Category: Prayer

Devotional 210: The End of All

We must remain mindful that we are only passing through before we pass on.

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Psalm 119:33

ה HE

33 Teach me, O Lord, the way of Your statutes,
And I shall keep it to the end.

Psalm 119:112

112 I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes
Forever, to the very end.

Psalm 119:75

75 I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right,
And that in faithfulness You have afflicted me.

We were called out of the world for the salvation of our souls, the redemption of corrupt flesh, the renewal of our hard hearts, that we might dwell eternally in the presence of Jesus and the light of G-d, yet there are days when we fall short and begin trying to serve two masters.

The thing to keep in mind is that one of them is already vanquished by our Savior, and that the King of Kings and His angels will purge the spirit realm of the Father’s enemies.

When He afflicts us, it is so that we may be reminded of what awaits those who don’t put their trust in the Son, and that without His protection and mercy, we are under His wrath.

For those who might be facing their mortality through aging, sicknesses, or both, we would do well to remember what Jesus told the disciples: “The things concerning me have an end.” (Luke 22:37) as well as what Jesus said about staying the course: “He who endures to the end shall be saved.” (Matthew 21:13)

Indeed, King David compared being out of G-d’s will to a wineskin in smoke: once useful when it was full, now empty and left to dry in the heat from hearth fires. Knowing he’s being tested, he still promises to keep G-d’s statutes. (Psalm 119:83)

Let’s reflect on how we’re going to keep to the narrow road and fit through the Gate, that we might enter the Father’s rest.

Therefore I pray:

Father in Heaven,

As Your children here on earth, getting caught up in worldly things despite being called out, we forget that in the light of eternity, this world is temporary, and all of the problems we face are the result of letting our guard down in the silences and long days that sometimes follow our prayers as we wait for You to answer.

Send Your Spirit to remind us that when we are afflicted, it is because we’ve strayed, or because You’re pruning us for the next level of service to glorify You, that humanity might look on our works and glorify Him too.

Grant that I would be as a new wineskin, a profitable servant, a willing son, a humble leader, a hard worker, a seed planter, and when I am a prodigal, be one who’s returned to his senses and receives mercy in his father’s arms, as a sheep returns to follow a Good Shepherd.

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

Amen.

Devotional 197: Sealed Doors

He promises us eternal life, not eternal grace.

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Genesis 7:13-16

13 On the very same day Noah and Noah’s sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and Noah’s wife and the three wives of his sons with them, entered the ark— 14 they and every beast after its kind, all cattle after their kind, every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, every bird of every sort. 15 And they went into the ark to Noah, two by two, of all flesh in which is the breath of life. 16 So those that entered, male and female of all flesh, went in as God had commanded him; and the Lord shut him in.

Matthew 25:8-13

8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ 10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.

11 “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ 12 But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’

13 “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.

We must ever be mindful of the fact that, as Jesus tells us, the things concerning Him have an end. (Luke 22:37). He promises us eternal life, but not eternal grace.

The purging of G-d’s enemies from the Kingdom will be complete, and the wicked cut off, as Solomon wrote, ‘without remedy.’ (Prov 29:1) because the opportunity to repent, receive grace, and rise to salvation was given, but dismissed, doubted, and rejected outright.

There will be no compromise for the unbeliever and the unrepentant, but weeping and gnashing of teeth at the casting out. (Luke 13:28)

There will be no bargaining with fence sitters; the Lord will deal more with you if you’re outside of G-d’s will because He wants your heart, that He might raise your spirit and redeem your soul, than ‘hedging bets’ by attending church on the ‘big days’, holding onto heaven like a gambler who believes they will get to place their final card on the table and reap the winnings.

It took the Almighty to seal Noah in, for panicking humanity and high, terrible waves beat at the door. If Noah had not obeyed and tried to seal it himself, they would not have survived.

It will also be true of the Gates of Heaven, when they’re sealed that no sin, no matter how small, will pass through them for eternity.

These are the things concerning Christ that will end. God’s grace, mercy, generosity, protection from evil, blessings, forgiveness, and most importantly, salvation from hellfire.

There is also ‘no remedy’ for remaining undecided or unbelieving.

We are admonished to arm ourselves with His Word, that we might not fall prey to sin when temptation calls, when doubt creeps in, and when rebellion feels good because the judgment is not swift in coming.

