Category: devotional

Do Not Ignore This Hope

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1 Corinthians 15:50-53 – 50 I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.

Discussions of the future among Christians can be fascinating. Sometimes we find a group of Christians in a friendly debate over the millennium. Other times we find people breaking fellowship over differences in expectation of the order of future events. Sometimes there is sweetness. Sometimes there is mockery. .

Sadly, I believe that the ugliness of attitude that we see in some has made others unwilling to look to the future as much as Scripture does. That is a loss. To ignore the word of God’s promises for what is to come is to rob yourself of comforts that God intends you to have.

Consider the passage above. God makes beautiful, clear, soul-encouraging promises. A day is coming when all who are in Christ will be called to the sky to meet Jesus. Those who have died will come out of their graves. Those who are alive when Christ returns will rise to meet him in the air. Our bodies, dead or alive, will rise at the call of the final trumpet. And god, by his mighty power, will transform our bodies, regardless of present state, into flawless bodies that will last forever.

Please note, I’m not making some sort of particular eschatological argument here. I’m not making a pre-mill or post-mill argument. I’m not discussing tribulation. Nothing I have said embraces or makes fun of any book or movie series you love or love to ridicule. What I’m trying to say here is simple Scripture. A day is coming when all who know Jesus get eternal, never-wearing-out, never-failing, never-dying bodies. All who know Jesus will rise from the dead to be with the Savior and to find perfect and forever joy in his presence. We must not lose this hope. God intends we have it.

Last week, there was a shooting connected to a domestic dispute in my peaceful little neighborhood. My family heard the shots. We heard the sirens and the police helicopters. We heard the sounds of the dead woman’s sister’s grief and horror. We heard the officer using his bullhorn to call the criminal out of the house and surrender. And we were truly powerless to be of help in the situation.

As I write this, my wife is recovering from a surgery. A procedure had to be done to relieve some significant pain she was facing. Now she is dealing with the pain of recovery. As I write this, my mom is downstairs getting coffee. Mom has been recovering from a stroke that she experienced in 2020 and back pain that she has had since forever ago. As I write this, I write with an earbud in my ear as my computer reads aloud to me when I need to check the wording or spelling in a line. I cannot see the screen or anything on it. I have to function in life with eyes that simply do not work.

These things and a thousand others that you can add should remind us that we live in a world that cries out for the return of Jesus. We live in a world that desperately needs the gospel and the growth of God’s kingdom. We live in bodies that long to be transformed into what they one day will be.

I do not need to set an eschatological timeline to find hope in the word of God when the Lord promises us all new, resurrection bodies. This life, as it stands, is not to be my home. This life is a grand opportunity for us all to glorify Jesus, even as we face hardships. This life is also shaped to help us remember that we need, more than anything, to be in the presence of our Lord. This life is designed to help us see that we are not yet what we wish to be. We still fight against sin, against sickness, against threats, against the schemes of the devil. And, if we are willing to let Scripture teach us, we will press on with hope, looking forward to the reward to come in Christ.

Perhaps you do not like eschatology (end times) discussions. Perhaps you have been put off by the arguing and sniping from group to group. I get it. But do not let this stuff keep you from looking at the word, seeing the promise of the future, and rejoicing. Do not let it make you stop longing for your new, resurrection body. Do not let it keep you from praying, ?Your kingdom come; your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Do not let it keep you from praying, “Even so, come Lord Jesus.” Even if you cannot spell out a timeline or understand anybody’s millennial position, look to the promise of the return of Jesus with true hope.

Focus on Truth Above Doubt

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Romans 16:17-20

17 I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. 18 For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive. 19 For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil. 20 The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

It is interesting that the fall of man occurred around a tree of knowledge. The tree is called the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. However, Adam and Eve already had knowledge of good. They knew God. They knew what God had said was good. The only new knowledge to be gained was knowledge of evil.

There is a danger in knowing too much. At times, fascination with questions can harm the soul. That was true in the garden. It is surely true in the church. Dangerous doctrines destroy.

Here I do not suggest that any Christian should be cocooned from truth. But what I think we should be cautious about is fascination with evil. We should watch out for people who are eager to question the faith. We should be careful of those who would lead us to deconstruct faithful doctrine.

In verse 17 above, Paul calls on the Christians not to spend time with but to avoid those who question or deny true doctrine. For the most part, the average Christian is not going to be blessed by hanging out with a doubter. Instead, doubters have a way of sewing discord among those who do not share their doubts. In the world in which we live, it is easier for a doubter to sound wise, open-minded, and tolerant.

