Devotional Thoughts

1  Corinthians 1:26     “For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence.” We see our calling. The Greek word translated as “see” in this passage means, among other things, “to have (the power of) understanding” or “to know by experience” according to Thayer. It is a great blessing to understand that our calling is from God and not man. The longer we walk (know by experience) our calling, the more steadfast we become in our confidence that it is of God. In the world, we want people around us who are wise; men who are able to come up with good idea...

Psalm 81:1-3  To the chief Musician upon Gittith, A Psalm of Asaph.   "Sing aloud unto God our strength: make a joyful noise unto the God of Jacob.  (2)  Take a psalm, and bring hither the timbrel, the pleasant harp with the psaltery.  (3)  Blow up the trumpet in the new moon, in the time appointed, on our solemn feast day." I read through Psalm 80 and Psalm 81 this morning. I confess that I could not get a grip on the Scriptures as I read them. I have sat here struggling to get a message to share with you this morning and so far, nothing came to my heart and mind. I tried to come up with something out of my own thoughts and it came to a blank page in my mind. What was I to do? I just couldn't come up with a devotion that I felt gave a message of strength and encouragement. I thought about continuing to skip over the Psalms until something came to my mind. I thought about going to a familiar passage and going away from the Psalms this morning. Then I w...

1  Corinthians 1:22-25     “For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” The Jews require a sign (Mar 8:11, Joh 6:30). Even though Jesus fulfilled all the law and the prophets, God’s chosen people under the law were blinded to it. They had determined for themselves that the Messiah would certainly come in a manner that would elevate the Jews above other men. This carpenter’s son did not fit their ideal of what Israel’s King should look like or do. The Greeks were wrapped up in hearing new things (Act 17:21). They greatly desired the wisdom of men. The doctrine that Paul came preaching intrigued them. However, the notion of a man who had been ki...

Psalm 79:9    "Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name's sake." Psalm 79:13      "So we thy people and sheep of thy pasture will give thee thanks for ever: we will shew forth thy praise to all generations."   I will let each one that reads this come to their own conclusion as to our reason for asking God's help. I read verse 9 and I admit I have mixed feelings. I'm guilty of asking for help for my own benefit. "Help me Lord so that I....." The writer of this Psalm sees a higher and holier reason for asking for help. What was his reason? First of all, he was needing help "... For the glory of THY name." Lord, I want to glorify your holy name, but I need your help that I might lift up the precious name of Jesus. "Please deliver me and forgive me for thy name's sake." Help me, Lord, that I will not bring reproach upon your name. You see, his reque...

1  Corinthians 1:20-21     “Where   is   the wise? where   is   the scribe? where   is   the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.” Paul, in verse nineteen, has called attention to the word of God in the scriptures (Isa 29:14) that He would destroy the wisdom of the wise and negate the understanding of the prudent. He then calls on the church to examine this truth against their thoughts and actions. This is something we often fail to do today. When we hear men begin to speak with what seems to be great wisdom, we need to stop and consider where they are. It is not their physical location, but the mental, moral, and spiritual terrain we need to be aware of. We have a responsibility to consider this wisdom in the light of God’s teaching. If that wisdom is ...