Stay true to your Lord, and faithful to your calling so when the door is finally, irrevocably sealed, you are known by name through the power of the Holy Spirit, and the Name of Jesus, to Father G-d.

Therefore I pray:

Lord Jesus,

It is said we may boldly approach and petition the throne as sons and daughters of G-d, redeemed by Your blood to the Father’s glory through our confession, repentance, faith, and obedience to the Father’s will, as You have done.

Yet I find that very much like King David, I’m asking’What is man, that You are mindful of him?’ (Psalm 8:4)

However bold my approach may appear, know that behind it there is a reverent fear, immense love, and inexpressible gratitude that this piece of dirt and dust that houses my longing spirit has been found worthy of the revelation of G-d through His Son.

I marvel that my unworthy, compromising, conditionally loving soul has been deemed worthy of forgiveness, grace, and salvation, and all that You ask is that I make this Good News known to others who have fallen, for it is the Father’s will that none should perish. (2nd Peter 3:9)

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for revealing the Father’s will for me, His mercy on me, and His love for me even in my wretchedness, that He sent You to redeem me.

I confess, profess, and glorify You in proclaiming that today I desire to dwell with the bridegroom in the house of the Lord as a fruitful servant of His kingdom. It will be my eternal honor to give Him praise and do the work of Heaven He’s called my redeemed soul to do, knowing that I am sealed inside the door not just by His Holy Spirit, but as Noah was sealed, by His Almighty hand.

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

Amen.

Devotional 196: Examine and Return

We have an active part to play in the restoration of our fellowship to G-d.

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Lamentations 3:40-41

40 Let us search out and examine our ways,
And turn back to the Lord;
41 Let us lift our hearts and hands
To God in heaven.

So very often in the stumbles of our walk to the narrow road and the final judgment, we’ve had to ask forgiveness, but we do say in a way that calls for the Lord to take action in order to restore us.

Purify, renew, take away, strengthen, or whatever variation for whatever sins, we seek His ability to sweep it away. He has promised to do so, but we are not to simply ask, because even though He knows what we’ve done, we ourselves have an active part to play.

In the OT, the Israelites often gathered before G-d and sought His mercy after a period of self examination and confession.

Since the holy G-d cannot look on sin, whenever Israel lost sight of who provided for and protected them, they fell into worldliness to their peril, and opened themselves to the Father’s wrath as He gave them over or punished them, then looked for a faithful remnant to return to Him so He could restore them.

This is a reassuring message, and even under the covenant of grace, He does not excuse our sinning, or let us be passive in the process of restoring our fellowship with Him.

In repentance, Israel had to approach G-d, bringing the offerings He required of them, performing the rituals He commanded of them, and He would hear from Heaven, and restore them to Himself.

If there is any truth to the maxim: ‘Prevention is better than repair,’ it is in this verse from Lamentations. If we claim to love G-d and truly desire to be in His presence when all is said and done, it requires not only faith and obedience.

Faith, obedience, discipline, sacrifice, and prayer are required of us. The sooner we’re convicted of sin and repent of it, the sooner our fellowship is restored and we are back under the Blood of our Savior.

The writer of Hebrews admonishes us to ‘throw off the sin that so easily besets us.’ (Hebrews 12:1)

Jesus tells us to cut off anything of the flesh that causes us to sin rather than imperil our souls. (Matthew 5:29-30)

In our daily walk, the closer we stay to our Lord’s boundaries, we’ll begin to find that keeping ourselves from temptation to sin will keep us from the need to seek grace so often.

The Father himself assures us that if we return to Him, He will return to us, restoring us once more under the covenant of grace, and the wrath of lawlessness will no longer be upon us.

Therfore I pray:

Lord Jesus,

As You are the holy, worthy one covering for my sins, when I break fellowship with Heaven I too feel the frightened anguish You did when the Father hid You from view as you replaced me on the cross, that I may be reconciled to enter into my Father’s rest.

Let the Holy Spirit convict me to present myself to You after examining my ways, confessing and repenting of all I did and said that was not of You or the will of the Father.

Let the voice of the Spirit be firm and unrelenting, that I may come before G-d to confess, repent, and be restored to Him as You are at this very hour.

I understand that is on me to initiate the return to my first love, who is never far from me.

