Living By The Word

  For Such a Time as This ( June 28, 2024) “ I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. ” (Romans 12:1) Scripture instructs that we are “ fearfully  and  wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14) by an awe-inspiring God of glory. Our Creator has designed each of us uniquely to serve a special purpose. Have you ever considered that God has placed you in the time, circumstances, and place you’re in to accomplish a particular task that He is calling you to do? God equips those He calls to act according to His will. It’s not about our capability; it’s about our availability! When we submit ourselves for service, the L ORD can use ordinary people like you and me to accomplish extraordinary things or whatever He wills. But we must be willing to respond in faithful obedience to God’s call to action and His appointment of us, to use a famous biblical phrase, ...

  Bringing Down Jericho’s Walls ( June 27, 2024)  “ And the  Lord  said to Joshua: “See! I have given Jericho into your hand, its king,  and  the mighty men of valor.”  (Joshua 6:2) The battle of Jericho, the first city conquered by Israel after crossing the Jordan River and occupying the land of Canaan that God had promised the Jewish people as an everlasting inheritance, is one of the strangest military conquests in human history. The resounding victory at Jericho was achieved supernaturally because the Israelites, under the command of Joshua, trustingly obeyed God’s uncanny instructions. Joshua exercised his faith and followed to the letter the L ORD ’s radically unconventional, but highly effective military strategy. The fledgling young nation chosen by God to reveal Himself and His Word to the world marched around the city once a day for six days and seven times on the seventh day. Then, with the piercing blast of the trumpet and t...

  The Credit of Christ’s Righteousness ( June 26, 2024)   “There is none righteous, no not one.” (Romans 3:10).   As human beings who have inherited a sinful nature, we naturally behave in a manner that is not morally justifiable or right. This innate rebelliousness puts us at odds with a righteous and just God who cannot tolerate sin. In our human helplessness, we are incapable of achieving righteousness. Thankfully, however, we were born to glorify a gracious God of love who has made a way for each of us to be reconciled or placed in right standing with our heavenly Father through His Son. Faith in Jesus Christ, who paid our sin debt on the cross, is the key to transforming human rebelliousness into divine righteousness. God credits our faith… ” the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1) … as righteousness.   Because of his steadfast faith, Abraham, the patriarch of Israel, not only became the father of a great nation b...

  Sons and Daughters of Encouragement ( June 25, 2024) “ Therefore comfort each other and edify one another. ” (1 Thessalonians 5:11) We’ve all experienced times of discouragement when our spirits were lifted by a warm smile, a word of reassurance, a pat on the back, or other thoughtful acts of kindness by other people. In order to pursue a Christian lifestyle that honors God in a pagan culture, encouragement is an absolute necessity. We all need cheerleaders—family members, friends, neighbors, colleagues, and others who offer affirmation and encouragement to press on when the roads of life become rocky and seem impassable. The Bible directs us to “exhort one another daily.” (Hebrews 3:13) A shining biblical example is Barnabas, a leader among the early Christians who certainly lived up to his name that means “son of encouragement.” Described as “a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith” (Acts 11:24), Barnabas provided encouragement, comfort, and support to the apo...

  A Clean Heart ( June 21, 2024) “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9) To live a life that pleases God requires that we guard the heart which governs what we think, say, and do. Admittedly, sometimes my wayward mind wanders to places that, as a Christian, I know it should not be going. Someone once said, “Where the mind goes, the body will follow.” Stunningly, Jesus taught that thinking about an unrighteous act is just as sinful as doing it. In order to take control of what we think, we must shift our focus from the head to the heart where our thoughts, words, and behaviors are conceived. What we think, how we speak, and the things we do all spring from or originate in the heart, the fountain of our thoughts, words, and deeds. Living in an ungodly society, that fountain can easily become polluted with worldly impurities. “ For from within, out of the heart of men,   proceed evil thoughts,...

  Body and Soul ( June 20, 2024) “Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.” (Ecclesiastes 12:7) Always in motion and caught up in a frenzy of activity, healthy children seem to have inexhaustible energy. As they move into their teenage years and early adulthood, young folks tend to develop the misconception that they are invincible, immune to the bodily injuries and infirmities that they normally associate only with the elderly. I can relate to that attitude of agelessness because that’s the way I felt in my youthful prime. Having experienced (and thankfully overcome) serious health issues and the normal aches and pains that go with aging and having been saddened by the passing of dear friends of my generation, as I’ve moved toward my “golden years,” I’ve been confronted with the stark reality of mankind’s mortality. Despite our best efforts to care for them through proper diet, regular exercise, and prudent safety p...

