June 30, 2024
John 12:42-43 “Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue: For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God”
To God, the motive, the reason we do what we do, is more important than the action of doing. These verses tell us that many of the high-ranking leaders of the Jewish people believed in Jesus. But they were afraid to confess it because they thought people’s opinion of them would change. The Bible says, “They loved the praise of men more than the praise of God. The word praise here means reputation, credit, honor, glory, and respect. They wanted the glory, the honor, and the admiration the world gave them more than the glory and honor God can give. Some people do a lot of religious stuff and they do things for other people not because they see themselves as servants of God but because they want people to like them, respect them, and give them some honor. The sadness is that if they would turn their expectation away from what people think about them and the credit they might have in people’s eyes to what God thinks about them, then God would step in and lift them up. We’ve all known people who, on the surface, seem to be kind, giving, and compassionate but while they’re breaking their necks to help others, something’s just not right and people know it. They want the approval of others around them to make them feel like winners in people’s eyes. The religious leaders of Christ’s day liked the feeling they got when they walked down the street and people gave them approval because of their station in life. They knew if they identified with Jesus, all that would be stripped away. God knows our motives and He knows if we do things so others will notice us and think highly of us or if we do things as if we are doing them for God. Jesus taught us in Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you”. When God approves us, honors us, and fills us with His presence, it’s far beyond any approval we could get from this fallen world. The honor people give is often temporary and fickle. They sometimes change their opinion of us at a moment’s notice. But not so with the Lord and I would much rather have His approval.
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June 29, 2024
Psalms 32:10-11 “Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall compass him about. Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart”
People who will not follow the ways of God, who have turned away from the gospel of grace will have much sorrow. The Bible describes them and their lives in Isaiah 57:20-21, “But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked”. Those of us who are saved and have God’s peace within us, sometimes forget that unbelievers do not have the power of the Holy Spirit within them and that they do not have the fountain of living waters that bring joy unspeakable (1 Peter 1:8). But there is another promise from God in today’s verse 10, that the mercy of God, meaning the favor, the kindness, and the steadfast love of God completely surrounds us. The picture is that we are completely encircled by God’s favor as if we are behind a 360-degree shield. Everywhere we are, everywhere we go, and in every situation we’re in, we are shielded and blessed with God’s favor. His mercy never goes away and never weakens. Every day we should say, “Lord, I thank You and praise You that I am completely surrounded by Your favor. Thank You that Your mercy around me is renewed every day”. Whenever the enemy attacks us or whispers his lies of doubt, gloom, and doom, we can stand against Him with the Word of God, declaring that we are a child of God and that we are surrounded by God’s favor. Remember that we are precious to the Lord. He loves us so much that He went to the cross in our place and suffered for us. He didn’t pull us from the fires of hell just to abandon us to the enemy. No! The Word of God says, “Be glad in the Lord, rejoice, and shout for joy!” When we combine this promise with that of Psalms 1:3, “And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper” then we have every reason to hold our heads high and walk with the confident assurance that all is well.
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June 28, 2024
Colossians 3:2 “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth”
God loves us but He honors faith. He wants us to believe what He says and when we do, He rewards us according to our faith. The Bible says in Hebrews 11:6, “Without faith it is impossible to please him” and goes on to say, “He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him”. Jesus said to some men He was healing in Matthew 9:29, “According to your faith be it unto you”. But our fallen nature is to walk in unbelief and disregard what God says or twist it into something that works against simple, child-like faith. And, religion and religious teaching often pull us away from faith rather than strengthen our faith. It’s possible to live out this life down here doing religious or “church” stuff and never get anchored in what God said and miss many blessings and answered prayers. Faith begins in our minds and works its way into our spirits as it becomes stronger. When today’s verse tells us to “set our affection on things above”, it means to fix our minds, focus our attention, and keep our thoughts on the things of God. We can’t keep thoughts from popping into our minds but we can learn to stop dwelling on them. Whenever thoughts come like, “This isn’t going to work out, I’m never going to get out of this mess” or even a thought like, “I’m going to get even with them”, begin to block and replace them by saying, “I know God is working on my behalf, I know the Lord will give me the victory, and I know God has taken up my case and He will fight for me”. This is the fight of faith. As we fill our minds and begin thinking and saying what God said instead of what unbelief says, our faith strengthens and it pleases God. At first, it might be difficult because we’re programmed by this world and our flesh to walk in unbelief but as we obey this truth, it starts to become our new nature, the walk and actions of faith. We replace the lies of the enemy and our flesh with the truth of what God says. As we grow in this, our faith sinks deeper into who we are and we fulfill what Jesus says in John 15:7, “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you”.
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June 27, 2024
Hebrews 4:9-10 “There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his”
At least ten times in the Book of Hebrews, the Lord speaks of rest and reminds us His plan for us is that we have a place of rest. He is not talking about heaven but of a life lived here and now promised by Jesus in Matthew 11:28, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest”. This looks back to the promise the Lord gave His people in Exodus 33:14, “And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.” Two words are used for “rest” in today’s verses. In verse 9, the Greek word sabbatismos is used linking our life with Christ to the Jewish Sabbath. On the Sabbath, the people stopped all their work and relaxed with their families, worshipped, and enjoyed a day of quietness and peace. In verse 10, the Greek word katapausis is used and means, the calming of the winds, to say put, and to cease. None of this is about sitting down in an easy chair after a hard day of work. It’s all about Jesus and the salvation we have in Him. The Law of Moses and all other teachings that would have us responsible for some part of our salvation are teachings that we are saved because we do this or that or refrain from this or that. Such teachings are about us earning or securing salvation by some effort on our part. But Jesus paid for our salvation with His precious blood and by faith in Him, we enter into a place of rest, a Sabbath where all our efforts and work to obtain eternal life cease and we rest on His promise that when we trust in Him, we are saved. The rest we have in Christ is much deeper than the Law of the Sabbath in that the Sabbath was one day a week but our rest in Christ is eternal. Jesus, our High Priest, has completed His work and has set down at the right hand of God signifying what He said from the cross, “It is finished”. If you have believed Jesus is the Son of God, that he died in your place on the cross for your sins, and that He arose from the dead and you have confessed that, then you can stop trying to earn salvation and stop trying to remain saved. Believe Jesus is your Sabbath and receive the promise of rest.
