March 4, 2011 … Seeking A Closeness to God

Passage of the Day: James 4: 8a – Come near to God and He will come near to you.

My Journal for Today: I love the imagery of today’s verse, which, as in Hebrews 10: 19 – 22 [below], takes its flavor and power from the picture of the Old Testament priesthood, who would regularly come to Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle for the cleansing of atonement from the blood sacrifice. The Priests of the OT could draw near to God, and He to them, in this ritual of sacrifice.

SCRIPTURE: Heb. 10: 19-22 … 19 Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21 and having a High Priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

Now, we of faith in the New Covenant can similarly, but perpetually [not having to wait for an annually feast of atonement] come near to God because of Christ’s completed sacrifice; and when we come in the humility of living sacrifice, desiring to “draw near to God,” He, like the father in the parable of the prodigal will not only draw near to us, but He will run joyfully to us.

It is God’s promise in today’s verse, and from Christ’s death, resurrection, and ascension that we will be cleansed and brought into His presence, He being the living Tabernacle, by the living sacrifice of a life of worship in faith (see Rom. 12: 1). And when we come to God’s altar of grace with thankful, humbled, and purified hearts (see 1st John 1: 9), God promises that He will “draw near” to our hearts.

And as the kids would say these days, “Is that not cool, or what?”

I really dig, not only the imagery of the prodigal father running to the prodigal son; but check our the word pictures in Psalm 116: 1 – 2, where God promises to stoop down to our level to hear us in our relationship to Him where we come HUMBLY and THANKFULLY with a CLEANSED spirit to Him, desiring to speak our mind. …

SCRIPTURE: Ps. 116: 1-2 … I love the LORD, for He heard my voice; He heard my cry for mercy. 2 Because He turned His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live.

The word picture from the Hebrew in the phrase, “He turned His ear to me,” is of a father bending down to His small child so that He can hear everything that child has to say. It is the picture of a loving Savior and Lord, who desires the closeness of intimate relationship with those whom He has created, those He has saved, and those He will sanctify. As the Psalmist also wrote in Psalm 73: 28, “ But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge;..." and I feel that closeness right now as I write these words, … even as I sit in my special “quiet-time” place where I come to be with God daily, … I can come to The Tabernacle, with my living sacrifice of worship; and with a humble heart, I can draw nigh to God; and here He is … drawing near to me [See Deut. 31: 6 and Heb. 13: 5].

And with those promises, Old and New Testament, He is here with me everyday; and if you know Him as Lord and Savior, all you have to do it seek to be close to Him; and He will be there for you … just as He is for me here today. Isn't that so, so cool, … yet so, soooooo warm?!

My Prayer Today: I come to this place with You every morning; and You are always here, Lord. Amen

March 3, 2011 … Standing Against The Devil

Passage of the Day: James 4: 7b [note underlined/bold portion in context] – 6 But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." 7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

My Journal for Today: In today’s world, how often do we see or read of politicians, diplomats, or corporate officials wheeling and dealing, compromising for control, or manipulating others to get what they want? I dare say that it’s so commonplace that we’ve become desensitized to its occurrence. We almost expect our government representatives to be shady in their dealings. Maybe you’ve heard others say, as I have, “Oh, it’s just those politicians; what can you expect?”

Well, today’s admonishment from the Apostle James stands out in stark contrast to what we see in the world and what I’ve just described; and it does so in the context of James’ exhortation for Christians to HUMBLY submit to God, while resisting Satan’s dealings in the world. James MacArthur in today’s Strength for Today devotional, makes it clear that Christians can’t live with a foot in both camps, … Satan’s world and God’s kingdom. He posits that everyday our choices as Christians will either reflect Godly kingdom thinking or a Satanic world-view; and these choices certainly cannot reflect both at the same time.

When I read exhortations like the one from James in today’s devotional, I’m taken back to a time about 25 years ago when I was living squarely as an agent of Satan, a “devil’s advocate” by the way I thought, spoke, and lived. It’s like the words of Paul in Ephesians 2: 1 – 2 …

SCRIPTURE: Ephesians 2: 1 - 2… As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.

Yes, Satan’s spirit was clearly at work in my life years ago; and MacArthur’s words ring true of me in those days: “At that time, you had no power to resist the Devil and no desire to serve God, because you were slaves to Satan and his system.” (see Heb. 2: 14 – 15) But that all changed for me in April of 1983 when I humbly received Christ into my life and became a volunteer soldier in God’s kingdom rather than living for Satan’s world. And by making that faith choice and all the discipleship choices that I’ve made since then, my allegiance to serve God has replaced my alignment with Satan and his world. With God’s enabling grace, I now have the ability to wear God’s full armor in His everyday battle to stand against the wiles of Satan (see Eph. 6: 10 – 18 - linked); and I can expect victory in resisting Satan, no matter what he throws against me (see 1st Cor. 10: 13 and Rom. 8: 31). Yes, I’m still weak in my own flesh; but I now have God’s power from His grace to give me His strength (see 2nd Cor. 12: 9). That’s why the exhortation of James today holds God’s truth for the way I live in the world now. I pray that it does for you as well.

MacArthur is right when he reminds us today that Satan is strong; but we have a power in our lives as born-again Christians which is far stronger (see 1st John 4: 4); and our God’s calling to serve Him is His enablement to be victorious (see all of Romans 8; yes, linked here so that you can read all of it!). So, let us take James’ charge and move upward and onward to victory in Christ, Jesus!

My Prayer Today: Lord, I will walk in victory with You … TODAY. Amen

March 2, 2011 … Coming Under God’s Authority

Passage of the Day: James 4: 7a [highlight verse underlined/bold] … 6 But He gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." [quoted from Prov. 3: 34] 7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

My Journal for Today: Okay, moving on to study/discuss the quality of humility, Jesus’ brother, James, has laid it on his readers (i.e., believers in Christ) that the selfless trait of humility is the key to God’s grace. And he almost becomes like a drill sergeant in the military with the strong exhortation in James 4: 7a, “Submit yourselves, then, to God.” I use the military word picture because that’s the contextual Greek that James uses in today’s highlight verse. The term “submit” in this passage is the Greek term “hupotasso,” which was military imagery as to the way soldiers must submit to their commanders. Besides James, the Apostle Paul also used this military imagery, comparing Christians to soldiers in God’s army (two examples …see Phil. 2: 25 and 2nd Tim. 2: 3); and here God, like Paul, James is saying that our humility must be like a soldier who surrenders his allegiance to Christ, as our Commander in Chief, in the “army of God.”

Christ, Himself, took a commander’s tone when He spoke to His disciples in Luke 9: 23, where He spoke clearly the orders we have from Him if we are to follow His leadership; and I really hope you have this command memorized and internalized.