Forgive me today, for whatever backsliding licentiousness, of sin I fell prey to, willingly or not, and cause it to depart from and be hidden from me.

I come now to the altar of the Lord to place the crushing burden of my sins on it for holy fire to consume.

Let me seek once more to restore myself beneath the covenant of grace, but I also ask that my own need become less frequent, that You might impart it to others more freely as I learn to walk blameless in the Light of Your salvation.

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

Amen.

Devotional 191: Lovers of This World

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The Abandoned Apostle

9 Be diligent to come to me quickly; 10 for Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world, and has departed for Thessalonica—Crescens for Galatia, Titus for Dalmatia. 11 Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry.

Demas, like the disciples of Jesus, saw Paul do hard teaching, with hard concepts for the hedonistic, polytheistic people he ministered to understand. And he made a tragic, fatal decision to backslide, indeed, desert, the teachings of Jesus under the covenant of grace, casting his lot with the world.

Those of the flock that abandons the leadership of the Good Shepherd and his hand-picked ministers (and Paul was definitely hand-picked) are prone to attack, to theft, and to death.

Doubtless the persecution Paul suffered and the constant threat of death helped Demas decide he had no heart to persist in Kingdom mission work, and wasn’t willing to give his life for it. He traded his eternal soul for worldly trinkets and counterfeit comfort.

As Jesus tells us no one who undertakes the work and turns back is fit for Kingdom service. (Luke 9:62)

They cut themselves off from the promises of an unchanging, faithful Father to take comfort in the lies of a would-be usurper who will cull the souls of the gullible, skeptical, and unrepentant.

One is well reminded that the prince of this world, as powerful as he may be, is still subject to the almighty King of the universe, maker of Heaven and Earth, the seen and the unseen. In this, we are advised by our Lord not to fellowship with darkness.

John 14 30 I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.

But he does in the rest of us, in matters of degree, in aspects of our lives where we don’t realize he’s operating. It is only through faith in Christ our enemies’ weapons will not prosper, and our sinful souls and corrupt flesh restored and reconciled to enter into our Father’s rest forever.

In pursuing this, we are admonished to love our Father with all of our being, and fear His power to cast soul and body into hell. (Matthew 10:28)

Much like the multitudes followed Jesus at first only because He healed them, the modern multitudes fill the churches when disaster strikes, but they quickly leave when the floodwaters recede and the wildfires are put out. They treat Heaven as an earthly safety net, and not as their eventual fate.

They will know nothing of living on the new Earth in the light of G-d’s glory. (Rev 21:1)

But G-d will not be mocked, and His eyes are open to their motives; it is to their eternal peril, and not by His glory and honor, that they shall be judged. The covenant of grace is not a safety net for the faithless, and there will be no salvation for the followers of Demas back into the groaning, waiting world.

Choose, this day, whom you will serve. (Joshua 24:15)

Therefore I pray:

Lord Jesus

It is to You the Father has given all things (John 5:22), including the Throne of Judgment, for You have proven worthy to the Book of Life, to call your faithful out of the world once more (John 15:19), call us to repentance and obedience, that we might not be cast out into the unquenchable fire, feasted on by the immortal worm.

I confess, Lord Jesus, the times I have been tempted to follow Demas and renounce the promise of grace through Your sacrifice on Calvary, giving Your last moments to give that grace to repentant thief and to pray forgiveness for Your persecutors.

In those times, help my unbelief and strengthen me to do likewise, for I know that to love my enemies and pray for them is not in me, not in my own strength, and not in my own will. Nor is it in me to walk the extra mile, and turn my cheek.
I know what You say to do, but it is a command I find myself unwilling to obey. It is, as those who turned back from You said, a hard teaching.

Give my prayers the power then to help me do the Father’s will, in fellowship with the power of the Holy Spirit, to love my neighbor as myself.

In the midst of the world’s clamoring for my attention, give me discernment to hear Your voice, and to follow You back through the windblown crowds chasing all manner of false doctrine. Let me turn my back to the backsliders, and yield to You so that I return in joy to the safety of Your unyielding hands.

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

Amen.

