Category: Jesus

Devotional 225: Sacred Thirds

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Matthew 22:31-32 31 But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, 32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.”

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Jesus a Third Time Predicts His Death and Resurrection

Luke 18:31-33 31 Then He took the twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be accomplished. 32 For He will be delivered to the Gentiles and will be mocked and insulted and spit upon. 33 They will scourge Him and kill Him. And the third day He will rise again.”

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Matthew 26:34 34 Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you that this night, before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.”

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Luke 23:21-22

21 But they shouted, saying, “Crucify Him, crucify Him!”

22 Then he said to them the third time, “Why, what evil has He done? I have found no reason for death in Him. I will therefore chastise Him and let Him go.”

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John 21:17

17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?”

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Spanning the Old and New testaments, even if one is not into numerology, there’s no escaping that three is a special number to God.

In three days, Christ resurrected. We, being born again of the spirit, were raised with Him (Hosea 6:2)

In other examples, during the transfiguration where Jesus conferred with Elijah and Moses, Peter wanted to build three shelters.

And according to the Catholic faith, Jesus fell three times carrying the cross until Simon was tasked to help him. There were the two criminals besides Jesus, one of whom was justified by Christ for acknowledging Him as the Son of God.

The most important of trinities however, is one that is not a concept of Scripture in and of itself, but it does exist and was therefore taught as such: The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It’s like a musical chord of three notes, all coming under one name even though they sound different, or the legs of a tripod converging to hold up a center platform.

In the image of God, we are soul, body, and spirit. It is the desire of our enemy to possess our souls, because that is what will reconcile and reunite us with Him. We are called to love Him with all our heart, soul, and mind. If we center those around Him, our physical strength may be added in service.

In the birth process, babies change in three trimesters. We too, are still being birthed in the process of spiritual renewal and bodily repentance. We are advised to sow to our spirits, that we may reap spiritually as the physical realm passes away, because God is spirit ((John 4:24) and the Word of the Lord will not. (Matthew 24:35)

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Therefore I pray:

Lord Jesus,

Align my heart, mind, and body to remain pure by centering on the Gospel You brought to us, showing us what the Father wants, and telling us what He wants us to know.

We are foolish to sin against Him and provoke His wrath, because His thoughts and ways are not ours (Isaiah 55: 8-9)

Forgive us when we look on His commandments as hindrances, not protection for ourselves. Let us stand despite the faithless who mock that God would send us a king who died a criminal, and a savior who would not put on a show to prove to his enemies and doubters that He was legitimate (1st Corinthians 1:18).

So too, let our words be few but sown on good soil, that You might bring the increase as You did in the days of the early church.

In fellowship, let us have discernment and not be so easily broken and deceived. As chords on an instrument play different parts under one name, in fellowship let us be as an orchestra: many instruments playing different parts, but one song.

Today, let us thank You for our lives, however difficult or comfortable at the moment. Let us be of one accord and purpose in serving God with the gifts He gave to us, developed in us, or even changed, in order to fulfill His will for the people of the world and our days on it, for His will is the only thing that will be made manifest in the days to come as the signs Jesus prophesied begin to unfold.

Hold us in the palms of Your hands, that we might not go astray in the world’s darkness, unable to know Your voice from the thieves and deceivers among us.

Today, we take Your yoke upon us and know Your peace, and we are joyful that in Your obedience to the Father, and in Your resurrection and imparting of the Holy Spirit, You have indeed overcome a sinful world. Therefore we hold fast to our faith, possess our souls in patience, and work out our salvation with reverent and sincere hearts.

We do so in Your Name, that we might be counted among fruitful, good, and faithful servants worthy of attaining the Kingdom in the Father’s rest, even if we are voices crying in the wilderness of our cities, towns, countries, governments, schools, and other fallible man-made systems.

Let us be angry and sin not (Psalm 4:4), speaking the Truth to power, and speaking it in love to the lost, planting in faith knowing You will give the increase. (Acts 2: 29 -41)

Let it be done to us as You have said.

Amen.

Devotional 223: The Word was with God

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John 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 8:18 “I am One who bears witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me.”

John 8:58  Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”

Luke 10:18 And He said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.“

While we’re not told the extent of John’s education, if any, what we can maybe ascertain by such a poetic beginning to his gospel is that he’d acquired some in the intervening years between witnessing the crucifixion of his Rabbi and friend to his natural death on Patmos, despite the tortures he endured.

It can be confusing, and for a time I never understood why pastors would tell new converts to the faith to start there. It’s a difficult beginning to work through.

But with maturity in the Word comes understanding, epiphanies, and revelations. How could Jesus be at the beginning of things, yet we’re told we’re under a new covenant of forgiveness of our sins, mercy from the fate we deserve, and salvation through repentance, faith, and obedience in order to enter the our Father’s rest under our Savior’s rule.