SCRIPTURE: Luke 9: 23 … Then He [Jesus] said to them all [His followers]: "If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me.”

You may remember that this command became impossible for the rich young ruler (see Mark 10: 17 – 23), who was confronted by Christ’s order to submit and humbly surrender all to God. He could not do so; and because of that, he walked away from Christ [and we assume] never to enter into God’s kingdom. He never received God’s saving grace because he was unwilling to submit (i.e., “hupotasso”) to Christ in humility.

And it all begins with humility; doesn’t it? For many, many years I was unwilling to surrender my ego and self to Christ as my Lord. It was only when I recognized my weaknesses and surrendered my will, humbly in repentance to the Lord as my commander, that I was able to receive His saving grace. Now, as a surrendered soldier in God’s army, as I noted in yesterday’s journal entry, the formula is the same to receive God’s enabling grace to carry the crosses of daily life as well (also besides today’s verse, see Prov. 3: 34, 1st Peter 5: 6, and 2nd Cor. 12: 9).

When I’m in SURRENDER MODE, humbly following Christ as my Commander, God can pour His grace into my life and give me the power to do those things which I’m incapable of doing in my flesh … things like discerning evil … resisting sin … or overcoming my own deceitful heart [see Jer. 17: 9]. I hope you know, as cited above, 2nd Cor. 12: 9 or have it memorized …

SCRIPTURE: 2nd Cor. 12: 9 … But He [Jesus] said to me [Paul], "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.

Like it was for the rich young ruler, it’s our choice. We can CHOOSE to deny self, take up His cross daily, and follow Christ ……or NOT! Choosing to surrender self to the Savior is about the wisest choice we can make on a daily, if not momentary, basis. Really, when we choose to do things on our own, in the flesh, we are choosing to march with Satan’s army – his worldly troops. When we choose to obey Christ (again Luke 9: 23), we march behind Him, with Him, and for Him; and we can do all things through Him, Who gives us His strength (you know it! … Phil. 4: 13).

My Prayer Today: You are my Commander in Chief, Lord! Amen

March 1, 2011 … Grace to the Humble

Passage of the Day: James 4: 6 – But He gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." [quoted from Prov. 3: 34]

My Journal for Today: This month I (we) will be looking at one of the most important attitudes a Christian can foster in his life … that of HUMILITY. Why is it so important? Well, come along with me this month as we answer that question, always with the help of John MacArthur in his Strength for Today devotional book.

And today, the first day of March, we begin with the teachings of James, the half-brother of Jesus and a leader of the early church in Jerusalem, … not the Apostle James, who was the brother of the beloved Apostle John. However, even though the author of the Book of James was not the brother of the Apostle John, I’m convinced that James, the New Testament author, and Simon Peter were close. If you read today’s verse and then you read 1st Peter 5: 6, you’ll see that Jesus’ brother and the Apostle John were in total accord with the Old Testament when it came to their opinion on how to unlock God’s treasure chest of sanctifying grace. They both quoted the same verse from the Old Testament in Prov. 3: 34 about this matter, teaching that God’s grace can only come to the humble and that it is withheld from the proud. And so, for the Christian who desires to capture as much of God’s grace as he/she can, growing in Christlikeness, this becomes a key truth – i.e., that humility is the key to God’s grace.

It certainly was the key that unlocked God’s saving grace for me, when, on April 13, 1983, I was finally able/willing to humble myself and receive Christ as my Savior and Lord. For years I had let my pride get in the way of pursuing Christ. But when I finally became humble enough to recognize and repent of my sinfulness, God poured His saving grace into my life. And now, in my discipleship and growth as a Christian, I’ve discovered that this truth ALWAYS applies for God’s enabling grace as well. Pride shuts the door to God’s shower of grace; and humility opens it!

My sinfulness prior to 4/13/83 was immense. I certainly didn’t deserve God’s saving grace; but He offered it anyway (see John 3: 16 and Romans 10: 9 – 13). And when I was able to recognize my sinfulness, repent, and reach out in humility to receive God’s gift of saving grace (Eph. 2: 8 - 9), God’s gift of grace was there for me; and my life has never been the same. Oh, most certainly, I’m still battling my sin nature. All Christians do. However, I now know that as long as I can remain humble before God’s throne of grace, He will pour His enabling grace into my life to help me overcome my sinfulness and to walk in a manner worth of His grace (Eph. 4: 1, 2).

So, if you’re reading this, you must first ask yourself if you’ve humbly come to God and asked for His saving grace. If you have done that and you know that you’re saved, perhaps you desire more of Gods’ enabling grace in your life – the grace that gives you power to overcome your weaknesses (see 2nd Cor. 12: 9). And, if that’s the case, it would behoove you to look at your attitude about living. Are you letting your pride block the treasure of God’s grace which awaits the humble servant who is willing to serve others before self? If you’re willing to live by Luke 9: 23, the words of Jesus to His disciples about being His follower, then you will have all the grace you need to follow our Lord [also see 2nd Peter 1: 3 – 4].

My Prayer Today: It’s a scary prayer, Lord; but help me to be humble! Amen

February 28, 2011 … God’s Glory in Christ

Passage of the Day: John 1: 14 … The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

My Journal for Today: Still focusing on God’s glory and His character for today this final day of February, the beloved Apostle, John, declared in today’s verse, Jesus Christ was (and still is) the personification of God’s glory (see also Hebrews 1: 3 below).

SCRIPTURE: Heb. 1: 3 … The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful word. After He had provided purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

God has made His glory manifest and visible for all mankind to witness and follow in the incarnation and personhood of Jesus Christ and then by giving His church His canonized word. The God-Man walked on this earth, and as chronicled in the New Testament, Jesus was, of course, a man; but even then, three of His inner circle of Disciples were witness to the glorified Christ on the “Mount of Transfiguration.” (read of it in Luke 9: 28 – 36 - linked here for your review) However, they also experienced and wrote about Christ’s personhood as The Son of Man.

When Christ comes again, it will be in His full glory (Matt. 24: 30), the whole remaining earth will see what Peter, James, and John were privileged to see in that mountaintop spiritual experience. Everyone will see the glorified Christ (as in the account of Numbers 24: 21).

SCRIPTURE: Numbers 14: 21a …, as surely as I live and as surely as the glory of the LORD fills the whole earth, …

So, as we now have relationship with the glorified Christ, what should be our response to the glory of God which we find in our Lord? Well, the first, of course is adoration and praise [see Luke 2: 14]; and our lives should be our worship of living sacrifice, as Paul wrote about in Rom. 12: 1. Only then, in obedience to God’s word, can we attain but a reflection of God’s glory (see 2nd Cor. 3: 18). For in walking in obedient worthiness to God’s glory, we become a living refection of His light, shining righteousness into a darkened world, ultimately reflecting His glory in the process (see Phil. 2: 15 and Matt. 5: 16).