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June 26, 2024
Matthew 9:28 “And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord”
When we begin to trust God to move in a situation, two questions must be settled in our minds. The first is the question Jesus asked these two men: Do you believe God is able to help you? If we do not believe God is powerful enough, smart enough, and capable in all other aspects to not only help us but to also completely resolve our situation, then we do not have the ground of faith to trust Him and expect an answer. The Bible is our source of faith in this matter and it is filled with references to God’s power to do whatever He desires. The creation itself is a testimony to the power of God who, just by speaking His Words, created all things that exist. And, the Bible goes on to say that all things that exist, continue to exist by the power of God. Most people who pray to God for His help believe He is able to do what they’re asking. But the second question we have to answer is: Do you believe God is willing to help you? This one is the stumbling block for many people who are asking God to move on their behalf. The Bible addresses this in Matthew 8:2 where a leper came to Jesus hoping to be healed: “And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean”. The question in the leper’s mind was: Is Jesus willing to help me? He believed He was able because he said, “You can”. But his words, “If you are willing” are the same ones that block a lot of people from receiving what God is able to do because they doubt He will do it for them. Jesus said to the leper, “I am willing”. God has promised us so many things in the Bible that there is at least one promise that fits your circumstances. And, if you can’t find the promise, there is the great all-encompassing promise of John 14:13-14, “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it”. When faith rises up in you to believe God is able and that He is willing to answer your prayer, then pray and begin thanking God for the answer because it’s on its way. He is faithful and true.
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June 25, 2024
Romans 12:19 “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord”
This verse follows the Lord’s instructions in verses 17-18, “Recompense to no man (pay no one back) evil for evil” and “If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men”. Sometimes this is very hard to obey. We come equipped with tempers and when someone is doing us dirty or committing wrong, a fire rises up in us and we want revenge. They made us hurt and we want them to suffer. The thirst for vengeance can become a monster that consumes us day and night, spawning imaginations as we think of ways to get even, of inflicting pain on those who hurt us. But God’s eyes see the injustices and He is keeping a record. And, in His time, He will set things straight. His promise to us looks back to Deuteronomy 32:35, “To me belongeth vengeance, and recompence”. Some have said this teaching forbids us to defend ourselves and use the “turn the other cheek” verse to argue their point. But defense and vengeance are not the same. Who of us, having a family, children, and grandchildren would stand still while someone was harming those we love? Who of us would not use all our abilities to stop an attacker or fight back when we or someone we love was being assaulted? That’s not the same as getting even or taking revenge. Revenge looks past the incident and wants to do anything from getting the last word in an argument to killing our enemies. Faith in God’s promise rests on the truth that God can pay back much stronger and more justly than we can. The injustice in this world never ends and when we are involved in something that is bearing down on us because of another person’s meanness, hatred, and ill-will, the Lord is telling us to put the matter in His hands and be patient while He settles the score. We might feel like David in Psalms 13:2, “How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? How long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?”. Wait upon the Lord. It’s hard to do sometimes but when God takes up our case, He will not fail.
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June 24, 2024
John 8:36 “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed”
In a few more days we will be celebrating America’s Independence Day. Slogans like, “Let Freedom Ring”, and, “The Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave” come to mind whenever we think about that celebration. But in this section of John 8, Jesus was teaching that when we live sinfully, we are the servants of sin and no matter how often we might argue that we are free, it’s not true. The religious leaders had argued with the Lord and made a flabbergasting statement in verse 33, “They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free”. What a bunch of nuts! Their ancestors had been dominated at different times to the point of servitude by the Egyptians, Philistines, Babylonians, Persians, and Syrians, and at the time they spoke these arrogant words, they were under the thumb of the Roman Empire. They were not free and would not admit it. People can sing and scream “Free Bird” to the top of their lungs but sin has a hold on us that enslaves us to its power. And, nothing on earth can free us except the blood of Jesus Christ. But believers are free no matter what country they live in or what circumstances surround them. We are free from the wages of sin and the power of sin. The Bible says in Romans 6:12,14 “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof” (14) For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace”. It goes on to say in Romans 6:17-18, “But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness”. When Jesus said we are free indeed, He means truly, completely, absolutely, and certainly free! We rejoice in our American freedom but our greatest joy is knowing that the Son of God has set us free. No longer slaves, but children of God. Free to live in peace, free to serve the Lord, free to enjoy the blessings He provides, and free to see ourselves ready for a glorious eternity with Jesus our Lord.
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June 23, 2024
Ephesians 4:31-32 “Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you”
The first verse of these two describes people who are ruled by the wrong emotions. They are often bitter, hot-tempered, and angry. They have a pattern of arguing loudly, cursing, and saying and acting hateful. In Galatians 5:6, the Bible says our sinful nature causes hatred, arguing, jealousy, explosions of anger, selfishness, strife, and turmoil. As I’m typing this, I’m thinking of all the homes across the world where children are being raised in an environment of anger, fighting, cursing, and yelling. Often such destructive emotions are combined with physical violence and people, especially the innocent and vulnerable, suffer. God’s ways are the ways of kindness, compassion, and tenderness. Anyone who claims to be following the Lord but is living a bitter, hateful, angry, and contentious life, needs to examine themselves in the light of God’s Word and turn from their evil ways. Our children need parents that nurture and protect them not parents that scream at them and verbally and physically abuse them. The Holy Spirit leads us into the peace of Jesus Christ and away from the flesh and the ways of the world. It is the Word of the Lord, God’s eternal seed of truth, and the power of the Holy Spirit that produce the fruit of the Spirit such as love, joy, and peace. The Bible says in Isaiah 55:11-12, “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace”. God is calling us to a higher standard where we speak words that bless, encourage, and offer comfort. He is calling us to abandon the profanity, the bitterness, and the anger we see in the world around us. He is leading us to live lives that are peaceful, nonviolent, and filled with compassion. He desires lives that honor Him and honor others. He helps us to forgive our enemies and people who have wronged us. The Lord is speaking to us about treating people according to verse 32: “Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you”.
