In the Grip of God

John 10:27-29
My godson gave me a set of these things.  At first I didn’t really know what they were.  He told me to figure out what they are for, lol. 
 
One day I saw contractors who had a bunch of cables and cords and stuff.  They had taken these and wrapped them around and they were carrying the cables and cords with them.  I realized then what the thing was for – until I saw them being used I didn’t realize what they were for.  I thought about that when I was looking at this devotion: “In the Grip of God”.
 
We are just out there when we are not in the grip of God; when we have not accepted Christ.  We are open for anything or anybody to get to us or pull us. 
 
When we begin to walk with him and when he begins to grab us and hold us, that grip begins to get tighter and tighter.  You can’t pull this apart and regardless as to what might happen can’t nothing or nobody snatch you out of God’s hand.
 
In our passage Jesus says My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:  And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.
 
 
Jesus is saying we cannot slip out of the grip of God’s hand.  We can rest assured there is nothing or nobody that can snatch us out of the hand of God. 
 
The devil will try to say “You’re not in the grip of God; God is not holding you.”  But we know for a fact that God is holding us and His love is an everlasting love.  Jesus says “I give unto them eternal life”.  As long as we are in His grip, no one can pluck us out and we can have the assurance of eternal life.
 
Now I think a person can get out of His hand themselves; I think they can get out of his hand by rejecting Him, by turning from him, or by as the bible says blaspheming the Holy Ghost.  We can take ourselves out of His hand by running after some other god. 
 
We are free moral agents - we can accept him or we can reject him.  It is left up to us.  We can stay in His grip if we want to.  He’s not going to make us stay.  As long as we are walking with Him we are in the grip of God and nothing can take us out of His hand.
 
Romans 8:35 says “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?” 
 
Now, He’s got us in the palm of his hand, who shall separate us from Him? Not even death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come.  In other words we are in the grip of God….
 
Jesus told Peter “Satan desires to have you, to sift you as wheat, but I have prayed for you….”  In other words, Peter, you are in the grip of God.  I think back to some years ago when that passage used to ring in my ear.  It’s so awesome to know that for me (and for you) it is just as Jesus told Peter: “I have prayed for you that your faith fail not”. It is so awesome that Jesus is at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us so Satan can’t snatch us out of the hand of God.
 
We are in the grip of the hand of God.
 
There are people right now that are struggling in their faith.  They are struggling, maybe even with people talking down to them or looking down on them.  We are all human and we may make mistakes. We are flesh and blood and we are going to stumble along the way.  People shouldn’t criticize or put others down. We can’t say “Ahh man, he ain’t saved or she ain’t saved”.  He’s in the hand of God or she’s in the hand of God so it’s not left up to us.  You can’t look at me or look at that brother or that sister and know their heart.   I can’t say he’s not in the hand of God or God don’t have his hand on him or her. The only person knows that knows is him or her and God.
 
We have to make sure that we are connected to him so that we don’t have to worry about those things.  You can rely on the fact that you are in the hand of God and in His grip.  Regardless, can’t nobody or nothing pluck you out of his hand.
 
This thing may break, but you don’t have to worry His hand breaking - you don’t have to worry about God losing his grip.
 
Prayer
Father, we thank you in the name of Jesus for these brothers and my sister that have come.
 
I thank you God that we can realize that we are in your grip.  Thank you for holding on to us even when times seem to be rough.   Even when our faith may be shaken, God we know that you are with us because your Word says that you will neither leave us nor forsake us.
 
We pray that you will continue to keep your hand on us and our families; our wives, our children.
 
And Lord we pray for our coworkers, that you will keep your hand on them as well; watch over them. Lord watch over their families, and bless the head of this department. We thank you for jobs, because so many don’t have jobs; so many are looking for a job and we thank you for this one.
 
We pray and ask your blessing upon this day as we go forth.  In the name of Jesus we pray.  Amen.
~J. T.