God Keeps His Word

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God 

They called themselves Beta Israel (the house of Israel) and used the Torah to guide their prayers even though they lived in thatched huts in Ethiopia. Their neighbors called them Falashas (the alien ones, the invaders).

The first modern contact with them came in 1769, when Scottish explorer James Bruce stumbled upon them while searching for the source of the Nile River. His estimates at the time placed the Beta Israel population at 100,000. It soon became clear that they were, indeed, descendants of Jews who came to Africa in ancient times and had intermarried with the locals.

In 1975, the Israeli rabbinate officially recognized the Falashas as Jews. For a variety of circumstances (including famine and the ongoing civil war), Israel began airlifting thousands of the Falashan Jews to their ancient homeland, Israel. 

We should not be surprised when things like that happen. It’s just another evidence that God is faithful to His Word. In this case, bringing His children home. 

God keeps His Word, His promises. You can count on it. You can never be so far away that His arm is too short to save!

Do not fear, for I am with you; I will bring your descendants from the east, and gather you from the west. I will say to the north: Give them up! and to the south: Do not hold them back! Bring My sons from far away, and My daughters from the ends of the earth—everyone called by My name and created for My glory. Isaiah 43:5-7a

God Alone

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God 

“Come, come my friend. Get your god right here!” That’s what a vendor told our group as we walked past a gift shop on a recent trip to Turkey. We were at Pergamum, one of the Seven Churches of Asia Minor mentioned in the book of the Revelation [2:12-17]. I was intrigued, so I stopped for just a moment, and sure enough, he had gods galore; little wooden statues, hundreds of them, representing a variety of so-called gods. 

In biblical times, and our own, people believed in a variety of gods - sun gods, moon gods, rain gods, war gods, et al. Paul was troubled at the many gods worshipped in Greece when he was in Athens, and later, Corinth [see Acts 17:16]. That’s why it is important to get it right about the GOD you say you serve. 

The Old and New Testaments emphasize the uniqueness of God — the One who is God by nature, not granted godhood at the whim of man. He is “above all,” emphasizing His sovereignty. He is “through all,” emphasizing His providential care. He is “in all,” emphasizing His personal, indwelling presence [Ephesians 4:6].

In His self-revelation to mankind, God revealed His uniqueness. And while there are many, here are just two examples:

Today, recognize and keep in mind that the LORD is God in heaven above and on earth below; there is no other [Deuteronomy 4: 39].

I am Yahweh, and there is no other; there is no God but Me. I will strengthen you, though you do not know Me, so that all may know from the rising of the sun to its setting that there is no one but Me [Isaiah 45:5-6].

The God of the Bible (the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob) is the only God deserving our worship. Like the Psalmist said, He’s the one we worship when we “enter His gates;” Acknowledge that Yahweh is God. He made us, and we are His—His people, the sheep of His pasture [Psalm 100:3].

When we revere God alone, we will be a powerful witness to the world.

There may be so-called gods both in heaven and on earth, and some people actually worship many gods and many lords. But we know that there is only one God, the Father, who created everything, and we live for Him. And there is only one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom God made everything and through whom we have been given life. 1 Corinthians 8:5-6

One, and Only One

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God 

“How many times do I have to tell you?” As a kid, how many times did you hear that one? As my Dad would say, “If I’ve heard it twice, I’ve heard it once.” (I think he got that from Yogi Berra.)

One—Unity. When God designed the “church,” He did so with unity in mind. Everything about the church is based on the unity of the believers. Paul understood it so well. When he wrote to the Ephesian Christ followers, he spoke about that oneness. In fact, in three verses in chapter 4, he used the word “one” seven times [4-6].

How many bodies are there? One.

How many Spirits are there? One.

How many hopes are there? One.

How many Lords are there? One.

How many faiths are there? One. 

How many baptisms are there? One.

How many Gods are there? One.

Now, any thinking person would say, “Wait a minute, there are many gods, many faiths, many spirits, etc,” and they would be right. But there is only ONE that matters. 

