Devotional Thoughts

1 Corinthians 15:28-31    “And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all. Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead? And why stand we in jeopardy every hour? I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.” Paul has told us that the last enemy to be destroyed is death. It is one thing for an enemy to be overcome. Jesus, in His resurrection has overcome death. However, the day is yet to come for its absolute destruction seeing that we still die. Yet, we have this assurance that death shall be destroyed. When all things are brought into obedience to the Son, the Son shall also be obedient unto God. In this Paul recognizes the truth that Jesus declared when He said He did nothing of Himself (Joh 5:19, 30). He is furthering recognizing that we will at that t...

1 Corinthians 15:24-27    “Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him.” In the previous verses of this chapter, Paul has been dealing with the necessity of Christ’s resurrection. He has instructed us in the vanity of our preaching, our faith, and our existence if Christ is not raised from the dead. In verse twenty-three, he states that Christ is the firstfruits, raised and offered unto God, and then after that those that are His. I believe the scripture tells us a lot about God’s kingdom here and only gives us glimpses of the eternal realm of glory. After all, our finite minds are not cap...

Psalm 140:6-8    "I said unto the LORD, Thou art my God: hear the voice of my supplications, O LORD.  (7)  O GOD the Lord, the strength of my salvation, thou hast covered my head in the day of battle.  (8)  Grant not, O LORD, the desires of the wicked: further not his wicked device; lest they exalt themselves. Selah." Commitment: Now that's a mighty big word. It's a word that seems to have lost its meaning through the years. Verbal agreements mean nothing anymore. A handshake agreement.. What's that? A written contract seems to be of less value than the paper its written on. I'll go ahead and say it... College sports are being ruined by money. Players forget an agreement if they can get more money somewhere else. And of course they are being encouraged to do so by those who have the money. Again I say, "Commitment: Now that's a mighty big word." Why would I bring up that subject concerning today's verses of Scripture? The writer of the Psal...

1 Corinthians 15:19-23    “If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.” In the hours between Christ’s crucifixion and His resurrection, I doubt there were any on earth more miserable than His followers. The man they had loved, trusted in, and thought to be their Deliverer was dead. Their enemies undoubtedly made fun of them at the least and sought to do them bodily harm at the worst. Their very safety was in question. There are many today who are miserable. They are miserable because they have bought into a doctrine that says if their faith is sufficient they can have their fill of this world’s goods. Their ho...

1 Corinthians 15:15-18    “Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not. For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.” Since there were a number of Jews in the congregation at Corinth, the Ten Commandments would have been well known to them. Paul points to the law of God to reinforce the gospel he has preached to them by reminding them that the law says “Thou shalt not bear false witness (Exo 20:16, Mat 19:18, Rom 13:9). If God did not raise Christ from the dead, then he is guilty of breaking this commandment. Throughout his declaration of the resurrection, he refers to Jesus only as “Christ.” In this way, he is emphasizing the anointing of God upon the Messiah. He is constantly reminding them that he is not just talkin...