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Showing posts from January, 2025

Daily Devotion (Video): And Yet . . .

Daily Devotion: Exodus 22:28-31

Exodus 22:28-31     "Thou shalt not revile the gods, nor curse the ruler of thy people. Thou shalt not delay to offer the first of thy ripe fruits, and of thy liquors: the firstborn of thy sons shalt thou give unto me. Likewise shalt thou do with thine oxen, and with thy sheep: seven days it shall be with his dam; on the eighth day thou shalt give it me. And ye shall be holy men unto me: neither shall ye eat any flesh that is torn of beasts in the field; ye shall cast it to the dogs."   Regardless of what men may say, we are not expected to give credence to idols in an effort to not offend others. This verse of scripture does not indicate that it is alright with the true and living God to accept any old form of worship. We are not being told to accept customs and traditions that the word of God plainly teaches against. The scripture plainly tells us to destroy the places of idol worship (Deuteronomy 12:2). Another meaning of the Hebrew word translated here as “gods” ...

Daily Devotion: Isaiah 40:29-31

Isaiah 40:29-31     "He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.  (30)  Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:  (31)  But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." "He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength."  He gives power. What a glorious statement that is and the truth of it goes even beyond our ability to comprehend. He gives power to our every motion: breathing, seeing, hearing, movement of legs and arms, the beat of our heart and so much more. He gives power for us to have the ability to do those things in our everyday life. "AND to them that have no might he increaseth strength." He gives us strength day by day to be able to go about our daily activities in life. He (the Holy One) gives it!...

Daily Devotion: Exodus 21:1

Exodus 21:1    "Now these are the judgments which thou shalt set before them."  This twenty-first chapter of the book of Exodus begins a litany of rules that the children of Israel were to be governed by. Many of these seem strange to us today, more-so to some than to others, depending on the society we are born into. Knowing that God inspired these things to be penned into His holy scripture assures me that they have meaning for us. I also know that I am not wise enough to see what it means except as the Holy Spirit grants understanding. One thing is obvious. There are behaviors that God expects us to adopt toward one another that lead to living together peacefully. He is aware of every circumstance of the lives of His people, always has been and always will be. Not only is He aware, but He is involved. These scriptures show us that He is not just the God of our so-called church lives. He is God in every aspect of our lives. He is the God of our treatment of those  ...

Daily Devotion: Isaiah 40:28-31

Isaiah 40:28-31     "Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.  (29)  He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.  (30)  Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:  (31)  But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." Twice in the previous verses, the Lord asked the same question. "To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One." (Isaiah 40:25) The thought is being firmly implanted within us that there is none like our God. He wrote of those who make idols with gold, silver, and wood. They make them with their own hands and then they bow down to worship them.  Are t...

Daily Devotion: The Nations Are Accepted By Him - Acts 10:34-35

"In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him” (Acts 10:34, 35). These words were written by Luke as he witnessed the encounter of Peter with Cornelius. You might recall that in this event in Acts chapter 10, is the fulfilling of the commandment given by Jesus before his ascension into heaven. He said, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8,).  Notice, the emphasis is on “fulfilling.” It is not “fulfilled.” That is, the work of evangelism is a work that shall never end while time continues on. More about this later. But here in the Judean city of Caesarea is a Gentile man who “fears God; a man of prayer and also of great charitable works (10:2). He was also a man lacking in the one thing that would make him truly and finally accepted...

Sermon (Video): Shepherds Of The Flock - 1 Peter 5:1-4

Daily Devotion: Exodus 20:22-26

Exodus 20:22-26    "And the LORD said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven. Ye shall not make with me gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold. An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee. And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it. Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon."   Just as coming into God’s presence is always “going up” for us, we realize that the LORD’s word comes from above. Whether they come with of chastisement or joy, we know that we have encountered something lofty and high. There is nothing in this world that deserves to stand b...

Daily Devotion: Exodus 20:18-21

Exodus 20:18-21     "And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not. And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was."   It is impossible to understand anything about the depths of God’s love until we have a glimpse of His righteous power. Conversely, it may be difficult for us to imagine that God could possibly love us when we are first blessed to see His righteous power. Once we have been made to see our sinful nature, God’s righteous law and judgement is like seeing thunderings, lightnings, the smoking mountain, and hearing the noise of the trumpet. It is a fe...

Daily Devotion: Isaiah 40:13-14

Isaiah 40:13-14      "Who hath directed the Spirit of the LORD, or being his counsellor hath taught him?  (14)  With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and shewed to him the way of understanding?" There have been many times when I would begin a project and have to restart it more than once. The problem was that I did not think that project through all the way to the end. Something would present itself as an obstacle, or I would forget to place a screw in the right place, only to have to remove some part and begin again. I admit that I am not the very best at following instructions. I like to look at the picture of the finished project and then hope mine looks like that when I get finished. But then there is the problem of it working correctly once I have finished it. What does that have to do with today's verses of Scripture? I have admitted my fallacy of being able to put things toge...