Let us be reminded that not only is the Word God-breathed (2 Timothy: 3:16) but that the flesh of humanity is as well. (Genesis 2:7)

We were connected to the heavenly realm from the start, made in the image of God in our spirits, formed to have dominion in the bodily form of Christ (God had to send Him as a man because immoral flesh couldn’t look directly at God Himself and live) and the connection established and maintained through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Adam and Eve broke that connection, and we’ve been spiraling ever since. Empires have come and gone, and the parable of the farmer who built huge granaries only to die the night they were finished is being manifested as the Day of the Lord draws closer, unheeded by prideful men who believe the legacies bearing their name will never turn to dust in their mouths before their bodies do. (Luke 12:16-21)

As we labor under the illusion that this world can be saved, let the remnant who understand that we will inherit a new Earth purged of evil, under the light of a new Heaven not assailed by war, continue to not only hear the Word but obey it, and perform the works our gifts have called us to do.

And when we are there, we’ll have no memory of this fallen world, built on wind-tossed sand, deaf ears, hard hearts, and surrendered souls. (Isaiah 65:17)

Therefore I pray:

Lord Jesus,

There’s not much more to say. We see the prophecies unfolding, and the powerful have hardened their hearts and stopped their ears from hearing the cries of the poor.

They delight in the evil of their sins against humanity, and submit to the demons who blinded them and took dominion over their spirits, that Satan might gain their souls.

But as You commanded us Lord, we will pray for them as they become adversaries, that they repent, relent, seek You while You may be found, and be part of the harvest that’s gathered into the barn and not thrown into the fire.

If You prayed for your executioners and tormentors, we can do no less. Give us grace when we delight in the ruin of those whom man’s history will reveal is fallible, but that Your grace says is redeemable from all sin through repentance and faith.

This day, remind us that we take our next breath at the Father’s pleasure, take bread of Life from Your hands, give thanks and praise for the gift of eternal life, bless your Name and speak the goodness of it to others, and continue to watch and pray, remembering that we were among them but You called us out. You delivered us from evil and revealed the Father to us, sealing us in the Book of Life through the power of the Holy Spirit.

He reveals to us what is of You, as You revealed to us what was from the Father. (John 16:14-15) In faith, let us receive and abide, for apart from You, we can do nothing. (John 15:5)

May it be done to us as You have said.

Amen.

Devotional 213: The Truth of Our Betrayal

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Matthew 26:20-25

22 And they were exceedingly sorrowful, and each of them began to say to Him, “Lord, is it I?”

20 When evening had come, He sat down with the twelve. 21 Now as they were eating, He said, “Assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me.”

23 He answered and said, “He who dipped his hand with Me in the dish will betray Me. 24 The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.”

25 Then Judas, who was betraying Him, answered and said, “Rabbi, is it I?”

He said to him, “You have said it.”

Judas had seen what all the rest had seen. He walked the same paths, sat at the same feasts, heard the same teachings, had the parables explained to him, and witnessed all the miracles, in the presence of the Promised One.

If Jesus foreknew these things, why choose him? This question is the same as, “If G-d knew that Adam and Eve would disobey Him, why put the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil in Eden in the first place?”

Love cannot be forced, and choosing someone to love is a risk, and love is a decision and commitment that is chosen every single day. It is not a feeling, and we do G-d a disservice to say we love Him and receive His Son yet betray Him through our disobedience, lack of spiritual growth, and yielding to temptation.

To choose to submit to authority and yield your will to someone who loves you is not an easy thing. Trust is not easy, nor is it easily earned, yet more than once our Savior says to us, “Assuredly…”, and even more importantly of the kingdom, “If it were not so, I would have told you.”(John 14:2)

Judas, as Paul said of Demas, loved the world. His own declaration, when he came back to himself condemned him. “I’ve betrayed an innocent man.” Too much had been set in motion because of him, and the hearts of the men he sought to give back his bribe were too hard and set against Jesus to receive him.

With every act of disobedience, rebellion, backsliding, and yielding to temptation, we betray Him too.

And like Judas, and the prodigal son, and Saul with the scales of the Serpent blinding his eyes to the Truth, we lose fellowship and place ourselves under wrath.

And again like the prodigal son, and Paul with the scales of the Serpent removed, we are received once more by the grace of our Lord.

Judas, up until the moment he left the room, still had the choice to not go through with what he did, having seen all the rest of them had witnessed walking with the Promised One. Jesus knew at that point the cup of the Father’s wrath and the filth of all our worldly sin would not pass from Him, and G-d would provide no other lamb.

