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But I can’t _______ But He can

13 Jul

But I can’t _______ But He can.

Exodus 4:10-12 Then Moses said to the Lord, “O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither before nor since You have spoken to Your servant; but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.” So the Lord said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the Lord? Now therefore, go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall say.”

Buuuttt Goooddd……. You can almost hear Moses whining. Moses was arguing with God at the burning bush.  He was begging God not to call him to this tasks of leading his people and approaching Pharaoh.  He did not feel qualified for the responsibility that God was laying out before him. But God had prepared him all his life for this, all of this, all in His plan to save Israel. He was begging God to send someone else, or even help if it must be. God already knew that and already had prepared Aaron, Moses’s brother. Exodus 4:14 So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and He said: “Is not Aaron the Levite your brother? I know that he can speak well. And look, he is also coming out to meet you. When he sees you, he will be glad in his heart.

Everything you face, everything you struggle with, everything you are to the core, can be used by God. You are His creation, and you are where you find yourself today all in His hands. Your shortcomings can be used to show His power. What you cannot do yourself, you can do through Him, which draws glory to Him as a result. Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Matthew Henry put it well: “God is pleased sometimes to make choice of those as his messengers who have fewest of the advantages of art or nature, that his grace in them may appear the more glorious. Christ’s disciples were no orators, till the Spirit made them such.” A popular Christian term these days is “Doing extraordinary things through ordinary people.”

Have you felt and heard God speaking to you; calling you to some purpose of which you feel you are not qualified? Are you scared and running from that call? That call can be anything, but you know it was a word from God. You know in your heart he wants you to speak out, to stand alone on your faith, to be bold for Him. He will provide for you for He did not place that call upon you to see you fail. He placed that call on you to show His power through you, and to draw others to Him as a result. 12 Now therefore, go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall say.”

 
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Posted by on July 13, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Teach them thy ways

11 Jul

Teach them thy ways

Deuteronomy 6:5-7   You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.

Last night I was headed for bed early when my oldest son crawled up into bed wanting me to read the Bible to him. How could I say no? He is reading it on his own now, but he wanted me to read it to him. We read the story of Noah and the Great Flood. I went to bed thinking of the study I had just completed on the life of Joshua and the generations after him in Israel.

Joshua understood the importance of passing down our faith. When he knew his days were becoming short, he gathered all of Israel including the children to remind them of how God had delivered them to the Promised Land. Joshua 23:2 And Joshua called for all Israel, for their elders, for their heads, for their judges, and for their officers, and said to them: But sadly their history was lost in the generation after that when Joshua died, and they rebelled against God. Judges 2:10 When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord nor the work which He had done for Israel. 11 Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served the Baals; 12 and they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt; and they followed other gods from among the gods of the people who were all around them, and they bowed down to them; and they provoked the Lord to anger. Their parents had forsook their responsibility of leading their children to the Lord.

It is truly sad to read of how our inheritance is lost by simply not passing down our history and faith to our children. Of how our responsibility as parents, and our first ministry is our family, or more directly our children. How will they know if we do not tell them? But they will suffer for our mistakes. Joshua gathered more than his children, he gathered the tribe and made sure that He passed on what the Lord had done for them. Israel was falling away from God and He wanted to right them in his last days. He was making sure he passed on Israel’s history for the generations he was leaving behind, for he understood the importance of it.

Sadly the generation after Joshua did not pass their history onto their children. Judges describes the falling away of that generation and the Lords wrath against them. Every where they went the Lord was against them. All likely because they did not know of how the Lord had delivered their people and had blessed the generations before them. Can you truly afford not to teach them?

 
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Posted by on July 11, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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I swear……….no don’t.

09 Jul

I swear……….no don’t.

Matthew 5:33-37 “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.’ But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.

But I swear I ____________ . Been there done that. Probably many times in a bad context or even worse if we swore by God, or the pinnacle swearing by His name knowing it was a lie. The scriptures above are a fascinating study and point us primarily to the Third Commandment: Exodus 20:7 “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain. It was considered legally binding to take an oath to God’s name, but also could have been a means to cover up a lie. We are plainly being told not to swear at all in verse 34.

The backbone of this scripture is telling the truth. We can’t improve on anything by attaching the power of something to the “by it” to our speech. It can become a condemnation if used lightly and in the wrong context. Matthew Henry puts it: “That we must not swear lightly and irreverently, in common discourse: it is a very great sin to make a ludicrous appeal to the glorious Majesty of heaven, which, being a sacred thing, ought always to be very serious: it is a gross profanation of God’s holy name, and of one of the holy things which the children of Israel sanctify to the Lord: it is a sin that has no cloak, no excuse for it, and therefore a sign of a graceless heart, in which enmity to God reigns.”

