Do you have trust? I mean real trust that all will turn out for the glory of God and that you will be ushered into His kingdom at the right time? Do you feel like your life is a game or are there “real” stakes in how you finish the race?
What about hope? What is your hope fixed on these days? Do you perhaps hope that the stock market doesn’t drop any further than it already has? Do you hope you get that promotion at work that you have tried so hard for? Maybe you just hope you don’t lose your job.
Or is your hope fixed on the only thing in eternity that really matters? Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. You sin, I sin, the person next to you sins; we all have a sin problem and Jesus Christ came into the world to fix our “sin” problem with His hope.
Listen to this scripture verse; “Then you would trust, because there is hope: and you would look around and rest securely…” This scripture verse is found in Job 11:18 and it can mean several things. That brings up another question as to how your security is. Are you secure in Christ? Do you know that if you die before finishing this sentence, that you will go to heaven? I know. You wanna know how I know? Well when I invited Jesus Christ into my life it was not an emotional thing, it wasn’t to help me “smooth out” my marriage or create better circumstances for myself. It was because I came to realize that I was “LOST” (I realized that I was a liar, a cheat, a thief and many other things) and I needed a “SAVIOR!” And Jesus came to fill that need for me.
Now I have hope, I have security. My family not only understands but believes as well. Having a disease like cancer actually helps you to get a better grip on reality and see what it is that really matters in life. No hope? No security? No heaven, my friend! That is the first step.
I have placed the “4 Spiritual Laws” on this blog so that anyone who wishes to know more about his or her personal destiny and how to make it count for Christ can know. You can read all of them by clicking on the link on the left side of the page that is titled “4 Spiritual Laws.” Do yourself a favor. You never know. By helping yourself you may be helping someone you love dearly, who might not otherwise know.
Dave
Crazy Papa
I'll make 'um an offer
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
The Way God Instructs
The Psalmist says in 25:8, 9 “Good and upright is the Lord; Therefore He instructs sinners in the way; He leads the humble in justice, and He teaches the humble His way.” Here the writer of this chapter invites us to understand a very simple process within God’s plan.
The first comment is about the integrity of the Lord, that He is “Good and upright” and secondly because of that attitude, He “instructs sinners in the way.”
If it was my desire to become an airplane pilot, then I would want one of the “best” available to teach me how to maneuver that airplane safely and efficiently. I see the same thing here. Because the Lord is Good and Upright, Who better than Him to instruct us (sinners) how to walk in His way?
Because God looks at man through their heart and not their deeds, He uses the born again believer’s humility to show him why it is that he was saved in the first place. We all understand that we have “…been justified by faith (Ro. 5:1) so because of that understanding, God continually uses that fact to help us understand how to “live” as being justified. “…but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Ro. 5:3-5).
So when in the Psalms it says that “He instructs sinners in the way” our best conclusion is to recognize that the He in this verse is with a capital “He” for it is Jesus Christ who instructs us in His Way (other scriptures explain that the disciples used the word “Way” in describing the ministry of Christ).
And of course our attitude during this instruction must be one of humility to be properly taught. If, while taking lessons to learn to be an airplane pilot I acted arrogantly so as to portray the thought that I “knew it all” I would not be placing my faith in the “master teacher” for that airplane lesson.
Humility plays a big part in life for us here on earth. As God helps us to grow in our faith, He also “fine tunes” our humility of the seasons, as well.
Dave
The first comment is about the integrity of the Lord, that He is “Good and upright” and secondly because of that attitude, He “instructs sinners in the way.”
If it was my desire to become an airplane pilot, then I would want one of the “best” available to teach me how to maneuver that airplane safely and efficiently. I see the same thing here. Because the Lord is Good and Upright, Who better than Him to instruct us (sinners) how to walk in His way?
Because God looks at man through their heart and not their deeds, He uses the born again believer’s humility to show him why it is that he was saved in the first place. We all understand that we have “…been justified by faith (Ro. 5:1) so because of that understanding, God continually uses that fact to help us understand how to “live” as being justified. “…but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Ro. 5:3-5).