This is why our minds must be renewed: we must think on Him before we act. If I do this, whom does it serve? And our spirits must be refreshed, for He will not despise a contrite spirit. (Psalm 51:17)

Therefore I pray:

Lord Jesus, there is no defense or excuse I can offer for myself for my acts of betrayal. I can only thank G-d that You were sent to provide for me a new covenant of grace and a second chance to be reconciled and enter into my Father’s rest by the power of Your holy blood, shed for me and all who believe.

Today, Lord, I meditate on the message of the Cross and rejoice at the power of the Resurrection on the last day when I too can walk with You and hear all that You would say to me, praising the Father in His light on the new earth for all eternity.

I thank You for redeeming me from being a son of perdition to a son of the Kingdom. Renew my mind, refresh my Spirit, heal me from all my diseases, and grant me boldness to spread the good news that those who believe in You and the One who sent you will, like Lazarus, be free of the grave when Your great shout of ‘Come forth!’ tells us the day of judgment is at hand.

I would enter into my Father’s rest, so I yield to Your authority and love, and trust that if it were not so You would have told me.

Forgive me and receive my repentance. My broken heart is grateful, and my contrite, renewed spirit rejoices in Your victory.
May it be done to me as You have said.

Amen.

Devotional 202: Law Abiding

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Matthew 3:13-15

John Baptizes Jesus

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. 14 And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?”

15 But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him.

Matthew 4:1-4

Satan Tempts Jesus

4 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”

Matthew 5:17

Christ Fulfills the Law

17 “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.“

There are those who seek a relationship with the Father and do not choose to bother with the Son because while Jesus came to tell us of the Father’s desire to love us and see us reconciled to eternal life, he gave us the requirements for that to be possible.

In our manner of living, in all that we say and do, we must reflect the love for each other that Jesus has shown us.

We must serve each other as He served His disciples and all who came to Him.

We must help each other in our imperfect walks, and give the glory of all our provision, protection, and victory to G-d, as the works of Jesus did. (Matthew 5:16) (Acts 3:8)

There are still others who rationalize to themselves that because Jesus did not mention something that was ‘controversial’ in these so-called modern times, that somehow sanctions it. ‘Silence gives consent.’ And the covenant of grace and forgiveness is then seen as license.

Often, these are the very same who mock the Word of G-d as repressive, outdated, and wrong because they read or hear with no desire to understand, content to be mislead by false teachers and prophets, and point to them as the reason for their own spiritual failure. “Jesus didn’t say anything about…”

There can be no ‘cherry picking’ of the Word. Jesus constantly rebuked the Pharisees for doing so, and the Word’s lack of declarative sentences on every personal sin do not give them permission to be practiced. Given the human heart, many would choose to disobey anyway.

There can be no covenant of grace without faith in Jesus, repentance from sin, and obedience to the Word. To invoke Jesus’ name to indulge the flesh in faithlessness, confusing the covenant of grace with permission, the mortal flesh imperils the eternal soul.

Don’t be among those who look to the grace Jesus as an escape from the demands of G-d, remember what He said to His disciples: (John 14:18-20):

Indwelling of the Father and the Son

19 “A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. 20 At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.

If Jesus came to fulfill the Law and confirm the Prophets in His resurrected glory to the Jews, and to graft in the Gentiles, being restored to the Father after taking away the punishment for our sins, then mortal flesh and feelings do nothing to set aside the promises and requirements to achieve eternal life.

God’s love is steadfast, not all encompassing: Evil will be punished, and sin will be purged from His Kingdom.

Let us not become cautionary tales of damnation. (Matthew 10:28)

Therefore I pray:

King Jesus,

As men tussle and fight for empty, transitory power in a world that does not belong to them, we see the times unfolding that You foretold, and grace begins to fade. As it was in the times of Joshua, You tell us to make a choice, for to walk between two worlds will see us damned. (Rev 3:15-17)

Pride and confusion are exalted, killers are exonerated, exalted, and their wealth increases.

Skin, money, and injustice are used for the purposes of exclusion, and justified by laws made by sinful men with no heavenly vision, or adherence to the Father’s Word. They believe their failed paper statements superior to Your Truth, and distance themselves from You with every passing generation.

And the earth itself groans under the plundering of its bounty for the sake of mammon.

Forgive us, Lord. We yet believe and stand for You, and in the gap for the lost sheep. While there is yet time before the final harvest, we continue in Your service, doing good to the Father’s glory, and sowing seeds for the Holy Spirit to water and bring to fruition as the old earth passes into oblivion along with all rebel souls.

We beseech others to let them know that the final judgement will be exactly that, sealed to their spirits by all they’ve said and done, to be justified to life or condemned by their own words (Matthew 12:37) with Your final words to them, even to those who claim You but have fallen short:

23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

Today, let us not harden our hearts, and choose to follow the Father’s laws that lead to everlasting life, eternal peace, and joy unspeakable.