37 But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ Our word is our cloak that we wear every day. I have struggled with this in a daily context of running a business and making promises that I break, or can’t keep. For instance telling someone I will be there and canceling the appointment for any reason. That really bothers me. Christ would place His ‘stamp’ by using the words “Verily, verily” on matters of importance, or as His “Yes be Yes”.  Verily, Verily was our Savior’s ‘yes be yes’, and quoted 25 times in John’s gospel in the King James version. Think before you make a promise, or an oath the next time. It is only as good as the cloak you wear.

 
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Posted by on July 9, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Not any angel

07 Jul

Not any angel

Colossians 1:21 And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled 22 in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight– 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.

The Apostle Paul was speaking to the Colossians, a city who was divided deeply on who they worshiped. In chapter 1 he has been setting the stage for Christ’s preeminence; simply stated First & Foremost.  17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. Paul begins to speak here of the ministry of Christ’s reconciliation, or righting us to God through His death on the Cross. The Colossians believed in many angels, and they did not believe in Christ incarnate.

Do you believe that He was truly God, and truly man? 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. You must get this right, there is no middle ground here. Christ was not any angel, Christ was God in the flesh walking here as a man, suffered physical death, was raised from the dead to walk the earth again to many witnesses, and ascended to heaven to be with His Father until He returns again to reclaim those who believe. He did all of this for you, so that you can spend eternity in paradise and not Hell for not believing in Him.

When you are moved from darkness to light, you begin to see these things. You see Christ as the Savior of your soul, and the only Way unto heaven. Make your days now as a child of Light ones that count in service to Him. Do not let the temporary pleasures of this world drag your vision away from the One whom paid the highest price for you. He left paradise to come and die a death of pain words cannot describe with the sin of the world on His back, all so you could join Him in Heaven forever.

 
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Posted by on July 7, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Don’t take your eyes off the prize

06 Jul

Don’t take your eyes off the prize

2 Timothy 2:1-4  You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.

The Apostle Paul was encouraging his protege’ Timothy for his service to the Lord. Timothy had been with Paul and he was growing into his own ministry. He had been learning from the best on how to have a sole purpose in life; to share the Good News that Christ has come to save the world. Paul had no other focus than to preach Christ at all costs, and many times the costs were extreme. But his faith never wavered and his focus remained. Timothy had been a witness to these events and knew well what he was getting himself into as a disciple of Christ. 3 You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

When you embark on the journey of a growing relationship with your Lord, you will face obstacles of many kinds that will either draw you closer, or draw you away from Christ. Every event in your life can have that effect. It can be blessings, or it can be turmoil; but either way where does your focus remain? 4a No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life. Satan could fill your day with overflowing blessings and your attention could be drawn from your purpose. Satan could fill your day with turmoil and your attention could be drawn away. Never let your eyes or your hearts attention be moved away from the One who has designed or allowed every event that happens in your life. Give thanks for where He has you today, and grow closer to Him as a result of where you are today. 4b that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.

 
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Posted by on July 6, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Got it. Now use it.

05 Jul

Got it. Now use it.

1 Peter 4:10-11   As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

You have it, now use it. God has given you a spiritual gift. It can be many things, but deep in your heart you know what it is. It can be encouragement, teaching, giving, praying, etc. Any gift that God has given you is the result of the ultimate gift through the sacrifice of His Son. Being a good steward is not wasting what has been given to us; honoring the gift by using it to honor God. 11 As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.

These gifts are not for us to draw glory to ourselves, but to show honor and glory to the One who has given us them. If we are saying, “Look at me”, the gifts have become wasteful and idolatry drawing attention to ourselves. If you love to give, do you want the credit for the gift? The bible tells us to do it anonymously and God will reward us. Matthew 6:4 that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly. The joy that you feel inside with gifts like those is the joy God feels seeing you give them sacrificially.

There is a point in your Christian walk and growth that you begin to understand it is not all about you. The perfect Sunday service, or sermon, or many things you once felt. God begins to open your heart and reveal to you that you are here to serve others, to use your gifts to draw glory to Him. In the verses before these above, Peter spoke of loving one another. 4:8 And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins.” An outward expression of that love is using the gift you have been given in the serving of those around you. This is expressing your love for them, and your love for God, through your gift.

 
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Posted by on July 5, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Liberty

04 Jul

Liberty

Galatians 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.

The word liberty in the New Testament is used many times to refer to freedom from the law that the Jews lived by. They believed they earned their way into heaven by attempting to keep the law. One of those key points was the circumcision of all the men, and without it they believed you were unsaved. Paul was speaking of the freedom that Christ brought in Galatians, from the necessity of keeping that law in the scripture above.