Paul tells us in verse 19 that it is better to be wise about what is good and innocent of evil. Rather than exposing ourselves to the barrage of doubts and complaints of the sinful world, there is a wisdom in simply focusing on truth. Rather than diving down a rabbit hole of questions and complaints about the faith, we should look more to true and right doctrine.

Ok, now let’s put this in perspective. Some Christians are fascinated with the arguments of those with whom they disagree. We should be grateful to God for well-informed, well-disciplined apologists who can address the doubts and the false doctrine of opponents of the faith. However, for the average Christian, there is not a need to do a deep dive into the doubts of those who would lead us away from truth. Why? The more time you spend arguing against wrong thinking, the more it can do you harm. Constantly opposing false teaching without a regular dose of loving truth for truth’s sake can dry out the soul. Such a person, assuming he remains faithful to true doctrine, can become a bitter and mean-spirited person. Alternatively, some who regularly engage with proclaimers of falsehood can so come to value the good opinion of those who oppose God that they actually compromise in order to look more sophisticated.

What is the path for most believers? Be wise about what is good and innocent of evil. Pour yourself into the truth of the word. Love the Lord. Pray. Seek to understand Scripture more and more. Gather with the faithful to affirm one another’s faith. Take ten looks at Jesus for every 1 look at a doctrine you oppose.

For clarity, I’m not one who thinks we should live in a bubble unaware of the thoughts of others. What I believe is that we should not become so focused on what is negative that it overshadows our love of truth. We should not love arguing more than we love Jesus. And we should not embrace those who teach falsehood so much that we are tempted to compromise truth for the sake of our gaining the respect of the world. Love Jesus first, foremost, and far beyond anything else.

Beware Working Salvation Yourself

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1 Samuel 24:12 – May the Lord judge between me and you, may the Lord avenge me against you, but my hand shall not be against you.

1 Samuel 25:30-33 – 30 And when the Lord has done to my lord according to all the good that he has spoken concerning you and has appointed you prince over Israel, 31 my lord shall have no cause of grief or pangs of conscience for having shed blood without cause or for my lord working salvation himself. And when the Lord has dealt well with my lord, then remember your servant.”
32 And David said to Abigail, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me! 33 Blessed be your discretion, and blessed be you, who have kept me this day from bloodguilt and from working salvation with my own hand!

In 1 Samuel 24 and 25, David is in two very different situations with one similar temptation. In chapter 24, David has the opportunity to kill King Saul, the man who has been chasing him down to take David’s life (a scene which has a similar event repeated in chapter 26). In chapter 25, David has the opportunity to strike against Nabal for the insult done him and his men. In both instances, God prevents David from taking matters into his own hands, from working salvation himself.

Notice, as you consider these two situations, David could have easily justified his actions. And, from the way that God has recorded these events, David’s self-justification would have been wrong. David could have argued that Samuel had anointed him as king over Israel, and here God had given him the kingdom if only he would end Saul’s life. In chapter 25, David easily could have rationalized that Nabal had earned what he would receive from David.

But, in both of these instances, God had another lesson to teach us. God intended to put David on the throne in his own timing. God intended to provide for David’s men through the wisdom and kindness of Abigail. Had David stretched out his hand and attacked in either situation, David would have failed to see the salvation that the Lord intended to provide. More than this, David would have found himself guilty of attacking a man still called the Lord’s anointed in the case of Saul or simply of lowering himself to do violence to a fool in the case of Nabal. Either way, David would not have been guiltless.

There are both practical and spiritual lessons here for us. On the practical side, we must realize that God is active in our lives. God is able to work to defend our reputations or right many a wrong done against us without us having to take matters into our own hands. When we are insulted, especially in a meaningless arena like social media, we do not have to rise to our own defense at every provocation. Often times it is better for us to turn the other cheek and allow others to speak out in our defense. God has ways of accomplishing his will that can keep us from stooping to the level of those who would sin against us.

In a spiritual sense, there is a depiction of the gospel in both chapters. The wording in both instances has to do with salvation. The lesson to learn is that, ultimately, David must not try to work his own salvation. With New Testament eyes, we can see that we cannot try to work our own salvation lest we miss out on salvation. Christ has done the only work that can be done to save our souls. Attempting to earn any part of salvation negates your participation in true saving faith via God’s grace in Christ.

Hating Evil

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Proverbs 8:13
The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil.
Pride and arrogance and the way of evil
and perverted speech I hate.

Wisdom speaks. The wisdom of God, personified in Proverbs 8, cries out to mankind, warning us, reproving us, calling us. And we must learn from it.