  What Do You Seek? ( June 17, 2024) "Delight yourself also in the  Lord , and He shall give you the desires of your heart.”  (Psalm 37:4) Filled with deep desires, individual goals, cherished dreams, and personal longings, each of God’s human creations is searching for fulfillment as we live our lives every day. Unfortunately, many people, under satanic worldly deception, seek selfish gratification through the prideful pursuit of riches, pleasure, and worldly acclaim, thereby largely shutting God, the source of all of life’s blessings, out of their lives. Such earthly endeavors ultimately leave us desperately empty and hopelessly striving for more. Scripture teaches that we should seek God above our fleshly lusts in order to find genuine purpose and meaning in life. “But   seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33) Faithful followers of Jesus Christ know from experience that lasting co...

  Feed My Sheep ( June 14, 2024) “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” (John 10:11) Just as Jesus came not into this world to be served, but to serve mankind, we have been commissioned to humbly serve our Savior by spreading the gospel. The Good Shepherd has commanded all who have chosen to follow Him to “Feed My sheep.” (John 21:17) If we love Jesus and put Him above our earthly endeavors, the earnest desire of our heart should be to obey His call to feed each other spiritually! “ If you love Me, keep My commandments. ” (John 14:15) After serving His hungry disciples a hearty breakfast of bread and fish roasted on an open seaside fire, the risen L ORD Jesus restored Peter to fellowship after he had thrice denied Christ prior to His crucifixion. Welcoming the impulsive fisherman back into His tender mercies, Jesus asked Peter three times, “Do you love me?” Each time Peter responded, “ Yes, Lord; You know that I love You. ” after wh...

  Walking in Rhythm and Harmony with Jesus ( June 13, 2024) “ Can two walk together, unless they are agreed? ” (Amos 3:3) Each day, especially in the cool of a summer morning, many people enjoy a leisurely stroll to relieve the stress of life and reap the health benefits of physical activity. Enhancing the experience and encouraging us to make this form of exercise a regular part of our daily routine, it is helpful to have a walking partner to keep us company along the way and to hold us accountable. As the walkers move forward according to their desired pace, their steps become synchronized and, with conforming strides, they remain together, moving harmoniously along their selected course. This beautiful picture should serve as a guide to our spiritual walk as well. “ As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,   rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith… ” (Colossians 2:6-7). As Christians seeking to exercise our faith, we hav...

  God Hates Pride ( June 12, 2024) “A man’s pride will bring him low, but the humble in spirit will retain honor.” (Proverbs 29:23) All sin is rooted in pride, our human tendency to think far too highly of ourselves and to ignore our inherent dependency upon the sovereign God who created us and sustains our lives. The L ORD crafted us to honor and glorify Him, not ourselves. An abomination in His sight, our selfish pride robs God of the praise and worship of which only He is worthy. The Bible clearly teaches that prideful attitudes, behaviors, and lifestyles lead to certain downfall and ultimate destruction. It has been said that pride is the human desire to take the place of God. Satan is the supreme example. The prophet Isaiah wrote: “ How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! For you have said in your heart: I will ascend into heaven...I will be like the Most High.” (Isaiah 14:12-14) Satan deceptively convinced a prideful Eve that she’d: “… be li...

  Jesus: Friend or Enemy? ( June 11, 2024) “And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son  as  Savior of the world.”  (1 John 4:14) Life can be viewed as a sequence of weighty decisions that will ultimately determine our earthly legacy and our eternal destiny. The absolute truth of God’s Word makes perfectly clear that Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven, the exclusive source of salvation and everlasting life. We all face the most crucial and important choice that we will ever have to make—whether to receive Jesus, God’s beloved   Son, through faith as our personal Savior or to reject His offer of salvation and bear the everlasting consequence, “the lake of fire…the second death.”   (Revelation 20:14) The Father sent Jesus to die on the Cross to redeem us of our sins and to make available to all that so choose the opportunity for divine forgiveness and intimate fellowship with Him forever.   The L ORD will never imp...

