Devotional Thoughts

Mark 11:15-18    "And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves;  (16)  And would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel through the temple.  (17)  And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.  (18)  And the scribes and chief priests heard it, and sought how they might destroy him: for they feared him, because all the people was astonished at his doctrine." I hope this week to have my heart and mind set upon the events that led to the crucifixion, burial, and resurrection of our Lord. We will go back to the Psalms next week. "And they come to Jerusalem." This is the day after Jesus entered Jerusalem with great fanfare. By that, I mean people lined the streets laying their g...

1 Corinthians 6:4-6     “If then ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church. I speak to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you? no, not one that shall be able to judge between his brethren? But brother goeth to law with brother, and that before the unbelievers.” While there are many reasons why people do not join the church, one common complaint is because they have seen congregations divided and virtually at war with each other. They have made their disputes public and shared them with any who would listen. Sometimes the issue was a question of spiritual significance, but more often it was a matter of jealousy or of some matter of daily living, or worse yet, an imaginary slight of some sort. The overarching tone of Paul’s instruction here is that the church should handle disputes among brethren quietly and with patience. These are not matters to be broadcast to unbelievers be...

Psalm 98:1-3    "O sing unto the LORD a new song; for he hath done marvellous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory.  (2)  The LORD hath made known his salvation: his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.  (3)  He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel: all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God." Who is under consideration when the Psalmist wrote, "his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory." I'm not certain that the writer completely understood the depth of this great truth. He may have been speaking of the various victories in life that he had experienced. Maybe he was thinking of Moses bringing the people of Israel out of Egypt or David's victory over Goliath. He may have been thinking about a particular time in his own life when he was able to overcome a struggle and experienced victory. But you and I have been blessed to see more...

1 Corinthians 6:1-3     “Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unjust, and not before the saints? Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?” As we read these verses, we see an expectation of how we, as a body of believers, should behave ourselves. The matters that rise between brethren should be “small matters.” We know that the law of land does not allow for the church to try such matters as physical murder, grand larceny, and other large crimes (as viewed by the world). Also, we know that the scriptures tell us in many places that we are to live lawfully as citizens of this world. Matters that arise between brothers and sisters in Christ should not require the intervention of the law of the land. It we are striving to live as His disciples, th...

Psalm 97:1    "The LORD reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof." Psalm 97:6-9    "The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory.  (7)  Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods.  (8)  Zion heard, and was glad; and the daughters of Judah rejoiced because of thy judgments, O LORD.  (9)  For thou, LORD, art high above all the earth: thou art exalted far above all gods." We read earlier in the Psalms, "Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in." (Psalm 24:7) There are certain things that are absolutes, but we cannot always see them. Sometimes, we have our heads down and focus only on the things of this earth. We rob ourselves of the blessings of the great truths in today's Scriptures when we look around instead of looking up. We rob ourselves of ble...

1 Corinthians 5:12-13     “For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within? But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.” There is a lot of evil in the world. We see it on the news broadcasts, read about it in the paper, and hear it talked about wherever people gather. It is preached about from pulpits and railed against in government halls. Our focus is pulled in many different directions. The simple truth is, evil is not new. In Genesis, chapter six, verse five, we are told “And GOD saw that the wickedness of man  was  great in the earth, and  that  every imagination of the thoughts of his heart  was  only evil continually.” The imagination (purpose) of our carnal nature is  only  evil according to God’s word. This runs contrary to the idea that there is some good in every human being, so will we believe the philosophy of me...