We ask in Your Name, believing we’ve already received.

Amen.

Devotional 200: Infallible Purpose, Immutable Promise

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Hebrews 6:13-18

God’s Infallible Purpose in Christ

13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, 14 saying, “Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you.” 15 And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. 16 For men indeed swear by the greater, and an oath for confirmation is for them an end of all dispute. 17 Thus God, determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath, 18 that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us.

In these times of great wealth and comfort, alongside moral bankruptcy and all manner of illness, it is clear that most have not fled for refuge in the hope set before us because it’s contained in the Word of G-d. Once the Word is read, received by faith, and preached to the lost by those who believe, it is to be preached further by those who to all of humanity.

More importantly, it is to be obeyed. But Satan has corrupted that within us, making it a point of contention or denial of G-d’s very existence. Yet that is how Jesus overcame the world

As Peter wrote, it would be better not to have known, than to know and go back to the world. (2 Peter: 20-22)

 20 For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. 21 For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. 22 But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: “A dog returns to his own vomit,” and, “a sow, having washed, to her wallowing in the mire.”

Though he was speaking to the fate of false teachers, we who don’t are no less accountable.

We see it again in Hebrews 6:4-6

4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.

As believers, we’ve all heard some variation of this statement: “The Bible is outdated.” Now that the eons old chemistry of humanity is somehow fluid, non-binary and the like, we are told we should no longer say, as G-d did, and Jesus later confirms: male and female, He created them. (Genesis 5:2) (Matthew 19:4)

Use wisdom, truth, and love in your responses (if you choose to respond), but do not gainsay G-d in these matters. If His Word is higher than His Name, and He cannot lie or change His mind, and if all His works were known to Him from the beginning, the Word is immutable.

If His thoughts and ways are higher and better than ours, and if being in His presence is the best thing for us, then we who confess Him and the Son must meet rise to meet His standards, for He already sent Jesus to us to speak His will for us. That is the most He is going to do, because it was the highest price He could pay, to the point where He obscured Jesus from view with dark clouds.

Jesus, in the pain of that moment, quoted David about being abandoned to His fate: “Why have you forsaken me?”

He, the only one who’d seen G-d and lived to tell it, now in His anguish knew what we take for granted: how it feels to be disconnected from our higher selves.

Hold fast to your faith, make it immutable, and think on this:

Of all of the sciences, and all of the arts, and all of that which you can see, feel, and know, there is only one Creator, and we call Him Almighty G-d. If He is not almighty, then we lie with our tongues, our hearts are deceived by He whom we’ve confessed and yielded to as Savior, and we do the work of the evil one in spreading the Word.

Paul, after his conversion, with the scope of his knowledge of the Law, confounded the Jews of Damascus he once called his brothers, in teaching from the same law they used to rebuke and deny the authority and divinity of Jesus, that Jesus was in fact the Messiah. (Acts 9:22)

So hard were their hearts and their violent denials, he eventually shook his clothes, telling them their eternal fate was now on them, and left them to suffer it.

Jesus told the disciples if the people would not hear them, to shake off the dust from their sandals and let their peace return to them.

How will you deal with those who will not hear? What will you say when they accuse you? With whom will you stand if they seek your life, or the lives of your loved ones?

Therefore I pray:

Lord Jesus,

You told us persecution would come, and those in whom the Word was not rooted would lose it, some would reject it and return to the world, and others would stand. You did not say the form in which it would come, but that we must be willing to stand against those who would tell us to keep the seeds of their salvation, the words of the Gospel, in our hearts.

We are not to sow, scatter, plant, tend, or water in these modern times. We are not to stand on the corners and rooftops. We are not to stand by our beliefs as truth while everyone who will not hear proclaims theirs as equal to Yours.

Teach us to discern that while the world is different, it is still Yours, and everything and everyone in it was created by You, and only draws its next breath by Your favor as You watch Your children carry out Your plan of loving redemption for the relief of suffering and the redemption of souls back into Your kingdom.

Yet Peter and John preached louder after they were beaten. Your earthly brother James told us to count all persecution as joy, for our rewards are in Heaven.

Our faith is tested in that You are still preached as the Lamb of G-d, and Your doctrine of hearing and spreading the Word for repentance, and working G-d’s will by faith to change hearts and minds as we point the way to the Father, this doctrine fades and echoes into the ceilings of our churches, to be heard no more. Pastors profane their callings, altars, and lead their flocks into greater darkness.

Today we groan, along with all creation, for Your return as the Lion of Judah, returning in the Father’s glory with the angels for the beginning of the end of all manner of chaos and sin.

