Tag: Devotional

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Know The Difference

[20] For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. [21] For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. [22] What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.” ~ 2 Peter 2:20-22

So many people are under the impression that Yahweh and Allah are the same person. That both are the God of the Bible. I recently saw a video of a Muslim Imam teaching that those who commit the most horrid of sins ( sexual abuse, porn, adultery, drunkenness, etc.), but pray to Allah are better in Allah’s eyes than those who do none of those things, but do not pray to Allah. This statement really disturbed me. So, what you’re saying is that Allah doesn’t care about our actions. He doesn’t care about how we represent him. All he cares about is whether or not we are praying to him. Whether or not he’s getting recognition and praise, regardless of who is doing it. This is a big key difference between Yahweh and Allah.

See, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob demanded His followers to change for the better. To become more like Him. To go as far as to crucify the flesh and all of its desires. To be about our Father in Heaven’s business, and not our own. Throughout Scripture, the LORD condemned the people for simply praying, sacrificing, and bringing offerings, but their actions were wicked. He went as far as to say the prayers of the wicked are an abomination to him. Their offerings and sacrifices are evil in the sight of the LORD. Why? Because the LORD is a good and sovereign God, and sin is displeasing to Him. He does not make excuses for, defend, overlook, or allow sin to dwell with Him.

Wickedness is a stench in the nostrils of the LORD. Therefore, He made a way for us to be saved. To be redeemed. To be taken out of the wickedness and cleansed from all unrighteousness so that we might dwell with Him. Praise, prayers, sacrifices, offerings are all meaningless to God unless we live for Him. And if we dare to enter His presence, then we must make sure we are living a life pleasing to Him.

Today is the National Day of Prayer. It’s the day we are encouraged to pray a personal prayer of repentance and to pray for the return of righteousness in the culture. We don’t serve a god like other gods. He is a Holy and Sovereign God demanding more than lip service from us. Today, let our prayers not be in vain. Let our actions be pleasing to Him, so that our prayers might be heard by Him.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Know The Difference.

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Don’t Hit Snooze

Jeremiah 8:20 ESV

20 “The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.”

Look around at the condition of the Church— or the so-called Church: We have mega-church pastors championing a godless agenda, pushing racism, and defending the right to slaughter helpless unborn babies in their mothers’ wombs. We have “bishops” boldly stating that they “are of the opinion that we need a third Testament, because the Bible has become problematic.” The Church is in a mess and it’s as if we don’t even realize it.

We don’t recognize the times that we are in and when we do, we do nothing to prepare ourselves or others. The Church, we as a whole, has been lulled to sleep. It’s as if the alarm has gone off and we keep hitting snooze. The alarm may quiet for us in those few moments before sounding again (until it eventually stops all together) but the times continue. No matter how many times we hit snooze, time keeps propelling us forward at a high rate of speed.

The LORD said that the fields were white on to harvest. In other words, the fields are so ready to be harvested that it is at the point where the crop could go bad and be lost. Jeremiah and his people missed the harvest. They went into captivity because of their sin. Their transgression. Their slumber. The Church is no different.

A time is coming when there will be tribulation on the earth like never before. Man’s wrath on the Church let loose without restraint. All because we fall asleep in times of safety and prosperity. It’s in these times that we have to awaken and prepare. We have to get ourselves ready. We have to make sure our family is ready. We have to wake up and pay attention to the times. Because the end is right around the corner.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Don’t Hit Snooze.

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Treating Others

12 So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets. ~ Matthew 7:12

As a seller, I work hard to make sure that I go above and beyond for my customers. I become flexible to the best of my ability, in order to make the transaction as easy and pleasant as possible for them. I am very proud to say that by doing this, I have a 5-star rating across all platforms that I sell on. But no matter how hard you try, no matter how much you bend over backward for some people, it’s never enough.

I recently had a guy who wanted a PS2 system and some games, but couldn’t make it for over a week. Now, most sellers don’t hold items for people, especially not expensive items like this one, and for so long. But I did it anyway. I held the item for him, without asking for a down payment to hold the item (it cost well over $100). I met him on the date and time that worked best for us both. He came. Checked it out. Made sure everything was good. Paid. Took his item. And left. When I checked my rating, he had given me 4 stars. Why? I’ll never know. He said I was very nice, great to work with, great communication, but yet only gave me 4 stars.

It’s in these moments that I have to remind myself that you can bend over backward and go out of your way for someone, and it still won’t be enough. They won’t appreciate it. And that’s okay. How you treat others shouldn’t just be about what you can get in return. Yes, I would’ve appreciated a 5-star rating, and yes, honestly, it did bother me, but at the end of the day, it’s okay. We, the Church, are to be Christ to the world, whether or not we get the appreciation we deserve. Even in something as simple as selling a gaming system and some games, I was able to look back at that situation and interaction with pride, knowing that I treated my customer as I would like to be treated. That I treated him as the Church should treat others.

