May 31, 2021
Jeremiah 29:13,” And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart”
Verse 11 of this chapter is very famous and it speaks of the Lord’s intentions of peace and good towards His people and that He will bring them to the place He has purposed for them but I dare say many people have never followed the rest of the promise to this verse, 13. People seek the Lord for a variety of reasons and we can see that throughout the ministry of Jesus. The devil came looking for Him to tempt Him. Some sought Him on behalf of people they love such as Jairus and the Syrophoenician woman who came on behalf of their children. Two blind men near Jericho cried out for Him to open their eyes. Mary and Martha sent for Jesus because their brother Lazarus was at the point of death. One person in Luke 12 came looking for the Lord to solve a question of a family inheritance. Some came with great faith like the woman with the issue of blood that touched the hem of His garment and others came because they had burning questions like the rich young ruler. Then there were the multitudes that came looking for Him because they wanted another free meal. In John 18, Judas and a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees came seeking Jesus to betray and arrest Him. Even after His death, people came to His tomb seeking Him but thinking He was dead. But very few of these people, with the exception of a few like Mary, who sat at His feet and the woman with the alabaster container of ointment, came looking for Jesus and searching for Him with all their heart. Huge numbers came to Him and were healed, delivered from demons, and privileged to see His miracles first hand but the Bible doesn’t tell us how many were actually seeking Him for who He is, the Eternal Everlasting Son of God. In fact, for a lot, when the Words of the Lord became too much for them, the Bible says, John 6:66, “From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him” and at the events leading to His crucifixion, Mark 14:50,” And they all forsook him, and fled”.
We might ask this question today: “Whom or what do you seek?”. The promise here in Jeremiah, that if we seek the Lord, we will find Him when we seek Him with all our hearts is not in the sense of salvation for we can argue that part of our destiny is really accomplished by the Lord seeking us by His Word and Spirit, drawing us to Himself. The truth of our depraved nature, evident in Adam and his sin that plunged us all into the pit of unbelief, is that we run away from the Lord and hide from His searching, seeking eyes. As to the extent of our free will in this rescue, that’s the subject of debates that have raged for centuries and have not been settled to this day but the important part of this matter is that the good Shephard always goes after the one that is lost and whether the sheep jumps into His arms or He reaches down and picks it up we’ll let the Calvinists and Armenians battle that one out. Personally, I’m just happy to be one of His. But some Christians seem to be content once they’ve come to faith and been assured of their salvation, to call on or seek the Lord when there’s a crisis or they’re in a church setting participating in reading worship words off the screen and listening to the minister talk about the things of God. Other than that, what they seek is the things of this life and those things occupy most of their life’s waking moments. Often, it’s either stuff they believe will propel them forward in their occupation or simply the things that bring them pleasure or immediate gratification. There is no real moment-by-moment conscious seeking of the Lord and the things of God going on and such a quest is not something they seem interested in. The sadness here is that the promise of Jeremiah 29:13 and for that matter as it is repeated in Luke 11:9-10, “And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened” is available to them but it will not be forced on them. All who will not follow through with developing the personal, intimate relationship with their Lord will live their lives seeking and searching through the junk of this world but will never be satisfied.
May 30, 2021
Micah 4:3, “and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore”
This Memorial Day weekend, we remember those who gave their lives in service to our country. There are never any words, ceremonies, or speeches that can express enough gratitude for our debt to the fallen soldiers and their families. The thought of their sacrifice makes us pause and consider the enormity of the thousands of years of near-perpetual war on the earth. In one sense, we could say that the human dilemma began with war because rebellion against the Lord started with Lucifer and a third of heaven’s angels revolting against the Almighty (Rev 12:4) and the final act of humans before eternity will be a revolt against the Lord Jesus and the saints at the close of the millennial reign. All human history between these two bookends is war after war with untold millions of people suffering, starving, and dying violent deaths due to the cruelty and hatred of people against people. In some minds, war is glorified and has been tied to such things as honor, pride, and courage. Generals have been exalted, revered, made into mythical heroes, and in some cultures and times, deified. But beneath all the splendor, display of weapons, and banners, lie the bloody, dead bodies of people including infants and children, all created in the image of God, and all perished because humans can’t get it right. Entire civilizations have trained their children to fight and die before they lost their baby teeth and their education of war and slaughter continued throughout their lives. Those whose life’s goal and ambition is the study and practice of war hold places of power and authority in the highest-ranking government offices of almost every nation and they are often the heads or presidents of their country. Nations are led and directed by men who are given to war. 620,000 men died in America’s civil war and worldwide, in WWII, 75 million people died with 40 million of them being civilians. Right now, while I type this, there are ten wars in the world with many other military actions and acts of terrorism in which people are still suffering, dying, and being displaced from their homes. Memorial Day is a time when it’s hard to rejoice in our freedoms because they came at such a horrible price.
The prophecy of Micah 4:3 is an echo of the one in Isaiah 2:4 promising the time will come when humans will lay down their weapons and convert instruments of war into tools of agrarian peace. God’s Word declares we will not learn (teach, instruct) the strategies and methods of war. These coincide with other verses that say Zechariah 8:5,” And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof” giving us the promise that we will see what has never been in this world before: people living safe, happy, and free. If that sounds like a utopian dream or a work of fiction, it’s because such things are too far-fetched for our minds, always accustomed to the violence and evil of the world around us, to imagine. Even our entertainment is fueled by productions of mayhem, revenge, murder, and the like. But there is coming a day when all the people of the world will enter into a millennium of peace under the King of Kings, The Lord of Lords Jesus Christ. Jeremiah 23:5-6, “Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS”. The peace of the Prince of Peace will be upon both people and animals as described in Isaiah 11:6-9 The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid (goat); and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp (cobra), and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ (snake) den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea”. What a day, glorious day that will be.
May 29, 2021
Psalms 137:4,” How shall we sing the LORD’s song in a strange land?”
This Psalm, usually referred to as “By the Rivers of Babylon”, is the lament of the Jews while they were in exile in Babylon, far away from their country, their beautiful temple, and the city of Jerusalem. They were in a strange country with strange customs, a strange language, strange gods, and strange food. The Babylonian people that had conquered them wanted them to sing their Jewish songs and show them how they celebrated but the Bible said Lamentations 5:14-15,” The elders have ceased from the gate, the young men from their musick. The joy of our heart is ceased; our dance is turned into mourning”. The scripture said in Psalms 137:2, they had hung their musical instruments, their harps, on the willow trees because they could not sing their songs of joy, victory, and thankfulness as captives in such a strange land. The Bible says they sat down by the rivers, perhaps the Tigris and Euphrates, remembered Zion, and wept. This is such a sorrowful passage and some have said the sound of the words in Hebrew carries immense sadness. The price they were paying for their sin was great because they had lost their homes, about everything they owned, so many of their loved ones had been killed, their beautiful temple had been destroyed, they had been humiliated when their great army couldn’t save them, and they looked back to remember how God had warned them for years this would be their plight if they refused to return to Him. Their captors, perhaps mocking them, had demanded to hear some of the famous Jewish songs that spoke of the wonderful blessings of God, of their triumphs over the Canaanites, their thankfulness and joy expressed in their ceremonial hymns and dances, and their brags about how they were God’s favorites above all the nations of the world. But as the old saying goes, it’s hard to really appreciate our blessings while we have them in hand because we are prone to take them for granted but when they are gone, then comes the sorrow.
In a similar way, this brings back to my mind a song we sang in church when I was a child called, “I Can’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore” and I believe among Christians, there is a longing for our eternal home as the world around us moves farther away from the truth. The only way we can sing the Lord’s song is by faith in the Son of God and only through His promises can we rejoice knowing the present is only temporary but what is coming is glorious. We watch the battle all around us for the hearts and souls of those we love and see the attacks against the very core of what our nation was founded and established to be and only by looking to God’s Word can we find any comfort for the present, any hope for the future, and any rescue for those already swallowed up by the darkness. How can we sing the Lord’s songs in this strange land? In Acts 16, Paul and Silas had been arrested, their clothes ripped off, they had been beaten with many stripes, and thrown in jail with their feet locked in chains. But at midnight they began to sing the Lord’s songs in a strange land. That was when God sent a mighty earthquake, miraculously removed their chains, and broke open the prison doors. We CAN sing the Lord’s songs and we SHOULD sing the Lord’s songs in this strange land because we are not singing about the glory of this world but of the glory of our God and what lies ahead for us. Far too many people have their hearts and minds filled with the music and foolish lyrics of this present Babylon but so little of the songs of the Lord and the songs of Babylon are not our anthems, not our testimonies, and not our victory chants but they belong to a world system about to be crushed as described in Revelation 18:1-2,” And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory. 2 And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen”. This is a strange land and getting stranger by the day but we are citizens of another land and we have a song to sing the angels can’t sing: Redeemed!
May 28, 2021
2Corinthians 5:10,” For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad”
The Bible does not say we will cast our crowns at the feet of Jesus. It does say that twenty-four elders, seated before God’s throne cast their crowns in Revelation 4:10-11, “The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created”. But as far as the doctrine that many of us have held dear that perhaps at the judgment seat of Christ, if any crowns are given, we will immediately cast them before the Lord, well, there’s no Biblical proof of it. It is a doctrine that has been inferred and woven into the fabric of our accepted dogma but not substantiated by the scripture. We don’t even know for sure who the twenty-four elders are and there have been many explanations such as twelve representatives of the tribes of Israel and the twelve apostles, and even though that might be a good guess, that’s all it is, a guess. Some of the guesses have been very elaborate and attempts made to build some sort of “proof” on an Old Testament account when David appointed twenty-four elders to represent the Levitical priesthood, but again, no matter how embellished the explanations may be, if the Bible doesn’t tell us, it’s our human conjecture and it is us, twisting the Word to fit our own interpretations. It very well may be that crown casting is the normal form of worship before the throne but the Bible doesn’t say believers, saved by the blood of Jesus will cast anything at His feet, although it is a beautiful thought. It is a bit unsettling to think that things we’ve assumed to be Biblical facts, that we’ve heard preached, sung about, testified about, and used in illustrations are really just Christian traditions.
The Bible does say we will appear before the judgment seat of Christ, here in 2 Corinthians 5:10 and in Romans 14:10, “But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ” and in this particular passage in Romans, it gives a picture of us bowing before our Lord in verse eleven, “For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God”. There is another place, Philippians 2:10-11,” That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” that shows a wider sense of all creation bowing and confessing before the Lord, but the verse here in Romans 14, indicates that we, Paul including himself, will bow before our Lord at the judgment seat of Christ and follows it with verse 12, “So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God”. The idea we’re going to waltz right into our heavenly mansion is again, not a Biblical thought. This devotion falls on the heels of a couple of previous ones which presented the truth that it is not only important to do what is right in every area of our Christian life, but it’s imperative because we are going to face the record of the things we’ve done, good or bad. Some have exploited the doctrine of grace to say it doesn’t matter what we do, we are saved regardless so don’t be concerned about anything. But what they’ve miserably failed to warn people about, is that while it’s true we are eternally saved, we will still appear before the Lord to give an account of our stewardship. Some have talked about the judgment seat of Christ for believers and the white throne judgment as a long, one-by-one judging process perhaps taking millions of earth-type years as people stood in line single file waiting to be judged before all humanity. Yet when Jesus was tempted by the enemy, the Bible says in Luke 4:5,” And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time” the word moment here in the Greek means “instantly”. Some of the near-death testimonies I’ve read tells of people who left their body and many had the same experience that every detail of their life came before them in an instant and they could comprehend it all at once. So again, this drawn-out process of judgment is just our human conjecture but what’s Biblically true, is that we will appear before the Lord and we will give an account to Him. May we live each day with a Godly purpose to do what is right as the scripture says, Colossians 1:10,” That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God”.