As faith does not seek proof, remind us that our Father’s Word is already done, as a child takes their parent’s promise in faith, believing it will be so. You tell us the kingdom of Heaven is for such as these.

Remind us also, He watches over His Word to perform it, so when You tell us as you told the thief, we will be with You in Paradise, it is infallible and assured.

Let our tired, frightened, fading spirits be renewed by the Comforter that seals Your promise of eternal life to us, and give us the strength to stand fast in the coming hours of darkness, when no one can work.

We ask in Your Name, believing we’ve already received.

Amen.

Devotional 193: He Will Rejoice Over You with Singing

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Zephaniah 3:1717 

The Lord your God in your midst,
The Mighty One, will save;
He will rejoice over you with gladness,
He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing.”

At this time of year, with all that’s happening in the world to that which is taking place under our own rooftops, standing right in front of us, let us take a moment to reflect on the birth of Christ and what it means to us.

Indeed, what it means for us.

As those who place our faith in the grace and power of our Lord’s redemptive work to be reconciled to our Creator as the sons and daughters of G-d, all that we know, we inherited from the Father.

As we glorify Him in spirit and truth, thanking Him for our salvation, singing our hymns and carols, we are told that He also sings to us. Indeed, He sings over us, with rejoicing.

Think on it! Our Father, who knew us by name before He formed us in our mothers’ wombs, the One who chose to reveal Himself to us through the Gospel, sending His Son as our worthy emissary to intercede for our sins and bring us back to the source of everything, sings over us.

A baby in a cradle, upon hearing their parent’s voice as they approach, may smile when they see a familiar, loving face speaking words of love over them. And at night they’re comforted when the parent sings over them as they lay the child to rest.

When they are lifted up from the cradle in sure hands, their own hands will explore their parent’s face, and when pulled close, they rest their heads against their parent’s heart.

So today, as we lift up the Name of our Lord and Savior with rejoicing, so too does our heavenly Father lift up His children in our spirits, flesh, and soul with times of refreshing. He lifts up our countenance to see where He dwells, and sings over us with rejoicing to gladden our hearts.

Take a moment then, to lift your hands to Heaven and explore His face.

Grow still in His arms as He draws you closer to Him.

Rest in His presence as He holds you with an everlasting love, even as it grows dark, knowing He watches and sings over you to bring you through, or to dispel the dark so you might see Him rejoicing in You, and be assured that you are loved.

Therefore I pray:

In this season of early darkness, material emphasis, and pagan worldly rituals, let my focus be above the carols and bells, the commercial and false spirit of giving so that corporate profits are steep, and be fully undivided on the true meaning of Christmas.

A worthy Redeemer was sent and tested, and proved Himself worthy to judge me fit to enter the Kingdom of G-d, sinless and blameless, as He is himself.

I would enter into the Father’s rest only by His decree, to dwell forever in His presence to worship and glorify Him.

Great is the calling on my life as His servant. I too must be tested and proven worthy.

The consequences of my compromise, backsliding, rebellion, doubt, and unrepentance is eternal separation from him, in damnation, with the ultimate destruction of my very soul, as if I’d never been.

The testing is that the judgement is not immediate, but when it comes, it will be swift, just, and final, after I give an account for my actions.

My work in His name will also be tested, and those that withstand the refining fire of holiness will see me crowned and rewarded. Those that do not will see me deprived, as my falling short deprives the kingdom of greater glory.

This Christmas, as we feel the kingdom of Heaven at hand, and time drawing near, think on our legacies.

I long to hear, above all the bustle of this mortal, finite, existence:

“Well done, my good and faithful servant. Enter into your Father’s rest.”

I would have him sing over me that day, with rejoicing.

Let Your holy Word be sealed to my heart, and in my spirit, now and forever.

Amen.

Merry Christmas to all my readers.

Devotional 185: Let Us Die with Him

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8 The disciples said to Him, “Rabbi, lately the Jews sought to stone You, and are You going there again?”

9 Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. 10 But if one walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.” 11 These things He said, and after that He said to them, “Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up.”

12 Then His disciples said, “Lord, if he sleeps he will get well.” 13 However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep.

14 Then Jesus said to them plainly, “Lazarus is dead. 15 And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, that you may believe. Nevertheless let us go to him.”

16 Then Thomas, who is called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with Him.”

It was a noble sentiment Thomas expressed, in fact, it was seemingly shared by the rest, but not one that he was ultimately committed to following through. From the time of the beginning of His ministry, Jesus referenced ‘my hour’ as impending.

He didn’t say it would be theirs, but His, and His alone, for He was the only one the Father sent to substitute for us, and the only one counted worthy of doing so, withstanding Satan’s temptations to have the bitter cup of our collective sins set aside for another way within the Father’s will.