My Prayer Today: Yes, again I say, Lord … shine Your light through me. Amen

Blogger’s Note: It’s been a good month with those who’ve come along with me. In March, if you come along with me, I’ll continue using John MacArthur’s devotional, Strength for Today, to take an in-depth look at the one spiritual quality, modeled by Jesus, which we need to capture and utilize God’s sanctifying, enabling, empowering, enlightening, encouraging grace; and that quality is HUMILITY. Come along with me and let’s all grow together. … wrb

February 27, 2011 … God’s Glory

Passage of the Day: Psalm 19: 1 … The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

My Journal for Today: John MacArthur in Strength for Today writes for this date, “God’s glory is the radiance of all He is.” And reflecting on God’s attributes and character, as I have been this month, one would certainly be remiss if we ignored His glory.

However, like the radiance of the sun, we cannot look directly upon God’s glory, … only at its afterglow or reflection. Moses prayed to see God’s face (i.e., His glory), and God would let Moses only see His back (see Exodus 33: 18 – 20). But God has put – and still does put – reflections of glory into the lives of His children to let us see glimpses of the afterglow. Consider these passages in the Old Testament, illustrating God’s glory revealed to His people …

SCRIPTURE: Exodus 13: 21 … By day the LORD went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night.
SCRIPTURE: Exodus 40: 34 … Then the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.
SCRIPTURE: 1st Kings 8: 10-11 … When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the temple of the LORD. 11 And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled his temple.

God simply will not give His glory directly to us – except in the Person of His Son and the indwelling presence of His Spirit … as God spoke through the Prophet, Isaiah …

SCRIPTURE: Isaiah 42: 8 …"I am the LORD; that is My name! I will not give my glory to another or My praise to idols.”

We must be satisfied, as the Psalmist declares in today’s verse, to receive, what I call, “glimpses of glory.” Perhaps this comes through His creation, as I was privileged to see by a lake in Kentucky one morning when I was about to give a talk to a group with a sermon entitled, “God’s Love Through His Creation.” As I sat there on a bench with the sun rising across the lake, two doves flew down and lit about 6 - 8 feet from where I was sitting. They nuzzled one another and cooed for at least 2 – 3 minutes and then flew off TOGETHER. It was as if God was saying to me, “… Bill, let Me give you a glimpse of my love through My creation.” To me, it was a definite “glimpse of glory” from my God.

Perhaps we get glimpses of God’s glory in the unselfish relationship of a forgiving and loving Christian who does something you know to be quite beyond what you might’ve expected from that person. Have you ever been forgiven when you didn’t deserve it? Have you ever extended your love or caring to someone where it was difficult-to-impossible to do so and way beyond what would be “normal” for you? Such acts of humanity are not “natural.” It’s way beyond the natural. That, dear one, is a glimpse of God’s glory being extended in Christ-like manner through another or through you, yourself.

Perhaps you’ve read a passage of scripture which you’ve read many times before; and suddenly you were enveloped by a warmth of understanding and discernment that you’ve never had when you read that passage in the past. It was as if God was shining a light of truth on you through His word. That is definitely a “glimpse of God’s glory.”

And for these special insights into the Glory of God, we must declare, as did the Psalmist [in Ps. 86: 12], …“I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify Your Name forever.”

My Prayer Today: May all that I am, Lord, be a reflection of your Glory. Amen

February 26, 2011 … God Is Faithful To Keep Us

Passage of the Day: 1st Thessalonians 5: 23 – 24 [see bold/underlined in context] … 23 May God Himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 The One who calls you is faithful and He will do it.

My Journal for Today: Talk about faithfulness! Yesterday we saw that God is faithful to PROVIDE for us and to PROTECT us. But it gets better! Yes, even when we blow it – and we most certainly do! – God is faithful to forgive us and cleanse us (I’ll bet you know 1st John 1: 9 – if not, check it out; … maybe even memorize it!). And even beyond this, God promises to selectively “forget” our sins (see Jeremiah 31: 34 below as the prophet speaks for God)…

SCRIPTURE: Jeremiah 31: 34 … No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' because they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest," declares the LORD. "For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more."

And yes, there’s even more from God’s faithfulness! His promises continue to mount as He is faithful to perfect believers (i.e., sanctify or complete us) into Christ’s image, which He predestined for us (do a study of today’s verse plus Philippians 1: 6 and Romans 8: 29).

Now that’s faithfulness!!

I love the story that John MacArthur writes in Strength for Today on this date to illustrate God’s wondrous faithfulness. He writes about a dad who tells his young boy to wait in front of a dime store window for him while the father must run an errand (this was in a day when such things were safe). On the way to complete the errand, the car breaks down and five hours elapse until the frantic father can get back to his son, whom he finds waiting and looking longingly into the store window – just as the dad had charged him to do. The dad asks, “Weren’t you worried?” And the boy replied, “No, Dad, I knew you were coming. You said you would.”

And that is God’s faithfulness, especially to obedient children who know, by faith, that He’s going to return, … even for the disobedient children who somehow, at some time in their lives, come to develop the faith of that little child so that repentant child of God will be received into God’s family - forever! And personally, having come from a life of so much disobedience and having been cleansed and redeemed from that sinful life by God’s faithfulness, how could I not cling to the faithfulness of God’s grace to allow me to wait on Him until He returns?

I pray, my dear one, that we’re both like that little child, waiting at the store window, for our Abba Father to come get us, … just as He has promised He would.

My Prayer Today: Until You come for me, Lord; I’m here waiting. Amen

February 25, 2011 … God Is Faithful To Care For Us

Passage of the Day: 1st Corinthians 1: 9 [see bold/underlined in context] … God, Who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.

My Journal for Today: If you are reading this, I think you’d agree with me that our world and life is riddled with unfaithfulness. Think of the companies here in the 21st century, such as Enron, who have defrauded their employees. We have a divorce rate well over 50%, indicating that relational distrust in marriage is at an all time high in our country. And this involves Christian couples as well as marriages of unbelievers. Who reading this has not been “damaged” in some way by someone who was not faithful to our trust or expectations? Who among us has not been unfaithful to another person in some way, even to those with whom we’re close?

So Paul’s simple declarative, “God … is faithful” stands as a stark contrast to the world’s human record on faithfulness. God’s faithfulness is touted again and again in the Old Testament (see Deut. 7: 9; Lam. 3: 23; and Ps. 36: 5); and the New Testament teaches about the benefits of God’s faithfulness in two primary areas: PROVISION and PROTECTION. Note Peter’s words in 1st Peter 4: 19 below …

SCRIPTURE: 1st Peter 4: 19 … So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.

