A Devotional Look at the Book #554

A Devotional Look at the Book #554

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

Personal and National Sin: -- Psalm 119:1-8 Having to walk in the way of the LORD is progressive in that; we are blameless, blessed and full of beatitudes that please God. While the Holy Spirit guides us, no sin can harm us or those near by! We are peace maker or if you prefer; ambassadors.

Good Morning

A story of life in Christ is so different than a story of life in the world without Him. One event with Him as LORD is worth more than all the history of one unsaved life. I believe that this is why I tell stories about my past. My heart's desire is to see people living out their salvation, experiencing God! I see people everyday who say that they are saved, but they have a small testimony and rarely will they talk of any fellowship in the Spirit. The life of the apostle Paul was filled with adventure in Christ; somehow we think that this adventure is just for people like him or some missionary. We like to read books about the men and women of God in mission field whom God uses for His glory. Then in our heart of hearts we may long to do something too! Life in Christ is not boring or routine; Jesus did not show up on planet earth to get us through life. He came to show us how to live life (John 1:4), He came to give us life (John 5:21) and He came to provide us with abundant life (John 10:10). So, like the apostle Paul you do have a story to tell; just take the time to take a look! It is an exciting story; not because of you, but because as the Holy Spirit lives in you; Jesus Christ is in your story because it is His story. John 16:5-15

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 5:18-21 – Over the course of a few days we have put together some thoughts about suffering, comfort and joy. Our thoughts on all these conditions of life vary a great deal since each of us react differently than the other even though there is commonality in all of these conditions. For example; one person may have joy of heart in an event while the other may experience in the same event sadness of heart. It is because these events are generated in life and circumstance. Yet, as Paul states in 2 Corinthians 4:7-15; we are not totally cast down because we as believers are never conquered… WHY?

The gospel of Jesus Christ is not a man-made truth; it is God made. The assurance of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is not man-made; it is God made. The judgment Seat of Christ is not man-made; it is God made. Therefore the death and resurrection of believers is not man-made; it is God made. As a result of allowing God to comfort us in the variables of suffering, comfort and joy we obtain a story of reconciliation in that through the trails and temptations of life; we are a new creation in Christ… the old is given up for the new. WE HAVE THE ONLY MESSAGE worth sharing. “On behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God”.

For He (God) made Him (Jesus) who knew no sin (personally) to be sin for us (you and me) that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (imputed Christ’s Righteousness; in whom God is pleased with), 2 Peter 1:16-21. Thus reconciliation is the only truth or message to the unbelieving world around you and me that can make peace with God. We who have experienced this peace with God have become ambassadors for Him. So then the variables of life lived actually become God made assurances of our resurrection estate with Christ. To those who are without Christ; we are seen as peace makers. (Ambassadors)

A Devotional Look at the Book #553

A Devotional Look at the Book #553

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

Personal and National Sin: -- Psalm 119:96 Even when the decree or covenant of man is completed and all known errors are corrected and man has done his best. Even then, the Best is yet to be realized since the Commandment of God by His decree or covenant will; by length and berth, supersede.

Good Morning

March 2009 – Manama Bahrain – Do we even know where this place is? Unless you are tied to the Navy in some way, you do not know and maybe you do not even care! A collision at sea between a nuclear power submarine and a surface ship, both vessels belonging to the U.S. Navy; simply put, human error is the only reasonable conclusion. The decisions of the crew on board the submarine as in all Navy vessels fell to the responsibility of one; the Captain of the ship. Who without doubt was relieved of his authority as Captain within twenty four hours! The men involved were not a handful of five, but the whole crew; yet one man became the “scapegoat” for all the men. For this Captain, his career as Submarine Commander is over. As for the crew, they will be reprimanded, some will receive damaging letters to be placed in their service records and some will be re-assigned to subordinate duties. All will be able to re-build a troubled career, but to a lesser degree. This is human life's picture of sin too; sin has rammed us all into the bottomless pit, we have crashed and trash our world. Yet there is one who stands in the gap, even referred to in the Holy Bible as our “scapegoat”. He is better known to us as the LAMB (John 1:29), the sacrifice, the one for the many. He however is not like the captain of an ill fated moment in time. This Captain is He who willingly took our human error (SIN) and nailed it to the tree (Colossians 2:14). This Captain alone is our eternal salvation as the KJV puts it in Hebrews 2:10. His career did not end at Calvary, He is the author of eternal salvation; HE IS RISEN, HE IS ALIVE and you can follow HIM! For He alone has rescued us – one by one from the bottomless pit. Won't you let Him be your Captain? Jesus does not re-build lives... He gives new life by faith in Him through the grace of God His Father. Ephesians 2:1-10.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 5:14-17 – Romans 6:6 and Galatians 2:20 helps us to see that the life and death of the LORD Jesus has open the door for all that are saved to have purpose in life. The unsaved world around us has no purpose for living; even unto their own relative righteous standard. The constraint of God’s love is not a restriction to live our life in Christ under the Law, but is liberty to live life in the resurrection power of God while living in this earthen vessel.

The world around us lives life to die. Those who are saved, live life to live. Does this sound strange to you or do you fail to understand that life lived by the standard of the world is that of death. But life lived in truth that Jesus died and rose again meaning that we who by faith are living in the power of God; the power that raised Jesus for the dead. This same power will enable you and me to join Jesus in His resurrection Life, even though we do not see Him in this present life. This is comforting; since this present life is suffering and the life to come will be peace and joy with Jesus.

Living in this present life with the knowledge that we are His is a great joy; this joy is not the result of any work of righteousness that we have done. Simply put; if we were able to remake our life it would be like sowing a piece of new cloth on to an old shirt. The strength of the new would cause the old too tear ruining the patch Matthew 9:16. We must be willing to let God make a new creation out of this earthen vessel. All things are made new in Christ.

A Devotional Look at the Book #552

A Devotional Look at the Book #552

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

Personal and National Sin: -- Psalm 119:94 personal perils and hardships feel the urgency of rescue. Mental depression or physical oppression are hardships; requiring His Hand of comfort and direction – Joshua 1:5

Good Morning

A few years back I was attending fire fighter training. All of us were required to go through a smoke filled structure in SCBA gear (breathing tanks). Our heads were covered with white cloth (simulating thick smoke) and we were made to be disorientated by having to spin around until our sense of direction was confused. Inside the structure, there were fallen pieces of wood and ceiling, furniture and many obstructions. At times the way was so narrow that we had to remove our breathing gear from our back and pushed on the floor in front of us. Then on the other side of the obstacle; put it back on properly. Removing the air pack was at end of the training session, I had to lay flat and slide through the space and push the canister in front of me which also protected me from any obstacle that may be blocking my way. It seemed to me like this event was never going to end, and then I heard someone say, “Stand up Jesse!” I said, “I can't!” their reply was, “why not, don't you see the light, your in the clear now?” I said, “No!” and the instructors said, “Then open your eyes!” At some point, I felt as if my eyes were useless in this environment so I closed them tightly. I had crawled about twenty feet further than I needed to. We all had a good laugh. Later when I was thinking through this event I was reminded that there are many times in life that we have the blinders on and when the going gets tougher, we tighten up our vision. We live in tough times, and many of us are walking about with our eyes shut tightly. Psalm 119:18 Let God restore your sight and brighten those things that look so dim or dire in the world around us! This is a matter of purpose in life and not a matter to laugh at!