But it wasn’t within G-d’s will to find another way, and Jesus gave Himself over to it: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” (Luke 22: 42)

Jesus did speak of the sacrifices they would make in ministering to the world, just not alongside Him. (John 21:18)

And in the Lord’s mercy, when Thomas openly declared his lack of belief in Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, though he’d witnessed the rise of Lazarus, his faith was sealed in the recognition of Jesus’ divinity:

John 20:27-28 27 Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”

28 And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”

I don’t know how many of us were taught that Thomas did put his hand in Jesus’ side, but the text doesn’t state that. It would have been highly familiar and disrespectful to a King in full manifestation of His heavenly glory, and the mustard seed of faith that was yet buried in Thomas’ spirit checked him from doing it, and responded to the Holy Spirit abiding in Jesus, giving Him his due.

So how are we called to die with Him? The good news is this: We aren’t.

Our sins, doubts, fears, and rebellion are called to die. Our sin natures are called to die. We who are grafted into the Vine are called to live like Christ and to minister to those around us, pointing the way to G-d as His priests, ministers, disciples, servants, friends, brothers and sisters, and sons and daughters of the Most High G-d, leading them to the Throne of mercy and grace, that they too, like Thomas, will become believing, and on their knees cry out to Him: “My Lord and My God!”

Come out of the graves of the world, and rejoice that despite your many sins, you are still counted among the chosen to live with Him forever in a world free of evil, counted worthy to live in the light of the presence of the living G-d Almighty without fear of death for all eternity, for the blood of our Savior will forever erase the multitude of our mortal sins.

May Your words be sealed to my spirit, now and forever.

Amen.

Devotional 118: No More Questions

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John 16:16-24

Sorrow Will Turn to Joy

16 “A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father.”

17 Then some of His disciples said among themselves, “What is this that He says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’; and, ‘because I go to the Father’?” 18 They said therefore, “What is this that He says, ‘A little while’? We do not know what He is saying.”

19 Now Jesus knew that they desired to ask Him, and He said to them, “Are you inquiring among yourselves about what I said, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’?20 Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy. 21 A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. 22 Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.

23 “And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. 24 Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.

The Apostle Paul tells us it’s like looking at dark glass.

1 Corinthians 13:12

12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.

We are told by our Savior that our faith shall be rewarded, and our sorrow turned to joy. We are told by his most ardent disciple of the day that we are shrouded here on earth from heavenly matters.

We are very like the disciples who heard Jesus say these words: confused, scared, saddened, and doubtful.

We are prone to buffeting assaults of spiritual blindness, seeking to place ourselves in the Father’s position, not professing likeness, but professing self sufficiency.

There are variations of it, but all can be summed up this way: “We can do this without a moral compass full of contradictory dogma that tells us we need a ‘god’ to know right from wrong.”

It is because they read with no understanding of what separates us from the rest of world, they read it with the intent of disproving it, they read it with the intent of ridiculing it, and they read it with no faith that what they’re reading could be true.

They read as blind people who don’t know Braille: for them it’s not a system vital to their lives to understand, but a random scattering of dots and spaces that make no sense, and so dismissed as a nonsensical return to times of superstition and ignorance.

Also, they replace the motives of G-d with the motives of men: missionaries used it to control and enslave native populations so that the plundering of their land and resources wouldn’t meet resistance, in much the way the Pharisees plundered the wealth of Israel. Feminists tell us that men have used the Bible to control and enslave women, pointing to the submission verse Paul uses without reading the verse for what it tells husbands to do for their wives.  While this is true on both counts, the Father tells us He will deal with and repay such people, but do we really believe Him?

1 John 2:19

19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.

It will indeed be a joyous day when our questions are answered, our doubts erased, our fears lifted, and out tears dried.

In the meantime, in our lifetimes we have been called to serve in faith, worship in spirit and truth, finish the kingdom work we were given to do, and love G-d with all our hearts as we edify one another, running this race together as good and faithful servants until the day we have no more questions, and the fruit of our faith is harvested in the eternal worship of Almighty G-d.

Therefore I pray:

I rejoice here on earth in the words of my Savior, that my joy shall be made full in His presence on the day I escape the power of the grave to live eternally in the Father’s kingdom, should the Son judge me worthy of the honor, by the blood of His grace.

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for revealing the Father to me, and for sending me the Comforter as a seal of my salvation.

Thank You for shielding me from the Father’s wrath, soon to be visited on His enemies as He restores Heaven and Earth as sinless vessels of purity. Creation will cry out in full vigor as a testimony to His presence.

Thank You, for on that day You tell us all: You will ask me nothing.

I ask that until then You strengthen my faith, help my unbelief, and look for me when I go astray and off the narrow road.

