The Light

1 John 1

5 This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. 6 So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. 7 But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.

This was the first passage of Scripture we examined in my Beginning Greek class at Kentucky Christian College way back in the last century. I will never forget Dr. Jim Girdwood helping us understand the emphatic nature of verse five. In God, there is no darkness at all, NOT EVEN ONE. Since it is so emphatic in the original language, and since the thought goes on to remind us that we who want to follow Christ must live in the light (where there is no darkness at all, NOT EVEN ONE), then we CANNOT allow our lives to be darkened by sin. Not that we won’t ever sin after becoming a Christian, but that we must not allow sin to become our master. We must not allow a sinful mindset to take hold in our lives. I still struggle with this, in some areas of my life. I know that I must purge the darkness from my life, and live in the Light of Christ always. Father, this is my prayer for today. Help me to live in the Light as You are in the Light (because You ARE the Light).

Forgetful Lot We Are

2 Peter 3

1 This is my second letter to you, dear friends, and in both of them I have tried to stimulate your wholesome thinking and refresh your memory. 2 I want you to remember what the holy prophets said long ago and what our Lord and Savior commanded through your apostles.

We are a forgetful lot. Peter recognized that, thus his letters were sent out to remind people to stay focused on the Lord Jesus, and not be drawn away by liars who pervert the Gospel for their own evil purposes. Staying in the Word every day is the BEST way to avoid such a pitfall. Thank You, Lord for giving me the ability to read and comprehend Your Word, and for giving me the desire to spend time in the Bible on a regular basis. May my life reflect what I am daily being reminded of and learning!

Dog Vomit

2 Peter 2

20 And when people escape from the wickedness of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and then get tangled up and enslaved by sin again, they are worse off than before. 21 It would be better if they had never known the way to righteousness than to know it and then reject the command they were given to live a holy life. 22 They prove the truth of this proverb: “A dog returns to its vomit.” And another says, “A washed pig returns to the mud.”

Those who teach the false doctrine of “Once saved, always saved” just simply don’t read the Bible. How much more plainly could Peter put it here? Yeah, exactly. For Christians who turn their backs on the Savior, it would have been better for them to never have known Jesus to start with. The only thing worse than spending eternity in hell is knowing that you didn’t have to spend it there, but chose to anyway.

Stoked

2 Peter 1

3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence.

Wow! God has given us EVERYTHING we need for living a godly life. While I know this to be true, because God has given us Jesus, seeing these words in Peter’s letter just blow me away. I am so pumped! God has called us to Himself, and God wants us to be confident in Him. Not because of us, but because of Jesus. Yeah, baby, I am stoked!!!

Closer To The End

1 Peter 4

7 The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers. 8 Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins. 9 Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay.

Since we are even closer to the end of the world today than we were when Peter wrote these words, how much more should we be earnest and disciplined in our prayer lives? How much more important must it be to show deep love for each other, to cheerfully share our homes with those in need? Thank You, Father for allowing us to make the “Fabulous Blount Mansion” a place where people can know the love of God, share a meal, and even crash for the night when need be. What a blessing to show the love of Christ to those who hang out with us in this place!

Hope

I Peter 3

15b And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it. 16 But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ.

Heard a good sermon from this text a couple of weeks ago. Key takeaways from the message and from this passage of Scripture include: 1)Hope looks forward, faith looks back - the world is in desperate need of hope, and we have it in Christ, so we need to share that Hope with confidence. 2)Sharing hope in a gentle and respectful way gains the attention of those with whom you share. We don’t need to beat people over the head with the Bible, we need to live out biblical precepts in a way that glorifies God and draws people to Him. 3)Live a life above reproach so that even if people try to slander you, their words will come back to bring them shame. Not that we are trying to shame anyone, but if we live above reproach, shame will come to those who would try to harm us with untrue words. My Hope is in Christ, and I want to live a life that glorifies Him and draws people to Him every day.

