Devotional Thoughts

Genesis 15:1-4    "After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.  (2)  And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?  (3)  And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir.  (4)  And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir." It is in this passage that we can see the application of a New Testament verse. (Romans 4:19-21)    "And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara's womb:  (20)  He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;  (...

Genesis 15:1    "After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward." The king of Sodom had just offered a great fortune to Abram because of his stand against the enemy. Abram had refused the fortune because his trust had been fully committed unto the Lord.  We aren't sure how much time elapsed between chapter 14 and chapter 15, but if you read between the lines, it almost seems that Abram had been having thoughts about the security that had been offered to him. It is in that moment that the Lord sent His word to Abram. "Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward." Do you ever need words of assurance in your life? Do you ever have second thoughts about something? Do you ever wonder if you made the right decision? Should I have changed jobs? Should I have turned down that promotion? Did I say the right thing or respond in the correct manner?  You fel...

Genesis 14:21-23    "And the king of Sodom said unto Abram, Give me the persons, and take the goods to thyself.  (22)  And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the LORD, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth,  (23)  That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich..." So many things happened from the end of chapter 13 and this point in chapter 14.  There was a great war that took place and in that time, "And they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their victuals, and went their way.  (12)  And they took Lot, Abram's brother's son, who dwelt in Sodom, and his goods, and departed." (Genesis 14:11-12) As a result, Abram took his trained servants and went after them. He brought back Lot and all the goods that had been taken. It was after this that the king of Sodom offered all the money...

Luke 2:6-7   "And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.  (7)  And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn." The Lord had placed Joseph and Mary in Bethlehem. I cannot imagine that Mary was "thrilled" about making the journey when she was nine months pregnant; yet, she went with Joseph to be counted in the census. She surely knew that the baby would be born during that time. Now, I have to share with you the way in which my thoughts have changed through the years. I used to think that when Jesus was born, Mary found old rags in that stable and used them  to wrap her baby in those "swaddling clothes."   Now, I am sure that during her pregnancy, though she is never mentioned, Mary's mother helped her with preparation for when the baby would be delivered.  If her mother did not help, we know...

  Luke 2:1-7    "And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.  (2)  (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria  (3)  And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.  (4)  And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)  (5)  To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.  (6)  And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered  (7)  And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn." Do you believe God works in ways of being behind the scene as well as being out front where His glory  is readily recogn...

Genesis 13:17-18     "Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee. (18 ) Then Abram removed his tent, and came and dwelt in the plain of Mamre, which is in Hebron, and built there an altar unto the LORD."  Today's verses occur after the separation of Abram and Lot. Yesterday, we saw that Lot made his choice based upon his sight and perspective of what he saw. Whereas, Abram made his choice based upon God's purpose and plan for him. Today, we see the blessings of walking by faith.  I want to first say that we serve God simply because He is worthy of our praise. We place our faith in Him because He is the source of all life, strength, and wisdom. We do not serve Him simply to receive something in return; yet, God has promised there are blessings to be experienced when we place our complete confidence in Him. God said to Abram, "Walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it...

Genesis 13:7-9    "And there was a strife between the herdmen of Abram's cattle and the herdmen of Lot's cattle: and the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land.  (8)  And Abram said unto Lot, Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren.  (9)  Is not the whole land before thee? separate thyself, I pray thee, from me: if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, then I will go to the left." The Lord continued to bless Abram and all his family. Even his nephew, Lot, was blessed so abundantly that the land could not support all their livestock. A decision had to be made.  Abram did not want any strife between him and his family, but he knew they had to part ways at this point. What would he do? He knew God had a land that had been promised to him. Would he try to decide which land would be given? Or, would he place th...

Genesis 13:1-4   "And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south. (2) And Abram  was  very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold. (3) And he went on his journeys from the south even to Bethel, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Hai; (4)  Unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first: and there Abram called on the name of the LORD." Abram made a bad decision. He looked to his own ideas instead of leaning upon the Lord.  God showed him how his providence worked.  An old hymn states it this way: "Be not dismayed what e're betide. God will take care of you. Beneath His wings of love abide. God will take care of you." Upon leaving Egypt, Abram took all his possessions back to the place where he first built an altar. It was the place where he confessed God to be his strength.  How does this lesson apply to us? Have ...