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June 22, 2024
John 4:3-4 “He left Judaea, and departed again into Galilee. And he must needs go through Samaria”
There were two major ways to travel from the Galilee region to Jerusalem and vice versa. One way, the longest way, was to take the Jordan River valley path. The other was to travel through Samaria. Although the way through Samaria was shorter, most Jews took the longer path through the valley because they despised the Samaritans and felt traveling through their land was despicable. Our Lord chose to journey through Samaria in this specific reference not because He wanted a shorter journey but because there were precious souls in Samaria who needed to know who He was. When He stopped at Jacob’s well, it was not by chance that He met the Samaritan woman at the well. His encounter with her opened the door for the salvation of many of the Samaritan people. For us, it speaks of God’s willingness to go to great lengths to call sinners to Himself. It testifies to us that we can never turn our backs on people just because they don’t see things the way we do or if they seem too far gone to be saved. It reminds us of the lyrics of the song that says, “Once my soul was astray from the heavenly way, And was wretched and vile as could be; But my Savior in love gave me peace from above. When He reached down His hand for me”. There are people like the Samaritans all around us and they need the message of the gospel. And, there are also people like the Jews around us who think they’re so good they don’t need to be saved. The woman at the well had a messed-up life but the Savior didn’t say, “Lady, I can’t help you because you’ve made too many bad choices”. Instead, He offered her living water and she became a Samaritan missionary. The Bible says in Isaiah 59:1, “Behold, the LORD’S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear”. Praise God for all the churches that come out from behind their walls and go through the Samarias of this world, carrying the message of hope. Praise God for the people who do not turn away from those wounded in life’s ditches but are ready to offer love, comfort, and hope to those who are broken and battered. It’s no coincidence that one of the kindest and most giving people in the Bible was the Good Samaritan.
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June 21, 2024
1 Corinthians 2:16 “For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ”
This section of 1 Corinthians speaks about how we know and understand things. There are two ways: From a natural perspective and a spiritual perspective. The problem of the natural perspective is given in verse 14, “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned”. When we do not view the world around us and interpret what we hear, see, and feel from God’s perspective, all that’s left is the natural or human understanding and that way is not the mind of faith but of pride and unbelief. The natural view comes from a fallen nature that cannot understand spiritual things. For example, when we pray, the natural man tends to spend our time talking to God about our situation or problems and then offering Him a bunch of suggestions and options as to how He needs to act on our behalf. The natural man sees prayer as a way to get God to fix things or do things we want and do it as we think it should be done. Today’s verse addresses this and is a truth repeated in Romans 11:34, “For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor?”. The spiritual view, called here “The mind of Christ”, submits to the wisdom and will of God and reaches out in faith to understand from God’s perspective. We admit our flawed and biased way of thinking and we trust that God has a way when there seems no way, that He has all power and is not bound by the natural law, and that He doesn’t need our advice and interpretations. He just wants us to have faith in Him and His Word. Our prayer becomes something like, “God, I don’t see a way but I know You can make a way. You are the deliverer, the One who can do all things and I put my trust in You. Thank You that You already have a solution and You had one before I even asked. Thank You that You are for me and that You will always work things for my good. Thank You that You are going ahead of me to make crooked places straight. In Jesus’ name, Amen”.
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June 20, 2024
Luke 15:11-13 “And he said, A certain man had two sons: And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living”
The parable of the prodigal son has always amazed us because it is a story of our Heavenly Father’s love. Countless sermons and Bible studies have used the parable to encourage us to receive God’s love no matter how far we’ve strayed. We’ve used the account of the Father’s forgiveness and mercy as a pattern for ourselves to show compassion and grace to people who have wronged us. And, we’ve found hope for ourselves when we have children and grandchildren that go astray and we so desperately want them to turn away from the craziness of this world and back to the Lord. In today’s verses, the youngest son made some terrible decisions that cost him and his family a lot of pain, suffering, and financial ruin. We want to shake him hard before he heads down the road of destruction and say, “Come to your senses! You’re about to throw away blessings, cause yourself great pain, and scar your future! Turn around and live a life of happiness and peace in your father’s house!”. But we’ve all made bad decisions that caused us pain, and disappointment, and robbed us of our peace. And, it’s not just young people who make poor choices and get themselves in trouble but we read every day about people who get scammed out of thousands of dollars by making bad choices, people who are involved in terrible accidents because they were texting or distracted, and entire families in an uproar because of domestic squabbles. Praise God for His unfailing love and patience for us! When we see someone, like the prodigal son, in a pig pen and know they’re there because of their bad decisions, it’s tempting to criticize, view them in a different light, and forget that we ourselves have been in many pig pens, and needed our Heavenly Father’s mercy and forgiveness. The message we need to be shouting from the rooftops is that there is a way back home and a Father who loves us and is longing for our return. There are blessings at His table and He will never cast us out. Yes, sin damages, scars, and causes pain but God’s grace is greater than our sins and God’s love and power to restore are greater than our failures!
