The Devotional – Your brother will rise again

The Devotional – Your brother will rise again

Comment: Israel, if you care to read the Old Testament history of the nation, was and is at this time, rebellious toward God who chose the man Abraham and through him formed the nation of Israel. The detail of this history is far too large to place on paper this morning, but beginning with Genesis 11:27 through Malachi 4:6 you will find, God’s love, His mercy, His chastisement and judgment over His nation. If you study this section of the Holy Bible you will see that God not only owns the nation of Israel, but He also owns ALL NATIONS and moves them according to His Will. Rebellious and unsaved people reject the thought that God owns it all, thus they seek to usurp His protective Mercy, ignore His promised Grace and being full of pride fail to see His Love. This same thought or parallels the condition of the United States of America TODAY! 

Devotional: John 11:17–27 – After the death of Lazarus who was a friend of Jesus and while the family and other friends of Lazarus were still in mourning, Jesus came to the tomb. Lazarus had been dead four days and when Martha a sister of Lazarus saw Jesus coming, she ran up to meet Him on the road, but Mary the other sister remained in the house.

Lazarus, Martha and Mary spent many days with the LORD Jesus, they had sat with Him and His disciples on many occasions listening to the LORD’s teaching and conversation about the kingdom of Heaven. Thus Martha understood that if Jesus were to help them in these days of sorrow that He would. Notice: John 11:21-22 – Now Martha said to Jesus, “LORD, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You.”

The LORD’s reply to Martha is: “Your brother will rise again.” Verse 23. Martha understood the teaching of Jesus in the past about the resurrection of the last day. Yet like so many today she did not know at this point that Jesus is speaking to her about a different resurrection; the Light of the gospel. Jesus now clarifies that this resurrection is more than a future event in history. That the Frist Resurrection is in a Person of whom we all can believe in. 

Jesus explains these WONDERFUL WORDS to Martha “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, yet shall he live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?’ John 11:25-26. Martha’s reply is a vital expression of faith and it is vital message to all of us as well since we must all answer the question that Jesus asked Martha.

“DO YOU BELIEVE IN ME” The resurrection and the life is through the LORD Jesus Christ by FAITH alone, “but to as many as received Him, to them He gave the right (authority) to become the children of God, to those who believe in His Name; who were born (spiritual birth), not of blood (physical birth), nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man (physical will and conception), but of God (Sacrifice; John 3:16).

The Devotional – Look to the hills?

The Devotional – Look to the hills?

Comment: As I continue to think and pray for the nation, I am reminded that what I think and what I pray is often insufficient. I think a lot, but I pray a lot less. Certainly I am not like the man named Daniel who prayed three times a day, who confessed his sin and the sins of his nation. I am not gifted to write psalms or hymns, or even spiritual songs that cry out my displeasure over the vanity of our land. Yet I can be comforted, as it is the responsibility of ALL of GOD’s children to put “right a capsizing ship” and fortunately God has preserved the Words of scripture. There are Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual songs within the Holy and Living Word of God that speak to us and to God when our heart is burdened over life, liberty and happiness. Such is the Psalm 121.

Devotional: Psalm 121:1-8 – I will lift up my eyes to the hills – From whence comes my help? My help comes from the LORD, who made the heavens and the earth. He will not allow your foot to be moved (slip). He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel (the U.S.A too) shall neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD is your keeper (protector). The LORD is your shade (shield) at your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD shall preserve (keep) you from all evil: He shall preserve your soul. The LORD shall preserve you’re going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.

John 10:7-11 and 27 – The LORD Jesus Christ is the TRUE shepherd and protector of His children. We will not find protection from the hills, there is little help there as the writer of Psalm 121 sees when he questions the thought of looking at the idolatry of mankind who practice lies and sacrifice to their pagan gods. The One True God, the one who made the heavens and the earth, He alone is the Good Shepherd and He alone is worthy to trust.

All of the manmade gods and including the god of the fallen angels are thieves and robbers. They do not steal and rob material things, their primary target is the soul of mankind. They readily steal spiritual truth from the heart of those who hear, but have not ear to hear. They willingly kill the spirit within a person by choking out and destroying Truth in the heart. They are very good at what they do, even causing those in darkness to be satisfied with that life that leads to death.

But we ought to leap for joy like the lame man when Jesus healed him. It is true “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill and to destroy. I HAVE COME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE, and that they may have LIFE MORE ABUNDANTLY. I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd gives His Life for His sheep”. “My sheep hear My VOICE, and I KNOW them, and they follow ME.”

Our nation can follow Jesus, ONE CHILD AT A TIME, this should be a good start for all of us.

The Devotional – Who is He LORD?

The Devotional –

Comment: Yesterday I mentioned that Northern Kingdom, Israel and the Southern Kingdom, Judah had many warnings of the pending judgment of God in the years before the Assyrian invasion of Israel and the Babylonia invasion of Judah. Many of the Prophets were pre-exile as early as 850 BC. 125 years before the Assyrian invasion of the Northern Kingdom. And 260 years before the Southern Kingdom fell to Babylon invasion. This is a simple fact of history when one studies the Old Testament. Thus it is my opinion that there are similar expressions like mine from godly men who are scholars of the Holy Bible speaking in our land today. At least for the last 65 years as we have been eye witnesses of the crumbling freedoms of our nation. The two major things that are very visible to any man of God are these. Idolatry is on the increase and as a result of this, immorality is making rapid advancement in our society. As a nation; instead of waking up to this we are being lulled to sleep by secular humanism, which is the religion of unbelieving man.

Devotional: John 9:35-41 – What is true vision, true vision according to Jesus is LIGHT (forgiven), and blindness is DARKNESS (unforgiven). Most of us know the events previous to John 9:35-41. The man who was physically blind and receives sight, yet Jesus reveals to him that he is still blind.

The Holy Bible and the Words of Jesus are TRUTH about the LIGHT, this is the witness that John the apostle reveals for us in John 1:6-13. We must remember that the Holy Bible is CONTEXT about The Christ/Messiah, but all too often (like the scribes and Pharisees) we personally desire to reject the LIGHT, that is; until the TRUTH of The Christ is revealed by the WORD. If you believe the WORD then you are agreeing with the context of John 1:1-5 and you see that Jesus is WORD OF TRUTH.

Jesus asks the man that was physically blind but made to physically to see, “Do you believe in the Son of God?” Observe of the man’s response is spiritual blindness. “Who is He LORD that I may believe in Him?” “You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you.” The eyes of the spiritually blind are opened and now he is both physically and spiritually acknowledging his belief in The Christ.

Most people do see The Christ, but their spiritual eyes remain shut to the TRUTH, the WAY and the LIGHT. Such as those Pharisees who were with the seeing blind man. Knowing their blindness they said to Jesus, “Are we blind also?” The following is a clever statement by Jesus, “if you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘we see.’ Therefore your sin remains.” Remember that the LIGHT continually shines in the DARKNESS and even though it is seen, it is not comprehended as we read in the first chapter of John.

In closing and looking at John 3:19, the condemnation on all of mankind is that LIGHT has come into the world, and mankind loved DARKNESS rather than LIGHT, because their DEEDS (religious works) are evil. If one remains in their manmade religion they may see the LIGHT but refuse to believe the LIGHT thus they remain blind and condemned.