Here in verse 13, I see something from wisdom, from the wisdom of God, that I do not think is popular in modern Christianity. Perhaps it is not popular in my own weak heart. But it should be. I know, we all know, that we are to fear the Lord. Here we see that the fear of the Lord is hatred of evil.

So, the question: Do we hate evil? Look around. Examine the church. Examine yourself. Do you hate evil? I am not asking myself or asking you whether or not you think it sad when something major and ugly takes place in society. I’m asking if we hate what God calls evil. Do we actually hate things that society embraces but which God calls evil? That will be unpopular.

Honestly, even hating evil as a concept is fairly unpopular today. Our society suggests that we should be saddened by what we think is wrong, or perhaps we should just tolerate what is wrong, but surely we are not to hate it. Read the posts of many popular Christians today, and you will not see language that indicates hatred of evil. Our posts have far more to do with sympathy and empathy for the wicked than of hatred of evil.

But if we are to follow the Lord, if we are to fear the Lord as his word commands, we must hate evil. God’s wisdom says so. This tells us that, as loving as Jesus is, he hates evil. And Jesus is our Lord. May we learn to be both strong and gracious like the Savior. And may we seek the help of the word and the Spirit to hate what God hates.

Responding to Forgiveness

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Psalm 51:13-15

13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,

and sinners will return to you.

14 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,

O God of my salvation,

and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.

15 O Lord, open my lips,

and my mouth will declare your praise.

Psalm 51 records for us David’s song, a prayer after he had sinned with Bathsheba and been confronted. David knew the great depth of his sin, the offense he had given the Holy God. And David asked God for mercy.

In the verses I recorded above, David shares with us three responses to being forgiven. David will teach sinners (13), sing of God’s righteousness (14), and declare God’s praise (15). These are things the forgiven of any age do.

Consider your world. Are you forgiven in Christ? If so, these things should be what you do too. A forgiven person should share the gospel, sing God’s praise, and declare his glory. These are right. These are simple. And these are what happens as one is faithful in the local church.

If you are a believer, you should be proclaiming the gospel. You should be telling others how they too might find forgiveness. You should be attending a church where the gospel is proclaimed from the pulpit. You should be eagerly and prayerfully seeking opportunity to take the gospel to those outside of the gathering.

As a Christian, you should be singing. One reason that gathered worship is so necessary is that we are commanded not only to sing about God and to God, we are also commanded to sing to other Christians as we teach each other the truths of God (Col. 3:16). Saved people sing and sing together. Whether you think you are musical or not, if you are saved, you should sing for joy both to and about the Lord with the people of God.

And a saved person declares with his or her mouth the truths of God. We talk to others about God. We do not only sit under the preached word—though that is vital—we also get together with other believers to talk about the great things of God. We study the word. We bear witness to what God has done. We sharpen one another’s doctrine. We find life and joy in living out the Christian life together, and that includes times of solid group study and communication.

Are you forgiven? If so, respond to forgiveness the way that a godly person responds. Of course be grateful. Definitely be change. Teach sinners, sing, and proclaim God’s glory.

Your Very Life

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Deuteronomy 32:45-47 – 45 And when Moses had finished speaking all these words to all Israel, 46 he said to them, “Take to heart all the words by which I am warning you today, that you may command them to your children, that they may be careful to do all the words of this law. 47 For it is no empty word for you, but your very life, and by this word you shall live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess.”

How do you treat the word of God? Think well, Christian, as you examine your life. Is the Bible an add-on? Is the Scripture a thing you turn to on occasion when you need comfort? Is the word of God a thing that you look at on a Sunday and then whenever you might find a minute to fit it in?

Here in the final chapter of the book of Deuteronomy, God, through Moses, tells the people of Israel how they are to handle Scripture. They are to take to heart the words of God. They are to teach the commands of God to their children so that their kids will know how to obey God. And then Moses puts the true weight of the word in a very helpful way, saying, “For it is no empty word for you, but your very life.”

Hear that phrase, it is your very life.” Do you feel its import?
The Scripture is your life. the Lord who has revealed himself to you in Scripture is the Lord who gives you life. You cannot know him or please him apart from his word. You need Scripture like you need to breathe.

Christians, I urge us all to reevaluate just how we see the Bible. It is no small thing. It is no chore. It is no extra bit to our days. The word of God is our very life. to ignore it, belittle it, slack in our love of it is to stop breathing in our souls.