According to MacArthur in Strength for Today, that term “commit” (or “entrust” in other translations) in Peter’s declaration above is a term with a banking origin from the Greek (the word is “paratithami” – Strong 3908), which refers to a safe or trustworthy deposit. In other words, in more modern language, we might say that we can take our trust in God’s faithfulness, in both areas of provision and protection, “to the bank” as we turn our lives over to Him in “living sacrifice.” (see an oft-sited [by me], trustworthy scripture in Rom. 12: 1) God’s PROVISION, this first area of God’s faithfulness, tells us that all things or all circumstances are provided faithfully by God in all ways for our well being (see Phil. 4: 19 and Rom. 8: 28). And the Greek word for “all” means “ALL!” God’s provision, even when we don’t particularly like what is provided, is ALWAYS faithful.

BUT, I fully admit, it’s really tough to see God’s faithfulness in His PROVISION when things are not going well in our human circumstances. By that I mean, when things are not going the way of our own plans or desires – especially when these circumstances are painful, it’s hard for us to see our God as a “faithful” provider. 1st Cor. 10 : 13 and Hebrews 13: 5, however, tell us that God is always faithful, and He will never abandon us – even when the trials of life test our faith. Now, … we either believe God’s word and live accordingly; … or we live in constant doubt that God is faithful.

But moving on, … the second area summarized by MacArthur in his devotional about God’s faithfulness, is the area of PROTECTION. No truly believing Christian can cop-out and claim that our temporal or worldly circumstances, even the trials and tribulations, are just too much for us. No, … we can’t claim that because God promise is to FAITHFULLY help us deal with any/all such circumstances (again I cite 1st Cor. 10: 13, which, if you’re following me, you probably have memorized by now from the frequency of its citation in my devotional journal entries). And in all of our life situations, God promises from His word to give us strength and protection to deal with life – and even with the devil himself (research Phil. 4: 13; 2nd Cor. 12: 9; and 1st Thes. 3: 3).

My brothers/sisters, … again I say, “We either believe in God and His faithfulness; or we don’t!” Personally, I choose to believe … and to know that I’m covered in life – no matter how bad things get! … Now will I say that tomorrow if I I’m engulfed in painful circumstances? I hope so – no, I pray so – that I will!

My Prayer Today: You are truly faithful, O Lord! Amen

February 24, 2011 … God Is True

Passage of the Day: John 3: 33 [see bold/underlined in context] … 31 "The One who comes from above is above all; the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth. The One who comes from heaven is above all. 32 He testifies to what He has seen and heard, but no one accepts His testimony.33 The man who has accepted it has certified that God is truthful. 34 For the One whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.”

My Journal for Today: I present the focus verse (John 3: 33) today in the context of Jesus’ teaching to Nicodemus (and all believers), where He declares that for one to believe in Jesus as the Son of God also accepts His word as the word of God [i.e., God’s truth]. And I personally do not believe that one can call himself/herself “Christian” and question the authenticity of God’s word (i.e., the Bible). But there are a lot of people claiming to be “Christian” out there who are doing just that.

If one cannot believe in the truth of God’s word in 2nd Tim. 3: 16, … that “all scripture is inspired by God,” then any writings from the Bible could be brought into question as unreliable – and the only judge as to the authority of scripture would be an individual’s interpretation as his/her own standard, not an absolute truth from God’s word. Balaam, though not a righteous man himself and one whom some scholars label as an apostate, spoke in Lam. 23: 19, “God is not a man that He should lie…;” and the Apostle Paul even more firmly declared, “God … does not lie.” (see Rom. 3: 4 and Titus 1: 2). And several times in the “upper room discourse,” Jesus taught that God’s Spirit was/is Truth (see John 14: 16 - 17; 15: 26; 16: 13).

SCRIPTURE: John 14: 16 … [Jesus] … “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth.”
SCRIPTURE: John 15: 26 … [again, Jesus] … " When the Counselor comes, Whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth Who goes out from the Father, He will testify about me.”
SCRIPTURE: John 16: 13 … [once more, Jesus] … " But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth.”

And so, because God is truth, by extension, His word, inspired by God, the Holy Spirit, becomes His living truth [again 2nd Tim. 3: 16]. We read the Psalmist say [in Ps. 119: 160], “The sum of Your word is truth,” which was echoed by Jesus in John 17: 17 … [from the prayer of Jesus for His disciples] “Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth.”

Well, you may have heard a non-believer, perhaps a declared “atheist,” deny the reality of God and/or disclaim the truth of the Bible, labeling it as interesting literature or an outright fable. However, in doing so, these “devil’s advocates” label themselves according to God’s very own truth, where it says [in Ps. 14: 1 or 53: 1), “… the fool has said, ‘There no God.’ "

Hey, … I know about such foolishness; … I used to be one of them! However, now I know, in faith, experience, and testimony, that in our speaking and living as Christians, we, who know God’s truth (in the Bible) must become witnesses of THE Living Truth, … Who, of course is Jesus (see John 14: 6b). And in living the truth in our lives, we become living torches for The Truth, glorifying God (see Matt. 5: 16) in a very dark, and ever darkening, world.

My Prayer Today: May everything I do and say, Lord, shine Your light of truth! Amen

February 23, 2011 … God’s Wrath

Passage of the Day: Romans 1: 18 … The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, …

My Journal for Today: These words of truth are strong concerning God’s wrath; and I agree with John MacArthur, who in Strength for Today on this date, posits that Evangelical Christians tend to think of God in terms of love/grace, rather than about God’s wrath. Often it is thought that God’s wrath is Old Covenant theology and God’s grace is New Covenant doctrine. It’s understandable that we humans would want to sweep the truth about God’s wrath under the carpet and ignore it; but … it’s wrong to do so because God’s wrath is just as much a part of the character of God in the New Testament as is His love for His children under the Old Covenant.

God hasn’t changed (see Hebrews 13: 8)! And today’s New Testament verse focuses on the same quality of God that was seen evident at the time of the great flood (Genesis, Chapters 6 and 7) as well as when God brought His wrath down upon Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis, Chapters 17 and 18).

Make no mistake. Jesus spoke clearly of God’s wrath in the context of salvation in the same Bible passage where we read the description of the extent of His love (i.e., John 3: 16). Check out John 3: 36 …

SCRIPTURE: John 3: 36 … [Jesus] … “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him."