Genesis 12:10-13    "And there was a famine in the land: and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was grievous in the land.  (11)  And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife, Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon  (12)  Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, This is his wife: and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive.  (13)  Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall live because of thee." Circumstances can cause us to do things we would not otherwise consider. There was a famine, so Abram went down into Egypt.  There was a famine. Abram, Sarai, and all their people were hungry. What were they going to do? How would they survive?  Surely it was okay for them to go to Egypt to get help. Was it?  Let me say that if it had be...

Genesis 12:7-9    "And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.  (8 )  And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD.  (9)  And Abram journeyed, going on still toward the south." Worship of the Lord was an integral part of Abram's life.  He continued his journey based upon the promises of God. He was dependent upon the Lord for all his needs.  Worship was so important that he built an altar of worship in every place.  The Lord showed Abram that his seed would inherit this place when he passed through Sichem unto the plain of Moreh. Remember at this time, Abram, who was seventy-five, and Sarah had no children; yet, God promised the land to his seed.  Abram built an al...

Luke 2:10-11   "And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.  (11)  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." In these verses, we see the earthly beginning and result of the announcement of our Lord's coming to the earth. Peter would later write concerning the ending result of the work done by our Lord Jesus.  "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,  (4)  To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you." (1 Peter 1:3-4)  As we read these two passages, there are some words that I want us to pay attention to just now.  We see the words, ,"Christ the Lord" in Luke 2 passage and we see "Lord Jesus Christ" in Peter's passage...

Luke 2:8-11   "And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.  (9)  And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.  (10)  And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.  (11)  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." Have you ever wondered why the Lord chose to reveal this amazing event to the lowly shepherds?  It seems in that time that the shepherds were considered as lesser citizens. Remember when the Lord sent the Prophet Samuel to anoint the second king of Israel? Even Jesse, the father, thought the older sons would surely be the one selected by God; yet, God chose the younger son, David the shepherd.  On this momentous occasion, God chose to send the birth announcement to tho...

Luke 2:6-7    "And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.  (7)  And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn." It is difficult to think that anyone, with understanding, could read these two verses without being "touched" in the heart by these words. The very Lord of glory left heaven to come to this earth. Emmanuel, God in flesh, left the throne of heaven where angels constantly bowed before Him and cried out "Holy, Holy, Holy!"  He chose to come to this earth, laying aside that glory to walk as a man among those who were such contradictions to Him.  He came, not to be born in the finest hospital with all the latest equipment. He came, not to live in a palace with all its finery. He was not even afforded a room in the local inn; rather He was born in a stable and laid in a manger - a feeding tro...

Genesis 12:1-4    Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:  (2)  And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:  (3)  And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.  (4)  So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. Yesterday, we saw the Lord spoke to Abram and instructed him to leave his family and familiar land to go to a place unknown to him.  We are not told if Abram questioned God or not, but we saw that "Abram departed, as the Lord had spoken unto him."  Isn't that a wonderful exhibition of faith on his part? He left on the assurance of God that upon arrival he would be shown ...

Luke 2:1-5   And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.  (2)  (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.  (3)  And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.  (4)  And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)  (5)  To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. "And it came to pass in those days..."  We continue our thoughts concerning the events leading to the birth of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. We saw a few days ago that it came to pass concerning the prophecies of Jesus' birth. But today we look at one more thing that came to pass... "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto m...

Genesis 12:1-4    Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:  (2)  And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:  (3)  And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.  (4)  So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. We are introduced to Abram. I want to begin this devotion by saying that God is always the One to initiate the action anytime a person does great things in the Lord's service. Notice the "I will's" of these four verses and it all begins with "Now the Lord had said unto Abram...."  The Lord had something very special in store for Abram and his family. But in order to experie...

Luke 2:1   "And it came to pass in those days..."   There are some words in the Bible that we might be guilty of overlooking. The above words might possibly be some that fit that category; yet, they are most important in the total picture of God's amazing grace.  In these first five words, we can see God's purpose being carried out.  It came to pass that "a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14)  It came to pass that "unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6)   "It came to pass in those days..."  that God began to fulfill the covenant (promise) of redemption. After Christ finished the work on the cross, Paul wrote, "But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made un...