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 5:12-13 – I have been thinking (could be dangerous) however; every epistle is to a church with the exceptions of Timothy, Titus and Philemon. Yet even these epistles are called Pastoral Epistles related to church doctrine. So I am seeing a broader application of truth in this way. While it is necessary that each of us are to be a good steward over our eternal estate in Christ; it is likewise necessary that our church relationship with our church family be of a same purpose too.

Religion then is nothing more than appearance and is not of the heart. The heart response of the individual and the heart response of the church must be the same and if it is not then as the apostle first said in 1 Corinthians 3:1-4 that the church and the people are nothing more than carnal (fleshly) babes in Christ. It does matter how we act and react to one another; but the main thing is that what we do should always be pleasing to God. If I treat you without regard to your need; then I have failed; yet if the church does the same, then it too has failed. Our testimony to the people around us has become a stumbling block.

We have a personal relationship with God that will spill over into our corporate relationship with our church family. Our personal lives will reveal to our brothers and sisters within the body our true spiritual colors. When I first was saved in 1975 there were many folks who knew and understood the bond of Brotherly love, but it seems that many have forgotten the command to let, brotherly love continue… Hebrews 13:1-9. So then; churches and saints suffer, being estranged from the solid doctrines of excellent power and grace.

A devotional Look at the Book #551

A Devotional Look at the Book #551

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

Personal and National Sin: -- Psalm 119:93 Can the Laws, Precepts, Statutes or the Words of God change like the laws, precepts, statutes and words of human government? Believe it or not the answer is… NO!

Good Morning

Many thoughts run through the country these days about the uncertainty of the future. This uncertainty prods me to talk about direction or purpose in life. It is a staggering thought to know that almost every person I talk with including many within the local church do not have a clear purpose for living life. This along with my love for the Word of God; challenges me daily, to say a few things that may direct our focus on Him whom we do not see; instead of the temporal sights of false authority that we do see. To move in the direction of looking upward rather than looking forward we first must understand that our world is spinning out of control. We have been living in the last days for nearly two thousand years and it does not take much wisdom to know that we are a lot closer to the return of the LORD Jesus than we were yesterday. Reformed theology! How does that work? Reform the Word of the Living God? If Jesus says that He is coming again and that we should be looking for His return; then why are so many pastors of churches asleep at the wheel? The words in John 14:1-4 they belong to the LORD, but somehow our attention span for truth is somewhat like a sound bite in commercials on the television. Someone teaches TRUTH and we hit the MUTE button. In order for us to have purpose in life we must KNOW that this estate here on earth is temporal and full of good and evil. The LORD sums this up much better with these words found in Matthew 5:17-20. We could memorize these words; but it is far better to live them out with purpose. He is coming again and we are given the promise with purpose to look for His return.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 5:9-11 – I remember times on ballistic missile submarines when we would fire training missiles. We would go to the southern areas of the Atlantic Ocean and fire four missiles, the location of this area was only known to most on the ship as longitude and latitude; you know some little spot in the world surrounded by water. For that event it was not judgment day for the spot in the ocean it was judgment day for the performance of the ship and her crew.

Now there is a lot that goes into this event. The expense of the trip, the missiles, the weather, the atmospheric conditions aboard the submarine after the launch of the missiles, watertight integrity, the weight of the ship before and after the launch and a host of other considerations to numerous to explain here. All of this material and conditional aspects of a military training event will be evaluated and given a grade of pass or fail. When the ship passes there is great elation from all members of the crew. When the ship fails; it means more hard work and another chance to prove their military worthiness.

NOTICE: We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ that each one may receive the things in the body. (Is this the personal body of you and me; is it the body of the church of Jesus Christ or is this a combination of both?) I believe both. The submarine has a skipper and exec and a crew and together the ship has power and great potential. The Godhead contains the Commander, the Executor and the Crew; 2 Corinthians 4:7 also helps us to see that we cannot live with purpose in this life if we fail to live apart from… one LORD, one FAITH, one BAPTISM and ONE GOD AND FATHER OF ALL; who is above all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:3-6. Yet, at the judgment seat; we personally and corporately will not get a second chance since the judgment will not be evaluated on human works; but by the utilization of the treasure in these earthen vessels… individually and corporately.

A Devotional Look at the Book #550

A Devotional Look at the Book #550

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

Personal and National Sin: -- Psalm 119:89 The Word of God was written over a span of six thousand years, but His Word has been settled in heaven... Forever! It is futile to argue with that. History reveals that men have tried… yet; The Word of God still stands and so it will, Forever!

Good Morning

Is it time for another update on Fatso and Skinny? It has been nearly a year since Cutie Pie the Parakeet died so the house is a lot quieter and the two finches seem to like the peace. However this does not mean that Fatso has changed his ways. He is still very bossy over Skinny. Skinny likes clean straw in the nest and will spend hours picking up one piece at a time and placing it in the nest; all the while Fatso is arguing with him. Skinny puts the straw in and Fatso; squawking all the time, takes it out. Then after this hard days work; they both take baths in their drinking water and shake the water all over place. After that they sit and listen to the “oldie’s station on the radio. Sort of reminds me of married life; you know the wife spends her time cleaning and ironing the clothes; folding and putting away. The husband puts on a pair of socks; he decides he doesn’t like the color and tosses the socks under the bed and grabs another clean pair. He does this with other clothing too. By the end of the day and all tuckered out from tossing clothing to and fro, they both sit down for a little television entertainment. Is there a point to this, Jesse? Well yes; and I am so glad you asked. There are twelve chapters in the book of Ecclesiastes. Eleven chapters discuss the vanity of mankind “under” the sun and the final chapter challenges the reader to get hold of life by remembering the Creator before old age takes life away piece by piece. Don’t waste life over the vanities of this world under the sun. Be a good steward of your time under the SON. John 15:1-8.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 5:1-8 – The confidence of living life is as comfortable as sitting in our living room at home and being protected from the elements of weather, temperaments of people and other forms of suffering. Yet even at home in this body of flesh there remains an element of uncertainty or absence from our Creator. The unbelieving person fills this void with the potions of the world to compensate for this emptiness. You know; controlling bondages that destroy marriages, children, communities, towns and nations.

These conditions cause the believer in Christ to groan in his or her mortal existence to be further clothed so God comforts us with sanctification. This is a process which take us from selfish desire (self righteousness) to the will of God (Christ’s Righteousness). The swallowing up if you will; of this mortal body by the LIFE of Christ in us. Again and as you remember the epistle of 2 Corinthians is about the comfort that God provides to His saints while they suffer in this life. Suffering is a normal condition of physical life. In other words for this mortal to put on immortality is the full process of: Justification, Sanctification and Glorification; all of these spiritual acquisitions are accomplished by Christ in us (The Holy Spirit as explained in 2 Corinthians 3:17) as we walk by FAITH and not by SIGHT. 1 Peter 4:4-19 helps amplify this.