May 27, 2021
Galatians 6:9,” And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not”
This verse reminds us of the farming metaphor the Lord gave about putting our hands on the plow and not looking back. We are a couple of generations removed from times when people actually understood this example from personal experience because they used a mule or a horse to ready the soil for spring planting but the meaning for us remains the same. There is work to be done and we are called to complete it by looking forward, keeping the plow going, and refusing to give up and in the case of Galatians 6:9, the work is the doing of what is right in the eyes of God. The enemy attacks every believer at times wanting to wear us down, discourage us, and get us to throw up our hands in defeat. He points out people who never do what’s right and whispers that they are doing better than we are and tries to convince us the Christian life is hard, that God expects too much, that others have it better than us, and no one really cares or appreciates that we are doing God’s will. And often it seems he is telling the truth because doing what is right doesn’t usually come with immediate rewards and personal gratification whereas sin brings almost instant pleasure to the flesh. In fact, doing what is right sometimes, in the short term, results in persecution, self-sacrifice, and disappointments like Joseph who landed unfairly in a nasty Egyptian Prison suffering in chains because he simply did what was right. This target verse is part of the teaching about sowing and reaping and returning to the farming example, the farmer prepares the field, sows the seed, and waits for the germination because down the road, there is an expectation of harvest. The farmer doesn’t dig up the seed every day to see if it’s actually doing its stuff because he has confidence in the seed that it is good seed and once it’s planted, it will produce. What he does is the same thing this verse is teaching us, he does what is right then waits for the harvest.
Several things are in the mix when we do what is right and the main one is that the Lord knows what we do and He doesn’t forget that we have chosen to do His will. Hebrews 6:10, “For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name”, is a verse we can stand on every time we do what’s right and it doesn’t matter how insignificant our deeds may be, the Bible has already covered that in 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”. Also, when we do what is right, we live with a clear conscience and that is a key part of the working of our faith. Having a clear conscience keeps our heart from condemning us and strengthens our faith, 1 John 3:20-22,” For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight”. This matter of well-doing keeps us completely in the clear and should be our aim as is was for Paul in Acts 24:16,” And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and toward men”. We sow to the Spirit and continue to follow this pattern day after day, situation after situation knowing that our faithful Lord will bring our planting to fruition as He has promised but it will be in its season, Psalm 1:3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season”. People can’t always see your integrity because you do what’s right even when people aren’t watching but the Lord sees and also knows the intention of your heart. When you have purposed that, for the glory of God, you will do what’s right in the eyes of God, all you need then is just patience until your harvest comes in. Heb 10:35-36, “Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise”. Maybe right now you feel stuck and even though you know you’ve been doing the right things, staying faithful, looking to the Lord, and yet you can’t see any sign of a harvest. God cannot lie and He has given you His promise you will reap and not only that, the seed you’ve been planting is good seed and the harvest will be one of victory. Trust that even though you can’t see it working, the seed has been sprouting, taking root, and it’s on its way up through the obscuring soil to where you will be able to see evidence that the Lord has not forgotten about you. The harvest will come in due season.
May 26, 2021
Hebrews 11:6,” But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him”
As to whether people in our generation believe God exists, surveys are all over the radar with some saying about 4 percent of Americans say they are atheist and others show as high as 30 percent but no matter what the percent calculate, all surveys show the number is rapidly increasing. Scientific American reported three years ago, that 55.8 million Americans say they have now abandoned religion altogether and some studies they’ve published show more than 64 million Americans are atheists. None of the surveys I read calculate what we call the “practicing atheists”, these are people who say they believe in God but they live their lives as if there isn’t one, they do not hold the Almighty Sovereign Lord in awe and reverence in their hearts, and they are charter members of the “religious but lost” lodges. Our plight can be read in Lamentations 5:16, “The crown is fallen from our head: woe unto us, that we have sinned!”. The first step in the promise of Hebrews 11:6, is you must believe there is a God and not just some random god or god idea pulled from a known religion or one attached to the idea that prompts many Americans now to call themselves, “spiritual”, but it must be the God who has revealed Himself in the Bible and can be acknowledged by His Son, Jesus Christ. It’s tempting to blame religion for the departure from the faith, saying that people have been hurt, disillusioned, deceived, and disrespected by organized religion and it is true that that is part of the problem. But remember that since the church began on the Day of Pentecost there have been cycles of heaven-sent revivals followed by periods of falling away and concerning our present age, it’s possible we have seen the last outpouring of revival or age of enlightenment and stand on the threshold of the appearing of our Lord.
But for those who believe there is one God and He is revealed in His Son, Jesus, this verse in Hebrews holds a wonderful promise for us because it says He is our rewarder when we diligently seek Him. Some have presented the Lord as a helper, sort of in line with the old but untrue saying, “God helps those who help themselves” and it is untrue for God helps us because we can’t help ourselves. But God is much more than a helper, He is a rewarder and He wants His people to see Him in that light because it is His good pleasure to bless us above and beyond what we are able to think or ask (Eph 3:20). Consider this one thought, that everything for our good has been provided in the substitutional atonement of Jesus Christ. Salvation through His blood, healing in His stripes, with righteousness, holiness, peace, eternal life, favor with God, wisdom, power, protection, and deliverance imputed to us by Him. Even all our needs are met, God supplying them through Christ Jesus. When we see that He is a rewarder, it points us back to the promise made to Abraham in Genesis 15:1, “After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward” and when we approach the Lord in our diligent prayers, we approach on the faith ground of the promise made to Abraham because we are blessed in faithful Abraham and on the ground of the atonement of Jesus Christ who has reconciled us to God by His blood. Through Jesus, we have access to the throne of grace and in His blessed name, we have an open door to the heart of the Father who has promised He is our rewarder and we know all the above is true because God has proclaimed it in His Word. We are saved by taking God at His word when He said “whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved” and when we believed him, with or without tears and emotions, we were saved because God said it, we believed it and confessed it is so. Everything we need, every solution to every problem, every answer to every question, every blessing available, every good and perfect gift, every rescue from every trouble, and so on, comes to us as rewards because somewhere in the Word of God we have His promise to us concerning our request. When Elijah, a man just like we are, prayed to stop the rain, he had God’s Word on it in Deuteronomy 11:16-17,” Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; And then the LORD’s wrath be kindled against you, and he shut up the heaven, that there be no rain”. In Elijah’s day, Israel had turned away from God and was worshiping Baal so when Elijah prayed for the rain to cease, he obviously knew what the Lord had said and he was praying exactly in the Word and will of God. When we know the Word of God and what it says about a particular thing, and we pray His Word back to Him, diligently, He rewards us not because of our goodness but because His Word has already established His promise to us and it all comes through the Name that is above every Name JESUS!!!
May 25, 2021
Matthew 24:12, “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold”
This chapter records the Lord’s answer to the disciples’ question as to when the temple will be destroyed, what is the sign of His coming, and the end of the world. The answer covers a lot of time and territory and our daily devotion will only look at one prophecy, the increase of lawlessness, and the disappearance of love. Note that the word here for “love” is “agape”, the highest form of love we call the unconditional kind, and is a pure, purposeful, self-sacrificing love that concentrates on another’s highest good. While this prophecy is not giving this degradation of love and the accompanying spread of evil as a specific sign of the end times, it is painting a picture of the downward spiral of society that began after Jesus’ departure and is plainly reaching a peak in our present world. The book of 1 John is full of verses relating to love and how it bears witness to the Lord’s purpose for believers to be filled with the love of God because, it states, 1John 4:8,” He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love”. Lest we be carried away and think this is all God is, let’s balance it out a bit with Hebrews 12:29, “For our God is a consuming fire” and 1John 1:5,” This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all”. But the Bible distinctly gives us the summation of what the Lord wants for His created people on this planet, and that is 1John 3:11 “For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another”. Even when Jesus was distilling the ten commandments down to their essence, the Bible says in Matthew 22:37-39,” Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets”. To love God and love each other is the truth of God’s will and plan for us all and there’s no doubt in my mind that when we enter eternity the force that we encounter will be the light of God’s indescribable love.
But the scripture pairs the vanishing of agape love with the rise and spread of sin and it’s plain it coincides with the prophecy of 2Timothy 3:2 “For men shall be lovers of their own selves” describing this selfish, arrogant, proud, blasphemous, and cruel generation inhabiting God’s planet. Look at the rising evil of the exploitation of children, the increase in human trafficking, the explosion of pornography, the epidemic of drug use, the commonality of drunkenness, the acceptance of the legal murder of the unborn, the filth calling itself entertainment, the levels of immorality in every aspect of this culture, and the despising of those that are good and decide for yourself if iniquity is abounding. And much of the above is legal and protected by our laws and even the things that are not legal, are barely punished and becoming more commonplace daily. And while we practice these sins openly and brazenly, unashamed of the licentiousness before each other and God, we mourn and medicate ourselves because of our loneliness and misery. We equate anything and everything with love but we do not know what love is for we have abandoned the One that is love and who demonstrates love through His Son Jesus. The pain of a love-less culture expresses itself with our children cutting and wounding themselves to feel pain for they say when they feel pain at least they feel something. Our unloving culture is seeing another epidemic that doesn’t always make the headlines but is reported by the National Coalition of STD Directors in quotes like this: “The United States is in the midst of a major sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) epidemic. Without question, the current rates of STDs are startling. Recorded rates are at an all-time high and are a troubling continuation of a trend that started five years ago and has persisted since then, with new records set each year”. This is what happens when a world spits on the truth of God’s Word and imitates its entertainers, musicians, cultural heroes, and publicly accepted trends. Covid and political sensationalism steal the headlines from the truth of what’s really destroying the fabric of our culture and it is sin, followed by the disappearance of agape love. Where is it all leaving us? Scrambling to find a substitute for real love on our ridiculous social media platforms while we slosh deeper and deeper in the lies of the enemy who has never abandoned his purpose to kill, steal and destroy.
May 24, 2021
Proverbs 4:23, “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life”
This verse is often discussed at youth meetings as an encouragement discussion starter about growing up and the landmines the enemy lays for young people but its truth extends to us all because whatever goes on inside us is often a big mess and only with God’s grace and guidance can we get it right and even then, it’s still sometimes a jumbled-up work in progress. The Lord declared in Mark 7:21-23 “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man”. And how about that terrifying verse Jeremiah 17:9, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”. That flies in the face of the world’s theory of what is inside us which I saw only a couple of days ago on a bumper sticker on a man’s car, “Don’t be mistaken: There’s good in everyone” and we can see why this seems to be true because most people do not behave wickedly all of the time yet God knows who we are inside and out. The Scripture says John 2:24-25,” But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men, And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man. This is exactly why the Lord tells us to “Keep, (guard, maintain, protect) our heart with all diligence (like a man posted to watch prisoners) because our heart is the source of our life. The proof that it is difficult to control the nature of the heart is in societies need for all the laws, rules, law enforcement personnel, court systems, jails, prisons, and other forms of punishment. And it’s not just certain strata of society but the evidence of our depraved hearts is revealed from the most educated and highest political levels to the very lowest rungs of the ladder.
Thank the Lord for the work of the Holy Spirit because He is the one that searches our hearts and reveals what’s there in response to the Word of God. Jesus, referring to the Holy Spirit, said, John 16:8,” And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment” and the Scripture says of the Word of God in Hebrews 4:12-13,” For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart”. When we hear God’s Word it brings light, Psalms 119:130 “The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple” and the Holy Spirit in agreement with the Word works to turn our hearts towards the truth. This life under grace is different from life under the law because, with the Spirit of the Lord within us, we have light not only to see what’s in our hearts but the power to triumph over its intentions. The life under the law can be seen in the Old Testament prayer in Psalms 51:10-11,” Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me”. The cry of those under the law pleading with the Lord not to forsake them or take away the Holy Spirit reveals how blessed we are under the promise of grace where our Lord says He will never leave us or forsake us and His Holy Spirit has sealed us unto the day of redemption (Ephesians 4:30). In fact, the reason God gave the law was to control the behavior until the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirt came to live within the believer: Galatians 3:19,” Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made”. But now that we are under the New Covenant of Christ, the scripture says, “Hebrews 10:16,” This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them”. Our hearts are filled with God’s love, Romans 5:5, “because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us”. Our faith is anchored in our heart, Romans 10:8-10, “But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness”. The glory of the Lord is revealed to us in our hearts, 2Corinthians 4:6,” For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ”. Then there’s the filling of the Holy Spirit that is expressed in the heart, Ephesians 5:18-19,” And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord”. Guarding the heart under the law and obtaining victory, a difficult task because of the weakness of our flesh, has been made possible through the work and power of the Holy Spirit. And finally, our hearts that were called desperately wicked, the scripture says, Philippians 4:7,” And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” the word “Keep” means “to guard, protect”. Praise the Lord for His amazing grace!