Genesis 11:4    "And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth." Genesis 11:7-8    "Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.  (8)  So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city." From the beginning of time, man has tried to circumvent the wisdom and power of God.  Eat the fruit, you will be as God. Marry the daughters of men, you will all be as one. Don't pay attention to that old man building the big boat. Everything will be okay. And now the earth was beginning to be replenished and human nature began once again to try to take control. What would they do this time?  "Let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven." Why would they want to build such a tower? May...

Genesis 9:12-15    And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: (13) I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. (14)  And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud (15) And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. There is so much to be taken from these verses, but I will try to condense it as much as I can.  I want to say that I'm not willing to give up the rainbow for something that was not intended by God.  The rainbow is the token of God's covenant and we should rejoice every time we see it in the sky. We all can probably admit that a rainbow does spring up within us that causes joy and even somewhat of an exciting feeling ...

Genesis 8:20-22    "And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar.  (21)  And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.  (22)  While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease." Noah and his family had now been delivered through the flood and off the ark. They were safe. God had provided every need for them. So what was the most important thing for them to do?  "Noah builded an altar unto the Lord."  He took time to give thanks unto God and the Lord received that spirit of gratitude and responded with a promise that remains to this day. We are two weeks past Thanksgiving ...

Genesis 8:11    "And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth." They remained on the ark another three months after the rain had stopped.  Noah sent out a raven from the ark to spy out the land. The raven never returned because there was so much carnage off which it fed. He sent out a dove and it returned with nothing in its mouth. He sent it the second time and this is when it came back with the olive leaf that had been plucked off. Noah knew the waters were gone from off the earth and would soon be safe to leave the ark. He sent the dove the third time and it never returned to the ark. God then instructed Noah and his family to exit the ark. As I think about these two types of birds, it seems obvious as to the reason the raven never returned. Ravens are scavengers and as such, there was a multitude of "food" for it to feed from. The doves are peace seek...

Genesis 8:4    "And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat." "And the ark rested."  We see the same language used at the completion of creation.  "And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made." (Genesis 2:2) This passage does not mean that God became tired and needed to rest; rather, He had completed all that was intended and His work was finished.  We can say the ark came to a rest "in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day" because its work was completed.  It had accomplished that for which it was intended.  The rain had stopped. The waters were going back down. Noah and his family and the animals in the ark were safe and delivered upon the earth. Hebrews 4:10 speaks of God ceasing (ending) all His labors.  In understanding this great truth, you and I can find rest in that which God has done f...

Genesis 7:18    "And the waters prevailed, and were increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark went upon the face of the waters." "And the waters prevailed." I look at that word, "prevailed," and think about a force behind it that caused it to have the upper hand against anything that would go against it. I can only imagine how fervently the people fought against the waters. I can almost hear the cries for help and the splashing of water as they would try to escape to high ground. "And the waters prevailed."  I can see the running to the tops of hills to try to escape, but the waters prevailed. I see them climbing the highest mountains, but the waters prevailed.  "Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered." (Genesis 7:20)  If my math is correct, the waters were 22.5 feet above the highest mountain on the face of the earth.  "And the waters prevailed."  "And the waters prevailed upon ...

Genesis 7:16    "And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in." "And the LORD shut him in." Noah had followed all of God's directions in building the ark. The animals had been brought into the ark with all provisions having been made for them. Noah and his family had now entered the ark. The rain had begun. Everything had been accomplished according to orders. But now there had to be one more finishing touch. Without this final touch, all would be in vain. What was that which was needed in order for the ark to be a successful haven of protection and rest? The Lord had to complete the work.  Yes, the Lord shut Noah and his family inside the ark. Not only did the Lord shut him inside the ark; but, He also shut them away from the raging waters. He shut them away from the wickedness of man. We saw in Genesis 6:5, "And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every im...

Genesis 6:17-18    "And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die.  (18 )  But with thee will I establish my covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with thee." God was very specific in giving detailed plans to Noah for building the ark. It took him 120 years to finish the project. Can you imagine all the things he had to endure while maintaining his determination to build the ark? No doubt, people would make fun of him as he was doing the work. "Hey Noah, what are you  building?.... (Noah) I'm building a boat... (People) that's a mighty big boat. Where are you going to float it?.... (Noah) It's going to rain and God is going to flood the earth.... (People) Rain? What's rain? I've never heard of that before.... (Noah)  Water is going to fall from the ...