Therefore, we New Covenant [i.e., New Testament] believers must remember that God’s wrath, which, in the Greek of today’s verse, is “orge,” … is theologically defined as “the settled, determined indignation and hatred which God has for sin” … Old or New Testament. And without the balanced qualities of mercy/grace, which I’ve been reviewing the past few days in my devotional journal entries, we would be doomed by God’s wrath. However, being able to receive God’s saving grace from the covering of blood provided by the Lamb of God, i.e., Christ on the cross, any believer can and will escape the horrible wrath that God holds for anyone who is unholy. And I reflect with horror on all those years in which I mocked and “spit-in-the-face” of the grace-filled God Whom I now worship and serve. To think that I ignored God’s wrath for sin for all those younger adult years of my life is scary, especially now knowing about and recognizing just how much God’s wrath hates any kind of sin, … especially the chronic intentional and habitual sin to which I was bound for all those years of pleasure seeking. >>> How grateful can a sinner-turned-saint be? Well, look no further than yours truly to find one.

My fellow believer, KNOW that Jesus is going to return to deal out His wrath upon unrepentant sinners who reject Him (see 2nd Thes. 1: 8 or 2nd Pet. 2: 4 -10 - both linked). But the other side of this balanced theological coin is the truth that God’s love/mercy/grace is offered to any or all who believe and receive salvation in the Person and sacrifice of Jesus Christ (see Romans 10: 9 – 13). And for any or all who read here who’ve “sealed the deal” and have received God’s free grace of salvation through your faith, we will share heaven together [!] because of God’s love.

Can I hear a resounding ” HALLELUJAH!!; or at least, a sincere … “PRAISE THE LORD?”

My Prayer Today: Lord, Your wrath is very real; but Your love and mercy are mine in Christ. Amen

February 22, 2011 … Being Merciful

Passage of the Day: Luke 6: 36 … [Jesus] “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”

My Journal for Today: If you are a saved Christian reading this, I would assume, like myself, you aspire to Christlikeness. Well, most certainly, when it comes to the quality of mercy, Christ, the God-Man, was our model of mercy; and in today’s verse, He flat-out commands His followers to be merciful like His Father was/is merciful.

Yes, being merciful was Christ’s “M.O.,” for sure. Often, in the gospel accounts, we read of Him healing those who came to Him (for example - see Matt. 20: 30, 34). And The Messiah also showed spiritual mercy by forgiving sins (see Luke 5: 18 – 25), which drove the Pharisees wild because, to them, only God could forgive sins; and they simply could not see that Jesus, proclaiming the forgiveness of sins, was truly God being merciful to save sinners. And of course, one of the clearest examples of Christ’s mercy came on the cross as He forgave those who put him to death, which, of course was you and me (see Luke 23: 34).

So, with Christ both modeling God’s mercy and commanding us to be merciful, we should reach out physically, emotionally, and spiritually when we see others in need and be merciful (see John’s exhortation in 1st John 3: 18 …

SCRIPTURE: 1st John 3: 18 … Dear children [i.e., followers of Christ], let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.

And one of the most merciful acts we can offer – especially to the lost – would be to witness and share our faith with them. Think about it! If we have an acquaintance, friend, or loved one whom we perceive is headed to hell, the most merciful thing we can do is to share the Gospel truth with our testimony; and God promises that we will have Spirit-given power in doing so (see Acts 1: 8). The lost must choose Christ; but we must MERCIFULLY share Him with them in love with the love of God (see Matt. 28: 19 - 20, the Great Commission).

And if we see a Christian who is clearly involved in a pattern of sin, blocking or damaging that one’s relationship with Christ, we are commanded to help restore him, mercifully and lovingly, to a healthy and growing relationship with his/her Savior (see Gal. 6: 1). It is God’s mercy, being doled out to others, Christian or non-Christian, which demonstrates the reality of Christ’s Spirit working in and through a true, born-again believer. Certainly, it’s easier for one to extend mercy when that one has the Spiritual gift of mercy; but as we read in today’s command from Jesus, it is the responsibility of ALL His followers to be merciful, especially as we are transformed into Christlikeness.

So, TODAY, will you join me in a pledge to be as sensitive as we can be to those who need God’s mercy, especially to the lost or those who are drifting away from Christ? Join me in a commitment to reach out and to be Christ, TODAY, to that person. Let’s pray, as I will do so below, for a divine appointment TODAY to show mercy from God, through us, TODAY. And perhaps that one whom God may bring into our path will find God’s mercy TODAY as we are enabled and empowered to share the Lord’s mercy TODAY.

My Prayer Today: Lord, I humbly pray that You would help me, and anyone reading here with me, to show Your mercy to someone this very day. Amen

February 21, 2011 … God’s Merciful Grace

Passage of the Day: 1st Peter 1: 3 [note bold/underlined portion] … Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, …

My Journal for Today: For the last two days I’ve focused on God’s amazing grace. Now, from today’s passage, the Apostle Peter helps us see God’s wondrous mercy which is imparted through His grace; and both God’s mercy and grace are qualities which spring from God’s infinite love for His children, … yes, even for His created children who, like myself for many years, become pitiful creatures bonded to sin. God has seen our pathetic condition as sinners; and He has lovingly and faithfully crafted a plan, not only to save us but to take us from the death of sin to the eternal life of sainthood. And that is not only in Heaven … but in this life as well. Now that’s mercy!

But as I just said, God’s mercy does not end with salvation. It means that God’s Spirit will sanctify us from gory into glory … God reshaping his broken children [yes, that’s you and me!] into the image of our Savior. That’s what Paul wrote about to the church (and to us) in Ephesians 2: 1- 5 and Titus 3: 4 - 5 …

SCRIPTURE: Ephesians 2: 1-5 … As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions— it is by grace you have been saved.
SCRIPTURE: Titus 3: 4-5 … But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, …

And according the Old Testament truth of Lamentations 3: 22 – 23, these grace-offered mercies are “new every morning” from the faithfulness of God. It is His mercy which provides continual cleansing from our sin, repented in humility (1st John 1: 9). And as the writer of Hebrews attests, we can forever draw near to God’s throne of grace with confidence to receive God’s mercy and to find His grace in our time of need (see Hebrews 4: 16).

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 4: 16 … Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Think of it! Every day – nay, every moment … any of us, who know Christ as Savior and Lord, can draw nigh and have all of God’s mercy we can receive. Wow [!], … how special is that?!

My Prayer Today: I come, Lord … humbled to receive your grace and mercy today. Amen

February 20, 2011 … The Measure of Grace

Passage of the Day: Romans 5: 20 – 21 … [note bold/underlined portion] … 20 The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, 21 so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

My Journal for Today: Yesterday, we looked at the “Meaning of Grace,” defining and discussing three forms of God’s grace; and it’s important for all of us to realize that God’s grace, being a gift from God, can only be captured and used if it’s received by a believer who is humble enough to reach out and make it his own. We’re all sinners (believing the truth of Rom. 3: 23). And today’s verse is one of the most hopeful in the Bible for a sinner like me [or you … if I’m presumptuous enough to think that someone else might read this].

