Birth pains
by Ruth Olsen
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Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he’, and will deceive many (Mark 13:6).
Read Mark 13:1–8
Have you ever been deceived? It is not pleasant, is it? No matter how it happened, there’s betrayal and undermining of trust. We tend to believe what we see – the outer appearance. Like the disciples standing around Jesus being impressed with the magnificent buildings and massive stones, or whatever advert tickles our ears, eyes or feelings, we often do not discern what is being offered. But, as Samuel learned when sent by God to the family of Jesse at Bethlehem to anoint the one God had chosen to replace King Saul, God looks on the heart – our attitudes and motivations (1 Samuel 16:7).
The reality is that if we think we cannot be deceived, we actually are deceived. We are depending on ourselves. We don’t recognise our blind spots, hard hearts, deaf ears, self-pride. We need the Holy Spirit to give us soft, repentant, tender and teachable hearts, willing to humble ourselves, to pray, and to seek the Lord’s face.
There will be strife, wars, nations rising against nations, earthquakes and famines. Jesus describes these as the beginning of birth pains, perhaps to move us to a deeper, wider perspective of what is truly happening. To awaken us to our need of him? Be on your guard because unpleasant things will happen in this broken world! But he doesn’t abandon us. The Counsellor, the Holy Spirit whom the Father has sent in Jesus’ name, will teach us all things and remind us of what Jesus has said. Over time, he draws us into a deeper relationship if we are willing, bringing God’s word increasingly alive to us, enabling us to learn to walk in Jesus’ peace (John 14:26,27). To recognise, discern and yield to God’s ways instead of the ways of our fallen nature.
Holy Spirit, Spirit of Truth, teach and train us to discern the difference between truth and deception. Open the eyes of our hearts to Jesus with us to the deeper things of life, day by day. Amen.
Tough things happen in life for each of us at some stage. Currently, Ruth is on a health-issue journey with Jesus in a ‘winter season’. For helpful insights into seasons, she recommends Pastor Rolly Stahl’s teaching series, ‘Seasons of the Soul’, available on YouTube.
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