Devotional 190: Theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven

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Matthew 5:1-10

The Beatitudes

5 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
For they shall be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
For they shall inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
For they shall be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
For they shall obtain mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
For they shall see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
For they shall be called sons of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

The result of earthly devotion to Christ is tagged on each end of His sermon by the same one: Theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

As servants, we are given gifts and talents by the Master to use to His benefit while He is away from us. In the parable Jesus tells, some are gifted more than others, but all are gifted. The proper use of them brings increase, but not using them, indeed, hiding them, not only results in decrease, but in the Master’s wrath and the loss of position in His service.

Let’s be clear: G-d does not need our money (Haggai 2:8), nor our gifts, for He is the one who imparts them, and we call him Almighty for a reason.

He desires our gifts be put into service to help and bless, coming alongside fellow believers in ministry who are gifted in ways we are not, but all working toward the kingdom’s goals. As we use them, G-d will give the increase, and we will bear fruit for our faith as well as our labor and sacrifice.

The cost comes in trying to live by the spirit in a world of flesh and sin. Paul reminds us this will be a lifelong battle, dividing us within and affecting those around us (2 Cor: 3-11) as we are persecuted for speaking truth to the devil’s power, such as we give him over our lives. The pressure to be silence, and the spirits that work evil around us, can be such that like Paul, we also despair of life.

David, in a show of great strength, even prays for mercy toward his enemies who mock his faith in that they not be slain, just brought down and scattered. (Psalm 59:11)

fIs this a strength, an integrity of spirit, a fast holding to a teaching to love our enemies, that we can honestly say we possess? If struck for the Gospel, or worse, will we count ourselves worthy like Peter and the Apostles? (Acts 5)

Would we have it in us to rejoice for being persecuted in ways that hurt us, interrupted us, incapacitated us, for preaching the Gospel? Or would we renounce Him for comfort, hoping that He will forgive and know our hearts, knowing that He says if we don’t confess and proclaim Him before men, He will not do so before the Father?

As the tides of immorality and turning away from Christ’s teachings unfold around us, under the guises of tolerance and politics, masking sin as rights, freedoms, and patriotism, let more sober minds and holy tempers pray our officials take heed of the words of Zechariah (7:9 -10)

9 “Thus says the Lord of hosts:

‘Execute true justice,
Show mercy and compassion
Everyone to his brother.
10 Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless,
The alien or the poor.
Let none of you plan evil in his heart
Against his brother.’

He will turn a deaf ear to our cry of “God bless America” if we do not in turn bless Him as one nation truly under one G-d, while we yet have freedom to worship Him in spirit and truth.

Therefore I pray:

Lord Jesus,

We are living in an empire unraveling, borne of sin, yet prospered and protected by Your hand, for the Father allowed it to flourish in spite of its evils, according to the His will and plan.

We honor You now with cold lips, hard hearts, and unrepentant prideful spirits that You are giving us license to act upon because we say Your Name to sanction that which we do of our own will, and not from a desire to live according to Your teaching, and to the Father’s glory.

Devotional 189: Remove Your Foot From Evil

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Proverbs 4:

27 Do not turn to the right or the left;
Remove your foot from evil.

While the entire proverb warns us and addresses how to walk the Narrow Path to salvation, it is true that for most of us, all things considered, the length of earthly years can make it difficult, and we often find ourselves straddling two states of being: Spiritual and Carnal.

It is the line between corrupting flesh that fights the spirit seeking Christ’s salvation through grace. The Apostle Paul reminds us this is going to be a lifelong battle (Gal 5:17)

We would likely answer, “But Lord, we’re only human….”

The Lord would answer He remembers that (Psalm 103:14)

What is given to us to remember is that we are spiritual beings, souls that will be returning reconciled from sin, under the blood covenant of mercy and grace that we entered into with Jesus, who sealed it with His sacrifice by taking our place and punishment on Himself.

In that, the Son reminds us that we are beholden, and should fear He who is able to cast the soul as well as the body to be consumed in the void. (Matthew 10:28)

Our feet may straddle two worlds for a variety of reasons, such as an immediate way out of bad circumstances, monetary rewards based on your silence, sexual favors for advancing careers….etc.

In those moments, we can waver and compromise, even backslide, in our service like the sleeping disciples of Gethsemane. We can view it as when the Word says Satan left Jesus ‘until a more opportune time.’ (Luke 4:13)

Today, let us repent of the earthly sin that creates such opportune times for demonic spiritual conditions that bring us both drama and tragedy in the world, and rebukes from the Throne of Grace that will one day be the Throne of Judgment.