So when in the Psalms it says that “He instructs sinners in the way” our best conclusion is to recognize that the He in this verse is with a capital “He” for it is Jesus Christ who instructs us in His Way (other scriptures explain that the disciples used the word “Way” in describing the ministry of Christ).
And of course our attitude during this instruction must be one of humility to be properly taught. If, while taking lessons to learn to be an airplane pilot I acted arrogantly so as to portray the thought that I “knew it all” I would not be placing my faith in the “master teacher” for that airplane lesson.
Humility plays a big part in life for us here on earth. As God helps us to grow in our faith, He also “fine tunes” our humility of the seasons, as well.
Dave
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
The Word Of The Lord Abides In You
This morning I got up early this morning. It is 7 AM at Mickey’s House in Florida, that’s why I say I got up early this morning (its 4 AM at home. What a beautiful morning it is. The sun is shining brightly and the scenery is, as you might expect, spectacular.
Anyway, I was reading in 1 Peter 1:25 where it says, “But the Word of the Lord abides forever and this is the word which was preached to you.” Peter references Hebrews 6:5 in saying, “…and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come…”
This morning as I was thinking of being away from the normal routine of my everyday life, I was still able to abide in the Lord’s Word for the goodness within and allow it to saturate my heart for the events of the day. I believe our granddaughter has plans for the day at Epcot Center which sounds like fun. Any day in the Lord is a great day and just by adding a couple of my grandchildren (I’m in heaven). I’m sitting here on the patio of the Boardwalk Resort in Disney World, drinking a cup of coffee, letting God know how thankful I am to be so fortunate to be given this trip.
I made this commitment the last couple of days in December of last year to write something everyday from God’s Word and have been able to keep that commitment thus far and now it has become an “Obsession” to reach the moment in the day when I would sit down beside my Bible and laptop and allow God to speak to me. So I throw down this challenge to you all. Even if you do not consider yourself a writer, you all should journal the day’s events which include the Lord Jesus. Won’t you give it a try? After doing this for over 4 months daily, I feel confident you will become “Obsessed” with the challenges of God.
Have a great day, I know I will.
Dave
Anyway, I was reading in 1 Peter 1:25 where it says, “But the Word of the Lord abides forever and this is the word which was preached to you.” Peter references Hebrews 6:5 in saying, “…and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come…”
This morning as I was thinking of being away from the normal routine of my everyday life, I was still able to abide in the Lord’s Word for the goodness within and allow it to saturate my heart for the events of the day. I believe our granddaughter has plans for the day at Epcot Center which sounds like fun. Any day in the Lord is a great day and just by adding a couple of my grandchildren (I’m in heaven). I’m sitting here on the patio of the Boardwalk Resort in Disney World, drinking a cup of coffee, letting God know how thankful I am to be so fortunate to be given this trip.
I made this commitment the last couple of days in December of last year to write something everyday from God’s Word and have been able to keep that commitment thus far and now it has become an “Obsession” to reach the moment in the day when I would sit down beside my Bible and laptop and allow God to speak to me. So I throw down this challenge to you all. Even if you do not consider yourself a writer, you all should journal the day’s events which include the Lord Jesus. Won’t you give it a try? After doing this for over 4 months daily, I feel confident you will become “Obsessed” with the challenges of God.
Have a great day, I know I will.
Dave
Monday, May 4, 2009
You Shall Receive Power!
Here is a scripture that introduces the Church and it's Power to the world: "but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth" (Acts 1:8).
As we have learned over the years, the disciples continually "miss" the point of the message of Christ. Before the above verse Jesus is telling them that as John baptized with water, He would be sending the Holy Spirit to baptize them for their mission. And of course, their thoughts on this idea were that He (Jesus) was at the point where He would be "restoring His kingdom to Israel" (vs. 5,6). Seems they were still looking to Jesus as an "earthly' king.