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June 19, 2024
2 Corinthians 4:13 “We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak”
A summary of this verse is that when we have faith, we speak what we believe. The reference here looks back to Psalms 116:9-10, “I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living. I believed, therefore have I spoken: I was greatly afflicted”. Another rendering of this thought is that when faith rises up within us, even in the throes of trials and afflictions we remain faithful to the Lord, trust His promises, and declare victory. The Apostle Paul is saying here that even through all the hardships he has gone through and described in previous verses, he remains full of faith and testifies that victory always lies ahead. Some people have been so put off by the shysters who use Word-of-faith teaching to try to fleece God’s people that they miss the point that the principle of Word of Faith is true. It’s laid down in Proverbs 18:20-21, “A man’s belly shall be satisfied with the fruit of his mouth; and with the increase of his lips shall he be filled. Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof”. When we speak words of faith, speaking out God’s Word, what God said, we are not creating anything or causing anything but God’s Word is all-powerful. The Bible says His Word is a hammer that breaks rocks, a sword of faith that cuts through unbelief, and a fortress that shields us from the storms. It’s not carrying around a Bible in our arms, sitting in a church pew with a Bible beside us, or looking at verses projected on a screen that turns the tide but it’s declaring what God said that breaks chains, brings down strongholds, and releases the power of the Eternal Word into life’s situations. When you know what God says and you speak that instead of the gloom and doom and the unbelief of the world, you are speaking the truth. Instead of declaring things like, “I don’t know how I’m going to make it, it all looks hopeless”, remember that God says He always causes us to triumph, that He’s never going to forsake us and speak that instead. Tell the devil and your flesh that you are a child of God and He will always supply your need, always bring you victory, and no matter what the situation, He will always work things for your good. Believe what God says and speak it! Period!
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June 18, 2024
Matthew 25:35-36 “For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me”
The primary context of these verses is the judgment of nations following the tribulation and describes the treatment of the Jewish people and, people who turned to the Lord, during those times. We are reminded of the irrevocable promise God gave to Abraham concerning him and his descendants: Genesis 12:3, “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee”. But a broader meaning here is also that the Lord takes careful notice of how we treat others and sees our treatment of them as treatment of Him. It follows the teaching of Mark 9:41, “For whosoever shall give you a cup of water to drink in my name, because ye belong to Christ, verily I say unto you, he shall not lose his reward”. We know what we call, “The golden rule”, tells us to treat others the way we want to be treated, and yet following Christ goes a step further and calls us to treat others as if we were doing what we do for Jesus Himself. Sadly, many acts of benevolence are done to draw attention to the giver or as a public relations campaign for a business or even a church. The Lord teaches us in Matthew 6:3, “But when thou doest alms (give gifts, especially to the poor), let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly”. The Bible says in verse 2, “Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward”. The Lord wants us to have a generous, compassionate heart and wants us to consider that whatever we give to others either in resources or service, we are doing it as unto Him. He wants us to do it quietly, without fanfare, and know we do not need the approval of those around us. God sees what we do, He knows why we do it, and He will reward those who give as if they are giving to Him.
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June 17, 2024
Romans 2:16 “In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel”
A lot of things are done in secret. Hidden away and carefully concealed. One of the disturbing things of our current times is the human trafficking epidemic where people are taken, held, and enslaved against their will. Children, adults, men, and women are abducted by a global network of wickedness, secret and hidden, and sometimes it’s right in front of our eyes and we don’t know it. Little children are abused and hurt in secret and many people have suffered violence and harm at the hands of others and it was all done out of sight. There are lots of secrets and secret sins that have been hidden but the eyes of the Lord didn’t miss one of them. There’s coming a day when God blows the lid off everything that was done in secret and His mighty judgment, committed into the hands of Jesus Christ, will be served on all those who caused pain and suffering, those who sinned against the innocent, and those who concocted evil schemes. In Daniel 2:28, the Bible says, “But there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets” and Jesus taught in Luke 8:17, “For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest”. The danger is that even when we are following the Lord and looking to Him, we can harbor secret sins. This is what the Psalmist was praying in Psalms 19:12, “Who can understand his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults”. It means we aren’t always aware of what’s lurking in secret within us and we look to God to reveal and cleanse anything that’s hiding within that’s against His will. Others may not see or know what we’ve done or been involved in that was wrong but God sees and knows. People may have deleted their search histories and attempted to wipe their devices of any secrets they knew were not right but God keeps immaculate records. We can’t stop the world from having its secret agendas and hidden, evil activities but we can live honest and open lives of integrity and truth. We can live and make choices as if Jesus is standing right beside us and in fact, He is. We can purpose in our hearts to follow the teaching of Acts 24:16, “And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and toward men”.
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June 16, 2024
1 John 3:1 “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not”
On this Father’s Day, we honor dads and remember those who have passed on and are waiting for us in heaven. Sadly, not all dads are worthy of honor because, by their choices, they have thrown aside the blessings and opportunities of fatherhood and have not fulfilled their roles as guardians and leaders of their families. But this devotion is to remind us that no matter what kind of father we have or had on this earth, we have a Heavenly Father who loves us, always has His eyes on us, and has a plan He purposed before we were born to be with us in a wonderful eternity. Repeatedly in the scriptures, He calls us His children and that is not to be taken lightly because it reveals His heart towards us and the depth of His love. The Bible tells us in Romans 8:38-39 that He will never stop loving us: “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord”. When we are convinced of the greatness of our Father’s love for us, our faith is stronger. And, our expectations of answered prayers, deliverance from trials, and our hope in all things in our life is that of a child trusting the goodness and compassion of a loving father. It’s no wonder that the enemy works hard to weaken our confidence in our Heavenly Father’s love. God could have loved us and saved us but just called us creatures and never purposed an eternal, intimate, and loving relationship with us. He could have shown His grace, mercy, and compassion without making us His children but He did not want that. The power and depth of His love are revealed in that He sacrificed His only begotten Son to save us all and to adopt us into His family. We are not of the world; we are of God and the world rejects us just as it rejects our Heavenly Father. This world has no inheritance for us but God has promised us we will inherit all things. Let’s honor our earthly dads but let’s give glory, praise, and honor to our Heavenly Father for He is eternally worthy!