If we stand with Christ and fellow believers, keeping one foot in the world is a conscious choice we are making to choose curses over blessings, for there is no compromising with sin for our Father. He can’t look at it, and He will never forget it without the blood of His Son covering us.

Such is His heart toward us.

Let us remove our feet from evil, rededicate our hearts, guard our mouths, rethink our choices, and consider the motives of our actions as we return to the Narrow Path to follow the Good Shepherd, who possesses the only Name under heaven by which we can be salvaged, reconciled and blameless, to our Father as we dwell in the presence of His glory forever.

Therefore I pray:

Even now, Father, we may stand in sin before You as You turn away, waiting to hear our confessions, our pleas for Your mercy, help, and judge the sincerity of our hearts towards You.

Before men, You affirmed Your Son, once among a multitude when He was baptized, and once again in the midst of Moses and Elijah, in the presence of His closest disciples.

It is, indeed, good for us to be here with Him as well. Today, we open the door to his knock, and prepare our hearts to receive the Gospel, repenting for the Kingdom of Heaven at hand.

I repent of using grace for license, for procrastinating in blessing others when I have time and resources and means, for compromising in my service like an unprofitable servant. I would not be cast into the outer darkness, weeping. Today, I ask that You not blot my name from the Book of Life, and help me not to corrupt the seal of my sinful spirit to your Holy Spirit.

Today, O Lord, through the power and might of the Name of Jesus, I remove my foot from evil, and turn neither to the right nor left, not looking on wickedness and giving rein to deceitful, perverse lips.

Receive me once again into the fold of Your flock, Father, and deliver me from evil. I remove my foot, and set my face to once more follow Jesus, loving You and Him with all my heart, body, mind, and soul.

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

Amen.

Devotional 188: So the People of Nineveh Believed G-d.

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Jonah 3:1-10

Jonah Preaches at Nineveh

3 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach to it the message that I tell you.” 3 So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, [a]a three-day journey in extent. 4 And Jonah began to enter the city on the first day’s walk. Then he cried out and said, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!”

The People of Nineveh Believe

5 So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them. 6 Then word came to the king of Nineveh; and he arose from his throne and laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth and sat in ashes. 7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published throughout Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying,

Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything; do not let them eat, or drink water. 8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily to God; yes, let every one turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. 9 Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish?

10 Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it.

As believers we must not mistake mercy and grace for permission. The reluctant, rebellious prophet who went in the opposite of G-d’s direction, even in his disobedience, was made to point people to the Father.

The mariners, to their credit, did not immediately wish to throw Jonah overboard. Surely in such seas, as far as they knew, Jonah was going to drown.

Still, Jonah’s rebellion was so strong that it forced them to find out through pagan means why their voyage was placed in holy peril. Fortunately, G-d was merciful to them in their innocence of Jonah’s crime.

When they did as Jonah requested, and the sea began to calm down, the power of G-d was seen in the natural to the point where the sailors took oaths and made a sacrifice; whether they maintained those oaths is not known, but in the moment, they knew who the true ruler of the seas was, despite whatever other gods they sought in their native prayers. The power of the G-d was revealed to them in the natural world.

In Nineveh, which dealt violently with the prophets of its day, Jonah’s prophecy was short, but it says that he cried out. There was no meeting or gathering for him to preach to an assembly as such.

He cried out, and the important distinction here is that they did not spurn Jonah, but they believed G-d. How did a land so sinful come so quickly to a collective mode of repentance, from the greatest to the least, and even among the animals?

G-d imbued the words with the power of His Spirit, so that it penetrated every heart. Given the short time the Ninevites had, there was no time for a process, or for anyone to think about whether or not they wanted to repent; the power of G-d’s Word proclaimed by Jonah was such that none could refute it. The power of the Spirit-filled word had to pierce hearts and unstop ears that before had been resistant to the Father’s mercy. A disobedient rebel was used to convert the hearts and minds of disobedient rebels, and put a right spirit within them.

Jesus told His disciples such: (Luke 12:11)

11 “Now when they bring you to the synagogues and magistrates and authorities, do not worry about how or what you should answer, or what you should say. 12 For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

And although Nineveh eventually fell because they failed to pass along the values of faith, repentance, and obedience, we have an example of the Father withholding his punishment for those who willing to do His will and live under His covenant of grace, including Jonah, who was actually angry that G-d followed His word and did not destroy the land.