Let’s take the Body of Christ for example. How many Bodies of Christ are there? There isn’t a Baptist body, and a Methodist body, and a Calvary Chapel body, and a non-denominational body. Likewise, there isn’t a Covenant body, and a Pentecostal body, and a Calvinist body. Furthermore, there isn’t a U.S. body, and a Chinese body, and and African body. There is only one Body of Christ, THE Church!

Listen to this description by Paul to the Galatian Christ followers: “There is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, heirs according to the promise” [Galatians 3:28-29]. 

The simple truth of Scripture is that if you are a Christ follower, you become one with every other Christ follower. Individually, we must live as a temple of the Holy Spirit [see 1 Corinthians 6:19], but collectively, the Holy Spirit is building a dwelling place for God, and each of us is part of the structure: “And in Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit,” Paul told the Ephesian Christ followers” [2:22].

Why are we one and only one? Because the One Spirit, who placed us [baptized] into the One Body [of Christ] dwells in us. He has given us one and only one hope at our calling, eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

All Christians are part of the same Body, with the same Spirit.

There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope at your calling—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:4-6

Above and Beyond

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

By way of design, I usually write these devotions and then end them with an appropriate passage of Scripture. But today, I’ve chosen to quote the passage first thing…

Now to Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us—to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21

Will you do yourself a favor and reflect on those words for a moment or two, especially “able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think…” What an amazing description of the Lord’s ability to work in the life of a Christ follower!

But the truth is, we too often focus on what we want God to do around us, i.e. fix this problem, change that situation. If only He would do that, my life would be so much better. I believe with all my heart that He can change circumstances, but I also believe there is something bigger and better, He can change us.

Changing us is a matter of transformation from the inside out, and is typically a slow process; like a tree, it takes time to grow and mature its fruit. It takes time! That’s why we must exercise faith and patience. He is at work even when we don’t see immediate results. Why are we in such a rush anyway? God isn’t, and to top it off, He never gives up on growing us into the likeness of His dear Son, Jesus. 

God has a plan for your life and is working to achieve it, that’s true. But He also has an overarching goal — to conform every Christ follower to the image of Jesus Christ. That takes time and effort. It means living life with all its struggles and heartaches and, even when it doesn’t make sense to us, having complete confidence that God is doing exactly what needs to be done. 

Can you see it? The Lord is working in you. As you read His Word, look for the qualities He considers precious. Ask Him to transform you by working them out in your life. And then, be amazed at the realization that He is able to do “above and beyond” what you asked or imagined! 

Now to Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us—to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21

No Excuses, Just Say YES!

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

When God opens a door of opportunity for you to serve Him, just say, “Yes.” Unfortunately, some Christ followers don’t respond that way. It could be something like being too busy, or not feeling qualified, or, God forbid, being too lazy. Sometimes, a Christ follower will close a door him/herself by some knee-jerk reaction before they have discovered if God wants them to go through it or not. 

Perhaps you’ve never thought of it this way, but in a sense, it is a form of idolatry—bowing down to your self-interest instead of bowing in submission to God. 

You need not worry about your qualifications. God takes care of that by uniquely gifting His servants according to His will. Furthermore, He saved us and gave us the Scriptures to bolster our ability to work for Him [see Ephesians 2:10; 2 Timothy 3:16-17]. “No” just doesn’t cut it; it doesn’t work. 

So do as the Psalmist said and, “Serve the Lord with gladness” [Psalm 100:2]. Serve Him as a godly parent. Serve Him as a friend who listens to those who are around you. Serve Him as a godly student on campus who refuses to go the way of the crowd. Don’t restrict what God can do through a willing helper. He will give you sufficient power and grace to overcome any human limitation. 

Not enough courage? That’s OK. God can heal you of anything! You have the Holy Spirit whose power was great enough to raise Jesus from the dead. That knowledge alone should help you overcome any fear.

Laying aside our excuses is the wisest thing we can do in serving the Lord. 