On this day, Jesus was enabling His disciples to evangelize the entire world and their power would be the Holy Spirit. This would be a miracle working type of power given to them which would result in the conviction of sin, repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
What I've learned over the years it that the real power of the church (the people of God) is not found in 21st Century buildings or Post-Modern methods of preaching and teaching. It's not in the wealth of the church or how they planned to use it. It isn't about the popularity of the church. In fact, the church at Laodicea was the first bragging church. They said they were rich and God said they were poor. They claimed to be wealthy and God said they were wretched. They said they had no need for anything and God said they needed everything. They claimed to be "busy in the church" and God called the "miserable. They had a vision and God said they were blind to any vision. They were clothed in fine garments and God saw them as naked. They claimed to be satisfied and God said they made Him sick.
God said if you want to be recognized as a Holy Spirit empowered church the evidences are obvious:
As we have learned over the years, the disciples continually "miss" the point of the message of Christ. Before the above verse Jesus is telling them that as John baptized with water, He would be sending the Holy Spirit to baptize them for their mission. And of course, their thoughts on this idea were that He (Jesus) was at the point where He would be "restoring His kingdom to Israel" (vs. 5,6). Seems they were still looking to Jesus as an "earthly' king.
On this day, Jesus was enabling His disciples to evangelize the entire world and their power would be the Holy Spirit. This would be a miracle working type of power given to them which would result in the conviction of sin, repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
What I've learned over the years it that the real power of the church (the people of God) is not found in 21st Century buildings or Post-Modern methods of preaching and teaching. It's not in the wealth of the church or how they planned to use it. It isn't about the popularity of the church. In fact, the church at Laodicea was the first bragging church. They said they were rich and God said they were poor. They claimed to be wealthy and God said they were wretched. They said they had no need for anything and God said they needed everything. They claimed to be "busy in the church" and God called the "miserable. They had a vision and God said they were blind to any vision. They were clothed in fine garments and God saw them as naked. They claimed to be satisfied and God said they made Him sick.
God said if you want to be recognized as a Holy Spirit empowered church the evidences are obvious:
- Evangelizing and sharing with the lost
- Reproducing souls into the family of God
- Changing people's lives through the gift of the Holy Spirit
- And turning the world upside down for the gospel of Christ.
Are you looking for a place to serve for God's glory? Go and find a church that is truly led by the Holy Spirit. There you will find both peace and ministry. The power that filled those disciples in the upper room that day is the power that you have available to you. You just need to reach down and take hold of it. And once you have, USE IT!
Dave
Sunday, May 3, 2009
What Do You See Happening In The World Through Your TV?
I don't know about you guys, but I watch mostly the news channel on TV. I'm kind of bias to the Fox News Network. The only other things I watch is "American Idol" (the whole family is hooked on it), Reruns of Seinfeld (of course I also have all the DVDs so I don't know why I waste so much time watching the reruns). I like "Hell's Kitchen" and you may not believe this but I am a big fan of "Desperate Housewives" (there, I said it).
I mention that because as we watch what is happening on the television, sometimes, no most times we see the ugliness of the world in action. Especially in the news. As Christians, we are aware, most of us having read the last book of the Bible and becoming more curious about what is happening to our world. Is it the time? Is the Lord returning soon? How much can we endure of this before it all blows up in our faces?
Well, I think that First Peter 5: 4-11 gives a very clear and understandable response to today's dilemmas even though it was written so long ago. Allow me to quote it for you. "And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you,clothe yourselves with humility toward one anther, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you. Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world. And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you. To Him be dominion forever and ever, Amen."
Well, that's my whole "take" on the "current events" matter. I guess my "take" is that it doesn't really matter, because Jesus will come back exactly when God has decided it will happen and in the meantime, we humble ourselves and continue to do the work of the Lord just as though He had just recently left.
The "crown of glory" is a special reward for the faithful, obedient God-called pastor. He will receive this reward when the "Chief Shepherd appears." It is eternal and it is "unfading." Every believer may share in the pastor's "crown of glory." Support your faithful, God-called pastor by praying for him and encouraging him in the work of the Lord. Help to feed the church and be an example to the church of our Lord Jesus Christ. And whenever the time is that the Lord decides to return, just be ready. Do the things you, personally need to do to be ready for His return.