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June 15, 2024
Ephesians 6:1-3 “Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;) That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth”
Yesterday was my departed dad’s birthday and he would have been 105. This weekend is also the time we honor our fathers and it is with honor and love that I look back and remember the life and the person my dad was. I don’t ever remember my dad actually telling me that he loved me. I believe he was from that generation where many men just didn’t say those words. But by his actions and his devotion to our family, he proved himself to be a man of great integrity and faith. His favorite subject was the Lord and the Bible and I will never forget the sound of his voice drifting down the stairway from where he was on his knees, in an upstairs bedroom calling out to God for himself, his family, and the people he knew that needed the Lord. I have a couple of his Bibles, both worn to the point they’re falling apart, and both filled with hundreds of underlined scriptures and notes scribbled in the margins from a lifetime of the study of God’s word. When I was a young man and living a life far from God’s ways, he would get on my nerves with his recommendations that I turn to the Lord with all my heart and follow Him. And now, at 67, I realize more than ever how fortunate I was to have a dad who loved God so much it was the foundation of his life. About 4 years ago, my dad appeared to me in a dream so real I could feel his touch and see the details of his face. He was smiling and spoke to me with kindness and compassion and said, “Did I frustrate you? I didn’t mean to frustrate you” and I woke up suddenly with such joy and peace it was overwhelming. I looked back at all the times as a young man I was embarrassed of him and his fervor for the Lord and his old-fashioned views of life. I realized more than ever that he was a great man of God, little known and seldom honored by the people of this world but precious to the Lord. He pastored small churches and preached to small congregations but he was faithful and true to his Lord. So, happy birthday Dad, happy Father’s Day and if I didn’t tell you often while you were with me, I hope Jesus will give you this message that I’m proud to be your son and I’ll see you soon when we all gather around the throne.
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June 14, 2024
Isaiah 6:8 “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me”
This verse records the Lord’s call to Isaiah to bear God’s message of truth to Israel at first and then to the world as the message is recorded in the Holy Bible. It’s humbling to think that the God who created all things, the One who has all power in heaven and on earth would call people with an invitation. He could make people do His will and force them to become His servants. But the Lord sets up ministries and charts the course of our lives by allowing us to play a willing part and He desires our cooperation in both the call to service and the choices of the road that lies ahead of us. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 8:12, “For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not”. And again, in 1 Corinthians 9:17, “For if I do this thing willingly, I have a reward”. Some people teach that we have no will at all, that our choices are either forced upon us by our fallen nature or they are preordained by the Lord and He pushes us forward in life by His own will. But while our nature is fallen and we cannot achieve righteousness on our own, we are still responsible for choosing as the Bible declares in Joshua 24:15, “Choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD”. God is inviting us to choose His way and choose to follow Him. Yes, we know He has first chosen us in His love and grace, but that does not negate His call to us to follow Him. We will respond as Isaiah did, “Here am I; send me”. It’s an unspeakable, wonderous honor and privilege to be His child, and to think that He is inviting us to participate in His plan to show love, mercy, and grace to all people on this planet is the greatest blessing that could be offered. For those who love the depth of knowledge in the scriptures, notice here that God speaks of Himself both in the singular and the plural: “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us”. The mystery of the Godhead, calling us to Himself!
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June 13, 2024
John 11:41-42 “Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me”
Does God always listen to our prayers? One of the lies of the enemy that he tries to get inside us is that God may not be paying any attention to us or that He’s not interested in what we’re praying. Sometimes it may seem that our prayers aren’t going any higher than the ceiling and even while we’re praying, we’re tempted to give up. Those are times when praying is a battle where we have to push back doubt, uncertainty, and the whispering lies of the enemy. We have to dig our heels in, rely on the power of the Holy Spirit, and press through the forces that are trying to shut us up. At the tomb of Lazarus, when Jesus was praying, He said to God the Father, “I thank thee that thou hast heard me. And I knew that thou hearest me always”. The Heavenly Father always hears the Son and we are also children of God. The Bible says in 1 John 4:17, “As he is, so are we in this world”. It is not taking this truth out of context when we say that God sees us covered with the righteousness of Christ and that when we pray, God is always hearing us just as He always hears Christ. We have been declared righteous through Jesus and the scriptures tell us in 1 Peter 3:12, “For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers”. In Proverbs 15:8, the Bible says, “The prayer of the upright is his delight” and again, God encourages us to pray in Song of Solomon 2:14, “Let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice”. This devotion is for encouragement to us all to keep praying and keep believing that God is listening, that He wants to hear us, and that He will be faithful to do what He said He would do. Don’t let the enemy or your doubts shut down your prayers. Stand firm and when the temptation to stop praying comes, overcome it by praying even more fervently, more boldly, and with greater expectation that God loves you and will answer you. James 5:16, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much (is powerful, effective, and has God’s approval)”.
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June 12, 2024
Romans 4:18 “Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be”
God promised Abraham that he and Sarah would have a son. Then God waited while Abraham and Sarah grew old. The years passed and no child came to Abraham and Sarah and finally, Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90, decades past the years of childbearing. In the natural sense, all hope that they would have a child was long gone. We might imagine that for many years they kept trying to have a child but with no success and with each passing year, their natural hope dimmed. But the phrase in today’s verse, “against hope” means when all hope was gone and there was nothing left to hope for concerning a child. Abraham held firm to God’s promise and kept believing with hope. This tenacity of faith to believe what God said even when it looked like there was nothing to believe in, is what honored God so much that the Lord called Abraham the friend of God. The Bible reveals Abraham became the of all who believe based on his strong faith. When we know what God has promised us, there will be times when it seems impossible that it will come to pass. For a while it may seem there’s a chance, that things might work out, and that there’s enough momentum in the situation for God to bring His promise to pass. But when all hope seems gone, then is the time to stand firm and unmovable and declare that it might not look like there’s a way but with God there is always a way. God is the God of all hope and what He has promised he will always perform. Sometimes the Lord allows situations to get to a place where they seem hopeless before He moves and when we believe in hope and expectation when things look impossible, it honors God much more than when He answers and it appears there could be another explanation. If Abraham and Sarah’s son had been years before, there would have always been the thought that it might have been a natural birth. But Isaac’s birth was a supernatural act of the God who works miracles. Keep believing, keep hoping, and keep expecting God to do what He said He would do even when it looks impossible. He will never fail us and He will never forsake us.