This ongoing work of salvation is confidence in God; but in addition to this confidence is the Spiritual reality that we are well pleased in this absence since while we live in this earthen vessel and utilize the treasure of God’s Mercy over every circumstance of suffering, there is this eternal weight of glory being built up for us who look at eternity with Christ, rather than the temporal things in front of our physical eyes; knowing that when we are finally absent from this body of flesh, we will be forever present with the LORD. Face to face in all of His Glory!

A Devotional Look at the Book #549

A Devotional Look at the Book #549

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

Personal and National Sin: -- e pluribus Unum, "from many, one." A statement that we do not hear much of these days. Could it be that we are ashamed of the many who now claim identity? The sin of abortion, same sex marriages and other personal sins describe our national condition. Proverbs 24:30-34

Good Morning

The woodpecker listens for the sounds of the wood eating bug before it drills into the wood and finds the meal. The robin listens for the worm as the worm eats its way through the sub surfaces of the ground. God’s created creatures depend on His provision with keen obedience. As a result their lives prosper, their young are born and they continue to bless us daily with their presence. Just yesterday I was watching a dragon fly sitting on the porch; the little bug was quite comfortable with my presents nearby. On the other hand it is we humans who consider that our lives are needy. We are bent on stuffing our lives full of noise and other distractions that cause us to be dull of hearing, Hebrews 5:11. We ask but we do not obtain, James 4:3. Yet the Word of God reveals that God has much to say to us, but sadly we are not comfortable next to Him; we do not wish to hear Him since we have no ears to hear. Apostasy breeds an a condition called “itchy ears” so we beg more then pray, but even if we beg from Him we do not listen for an answer. Sometimes our prayers demand favor from God; a healing, an intervention or for the salvation of some friend or loved one. When God does answer with; “Whom shall I send?” We do not hear Him, because we have left His Throne Room and now we are busy with our personal noises and distractions. In Psalm 29 the words, “The voice of the LORD” appears seven times and at least three other times the effect of His voice is heard by creation in that even by the voice of the LORD, deer give birth. Psalm 29:9. When we stand before the judgment seat of Christ we may very well hear Him say. &ldquoo you hear me now?” You will not need to text your answer!

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 5:1-5 – The apostle Paul is talking to those who believe in Jesus Christ… thus if you are a believer than you should have assurance of the Resurrection as there is plenty of absolute truth that Jesus rose from the dead three days after being put to death on the cross as the sacrificial LAMB of God. John 1:29-34. The Living Word of God states clearly that in believing this truth that we too are baptized into His death. Since He was raised up from this death; we too will be raised up as He IS. Romans 6:1-14.

Do you find yourself groaning to be further clothed with immortality; or are you satisfied with your present wardrobe? Truthfully… I am not at all happy with this body of flesh I currently parade around in. My outward appearance is like most everyone else and I am as good as I look; but I know me and I am like that dead man Lazarus, that is; if I do not keep a close watch on my flesh… in four days; I stinketh! John 11: 38-44 there will be a day when Jesus calls out… Jesse, come forth and I will stinketh no longer. I can hardly wait.

One day when this life of filthy rags is over (Isaiah 64:6-12) we shall not be found naked. We will be clothed in His Righteousness and as the apostle clearly says; “this mortal condition will be swallowed up by LIFE. Now listen up: It is God who is preparing us for this very thing. You and I can do nothing in the flesh to make it better. So abide in the Spirit; who is our guarantee of the resurrection. This is that treasure that we have in this earthen vessel 2 Corinthians 4:7.

A Devotional Look at the Book #548

A Devotional Look at the Book #548

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

Personal and National Sin: J. Vernon McGee – On biblical discernment once said: “Satan never gets very far from the Bible. Every one of the cults, even Satanism, uses the Bible.” With secular humanism gaining such ground today… even false religions face intolerant persecution.

Good Morning

I do not remember exactly how old I was, maybe ten, but I remember one morning when my mom was walking me to school. In those days, not many automobiles had curved windshields since the technology was not complete to this point. As we traveled from block to block, I was complaining about the books I was carrying. We did not have back packs in those days either, but we did have book satchels; only I did not have one of those because we could not afford one. My mom thought I should stop complaining since she was pregnant and as she put it, “making the baby upset”! About that time we stepped onto the street. A car had come to a stop to our left and we thought that it was okay to cross. As soon as we got to the middle of the hood of the car, the driver started to make a right hand turn. We attempted to yell at the driver, but for whatever reason he heard nothing. The car began pushing us with increased motion and I took all of my books and hurled them at the windshield. With a loud slap the one heavy book that caused most of my complaint was now a life saver. As the book smacked the windshield the man behind the steering wheel stopped his car; apologized and life goes on without an injury. Some of us today have forgotten or have never learned that there several reasons to stop at stop signs and some crosswalks; you’ve just reviewed one of them. After thought: Books are printed to be read and not to be complained about, also books can be used in a pinch to ward off dangers; thus we should be thankful to carry them. So, quit complaining because you are upsetting the baby! This is another thought that seldom surfaces in the thoughtless and selfish minds of the people of our nation these days of out lives.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 – The lumps and bumps of the Christian way of life can be very critical for the believer in the LORD Jesus Christ who fails to observe the Invisible Attributes of God. This outward and visible body of ours is perishing; even moment by moment. You know as I do that we are not as good as we look as some of us would like to believe. Even on a good day, we have those hidden blemishes or reoccurring aches. In the words the apostle; the outward man is perishing. This earthen vessel does not inherit the kingdom of God, it does not need too since we already have the treasury of the power of God in us via the Holy Spirit. I just can get over this! Wow!

Looking on the outward decay can be a heavy weight! So STOP IT and look to the treasure that we have in this earthen vessel (verse 7 and the power of His resurrection) we can see that our affliction is but for a moment compared to the background view we have of Jesus who is in eternity waiting to receive us. Thus we have a far greater expectancy of living with Jesus who is not seen then what we do see at the present time. “Living for Jesus a life that is true; striving to please Him in all that I do.” The song written by Thomas O. Chisholm and taken from the passage in 2 Corinthians 5:15

So many thoughts about life and the pursuit of it; yet I am reminded of Ecclesiastes 3 and Matthew 6. Time has but a moment compared to the backdrop of eternity with Jesus Christ. In time He shares with us His Character through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (in part) so that this earthen vessel can experience the Joy of the LORD and endure the sufferings of this present day. One day soon He will say to us: Enter into the JOY of the LORD; a fullness of things that are not seen as yet; but OH what a day when Living for Jesus will be changed to Living with Jesus. Matthew 25:21

A Devotional Look at the Book #547

A Devotional Look at the Book #547

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

Personal and National Sin: Psalm 119:86 All of the challenges of life are experienced and explained in the Living Word of God. The Holy Bible is this Living Word; containing Commandments, precepts, judgments, laws, testimonies, statutes and the Fear of the LORD; even His Promises that fail not.