May 23, 2021
Ecclesiastes 5:18-19,” Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion. Every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour; this is the gift of God”
The book of Ecclesiastes is somewhat dark and brooding because it chronicles the view of natural man from birth to death and declares we’re born, work every day, face a lot of bad stuff, pile up some possessions or money, and then one day we die and someone else ends up with everything we’ve accumulated. If we don’t recognize the balance in the book, it’s a pessimistic view of our days on earth that some have summarized as “life’s hard then you die”. And the reality is, that apart from the hope that the Lord gives us of His blessings and mercy every day, His providence in every circumstance, His unfailing, unconditional love, and the great joy and hope of eternal life that lies ahead of us, this is the substance of natural life apart from the goodness of God. When we’ve been saved and following the Lord for a while, it’s easy to forget that people around us live their lives in such a world where there is no promise for tomorrow, no hope for eternity, and no peace within. It’s no wonder they turn to alcohol, drugs, and whatever else they can use to numb themselves within against the pain of being separated from their Creator, no well of pure water within, no comfort of the Holy Spirit, and no assurance of eternal life. And when believers turn away from the things of God and end up following the ways of the world, they lose sight of the truth of their existence on this earth and the value of their eternal home. The only resulting destinations on this earth for prodigals that walk away from their Father’s provisions, are the hog pens, slop buckets, and days spent in obscurity and uncertainty, addressed in Ecclesiastes 2:22-23 For what hath man of all his labour, and of the vexation of his heart, wherein he hath laboured under the sun? For all his days are sorrows, and his travail grief; yea, his heart taketh not rest in the night. This is also vanity.
But several times in the course of Solomon describing the vanity, the word meaning “emptiness” of this life, the Word encourages us to look at what we have, the blessings we hold in our hands, and enjoy every moment and every aspect of it because that is God’s will for us. In His infinite wisdom, the Lord has provided a way for us to find meaning and purpose in living and much of it has to do with us simply enjoying what we have. The enemy knows this and he has set many lies and patterns of thought to discourage and confuse people until they feel the emptiness of this life and are overwhelmed by the trap. The Lord, who supplies all our needs (Phil 4:19) and loads us daily with benefits (Ps 68:19), tells us to look at what we’ve been provided and enjoy it because it has been provided for our good. Most of us have cabinets full of food, closets full of clothes, equipment for various hobbies, gas to take a weekend drive, and the enemy would like for us to get to a place where we don’t enjoy what we have. How long has it been since you stopped for several hours, set on your porch, put away the cell phone for a while, and sipped a big cup of coffee while talking with someone you love? As New Testament believers we are not under the law of keeping the Sabbath, but it would be a wonderful thing if families made a habit of taking a day and actually enjoying themselves and the things they have. My dad was a great man, loved the Lord and our family never had lack but I don’t know if he really knew how to have a good time. When I was growing up, I used to beg him to take me fishing, and finally one time he did. He drove me to the lake and sat in the car while I fished and I never asked him again. God wants us to enjoy ourselves and has provided all the means for us find contentment and happiness without feeling guilty about it. Eccl 3:13,” And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labour, it is the gift of God”.
May 22, 2021
Matthew 5:7,” Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy”
The Lord didn’t give the beatitudes as a New Testament set of commandments to replace the law and He certainly didn’t give them for us to obey as stepping stones to righteousness. They were given to the Jewish people as a foundation message for the kingdom God was offering to His people and any attempt to substitute these teachings of Jesus as another moral code is an offense against the cross of Christ and the completed work He accomplished there. Before anyone gets ready to stone me, we should use all the words of Jesus along with the entire Bible to expound the teaching of God’s grace but we stand or fall not by the sermon on the mount, gleanings from parables, or any other so-called plan of salvation other than the preaching of the cross with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. So then, obeying the precepts of the beatitudes will not save us but they do reveal the characteristics God desires for people and one of these is that we are people of mercy. Not just believers who have obtained mercy from the Lord, but those that, led by the Holy Spirit, become practicing examples of mercy every day of their lives. Matthew 5:7 shouldn’t take us by surprise because it’s just an extension of the Lord’s Word of sowing and reaping, that whatever we sow, we will reap and, in this case, we sow mercy we reap mercy. If this sounds easy, maybe you haven’t been put into a situation severe enough to arouse all the natural desires for revenge, retribution, mayhem, and murder. Years ago, as a young preacher, I met a pastor that left such an impact on me I’ve meditated often on his story. He pastored a country church not too far from my hometown and he had a young son that was playing in a big field behind their country house. Two hunters on a nearby property saw the top of the little boy’s head, mistook him for a groundhog, and shot and killed the pastor’s little boy. One of his neighbors told me that somehow, and I know it was only by God’s amazing grace, the pastor witnessed to the two men that had just shot his little boy and told them about God’s love. This very heartbreaking true story introduced me to a level of mercy early in my ministry that I will never forget. The opportunities to show mercy usually doesn’t come our way under such circumstances, thank the Lord, but they do come and by the power of the Holy Spirit, we can reveal the heart of God to others by withholding our judgment with its demands for reparation, and give mercy instead.
The Lord alone is the righteous Judge and he is perfectly just, something that is impossible for humans like me. It’s impossible to know all the details of any situation: to know the motives of people’s hearts, their history of events that led up to their actions, their frame of mind, their reasons for impulse decisions, their backgrounds, their actual intentions, and so on. That’s not to say people should be excused for the evil they do to each other, just that the call for mercy is one that is inseparable from the call of Ephesians 4:31,” 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 anger and pain that rises up when people do us wrong, take advantage of us, speak evil of us, work deception behind our back to harm us, take what is rightfully ours, and such, demand that we get even, pay them back, make them hurt, and hold a grudge. But the Lord’s way is to cast all our cares on Him and stand with Rom 12:19-21,” Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath (leave the wrath to the Lord): for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore, if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good”. This goes fully against the nature of our flesh and only by the Lord’s grace, power of the Holy Spirit, faith in God and His Word, and sometimes the help of a brother or sister who is strong in the faith, can we learn step by step to be vessels of mercy.
May 21, 2021
2 Chronicles 29:5-6.” And (Hezekiah) said unto them, Hear me, ye Levites, sanctify now yourselves, and sanctify the house of the LORD God of your fathers, and carry forth the filthiness out of the holy place. For our fathers have trespassed, and done that which was evil in the eyes of the LORD our God, and have forsaken him, and have turned away their faces from the habitation of the LORD, and turned their backs”
When King Hezekiah came to the throne, the temple of God had been abandoned for several years and was being used as a trash dump. Not only that, the altar had been removed and replaced with an altar facing east, like the pagans oriented their altars, instead of the west as the Lord had commanded for His. This meant when sacrifices were made, the priests literally turned their back to the temple, the Holy Place, and the ark of the covenant where the presence of the Lord dwelt. Hezekiah’s father, King Ahaz, had led Judah straight into idolatry and himself had sacrificed his infant children to the demon god Molech resulting in this statement in 2 Chronicles 28:19,” For the LORD brought Judah low because of Ahaz king of Israel; for he made Judah naked, and transgressed sore against the LORD”. But when his son Hezekiah took the throne in his father’s stead, he had the heart to follow the Lord and began by cleaning out the temple and restoring the worship of the only true and living God. He had the temple doors repaired and commissioned the Levites to cleanse the temple and it took them sixteen days just to haul the trash out of God’s house. It’s hard to grasp the depth of human depravity that would desecrate the temple Solomon had built which was one of the wonders of the ancient world and where, on its day of dedication to the Lord, the power of God was so great the priests were unable to minister because of the glory of God. But people did exactly what their sinful nature led them to do and by the time their rebellion against their God was complete, even their priests and temple caretakers, the Levites, had turned away from the Lord. Note that they had not turned away from religion because they were more fervent than ever in their religious ways but it was not the worship of Jehovah but the evil worship of false gods.
The revival under Hezekiah changed the direction of Judah from following Idolatry back to Jehovah and Hezekiah destroyed the images and altars to false gods and restored the temple worship but none of it could have happened had he not cleansed and restored the things of the Lord. Just as the Lord’s house in that time had become trashed and contaminated, it looked forward to Jesus’ time when He went into the temple and found it polluted by the merchandising. Matthew 21:12-13,” And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves”. When we then look at the mess we’ve seen in the church world in our own time, it seems history has repeated itself and there needs to be an awakening and cleansing of all things that are to be set apart here for the glory of God. We know the true church is the body of believers united by salvation through Jesus but that is not an excuse for the desecration and dishonor of the things that are used in the service and worship of our Lord. The Bible says in 1Timothy 3:15,” that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth”. The Lord does not think disrespect for the things of God, including the house of God and His Word is us being “cool” but He holds us responsible to honor the things of the Lord that they may be a witness for Him and an opportunity for us to have things in our lives, tangible things, that have Godly meaning. When I pick up my Bible, there is a reverence and awe for it even though I have held one in my hands for many years because I know it is the Word of God. The one I have on my phone just isn’t the same for me because when I turn the pages and see the stains from tears I’ve cried while kneeling over my Bible and calling out to God, claiming His promises, or see verses I’ve underlined and annotated in the margin because the Holy Spirit was speaking to my heart while I was reading, there’s a special connection that’s set apart between me and something that God gave me. It’s sort of like wearing a locket or having a token that was given to you by someone you love that when you hold it, it always reminds you of that special relationship. In a similar manner, when God’s people assemble to worship, all that pertains to the world should be shut out and for that brief time, the experience should be significant and set apart from everything else except what belongs to God and that He is sharing with us. We’ve tried to make the things of God look and feel like the things of the world, but why? Is it because we want the sensual instead of the reverence and depth of appreciation, we could have by knowing that the precious time we have assembled together with other saints is a refuge from the bombardment of the world’s ways? Not man-centered, not super-star personage-centered, not self-centered, not money and resource-centered, but God-centered, God communicated, God honored, God worshiped, God praised, God thanked, and God communing with His people. Maybe before we rebuild, remodel, reimage, and reinvent in our spiritual undertakings, we should just repair and clean up what we have.
May 20, 2021
Romans 5:9,” Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him”
Here’s a verse not often quoted, perhaps because it mentions something our current theology doesn’t care to address: the wrath of God. Some people in church history, taught people were going to get better and better and Christianity would grow in every nation until finally the whole world would be saved, Jesus would descend, and heaven would begin. Others simply ignore the coming wrath of God and focus on half of the truth, the blessings and goodness of the Lord leaving people in the dark about what’s going to happen to a world that rejects Jesus Christ. But regardless of what banner people are marching under and what theme they use to persuade people, the final church age is winding down and wrath lies ahead. If you believe this, isn’t it puzzling that people are awash in anxiety over whether or not to get vaccinated, angry about the state of the government, perplexed about how we’re going to solve our multi-trillion dollar indebtedness, scrambling to know how we can fix our broken inner selves, and a million other things but no one, not even religious leaders are thinking about what really lies ahead, very possibly much closer than we dare to think, the tribulation, the antichrist and the wrath of God? Following the departure of the church, there will be great wars and widespread destruction giving way to the rise of the antichrist. Then the Bible says, “Rev 6:14-17,” And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?”. To me, this makes the stuff we’re all bent out of shape over right now look like foolish tripe.
But Romans 5:9 tells us the blood of Jesus Christ has not only saved us right now, but it will also save us from the wrath of God. The Lord gives us the promise in 1Thessalonians 1:7-10,” how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God; And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come” and repeated it in 1Thessalonians 5:9,” For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ”. The scripture has provided us with examples in types of God’s plan to save us from His wrath. Before the floodwaters fell in the Old Testament, the Bible says in Hebrews 11:5,” By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God”. Enoch, raptured out before the flood began, is a type of the protected church, and Noah and his family in the ark are a type of the Jews who will pass through the wrath and emerge on the other side to a new beginning. If we look at Luke 17:28-30,” Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed” we see that before the wrath of God fell on Sodom, angels delivered Lot and declares it is an example of the day of Christ. But the example of the power of the blood to protect us from God’s wrath is seen in Exodus 12:13,” And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt”. The blood on the doorposts and lintels of the Hebrews homes shielded them when the Lord brought death to the Egyptians and He will protect us from the wrath to come. Our promise is found in the words to the church of Philadelphia in Rev 3:10,” Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.”. If we believe God’s Word that the blood of Jesus saves us eternally surely we can believe it also protects us from the wrath to come.