No Man Can Ransom Another, Except One

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Psalm 49:7-9, 14-15

7 Truly no man can ransom another,
or give to God the price of his life,
8 for the ransom of their life is costly
and can never suffice,
9 that he should live on forever
and never see the pit.
…
14 Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol;
death shall be their shepherd,
and the upright shall rule over them in the morning.
Their form shall be consumed in Sheol, with no place to dwell.
15 But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol,
for he will receive me. Selah

Here in a psalm that calls us to think about life and death, and the rich and the poor, we read something fascinating, true, and glorifying to Christ. Thinking on a this-worldly level, the psalmist points out to us that no man can ransom the life of another. Regardless of how wealthy, no one has enough money, enough power, enough clout to keep another person from dying. Though in our world, we may envy the super-rich or even fear them and their might, death comes to us all.

No man can give anything, not even his own life, to ultimately save the life of another so that the other man would never die. After all, we all die. No human life is of such weight that it could be given to prevent another life from facing the grave.

In verse 14, we see that death takes all people. But then, in verse 15, we see a glorious confidence. The psalmist writes, “But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol, for he will receive me. Selah.” God can ransom my soul from the power of death. God can give me life whereas no human wealth and no human power and no human sacrifice could.

How much this redounds to the praise of Jesus. No human life can ransom the life of another. Except one. Here is the glory of Jesus. Jesus is truly God and truly man. Jesus is a man who gave his life to ransom, not only the life of another but of many. Jesus has the glory, the weight, the worthiness, the perfection, the infinitude to be able to yield his life as an atonement for sin and actually ransom from eternal death the people of God.

Examining Worship

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Deuteronomy 12:5-9 – 5 But you shall seek the place that the Lord your God will choose out of all your tribes to put his name and make his habitation there. There you shall go, 6 and there you shall bring your burnt offerings and your sacrifices, your tithes and the contribution that you present, your vow offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herd and of your flock. 7 And there you shall eat before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your households, in all that you undertake, in which the Lord your God has blessed you.

8 “You shall not do according to all that we are doing here today, everyone doing whatever is right in his own eyes, 9 for you have not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance that the Lord your God is giving you.

In Deuteronomy 12, we see God give the people of Israel a command to worship him, not in the ways or even in the locations of the nations they will drive from the land, but in a place of God’s choosing. A quick, non-thorough search of Deuteronomy in the ESV shows me that at least 20 verses in Deuteronomy refer to a place that God will choose for Israel to be the central place of the worship of the Lord. Thus, I think I can safely say that this issue mattered to God. As we see in verse 8, the people are not allowed to do whatever seems right in their sight (cf. Judg. 21:25). They are to worship where and how the Lord commands.

Mentally step out of Deuteronomy and into modern church life. How many of us do not consider at all what the Lord commands his people to do or how he commands them to do it? How many of our churches question whether or not any particular section of the worship service is in keeping with the commands and ways of the Lord? What is our standard for determining the purposes and practices of the church, especially in the area of gathered worship?

Note, by the way, that the first response that you are likely to have is to assume that, yes, churches should consider this stuff and, obviously, your church is doing it right. In truth, worship is not as easily defined in the New Testament as it is for the nation of Israel in Deuteronomy. Orders of worship are not given us as examples. We know that God commands the gathering, the preaching of the word, the celebration of Lord’s Supper, the singing of multiple kinds of spiritual songs, and the public reading of Scripture. Unlike Deuteronomy, there is no particular location limitation, and many of the acts of worship are not so strictly prescribed.

With that said, god has something for us to learn from Deuteronomy. God had every right to tell Israel exactly where they could worship him and where they could not. His limitations may have made no sense to many a human mind. What makes one town better than another town for meeting God? Why can we not just worship God on any hilltop we choose. Of course, some of it has to do with how the Canaanites worshipped the evil pagan deities of their imagination. But, and we must not miss this, God prescribed a place for his worship because he wanted us to know that he has the right to do so. God determines how we worship him and what is acceptable. Our best ideas, things that are right in our own eyes, are not what make worship acceptable.

If it was true in the Old Testament that God has the right to say what will worship him and what will dishonor him, the same is true in the New Testament. We should be very careful not to assume that, just because something makes us feel spiritual, it is therefore acceptable worship. Nor should we assume that whatever the church down the street has done which seems to be bringing people into their building is a right and God-honoring practice.

Examine yourself. Examine your church. Are you doing the things that God commands you to do in worship? Also, examine to see if you are doing things that God forbids. And carefully examine things that are neither commanded nor forbidden. Is it really wise to bring practices into the worship of God which have no basis in his word? After all, God told Israel they were not to have each person doing whatever was right in their own eyes.