A DAY IN THE PAST, THE PRESENT OR THE FUTURE

In my early days as a sailor I was stationed in Newport, Rhode Island. The ship I was on was moored to one of the two piers there. A forecast of a hurricane heading toward New England caused all the ships docked in Newport to leave port and find anchorage in the Narragansett Bay. By the time we reached our assigned area the winds had become strong. I was assigned to one of the whale boats and my duty was called; “Bow Hook” this meant that I would take a long pole with a hook on the end of it and reach out to grab hold of the anchor buoy and then hold the buoy to the boat while others jumped from the boat to the buoy. The task was nearly impossible and having no experience at doing this made impossible... non-existent. Sort of like; “Big Buoy” vs. “Little Hook” of course the big bully (I mean buoy) was winning the battle. One sailor broke his arm trying to get onto the buoy; all of us had bumps and bruises from being banged up each time the buoy pulled away from the boat and then slammed back into it. Eventually, we were able to too secure the ship to the buoy. When we returned to the ship our bumps and bruises were tended too and each of us was given a shot of brandy. For a full day we rode out the storm. This was my very first exposure to the dangers of ocean and bay weather and my very first taste of brandy to quench fear that things could get out of control and life could end. In those days the Navy gave a shot of brandy to sailors who survived troubling experiences at sea. Every detail of life is covered in the Holy Bible; please note Proverbs 31:6-7

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 4:13-15 – It is interesting to look around at all the churches in the United States; have you noticed the “different faiths”? Some believe in the literal lifting up (rapture) of all saints before the seven year Tribulation; some believe in a mid-rapture and some believe in a rapture at the end of the tribulation and many churches are looking to usher in the new heavens and earth without a rapture at all. Then there is faith in a man like a pope; faith in a denomination like a Baptist or Methodist. Faith in the Law and works; faith in grace, faith in losing your salvation and just plain faith. Are you confused yet? I am! There are not many faiths and one message; there is only one faith and one message!

Shall we forget so quickly? We have this excellent power in these earthen vessels which really tells me that it is not the power of any of these man made faiths that get us anywhere. The truth is that all religious faiths do not have enough power to make a light breeze that blows in the direction of eternity. Notice what the apostle Paul says here in verse 13 according to that which is written; we have all received the same spirit of faith, just as he has said in 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 and Ephesians 4:1-4.

What is this faith? It is common to all of us who believe; in that this faith rests in excellent power that rose up the LORD Jesus from the grave. We then can rest in this excellent power of God; in that He who raised Jesus up, will also raise us up with Jesus and we will all be present with Him in eternity. Notice too that it is the grace of God that accomplishes this in order that God who deserves the glory; receives the glory since it is not any work ethic developed or believed on by the religious efforts man. Hebrews 3 and 4 detail this faith/rest ministry.

A Devotional Look at the Book #546

A Devotinal Look at the Book #546

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

Personal and National Sin: We do not think too much about the effects of sin in our lives these days, but it is evident to the one who observes. The individual, the neighborhood, the community, the state and the nation collectively suffer from something; God calls it SIN...it is time to get back to the basics! Psalm 117:1-2

A DAY IN THE PAST, THE PRESENT OR THE FUTURE

It is high noon; evening is just six hours away. There will be a wedding in the morning, but first there must be two funerals to witness. Most all marriages are a day of joyful celebration; the bride and groom exchanging vows and if you are married you remember that day. Whether you are happy in your marriage or unhappy that day is remembered in very accurate detail as it is a part of who you are. Problems develop in marriage for a number of reasons; the number one and two reasons are money and infidelity. Some would argue that these are the root cause of most divorces, but the root of the problem runs deeper. It is because the man and woman did not did not die to themselves, there were no funerals to witness. As real as life is; marriages are when two: ONE Man and ONE woman agree to die to themselves and become ONE. Not only by contract, promise or covenant as to the agreement of the local assembly of town and relatives; but also spiritually as promised and covenanted by the Word of God. In Genesis 2:8-25 our great God and Father ordained marriage as a covenant of TWO (one man and one woman) becoming ONE. In Ephesians 5:22-33 the apostle Paul confirms that the marriage of a man and woman is as serious as the marriage of Christ and His Bride – the Church. Just as the church is one with God, our marriages are to be one with each other as well. If our marriages have not witnessed the funeral of dying to self; we will have trouble waiting at the very end of the honeymoon. It is not too late if your marriage is suffering. Some of us die hard, but go ahead – die to yourself and let your spouse come to the funeral, then go to his or hers as well, you'll be glad you did.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 4:7-12 – I am not sure but I believe that there are not too many of us; myself included who take time to be holy. In this section of scripture the apostle Paul gives us the best definition of what holiness is all about. He starts out by stating that within these earthen vessels we have the perfect power of God available for every good work, so that what we do in the likeness of Christ is not from these earthen vessels but from the excellent power of God in us.

In this thought lies victory over every encumbrance and suffering that we children of God may face; in other words we are often cast down; but we are never conquered. Example: If you have been a child of God for very long you actually know this truth. You have witnessed to someone and felt the pressure; even you have been crushed by others for your words or even perplexed at some response by your sibling or child. Yes, persecuted by people but not forsaken by God who comforts us.

The child of God who walks in the excellent power of God carries with them at all times the dying body of Christ; and now you say… what is so joyful about that? Hang on! We also carry about the Life of Christ in this earthen body. This is the outworking of spiritual power. Being delivered daily to death for the sake of the gospel of Christ; that the life of Christ may be manifested through our spiritual way of life in our mortal life; death is at work and so is life. Does this sound confusing? Maybe Philippians 3:10-11 and Romans 8:17 will help. Even 1 John 2:28-3:1.

A Devotional Look at the Book #545

A Devotional Look at the Book #545

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

Personal and National Sin: Since Righteousness is lacking in this country; foolishness has become our disgraceful national pastime. Proverbs 14:34

A DAY IN THE PAST, THE PRESENT OR THE FUTURE

Many call the Holy Bible mystical, a book of lies, ancient writings, and host of other characteristics that are simply false. Most of these people acquire this nonsense from relatives as they grew up. Others who are searching for meaning in life obtain these thoughts from the erroneousness observations of friends or various religions they've come in contact with. Yet, when you really get to know the people who hold these views you will find that they all hold this statement of unbelief and it is found in the Bible. “Who knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.” Romans 1:32. The saints of God know these people very well, they are your neighbor, maybe a parent, your boss or a close friend; maybe they are someone you even go to church with or sit next to in church. These are the people of Romans 1:18-31. If you have the Holy Spirit dwelling in you; then you are always exhorted from scripture to recognize that you are the workmanship of God; to esteem for love's sake those unbelieving people and believing brothers and sisters around you. To be at peace; but too warn the unruly, to comfort the faint hearted; but too lift up the weak. To be patient with all; but too enjoy the LORD; to pray always; but too give thanks always. To listen to prophecy; but too test the work; to hold fast to that which is good; but too abstain from the evil conduct of the world around you. If you are not doing this, then you are willingly quenching the work of the Spirit of God. 1 Thessalonians 5:12-21. The unbeliever cannot read the bible because it reads them. The saint who is lazy in being a good steward over their spiritual house has forgotten that they are a walking temple of God which the unbelieving world can clearly read. 1 Corinthians 3:16-23.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 4:1-6 – What is this ministry that we who are born again have? It is the ministry of mercy; is it not! The unbelieving person can preach, teach and exhort the doctrines of the Holy Bible… religions do this all of the time. But the one truth that religion cannot reproduce in the soul of man is MERCY. Mercy is granted to all who place their faith in the grace of God through the death and resurrection of God’s Son Jesus Christ. Mercy is living in the state of forgiveness and if you live it; then you can extend mercy to others.

