Worthy Devotions - Daily Christian Devotion » Discernment

Luke 10:19 Behold, I give to you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the authority of the enemy. And nothing shall by any means hurt you.

For the past 5 days, I’ve been home alone with my two young children while my wife is ministering in Germany. For the past few days she’s been worshiping and ministering with German believers as they commemorate the 70th anniversary of ‘Kristallnacht’, the night that became prelude to the Holocaust. So as you can imagine, I’ve been a little busy with the kids! So I thought I’d take them to the zoo in Jerusalem. As we walked around, we entered the snake house to look at all those beautiful snakes.

As Elianna was looking in each snake aquarium, she was pointing out the snakes that she could find — but most of them were camouflaged extremely well. They weren’t easy to find, but once you spotted one and recognized its markings it became much easier.

So George, why are you telling me about your trip to the zoo? Interestingly, the Bible speaks of the enemy as a serpent, and he’s camouflaged very well. He’s lurking in unsuspected places waiting for an opportunity to strike! I know it would be so much easier if Satan just came out and said, “I’m here to destroy your life!” — but it’s just not going to happen. He’s coming to rob, steal and destroy — and most of the time when he does, people don’t even realize he’s doing it! We need to be aware of how he’s trying to enter into our lives, so that we can spot his markings and remove ourselves from the danger!

Don’t give the enemy an opportunity for deception by failing to spot his camouflage so he can strike! Pray to become skilled in discerning his subtle serpent wiles, remembering he comes as a “minister of righteousness” or an “angel of light” who can easily blend into the background of the world. Don’t go by feelings alone, but let God’s Word dwell richly in you and be filled with His spirit. Then you’ll be well defended, and equipped to finish the work God’s called you to! And…there’s SO much to be done!

1 Chronicles 12:32 And of the children of Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do; the heads of them were two hundred; and all their brethren were at their commandment.

Yesterday, I had the privilege of spending time with a pastor and his wife who’ve been in the ministry for decades, and they shared with us some great wisdom. One of the words given was “be like the children of Issachar.” Of course, I had to ask what this meant. So he referred me to 1 Chronicles 12:32.

The children of Issachar were men who “understood the times, to know what Israel ought to do.” The Hebrew word for “understanding”, “bee-nah”, has a root which also means discernment, wisdom, perception and knowledge.

We live in a day and and age in which discernment is a sorely needed gift in the body of Christ– and praise God, it’s a gift which is freely given by the Holy Spirit! [1 Corinthians 12:10]

Why? Because the enemy of our souls is cunning and subtle, and a major sign of the times is the proliferation of “seducing spirits” and “doctrines of devils.” [1 Timothy 4:1]

A.W. Tozer once stated, “The red corpuscles are like faith - they carry the life giving oxygen to every part of the body. The white cells are like discernment - they pounce upon dead and toxic matter and carry it out to the drain. In a healthy heart there must be provision for keeping dead and poisonous matter out of the life stream.”

So how can we become like the children of Issachar? By building up our spiritual immune system! We need to ask for and develop the spiritual gift of discernment, not falling into the trap of spiritual laziness where we fail to discern truth from error, or to identify the enemy’s spiritual toxins which could poison us.

Let’s ask God for this important gift! Let’s ask the Spirit of Truth to lead and guide us with discernment, every step of the way so that we become like the children of Issachar — able to understand the times, …and, to know what we ought to do!