Give me a clean heart, a bold spirit, and a guarded tongue. Purify my eyes, the lamps of my body, with good things, that they might behold the glory of G-d in Your presence, and not let me die.

You’ve given us the way, and finished the work that will see us reconciled and free from sin. You’ve shown us the Father. You’ve told us of His love for us. You’ve told us to believe, and not be afraid.

You tell us that we will be with You in paradise.

I would not lose such a salvation, Lord, for there is no other alternative but destruction.

Hold my hand, and lift me higher. May my faith please You, and release all the good that You have for me here in the land of the living. Thank You for delivering me from my trials, and opening my eyes to the suffering we must endure to be glorified with You in heavenly places.

My heart is grateful today.

My soul will be redeemed.

My flesh will be transformed.

My joy will be made full.

My sins will be forgiven.

And now I ask, may everything I do from here on be devoted to seeing that day where my questions will be answered.

Amen

Devotional 116: The Kingdom Within

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Luke 17:20-30

The Coming of the Kingdom

20 Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God does not come with observation; 21 nor will they say, ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.”

22 Then He said to the disciples, “The days will come when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it.23 And they will say to you, ‘Look here!’ or ‘Look there!’ Do not go after them or follow them.24 For as the lightning that flashes out of one part under heaven shines to the other part under heaven, so also the Son of Man will be in His day.25 But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.26 And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man:27 They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.28 Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built;29 but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all.30 Even so will it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed.

The Father has done His part to reconcile us to Him: it is through faith in the atoning work of the cross through the Son.

They are one of will and purpose, but Jesus was obeying the Father’s command, for He was the only one who could. Yet, G-d let Him be tempted, mocked, brutalized, scorned, and challenged, that He might know what we face in our weak and mortal flesh.

Yet, He didn’t sin.

It was painful for Him to be apart from the Father, painful to the point where He accused the Father of abandonment.

Matthew 27:46

46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

The sky went dark because as our sins were upon Him, the Father couldn’t look on it. The physical disconnect was palpable to our Christ. When it was over and He prayed before His ascension, He said:

John 17:5

5 And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.

I imagine the anticipation made Him want to go as soon as possible.

Do we seek the presence of G-d like that?

Do we ask Him to restore us to our former glory of the day we felt that presence, and knew we’d been called out of the world?

Do we ask Him to rekindle the passion of our first love for Him, or do we begin to doubt in the day to day of taking up our crosses, denying the lust of the eyes, participating in the grueling quest for money, crucifying our flesh, and walking the narrow road?

Do we grow weary of doing good, and remaining steadfast in an increasingly hostile and mocking world that would like nothing better than a dead G-d? They would have it so the whims of the wealthy can be imposed, and their price exacted, on those of us who fear and follow Him.

Yet the Father tells us this:

Deuteronomy 7:9-11

9 “Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments; 10 and He repays those who hate Him to their face, to destroy them. He will not be slack with him who hates Him; He will repay him to his face. 11 Therefore you shall keep the commandment, the statutes, and the judgments which I command you today, to observe them.

When you love and trust someone, and they advise you, and have the power to benefit you greatly, you will heed their advice because you believe they will cause you no harm.

Jesus tells us:

John 14:1

 “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.

And again…

Matthew 18:3

2 Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, 3 and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

Our Lord is not telling us to become or think like little kids, but to also trust, wait, and manifest the Spirit of righteousness and love within us, as children accept with no expectations or preconditions.

So then, if all we need to manifest the will of the Father on earth is indeed already within us, (“Your kingdom come, and Your will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven), are we trusting that what He told us is true, and do we release it with the power of faith, or do we lean on our own limited, human understanding and honor Him with our lips, and not our hearts and obedience?

Will He marvel at our faith, or our unbelief?

We must be ready, for when the day comes, there will be no more time to prepare.

Therefore I pray:

King Jesus,

You tell us the kingdom is within us, but we are not profitable for heavenly things, and these are words we cannot bear, though we know them to be true because You do not lie.

You told Your disciples that the prince of this world had nothing in You, but he does in us, Lord, and it’s compelling, strong, and evil. His presence brings blight upon our earthly forms, and damnation of our eternal souls.

Sometimes he covers the path to condemnation and death with pretty things that camouflage his slithering, cursed form.

Remind us then, that we have all of Your words, and that not one of them shall pass away, outlasting both Heaven and Earth. You reassure us, as Peter said, with the words of Life. 

You know our weaknesses, but You also command us to remain strong, fearless, and faithful to the Truth You’ve shared with us. Let us keep an ongoing spirit of godly repentance, that our shallow fellowship with You may deepen, and the power of sin be dulled.