Give Me Jesus

1 Peter 2

11 Dear friends, I warn you as “temporary residents and foreigners” to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls.

It is a daily struggle to remember and to live like someone who is not a resident of this world. My citizenship is in the Kingdom of Christ. I am a resident alien in the United States of America. The American Dream is NOT my dream. I desire to follow Christ and His teachings always. That puts me at odds with the prevailing culture in this land. So be it. Jesus was at odds with the prevailing culture when he walked the planet. May I stay focused on His example, and live my life to the best of my ability in following Him daily. I know all too well, the war waging against my very soul. I lose plenty of battles in that war, but I am striving towards victory that has been secured by Jesus. As the songwriter put it: “You can have all of this world, give me Jesus.”

Self Control

I Peter 1

13 So think clearly and exercise self-control. Look forward to the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. 14 So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. 15 But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. 16 For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”

Self-control. It is a fruit of the Spirit. It is a sign of growth in Christ. It is something I still struggle with daily. I’d like to say that I am better than I used to be in this regard, but that would be an arrogant brag not based in reality. Father, I pray that You will continue to draw me closer to You each day, and that each day, my self-control will be stronger than it was the day before. I desire to live a holy life because You are Holy.

Joy

1 Peter 1

6 So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. 7 These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.

Joy is a decision I make no matter the circumstances. Oh, I am not always happy, but I can always be joyful. Thanks, Lord for reminding me of this today. I need to choose joy. I need to remember that trials that I face are temporary and that I should use them as opportunities to give You the praise, glory and honor that You deserve!

Patience

James 5

7 Dear brothers and sisters, be patient as you wait for the Lord’s return. Consider the farmers who patiently wait for the rains in the fall and in the spring. They eagerly look for the valuable harvest to ripen. 8 You, too, must be patient. Take courage, for the coming of the Lord is near.

Patience is not just a virtue, it is a command! I am so terrible in obeying this command. Patience is something that God continues teaching me, because I need to learn it. I must, because God keeps placing me in situations where patience is required. I know that my greatest need for patience is in the area of praying for the return of my Lord and Savior, Jesus. I pray for Him to return every day, but I also know that if this is not the Day, then that must mean there is still plenty of Kingdom work for me to do. May I do so, lovingly, willingly, and patiently.

Humbly Serving

James 4

7 So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. 9 Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.

Okay, let’s think about this for a second. God Almighty Creator of heaven and earth on the one side. Me on the other. How could I be anything less than humble? Yet, why is it that my pride, my arrogance, and my sense of self righteousness always seem to kick in leading me away from where God would have me to be? Because humility is not natural for me. Satan knows that, and uses it to his advantage. Since I know that, I must work that much more diligently to not allow satan the victory in that area of my life. I am humbled to think that God could love me in spite of who I am. May I serve Him only. Daily. Humbly.

Nothing More Nothing Less

James 3

1 Dear brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged more strictly.

For me personally, this is one of the most sobering verses in all of Scripture. I AM a teacher in the church, and I KNOW that I will be judged more strictly because of it. That is why I endeavor to teach what the Scripture says, not what I want it to say. That’s why I remind my students often that they should not take my word for it, make sure that my words match up with God’s Word. I pray that my preparation for leading study of God’s Word brings glory and honor to Him, and that my teaching is ONLY what He wants. Nothing more and nothing less.

Listen and Obey

James 1

19 Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. 20 Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires. 21 So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls.

22 But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. 23 For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. 24 You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. 25 But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.

26 If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless. 27 Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.

James lays it all on the line here: listen to God’s Word and do what it says. Period. There is no room for human anger in the Kingdom of God. There is no excuse for those who do not put their faith into action. The tongue must be under control (James speaks more on this later in his letter). Faith in action looks like people taking care of those in need. Not the government, but the people taking care of those in need. The church in America has ceded its God-given responsibility to care for people to the government. No wonder we are in such a mess. Not only in this country, but as a people who claim to want to follow Christ! Listen to what God’s Word says, and obey!

