s what Peter almost did. God came to Peter in a vision three times. In that vision he showed Peter a great sheet filled with all sorts of unclean animals. God told him, “Rise Peter, kill and eat.” But Peter said what we all say far too often, “That’s against my religion.”
You see, God was trying to push the gospel forward into Gentile territory but because of Peter’s religious tradition the apostle almost missed it. God had to break down Peter’s religious mindset to get him to step out in faith. In order for God to do his greatest work one of the first things he often has to battle against is our religion. You know you have a problem when God tells you to do something and, like Peter, you say “no” to God in order to preserve your sense of religious practice.
As revival moves forward in our day there will be many religious groups who oppose it simply because it manifests in ways that are against their religious tradition or pet doctrines. They will resist God’s voice because they have a doctrine that says God no longer speaks personally. They will miss healing because they were taught against such things. They will remain bound in secret sin because they have been taught there is no such thing as deliverance. They will sit in empty churches because they refuse to go out and minister outside of their religious circles. They will rage against the revival, even pray and preach against it. They will spend their lives defending a pet doctrine or tradition, saying to God, “I have never done it that way before.” How disappointing one day when they discover they spent their lives fighting God himself.
How sad it would have been for Peter to miss the opportunity to work with God in reaching the nations simply because he wouldn’t allow himself to eat catfish. How wonderful that the apostle had enough experience with Jesus to know his heart and eventually see what God was up to. You see, the more time we spend with Jesus himself the easier it is for the Lord to challenge our religion and show us his heart.
The farther we wander away from the Lord the stronger our religious mindset grows and the more entrenched we become in our fortress of our own tradition or opinion, so that we are oblivious to God’s work in our midst. Friends, when God shows up outside of your religious box, don’t mistake him for the devil. Test everything, not by your tradition, but by the word of God. This will keep you from error and from missing the glory of God. Spend time with Jesus and the Holy Spirit will guide you into all truth. The word and the Spirit will keep you on the right track. Otherwise you just might miss the God you have been looking for.
Mark Driskill and his wife Mary are homeschooling community ministers in Breathitt County Kentucky. They have four children. They co pastor Emmanuel fellowship Church, serve as Camp Pastors at Bethel Mennonite Camp, and Mark Teaches at Oakdale Christian Academy.
Mark is web minister for Begotten by theWord , a ministry of Helping Hands Christian Resources.
Once a month he preaches on the local radio station through the “Lion of Judah” program. Mark also preaches in youth rallies and revivals upon request at no charge. Their vision is to see true spiritual awakening come to the mountains of Eastern Kentucky and to the nation.
Contact information:
Email: driskill@hilbillymail.com
Facebook: Mark Driskill
Address: PO Box 1159 Jackson KY.