May 19, 2021
1Timothy 6:7,” For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out”
This week marks one year since my mom passed and this morning my wife and I went through the last load of things she left behind. If you’ve ever had the job of going through a deceased family member’s left behind stuff, you understand the process and how finally, after you’ve given family members what they wanted, hauled off all the junk that has no value and no one wants, and given away to second-hand stores all the clothing, bedding and so on, then you’re left with the remaining things you don’t exactly know what to do with. When we took the last truckload to the Haven of Mercy Thrift Store, we looked at each other and decided we’re not going to put our children through the misery and hard work of cleaning out our abandoned life’s mess: we’re starting to simplify the situation by getting rid of everything we don’t need. That’s when 1 Timothy 6:7 started bearing on my mind and although it’s a well-known verse and most people jokingly summarize it from time to time as “you can’t take it with you”, in this age of excess everything, it’s worth a careful re-look. Homes and storage spaces have gotten larger and there are the rental storage units everywhere which means most people are going to leave someone with the formidable task of cleaning up a huge mess after them. What’s crazy is, the junk we accumulate, even if our kids were able to sell it in a yard sale, wouldn’t bring enough to pay our funeral expenses because it isn’t treasure or even heirlooms we’re piling up, it’s just semi-worthless possessions. The Bible says in Mark 8:36,” For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”, but it’s not the whole world we’re gaining, it’s just garages and basements full of Chinese-made rubbish.
When I look for a spiritual thought in this, I think of 2Timothy 2:20-21,” But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour. If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work”. This reminds us we are all capable of becoming so piled up with the world’s carnal trash that we live junked-up lives. If you’ve ever watched an episode of a hoarder’s show and see the messes people can get themselves into with piles of stuff all over their house with only a tight path between their bed, bath, and kitchen, it’s hard to imagine living life in a self-made prison like that. But in a similar way, Christians can become so restricted by the worthless, poisonous, trash they pile in their lives that they lose their freedom, joy, peace, and victory. May the Holy Spirit teach us to inventory and catalog everything in every room of our being and determine if it is gold and silver or wood and dirt because everything fits one of these categories. Like the hoarders, we hold on to things that are not only valueless but they take up space that should be reserved for things of importance. Believers fill their lives, minds, and time with what the Bible refers to as weights and sins but fail to follow God’s will as the Scripture says in Job 15:16,” How much more abominable and filthy is man, which drinketh iniquity like water?”. The will of God for us is to purge ourselves of the things that are not the ways of God and the word “purge” here means to cleanse and trim back from superfluous or dispensable growth, down to the essential. If I never trimmed back the hedge in front of the house, after a season of growth we would be unable to see out the windows and soon the beautiful sunlight would be blocked and the house rooms would be in darkness. If I never hauled out the garbage, soon the house would reek of the spoil and our very living areas would become prime for infestations of bugs and rodents. No, my wife and I like living in a clean, organized house and we work to keep it that way by waging war on dirt and dust and using soap and cleaners to sanitize and freshen our home. Likewise, may we all follow the directions of our teacher, the Holy Spirit, and purge our lives until we are vessels of honor to our Lord as the scripture says, “sanctified, and meet (ready, useful) for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work “. Get rid of the trash: Jesus suffered and died so we can live free, clean, pure, and holy. Get out the soap and water of God’s Word: there’s no reason to be stained by the flesh when we have power to live in victory. Stop hoarding up things like revenge, jealousy, greed, ingratitude, anger, grudges, and the proud look. In the natural, we came in with nothing and we’re leaving the same way but in the spiritual, we have the opportunity to live in such a way that not only can we live with love, joy and peace in the presence of the Lord here but by living for the glory of God we are storing up eternal treasure in heaven. So, from that view, we CAN take it with us.
May 18, 2021
2Peter 1:12,” Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth”
When the Lord called Moses to present himself to the Jews as their leader, Moses said, “what is your name so I can tell them who sent me?” and the Lord answered in Exodus 3:14,” And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you”. Declaring His name as the one who has never lived in the past and will not live in the future because He transcends time and space, is beyond our understanding in our finite, time-driven state of mind and brings to mind Isaiah 57:15,” For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity”. Likewise, when Jesus said in John 8:58,” Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am”, revealing His identity as the Holy Eternal God, it made the Jews so angry they attempted to stone Him. But it is for our peace of mind that we see God as always present tense and fully able to meet our hope as declared in Psalms 46:1-2,” God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea”. Because He eternally exists apart from time and space, which are His creations, even if the earth is removed or the mountains disappear into the sea, He remains unaffected by His creation and our faith in Him is not misplaced. By His Word He has secured us with Himself eternally and when our faith is such that we see ourselves, heirs of the I AM, joint-heirs with the one who declared he is I AM while He was among us in earthly fashion, we can change our view as described in 2Corinthians 4:18,” While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal”.
2 Peter 1:12, speaks of being established in the present truth, that is, right here, right now and one of the roots of the Greek word for “present”, is “Eimi” which means “I AM” and Strongs points out “this is the comparable Greek form of God’s Hebrew name, YAHWEH”. We should be in awe of the I AM who not only created the temporal but even when He gave us the inspired Word of God, He embedded His name in a verse that talks about being established in the present truth. Truth is eternal because God is truth, declared by Jesus in John 14:6,” Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me”: present truth, the I AM. This present truth is eternally alive and it changes us when we receive it. And while it’s good to be versed in many subject areas, it’s not the past of church history, the ever-changing dogmas of man, or the guesses and suppositions we make about the future that establishes us, it is the power of the eternal, ever alive and present truth, of its own accord, that enters us supernaturally and by the work of God’s grace, transforms us. We are warned in 1Timothy 4:1-2,” Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy” and the result is the deception described in Romans 16:18,” For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple”. Jesus declared in St John 18:37, “To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice” and it was the power of the truth that penetrated our hearts when we heard the gospel and we were drawn to the cross of Jesus. No wonder the enemy has always been bent on perverting, obscuring, diluting, and changing the truth into a lie because the truth sets us free. The truth establishes us in the present tense where the I AM eternally exists and as for those who oppose the truth? 2Corinthians 13:8,” For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth”.
May 17, 2021
Romans 11:22,” Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise, thou also shalt be cut off”
When we Gentiles speak of the goodness of God, we speak from a position of grace where we stand in a place that wasn’t ours at all but we attained it because God purposed it. This is the scope of Romans 11 and it’s answering the opening question in verse one, “Hath God cast away His people” because it sure looks like He has considering their history since 70 A.D. when Jerusalem was destroyed and the temple crushed. They were scattered over the face of the earth and endured such persecution and suffering it’s unimaginable including the German holocaust. This is what verse 22 is referring to when it speaks of the “severity” of God, the word meaning “harshness, unpleasantness, strictness in judgment, discipline, or government”. Notice the Word of God says to look at the goodness AND severity of God and this was written to Gentiles to remind us that we are where we are at the expense of the Jews in their unbelief. It should cause us to stop and consider just how blessed we are when we talk or sing of the goodness of God because it is something so valuable, so precious, and so undeserved it’s a horrible sin against the goodness itself and the Almighty God who allowed us to be a part of it, to consider ourselves entitled, worthy, or just plain likable and loveable. The severity, the harshness, unpleasantness of God fell on His own people and cut them off the root of their father Abraham plunging them into centuries of misery and we were grafted into their place by an act of God’s goodness. Do you not hear the foolish pattering of the Laodicean church as it flaunts itself in the goodness of God, talking about its prosperity, its abundance, and its prospects for even more as if God owes it all to them? Can’t people read and believe the warning “otherwise, thou also shalt be cut off”? It’s because we have been brainwashed by the false teaching that there is no such thing as the severity of God and ignored the startling fact that the same God who blessed Abraham and his descendants also cut them off from their source of blessings almost 2000 years ago. The Bible says we might have the arrogant view that the Jews were cut off just so we might receive the goodness of God but let’s allow the scripture to answer that in Romans 11:19-21,” Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off, that I might be graffed in. Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear: For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee”.
These are foundational truths for our reverence of the Lord, “Be not highminded, but fear”. We love Him because He first loved us but we also know where and how we stand. Not precariously as born-again believers, because the Lord who saved us will never let us fall but as far as the age and culture is concerned this whole outpouring of grace and goodness we’ve seen fall on us for generations now is a result of God’s mystery of the church, nothing more nothing less. The day the Lord sent Peter to Cornelius’ house to open the door of grace to Gentiles and then called Saul of Tarsus to be the Apostle Paul to the Gentiles, the goodness of God was declared towards us. Our standing prior to God extending His goodness to us, is described in Ephesians 2:12,” That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world”. Did you get that part, “having no hope, and without God in the world”? The reverence we have for this God of heaven and earth, comes from knowing not only didn’t we merit or deserve what we’ve been given, but we received it because of the unbelief of the people for which it was promised and we know we are rapidly approaching the time when this same God has declared His conclusion of this final church age with the words in Revelation 3:15-16,” I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth”.
May 16, 2021
Zechariah 13:6 And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.
This is one of the many verses of scripture where various commentators and translators have destroyed the meaning in their explanations and interpretations. What’s strange or perhaps even diabolical is that although the subject of this section of scripture is clearly declared in verse one, “In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness”, those who reject 13:6 as a prophecy of the remanent, ignore the subject, its conclusion in verse 9, and blindly fall into the same ditch of Calvin and Clarke, perverting one of the most beautiful passages in the Bible about the restoration of Israel. Thank God for the Holy Spirit and men like H.A. Ironside that show this verse for what it means and connected it to Zechariah 12:9-10,”’ And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn”. The stunning splendor of the events of these prophesies can hardly be imagined because they are so steeped in God’s plan, purpose, grace, and love and so foreign to human thought and reason. When we meditate on their certainty and meaning and see Jesus descend as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, coming between Israel and the antichrist and his coalition of world armies, it gives us confident hope that the future is resting securely in the hands of Almighty God. This will usher in the one-thousand-year reign, something that at present is sneered at and mocked as “imaginative” by the world and their religious cronies, the leaders of the Laodicean apostates.
In closing this devotion, let me give you the following words by H.A. Ironside on this subject:” As the power of the truth is brought home to the remnant, it will lead them to judge all iniquity and to put away all uncleanness. Idolatry will become as an evil dream when it is past, and deceivers of all kinds will “pass out of the land” As all prophecy will have come to its glorious fulfillment, the office of the prophet shall cease. Any essaying that role will be judged even by his own parents. But One there is in contrast to the false prophets in every way, even the One for whom they shall mourn when they are brought to see how they have sinned against Him. “He shall say, I am no prophet, I am a husbandman; for man acquired Me as a servant from My youth.” Some have followed the rabbis in applying these words, and those following, to the deceivers; but it seems far clearer, and more in keeping with the context, to apply them to the Lord Jesus Christ. He was acquired as a servant from His youth, and, like the devoted slaves of Exod. 21, for love of His own He would not go out free. To Him the wondering remnant cry, “What are these wounds in Thy hands?” He replies, “Those with which I was wounded in the house of My friends.” What grace, that He should so speak of Judah, who knew Him not when He came among them in lowliness.