In my journaling for today, Dr. MacArthur helps me recognize that the Apostle Paul lays out a wondrous truth in Rom. 5: 20b (underlined above) … that God’s grace is greater than any sin committed by any sinner. If you’ve read Paul’s story in Acts 9: 1 – 19 [linked here for your study], it has to give you great encouragement. If God will extend His grace to a scoundrel like Saul of Tarsus, then our Lord can and will do so for one like me (or you).

Think about how difficult it must have been for God’s prevenient grace to pursue a proud Sanhedrin Pharisee like Saul of Tarsus, one who had been such an anti-Christ for so many years [see 1st Tim. 1: 12-17 - also linked]. But pursue Saul, God did! And on that road to Damascus, Saul, who became “Paul” in conversion, received Christ’s amazing saving grace [see 1stTim. 1: 16] Following this, the Pauline Epistles become the documentation of the enabling grace of our Lord to sanctify and reshape this former Christ-hater into the preeminent preacher/teacher/evangelist of the New Testament; and that is the measure of God’s grace in action, … for sure !!

As John MacArthur in Strength for Today writes, “God is not stingy with His grace,” as we can read below in Eph. 1: 6 – 8 … and Paul goes on in 2nd Cor. 9: 8 …

SCRIPTURE: Ephesians 1: 6-8 … to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace 8 that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.
SCRIPTURE: 2nd Cor. 9: 8 … And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

And as Romans 5: 20 attests [above] today, great sins or big-time sinners require great grace; and God is always there for the truly repentant sinner, providing all he/she would ever need to be salvaged, saved, or sustained to live as a Christian - eternally. And to that truth, I am both ample testimony and witness.

My Prayer Today: Lord, I seek Your abundant grace; and may my life be a testimony to it! Amen

February 19, 2011 … The Meaning of Grace

Blogger’s Note: Get your bible out, pilgrim. I make reference to a lot of scriptures below, some of which you may not know by heart. I hope that I don’t seem to be pounding home a Christianity 101 lesson about God’s grace here, especially for you well initiated Bible students/scholars. But I certainly benefitted today from John MacArthur’s lesson on the basics of God’s amazing grace. If you’re with me here today, I hope you are edified as well.

Passage of the Day: Exodus 34: 6 [note bold, underlined portion] … 6 And He [The Lord, Jehovah] passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, 7 maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet He does not leave the guilty unpunished; He punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation."

My Journal for Today: Out of God’s infinite and unconditional love springs His grace … to quote those famous lyrics by John Newton … “amazing grace, … which saved a wretch like me.” Exodus 34: 6, today’s highlight passage, is repeated several times by a number of Old Testament authors (e.g., Nehemiah 9: 17, 31; as well as in Psalms 86: 15; 103: 8: 145: 8). In the New Testament, both Paul and John declare the same thing (see 1st Tim. 1: 14 and John 1: 16). And think of how God’s grace, i.e., His unmerited favor, worked in the lives of all of these authors … for Moses, setting God’s people free from Pharaoh … for Nehemiah, rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem … for David, the adulterer/murderer, who was “the man after God’s own heart … for Saul of Tarsus, the Sanhedrin hit-man, who became the Apostle Paul; … and for John, the simple fisherman, who was given mental entrance to see Heaven. Could God’s love and grace be more evident than for these men?

As we look at God’s grace, freely offered to any believer who receives it, we find that it comes to us in three forms; and the first of these is God’s PREVENIENT GRACE, … the grace that “comes before” (the meaning of “prevenient”). This is the grace offered to any sinner whom God foreknows is destined to be His child forever as well as the grace which draws a born-again child of God back when that one has strayed from God. And I can speak from testimony as to how God’s prevenient grace Shepherded me through the circumstances of my life, seeking me out, hunting me down, and drawing me into God’s eternal flock. This grace that goes before (see Deut. 31: 8) brought me to a place where I could finally receive the second form of God’s grace, … His saving grace.

And to discuss this second form of grace, which is God’s SAVING GRACE, the Apostle Paul’s Spirit-led writings abound with the truth that God saves any believer who freely, without any works to earn it, comes to God in humility to receive His salvation (see Eph. 2: 8, 2nd Tim. 1: 9, and Titus 3: 5). And God, through Paul, further wrote that where sin abounds, so much more does God’s saving grace abound (Romans 5: 10). Christ died and now lives so that anyone who comes to Him might be saved by His amazing saving grace.

Finally, there is God’s ENABLING GRACE [sometimes referred to as “sanctifying grace”] the grace that sustains me and gives me the power to overcome my weaknesses from my sin nature, just as Paul testified personally in 2nd Cor. 12: 7, 9 and Phil. 4: 13. And oh, how I identify with these passages. We’re all weak; but God’s enabling grace allows us to deal with any of life’s challenges (see 1st Cor. 10: 13 and 2nd Cor. 12: 9).

Truly God’s grace is sufficient to draw the sinner to Himself (prevenient grace), to save any wretched sinner (saving grace), and to lift up that sinner (enabling grace), shaping him or her into God’s own image. Are you not humbled, as am I, that God would choose us (see Exodus 33: 19) to be His own children, and not only that, but heirs to His Throne? And so it is God’s grace that lifts me and drives me to apply it in my life, … becoming the workmanship which Paul wrote about in Eph. 2: 8 – 10.

SCRIPTURE: Ephesians 2: 8-10 … For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

So …

My Prayer Today: To God be the glory, … by His grace. Amen

February 18, 2011 … God’s Sacrificial Love

Passage of the Day: John 3: 16 … For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

My Journal for Today: In John MacArthur’s exposition of God’s character this month in Strength for Today, he has been looking at God’s character of love in the past few days. Yesterday we saw that Godly love is unconditional, yet confrontational (as to our sin). Today, in this very familiar verse spoken by Jesus, which you probably know by heart, we see that God’s love is sacrificial.

In the Old Testament, we read from Isaiah’s prophesy about the Messiah, how our Lord would carry the grief of the world as He sacrificed for all mankind (see Is. 53: 4 [linked]). And the Apostle Paul carried this theme of sacrificial love into his teachings about how we, as Christians, must live and love for others before self (see Gal. 6: 2), thereby fulfilling God’s law of love.

SCRIPTURE: Galatians 6: 2 … Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

Every time I read this verse I’m convicted about how lacking in sacrifice my love for others is offered at times and how conditional it can become with my expectations for recompense as I offer to help others. Praise God for His mercy in the face of my self-driven “love!”