Endurance

James 1

2 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. 3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4 So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

My Bride is one of my heroes on so many levels. She is absolutely a vessel shining the light of Jesus wherever she is. Over the past month or so, she has dealt with chronic back pain (going to a spine specialist for treatment), and over the past week, her sinuses have gone haywire. Yet, she plugs along with a smile on her face always. This week, her school is dealing with the trauma of a neighborhood shooting spree that left three dead...likely gang violence, so tensions are quite high. Yeah, and my stress consists of changing a song or two in this weekend’s Celebration Service lineup. Father, please continue to strengthen my Bride, and help me to serve her in any way possible. I know that she is filled with Your joy, and while she is facing many physical and emotional trials, her spiritual condition grows stronger each day because of her unwavering love for You.

Stay Anchored In Christ

Hebrews 13

8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 9a So do not be attracted by strange, new ideas.

Having Jesus as the Constant in our lives gives us the anchor we so badly need. The prevailing winds of culture cannot save us. The winds of political “power” cannot save us. The good intentions of man cannot save us. Only Jesus can save us. Only through Jesus may we dare to dream about entering into the presence of the Lord God Almighty. So, why is it that people are so seemingly easily enticed to turn their backs upon the One who said that His burden is easy and His yoke is light? Why is it that so many people are attracted by strange, new ideas? Because they are not properly anchored in the Word! They don’t really know Jesus. Now, remember, this letter was written to Christians of a Hebrew background. This is written to those who have been baptized into Christ, who claim to follow Christ, to love Christ, and to want to live like & for Him. But this whole letter has been a reminder to Christians that Jesus is Superior to the Old Covenant, and that they should never forget Who Jesus is! The best way I can think of to combat our natural tendency of forgetfulness is to stay in the Word every day. No matter what!

Holy Fear and Awe

Hebrews 12

28 Since we are receiving a Kingdom that is unshakable, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping him with holy fear and awe. 29For our God is a devouring fire.

Being part of this unshakable Kingdom of Christ should indeed move us to worship God with holy fear and awe. The Almighty Creator of the Universe, the Author of all life, and the Forgiver of our sins is worthy of no less. While we who are part of this New, Improved Covenant with God may now DARE to approach His Throne of Grace, we needn’t become complacent about Who He is! Our God is a devouring fire! Our God is Holy, Holy, Holy. We cannot approach His Throne of Grace except that we are made Holy through the precious blood of Jesus. Not because of anything we have done, or because of who we are, but because of Who Jesus is and what He has done for us. I am humbled beyond words today as I think about the privilege to be a tiny part of God’s unshakeable Kingdom put into place by Jesus.

No Matter What

Hebrews 12

1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. 3 Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up. 4 After all, you have not yet given your lives in your struggle against sin.

How could I ever grow weary in living for my Lord? I haven’t had to face anything in comparison to the Old Testament prophets, much less the Apostles and other leaders of the 1st century church, or even anything remotely resembling what modern day martyrs face! May I keep my eyes fixed on Christ, remembering that no matter what I may go through in this life for the cause of Christ, it is worth it. No matter what!

Celebrating

Psalm 111

1 Praise the Lord!
I will thank the Lord with all my heart


as I meet with his godly people.

My favorite time of the week each week, is the Lord’s Day morning Celebration gathering. I am so blessed to be at Vero Christian Church. This is my family in Christ, and the privilege of being able to help lead the Celebration Services there is an honor that I still cannot believe that I am allowed to have. Thank You, Lord, for the blessings You pour upon me every day of my life. Thank You for the ability to celebrate with family each Lord’s Day.

Faith

Hebrews 11

1 Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.

This week, my brother Ed has been put through a test of faith. Facing a Friday deadline to move from his abode of the past couple of years, he had no idea where or how he was going to accomplish this as late as Tuesday. I kept telling him that God had it under control (and we were both putting feet on our prayers in this regard). As of this writing, Ed is loading his packed up stuff, and heading towards his new digs thanks to the Lord working through my brother, Phatrok. God, I have been totally confident throughout this process, and I pray that Ed has been drawn closer to You, realizing that he (like all of us) MUST depend on You daily. Thank You for your faithfulness, o Lord. Thank You for Your unfailing love.