Let’s note then, that although the prophet still desired in his heart to see the city destroyed despite his prophecy, the Lord provided for him until he could see mercy manifested on people he believed the worst of sinners.

Therefore I pray:

Father in Heaven,

As You have revealed Yourself to us by the power of the blood of Your Son, and called us to also minister to a faithless, mocking, wicked, and adulterous generation while dealing with our own doubt, reluctance, and rebellion, we ask that You also imbue our words and deeds with the power of the Spirit, so that You are revealed to those we tell about you.

May it be so in the natural, as it was with the pagan mariners, and in the spiritual, as it was with the Ninevites.

We ask also for the Spirit’s discernment, that we not cover Your truth in the veil of our politics and self-righteousness, for all fall short of Your glory, and none are blameless before the throne save through the power of Calvary’s atoning work. Forgive us if we have done so, and bring it to mind if we backslide the next time we speak of the goodness of Your Name among those we have been called to prophesy and evangelize.

We thank You also, Father, for protecting and providing for us, that we may see Your mercy manifested among the worst of sinners so that they glorify You and bear more of salvation’s fruit in Jesus’ name.

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

Amen.

Devotional 187: The Lord Looked at Peter…

Getting the Lord’s attention leads to conviction, repentance. and eventually, the joy of salvation.

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Luke 22:55-62

55 Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them. 56 And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, “This man was also with Him.”

57 But he denied Him, saying, “Woman, I do not know Him.”

58 And after a little while another saw him and said, “You also are of them.”

But Peter said, “Man, I am not!”

59 Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, “Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a Galilean.”

60 But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are saying!”

Immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. 61 And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” 62 So Peter went out and wept bitterly.

Our earthly goal to model and emulate Jesus looks more like Peter’s walk; full of good intentions, strong words, many stumbles, and on occasion, a heart not up to the task.

It says in G-d’s Word that His eyes roam the earth, looking for remnants of faith, obedience, righteousness, and steadfastness. Indeed, Jesus asks that when He returns, will He find faith on the earth (Luke 18:8)

Jesus says of the Roman Centurion that his faith in Him to just speak the words of healing over his servant was unmatched, even in Israel.

Yet Peter was part of the ‘inner circle,’ and we also, as His missionaries, have been called out to a higher standard. Jesus came to seek us out, to reveal the Father to us that we might be reconciled through Him.

The only disciple to walk on water, the one whose passion made him cut off a soldier’s ear, the one who repeatedly told Jesus he would stand beside Him when the others fled, the one who stood up in the midst of an assembly and delivered a powerful sermon of deliverance, had, in this moment, realized he only looked to preserve himself. His fighting spirit was as steadfast as gelatin, and just as quick to dissolve in a moment of persecution.

It is no different with us; Jesus knows we will backslide and transgress. He sees us doing so, over and over, willfully and otherwise. It is then on us to repent, confess, and entreat once more to be under the covenant of grace. He indeed sees our hearts, and knows our thoughts towards Him.

Repentance gets the Lord’s attention as well, as does faith, prayer, and obedience to do the Father’s will, for Jesus Himself does nothing apart from it.

If we are to emulate our Lord, then, we can do no less, and do it with no less devotion and godly focus. And when we have sinned, we must repent with the godly sorrow that leads back to salvation’s narrow road. (2 Corinthians 7:10)

As Jesus then restored Peter, peeling back the layers of his love with the same question asked three times, (Peter, do you love Me?) blotting away each of the denials from Peter’s ledger, so too will He restore us to fellowship with Him. (John 21:15-17)

Let us willingly partake of His sacrifice, count the cost, and carry our crosses to be reconciled once more to the Father’s eternal love, lifting those around us as we go.

Ask yourself today: Am I the centurion, outside of the circle, but recognizing the majesty of who Jesus truly is, or am I Peter, inside the circle, yet denying Him in my spirit knowing full well that I bear witness to the impact of His power in my own life?

Then do what you need to do, in order to be able to say truly in your heart:

“Lord, you know that I love You.”