Dave
I mention that because as we watch what is happening on the television, sometimes, no most times we see the ugliness of the world in action. Especially in the news. As Christians, we are aware, most of us having read the last book of the Bible and becoming more curious about what is happening to our world. Is it the time? Is the Lord returning soon? How much can we endure of this before it all blows up in our faces?
Well, I think that First Peter 5: 4-11 gives a very clear and understandable response to today's dilemmas even though it was written so long ago. Allow me to quote it for you. "And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you,clothe yourselves with humility toward one anther, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you. Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world. And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you. To Him be dominion forever and ever, Amen."
Well, that's my whole "take" on the "current events" matter. I guess my "take" is that it doesn't really matter, because Jesus will come back exactly when God has decided it will happen and in the meantime, we humble ourselves and continue to do the work of the Lord just as though He had just recently left.
The "crown of glory" is a special reward for the faithful, obedient God-called pastor. He will receive this reward when the "Chief Shepherd appears." It is eternal and it is "unfading." Every believer may share in the pastor's "crown of glory." Support your faithful, God-called pastor by praying for him and encouraging him in the work of the Lord. Help to feed the church and be an example to the church of our Lord Jesus Christ. And whenever the time is that the Lord decides to return, just be ready. Do the things you, personally need to do to be ready for His return.
Dave
Saturday, May 2, 2009
I'm Here For My Paycheck, Please!
If you have a job, most generally, you receive a paycheck for that job. Your employer says you do this and if you do, then I will do that. Most Americans get up in the morning and head off to the workplace for a wage. We give something to an employer and in return, he gives us a wage for that work. Simple process.
Well there are also "wages" in the Bible. Look in your Bible at Romans 6:23a and you will see what I mean. This verse says, "For the wages of sin is death," I don't know, does that sound reasonable? Based on the above illustration I think perhaps so. God made a deal with mankind and even gave plenty of warnings about this deal and what the "deal breakers" might be. For instance, in Romans 3:23 the Bible tells us that "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
Upon further evaluation we determine that:
Well there are also "wages" in the Bible. Look in your Bible at Romans 6:23a and you will see what I mean. This verse says, "For the wages of sin is death," I don't know, does that sound reasonable? Based on the above illustration I think perhaps so. God made a deal with mankind and even gave plenty of warnings about this deal and what the "deal breakers" might be. For instance, in Romans 3:23 the Bible tells us that "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
Upon further evaluation we determine that:
- Sin is lawlessness (1 John 3:4)
- Sin is unbelief; it calls God a liar (1 John 5:10)
- Sin is active rebellion again God (1 Samuel 15:23)
- Sin is also passive rebellion against God (Isaiah 1:2)
- And all unrighteousness is sin (1 John 5:17)
God said to us that "All have sinned" and the wages for that sin is death (spiritual separation from God for all eternity). Boy it would be nice if our government had those kinds of "checks and balances" (sorry for the political blurb), watching too much news.
However, and thank the Lord, the verse does not end there. It goes on and says in the second part of Romans 6:23 "...but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." So there IS a very accommodating wage involved. Even though because of our sin, our wage, our paycheck should have been eternal death, separated from God, He chose to give us a "free gift" of life with His Son Jesus Christ.
Yes, sin in our lives is all of the things listed above, but Jesus still insisted on giving us a paycheck or more like a gift (because if the wage was earned, we would be in big trouble). There are lots of places in the Bible that tell about how sin came into the world and what we should do with it in order to receive this "free gift" but I am especially fond of The 4 Spiritual Laws. On the left sidebar of this blog is a link that will take you straight to these laws to study for yourself. If you are not familiar with them, pay close attention and if you have any questions, I certainly have time to work up the answers.