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June 11, 2024
Mark 5:35-36 “While he yet spake, there came from the ruler of the synagogue’s house certain which said, Thy daughter is dead: why troublest thou the Master any further? As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe”
A man named Jairus, one of the rulers of the synagogue, came to Jesus and fell at Jesus’s feet asking the Lord to heal his little daughter. She was so sick she was at the point of death. As they started to Jairus’ house, someone met them with the news that the little girl had died. The Bible says here that as soon as Jesus heard this spoken, He said to Jairus, “Be not afraid, only believe”. Whenever a situation or circumstance arises our minds tend to become afraid and navigate towards hopeless and negative thoughts. Jesus knew that as soon as Jairus heard the news of his daughter’s death, he would do what most people do and give up hope. That’s why Jesus said those words as soon as the news of the child’s death was announced. Before fear and unbelief became rooted in Jairus’ mind, the Lord wanted his faith to be strong. We have to start proclaiming God’s promises and trusting His power and greatness before the fear of unbelief takes root. Both times when I was given the news that I had cancer, my mind started down the road where I started thinking I was going to leave my family with funeral expenses, that they might have to care for me while I suffered a long death, and that there was nothing I could do about it. But I believe Jesus is the healer and that cancer is no match for the power of His Word. I knew the Bible says I was healed by the stripes He suffered on our behalf. I also knew that even though my faith was weak, people who loved me and even people who didn’t know me were praying for me and that the prayers of God’s people would reach God’s ears. Every time a thought of unbelief would come to me, I would declare, “I will live and not die, Jesus has forgiven all my sins and healed all my diseases”. I know that when it comes time for us to leave this world no doctor on earth can save us. But as long as God has purpose and plans for us here, there’s no cancer or anything else that can kill us. The Word of God defeats fear and unbelief and the Word of God has God’s healing power. The Bible says in Psalms 107:20, “He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions”. Be not afraid, only believe.
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June 10, 2024
Psalms 8:3-5 “When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour”
God made us in His own image and although sin struck us a great blow, we were created for greatness. Our destiny lies beyond all this life offers and far above any accomplishments humans have achieved in this fallen world and their fallen state. For the present time, we were made a little lower than the angels because of the angel’s power, access to God’s presence, and lifespans. But where and what we are now is nothing compared to where and what we shall be when God finishes His work on this earth. The profound truth that God has crowned us with glory and honor refers to our final state when we enter into the glory of eternity to take our place alongside our Savior Jesus Christ. Our future is not a little cabin in the corner of glory land but a heaven so wonderful words cannot describe it. Some may argue that the words of Psalms 8 are only referring to Christ as it is restated in Hebrews 2:9. But the reference in Hebrews points us to the man Christ Jesus who stood alongside us, God’s creation, identifying with us in our humanness to fulfill God’s purpose. God, in Christ, elevates us back to the position we have been given as heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. God declares He has made us kings and priests and that we shall reign with our Lord. So, the description of Jesus Christ as being crowned with glory and honor speaks of Him being the first fruits of God’s redemptive plan. A glorified body awaits us, a kingdom awaits us, an eternal home in the presence of God awaits us, and robes and crowns of glory and majesty await us. In our present state, when we see our smallness contrasted with the glory of the universe, we might seem insignificant. We seem weak, powerless, and temporary. But hallelujah to God we are on His mind! He thinks about us and created us in the light of Revelation 21:7, “He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son”. Our Savior will be crowned with many crowns and we too shall wear a crown of glory.
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June 9, 2024
Matthew 8:16-17 “When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses”
These verses look back to Isaiah 53:4-5, “Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed”. Some have said it speaks only of spiritual healing, and that the atonement does not cover physical healing. But the Bible is clear in that it speaks of physical healing also because the Lord identified Himself in Exodus 15:26 as Jehovah-Rapha in the Hebrew which is translated in our English Bible as, “I am the LORD that healeth thee”. While He was on earth, Jesus forgave sin and He healed all manner of sicknesses. Sometimes we look to Him mostly for His power to save us from our sins but before He was nailed to the cross to bleed and die for our sins, He received 39 stripes which the Bible says was the price paid for our sicknesses and diseases. Doctors do not heal. They, and the rest of the medical profession help us in our times of sickness by helping manage our symptoms and care for our bodies while we are going through sicknesses. But our healing is from God. He said in Deuteronomy 32:39, “See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand”. Yes, Jesus heals us of the disease of sin but He also can heal us of any disease or illness. The Bible says in Psalms 103:2-3, “Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases”. God differentiates here between His power to forgive all our sins and heal all our diseases. When we are sick, we can pray prayers like: “Jesus, You paid the price for my sin and my healing and I know You are my healer. Thank You that by Your stripes I am healed”. Thank You that You said that You forgive all my sins and heal all my diseases”. Praise the Lord, He is our Savior and our Great Physician!
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June 8, 2024
2 Peter 2:9 “The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished”
This verse looks back to the previous verses 1-7, which remind us how God delivered Noah and Lot and we see both sides. God knows how to save and deliver and God knows how to judge and destroy. When we teach either aspect of God’s dealings with humanity without teaching the other, we misrepresent the truth. We want people to see the truth of God’s goodness. We want them to know He has compassion, shows mercy, and is willing to forgive us completely and set us free and clear of sin and death. We want people to know that the Lord has a plan for us that is eternal and that He has a glorious home in heaven waiting for us. But for all who reject God’s gift and choose to refuse His offer of forgiveness, mercy, and grace, the alternative is just as real, just as true, and just as much a part of the future for all humanity as the streets of gold and life without suffering and sorrow. Jesus came to save us not only from our sins but also from an eternity without hope. Yet it is not the fear of God’s wrath that makes us want to turn from our sin to the Savior. The Bible says in Romans 2:4, it is the goodness of God that leads us to repent and be saved. Praise the Lord He knows how to deliver us. Whether we are talking about the deepest depths of sin or the most horrendous trial imaginable, God understands our situation and He is able to deliver us. The blood of Jesus, the stripes on His back, and the suffering of the cross opened a way for us to receive all that God has for us. He hears our cries, He knows our sorrows, and He always has a way forward for us. He is our Savior and our Deliverer, our hope and our shelter from all life’s storms. He knows our needs before we call to Him for help and we have His unfailing promise that He will always be with us. We can see His power to deliver in the lives of the saints recorded in the scriptures and He is the same now as He was then. He knows how, He has the power to perform it, and He will do it for our sake and His glory.