  Paul’s Prayer for Our Spiritual Strength ( June 10, 2024) “For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named…” (Ephesians 3:14-15). Thus begins one of the most encouraging prayers in the Bible, the Apostle Paul’s eloquent petition asking God to spiritually strengthen the early Christians in the church at Ephesus (recorded in Ephesians 3). Paul’s prayer serves as a reminder to all generations of followers of Jesus of the inner spiritual resources that empower us to serve God, experience the abundance of His love, and receive the bounty of the blessings promised those who walk by faith in Christ. In our human weakness, many Christians fail to realize that we have within us the divine strength that transforms hearts, changes lives, and frees us from our bondage to sin. Christ Himself lives in us through the power of the Holy Spirit who inhabits the temples of our hearts. Paul asks God on behalf of all...

  Be Imitators of Christ (June  7, 2024) “ Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus… ” (Philippians 2:5). As parents, teachers, and daycare providers can readily attest, children are natural imitators! What they see and hear, kids are likely to try to duplicate in their speech and behavior. Children are watching us, and we all need to be careful to set good examples for them to follow. An anonymous author wrote: "Children are great imitators. So give them something great to imitate." As Christians, we too should be great imitators, seeking daily to copy the lifestyle of the greatest role model who ever lived, Jesus Christ, thus setting a godly example for the world! By reading and meditating on God’s Word and asking Jesus to reveal Himself to us personally, we clearly see who Jesus is—the Son of God and the Savior of mankind—and who we are by faith in Him—children and heirs of God destined to live forever with our L ORD in heaven and to share His glory and et...

Faith in Action ( June 6, 2024) “ Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” (James 2:17) By God’s grace, faith in Jesus Christ is the steadfast foundation upon which the Christian life is built. Everyone who realizes their need for a Savior and trusts in Christ for the redemption of their sins receives the greatest gift imaginable, life everlasting! Good deeds are important, but only the grace of God activated by our faith in Christ saves us and secures for us an eternal home in heaven. Our good deeds are an expression of our faith, allowing others to see Jesus in us. Most of the miracles that Christ performed during His ministry on earth were the direct result of faith clearly seen in the words and actions of the multitude of unfortunate people who sought His healing touch or divine intervention. Before healing the bedridden paralytic who was brought to him by a group of trusting citizens, Matthew 9:2 tells us that “Jesus saw their faith.” Our faith shou...

  Go Your Way Rejoicing ( June 5, 2024)   “ In Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. ”  (Psalm 16:11) As Christians, the joy of our hearts should be seen in the countenance on our faces as we seek to shine the light of Jesus Christ into the darkness of a fallen world. We’ve been commanded to rejoice and be grateful for the opportunity each day presents to share God’s love and the good news of His saving grace. Bolstered by a peace of mind that surpasses human understand and an inner delight that transcends our circumstances, we are empowered to live in a joyful manner that reflects the presence of Christ in our lives and draws unbelievers to Him for salvation. I recall the Bible story about the Ethiopian eunuch who rejoiced after a life-changing encounter with the evangelist Phillip as this foreign official returned home from a visit to Jerusalem to worship. Preaching in Samaria, Phillip was sent by God into ...

The Perfect Gifts ( June 4, 2024) Christians should rejoice and be thankful daily that God is the divine source of each of the boundless blessings that we receive! In fact, our Father in heaven has richly blessed each of us as saints, sinners saved by grace, with the most perfect gifts we will ever receive—His Son and His Spirit! God the Father has freely given us His best because of His abounding love and His abiding grace! “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16) Through faith in His Son Jesus Christ, God has extended to all believers the unmerited favor of His grace and the undeserved reward of everlasting life. The most glorious gift ever bestowed, Jesus gave His life to bear the burden of our sins, pay the price and relieve us of the punishment for our transgressions, and clothe us in His righteousness, redeeming us, reconciling us to His Father, and resolving forev...

  Good Overcomes Evil ( June 3, 2024)  “ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:21)   Sadly, we live in a fallen society teeming with evil, turmoil, and strife! The planet has become a frightening place where, even relatively serene locales, are no longer immune to the dangers inherent in a wicked world under Satan’s influence. That is certainly not to say, however, that good is non-existent in an increasingly ungodly culture. A closer look reveals that an abundance of unselfish deeds are being done, reflecting that God’s love is manifest through repentant human hearts! Perhaps they don’t get the publicity of the high-profile terrorist attacks, mass slayings, shocking disasters, and appalling tragedies that dominate today’s headlines, but many commendable things are happening in the midst of the evil that abounds. Countless Good Samaritans are engaged in acts of kindness and compassion that contribute to the betterment of a wayward ...