We have openly renounced the hidden things of shame have we not! Or do we still handle the Word of the Living God deceitfully? There is a difference in the countenance of the hypocrite and the saint of God. The one in the mask may smile with the outward appearance of mercy; but behind the mask is rottenness of heart and a soul fat with the god of this world. Thus the gospel remains veiled and they perish because these souls have not known or received MERCY, this is the spiritual blindness or the veil over the gospel.

We are identified as preachers of Christ Jesus our LORD; we are servants of God for the sake of the gospel of Christ who is living through us therefore we do not preach ourselves but Christ. For it is God who commanded Creation into existence by the Word of His mouth. God spoke: His powerful Words became flesh and dwelt among us. We believed the Living Word and now we too live out the Living Word via the Holy Spirit who lives in us. To God be the glory as our face reveals the face of Jesus Christ… which is the ministry of MERCY!

A Devotional Look at the Book #544

A Devotional Look at the Book #544

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

The coins in your pocket: Some people never spend the change in their pocket. Be it lazy or embarrassing the excuse will be heard; but the bottom line is that most have forgotten how to count. James the half-brother of Jesus states something similar in his epistle! James 1:23-24

A DAY IN THE PAST, THE PRESENT OR THE FUTURE

The responsibility of keeping the devil out of our family life is large. For example: When I was an unbeliever, I allowed myself to follow the lifestyle of my father and uncles. Drinking, smoking and just being one of the “good Ole boys” I did not know that this activity was an open door for the devil to be a bed partner. He just did not go away! He was there in marriage and he was there at the hospital as I observed our newborn children. He was there when our family drifted apart. He was and is the master of destruction and death. I could place the blame on him, but if you look close enough you will find that it was me who enjoyed the devils company. So many of us go down that road, arm and arm with the devil. Not caring who we hurt, not caring for the wife or husband whose heart is broken. Not even caring for our children, since everything we do in real terms is a sacrifice to the devil. Believers and unbelievers alike get caught up it this. The divorce rate of people who claim to be born-again is as high these days as that of the unbeliever. As people of God we need to stop self righteous sins and assume responsibility for our actions. James 4:7-10 speaks clearly to this issue. Never close the door of communication with God! Humility before God cures worldliness and suffocates the devil with those we love.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 3:13-18 – I like my hope in God and in His eternal matters; I expect that this hope or confidence will grow. I suppose you could identify hope in God as progressive revelation of Him as He provides more light to see Him more clearly. This is a relational matter between you and God Himself; but it is also a responsibility of the church to bring this truth to light in each of us. (Matthew 16:18) Both the church and the person stand on the rock of their faith by the confidence found in hope. Hebrews 11:1 and the remainder of chapter eleven that “The Faith” from the dawn of creation until now and into the future is “the only hope” for mankind.

It is unique to me that such a simple item like a veil describes the total heart condition of believing and disbelieving in God. It is also just as unique that God can use whatever means necessary; such as, the Old and New Covenants to get His point across. Like for the unbeliever living currently these days who are under the Old Covenant Law of Moses, (2 Peter 1:19) until the day dawns and the morning star arises in their heart and the light of the New Covenant reveals the Mercy and Grace of God for the very first time. This is exciting to me in that it helps me understand that unbelievers cannot see God until the veil is removed.

Coming to the LORD Jesus not only removes the veil of blindness to the grace of God, but it also provides liberty to live in the Spirit of God. 2 Corinthians 3:17 is one of my favorite verses. “Now the LORD is the Spirit and where the Spirit of the LORD is there also is liberty”. Along with verse 18 we can know by hope and faith that our unveiled face will reflect the glory of God to those around us who are saved; but will be veiled to those perishing around us until the Spirit of Christ opens the eyes of their souls.

A Devotional Look at the Book #543

by Jesse Abel

A Devotional Look at the Book #543

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

The coins in your pocket: How much is six pence worth in British currency? 0.11 cents American! 0.22 cents Canadian; or 0.75 cents American? There could be more than one right answer. Matthew 6:24

A DAY IN THE PAST, THE PRESENT OR THE FUTURE

As a sailor before May of 1975 I staggered from one circumstance of life to another. For example; I thought it might be nice to sell mutual funds as a part time job while stationed in Hawaii. The income was good and I was having happy times. Then I thought it might be good to own a pizza restaurant, so I bought one. Hard work but I had good help. I had some selfish ideas so I stepped on people; some were employees and some were people who invested in mutual funds. I was happy! Yet; I was also unhappy since I treated people roughly I was treated the same in return and I always thought that I was right and they were wrong… so I was miserable. Why? Because I could not get people to like MY SELFISHNESS! I reckon you could say I was miserably happy. This way of life was and is today the way of life for many people; staggering from one moment of temporal happiness to another moment of temporal misery. Words like happiness and misery are scarce in the Holy Bible since these are a temporal condition of physical life laced in sin. So every person who answers the call of God is lifted out of this temporal condition and placed into the family of God where the focus is always on Eternal Joy found only in the Person of Jesus Christ and His Righteousness. Learn to be joyful and stop being miserably happy forever. Matthew 7:7-14

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 3:7-12 – I am encouraged and I hope you are as well. The paragraph above was not intended to parallel with these verses in Second Corinthians; but do! Well the LORD always has His way and I am so thankful for that. The question that I find myself asking here is: Does the Old Covenant have no hope? It seems to me that the apostle is saying that the Commandments of God written on stone; even as glorious as it is to Moses and the people of Israel is a ministry of death as in passing away. A no hope covenant: Please note: Romans 7:10; Exodus 34:1

We also know that the presence of God speaking with Moses; gave Moses a holy countenance because of the LORD’s glory and as time moved forward that countenance would fade away. Exodus 34:29-35 so the picture of the countenance of the Old Covenant had from the beginning a temporal overcast and I believe that this is good for us to know. The New Covenant is the final Covenant because it has eternal Promise and joy. Placing both covenants face to face we can easily see that one is temporal and one is eternal: One is the ministry of death; written and engraved on stone. No one can fully obey the Law of God except God Himself. The other is the ministry of the Spirit promising and fulfilling eternal life to all who believe.

I see that Acts 4:5-12 answers any questions I might have. There is a lot more to this thought in these final verses of chapter three and we will be covering these in the next day or two. I just would like to mention that we should be meditating on this section of scripture for more insight and blessing. I do love the Word of God and I hope you do too; because if you love the Word; you are loving Him who spoke it into existence. 1 John 1:1-4. Joy exceeds happiness by an eternity.