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June 7, 2024
Jeremiah 1:8 “Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD”
When God called Jeremiah to be a prophet, Jeremiah told God he couldn’t be a prophet because he was too young. But God didn’t accept his argument and said in verse 7, “Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak”. Jeremiah had a tender personality and has been nicknamed “The Weeping Prophet” and the Lord gave Him today’s verse to help him overcome any tendency he might have to be afraid to speak out before people. The fear of declaring our testimony of truth publicly is a common fear and the enemy will use it anytime he can to keep us silent. It’s strange how many people who publicly protest and those who have angry, bitter, or profane things to say are not afraid to shout out their words loudly. But when it comes to the gospel or the things of the Lord, we are often muzzled by fear even in the house of God where we’re safe to praise, worship, and give our testimony. This type of fear is sometimes coupled with a sense of shame and embarrassment and God is calling us to surrender our mouths and words to the Holy Spirit because He has not given us the spirit of fear. He told Jeremiah, “Be not afraid of their faces”. He knew that sometimes the prophet had to say things that people didn’t want to hear and Jeremiah would be confronted with angry, unwelcoming faces. Isaiah prophesied about Jesus in Isaiah 50:7, “For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed”. From that, we know that in the presence of all those who hated Him and His message, Jesus carried Himself with strength and boldness, never bowing to the specter of fear. The Bible says in Jeremiah 1:9, “Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth”. We have been anointed by the Holy Spirit to speak forth the things of God and declare His Word. We will speak His Word and not be afraid or ashamed. Hebrews 13:6, “So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me”.
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June 6, 2024
2 Kings 4:39-40 “And one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine, and gathered thereof wild gourds his lap full, and came and shred them into the pot of pottage: for they knew them not. So they poured out for the men to eat. And it came to pass, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out, and said, O thou man of God, there is death in the pot. And they could not eat thereof”
This story takes place in a time of famine when Elisha and his student prophets were hungry. They started boiling some soup and went looking for edible things they could put into the soup. One of them came across some wild vegetables, cucumber type, that no one knew what they were. They put them into the soup and as they started eating, they realized the wild vegetables were poison. We all go through times when we feel needy, burned out, and unsatisfied. The world offers many things and experiences that we are tempted to turn to, hoping to satisfy the emptiness within us. But when we turn to things that are not God’s will for us, the very things that seem they might help us are actually poison to our souls. Common ones are alcohol, drugs, illicit affairs, and pornography. Other things that are not inherently evil in themselves can still be sources of poison that drive a wedge between us and God. Instead of satisfying us, they move us away from the Lord and cause sorrow and later, regret. Money, hobbies, sports, recreation, and even work can all become addictions and distractions that overpower our desire for the things of God and weaken our faith. Elisha performed a miracle that saved his disciples from death by throwing some meal (ground grain) into the pot of soup. The soup was then safe to eat. The meal represents Jesus Christ the Bread of life and He must be a part of everything in our lives. We can enjoy many of life’s goodness and find recreation, have hobbies, enjoy sports, earn money, and find fulfillment in our work when Christ is the center of our lives and we do what we do while acknowledging Him in all our ways. Jesus taught us in Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you”. When we pursue the Lord and the things of God, His blessings surround us and He protects us from being enslaved and poisoned by the enemy and the ways and things of this world.
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June 5, 2024
Hebrews 11:24-26 “By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward”
Although Moses was raised as Pharaoh’s grandson, he reached a point in his life where 2 destinies lay ahead of him. He could continue to live as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter or he could walk away from all Egypt offered him and live as a Jew. A life in the Egyptian palace would have been a life of luxury with anything he wanted at his fingertips. He would have had servants, enjoyed great parties, and would have had a position of honor and prestige. But a life lived as a Jew was a life identified with slavery and oppression. He would be an object of reproach. It’s very interesting here that the Bible says he identified with Christ even though the birth of Jesus Christ was about 1500 years or so after Moses’ time. On God’s timeline, the past and the future merge. Moses made a choice that pushed him into his destiny. The Bible tells us he chose to be a Jew and follow the ways of God Almighty. We know our lives are in the hands of God but God still wants us to make choices that honor Him, choices that are for our good and His glory. Every day we wake up, there are many choices before us and when we make them with God’s Word and the Holy Spirit as our guide, the Lord provides many open doors of opportunity to become what He created us to be. Our choices matter because they place us either in the center of God’s will or they place us in areas where we cannot be the best God has called us to be. For example, our choices make the difference between whether we have a good day or not. When we open our eyes and declare “This is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it”, we’re making a choice that sets the course for our entire day. No matter what happens, we have chosen to commit the day to the Lord and we face the day with the confidence that God will bless us, be with us, and help us in all our circumstances. Like Moses, our choices, all by faith, will either lead us closer to the Lord and His will for us or they will cause us to drift away. May we begin this day to make the choices that help push us forward to be the best we can be for God’s glory.