Of course I’m not here suggesting that we embrace a legalistic form of the regulative principle that would have us refuse to use electricity, microphones, or even a display screen. I’m not suggesting we do away with modern instruments and the like. What I am suggesting is that everything we bring into the service which we think will enhance the experience, everything we do which we call an act of worship, everything we do should be held closely to the light of Scripture and examined. Has God commanded this? Has God affirmed this? Has God allowed this? Is this a thing that matches biblical command and wisdom? Or are we feeding our flesh instead of our souls? Are we magnifying ourselves and our emotions instead of magnifying the Lord? Are we aping the world? Are we bringing into the practice of worship a thing that we enjoy, but which God has never sanctioned for his worship? After all, God, not man, is the determiner of what right worship is.

Only Believe

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Mark 5:35-36 – 35 While he was still speaking, there came from the ruler’s house some who said, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?” 36 But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not fear, only believe.”

How do you respond when faced with the impossible? Jairus, a synagogue ruler, was in an impossible spot in Mark 5. His young daughter was sick. He tried to get Jesus to his home to heal her. But he was too late. While Jesus was on the way, Jairus received word that his daughter had died.

But what the Savior says to the religious leader is fascinating. Jesus commanded, “Do not fear, only believe.” In the face of all opposition, of heartbreaking loss, Jesus tells the man not to be afraid. Only believe.

What happens next? Jesus goes to the house, speaks to the girl, and brings her back from the grave. Jairus had his daughter back, well. The crisis was past.

When we read this, we know that we are reading a glorious story of the supernatural power of Jesus. WE are reading of the loving kindness of the Savior. And we are seeing the fact that Jesus has the power, the God-sized power, to push back the curse of original sin and to defeat death itself.

But we also should see here a call to our own faith. What do you face that you feel is impossible? Jesus says, “Do not fear, only believe.”

When we grab hold of that sentence, let us not try to take it and apply it to some sort of name it and claim it charismatic folly. Let us not assume that this applies to us if we fear our football team may not make a comeback when down in the 4th quarter. But let it apply as you think of ultimate and eternal things.

When you look at a broken world, do not fear, believe. When you feel like our government is beyond repair, do not fear, believe. When you think your own life is beyond hope, do not fear, believe. Believe in Jesus. Believe in his power to raise the dead. Believe in his ability to turn back the impact of the fall of mankind. Believe that Jesus rules right now. Believe that Jesus will return and rule forever. Believe that Jesus will never be defeated. Believe that the pains we face in the here-and-now will look tiny in the light of eternity. Yes, believe as well that Jesus can and will provide you with what you need, what he wants for you, every step of the way.

If you know Jesus, do not fear. If you have entrusted your soul to him for salvation, do not fear. If you have yielded yourself to his lordship, believe. Let your trust in the Savior calm your heart. Even in the face of the impossible, do not fear, only believe.

More Amazing than a Healing

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Mark 2:8-12 – 8 And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? 9 Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? 10 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic— 11 “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” 12 And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”

What is amazing in what we just read? If you are not careful, you’ll miss it.

The story is familiar. Jesus was preaching from inside a house. Men carried a friend of theirs on a mat to Jesus hoping for a healing. The crowd was so thick that the men went up on the roof, opened a hole in the tiles, and lowered the man down before Jesus.

When the man was before Jesus, the Savior first pronounced the man’s sins forgiven. And that pronouncement was what set the religious teachers off. They were not going to complain if Jesus healed the man. What the teachers could not imagine is that Jesus would assume the right to forgive sins on God’s behalf. After all, the only person who can forgive sins against God is God.

Keep the conflict in mind in order to grasp the significance of the miracle. Jesus knew what the religious teachers were complaining about. And so Jesus heals the man to prove his identity and Bonafede’s. The rationale works like this. A declaration of forgiveness cannot be proven from earth, but a declaration of healing is verifiable. Both are things that require the power of God. If Jesus can do one, he can do the other. If Jesus can heal, he can forgive. If Jesus can forgive, Jesus is God.

The thing that is supposed to amaze us here is not the ability of Jesus to heal. We have seen that before and after in Mark. What is supposed to impress us is that Jesus can forgive. This is intended as a proof from Jesus to directly declare himself to be God in the flesh.

Here is what is amazing: Jesus is God and will forgive. The healing power proves it. Be amazed at who Jesus is. Be amazed that Jesus will forgive.

Friends, we are sinners. We have given enough offense to the infinitely holy God that we have earned for ourselves eternal punishment in hell. That God would forgive anyone at any time is utterly stunning. When we see that Jesus, God come to earth, is the door through which we enter for forgiveness, we must honor him. We must rejoice. We must run to Jesus and Jesus alone for forgiveness. And then we must worship, honor, thank, and live for Jesus. Our lives are for his glory.