But He could never have been wounded by them, had it not been according to the purpose of God that He should be made a sin-offering. So at once we read, “Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, and against the Man that is My Fellow, saith Jehovah: smite the Shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn My hand upon the little ones”. Clearly, the smitten Shepherd here is the wounded One of the preceding verses. There, it was man’s treatment of Him that was emphasized. Here, it is the solemn fact that God’s judgment fell upon Him when, for our sins, He was smitten on the cross. There, as the Good Shepherd, He gave His life for the sheep, and endured divine wrath, that all who trust in Him might be forever secure from the well-deserved vengeance of Jehovah’s insulted throne. So the words are directly applied in Matt. 26:31. The Shepherd was smitten by Jehovah Himself. The sheep were for the moment scattered, but God’s hand is turned in grace to the little ones who are lowly enough to own their guilt and trust in Him whose precious blood cleanseth from every stain. To the remnant, the value of His work will be made known when their blindness has passed away, and they will be numbered among the feeble and the poor in spirit who cast themselves upon redeeming grace”. To those words, we say Amen and even so come quickly Lord Jesus.
May 15, 2021
Genesis 22:1-2,” And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt (test, prove) Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.
It is good, when we read this account, that we see it as it unfolded in the life of Abraham and what it means for believers through the ages. This mystifying scenario where God tells Abraham to offer his son as a sacrifice, stands alone in its scope in God’s dealings with people and it was specifically for Abraham who God calls in several places, the father of all that is pertaining to faith. The foundation and root of all Israel and Christians alike, is the promises God gave to Abraham, and Abraham’s faith in the Almighty and His Word is the source of all our blessings in Christ. So when God tested Abraham’s faith, He was testing the one upon which everything of faith rests including the law, the prophets, and this dispensation of the grace of God (Ephesians 3:2). The purpose of the trial is revealed in the Lord’s Word to Abraham after Abraham passed the test with flying colors, in Genesis 22:11-12,” And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me”. God knew what Abraham would do before He laid this test before him and this was not to reveal to God the depth of Abraham’s allegiance to Him or the certainty of his faith, but it was a final stage in Abraham’s process of becoming God’s man of faith that was suited to be the father of all that believe. Abraham’s faith had been tested many times up to this point but this was the comprehensive final exam of his trust in and reverence for, the Almighty God. All of us have heard remarks from ministers and others when reading this passage, that they don’t know what they would do in a situation like this but God would never put anyone to such a test because this was Abraham’s alone and not only was the Lord completing building Abraham’s structure of faith, He was foreshadowing the sacrifice of Jesus Christ as the Father’s only begotten son.
This is the first time the word love appears in the Bible and it is used to declare the father’s love for his son and speaks to us all of the covenant children of God because notice the Lord calls Isaac Abraham’s only son even though we know Abraham also had a son, Ishmael. But Ishmael was not the covenant son and the discussion of this in Galatians 4 that concludes with this strong words, Galatians 4:22-23,” For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman. But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise”. Then the Word of God declares in verses 30-31, “Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman. So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free”. Abraham’s test was a testing of his confidence, his faith, in God’s promise and God’s promise is inseparable from His person for the Word IS God. The light the New Testament shines on the power of Abraham’s faith is seen in Hebrews 11:17-19,” By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure”. This tells us Abraham didn’t know exactly how the test would turn out but believed so completely the promise of God, that Isaac would be the continuance of his seed, that he was convinced God would keep His Word and raise Isaac from the dead. It also reveals that in Abraham’s heart and mind it was a done deal from the moment God told him what to do, his faith being such that he never faltered in his obedience. My prayer is that we view Abraham in perhaps a different way when we meditate on how we came to be where we are, why the Jews were given their place in God’s plan, why we Gentiles are now receiving God’s blessings, and what it means when God said in Gal 3:6-9,” Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham. And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham”. This should deflate our balloon of arrogance and give us grateful humble hearts when we know God sprouted all we are and ever hope to be, including Jesus who was a son of Abraham (Matt 1:1 The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham) from a root He planted by the faith of one man who the Bible says, “Rom 4:20-22,” He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. And therefore, it was imputed to him for righteousness”.
May 14, 2021
Romans 8:31,” What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?”
This well-known and often quoted verse is on my mind a lot of the time for it is one of the foundation stones of confidence that provides us hope, peace, and victory in every circumstance and relates to every known and unknown variable in our lives. When it is combined with its companion verse 28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose”, we have the dynamic duo that gives us the strength and courage to continue to press forward even through the most severe trials in any area of our journey. The enemy is well aware of the importance of these words to believers and fights us to keep them from being buried deep in the soil of our heart where they grow strong roots and produce the fruits of patience and faith when we are blasted with life’s storms. By the way, seven times in Romans, we are asked the question, “what shall we say?” followed by answers, concerning seven points that are important key doctrinal studies in our growth in grace and if you are interested in taking a more detailed look at these, they are: 3:5, 4:1, 6:1, 7:7, this one here 8:31, 9:14, and 9:30. It is not only for our confidence and encouragement that we build our faith on Romans 8: 28 & 31, but also we are given this in 1Peter 3:15,” But sanctify (reverence) the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear”. We may not always be able to explain what and why we are experiencing in our lives because the Lord doesn’t always give us the details of what He is doing or allowing to happen. But once we are grounded on the rock-solid foundation of His Word and know that He is for us no matter how it may look, our answer, our testimony, to those around us will carry the certainty of 2Timothy 1:12,” for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day”.
We can read about Joseph being hated and betrayed by his brothers, assaulted, cast into a pit, sold into slavery, falsely accused, and bound and suffering in prison all while doing what was right, and rejoice in the story because we know the ending when he becomes honored and exalted to power. But in our own story, it’s a different matter because we allow fear and doubt to obscure the truth of the ending of the particular trial or painful situation we are in. The enemy lies to our flesh and our flesh tries to take the driver’s seat of our thoughts, emotions, and reasoning, and then comes the worry, uncertainty, anger, frustration, impatience, and self-will that results in poor decisions, bad behavior, and blatant unbelief. Until we are firmly settled in the truth of the “God is for me” way of living, it’s hard to walk out of the house, running late for work and a tire is flat or the battery is down, and say, “This is good because God is for me and He said everything in my life is working in my favor”. You might say, “Is God aware of every minute detail of my life” and to that we let the Bible respond with Luke 12:6,” Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings (2 cents), and not one of them is forgotten before God? But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows”. If the Lord is mindful of a little bird that has a value of one cent and if He knows the number of hairs on our head be assured, He is attentive to every infinitesimal part, every moment, every component, and every particle of us down to the atoms he used to create us. The more we grow in this truth and the more we confess its actuality, the greater our faith becomes and the greater our love grows for the Almighty Maker of heaven and earth: Our God, our Savior, our Keeper, and our life.
May 13, 2021
Romans 11:25,” For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in”
Acts 13, 18, and 21-26 are significant chapters in the New Testament, not because they hold such deep Biblical doctrine, but for the events at Antioch, Corinth, and Jerusalem where the Jews flat-out rejected the gospel of Christ with violence and blasphemy. Notice first how the course of the gospel was changing when Paul, at Antioch, declared in Acts 13:45-46,” But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy, and spake against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming. Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, it was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles”. Notice the Bible says it was necessary that the Word of God should first be preached to the Jews but when they rejected it, the message was diverted to the Gentiles. Then eleven years later, at Corinth, the Jews again opposed the gospel and in Acts 18:6, Paul declares,” Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean: from henceforth I will go unto the Gentiles”. It is not by coincidence that he made one more trip to Jerusalem in Acts 21-26, where the Jews seized him, bound him in chains, and from there he was sent to Rome as a prisoner. Less than eight years later, the Roman army destroyed Jerusalem and the Jews were dispersed all over the world, blinded to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Israel had its opportunity to believe the gospel but rejected it, first by crucifying the Lord then, when confronted with the truth of His resurrection, they opposed that with violence against God’s messengers and blaspheming the name of the Lord. They were set aside for a while and for the past two thousand years, it has been the Gentile church that has dominated the timeline of God’s amazing grace to the human race.
If we study the genealogy of Jesus given in Luke 3, it is the line of the seed promised in Genesis 3:15,” And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel”. The enemy tried many times to crush the seed, beginning with Abel, but the Lord protected His purpose until the promise was completed in Jesus and it is from this line that Abraham came and from him, the Jewish people. All the focus of the scripture from Genesis through the gospels was on the succession of people, then the Jewish race, that brought the Messiah, Immanuel into the world. But when Israel rejected God’s plan for their redemption and the restoration of the kingdom to them through Jesus Christ, God did, what was for the Jewish people the unthinkable: He removed them from the root of Abraham and grafted the Gentiles into the Abrahamic covenant and created the church. The Jewish diaspora, the scattering of the nation of Israel among the nations of the world, was prophesied in many places long before it became a reality. 1400 years before Christ, Moses prophesied in Deuteronomy 28:64-65,” And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other; and there thou shalt serve other gods, which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone. And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the LORD shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind”. 700 years before Christ, Hosea prophesied in Hosea 9:17,” My God will cast them away, because they did not hearken unto him: and they shall be wanderers among the nations”. It is during this time of their dispersion, that the Lord has poured out His Spirit on the Gentiles and drawn them to Himself as the church, the bride of Christ. But just as surely as the Lord promised Israel would be scattered, He also promised He would bring them back into their land and restore them as a nation and He said He would do it at a time of the “fullness of the Gentiles”, the word meaning to reach completeness, to coincide with a prediction, to cram full. Let’s remember that the whole plan from Adam until now, is for God to gather people from the human race to Himself as inhabitants of His eternity. This is not the theme of anything we are doing on this earth so it’s not a surprise that the ending of the church age, the closing of the door that was opened with the removal of Israel from the root, and the return from this 2000-year sidetrack to the establishment of Christ’s literal kingdom, is a subject of mockery and unbelief by not only unbelievers but sadly by many who claim to be followers of the Lord. That last sentence was a long one, so let’s restate it as follows: time is about up for the Gentile world and the Lord is about to return the Jewish people to their place of prominence. Not only is He going to return them to power, but after seven years of tribulation, He’s going to bless them above and beyond anything this world has ever experienced. For all of us who are saved and watching the prophecy clock tick towards midnight, even though the hands seem to be moving slowly, remember that it only took eight years from the Jews final rejection of the gospel until their dispersion and even though God’s clock seems to move slowly, it moves surely.
May 12, 2021
Matthew 4:17,” From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand”
When the word repent is used in the KJV Old Testament, it means to change the mind or course of action and invariably is used in connection with God saying that He will or will not repent as in Jonah 3:9,” Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?” But in the New Testament, while the word still carries a meaning to change the mind or direction, it also has the meaning “to have remorse and change one’s course”. The message of repentance was the one John the Baptist preached: repent because the kingdom of heaven is at hand and when John was arrested and put in prison, Jesus began to preach the same message. When we rightly divide the truth, the Gospels and the coming of Christ was to offer Israel the message that if they will choose to take sides with God against themselves and renounce their ways, Jesus Christ will usher in the kingdom age and the kingdom of heaven will subdue the kingdom of earth. This point has been sadly missed in our studies of the gospels and even though as believers we glean from their truths and profit from the teachings of our Lord, we can’t seem to get it straight that in the words of Jesus Himself, He said in Matthew 15:24,” But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel”. We teach as if Christ was offering Himself as king to the whole world when He rode into Jerusalem as Matthew describes in Matthew 21:5,” Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass” but He was offering Himself only to His own people: the Jewish Nation. The Bible declares in Galatians 4:4-5,” But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons” and the gentiles were not at any time, under the law. The Law was given to Israel and was inseparably connected to the tabernacle/temple and it was to Israel under the law, that Jesus was sent. Before someone has a fit and decries this truth, Jesus did minister to some gentiles during His ministry but he came as the promised Messiah and the proclamation nailed to His cross was, “JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS”. Remember the wise men who came looking for Him at His birth and saying “Where is He that is born King of the Jews”? Thank God the Jews rejected Him and God, rich in mercy, cut them off the root and grafted us gentiles in, for time being, until the fullness of the gentiles is complete. (Romans 11)
So, is repentance a part of God’s will for us? According to modern preaching, it must not be because the “R” word is another of the ones banned by religious linguists in their attempt to soften the blow of the truth and make the gospel more listener-friendly. However, repentance is very much an integral part of who we are as believers. Take 2 Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” showing clearly it is God’s will for people who are not saved, to turn from their sin with remorse. Paul preached to the Greeks on Mars Hill in Acts 17:30 saying, “And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent” and Jesus says several times to the seven churches in Revelation, things like “Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent”. It sure sounds like God is serious about people showing remorse for their sin and turning to go in another direction, the one He has given us as His Way. I think repentance is a wonderful word and a wonderful thing because I see it as a positive opportunity to have a new beginning and go toward God’s will instead of running from Him. Sure, the book of Hebrews says there needs to be a time when we grow in grace and abandon all the motions of repentance and just live a life that brings honor to the Lord Hebrews 6:1,” Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God” but in every believer’s life from the first step of faith in Jesus as Savior to those times when we take wrong turns, do things we know are wrong, and find ourselves in messes from our disobedience, there are times to acknowledge our ways, turn from them, and walk, no, RUN towards our Savior for a clean, fresh start..