There’s an old Gospel song that says…

I’ll say, “Yes, Lord, yes,” to Your will and to Your way

I’ll say, “Yes, Lord, yes,” I will trust You and obey

When God’s Spirit speaks to me

With my whole heart I’ll agree

And my answer will be, “Yes, Lord, yes!”

He saved us not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to His mercy, through the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit. He poured out this Spirit on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that having been justified by His grace, we may become heirs with the hope of eternal life. Titus 3:5-8

Pray, He is Faithful

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

I have been reading the Old Testament Prophets for the last several months. I have found myself particularly drawn to Jeremiah’s lament - Lamentations. I can’t think of another book that takes a reader from despair to hope so seamlessly. Despair came at the hand of the cruel Babylonians as its army crushed Jerusalem [chapter 2]. Hope came through the great affirmation of God’s enduring faithfulness to His people [3:22-23]. 

At first glance, one might think that God did not hear Jeremiah’s lament because it seems so negative. For anyone who comes to that conclusion, I’d ask you to read it again. There is hope because God keeps His covenant with His people.

Lamentations closes with a prayer, and right off we see that Jeremiah believed the relationship between God and Judah remained, even though it was severely strained by the sins of the people. And think about it for a moment, if the possibility of reconciliation were not possible, what’s the point of his prayer? God’s covenant relationship was strained, certainly. Snuffed out, NEVER!

That is the point of the prayer’s conclusion. “Bring us back…unless You have rejected us” [5:21-22]. Jeremiah’s prayer hinged on one little word, unless. It’s not a condition as some might think. It really points to God’s faithfulness. Jeremiah was profoundly aware of the blessing to Abraham’s seed forever [Genesis 12:1-3]. Now, he’s talking with God about it. “You’re not going back on Your word, are You? You haven’t forgotten Your promise, have You? You’re not willing to abandon us now, so unless You’ve reneged on Your promise, bring us back!” 

Prayer is a vital sign that our relationship with God is secure. When we call out to God, praying with sincerity, acknowledging our sins, resting in His mercy, it demonstrates we are in His hand. It is hopeful. We are not defined by our past or present sins but have “bright hope for tomorrow.” Yes, it’s confidence that the best is yet to come. 

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth

Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide

Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow

Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside

Great is thy faithfulness

Great is thy faithfulness

All I have needed thy hand hath provided

Great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me

LORD, restore us to Yourself, so we may return; renew our days as in former times, unless You have completely rejected us and are intensely angry with us. Lamentations 5:21-22

He Is Lord

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

"He is Lord." We sing it, and sometimes say it, but do we believe it and live it? Some consider those words to be the first confession of the early Christ followers [see Romans 10:9]. In the Apostolic Age, many were killed when they confessed it, refusing to say, “Caesar is Lord.” Jesus is the Lord of Christ followers for the simple reason He purchased us; therefore, we owe Him our allegiance. 

The Apostle Paul taught this using the ancient slave market to make his point. In his time, slaves were bought and sold daily. When a slave was purchased, he came under the full authority of the master who bought him. That’s the idea of Christ’s lordship. He owns us because He purchased us by paying the ransom price—His precious blood [1 Peter 1:17-19]. But unlike cruel slave masters, the Lord’s “yoke is easy,” and His “burden is light” [Matthew 11:28-30].

It’s one thing to say that Jesus is your Savior, it’s quite a different thing to say He is your Lord. But please hear me, it borders heresy to believe that Jesus could be your Savior without being your Lord as well. We must confess that Jesus is Lord not only with our mouths, but also with our lives—proving He is your Lord by doing His will. To think otherwise is foolishness. Jesus taught us that great truth when He said, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven” [Matthew 7:21].

One of my Bible College professors was fond of saying, “We are not at our own disposal. As slaves, we do not have the right to live according to our own pleasure.” That’s the way of the unregenerate. They are determined to live by their own rules, to pursue self-fulfillment at any cost. As Christ followers, we are determined to live God’s way, and repent when we fail to do so. If you sing, or say, “He is Lord,” then live in obedience under His lordship. 

You are not your own, for you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God in your body.  1 Corinthians 6:19b-20