A Look at the Book #430

A Look at the Book #430


by Jesse Abel

Daily Devotional – A Look at the Book #430

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

The world around every individual is a harsh place. One way to overcome the harsh world is too delete the “L” out of “world” then you have the WORD, who is none other than the LORD who is the fullness of joy! 1 John 1:1-4. I love to play with words, notice this; from the world, I come to the word and learn that He is the LORD. With God there is ORDer!

MORE THOUGHTS

Back in my office I was going over the duty roster, eliminating people who were not there and adding people who were. I was building my list to go and follow up or apologize; as needed when the phone rang. It was the XO; “Chief, I want you to come up to my stateroom, now!” “Yes sir, I will be right up”. Outside his stateroom door I prayed for strength, I knocked and the door immediately opened and his hand came out. From inside his room I heard him say, “I apologize; chief for the way I acted earlier, please accept my apology.” Again, the Holy Spirit spoke for me; “No sir, I will not accept your apology until I talk with you about Jesus Christ!” In his best controlled voice, he responded with; “okay, come in and have a seat!” He allowed me to talk at length about the LORD and he said that he would consider the things I said, but his main purpose was to reconcile our professional standing, in the end he said that my beliefs in God were personal and that he would not make a personal issue of my religion again. So I shook his hand and left his stateroom. The XO would soon be transferred to another duty station. Later in the following year I had heard as the rest of ship’s crew did that the XO had died. I can only hope that he considered salvation as his only option that day in his stateroom.

The Epistle of James

We need to be reminded that James is talking to the children of God; saints! Oh, let’s make it a little more personal. If you are “born again” he is talking to YOU! Do saints sin? “If I say, you bet your bippie they do” and I cause you to bet it, then I have sinned, by causing you to sin, by gambling away your bippie! Got it?

James 1:15 – There could be no clearer analogy than a pregnancy to explain the development of sin in the believer. First there is the influence from the flesh, then the desire of the flesh. As the fullness of the flesh grows there is the final stage of the pregnancy – BIRTH, but in this case it is not a daughter or son of joy, but a SIN of pleasure to gratify the flesh. As the sin matures it will bring forth spiritual death. Now, the sad thing is that most of us have experienced this death of the spirit and some who without repentance are still abiding in this death.

James 1:16 – This verse does not look like a strong command from James, but it is one of the strongest commands he will use in this epistle. Look at this verse and see the tough love of God that says with a strong commanding voice; DO NOT BE DECEIVED but with the same voice a commanding comfort; MY BELOVED brothers and sisters. The only abortion that God allows for in His word is when His saints abort sin before it is conceived.

Fall in love with the Word of God. It is the only love that brings peace to the soul, hope for the heart and healing for broken spirit. Proverbs 17:22 says this; A merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones; Proverbs 12:25; 15:13 and 15:15. Let God fill your heart with good things, good things that only He can provide as we will see tomorrow in James 1:17-18; if the LORD tarries.