Daily Devotion: Exodus 20:13-17

Exodus 20:13-17     "Thou shalt not kill. Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's."   It has been said that the first four commandments (Exodus 20:1-11) deal with how we relate to God and the last six (including verse 12) deal with how relate to each other. However, we need to be careful about taking this distinction too literally. Remember that Jesus taught us that the treatment we show to the least of His we have done unto Him. The LORD our God is the author of all these commandments. We are often quick to point out things we have not done. We say we have never killed anybody, but have we ever been guilty of hating our brother (1John 3:15)? We say that we have never committed adultery, but have we ever fo...

Daily Devotion: Isaiah 40:9-11 (2)

Isaiah 40:9-11     "O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!  (10)  Behold, the Lord GOD will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.  (11)  He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young." We used these verses recently, but there is something about them that warrants our further attention. "Behold your God!"  How does that statement hit us this morning? Do we ever take time to just simply behold our God? What does it mean to behold? Years ago, I was a meter reader. I often would turn into a driveway and see a sign that said, "Beware of dog!"  Sometimes the sign would be there, but no ...

Daily Devotion: Exodus 20:12

Exodus 20:12     "Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee."   In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul declares that this is the first commandment with promise (Ephesians 6:1-3). Living long in the land of promise was directly tied to giving honor to father and mother. My precious mother has been gone from this stage of life for nearly fifteen years, but I still try to honor her example of kindness and forgiveness in living by those examples. At the time of this writing, my father is only a few days away from his ninety-fifth birthday. He is still preaching the gospel of our Lord and Savior and encouraging those around him.  I realize that not everyone is blessed to have parents that show them love. They do not have good examples set before them to live by. They are ill-treated by their fathers and their mothers. It is heartbreaking to hear of the terrible way that some parents treat their children...

Daily Devotion: Isaiah 40:9-11

Isaiah 40:9-11     "O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!  (10)  Behold, the Lord GOD will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.  (11)  He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young." I hope it is my misguided imagination, but it seems to me that in too many circles, the view of God has been dimmed. Many have attempted to bring God down to our own level, making him to be a grandfather image or our best pal. It is definitely true that there is a friend that sticks closer than a brother and I believe that friend is Jesus. I love the old hymn, "What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and g...

Daily Devotion: Exodus 20:8-11

Exodus 20:8-11    "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it."   The word translated as “remember” does not mean to recall or bring to mind. It does mean to be mindful of or pay attention to. The LORD gave us the sabbath as one of His commandments. It is meant for the people of God to pay attention to just as much as loving Him with all our heart, mind, and soul or any of the other commandments.  Scholars who study such things have commented on a number of natural benefits to keeping a day of rest. It helps to relieve the stress of ...

Daily Devotion: Isaiah 40:8

Isaiah 40:8     "The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever." There is beauty to be seen in all four seasons of the year. I admit my two favorite seasons are Spring and Fall. I love to see the new leaves and flowers blooming. I love to see the grass becoming green again. The warmth of the sun makes the bones feel better. Yes, my age is catching up with me.  In the Spring, I feel the power of the resurrection as I see life coming from what was seemingly dead. Then in the Fall, I love seeing the colors forming on the trees. There is something majestic about the orange, red, and brown colors that capture the trees. The heat is becoming lower and it feels nice to be outside again. Though those are my two favorite seasons, there are also beauties to be seen in Summer and Winter.  I admit the heat and the cold do not always agree with me. I can't take it as well as I once could. But nevertheless, all four seasons have their ow...

Daily Devotion: Exodus 20:7

Exodus 20:7     "Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain."  This simple statement is something that most of us have heard all our lives. There is a particular “swear word” that usually comes to mind immediately when we hear this. There are others that often go unnoticed, even by professing Christians. One very prevalent one in our society today (especially on social media) is OMG. Call me an old fogey if you want to, but this is as much taking His name in vain as any other swear word.  Another form that is cringeworthy to me is to hear the name of Jesus used as an expletive in a tense situation. To use the name of Jesus Christ in any fashion other than to give Him honor and glory is still taking the name of God in vain. Remember that Jesus said, “I and my Father are one (John 10:30).” Misusing the name of God in any of His persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – 1 John 5:7-9)...

Daily Devotion (Video): Welcome to the Race

Daily Devotion: Isaiah 40:1-2

Isaiah 40:1-2     "Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.  (2)  Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD'S hand double for all her sins." "Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished."  As I read these words, I think back to when the Lord first showed Isaiah that glorious vision of Himself. The Lord told Isaiah, "Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not." (Isaiah 6:9)  I'm not sure they understood as Isaiah spoke these words concerning comfort to the people. At the moment, the nation was not in warfare. God had turned the Babylonian army back to their own land. Surely there was comfort in those words, but I also find comfort as I read these words today. I pray you will find comfort also. The Bible describes us as "pilgrims ...