Natural Response

Hebrews 10

23 Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. 24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. 25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.

On this day when we remember the sacrifices made by those who serve this country in military service, our freedom has been secured by those willing to give it all. Our freedom from the penalty of sin is secured by the willing sacrifice once and for all times by our Lord and Savior Jesus. Therefore, we need to hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm in Christ Jesus. The only natural response to what Jesus has done for us is to live in such a way as to bring Him glory and honor. We should never neglect meeting together with other believers so we can always encourage each other in the natural response to God’s love for us. May my life be one that draws others to Jesus always. To Him be the glory and honor and praise forever and ever!

My Heart Is Confident In God

Psalm 108

  1 My heart is confident in you, O God;
      no wonder I can sing your praises with all my heart!
 2 Wake up, lyre and harp!
      I will wake the dawn with my song.
 3 I will thank you, Lord, among all the people.
      I will sing your praises among the nations.
 4 For your unfailing love is higher than the heavens.
      Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
 5 Be exalted, O God, above the highest heavens.
      May your glory shine over all the earth.

With everything going on these days in my brother Ed’s life (and it is plenty stinky), as well as in my Dad’s life (with prostate cancer diagnosis and more), with Peggy’s life (pinched nerve in her back), with Ian’s life (jobless for more than six months now), whew, I could get really depressed. However, I serve a God Who has it all under control. I am thankful that while I cannot see how any of this is going to work itself out, He already knows. All I know is that I will give God the glory. My heart is confident in God, and I will proclaim His praises every day. I have a sense of peace that passes understanding, and the Source of that peace is Jesus.

Eagerly Awaiting the Day

Hebrews 9

27 And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment, 28 so also Christ died once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him.

I eagerly await the Day of the Lord’s return. The older I get, the more eagerly I await. I know that there is plenty of work for the Kingdom to be done until that Day, and I am all about doing that work. However, if Jesus returned to take His Bride (the church) home before I finished typing this devotional thought out...well, that would RAWK! My prayer daily is, “come quickly, Lord Jesus.”

Judgement and Sin

Ezekiel 9

 4 For all people are mine to judge—both parents and children alike. And this is my rule: The person who sins is the one who will die.

It is not my place to judge, for only God is able to judge in fairness and holiness. God’s Word contains judgement for those who disobey Him. A sinner is a sinner not because I call them a sinner, but because God calls them a sinner. Those who disobey what God clearly states in His Word must answer to the Righteous Judge. It is my duty to point out sinful actions and urge those guilty of such actions to repent. That is NOT judging. That is simply attempting to open the eyes of those who are blinded by sin. May I do so in love always. May I remember that when someone reminds me of sin in my life, that they are doing me a favor by calling me to repentance. God’s judgement is clear: the one who sins will die (be separated from God for eternity). I have no desire to be counted among those folks, nor do I want anyone I know to be counted among those folks, either!

Heartfelt Counsel

Proverbs 27

 9 The heartfelt counsel of a friend
      is as sweet as perfume and incense.

As I read this passage, I miss the face-to-face contact with my dear brothers in Christ from the days when we all were ministering in the Tri-State region of KY, Ohio, and WV. Today, I miss Brent Baker, Jeff Sagstetter, Jeff Patrick, Jason Thomas, and Tracy Tooley. I miss the times when we were able to be together, counsel one another, laugh together, cry together, and cut-up together (not necessarily in that order). In the ten years I have been in Florida, I have not forged that kind of close bond with fellow ministers here. I have some buds that I truly enjoy hanging out with, but I miss my best friends and brothers in ministry. I praise God for technology, because even though we aren’t in the same physical location any longer (literally scattered around the country), we can still be in contact via cellphone, text message, Facebook, etc. I truly appreciate the heartfelt counsel I still receive from my brothers from afar.