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June 4, 2024
Romans 5:20-21 “Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord”
The Bible says in John 3:17, “For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved”. Jesus didn’t come to judge people because people are already judged in Adam. The scriptures declare this truth in this chapter of Romans. The human race was judged guilty when Adam sinned and we received the death sentence because of that sin. It wasn’t that first sin we committed that started us on a downward path to destruction, we were doomed to sin before we were ever born. The proof is that, except for Jesus Christ, every person who has ever lived chose sin over righteousness. If we are sinners by nature and choice, why did God bother to give the law? He knew we couldn’t keep it and He knew it could not make us righteous. The answer is given here in today’s verse: The law made our sin easier to spot, made it bigger in that sense (the offense abounded) so that when we consider the power of God’s grace, we can see how great it really is. “Where sin abounded (revealed as great by the law), grace did much more abound (revealed to be greater than all our sin). God’s will is to manifest His great grace in such a way that it overshadows the power and the horror of sin and death. The Bible speaks about the “glory of his grace” and today’s verse comments that now that sin has been defeated, grace reigns. Sin reigned and brought death since Adam and now grace reigns and brings eternal life through Jesus Christ. So, all those who want to drag people back under the laws and rules of the Old Testament, are trying to drag people back to a system that never gave God glory, that couldn’t take away sin, and that God never intended to be permanent in the first place. The law set up the dispensation of grace by providing a means to magnify sin so that the grace of God and the God who gave it can be seen as great and glorious. Grace sets us completely free and at the same time, glorifies God alone.
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June 3, 2024
2 Corinthians 12:10 “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong”
It seems a contradiction to say, “When I am weak, then am I strong”. It would be like the mighty grizzly bear saying, “If only I could be like a mouse, then I’d have real strength”. But what seems impossible in the natural sense, becomes possible when the Lord is in control. The Apostle Paul penned these words of scripture and he was not, by any view of his life, a weak man. He was greatly educated, spoke several languages, and showed unbelievable courage and resilience when he was shipwrecked three times. One of those times, he was in the open sea for a day and a night before being rescued. He was beaten, whipped, and imprisoned, and the list of the hardships he faced goes on. Yet he credits his strength to being weak. What he is speaking of here is how the grace of God works in us. God’s grace is strongest in us and we are more victorious when we realize our weaknesses and inabilities and fully rely on God’s help. Those who see themselves from a lofty, exalted position are blocking the grace of God from working in its fullness. Consider Paul’s words in verse 9: “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me”. The power of Christ, manifested by His abundant grace, rests on us when we acknowledge our inabilities. This is why the scriptures tell us in 1 Corinthians 1:27-29, “But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence”. Our faith reaches up to God in our times of weakness because we know and admit we can’t do it on our own and God’s grace and power reaches down to us because His power is strongest when we are weak. We get His help and He gets the glory. This is why we can say that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. It is not us, but Christ who is in us.
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June 2, 2024
Mark 15:12 “And Pilate answered and said again unto them, What will ye then that I shall do unto him whom ye call the King of the Jews?”
Pilate confronted the Jews who had arrested Jesus and his question to them still rings in our ears today: What shall I do with this man known as the King of the Jews? Whether people like it or not and whether they admit it or not, God brings us all face to face with our own sinfulness and the plight of our souls and it comes down to what we do with Jesus Christ. The Jewish leaders represented the worst of the human heart when they cried, “Crucify him, crucify him”. Pilate asked them, “Why, what evil hath he done?”. And the Bible said they shouted back louder and more intensely, “Crucify him”. I ask this question respectfully, “What have you done with Jesus?”. Have you pushed aside His offer of forgiveness and eternal life? Have you rejected Him and said that you don’t want any part of any religion even though He didn’t represent the religion of His day? It was, after all, the religious leaders who called for His death. Or have you turned to Him, received His gift of salvation, and now follow Him as Your Savior? The confrontation of the question, “What will you do with Jesus?”, is a confrontation with the matter of sin and sinfulness. None of us like to be called out because of our sin and our nature is to deny our need for a Savior. When we agree that we need Jesus Christ the Savior, that means we’ve admitted we are sinners and need to be saved. The moment we acknowledge our sinfulness and ask for His forgiveness is the moment we stop confronting our sins forever because He takes them away. But the question doesn’t stop there. After we are saved, we still make our life choices and daily decisions either by making Jesus and His Words our determining factor or pushing Him and His wisdom aside. Every morning, we can ask ourselves, “What will I do with Jesus today?”. We can follow Him, obey Him, and honor His name. We can choose His ways, praise His goodness and grace, and let His light show through us. We can recommend Him to others, give Him glory, and trust His promises. There is no one like Him, no one above Him, and no one more worthy of our devotion.
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June 1, 2024
Genesis 19:29 “And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt”
The story of Lot is a tragic account of someone who lost his way and lived by what was pleasing to his eyes rather than what was pleasing to the Lord. Lot had the example of a life of faith from his uncle Abraham but when he and Abraham parted company, Lot made choices that put him and his family in a dark, dangerous, and faithless place: The city of Sodom. We can wonder how his life would have been different if after leaving Abraham, Lot had built an altar, called on the name of the Lord, and purposed to follow the ways of God as He had seen in Abraham. I’m sure the outcome for him, his wife, and his precious children would have been different. The first 5 words of today’s verse, the phrase “And it came to pass”, appear almost 400 times in the Bible. It’s a reminder to us that nothing in this life is permanent. No matter how lush and inviting the plains of the Jordan River valley looked to Lot and how exciting and interesting the city of Sodom appeared, one day it all came to pass, Lot lost all he had obtained, and we know the end of the story. And, when we make choices like Lot as to how we live and conduct ourselves, may we remember that one day we will leave everything here behind and move into eternity to face our Maker. The Bible says in Ephesians 5:15-16, “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil”. We are to live “circumspectly” meaning carefully, with deliberate purpose, and sensibly because it will all come to pass. In Lot’s story, despite his tragic mistakes, God’s grace was working in his life. That doesn’t mean his earthly story had a perfect ending and that God canceled out all his errors and everyone lived happily ever after. No, he and his family paid an earthly price for their choices of unbelief but God’s grace was still at work, opening a door of favor in a time when judgment was all around. May we live carefully, making good, faith-based choices and may we live knowing that this life will come to pass and we will receive rewards for the deeds done here.
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