A Devotional Look at the Book #542

A Devotional Look at the Book #542

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

The coins in your pocket: Nine dimes and two nickels will always add up to a dollar; but just spend them today and note the result… about forty cents worth of hot air if you buy Bazooka! Better to seek and save for the kingdom of God. Luke 12:31-34

A DAY IN THE PAST, THE PRESENT OR THE FUTURE

The world around us is familiar but can react in unfamiliar ways; the things we know about people are normal but can generate abnormal results. Want to have skill in living through certainty and uncertainty; of course you do! We hear people say: “Pray as hard as you can”! What does that mean? Or we hear ourselves say; “Yes! I trust in God” but if we could have an instant replay of the following events of the day we would find less trust and more gut. So why is this true more often than not? Is it possible that we have no skill in living? Study intently the Book of Proverbs; learn to trust in the LORD; but with your heart and not with all of your might, we have no strength to pray or trust consistently. In Proverbs 3:5 the voice of Solomon is loud and clear on this subject… a good heart is not hard and the trusting soul does not lean on a gut feeling. But the good heart leans only on the Word of God. Is this thought serious? I think it is very serious since I believe that as a nation; we have failed the test of trusting God in all of our ways, thus He is no longer directing or making for us a smooth path. Proverbs 3:6.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 3:4-6 – I think that we often forget that the focus of the Holy Spirit in the ministry of the apostle Paul is to the church as a corporate group of believers and not to people individually as too one. Yet I do not mean to say that we should only look at the Word of God as a corporate message; as it is a personal letter from God to His children. To slice and dice the Word of God in this manner would make the message false, like in some religions that do not permit their congregations to read or study scripture.

Also, we have those religions that confuse and distort the Living Word of God by leaders who do not rightly divide the Word of God. 2 Timothy 2:15, we should notice that dividing the Word of God is scriptural; as in what doctrines pertain to the church and too which ones that pertain to the individual person. Also dispensational divisions, since it is God who equips His ministers with the New Covenant message, the message will always be through our trust in Jesus toward God and not the other way around which is of the letter rather than the Spirit.

Has the apostle talked of this issue before to the Corinthians? Yes, I believe he has! In fact; I believe that he; under the Power of the Holy Spirit developed an entire doctrine of the subject in 1 Corinthians 12-14 note; he starts out this doctrine of Spiritual unity within the church with the words. Now concerning “Spirituals” brethren, I do not what you to be ignorant. 1 Corinthians 12:1. Please note that the word “gifts” in this passage is in italics and is not present in any manuscripts. This brings up an important thought of study. Spiritual abilities such as explained in chapters 12-14 are given to the church to distribute to the congregation and not given to individuals to use as personal ministries. Spiritual injury results in many by the misuse of the Word of God as in the letter kills but the Spirit gives life.

A Devotional Look at the Book #541

A Devotional Look at the Book #541

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

The coins in your pocket: The Answer is 118 reeds on the edge of the U.S. Dime. Now that was not so hard was it? Especially when someone else does the leg work! Sort of like learning about God; huh! 2 Timothy 2:15

A DAY IN THE PAST, THE PRESENT OR THE FUTURE

Once on a destroyer we visited one of the islands in the Caribbean; I believe it was Jamaica but I could be wrong. What was unique and still hangs out in my memory is that we needed to anchor out in the harbor. The main reason was for safety and that the only available pier was said to be owned by an elderly woman who charged each sailor who walked on her pier (coming or going) twenty-five cents. Now it was not until the end of our stay when the local police came to the pier and arrested the woman. Apparently she did not own the pier since it was the property of the town. Here is the point! Integrity… there was a day in these United States when men in political authority exhibited integrity. These men did not extract income from “We the People” by deception and fraud. Have we become this island of deception? Would it be safer if we could just anchor off shore and watch the United States crumble and become a police state? We have thrown every natural or human effort at the problems of our collapsing infrastructure, yet to no avail. Is it time yet? I said… Is it Time Yet? Oh Yes! It is time that as a nation we must humble ourselves in the sight of the LORD, and then He will lift us up! James 4:7-10 and 2 Chronicles 7:14. Worldliness has caused our national failure; when will we learn this? The truth is that we do have the resources to turn this nation around, it is called PRAYER a resource that all of us have but; but more than many of us do not know how to use.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 3:1-3 – The apostle is well known to the Corinthian believers and does not need letters of commendation or references from others; nor does he need any approval from them. This would be like holding a conference by some well respected evangelist or bible teacher and saying to them. Oh; by the way went you come for the conference; bring letters of recommendation with you and we will also give you letters of the same when you leave.

No! We should not have to do this since the epistle of truth ought to be anchored in our hearts. We ought to have this testimony of truth available and visible at all times in order that this truth might be read by everyone who has a need or desire to know. How might we do this? Romans 13:11-14 we ought to be Christ like. The church at Corinth did have trouble with this; if you have taken the time to count the number of sins within the church at Corinth you would find over sixty four of them; simply put, this is not a picture of Christ.

So I believe that there is a real need for the contemporary churches of today to have a make over. Worship and preaching in most churches today is nothing more than an emotional roller coaster with no brakes. For folks with spiritual heart problems the Spirit of the Living God is not able to get through. Our spiritual needs are many these days simply because we do not see epistles of truth in the hearts of our church leaders. Thus it is not the new age epistles of contemporary movements. God is not doing something new! God is the same today as He was yesterday and you can be sure that He will be the same epistle tomorrow! Hebrews 13:8 and John 8:58.

A Devotional Look at the Book #540

A Devotional Look at the Book #540

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

The coins in your pocket: What is a reed? Some U.S. coins have what is commonly referred to as ribs but are in reality; reeds. So on the edge of the dime; how many individual reeds will you find? Give me your answer at http://jesse225c@blogspot.com/

A DAY IN THE PAST, THE PRESENT OR THE FUTURE

We were on our way to periscope depth and the Officer of the Deck and Con was on the periscope moving in slow circles and repeating the words; “no shapes, no shadows”. This is a common and required practice for all OOD’s as the ship moves from deep water to the shallow water of periscope depth. Suddenly the Officer stopped his process and just stared through the scope. The captain was in the control room and without hesitation he commanded control of the Deck and the Con, he then had the collision alarm sounded and commanded the Diving Officer to emergency dive the ship. The Chief of the Watch was ordered to voice Emergency Deep over the ship’s 1MC voice system and the Diving Officer order the Engine room to all ahead flank. The sound coming through the hull of the sub was the sound of the surface ships propeller; “whoosh – whoosh – whoosh – whoosh – whoosh – whoosh – whoosh… then nothing, the danger was over. One man in authority froze and did not react. The other man sensing the danger responded and saved the day. It was determined that the surface ship was less than twenty feet from the after section of our hull as we began our descent. The draft of the surface ship was less than fifty feet, had it been more the ship would have hit us. Men in position of authority must respond or be helped. Old Testament Scripture is a grand teacher of this truth. Notice the help of Aaron and Hur given to Moses as the battle over the Amalekites was won by Joshua. Genesis 17:1-16.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 2:12-17 –The message of salvation does not originate from the church or from the mouth of man. The origin of the gospel is God’s Son; sacrificed to death for our sins and raised from that death by the power of God providing salvation to all who believe… so think about it. How then can the gospel come from any other source except from God Himself? Notice how the apostle John states this truth in John 1:1-13.