Sacrificial love, of course, was always the teaching of Jesus; and He modeled it so convincingly and perfectly for all mankind. He commanded ALL His disciples, not just the original twelve, to love one another, even including our enemies (see Luke 6: 35). And His command of love becomes infinitely tougher when He said to believers that we’re to expect nothing in return. However, in the greatest sacrifice of all, for anyone who receives the free-offering of God’s cross-bearing love, God is willing to give nothing less than the greatest reward of all … Heaven.

Is that not the deal of a lifetime?

I believe that those who really “get this” and demonstrate lives of “living sacrifice” (as Paul wrote about in Rom 12: 1); … to these, I believe, God will bestowed the greatest rewards in Heaven. As Jesus taught, the least shall be the greatest [Matt. 23: 11-12]. So, I’ve got a long way to go when it comes to my love quotient … to choose to be humbled as a servant as I show God’s love to others … prayerfully more today than yesterday and even more tomorrow than today.

My Prayer Today: And so, I pray, Lord that You help me grow in Your love as I choose to love others before self. Amen

February 17, 2011 … God’s Unfailing Love

Passage of the Day: 1st John 4: 8 … Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

My Journal for Today: It is utterly true, as the Apostle declared in today’s highlight text, that “God is love.” And I hope we all know that it is God’s very nature to be loving. However, we cannot take this in a one dimensional context, saying that because God’s love is unconditional, God will accept our sin nature, and especially our sinful behaviore, in His sight. We must always remember that God ALWAYS loves the sinner; but He also ALWAYS hates sin.

So, God’s nature, being love, has two dimensions; and the first of these is the UNCONDITIONAL nature of His Fatherly love. Romans 5: 8, probably as well as any other scripture, spells out God’s unconditional love in the face of our sin nature …

SCRIPTURE: Romans 5: 8 … But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

You probably know John 3: 16 by heart, which along with Rom. 5: 8 above, states that God was willing to sacrifice and die on a cross s0 that you and me, as sinners, may live eternally. Jesus taught about the extending of God’s unconditional love in Luke 6: 32 – 36 …

SCRIPTURE: Luke 6: 32-36 … [the teaching of Jesus] If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' lend to 'sinners,' expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”

It’s easy to show our love, even our human, brotherly love (Greek = “philadelphia”) to the lovable. But to the unlovable, we begin to see how God’s unconditional love (Greek = “agape”) is not easy to produce in our human will. In fact, I believe that one, especially a non-believer, cannot possibly extend “agape” to another through the natural will. It takes a supernatural surrender of one’s will to God, so that GOD can extend His hand of love through the believer to the unlovable, … yes, even to our enemies, … as Jesus described (above in Luke 6: 35). Now that’s real-deal “tough love” … God’s type of love.

And we must also never forget the second attribute of Godly love; and that is its ever present confrontation with sin. Note the instruction of love involved in Hebrews 12: 5 - 6, where the author quotes from Prov. 3: 11, 12 …

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 12: 5-6 … And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: "My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, 6 because the Lord disciplines those He loves, and He punishes everyone He accepts as a son." [Prov. 3: 11,12]

If any of you, reading here with me, are parents, you know how tough it is to confront ungodly, wrongful behavior in your child. But the confrontation with evil must take place; and it takes place in the context of the love that drives the confrontation. As John MacArthur puts it in Strength for Today, … “True love doesn’t indulge unrighteousness; it confronts it.”

God’s love, through His Spirit, indwelling the hearts of believers, ever confronts our sin; and we feel it in the form of conviction of conscience and healthy, revealing guilt. That is God confronting our sin nature by His love and our loving, Heavenly Father drawing us, through His prevenient grace, to Himself.

So, as we look at God’s nature of love further in the next few days, we need to ask ourselves whether the love we choose to offer (and love is always a choice – not a feeling) is unconditional and whether it is appropriately confrontational. If so, God is in our love and He will be glorified as it is offered to others in His Name.

My Prayer Today: Lord, let my love, offered to others, be Your love. Amen

February 16, 2011 … The Comfort of God’s Omniscience

Passage of the Day: John 21: 17 … The third time He [Jesus] said to him [Peter], "Simon son of John, do you love me?" Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you love Me?" He said, "Lord, You know all things; You know that I love you."

My Journal for Today: Like the impetuous Apostle, Peter, in my past I’ve been a stumbler … yes, even in denial of Christ. I’ve done things that exhibit my mockery of God. But today’s verse shows that Peter was restored of confidence in His Savior and Lord … in God’s omniscience. And we all can share in that confidence that God knows everything about each and every one of us.

It may seem at times that we are lost in insignificance, especially when we are isolating ourselves in sin or disobedience from God or unGodly habits. But as God declared through Malachi to His people, God knows His children AND He will save them … see Malachi 3: 17 …

SCRIPTURE: Malachi 3: 17 … "They will be Mine," says the LORD Almighty, "in the day when I make up My treasured possession. I will spare them, just as in compassion a man spares his son who serves him.”

David wrote of his remorse over his sin, desiring that God spare him [see Psalm 56:8] …

SCRIPTURE: Psalm 56: 8 … Record my lament; list my tears on Your scroll — are they not in Your record?

But Jesus declares (in John 6: 37) that He will never let any in His flock be lost …

SCRIPTURE: John 6: 37 … “All that the Father gives me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me I will never drive away.”

So, as a formerly lost and now found child of God, my Good Shepherd, even knowing my deceitful heart (see Jer. 17: 9) will never cast me out of His flock; and He will never leave me, nor forsake me [see Heb. 13: 5]. And it is greatly comforting knowing, in my heart of hearts, that my God is all knowing and that there is nothing about be of which He does not know … and yet, He still loves me!

Therefore, just like Peter [in today’s verse], I can declare with assurance, “Lord, You know all things; and so, You know I love You.”

My Prayer Today: I love You, Lord! Amen

February 15, 2011 … God Knows Everything

Passage of the Day: Psalm 147: 5 … Great is our Lord and mighty in power; His understanding has no limit.

My Journal for Today: Today, again with the help of John MacArthur’s Strength for Today, we focus on God’s omniscience; and in today’s verse, the Psalmist declares that God’s “… understanding has no limit (i.e., is infinite).” Translation for personal application: GOD KNOWS EVERYTHING! And we either believe, as did Isaiah, that no one knows more than God (see Is. 40: 13 – 14], or we don’t. In that passage, Isaiah asks … Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, Or as His counselor has taught Him? 14 With whom did He take counsel, and who instructed Him, and taught Him in the path of justice? Who taught Him knowledge, and showed Him the way of understanding?

And the answer to Isaiah’s inquiry, of course, is NO ONE!