The seeds of the Kingdom of Eden are within us, dormant in a fallow field, awaiting the harvest. In the meantime we sow, and drink from the Water of Life, take shelter beneath the Holy Vine, follow the Good Shepherd, give thanks for our Savior, and praise the Son of G-d to whom all things were given. May the seeds of Eden become the fruits of the Father’s divine will on the new and sinless Earth, created anew and purified for all who believed.

This day, we bow before You, O King, and cut the stones from our hearts that they may be tender to receive Your eternal Word. Let our ears hear the lessons in the parables, and receive comfort in the prayers, blessings, and assurances from Your lips, believing with our mustard seed faith that nothing will take us from the power of Your nail-scarred hands. 

Impart to us, the disciples of this age, the power of the Holy Spirit so that unbelievers shall see the signs and wonders that follow us, and the love we demonstrate for each other that will bring them like gathered wedding guests taken from the streets.

Let us be of one accord so they see us as lights on a hillside, that we might point them to You, as You point them to the Father.

Let the kingdom within us shine forth as the noonday sun, that they may see, and hear, and be saved. 

Keep our steps sure, our hearts steadfast, and our faith as a threefold cord, not easily broken.

Keep our souls humble, that we may not exalt ourselves and be cast down.

May it be done to us according to our faith.

Amen.

Devotional 115: Those Who Do the Will of My Father

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Matthew 7:24-29

Build on the Rock

24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.

26 “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”

28 And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, 29 for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

In the Gospel of Matthew we are pointed time and again to the prophets bolstering that which Jesus was doing: healing, casting out demons, preaching and teaching, feasting and fasting, getting alone with the Father, and finally, dying on the cross.

It’s a Gospel full of action, and as that may be the case, through it all Jesus calls us to action as well. Chapters 6 and 7 list do’s and don’ts, and their consequences, and motives of the heart.

If we make a show of faith and piety for the praise of men, we are told there is no further reward coming from the Father, and our good deeds are done in the lust of the flesh for praise. Such acts ultimately count for nothing in heavenly places or plans.

Matthew 12:46-50

Jesus’ Mother and Brothers Send for Him

46 While He was still talking to the multitudes, behold, His mother and brothers stood outside, seeking to speak with Him. 47 Then one said to Him, “Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, seeking to speak with You.”

48 But He answered and said to the one who told Him, “Who is My mother and who are My brothers?” 49 And He stretched out His hand toward His disciples and said, “Here are My mother and My brothers!50 For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother.”

It need not even be a direct blood line to Him. Just simply do that which He tells you, because as He stated, 30 I and My Father are one.”

So what does He tell us:

Sending Out the Twelve

5 These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans.6 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7 And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven [a]is at hand.’ 8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.

He charged the disciples with ministering to Israel because:

Matthew 19:28

28 So Jesus said to them, “Assuredly I say to you, that in the regeneration, when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

As for the rest of us, He says:

Matthew 10:21-22

21 “Now brother will deliver up brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death.22 And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.

Matthew 10:27-28

Jesus Teaches the Fear of God

27 “Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops.28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

 

Matthew 10:32-33

Confess Christ Before Men

32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. 33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.

So we are to endure, fear G-d, and confess Christ, and in the enduring, love our neighbor with all that entails for us and them, but we are to love G-d with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.

It is a tough calling, not for the faint of heart and those who would hang on like barnacles, taking up space, making no contribution, and slowly destroying that which the Father is trying to build with us, and in us.

So ask yourself, as this year continues, are you doing the work Christ called you to do, greater than His own?

Are you part of His family, doing the Father’s will in His name?

Are you really?

Therefore I pray:

Let the habits and discipline of doing Your will, O Lord, become second nature to us, such that we are not conscious of how it registers with man. 

You have grafted us in with the sons of the Kingdom, through Your covenant of redemptive grace, reconciling us to G-d, as it was in the beginning, so I ask that You forgive our unbelief and rebellion, Lord. We know not what we do.

When the Spirit has sanctified us once more through repentance, let us continue on in the work You’ve called us to do, preaching the kingdom is at hand.

Let us be ever mindful we were bought with a price, are worth more than sparrows, are more beautiful than field lilies, and worth more in His sight.

And when we return to ourselves after a flight of fancy ends, I ask that You hear the cry of our sorrowful hearts ascending to You, and heal them.

In the end, Lord Jesus, we ask that You strengthen us, imparting Yourself to us from the very core of Your being. 

For Your sake, we shall endure, and grow strong, and through faith, we shall confess You and praise the Father as You have done so many times. 

And let us rejoice with You as our fellowship is restored, as You rejoiced when the Father came to You in the pit, after Your taking our sins away through the horror of the cross, and the holy power of the Resurrection.

Even so, Lord Jesus, we ask that You remember us, unfruitful servants that do only what they’re told, when You come into Your kingdom.

According to our faith, let it be done to us.

Amen