DEVOTIONS

 Judgment Calls

 SEPTEMBER 1, 2023
 Daily Reading – Psa. 119:89-176 / 1 Cor. 6

GOD’S WORD:

Psalm 119:105-106 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. I have sworn, and I will perform it, that I will keep thy righteous judgments.

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        Ask anyone who knows me, I am not the sharpest pencil in the box when it comes to football. Not that there is anything wrong with football. I do enjoy watching a little bit now and again. Still, I cannot tell you the players’ stats. I do not always know which team is from what city or which league they play in. I do know that over the years they have changed some of the rules of the game, and that every player who plays better know those rules. If they do not, it can cost them and their team the game. Sometimes it is hard to see exactly what is happening and the referee on the field must make a judgement call based on what he believes he has seen. Their judgment calls are not always right, but they are most often final.

        When it comes to God’s judgements, two things are true. First, He is always right. That is why the author of Psalm 119:105-106 said, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. I have sworn, and I will perform it, that I will keep thy righteous judgments.” He calls God’s judgements, “righteous judgments.” God is never wrong. His Word is always true. It is trustworthy to guide you through life’s twists and turns. The second thing we see when it comes to God’s righteous judgements is that they never change. If they changed, that would mean He had been wrong and was correcting Himself. As we stated, He is never wrong in His judgement calls. 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        God has made decisions about life and how it should be lived. Those are his judgments. Since the game of life is a game He designed, the only way to play and win is by His rules. His judgement calls are always right, and at life’s end, very final.

Are you following the light of His Word?

Joint Ventures

AUGUST 31, 2023
Daily Reading – Psa. 119:1-88 / 1 Cor. 5

GOD’S WORD:

Psalm 119:18 Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        Partnerships are great. Well, that is if you have the right partner. I have been in a joint venture with a great partner for years now. He is the Holy Spirit of God that resides in me. I ask God every morning to have Him help me with my understanding of the book He co-authored called the Bible. I do it by reciting this very verse almost every single day in my prayer time before doing my Bible reading. Psalm 119:18 “Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.” I found this verse years ago and began praying it every single day. Not just words from my mouth, but the desire of my heart. Why, you might ask.

        Well first off, I pray and read very early in the day according to most people. I need my physical eyes open to the reading of the Word of God. However, I also need my spiritual understanding enlightened. There is no better person in the world to explain what they have written than the author. In 2 Peter 1:20-21 it says, “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” The Bible was written as a joint venture between, God and man. God, through the Holy Spirit, moved man to write His words. It should also be a joint venture for me then to read it. “Open thou mine eyes…”

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        In 1 Cor. 2:13 it says, “Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.” We need God’s Holy Spirit to teach us daily.

How do you pray for understanding?

Junk Doesn’t Work!

AUGUST 30, 2023
Daily Reading – Psa. 114-118 / 1 Cor. 4

GOD’S WORD:

Psalm 115:4 Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands.

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

         I get aggravated with things when they do not work like they are supposed to. Computers are a great tool, WHEN THEY WORK. They are also the point of some of my greatest frustrations. I spend time loading and reloading programs trying to make them do what the advertiser said they would do. I spend more time updating the software and rebooting just to make the update work. Sometimes e-mails do not go out like they should, and many times I get a lot of junk e-mail I wish I had never received from the sender. I purchased software to protect me from hackers and thieves. Still, after all that, for no apparent reason, they will just quit working. I just want to kick it to the curb when that happens because this JUNK DOESN’T WORK.

       As I read through Psalm 115, I thought to myself, that is how I would feel about the idols mentioned in verse 4. It says, “Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands.” When thinking about them, they probably look really pretty. All carved, molded, polished and worth only what gold and silver is worth that day. Sort of like a computer that looks good on a desk, until you turn it on and it does not work. The verses that follow say these idols have eyes, ears, noses, feet, hands, and a mouth, none of which work. It also says, they that make them, are just as smart as the idol they make. It should be plain for everyone to see that this JUNK DOESN’T WORK! God is the only GOD! 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        What do we worship that DOESN’T WORK? Wealth, health, cars, homes, jobs, or positions in life? All of these things are ok to have, if we know they are not to be worshiped. Our God in heaven provides all of these things. None of these things ever works as a god.

Where is your focus?

Jesus, Priest And King

AUGUST 29, 2023
Daily Reading – Psa. 109-113 / 1 Cor. 3

GOD’S WORD:

Psalm 110:1 The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        Jesus. We call Him King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and rightly so. This little Psalm, tucked into the middle of our Bible is said to have been quoted by Jesus and the Apostles more than any other Psalm. Its importance is not only in the statements made, but also in the subject of this Psalm. It could be none other than Jesus himself.

        In Psalm 110:1 David calls Him Lord. This is prophetic in that David was promised that his kingdom’s rule would never end. For Jesus to be considered David’s Lord at this point in time, Jesus, who is born years later into the lineage of David through His virgin birth to Mary, is a declaration of His Deity before His birth. In verse 4 it says, “The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.” The entire Psalm points to Jesus’ authority. However, verse 4 says so much. First, Melchizedek, like Christ, was also recognized as King and Priest. Genesis 14:18 “And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.” Also, we see in Hebrews 7:3 that Melchizedek, like Christ, was ordained by God, had no beginning nor end, nor did his reign ever end. “Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.” Jesus, Our High Priest, and our King for all time.

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        There is a chorus that says, “Christ is all I need, Christ is all I need, All, all I need. He was crucified, For me He died, On Calvary, This is why I know That He loves me so, Christ is all I need.” He is our Coming King, Our High Priest, Our Lord of Lords. He is all we need.

What is He to you?

Judging From The Past

AUGUST 28, 2023
Daily Reading – Psa. 106-108 / 1 Cor. 2

GOD’S WORD:

Psalm 107:8 Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        Have you ever heard the statement; “A man is only as good as his reputation.” It might not be told to youngsters any longer, but my dad tried to drill it into my head. I cannot tell you the number of times he said, “a good reputation is worth more than all the money in the world son.” Another one was, “you can buy a lot of things boy, but a good reputation is not one of them.” A reputation is not what we try to tell people about ourselves. A reputation is who people know you to actually be by what you have done. People do not often judge you based on what they think you are going to do. Most often you are judged by what you have done in the past.

        The Psalmist says several times in Psalm 107, “Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!” He is not trying to paint a picture of who he thought God was going to be. No, he was saying, look at who God has been. Verses 2-7 says He will free those in captivity. Verses 9-14 shows Him to be a light in the darkest of nights. In verses 16-20 he reminds us how He can even heal a soul bound by the presence of death. Then in verses 22-30 we find He can navigate life’s worst storms and cause even the seas to be still. Judging from the past and seeing who God has always been, we know Him and should praise Him for His goodness and wonderful works to the children of men.

   

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        One other thing my dad would say was, “it takes years to build a good reputation, and just few minutes to ruin one.” Our testimony as Christians is not just our testimony, but also the testimony of Christ in us. Let’s live as to guard HIS reputation.

Will you live for Him today?