May 11, 2021
Galatians 2:20,” I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me”
Throughout the day, I’ve been thinking about persecuted Christians around the world and how easy it is to live for Jesus here in America compared to many countries. In North Korea, for example, there are an estimated 30,000 believers right now in concentration camps being starved, tortured, forced to do animal-like labor. Forbes magazine, Jan 13, 2021 issue, reports that throughout the world during the period of October 2019 to September 2020, 4,761 Christians were killed for their faith, 4,488 Churches or Christian buildings were attacked, 4,277 Christians were unjustly arrested, detained or imprisoned, 1,710 Christians were abducted for faith-related reasons. On average, every day, 13 Christians are killed for their faith, 12 churches or Christian buildings are attacked, 12 Christians are unjustly arrested, detained or imprisoned, and 5 Christians are abducted for faith-related reasons. Our freedom of worship in the USA is so common to us and unrestricted, that even Bible clutching believers have the leisure to spend their time micro-analyzing every little facet of their existence. I was thinking about a well-known believer that died in prison in our generation, Watchman Nee and wondered how he endured being a prisoner for his faith for the last 20 years of his life. I can’t help but be ashamed of how it seems nowadays, we can’t just live a simple, normal Christian life without allowing our relationship with God to become anxiety stricken like every other area of our little worlds. When Watchman Nee died in a Chinese prison, they found a handwritten note under his pillow that said, “Christ is the Son of God who died for the redemption of sinners and resurrected after three days. This is the greatest truth in the universe. I die because of my belief in Christ. Watchman Nee.” What would it mean and how would we accomplish such a personal sacrifice for the glory of the Lord and how is it possible to lay aside ourselves until all that matters is Christ? Only by God’s grace could we endure such persecution and pain and have such a testimony for our final words and it’s on that thought that we look at Galatians 2:20 where the Bible declares self is crucified and the life of the believer is now Christ alive in us and we are living by believing in Him.
Self-sacrifice is found in many scriptures such as Romans 6:6-8,” Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin. Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him”. In our freedom, we have the opportunity to live each day with the prayer the Lord will use us in every capacity to honor him and this should be our heartbeat: not living as it were an accidental life with a passive view that since we belong to the Lord, we are on autopilot and when He sees fit to use us then He will do it of His own accord. But living with a defined expectation that in every area of our lives we are willing and available to the Lord and we are living because He is living through us. I want to live with the awareness that God’s will for me is that Christ be magnified in me as in Philippians 1:20,” According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death”. This means my words, my actions, my plans, my prayers, my desires, and my purpose are to be under the control of the life lived by faith. Believers could start the day with a prayer like, “Lord, thank You that have saved me and I am Yours for Your glory in every part, body, soul, and spirit. Live through me and let me live only for You this day. Remove everything in me and in my path that is not of You and open the doors and opportunities that are for Your will. Thank You that I am not being held in prison for my faith, but may I be bound to Christ alone”.
May 10, 2021
Titus 2:13,” Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ”
There is some hope in this life but compared to the hope that is ahead of us, this hope here and now, concerning the things of this world, is finite and fleeting. Consider 1Corinthians 15:19,” If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable” and see that there is no equal in anything this side of eternity that matches the thrill when we know what God said is on its way: the appearing of Jesus. Titus 2:13 calls it the “blessed hope” and the word blessed means “supremely blest, fortunate, well-off, and happier” and if there has been any time in our lifetime when we need a special load of supremely, happier, and well-off hope surely, it’s now. The strange thing that I have mentioned before, is that currently, many of the Bible studies that fill the airwaves, cyberspace, and best-selling Christian books, are all about the here and now and solving the mess which we have pretty much created ourselves. (But no matter how much pain it causes us, we refuse to follow God’s Word to find relief.) Dealing with all the complexities of daily life is important and only by God’s grace can we find the wisdom to make our way on this everchanging and perplexing journey but this vapor of a life is only an instant on eternity’s scale and no matter how we try, there’s not enough hope to be mustered for the here and now to keep us spiritually satiated. At least not for me because I’ve had a glimpse of my eternal home and sometimes my heaven starved soul needs to get some mail from the place where Jesus said He’s gone to prepare a place for us and He said He WILL come again and take us to be with Him. Now when I think about that, even though I do care for the here and now, and want to alleviate some of the stress, anxiety, confusion about who I am, my never-ending introspective quest, and all such stuff, embedded within me is the precious Holy Spirit who cries out with my spirit in full agreement what God’s Word says in Rev 22:20,” He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus”.
My wife and I often talk about the mystery of why now, of all times, is there a near-dead silence concerning the coming of Jesus. When a couple of Christians who are versed in the Word of God get together and begin discussing current events, the conversations invariably drift to that blessed hope. But as far as being schooled in the doctrine of the return of Christ, many people today seem to be lacking and are thunderstruck on the subject as if they’re almost embarrassed to talk about it or at least reluctant lest perhaps they’d be considered dispensational, heaven forbid. They certainly don’t have to bellow it every time they open their mouth but an occasional mention of, “Thank God for the promise that one day Jesus is coming again” would help balance out whatever else is being poured into the feeding troughs. When we consider that the Lord’s return is referenced more than three hundred times in the New Testament, an average of one verse in every twenty-five, we can’t help but be reminded of Amos 8:11,” Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it”. Marvel how this coincides with 2Timothy 4:3,” For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables (some translations render it myths but the word is broad in scope and also refers to stories, story-telling, narratives, and appears here as words or speaking substituted for the truth of God’s Word)”. Regardless of the reluctance, either intentional or influence-driven by current trending theology, to plainly declare we are on the threshold of even bigger changes in our world and step-by-step we are closing out this final church age, the good news, the blessed hope, is that he that shall come will come, and will not tarry (Hebrews 10:37). I guess it all fits Luke 12:40,” Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not.”
May 9, 2021
2 Timothy 1:5,” When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also”
As I’m typing this devotion, my mind is wandering back to Mother’s Day a year ago when my mother was finishing the last few days of her life and she died twelve days later. She was ninety-eight years old and we had thought she was going to break a hundred like her mother but the Lord had a different plan. Our last Mother’s Day with her was not a pleasant time because she was getting ready to move to her home on high and was quite detached from this one. I wish every person in the world could say like me, they had a mother that above all else in her life, loved the Lord and was not ashamed of her personal faith in Him. Right now, that is what I’m most thankful for on this Mother’s Day: that when my mom passed from this earth and left everything here behind, she was immediately in the presence of the Lord because the Bible says in 2Corinthians 5:8,” We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord”. If she had been the best mother in the world and raised us five kids with all the caring and love a human can muster but hadn’t been saved, now that all the raising, cooking, cleaning, band-aiding, and other mothering stuff is over, and there wasn’t any hope to ever see her again, well, I don’t want to even try to imagine that reality. I’m sure there are good mothers that are not Christians just as I am sure there are some Christian mothers who are not good mothers but anyone with a good, Christian mom should be the most thankful people on this earth because not only do they have that wonderful blessing here to celebrate on Mother’s Day but they have the hope that this is not the end of the good story. As they say, the best is yet to come. In this verse in 2 Timothy, Paul is pouring his heart out to his young preacher friend Timothy and remarking about Timothy’s heritage of faith that began in his grandmother Eunice then was found in his mother Lois and then he says the young man has this “unfeigned” that is, “true, sincere, genuine, and honest” faith.
Would to God our world had a slew of mothers like Eunice and Lois that by their faith in the Almighty and His Son Jesus Christ, they instill in their children a rock-solid confidence in God that no matter what comes their way, the children hold fast to their profession of their faith without wavering (Hebrews 10:23). I see that kind of faith in my wife that loves our children more than anything on this earth and I hear her praying for them every day, many times a day, and calling out to the Lord and claiming His promises for them. I know from our daily conversations and prayers about our children that her heart is always lifting them up to the Lord and when we see prayers answered concerning them, I see the tears of joy and thankfulness she cries. The foster child systems in all states are filled to capacity with precious children of all ages who have never known the joy and peace of having a good mother take them in her arms, love them with all her heart, and look to the Lord on their behalf. But on this Mother’s Day let’s honor those moms that were (or are) women of faith and goodness that literally lay themselves aside for the care and wellbeing of their children. Those who want more than anything on this earth, for their children to be saved and have a strong relationship with the Lord and who themselves, are leaving behind a legacy of faith: footsteps that are guided by no other than the Lord Jesus Christ, that their children can follow, without hesitation, from here to glory. This heritage of faith is the greatest treasure a mom can pass to her children and in eternity’s light, everything else that might be considered valuable heirlooms looks like the junk it is, sort of like the Dollar Store specials we palm off on our mothers because we can’t think of a thing they want or need. And by the way, mom, if you’re listening, thank you for being a good, Christian mom and we’ll see you soon.
May 8, 2021
Song of Solomon 4:7,” Thou art all fair, my love; there is no spot in thee”
In this beautiful verse, the bridegroom is speaking to the bride and declares her beautiful, the meaning of the Hebrew word “yapheh” for fair, and then he says something so wonderful, so amazing it is hard to believe He means it literally, He says she is perfect: no spot, which means no blemish or imperfection. To think He is speaking to the same girl we see in chapter 1 who is impoverished, forced to labor hard in the scorching sun which has burned her skin, and a bedraggled mess. But in this love story, the wealthy bridegroom has taken her from the fields, from the shame and captivity of her sorrowful situation, and by His power and ability, changed her entire being. Now seen through his eyes here, she is clean, covered with beautiful garments, adorned with jewels, and strikingly perfect. The poetry of this book has embarrassed a lot of Christians through the ages as if it is too shocking to read and because in it nothing is mentioned of God, the law, the prophets, or anything else of a spiritual nature, some churches avoided it altogether. The debates as to its meaning and God’s purpose in inspiring Solomon to write it, have approached the book from a variety of viewpoints but since Charles Spurgeon preached 59 sermons on it and many others have used its text to connect the natural love and passion described in this Song of Solomon with the love the Lord has for His church, the very best studies of this book is for the understanding of how deeply God loves His people and to see how He described this love in terms we can understand from our human frame. It’s from this allegorical view that we look at the target text and see, with fascination, just how God sees us.
One of the Bible verses I often heard blasting from the pulpits when I was a boy, was Ephesians 5:27,” That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish”. The preachers would rip this verse right out of context and declare God was coming one day and He is only going to take those who have no spots, wrinkles, or any such sin. I don’t know if everyone listening was always feeling guilty about their human imperfections like me, but I always winced at the blow of this scripture as though I’d been struck with a cudgel. Most of the time I had been doing something like sneaking and reading the comics in the newspaper which, these preachers said, were worldly garbage and by the time they finished their tirade, I saw myself dirty and unfit for heaven. If only they had quoted or read the verse, preceding the one they shouted, that said, “Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word” and follow up with the truth that moment we are saved we appear to God as though we have never sinned and we are in His view, just like He described His love in Song of Solomon 4:7, beautiful and completely sinless. How is this possible that God, who is infinitely holy, infinitely perfect, infinitely intolerant of sin, and by His very nature judge and destroyer of anyone that isn’t also perfectly sinless, can see us as holy and righteous? It is the miracle of God’s grace that when Jesus, born under the law, lived a sinless life, obeyed every part and particle of the law, and went to His death absolutely perfect, God took the perfect, holy, sinlessness, and righteousness of Jesus and covered every person that comes to Him in faith with it. He covered us head to toe, inside and out, not leaving even a sliver or speck of the old sin-stained person showing before His presence. Not only while we were still sinners did He love us but now that we have been created the righteousness of Christ by His amazing grace, He is ready to present us flawless and blameless as the bride of Christ. I realize you know these truths and even in our devotionals here we have studied them. But to see them again in the light of this verse in Song of Solomon and know the Lord has pleasure in His people Psalms 149:4,” For the LORD taketh pleasure in his people: he will beautify the meek with salvation” gives us cause to be reminded that not only is our Lord wonderful and precious to us, we are likewise very precious and beautiful to Him.
