Totally unexpected, while walking across the room one morning, the Spirit spoke these words within me, “with malice toward none.” What challenge lies therein! The Dictionary defines the word “malice” as enmity of heart, ill will. The Greek word here is “kakia” meaning evil, badness.

If every expression that proceeded from our being were pure, holy, and governed by love, obviously there would be no malice. It is hard for the natural mind to conceive of such a state of being, for the flesh seeks to protect itself, and generates an ill feeling towards anyone or anything which would affect it adversely. “Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings,” (I Peter 2:1). It takes a mighty inworking of the grace of God so that all of our actions are totally without any ill feeling towards another!

Study the emotions that stir us to action. When we are of a benevolent disposition, we tolerantly let a lot of things “slide by”, but when our disposition changes, and we have an ill feeling, we strike out in self-defense. Purgings are needed until we are made “pure, as He is pure”.

O flesh so arrogant and proud,
Self-centered ways that clamor loud,
Your days are numbered, fading fast,
Your vaunted image cannot last.

The cross shall deal its deathly blow,
Humiliation lay thee low,
Till Christ alone shall be revealed,
The inner man, so long concealed.

And then true grace and mercy give,
Forgiveness births a hope to live,
With neither malice nor ill will,
But joy and peace the earth to fill.

“Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not” (II Corinthians 4:1).

Note the words “faint not”, from the Greek, meaning: to turn out badly, or cave in. True, there are days when one feels like they are going to cave in, and what keeps us from it? Because we have RECEIVED MERCY. We realize that “greater is He within us” than all of the outside pressure. We are “God’s husbandry, we are God’s building” (I Cor. 3:9). He will maintain a proper balance of the exterior and the interior. He does not overload the circuits so that we explode and cannot contain the measures of His love and grace, nor does He short-circuit the power so that we do not have enough to face the need of the day. He is our sufficiency all the way!

Whatever the ministry, whatever the service He has called us to, He has also given us mercy which undergirds and is equal to the task, yes, and MUCH MORE. The Psalmist knew this well, and stated, “all my springs are in Thee” (Ps. 87:7). Therefore, “I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever: with my mouth will I make known Thy faithfulness to all generations” (Ps. 89:1).

“We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us” (II Cor. 6:7). No need to despise the earthiness of the vessel. He chose it to place His treasure therein. No need to try and exalt the earthen vessel, it has nothing of itself wherein to boast. But we can rejoice in the mercies of the Lord, the grace of God given to us through His kindness, and the power, which abides within to sustain us. “It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in Him” (Lam. 3:22-24). “O give thanks unto the Lord; for He is good; for His mercy endureth forever” (Psalms 136:1).

“Mercy there was great, and grace was free,
…there my burdened soul found liberty, at Calvary.”

“I have set the Lord always before me: because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.” (Psalm 16:8)

Obviously, Jesus walked with a continual God-consciousness. A relationship that was a dominant factor in His life. “I and My Father are ONE.” (John 10:30) “Jesus lifted up His eyes, and said, Father, I thank Thee that Thou hast heard Me. And I know that Thou hearest Me always…” (John 11:41-42). His inner-consciousness was His oneness with His Father, and while He might also become aware of outside conditions, the needs of the people, even to casting out demons, this did not take away from His inner consciousness of oneness with His Father’s will and purpose at all times.

Now, what about us? What is our inner-consciousness? You cannot be God-conscious and devil-conscious at the same time. Fear is a negative emotion. Worry is a negative emotion. Doubt and unbelief are negatives. When these abide in us they become a fertile field for devil-consciousness to develop. We become more than just aware of the enemy, it is an inner disquietedness. We then are prone to lash out at every shadow, and begin to think that every situation is Satan-controlled, and we forget that GOD IS IN CONTROL.

The challenge remains, “Be renewed in the spirit of your mind… neither give place to the devil” (Eph. 4:23, 27). The mind is the area where the adversary would seek to gain his toehold in our temple. So Paul instructed, “Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, think on these things” (Phil. 4:8). When the mind is filled with a Christ-consciousness there is no ‘place’ therein for the devil.

It was the Psalmist’s determination to have the Lord “Always before me.” Conscious that even “When I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil:for Thou art with me.” (Ps. 23:4).

Inwardly conscious that Christ is our King,
And He controls all our pathway would bring.