Daily Devotion: Exodus 20:1-6

Exodus 20:1-6    "And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments."   God descended upon mount Sinai with fire and the mountain shook at His presence. God told Moses to bring Aaron and to come up into the mountain. He also cautioned again that none other of the priests, or the people, or their livestock was to touch the mountain. To do so would bring swift and certain death. The fi...

Daily Devotion: Isaiah 39:8

Isaiah 39:8     "Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. He said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days." After God had healed Hezekiah with divine intervention, the son of the king of Babylon  sent a convoy of men with letters and a present to Hezekiah after he had heard of the sickness and healing. Hezekiah showed the men everything in his kingdom. He did not withhold anything from them. He showed "... them the house of his precious things, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious ointment, and all the house of his armour, and all that was found in his treasures: there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah shewed them not."  Isaiah came and began to question him about the things he had shown the men. This displeased God and Isaiah spoke of the day when all of those things and the sons of Hezekiah would be taken captive into Babylon. It seems that Hezekiah w...

Daily Devotion: Exodus 19:10-15

Exodus 19:10-15     "And the LORD said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them to day and to morrow, and let them wash their clothes, and be ready against the third day: for the third day the LORD will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai. And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about, saying, Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it: whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death: There shall not an hand touch it, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live: when the trumpet soundeth long, they shall come up to the mount. And Moses went down from the mount unto the people, and sanctified the people; and they washed their clothes. And he said unto the people, Be ready against the third day: come not at your wives."   Moses called all the elders of the children of Israel together. When they were assembled, he told them plainly...

Daily Devotion: Isaiah 38:17

Isaiah 38:17      "Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back." This morning, I want to look at the last part of this verse: "for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back."  For me, this is a beautiful statement and yet when I stop to think about it, I realize even more the great price that was paid for my redemption.  There must have been an action taken place in order for my sins to have been cast behind the back of the Father. That action was the removal of my sins and I don't pretend to understand the mechanics of how those sins were removed from me. I am thankful my God had grace enough to take my sins away from me and cast them behind His back. But where did they land when He cast them?  What happened at that point? These words are recorded in the Old Testament and we must go to the New Testament to see the completion of this act...

Daily Devotion: Exodus 19:1-6

Exodus 19:1-6     "In the third month, when the children of Israel were gone forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of Sinai. For they were departed from Rephidim, and were come to the desert of Sinai, and had pitched in the wilderness; and there Israel camped before the mount. And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel; Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself. Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel."   And Moses went up unto God. There is a beautiful lesson for us in these simple words. “Up” is...

Daily Devotion: Isaiah 38:16-19

Isaiah 38:16-19     "O Lord, by these things men live, and in all these things is the life of my spirit: so wilt thou recover me, and make me to live.  (17)  Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back.  (18)  For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth.  (19)  The living, the living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day: the father to the children shall make known thy truth." Hezekiah had just listed many of the blessings he had experienced in life because of God's mercy and favor. We often think about those things and hopefully we are grateful and express our gratitude unto the Lord. But there was something missing in Hezekiah's "theology." It seems he only expected God's blessings to happen in this life.  He could only see the grave as a fi...

Sermon (Video): The Reproach of Christ - 1 Peter 4:12-19

Daily Devotion: Exodus 18:13-14 and 18-22

Exodus 18:13-14     "And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses sat to judge the people: and the people stood by Moses from the morning unto the evening. And when Moses' father in law saw all that he did to the people, he said, What is this thing that thou doest to the people? why sittest thou thyself alone, and all the people stand by thee from morning unto even?" Exodus 18:18-22     "Thou wilt surely wear away, both thou, and this people that is with thee: for this thing is too heavy for thee; thou art not able to perform it thyself alone. Hearken now unto my voice, I will give thee counsel, and God shall be with thee: Be thou for the people to God-ward, that thou mayest bring the causes unto God: And thou shalt teach them ordinances and laws, and shalt shew them the way wherein they must walk, and the work that they must do. Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such ...

Daily Devotion: Isaiah 38:6-8

Isaiah 38:6-8      "And I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria: and I will defend this city.  (7)  And this shall be a sign unto thee from the LORD, that the LORD will do this thing that he hath spoken;  (8)  Behold, I will bring again the shadow of the degrees, which is gone down in the sun dial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward. So the sun returned ten degrees, by which degrees it was gone down." A drastic turn took place in the life of King Hezekiah.  Isaiah was sent to him with instructions to "set his house in order."  Hezekiah then humbled himself, turned toward the wall, and began to pray. Isaiah was sent back to the king to tell him the Lord had heard his prayer and was adding 15 years to his life. I will not delve into the debate as to whether or not the years were actually added or if the Lord always intended for him to live the additional years. But I will say this: prayer is always in order when we fi...