May 7, 2021
Psalms 11:3,” If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?”
It might seem that people who take only the Bible as the sole infallible source of truth are against any writings of man including those of a religious nature but that is not the case. What we know is that there is always an assault upon the belief that the Bible is the inspired, inerrant Word of God and even though it was penned by human hands, it is by the Holy Spirit and directly from the Lord, to mankind. We know that these attacks usually come from the enemy of God disguised as “ministers of righteousness” and often they have a reputation of being knowledgeable, educated, well-spoken, and well-written. They are members of the club that the Bible describes as “spiritual wickedness in high places” and include professors, college presidents, ministers, theologians, “Christian” philosophers, and think-tank participants. There is a mob of such hoodlums trying to pummel fundamental faith in God’s Word but the summation of their agenda is to proclaim the Bible is not an inspired book, that it isn’t inerrant, that it is not the Word of God, and that we can’t trust it as absolute truth. For example, in the article “The Inerrancy of Scripture” by R. Albert Mohler Jr published by Southern Seminary, cites Kenton Sparks of Eastern University, in his book, “God’s Word in Human Words: An Evangelical Appropriation of Critical Biblical Scholarship ”, who says “The Bible exhibits all the telltale signs of having been written by finite, fallen human beings who erred in the ways that human beings usually err” and then he says it is nothing less than intellectually disastrous for evangelicals to claim the Bible is without error following with “Jesus was a finite person who grew up in Palestine and if Jesus as a finite human being erred from time to time, there is no reason at all to suppose that Moses, Paul, and John wrote Scripture without error”. To this malarky, simply the same regurgitated hogwash that has cycled through the generations since our Lord’s time, we say Romans 1:22,” Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools”. It is precisely because of this so-called “intellectual” dribble and its pretense to be “Biblical” that we continue to affirm our unwavering faith in the Word of God as the inspired, infallible communication from God to mankind and pray for those young men and women who have been subjected to the trash washing down to them from the false prophets in seats of authority and for those sitting under the “ministries” of leaders who have been influenced by this excretion.
Do you believe the Bible is the Word of God and you can accept it as being without error? The assertation of the Bibles’ inerrancy forms the foundation for what we believe to be absolute truth. It’s not just believing God exists because God doesn’t save based on our faith in His existence. The Scripture says the devils believe God exists and this is the lie of universalism that proclaims all people have to do is admit the existence of God and everything is fine. But here is what God declared: 1Peter 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you”. Also, Ephesians 2:8,” For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God” and in Romans 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God”. Is this what you believe and is this what you teach your children to believe: that salvation comes from believing what God said about the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus and when you confess that you believe it, that the Almighty Maker of heaven and earth knows your faith and accounts it to you for righteousness and you are eternally saved? Then what you are trusting is the Word of God and if you can trust it to save your soul can you believe it is fully trustworthy in every other matter from Genesis to Revelation? Again, confidence in the Bible as being the inspired Word of God is the foundation of faith and if this foundation is destroyed in people’s hearts, then there is no source of absolute truth, no understanding of the will of God, no assurance of salvation, and no assurance for eternity with the Lord and we’re back to square one: Ephesians 2:12,” That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world”.
May 6, 2021
Psalms 138:2,” I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name”
The name of God is His character: it’s who He is. There is so much written in scripture about the name of the Lord it comprises studies so deep, so mysterious that our minds can’t fully understand because to understand the name of the Lord is to understand Him and at that point, our abilities fail us. As God progressively revealed Himself to His creation, He did it through the exposition of His name so that in different situations with different needs, God‘s name bears witness as to who He is to us on that occasion. He is El Shaddai (Lord God Almighty), El Elyon (The Most High God), Adonai (Lord, Master), Yahweh (Lord, Jehovah), Jehovah Nissi (The Lord My Banner), Jehovah Raah (The Lord My Shepherd), Jehovah Rapha (The Lord That Heals), Jehovah Shammah (The Lord Is There), Jehovah Tsidkenu (The Lord Our Righteousness), Jehovah Mekoddishkem (The Lord Who Sanctifies You), El Olam (The Everlasting God), Elohim (God), Qanna (Jealous), Jehovah Jireh (The Lord Will Provide), Jehovah Shalom (The Lord Is Peace), Jehovah Sabaoth (The Lord of Hosts), and many others which include the names for the Holy Spirit and Jesus the Christ. We sing songs about the power of His name and rejoice we are authorized to use the name of Jesus for various needs including approaching the throne of grace. When the prophets thundered their messages, they did so proclaiming “the name of the Lord” (James 5:10) and when David ran to confront Goliath, he declared in 1Samuel 17:45,” Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied”. But as much as there is eternal honor, glory, and power in the name of the Lord, this verse in Psalms 138:2, says God has “magnified His word above His name” as if God is saying, above all I am, above all my character, I want what I say to be believed. The Word of God is that big a deal.
For us, the Word of God is the canonized, the compiled, Bible we hold in our hands. When Paul wrote to the young preacher Timothy, he said in 2 Timothy 4:2-4,” Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables”. For as long as I can remember in the ordination ceremonies of young preachers in the churches I’ve attended, someone would hold out the Bible towards the young man and quote this scripture to him, challenging him to honor the word of God above all else. There was an esteem, a reverence for the Bible and although some have sneered at such respect claiming it is “bibliolatry”, I refuse to believe these Christians were worshiping the Bible, just honoring it as the Word of God. Most homes had a family Bible in prominent display and even to this day, although we have the Bible on our Kindle, our cell phones, our laptops, and both our desk computers, my wife and I have a huge collection of written Bibles and for me, there’s just something comforting about holding one in my hands and praying over the scripture, asking God to open my eyes to its truth. When our Lord faced off with Satan, he could have called down fire on him but instead simply quoted the written Word and the enemy was defeated. But it’s not just quoting or reading the Word that God wants for us, He wants us to take Him at His word: to believe what He has spoken. In Colossians 3: 16, the Bible says,” Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom” and if the Lord has honored His Word above His own name, what better thing could we do than to fill ourselves with the Word of God. I believe one of the traps we fall into is to read books about the Word of God instead of just reading the Word of God. It’s good to understand the history of the Bible, the history of the church, the theology and structure of Bible doctrine, and so on but most important of all is to know the Word of God as it is written and declare we believe it whether or not we completely understand it. When Jesus told Peter to let down his net after a night of failed fishing Peter didn’t understand why Jesus was telling him to do that and said in Luke 5:5-6,” And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless, at thy word I will let down the net. And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake”. Notice he said, “nevertheless AT THY WORD I will let down the net”. The Lord might as well have said, “Peter, throw away all your fishing books, fishing theory, compilations of fishing data, exegesis of fishing terminology, and survey of Old Testament fishing and stop even thinking you know how to fish. Just believe what I say because trusting my Word is all you need.
May 5, 2021
Joshua 5:10-12,” And the children of Israel encamped in Gilgal, and kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the month at even in the plains of Jericho. And they did eat of the old corn of the land on the morrow after the passover, unleavened cakes, and parched corn in the selfsame day. And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year”
The provision of manna during the Israelites sojourn in the wilderness is mindboggling as to the amount, estimated to be some 40 million tons in their 40-year stint, and also that it was fully nutritional, a sort of perfectly balanced heavenly diet in one item. What the scripture says of the unbelief of the Jews prior to the giving of the manna is summarized in Psalms 78:19,” Yea, they spake against God; they said, Can God furnish a table in the wilderness?” and still the Lord proved He could year after year. The Lord didn’t intend the Manna to be a long-lasting provision, but it was for the immediate need of His people while they were quarantined in their unbelief and even though it sustained them, it’s hard to imagine eating the same food for every meal for years. We imagine being thankful should be a simple exercise but that’s because we live in a land of plenty, have a multitude of choices in every aspect of our lives, and usually offer thanksgiving from an excessive place of being but if we were confined to a barren wilderness with a harsh environment, little to no vegetation, wearing the same clothes every day, living in a tent, no luxuries or comforting past-times, and eating manna day after day, I’m sure we could identify with the Jews’ complaining habits. Even now with the indwelling Holy Spirit, it takes a position of faith, steadfast courage, and hope to rise above some of the temporary trials that come on us and approach the Lord with a thankful heart. Nevertheless, God remained faithful in His care and provisions for His people, even allowing the unbelievers to live out their days in the 40-year wandering, and finally, when it was over, the Israelites crossed the Jordan, entered the land. There, a wonderful food supply was already waiting for them as the Word of God describes, a land flowing with milk and honey, and the manna stopped.
If we apply this account as a type to our own Christian lives, it sees its counterpart revealed in the growth of a believer moving from a baby in Christ to a resolute mature Saint. While we are newborn in the faith, we are to 1 Pet 2:2,” As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby”. The manna sustenance required little effort, just pick it up and eat it and similarly, there is babysitting provided by the Lord for new believers that requires very little from them except to enjoy the milk of the Word, be glad they’re saved, take their first steps in the new life, and slowly grow. But God has more in store for us than that, just as He had more in store for the Israelites and it involves moving from a manna-based food plan to a buffet that is filled with meat. See the rebuke given to those who should be growing but are not in Hebrews 5:12-14,” For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil” . Babes are characterized by their fighting and strife as in 1 Cor 3:1-3,” And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men (carnal)?” Doesn’t this sound like the complaining, bickering Jews in their wilderness, manna experience? Babes are not settled in the doctrine of God’s word as revealed in Ephesians 4:14,” That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive”. Babes are unskilful in the word of righteousness Hebrews 5:13,” For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe”. Babies, left unsupervised, will pick up and eat stuff, even poison on their own and will chew on about anything because they don’t know better but God has a resting place that requires us to grow up and leave the manna behind. The good news is, entering that place, the Canaan of life, leaves behind the things that are identified with babyhood and brings us to greater blessings than we could imagine: greater peace, greater joy, greater vision, greater confidence in the Lord, and fulness of love. Ephesians 4:15,” But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ”.
May 4, 2021
Joshua 4:4,” Then Joshua called the twelve men, whom he had prepared of the children of Israel, out of every tribe a man: And Joshua said unto them, Pass over before the ark of the LORD your God into the midst of Jordan, and take ye up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder, according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel”
As the priests bearing the ark of the covenant stood wrapped in a miracle, in the dry riverbed of the Jordan, God commanded Joshua to have twelve stones carried out of the riverbed and placed as a memorial of standing stones on the Canaan side commemorating the day the nation of Israel crossed the Jordan into the land God had chosen for them. So many types are seen here in this wonderful event that it is a precious study for any lover of God’s Word and the actions themselves spoke to the Israelites about finally being where they were purposed to be by the promise made to Abraham. We know from the account Joshua selected twelve men foreshadowing the Lord’s call of twelve disciples and they were strong for it says they carried the stones on their shoulders indicating these were not small rocks. Verse 20 of chapter 4 says they “pitched” these stones at Gilgal, the word “pitched” meaning to raise up, stand up and gives us a picture of an arrangement perhaps monolithic style, that would serve as a point of reference to the Jews at that moment of the mercy and goodness of the Lord and pointed them all back to where only one generation before, they were slaves in Egypt but had been delivered by the mighty hand of God, sustained in the wilderness, and then they were finally across the Jordan, standing on the soil that the Lord had set apart for them. It was a testimony that they were not there by their own will or abilities, but as Jonah said, “salvation is of the Lord” and it marked the place as one of a supernatural event. Not only were stones brought out of the Jordan, but twelve stones were also carried from the land and placed in the riverbed as a second memorial to the crossing. A complete testimony in the water and out of the water. At the time of this crossing, the Bible says the Jordan was flooded and flowing out of its banks but during times of drought, this memorial would rise up out of the water and be a reminder that no matter the circumstances, the Lord is faithful and has called us to trust Him. This is likely the site where John was baptizing in the Jordan for the Bible says in St John 1:28, he was baptizing at Bethabara which means “house of the crossing”. It is also possible it is this monument he was referring to when the Pharisees and Sadducees came to his baptism and he said in Matthew 3:9,” And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham” perhaps gesturing to these very stones.