Believing in Christ alone brings liberty. It brings a freedom from the bondage of sin, from the works of the law to attain God’s grace. You cannot attain God’s grace by living a good life, bound by the law, and denying the only Way by the acceptance of Christ as your justifier before God. Your humble repentant heart before God will bring about a freedom from the bondage of sin as Christ now dwells with you. 2 Corinthians 3:17 Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

This freedom you now possess is not your “get out of jail free card”. This does not give you the freedom to continue to live in sin once you profess Christ. If you say you are a Christian and live as a heathen, how is your witness to those who don’t believe? 1 Corinthians 8:9 But beware lest somehow this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to those who are weak. If you are truly saved, you will desire to flee from sin, and the bondage you once felt, and live a life in freedom, liberty, and assurance of your eternal paradise to come.

 
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Posted by on July 4, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Spiritual rest at your fingertips…sorta

03 Jul

Spiritual rest at your fingertips…sorta

Hebrews 4:1-3 Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He has said: “So I swore in My wrath, ‘They shall not enter My rest,’ ” although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

The writer of Hebrews is speaking of how a generation of Israel had missed finding rest in the Promise Land due to their unbelief. Their unbelief is so hard for me to grasp when He had provided for them for 40 years, but an entire generation missed the opportunity. But what is this Spiritual Rest found in God? Matthew Henry puts it well. “He specifies this, that we have a promise left us of entering into his rest; that is, of entering into a covenant-relation to Christ, and a state of communion with God through Christ, and of growing up therein, till we are made perfect in glory. We have discoveries of this rest, and proposals, and the best directions how we may attain unto it. This promise of spiritual rest is a promise left us by the Lord Jesus Christ in his last will and testament, as a precious legacy.”

When you hear the Good News, does it stir your heart, or do you deny it? 2 Corinthians 6:1-2 We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. A hard heart, a heart full of pride, will not allow you to enter that rest. You will remain away from God and all the anxieties that this life brings with it. There is a peace with God you will never understand until you accept the Good News. Philippians 4:7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. You have the ability for finding a peace in an out of control world at your fingertips, by reaching out with your heart.

 
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Posted by on July 3, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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BC – AC

01 Jul

BC – AC

Ephesians 4:22-24 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.

I ended up in Ephesians 4 this morning, and so much of it speaks of the new person and our change once we accept Christ. There is a true “BC” – Before Christ. There is also an “AC” After Christ in your life’s timeline. There is that point in history when your life changes forever, and the pursuit and the lens which you see this life is forever altered. As Dr. Ed Gravely puts it so well, you begin to see life through the “lens of the gospel”. We begin to feel conviction of the old habits that are still there. The Spirit begins to show us where our faults lie, and gives us the power through God’s grace to help us change our ways. This process is called Sanctification.

Sanctification is a process, not immediate, but continual throughout your life. 24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness. It is the  work of God in your life to mold you into a better person, a person closer to the image of His Son, Jesus Christ. Sanctification is spoken of twice in 1 Thessalonians 4:3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor. This was always a huge struggle for me and in today’s society it is a large struggle for many. But Sanctification is not only in related to sex, but our speech, actions, and thoughts on a daily basis. When God begins to stir in your soul, it is His way of working through the sin in your life, through the conviction of that sin. The Spirit is strong enough to change you like you can’t, if you let Him.

 
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Posted by on July 1, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Hotter than ……..

30 Jun

Hotter than ……..

Isaiah 66:24 “And they shall go forth and look Upon the corpses of the men Who have transgressed against Me. For their worm does not die, And their fire is not quenched. They shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.”

Hotter than Hell….not even close. The popular term is an insult to the eternal heat and fire of Hell. Hell is a real place, and a place that the world has it’s invitation written in many ways. The book of Isaiah closes with this stern warning. This was brought about describing Jerusalem’s garbage dump outside the city with constant fires and rotting corpses that burned continuously. A pretty grim picture, but one that can’t touch purgatory. Eternal fire…..just grasp those two words alone. Psalm 9:17 The wicked shall be turned into hell, And all the nations that forget God.

1 Timothy 1:15 This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. Christ came into the world to rescue you from that fire. He paid for your life with His, and all you must do is to honor that sacrifice by placing your life in His. A humble repentant heart, a true heart that seeks to serve God with all your mind, body and soul, is a heart that will never fear the fires of Hell. Living a life for our short time here in the pursuit of God, and not the things of this world will give you paradise for eternity. Matthew 25:46 And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

 
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Posted by on June 30, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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