'Nuff Said

Hebrews 7

18 Yes, the old requirement about the priesthood was set aside because it was weak and useless. 19 For the law never made anything perfect. But now we have confidence in a better hope, through which we draw near to God.

20 This new system was established with a solemn oath. Aaron’s descendants became priests without such an oath, 21 but there was an oath regarding Jesus. For God said to him,

“The Lord has taken an oath and will not break his vow:
‘You are a priest forever.’”

22 Because of this oath, Jesus is the one who guarantees this better covenant with God.

23 There were many priests under the old system, for death prevented them from remaining in office. 24 But because Jesus lives forever, his priesthood lasts forever. 25 Therefore he is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf.

Jesus is not only the Way, but He is the BEST way and the ONLY Way. ‘Nuff said.

Rebellion

Ezekiel 12

 1 Again a message came to me from the Lord: 2 “Son of man, you live among rebels who have eyes but refuse to see. They have ears but refuse to hear. For they are a rebellious people."

I am far from being a prophet, but I do indeed recognize the fact that I live among rebels who have eyes but refuse to see and ears but refuse to hear. I’m not talking about the pagans, either. I’m talking about those who claim to follow Christ, then turn and run in the opposite direction. I’m talking about those who say, “I love Jesus” in one breath, while spewing hatred for their fellow man in the next. I’m talking about folks who sit in church services every week and hear God’s Word proclaimed, only to walk out the doors with no intention of putting that Word into action. How blessed we are to have such a patient God! May we repent of our sins against Him, and stop living in rebellion!

Fundamentals Flawed

Hebrews 6

 1 So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don’t need to start again with the fundamental importance of repenting from evil deeds and placing our faith in God.

God must grow weary of us being stuck in the fundamentals. How are we to ever grow closer to Him in our daily walk when we can’t even get past lesson 101? Why is it that we tend to stay stuck in the fundamentals? Because we do not study the Scriptures for ourselves, and we instead rely on someone else to spoon feed us the Word of God! I say this to our shame. Until the Church of our Lord and Savior Jesus gets past the fundamental (which cannot even be agreed upon by those who want to re-invent the salvation process), then how are we to seriously think that we can grow closer to God and grow to be more like Jesus? Simple: we can’t.

Spiritual Babies

Hebrews 5

11 There is much more we would like to say about this, but it is difficult to explain, especially since you are spiritually dull and don’t seem to listen. 12 You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God’s word. You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food. 13 For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn’t know how to do what is right. 14 Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong.

Sigh. I am so sad when I read this passage of Scripture. I am sad, because it is so descriptive of those who claim to follow Christ in America today. Way too many simply want to be spoon fed or worse yet, bottle-fed the Scriptures without really having to study deeper on their own, much less to apply the teachings of Scripture to their lives. I am encouraged by signs I see from some sectors of the church, but overall, we Christians in America are simply big babies. It is way past time to grow up Spiritually!

I Do Believe

Hebrews 4

14 So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe.

The lyrics of Steve Curtis Chapman’s song, “I Do Believe” sum up my thoughts today:

Verse 2
Now these can be confusing times
The sceptics, posing as the wise
It´s hard to see the light
Through all the shadows of the doubt
But You keep saying all the while
It takes the vision of a child
Looking through the eyes of faith to see reality
So once again I will say
I believe You're the Life, You're the Truth, You're the Way

Chrous
I do, I do, I do, I do believe
I know, I know, I know, I know it's true
I do, I do, I do, I do believe
Lord I believe in You
I believe in You.

Focus

Hebrews 3

 12 Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. 13 You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God.

And the warnings in the book of Hebrews continue: don’t drift away, don’t take your eyes off of Jesus. The results will be disastrous. Notice that this passage starts with the phrase “dear brothers and sisters.” Yeah, this is written to Christians. We gotta stay focused or we will perish!