This, of course means [to me] that God knows my every thought (see Is. 66: 18a); and nothing is darkness to my God (see Ps. 139: 12). It means that there is no place for me to hide from God’s omniscience (see Ps. 139: 7). Hopefully, - and prayerfully – this truth can and will be a deterrent to sin in my life. And, in fact, the more I come to know my Lord, mostly through His word, I am more and more aware that, even though Christ paid the penalty for my sin, God still judges sin (see below Eccl. 12: 14), and because of His love for me, He will convict or discipline me for any sin I commit (see below Heb. 12: 5 – 11).

SCRIPTURE: Eccl. 12: 14 … God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.
SCRIPTURE: Heb. 12: 5-11 … And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: "My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, 6 because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son." [ quote taken from Prov.3:11-12] 7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? 8 If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. 9Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! 10 Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

Therefore, I would hope that anyone who reads my journal today, as I express this from my heart, … we all can agree that our hope lies in the power of God (see John 6: 40 below), Who’s all-knowing Spirit will raise me (us) one day just as God, the Father, did for His Son, our Savior, to eternal life and our position as co-heir to His throne.

SCRIPTURE: John 6: 40 Jesus Speaking “For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."

Again, I declare with the younger generation of believers … “Is this not just too cool!!!”

My Prayer Today: Lord, You know my every sin. Help me to know clearly when I do it … so that I won’t repeat it! Amen

February 14, 2011 … Our Response To God’s Power

Passage of the Day: Isaiah 40: 31 … but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

My Journal for Today: Today’s verse is one of the classic scriptures documenting the strength that can be available to the believer who has complete trust and hope in an all-powerful, omnipotent God. So, if we desire to …“soar on [His] wings like eagles …,” what must be our (my) response to an omnipotent God? And I’m going to list the factors of pursuit which my devotional Shepherd, Dr. MacArthur, lists; … and if you’re following along, get your Bibles out – or maybe your PC or smart phone with a Bible App - and be ready to seek out the biblical support for each point.

>>> Well, in MacArthur’s devotional for this date in Strength for Today, the first element in my capturing God’s power is to recognize that I am God’s workmanship and that I live for His glory (see Eph. 2: 10).
>>> Next, I must place ALL my hope in the One Who can do far more than I could ever imagine to shape me into a reflection of Christlikeness (see Eph. 3: 20 and Phil. 1: 6).
>>> Thirdly, I must recognize that I am only strong in Christ (see Phil. 4: 13), not in myself; and He makes me strong even when I am weak because of the grace I have available to me in Christ (you guessed it – I hope! … 2nd Cor. 12: 9).
>>> Next, I should rest assured in the comfort of God’s power (see Ps. 121: 1 – 2) and be uplifted by His glory (as in today’s verse).
>>> Fifthly, I must be surrendered to recognize that I have found victory over my flesh (see Eph. 6: 10), over sin through His Word (see Ps. 119: 9), and over the world with a power in my heart that is greater than my spiritual enemies (see 1st John 4: 4).
>>> And finally, being humbled by God’s majesty and holiness (see Prov. 3: 34), I must know that I’m nothing without my God (John 15: 5); … but with Him, I am everything that is declared in today’s verse.

And so, I hope you either know all those biblical support references by heart or you’ve looked them up to check me out; and having meditated on these truths, you’ve been lifted up to capture God’s strength and power for your life. It is a wondrous thing for the believer, humbled and surrendered to God, to realize, as my salvation verse (i.e., Phil. 4: 13) proclaims, that I truly can do all things in Christ, Who gives me His strength. And then, realizing that power is in me, I can let God’s power be the wind beneath my wings.

And this morning, in an attempt to be lifted up by God’s strength in my spirit, I was led – by God’s Spirit, I believe – to remember a song, performed by one of my favorite singers, Josh Groban, which expresses most, if not all, of what I’m trying to share today. Therefore, to close out my time with God, having gone to this song on my Ipod, let me link you to a You Tube version (by clicking on this link). I hope (and pray) that you’ll be lifted high enough, by God’s Spirit and this song at this time, to soar like eagles above the wind and storms of circumstances, given the power of God’s wind beneath your wings.

My Prayer Today: Lord, with YOUR POWER I am an eagle soaring in the heavens. Amen

February 13, 2011 … Evidence of God’s Power

Passage of the Day: Ephesians 1: 18 – 19 … 18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, 19and His incomparably great power for us who believe.

My Journal for Today: How does one grasp the awesome power of God? In an abstract way, my mind will never be able to fully comprehend God’s omnipotence. However, in a personal way I can build an appreciation for God’s power into my faith.

First there is creation. I just look around and will always marvel at what God spoke into reality with no effort … merely a word (see Psalm 33: 6) …

SCRIPTURE: Psalm 33: 6 … By the Word of the LORD were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of His mouth.

Further, I think of how God, the Son, has preserved all that He created; and all He created is for the glory of His Father. [Hebrews 1: 3] …

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 1: 3 … The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful word.

Then my appreciation for God’s wondrous power gets very personal as I contemplate the Cross, where all mankind, including yours truly, were redeemed for eternity, … where sin/death were defeated, and where the Gospel becomes the power of God to salvation for all who believe in Christ’s omnipotent power to save. (see Romans 1: 16 – look this one up for yourself and meditate on it … and, if convicted, memorize it!)

This is God’s power, which I have experienced personally; so, I know it’s real … the power to bring me from my old bondage in sin to a new life when His power allows me to walk more and more in His likeness.

Not too long ago, in an online blog, I was challenged by a rather cynical atheist to prove there was a "god" by giving him evidence. I related to him that the only evidence I needed to KNOW that there was a very personal God was my own life and the change which God has wrought in my life. So, I gave him my testimony. ... I didn’t really think my witness was going to convince this hardened non-believer; and it didn’t. But the important thing – for me – was that I am convinced. I pray that you are too.

Read and meditate on 2nd Cor. 5: 17 and Phil. 1: 6; and you should know that God’s power is awesome … and that He can take one such as I was (before my conversion) and bring me to the place where I am as I write this.

SCRIPTURE: 2nd Cor. 5: 17 … Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
SCRIPTURE: Phil. 1: 6 … being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

The very power that God used to speak the universe into existence, … the very power He used to sustain it all for His glory, … the very power that God’s Son loosed in love to save mankind on the cross, … the very power that raised our Lord from His grave, … is the power which, when applied to my life, has brought about a total transformation of my soul and henceforth, my choices, habits, and living. So, with that realized and said, I declare that I have no trouble believing in and worshipping the awesome, omnipotent power of my God. And to think … all that power I have in my relationship with my Savior, Jesus Christ.

My Prayer Today: All power is mine in You, Lord. Amen