Therefore I pray:

Lord Jesus,

It’s undeniable that when I abide in You, in Your presence, in the Gospel as God’s plan to redeem me, in His Word that will not pass away, I am at my best in every aspect of this earthly life, feeling the best I ever do.

To walk in the Father’s favor is to have the best of everything, but because I don’t stay in fellowship, the enemy slithers up to me at a more opportune time, and consumes me. In that moment, bring to mind that if I never resist him, he will never flee. (James 4:7)

Having been called out of the world, I would not serve two masters. Indeed Lord, You tell me I cannot.

So this day, I once more choose salvation, redemption, forgiveness, and the mercy and grace of the New Covenant, covered by the blood You shed in my place for the remission of my sins. Because of You, though I am one day closer to the dread Day of the Lord, I do not fear it.

As my faith vacillates between that of the foreign centurion who believed, and the fearful rock who denied You, look on me too with love and restore me to Your side once more.

Give me boldness to stand up in the midst of the assembly, humble myself, and point those in my presence to the Father’s throne, and change the world.

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

Amen.

Devotional 186: He Is Not Here

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Matthew 28:6

6 He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.

The earthly celebration of the Lord’s rising in victory over sin and death is past, but we are to ever hold these words of comfort in our hearts as we abide until his return: He is not here.

How many times did He say to those He ministered too, and therefore to us, down through the ages, “I tell you the truth…” and “Assuredly, I say to you…”?

Even the angel sitting on the stone confirms Him: “He has risen, as He said.”

So too, He says He will do the same for us who remain in faith (John 6:40)

The faithless mockers would keep Him in the grave, and blaspheme that He is ‘zombie Jesus,’ but they do so because their spirits are attuned to dead things that only appear alive, as Jesus told the Pharisees that the tombstones, though whitened outside, still contained death and corruption within them. (Matthew 23:27)

As our Lord would do, we pray for them, that they come to repentance, faith, and obedience, and if they are within the sound of our voice, we are to speak Truth in love.

We must remember that as He was not of this world, we have also been called out of it, chosen by the Father’s mercy to have the truth of Him revealed to us, grafted in among His people by grace, partaking in the New Covenant given to all nations. We could not come to Him except through the presence of Christ in our lives. (John 14:6)

Having been called out to minister to the lost with our gifts and talents, being called HIs people who were once not His people, let us also declare that where our Lord is not, we are not.

We will not stay on this Earth of sin, but on a new one, purged of all evil. We will not stay in the grave. We will not stay in sin, doubt, pain, and sorrow, no matter our circumstances. He will heal our pain, bind our wounds, and dry our tears.

Certainly there will be times in this life where we will be afflicted, tested, tempted, attacked, and suffering, but let us keep in mind the words of faith in our Heavenly deliverance, even if we don’t experience an earthly one: But if He does not….(Daniel 3:17-19)

In those times, let us proclaim Him all the same, and all the louder, because He’s gone before us to prepare our place, as He will come to meet us, as He went into Galilee to present Himself to His disciples, being revived by the Spirit of the living G-d, which He imparts to us in love, through faith in Him.

Therefore I pray:

Lord Jesus,

Every generation that believes on You and the One who sent You, marvels that You would make such a painful sacrifice, putting right the Father’s plan that seemed so easily replaced, a field of wheat sown with the enemy’s tares.

It is beyond our understanding, but He tells us in His Word, and through You, that His thoughts and ways are higher than ours, and only for our good,

The faithless mockers, putting their faith in this world, like Demas, turn and leave You behind in the grave. The sinners and doubters are in need of signs to bring them to faith and bolster it, as those who proclaimed they’d believe if You delivered Yourself from the cross, not bothering to seek G-d to reveal You to them.

We pray for them, as You prayed for us.

If indeed, our hearts and treasures are to be of Heaven, then we must be present where You are, and bring it into the midst of wherever two or more are gathered.

In this life, as You said on the cross, we too will feel the Father has forsaken us and left us to die in a dark place. We ask then, that You send the Comforter to remind us of our times of refreshing, of deliverance when there seemed to be none. We ask that He help our unbelief, and remind us that we are sealed in righteousness, for the seals of the tombs of sin and death, separated and irreconciled to our Creator, have been eternally broken.

We only need to come out of the grave into the light of His presence, by Your command, and to the Father’s glory, now and forever.

Amen.

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.