Some folks are pleasant to be around and others are not, for example; I feel that I am a little rough around the edges as I feel the rejection from many people because of this. I cannot use this as an excuse when witnessing victory in Christ’s gospel… you do know what I mean; don’t you? “Well that’s just the way I am so take it or leave it”. If this attitude were a smell; what would it smell like? God does not open the door of opportunity to share His gospel with anyone if you haven’t allowed the Holy Spirit to shower down on you that sweet aroma of Christ in you. As the apostle states in Galatians 5:16

This gospel of Christ is a serious matter and as the apostle clearly states; “who is sufficient for these things”? God has entrusted the message of the gospel to the church and the mouth of man. The words of the apostle Paul are not as mild as we might think as various versions of the Bible are given for interpretation. The words found in the in verse 17 can literally read in this way. “Like the rest who adulterate the gospel for personal gain” and do not forget whatever we speak; we speak it in the sight of God who is witness of our accountability in His gospel.

A Devotional Look at the Book #539

A Devotional Look at the Book #539

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

The nickel on the nightstand: Does not picture an elephant or a donkey. Nor does the nickel any longer reflect our national heritage of Chief Iron Tail and the buffalo (1913 – 1938). Like many assets of the United States… the nickel has lost its value.

A DAY IN THE PAST, THE PRESENT OR THE FUTURE

Days that stand out in life are special to us; are they not? A courtship that brings us to the altar, the birth of a son or daughter, the beginning of a long military career or finding that certain career. These events have forged a place in our hearts that will always be like a sweet spot in our mind. Sometimes when things are tough people retreat to these “sweet spots” for comfort and rest from the boiling stresses of life; these episodes of retreat do not always workout for the best since many people end up not letting go of certain things that develop within the sweet spot and these end up being bondages instead of a comfort. As in the courtship that not only leads to the altar but also to the courtroom or the career that begins to crumble as one is passed over in the advancement process. Bitterness, resentment and hurt work ruin in a person’s mind to the point of semi-permanent impairment. Today I feel that our Nation reeks of this spoilage of the American mind. Why? Deuteronomy 5:6-21 which is summed up for us New Testament saints with the words of Jesus Christ in Matthew 22:34-40. National Idolatry and selfishness has replaced our national love for God and neighbor. Until we as a nation are willing to acknowledge this sin there will be no peace. To know Jesus is to know peace. If your life has no Jesus in it; then you have no peace.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 2:1-11 – Ever been around someone with; sorrow of heart? Usually a person in this mindset is suffering from intimidation or guilt. Even church leadership can promote sorrow within the congregation when these men are confronted with ongoing sin in the church. I am not a pastor (thank the LORD) but I have stood behind the pulpit enough to see the saddened eyes and the wrinkled frowns of a group of saints who have hurt themselves and others because of sin.

What is to be done to correct this blight of failure and sin? Should there be a time of discipline? Emphatically YES! Should there be a time of reflection and repentance? The same YES applies. Lastly; should there be a time of forgiveness? Still the answer remains – YES! Here is a thought. Was discipline administered in one moment of time, or did it occur over a period of time leading up to the moment of final execution? In most cases; church discipline is applied by the biblical principles found in Matthew 1815-20 and many other passages; even like that in James 5:19-20. These events in the lives of God’s children take time.

So here again we see that discipline like other sorrows of life have a process; that process has only one focus… HEALING. Healing the heart that is out of balance; like this simple but profound statement of the apostle Paul in Romans 5:8: “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us”. We therefore in our disciplines should be just as willing to demonstrate restoration love for the sinner. In discipline we died to them; but in forgiveness we are restored to them even as Christ has forgiven us.

A Devotional Look at the Book #538

A Devotional Look at the Book #538

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

The stolen nickel on the nightstand: Has opportunity to end up in the piggy bank; years later when the five year old is accountable the seed of strict discipline will reap laughter and singing according to Psalm 126:1-6.

A DAY IN THE PAST, THE PRESENT OR THE FUTURE

There was a day on one of the submarines I was on when things were calm and peaceful; we were just entering the Atlantic heading West through the Straits of Gibraltar. As we began to turn to the North and make our way to England the Sonar Tech reported; “Torpedo in the water” then he added… this is not a drill! The Officer of the Deck ordered emergency deep and the Captain showed up in the control room. He replaced the Officer of the Deck with words like; “This is the Captain; I have the Con” He order the ship to full flank speed to the depth of one thousand feet and he also order for evasion canisters to be deployed. These four missile like flasks contained noises that sound like our submarine so the torpedo became confused as to which noise was the real submarine and we escaped the jaws of the enemy. Here is the point! Having never read Psalm 124 as a new believer of just a couple of years that when I opened my Bible to find comfort; it was this Psalm that provided exactly what I needed since it explained exactly what had just happened to us as though God were there with us and He was. The remembrance of this moment it time always fills me with overwhelming joy.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 1:15-24 – I am sure that you have noticed as I have that the apostle Paul; as with most of the writers of the New Testament, write in first person accounts of what God is doing in their lives. The Holy Bible is personal; not only with the writers but also to those who read the words. Since God is the Author of the written word then He to has a personal interest in all messages. Even though God is often the second voice; sort of behind the scene motivation, He is the main reason the writers of scripture are faithful to write. In other words it is God who is faithful to fulfill Paul’s travel plans and ours as well and so our words should always be discipline with truth.

Truth demands that our “yes” is always yes and that our “no” is always no! Otherwise how will the promises of God stand if not on this firm foundation? Confidence in God requires that our relationship with Him is one of personal inner action with Him. Mainly, this is why I write as I do. This is not to say that I have some special dispensation with God, thus I speak. Yet I am saying that we who believe in Jesus as the scripture mandates must have this same daily message having a “yes and no” foundation of standing on the promises of God who anointed us and sealed us in the Holy Spirit.

So we all have the opportunity of going to a group of people; friendly or foe and speak of how God is working in our lives. Sometimes this requires restraint by not expressing dominion over the faith of someone and sometimes it requires boldness with messages that are weighty as in 2 Corinthians 10:10, but in every case the yes must be yes and no must be no as required.

