Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. — Galatians 1:3-5

When I read these words, the phrase that captures me is "deliver us from the present evil age."

It captures me because that's what I want. I want deliverance from the evil in the world. Yet, as I read this, I am reminded that as Paul had his evil age, we will have ours. Evil was just as rampant in his time. There is no new manifestation of evil. Evil existed then, and evil exists now because mankind is selfish and because Satan is free to roam the earth. So when we hear or see a "new version" of evil, we shouldn't be surprised.

But while this is a little oppressive to think about, there is good news. Followers of Jesus are rescued from this. God delivered us from the burden of evil. He did it in one word — grace. God's grace, or his undeserved favor to us, is his gift to men who want to be relieved of this burden. By faith, through this grace, God gives us deliverance in two ways: deliverance for now and deliverance for then. Deliverance, for now, is deliverance from the world's way of thinking and living into God's way of thinking and living. Indwelled by his Spirit, we live a life rescued from depravity and the weight of sin. Deliverance, for then, is deliverance from eternal punishment due to our sin and the suffering we have caused the world. And gentlemen, we receive both — deliverance for now and deliverance for then. And it all comes by his grace.

So yes, there is a lot of evil in the world today. We are reminded of it daily. But you are delivered! Don't live in bondage to evil. You have received grace, and you were saved by someone and something done for you a long time ago, "Jesus who gave himself" for you!

ASK THIS: What do you need to be delivered from today?

DO THIS: Share it below!

PRAY THIS: God, be my deliverer!

PLAY THIS: Matt Maher - Deliverer.

Check out other all Vince Miller's videos and audios for small groups at: https://beresolute.org/

Get Vince's most widely read resources The Daily Devotional at: https://beresolute.org/mdd

Check out more ALL IN products like the one Vince is wearing at:
https://beresolute.org/product-category/all-in-hats/
____________________________________________________________________________________
Connect with Vince socially:
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/millervince
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/vinceleemiller
LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vincemiller
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/vinceleemiller