Out of This World

On July 22, 2024   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

John 17:16

“They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

Why should you be troubled with the problems of the world when you are not even part of this world? Above we see Jesus telling us that we are not of this world. Therefore, the problems of this world do not have power over us. Moreover, Jesus told us that He has overcome the world with its tribulation. Since He is already victorious and we have our life in Him, what then should be our standing with the world?

We are overcomers with Jesus. We should not bow and cave into the distresses of the world but rather stand against them. We are the defense that God has put here to stand against the forces of the enemy. We are supposed to be praying and standing on God’s word. We need to pray for the unsaved asking God to rescue them from the terrors of the world. We cannot very well stand up for the defenseless if we are victims to the schemes of the enemy. First, we must claim our own victory and not give ourselves over to the problems that the world is infested with. We’ve got to stand on the Word of God for our own deliverance and believe God that the enemy has already been defeated on our behalf. Then we can begin to stand up for the rest of the world. Dare to believe God and dare to believe His Word. You are the hope of the World in Christ Jesus.

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In Jesus

On July 15, 2024   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

John 16: 33

“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”

We are looking at this question of whether Christians should be beaten and downtrodden or if God has provided us some form of relief. We saw in Psalm 9: 9 – 10 that God has provided us a fortress of protection which we can trust and into which we can escape the trouble of the world. Today’s verse is a New Testament version of Psalm 9: 9. It is even better though.

In Psalm 9 you would have to run into the protection of the Lord. That protection is still available today. However, today’s Word is from Jesus, and he tells us that we don’t have to fear the day of trouble because He has already defeated the enemy. He has already overcome the world for us. Jesus teaches us that we can have peace even when the world is full of tribulation. Jesus knew about Psalm 9. He knew that our Father had already provided us protection from a world full of tribulation, but Jesus is the fulfillment of the law. He is that law and beyond. Therefore, we still have all of the promises of the Old Testament plus we have a new covenant based on better promises and sealed in the blood of Jesus rather than the blood of sheep and goats. Because of the shed blood of the perfect lamb, the enemy has no more power over us. The blood has covered us, and Jesus defeated the enemy one time for all. So, Jesus tells us that although the world is full of tribulation, we should have no cause for fear because He has already defeated the prince of this world. Jesus has told us these things so that we may live in peace rather than fear or worry. He said, “Take courage.” I would also say, “Trust”. How much better a promise is this? Rather than having to wait inside our fortress while God fights our foe for us, we can simply stand realizing that Jesus has already defeated Him. You still have all the promises of the past plus you have the fulfillment of them in Jesus, the Christ. Jesus said in the world you have tribulation but in Him you have peace. Call me simple but I think I will choose to be in Him.

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Trusting You

On July 8, 2024   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 9: 10

And those who know Thy name will put their trust in Thee; for Thou, O Lord, has not forsaken those who seek Thee.

I feel like naming every devotional lately “Good News.” I think it’s because I’ve been in a time of need and these verses have helped me get through a challenge. I particularly take comfort in the last phrase of this verse. I hope you do too.

Last week we looked at Psalm 9: 9 and found that God is an impregnable fortress in which we are completely safe in the day of trouble. This, the very next verse, shows us the relationship side of that fortress of protection. Imagine, if you will, that beautiful, wonderful castle that God built just for you. You are standing outside of it when you see Pharaoh’s army marching towards you. You turn and look at the castle, but instead of running towards it in relief, your heart becomes gripped with fear because you are not sure that it is really going to protect you against this danger. You fear that God really has forsaken you and that the castle is just going to crumble around you. I get it.

In real life we cannot see the fortress of God and may not have developed our trust in His protection. Therefore, in the day of trouble many of us either tremble with fear and worry or attempt to defeat the enemy with our own puny weaponry. When we have learned to trust Him, then we run into His fortress although in a sense it is a figurative fortress. The truth is that He really is a fortress, and you really can, in real life, run into His protection. You must first know Him, know beyond a doubt that He has not forsaken you and trust that He really will protect you. When you have that kind of trust, you really will be able to stand against the forces of the enemy completely safe and protected. You will watch as God defeats your foe, and you will have never even lifted a finger.

Those who know His name will put their trust in Him. His name is Yahweh. Now you know.

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Safe Place

On June 24, 2024   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 9: 9

The Lord also will be a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble.

Sometimes we, as Christians, think that we have to be beaten up by the world. That could not be more misguided. Just look at this scripture. When the trouble times come, He becomes our stronghold. Now think of a stronghold. You may have a different image in mind, but I picture an impregnable castle. God is saying to us that even as we see trouble on the horizon, we retreat into the fortress and that trouble will never reach us.

Imagine yourself standing on the ramparts of your castle. Off in the distance you see the forces of Pharaoh marching towards you. Immediately you order the gates closed. No matter what Pharaoh brings against your fortress, nothing can harm it or penetrate it because it is the perfect fortification of God. God made it with His own hands, and nothing can get at you when you are within His protection.

This is the reality of God’s protection. He is that impregnable fortress. In the day of trouble you run into it and hide until God defeats your enemy. When you emerge, there is not even evidence that your enemy was ever there. God is your safe place into which you run and thereby avoid the intended onslaught of the enemy.

Is there trouble seeking you? Do you need a strong fortress today? Do this. Take a deep breath. Exhale until there is no air left in your lungs. Let the stress leave your body with the exhalation. Now, close your eyes and picture a stronghold. Keep that image in your mind as you begin to speak with God. See yourself enter in and feel the sense of security in your heart. You now have your own safe place you can run into any time you need.

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Blessed

On June 17, 2024   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 3: 8

Thy blessing be (is) upon Thy people.