A Devotional Look at the Book #537

A Devotional Look at the Book #537

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

The nickel on the nightstand: Is never alone, it is always seen whether literally with the eye or in the minds eye. To the child this is temptation and without proper training the nickel will produce sin, James 1:14-15

A DAY IN THE PAST, THE PRESENT OR THE FUTURE

Some of us older generation remember the song by Pete Seeger: “Where have all the flowers gone?” The song sung by he and his wife Tao conveyed the message that everything created eventually goes to the graveyard. The song (a poem) was written in 1961 by Pete Seeger is a stoic expression; while it creates the thought of pain and suffering in ones mind, it totally rejects the idea to suffer since everything in the song ends with death as the victor. A message of no hope of recovery; thus life having no intrinsic value is not worthy of the reward of living, nor to suffer the pain of dying. Well what does this song have to do with things today? “Where have all the nations gone?” They’ve gone to Hell… yes every one!” What should be done? Shall we stop living like everyone? Should we stop looking at the flowers of our Creator? Should young men stop chasing young women? Should we stop building families who may of necessity send their children to war? Well guess what? We have; many of us today do not have an aroma of life about us; our nation smells like death. Smelling of deadly abortions, of same sex marriages that reek with the death odor of aids. Our children are fat with complacency and disobedience; the aroma of the living dead. Those of us who believe in Jesus Christ must be willing to preach the gospel. The door is open by the LORD Himself. He is the sweeter, He is the living aroma of Life so let us stop peddling religion and start again to be sincere, as from God. 2 Corinthians 2:12-17

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 1:12-14 – Speaking of being sincere; there are many people peddling religion today who are not sincere. There are those who say that if you trust in God you will prosper materially and there are those who will tell you that when you trust in God you will be healed of all disease past, present and future. And if they can sell it to you that they have the answer to the end times they will! All of this is done in the name of Jesus Christ (fact) and spoken of as truth (fiction). Paul identifies this lack of sincerity as apostasy 1 Timothy 4:1-5

Apostasy is a lack of sticking to the truth; meaning that some depart from the truth in order to bring into the church a lot of people who are unsaved by offering things that appeal to the world. Promises and priorities that appeal to the unsaved are nothing more than gimmicks that actually backfire on a church. This causes the leadership to fall into revisionism. Now here is a word that has literally been extracted from the Bible, meaning that the leadership finds no future value in standing firm on the foundation to preach the Word. 2 Timothy 4:1-5 so they have retreated to other methods of working for God.

So to boast in part or in whole will mean little at the judgment seat of Christ. The sincere in Christ will have a reward; this is already established as we will see as we travel through this epistle. The foolish in Christ will have a reward as well and this will also be revealed as we study. I love the Word of the Living God and He tells me that death does not have a victory and this is my confidence and I hope yours as well. 1 Corinthians 15:50-58

A Devotional Look at the Book #536

A Devotional Look at the Book #536

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

The nickel on the nightstand: Is it better to take the nickel or learn wisdom; the child left alone does know right from wrong; but training him or her to choose right over wrong is an absolute necessity. Proverbs 4:1-7

A DAY IN THE PAST, THE PRESENT OR THE FUTURE

After the storm of last week we all have had the opportunity to look around at some of the damaged areas in our neighborhoods and areas that we frequent. The storm not considered to be of hurricane strength did major damage to our area. Most likely I did not notice some of the things you did, nor did you notice some of the things I did; that is just the way it is. That is true of the four gospels; Matthew, Mark, Luke and John so what I am saying is not profound, yet the Word of the Living God is always profound; well back to the weather. Before the storm a person could not see any depth to the wooded areas when passing by, but now after the storm we can see deeper into the woods almost as deep as during the winter when the leaves and ground cover has been removed. Is this significant enough to mention? I think so! I enjoy believing that God is the same; yesterday, today and forever. Hebrews 13:8 and there is coming a Great Day of the LORD when He will utterly consume all things from the face of the land. Zephaniah 1:1-18. Storms; large and small are simply previews of that Great Day!

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 1:8-11 – What is more comforting? Confidence or doubt! Now I know that anyone who does not need a checkup from the neck up will tell you that confidence is where comfort rules the day. But the question that seems to pop up in most of us is how I shall gain confidence when everything around me seems doubtful; even threatening as it did for the apostle Paul and those with him there in Asia.

At some point in all events we must journey through the door of not knowing what to expect on the other side. There are a host of things we might lose or gain and we may very well lose the ultimate struggle with life itself. (Many of us could gain from this) Losing is not generally an option for us to consider; we want gain from every aspect of living life. A person who does not personally know God by faith in His Son Jesus struggles and fails over the unexpected because of a lack of hope… hope in simple terms is confidence in action.

So what I am saying is that our first hope is not to trust in ourselves for life but in God; to trust in Jesus Christ who is our Life whom God raised from the dead. Notice this! Did God raise His Son from the dead? The answer is YES! Did Jesus die for our SIN? The answer is YES! If these are true then we have claimed this truth by trust; the same confidence in God that is capable to deliver us from any and all sentences of the unknown. Proverbs 3:5-6

A Devotional Look at the Book #535

A Devotional Look at the Book #535

by Jesse Abel

A Thought for today by Papa “J”

The nickel and the nightstand: For a child of five it is not the nickel that makes the thief, but what dwells in the heart, as in; “Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it! Proverbs 22:6, removing the nickel is useless; we must guard the soul of our young; see verse 5.

A DAY IN THE PAST, THE PRESENT OR THE FUTURE

So let me ask you a question. Do you believe God’s talk? You say; “well just what is God’s talk that I might believe it? God’s talk is His Holy Bible and nothing more; I grew up a Catholic and I was taught that only church leaders were allowed to read the Holy Bible and that everyone else should not because of demons and other religious rhetoric. This religious rhetoric is common to all religious beliefs; from major church denominations to small villages in the jungles throughout the world. This should explain something too us; “Religion does not reveal true; “God Talk” for example; a little boy of four years of age was found wandering through a village in the Sepik Region of Papua, New Guinea. The adults asked him; “Aren’t you afraid that the spirits will eat you?” His reply! “No, my dad and mom told me that God’s talk tells us that this is not true. So our family does not believe that anymore.” And the boy walked confidently on his way. So while there are those who say that God’s Talk is mysterious, difficult and hard to believe. This little boy named Kinsli speaks volumes about our traditional beliefs being nothing more than religious rhetoric. Matthew 19:13-15 The kingdom of heaven rests in our hearts by FAITH, not FEAR. Reflections from page 6; NTM@work; volume 70 – No.1 August 2011.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 1:7 – The more I look into this section of suffering and consolation the more excited I become since this helps me see the bigger picture. Yesterday I connected suffering and consolation by saying these circumstances were like a coin; suffering on one side and consolation on the other. However a revision is necessary and here is why. If these circumstances were like a coin, one could only view one side at a time and while this sounds logical I do not feel it explains the suffering of Christ.

We are partakers of the suffering of Christ in that we have the “whole of Him” there is not one part of Christ’s suffering and another part of Christ’s consolation, we are partakers of the death (suffering) and His resurrection (consolation), so we are complete in Christ. When our brothers and sisters are partakers of suffering they are also partakers of consolation and their hope and ours in God is revealed in our mutual steadfastness of this truth.

Just to recap a bit over 2 Corinthians 1:3-7; suffering and consolation is only possible because of the mercies of God. God who suffered the loss of His Son for you and me is the Father of suffering. Raising Jesus His Son from the dead makes God; the Father of all consolation too. He allows us to be partakers of this wonderful truth in order that we can share among the fellowship of believers and know within our church family the JOY of the LORD which is our ongoing hope in suffering and consolation… 2 Corinthians 1:8-11 coming up!