There is one other passage of scripture that kind of goes along with this idea as a child of God and it is 1 Corinthians 10:13 saying, "No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, that you may be able to endure it." And there's that word "provide" again. Do you remember a few days ago when I talked about Abraham heading off to sacrifice his only son and God "provided" for Abraham, the sacrifice.
Dave
Friday, May 1, 2009
Got A Spiritual Gift You Can Spare?
Do you give to your church? The place you go, Sunday after Sunday? Do you support that church in a financial way or through the giving of your gifts and talents to be used for the glorification of the Lord Jesus Christ along with that body of believers?
There are several places in God's Word that are very direct in the giving of ourselves to the body of believers. It has also been very confusing over the years as to "what" to give and "How much" to give. If you are a "tither" in your fellowship, that's wonderful, but perhaps you are not at that level of your Christian maturity but you need to understand that no matter where the Bible speaks of giving, finances are never the only thing that the church has need of.
God has blessed each one of us with a talent, or spiritual gift to be used for His Glory and if you are not extending that gift within your fellowship, it really doesn't matter how much money you give, you are cheating God, and yourself.
Spiritual Gifts are divine endowments, and they are used for spiritual purposes. Spiritual gifts are mentioned in several places in the Bible but I think a good place to find several of them is in First Corinthians 12. Verse 7 says "But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good." That means they are abilities God has given to us to make our unique contribution to the church. When you can, you should read the entire chapter and try to count the number of spiritual gifts listed in that chapter alone. If you email me or make a comment within this devotion I suppose I could tell you if you are right or wrong in your guess.
When you have a chance take a piece of paper and place three dots across the top of the paper, then go done a couple of inches and put three more dots below and in line with the first three dots. And then make a third row of dots a couple of inches lower for a total of nine dots. Then when you are done, try to figure how you can connect all nine dots with four lines without lifting your pencil off the paper.
Someday perhaps we can have a deeper study of the spiritual gifts. I have studied them very long and hard and it is really interesting what people come up with. Well I think I probably open a big "can of worms" with this devotion with no time or space to expound.
We'll talk more about Spiritual Gifts in the near future. In the meantime, ask God to bring to mind, the gift or gifts that He has reserved for you. You may find that you've been serving in the wrong place all this time. And then again, perhaps you'll discover you are exactly where God wants you to be.
Dave
There are several places in God's Word that are very direct in the giving of ourselves to the body of believers. It has also been very confusing over the years as to "what" to give and "How much" to give. If you are a "tither" in your fellowship, that's wonderful, but perhaps you are not at that level of your Christian maturity but you need to understand that no matter where the Bible speaks of giving, finances are never the only thing that the church has need of.
God has blessed each one of us with a talent, or spiritual gift to be used for His Glory and if you are not extending that gift within your fellowship, it really doesn't matter how much money you give, you are cheating God, and yourself.
Spiritual Gifts are divine endowments, and they are used for spiritual purposes. Spiritual gifts are mentioned in several places in the Bible but I think a good place to find several of them is in First Corinthians 12. Verse 7 says "But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good." That means they are abilities God has given to us to make our unique contribution to the church. When you can, you should read the entire chapter and try to count the number of spiritual gifts listed in that chapter alone. If you email me or make a comment within this devotion I suppose I could tell you if you are right or wrong in your guess.
When you have a chance take a piece of paper and place three dots across the top of the paper, then go done a couple of inches and put three more dots below and in line with the first three dots. And then make a third row of dots a couple of inches lower for a total of nine dots. Then when you are done, try to figure how you can connect all nine dots with four lines without lifting your pencil off the paper.
Someday perhaps we can have a deeper study of the spiritual gifts. I have studied them very long and hard and it is really interesting what people come up with. Well I think I probably open a big "can of worms" with this devotion with no time or space to expound.
We'll talk more about Spiritual Gifts in the near future. In the meantime, ask God to bring to mind, the gift or gifts that He has reserved for you. You may find that you've been serving in the wrong place all this time. And then again, perhaps you'll discover you are exactly where God wants you to be.
Dave
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