God’s blessing is upon you right now. That’s great news, don’t you think? Imagine, If you will, standing before God and Him blessing you. Is that image a blessing to you? But, what is the blessing and what does it mean to have been blessed by God?

God’s blessing is an empowerment. What would you expect the result to be if you really stood before Him and received a blessing? It would be something grand, wouldn’t it? You would imagine that His blessing would endure also. It would never wear off. Don’t you think it would be imbued with power?

God put His blessing on you so that you would have power to meet every circumstance of life. The blessing empowers you to overcome all obstacles. God’s blessing causes you to succeed in every area of your life. If you are a child of God, then His blessing is on already on you. You don’t have to earn it. Further, knowing it is on you might change the way you think about your circumstances. Don’t expect to fail, expect to succeed. Expect favor on you. Expect His blessing to follow you everywhere you go and be sure to thank Him for it every morning.

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Freedom

On June 10, 2024   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Isaiah 61: 1

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to captives, and freedom to prisoners.

He whom the Son has set free is free indeed (paraphrase John 8: 36). Today is about personal freedom, and, as you can see from today’s verse, it is at the root of Jesus’ ministry. In him you can be truly free from all injuries and circumstances which have plagued you or held you back from intimacy with God and others. You can be truly free in every aspect of your life. You can (and should) be free from every encumbrance, every bondage. You only need one thing. The Son.

Today’s passage declares Jesus’ anointing. It is the passage that He read in the temple when He began His ministry (Luke 4: 18). Jesus was anointed to deliver the good news of the gospel. Here we see to whom this good word is intended. It is for anyone who is in any way afflicted. Now I want you to realize that means that the good news of God’s healing and restorative power is for every single person because almost everyone is afflicted with something whether it be guilt, hurt feelings, bondage to anger, a bad habit, etc. The list goes on and on, but the message is this, God’s good news was sent to you. Furthermore, Jesus was anointed to deliver it to you.

He has come to heal the brokenhearted. Is that you? Did something happen to you in childhood that you have carried into adulthood and continue to allow to color your actions and reactions? Does it still affect your relationships with other people? I want you to know that Jesus has come to relieve you of that. Ok, you can pretend to be “strong” and “fine”, but you and God know the truth. Guess what, most people recognize the truth too, but perhaps you won’t seek another person’s help. Fine. Let God be your counselor. Let Him set you free. God anointed Jesus with just the right anointing for that purpose.

Do you see above that Jesus is anointed to proclaim liberty to captives? He obviously isn’t talking about prisoners because the next statement is regarding prisoners. Even then, anyone can be a prisoner to something. Sometimes the prisons with the bars are not the worst kind. I implore you to allow Jesus to liberate you, heal you and set you free. No matter what hinders you, give it to Him and let Him deal with it. Why do you want to hold onto junk? Let Him rid you of that junk once and for all. Be free in the Spirit of the glorious Lord, our Jesus.

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No Fear Here

On June 3, 2024   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

James 4: 8

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.

This is a very simple little verse and easy to understand. You would have to do considerable work to complicate it. So, my question then is why are we not all very close to God?

I see two answers, one pretty obvious. The obvious answer is that we have not drawn near to Him. God will always let you be in charge of your relationship with Him. He is gentle and kind so He will never force himself on you. I have heard it said that each of us is just as close to God as we have chosen to be. That is pretty uncomfortable to hear but is probably true.

But some people do honestly seek God and still haven’t the closeness they wish to have with Him. So here is answer two. Many of us are afraid to allow anyone to get too close to us. We pull away from relationships that are close to the heart. We are afraid of exposing the tender parts of our hearts. So often we try to act tough. We act so strong, but to the wise these are screaming declarations that we are broken and scared. The stronger we pretend to be, the more the educated can see that we are really hiding our tenderness. Now, if we are afraid to let people close to us, how much harder is it for us to let God into the most tender and intimate chambers of ourselves? How are we to expose our hurts and injuries? Just allowing someone to see the fragility of who we really are is threatening enough but God can see clearly, and we know it. We can lie to people, but we cannot lie to God. He recognizes a lie and sees the truth. So, what ends up happening is that we seek God with our mouths, but our hearts remain closed, as do our ears.

Here is the good news of the gospel. God heals. He heals broken hearts and that is all that is keeping you from enjoying deep, intimate fellowship with Him. Isn’t that great news? God can fix all of this. Ok, you have to have a little bit of courage. Certainly, you have courage as big as a salt crystal. It doesn’t take very much. You don’t want to be afraid all your life and keep running away from your problems, do you? That is such a painful existence. If you can have courage even as much as a grain of sand, God can fix it all. And it is, honestly, a lot less painful than living the life that you are living now. I compare it to having a splinter in your foot. Are you really going to live with that splinter the rest of your life? It hurts all the time, every day yet God can remove it so easily. And you probably won’t even feel Him remove it. You are just afraid, but what you are afraid of is nothing. You are afraid of a hurt that you will probably never feel. If you do feel any pain at all, believe me, it is less than the hurt that you suffer every day and put your family and friends through. Also, any pain suffered with God healing you is so short lived as to not even be deemed significant. Just have a little tiny bit of courage and a little bit of trust and you can truly be set free. You will enjoy your life so much more and you can become intimate, close friends with God. If you will let Him in, He will be your constant companion and your best friend. That is a really great place to be, and you can have it.

I want that for you. I want you to have all that is your right. We can talk about being kings and queens in Christ but how many of us are living the life Jesus ordained for us? You are entitled to live in Yahweh’s presence. Draw near to Him. Be not afraid!

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