The practical application from such memorials is that they were a teaching place for all future generations of Jews so that when they brought their children by that spot and the children asked, “what are these stones”, the parents could relate the account of the miracle of the crossing. Every Christian has crossing places in their lives where the Lord did great things for them and too often, we fail to impress these upon our children as a part of pointing out the goodness, mercy, and greatness of our God. Many children never hear their parents talk of their time of salvation, times of God’s provision, miracles of His delivering power, and His faithfulness in every matter. Our lives are marked by memorials of God’s amazing presence in our lives and what a shame when we take them for granted, forget the events, and fail to attribute them to the Lord. The enemy is always at work to remove the landmarks of God from our personal timeline and fill our hours and days with mindless routines so that our children are never established in our Godly heritage. When the Bible talks about “forgetting the things which are behind”, God isn’t speaking about the blessings, miracles, companionship with Him, and the memories of His greatness we’ve experienced, He’s speaking of the things which have the power to hold us back from fulfilling the Lord’s purpose in us. In God’s command to erect this memorial, we see His knowledge of our tendency to forget even the most glorious blessings. This is what the Lord said of His people in Psalms 78:11,” And forgat his works, and his wonders that he had shewed them” and reminds us of the words of Hebrews 2:1,” Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip”. We have a duty then, to raise up a testimony, a memorial of our Christian heritage for the generations after us that will point them to the Lord because we have a treasure of proofs in our lives that the Lord is with us, He is for us, He has delivered us, He has provided our needs, He has brought us through impossible situations, and He will do the same for our children and our children’s children.
May 3, 2021
Isaiah 53:12,” Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors”
The thought of Christ leaving the glory of heaven to make His way among sinful mortals has been viewed as though He is to be pitied or even that He was inconvenienced but looking here, it is declared that by associating with Adam’s fallen family and bearing their sin and shame, it is this very sacrifice that exalts the Lord as victor and entitles Him to the spoils of His conquest. The picture here is of dividing the plunderage of battle after a glorious triumph. The Bible says in Philippians 2:8-11,” And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father”. David had already been anointed by Samuel when he faced Goliath but it was his victory over the giant that exalted him as a hero and it is Jesus Christ’s victory over sin, Satan, death, and the grave that has caused Him to triumph. Had there been no battle Jesus would not be Victor. Had there been no sinners needing salvation, Jesus would not be Savior. Had there been no cursed creation Jesus would not be Redeemer. But Jesus entered the human realm, defeated every foe, and reclaimed all that sin had destroyed for the glory of God and the hope of mankind. Now, all creation is under the Lordship of Christ pending the passing of mortal time and then He will be revealed as King of Kings and Lord of Lords as is spoken in Revelation 11:15,” And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever”.
But now, while creation waits for its final redemption, which has already been won by our Lord and will be delivered at the judgment of this dispensation, Jesus is in His place of intercession for the saints of God. He is intreating the Father on our behalf and the Bible has many references to Him in this mediation one of which is Romans 8:34,” It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us” the words “intercession” meaning He speaks for us, in our favor. More proof that He is there for our benefit is seen in Hebrews 9:24,” For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us”. Because He was numbered with us, that is, “enrolled” as one of us, He has identified Himself with us in all aspects of our nature and our life. This truth that Jesus is our advocate, our lawyer proclaiming our case and our blood-covered righteousness to the Almighty Father, should be a main item on our list of “things to be thankful for” and give us confidence that the seated Savior at the Father’s right hand never approaches our situation with indifference or lack of understanding. He knows, He understands, He cares, and He does His mediation with the love and mercy that only Jesus can show. Look back to Romans 8:33,” Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth” and see how when the enemy comes against us spouting accusations, he can’t make his case stick because our advocate has already derailed his squawking dribble. Even though the scripture has revealed this wonderful truth of Jesus our mediator in so many places, believers often carry guilt and shame over sins for which they’ve already asked God to forgive them and He has based on 1 John 1:9,” If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness”. The enemy knows there can be no charge laid against the Lord’s people but he always tries to convince us otherwise by lying to us and harassing us with accusations as if sins that God has already forgiven and will never even remember again, are still valid issues and being held against us. But we are the redeemed of the Lord and concerning our guilt, the Bible says our Lord did this for us, stated in Colossians 2:14,” Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross”.
May 2, 2021
Hebrews 12:3-4,” For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin”
In previous devotionals, we spoke about believer’s love for the Lord and praised God that He first loved us, but we also have to consider that He was hated by the world when He walked among people, and He and his followers are hated now. The verse above tells us to consider how much hostility and hatred, unbelievers had towards the Savior whenever we are experiencing opposition from the world and if it seems that this hatred towards Christians and Christianity is increasing, you are correct. The Family Research Council that follows this persecution, reports that since 2014, the number of religious freedom violations more than doubled in a 114 percent surge. What’s telling about this onslaught is that from local municipalities banning nativity scenes, removing any reference to Jesus from public prayers, banning prayers at sporting events, and forbidding Bible reading and study in school, it gets even more bizarre as in one court case, forbidding a child to sing “Kumbaya” in a talent show because it contained the words “Oh, Lord”. All the while, we grow tolerant and acceptant of anti-Christian and anti-Semantic groups even to the point of voting some of their leaders into public office, knowing full well their hatred of Christianity because they have brazenly proclaimed it publicly. See how this exactly fits the words of Malachi 3:15,” they that work wickedness are set up” and with the exaltation of those that sneer at the Lord and His people comes the threats of more persecution. But the Bible says in 1 Peter 4:12-14,” Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part, he is evil spoken of, but on your part, he is glorified”. It may be that before the church is taken out, persecution will increase even here in America for there have been cycles of severe persecution through the ages and the Lord has allowed His people to face them as Jesus said in St John 19-20,” If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you”.
There is always the temptation to keep silent or to compromise in some way to “fly under the radar” and ward off persecution. If churches, for example, water down the message and ignore the “controversial” issues then maybe they won’t be singled out for violating some rule or law that protects wickedness but attempts to stifle the truth. Yet hear the warning in Romans 1:18,” For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness” with the word “hold” here meaning to suppress, or hold back. This applies not only to those who think they can throttle the truth in their culture but also to the lackies who, for their own protection, either choose not to tell God’s truth or spin the rhetoric to avoid confrontation. Can you hear the politically correct Elijah confronting the prophets of Baal and saying, “Now guys, there’s room for us all in Israel, let’s not be enemies because God loves us and we can have our places of worship side by side? Let’s form an alliance of faith diversity and stop this bickering”. Or the politically correct Jesus saying at His trial, “I really didn’t mean all the things I said the way you took them. I want to be at peace with the Pharisees and I welcome an open and inclusive dialogue between us. There’s no reason for any of us to feel bad or get hurt here”. Imagine those who died in faith, as martyrs for the glory of God, being reduced to a bunch of whining, sniveling, spineless, and truth-dodging wimps trying to save their own skin at the cost of betraying The Way, The Truth and The Life. No, we here and now haven’t yet resisted to the point it cost our lives (unto blood) but we might have to pay in humiliation, disgrace, and the revoking of our tax-free status. Where in the world did the people get the idea that we can win the lost to Jesus by compromising the truth and walking kowtow in fear under the truncheon of those who hate the Lord? I guess it’s from the suggestions of the other Jesus, the politically correct one who said, “Oh my goodness for heaven’s sake people, take off all that armor and hide that sword because you look barbaric. And stop quoting all that scripture: we don’t want to offend people by being too brash. Show them you’re current and accommodating and don’t dare mention words like sin, sinner, or lake of fire, that’s distasteful, reeks of ignorance, and makes you look like a hater”. As people of God, we must ask God for His wisdom to hold the standards of truth firm but with hearts that are humble and strong and eyes that are single and fastened on the Lord’s unfailing purpose. Pray that the Lord will raise up leaders that are bold and Godly yet can engage this culture for the salvation of souls. God is able to open the doors that are in His plan and close the ones that are against His will and it is only by His grace that we will be able to maneuver through the uncertainty of our times with its quickly changing views, cultural norms, laws, and technology. If and when we suffer or are persecuted, it will be because He wills it according to His promise as in 2 Timothy 2:11,” It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us”.
May 1, 2021
Joshua 5:9,” And the LORD said unto Joshua, this day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Wherefore the name of the place is called Gilgal (rolling) unto this day”
The crossing of the Jordan river in this part of the book of Joshua, was a momentous occasion because after having been delivered from Egypt forty years prior, God’s people were finally entering into their promised land. This was a new generation, the older Jews had perished in the wilderness confinement because of their unbelief and after that time-out period, acquisition of the land of Canaan was a fresh start. The miracle that day was a smaller version of the one forty years before when God rolled back the water of the Red Sea. The priests, carrying the ark of the covenant, walked down the bank of the Jordan on the east side and when their feet touched the water, the Lord dammed the upstream water and the water below them drained down the river to the dead sea and the riverbed became dry. Following the priests and the ark, all the Israelites crossed Jordan on dry ground. The fact the Lord devoted two chapters to the crossing of the Jordan, shows its significance with the events of the crossing, the reinstatement of the covenant of circumcision, and the keeping of the Passover in the new land. The Lord declared in Josh 5:9,” And the LORD said unto Joshua, This day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Wherefore the name of the place is called Gilgal unto this day. We might question what reproach the Lord was referring to since the crossing of the Red Sea, which drowned their enemies forever, separated them from the captivity but as long as they were not living in their land, Egypt continued to smirk at them, laughing as it were, at their inability to become anything but wandering, homeless nomads and at the same time, cast doubt on their God’s ability to finish what He started.
But once Israel crossed the Jordan everything changed and they were in possession of their inheritance. The Lord signified this by revealing the captain of heaven’s army standing ready to fight for them. Joshua 5:13-15,” And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant? And the captain of the LORD’s host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so”. The hallowed ground of the place God met with Joshua to assure him of the conquest of Canaan, spoke back to the sacred spot He met Moses to commission him for the Exodus. The fact that this man allowed Joshua to fall on his face before Him and worship, along with the ground being rendered so holy Joshua was commanded to remove his shoes, tells us this was not an angel. When angels appear before men, they do not receive any worship and the holy ground points us to Joshua 1:5,” There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee”, signifying as God met Moses at the burning bush, He met with Joshua as the conquest of Canaan began with Jericho. The captain of the host of the Lord can be no other than a pre-incarnate appearance of the Captain of our salvation, the Lord Jesus. If we look for types here, of which there are many, one prominent pattern is that the crossing of the Red Sea represents the believer’s salvation, being linked to deliverance by the blood of the lamb sprinkled on the doorposts, the crossing of the Jordan with the possession of Canaan, represents the believer coming into a present enjoyment of a Spirit-led life and the spiritual warfare that is a part of it. The Lord’s sacrifice not only saves us, but it also brings us into right standing with God, healing through His stripes, joy, peace, communion with God, and untold innumerable blessings. God’s will for us is not to spend our lives saved but wandering in some uncertain wilderness of this world but to enter into our rest with Him. After all, He has already given us the earnest of our inheritance and an open door to the throne of grace. Notice that in Joshua 5:13 the Bible says Joshua “lifted up his eyes and looked”. Salvation lifts our eyes but “looking”, that is seeing with a spiritual view, requires an anointing of faith and hope. In Mark 8, Jesus healed a blind man and he could see but his vision was not clear: people looked like trees and Jesus touched him a second time and he could see clearly. There are many who are saved but still wandering in the wilderness and unable to see with faith eyes. Their world is one that is mainly the things of this life. God’s will is that we enter into the life He has purposed for us and fight the good fight of faith, laying hold on eternal life. The babysitting manna meal isn’t designed to be our life-long daily bread for God has a place flowing with abundance for us where we can (Ephesians 4:15) grow up into him (Christ) in all things.