So often we get caught up with how we react in the huge things, that we forget that the little things matter just as much, and sometimes, even more. You never know how your actions and reactions can impact someone else. How they can either turn people to Christ or away from Him. We are His representation on this earth. And if we want to represent him well, then we need to live by His Golden Rule.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Treat Others As You’d Like To Be Treated.

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Fill

1 Corinthians 13:1-3 (NKJV)

1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.

Nothing is of value without love. In other words, nothing has any profit if there is no love. No amount of tongues. No matter how many spiritual gifts. No prophecy. Not even a good and correct understanding of all Scripture. Not even faith… and without faith, it is impossible to please God, so just imagine now how important love is.

So, in other words, the house has to be filled. You have to be filled. With what? The love of God. Not worldly love that had no definition, but Godly love. Love from God that brings you closer to Him. Closer to His heart.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Fill.

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Who Will Go For Me?

16 Who will rise up for Me against the wicked? Who will take a stand for Me against evildoers? (Psalm 94:16).

This is a very pertinent question: God is asking, “Who will?” God has given us dominion over the earth. We have been commissioned to rule and to reign, to subdue, and to correct and to bring into submission to our God all inhabitants of the earth. Teaching what is right and correcting what is wrong by the Word of our God. We are the hands and the feet of Jesus, often referred to as His body. Now He is asking, “Who will rise up for Me against the Wicked?”

But instead of rising up, the Church has submitted its authority. We’ve compromised with the enemy and have gone to sleep on our watch. We no longer sound the alarm when the enemy is approaching. We no longer tell of the goodness of God. But why is that? Are we too busy trying to be like the world that we no longer are trying to save the world?

Church leaders are guilty of the same sins the world is guilty of, and some have taken it even further. God instructed His people, His Church, to come out from among them and touch no unclean thing. But the Church has stained her garments with the juices from the fruit of evil. Once in the book of Isaiah, God looked around for one man to stand in the gap to intercede for the nation so that He might not destroy it, but He found no one either willing or able. So, in Isaiah 6, He asks again, “Whom shall I send and who will go for us?”

God is always looking for someone to rise up, someone to stand up, and someone to go and tell. Is that someone you? Will you rise up? Will you stand up when no one else will? When all are satisfied slumbering, will you get up and seek the face of God on behalf of someone, maybe a close relation, or a good friend? Maybe for your country and your government leaders. Do you complain about what’s happening in the world and especially in your country, or are you seeking the LORD, are you standing in the gap for your country and calling upon His Name that He might not destroy or bring His wrath? Will you say, here am I, use me?

Father, here am I, if You can use anything, use me. I will go where You send me, and I will say what You tell me; only be close to me and help me hear and understand Your voice and instructions, in Jesus’ Name, amen.

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Hear The Trumpet Blast

Joel 2:12-14 ESV

12 “Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “return to Me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; 13 and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the LORD your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and He relents over disaster. 14 Who knows whether He will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind Him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the LORD your God?

The LORD is merciful; He is not willing for anyone to perish. He said that He takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked (Ezekiel 33:11). But men love darkness more than they tolerate the light. As it was then, so it is now, men refuse to heed God’s warning.

They decline His invitation to repent and to seek Him. They reject the offer to draw near to Him so that He can and will draw near to them. They want another way. A way free from personal responsibility.

They despise the way of the cross. They loathe holiness and hate righteousness. It’s their way or no way, so they turn and go their own way, rejoicing in their own will and delighting in their own strength.

Therefore, there’s coming a trumpet call. A day of reckoning. A day of great darkness and gloom. A day of intense dread and terror when the Spirit of the LORD shall be taken up, and the dead in Christ shall rise, and we who are alive and remain shall be caught up to meet our LORD Jesus in the clouds, and there we will be with Him forevermore (1 Thessalonians 4:16).

For those of us who are being saved… it will be a day of great joy, and much rejoicing. But for those who refuse to heed the alarm—those who reject the trumpet call to repentance, and who remain in their sins… it is a day of dread, fear, and trembling — a day of thick darkness and great gloom.

For on that day, the LORD, the LORD Jesus Himself, will come and take His Bride away, and those who have refused His salvation will be left behind.

The door will be closed. And it will be locked. And no one else will be let in. The opportunity has passed. The chance of repentance is gone—it’s over. Your choice has been made. The lines have been drawn in the sand. And now, it’s over.

So, the LORD who said, “Come all ye who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest,” will also say, “Depart from Me, I never knew you.”

And those who hear those harsh words of hopeless despair will go away into eternal punishment in the lake of fire that burns forever, and ever.

The opportunity is now. The time of repentance is now. Today is the day of salvation. The trumpet call has gone out, the alarm has been sounded. Are you ready? Are your family members ready? Co-workers? Friends? Neighbors? Today is the day of repentance, tomorrow is promised to no man.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Hear The Trumpet Blast.

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The Lack of Vision

18 Where there is no vision, the people perish: But he that keepeth the law, happy is he KJV (Proverbs 29:18).

This is one of the most misused or misinterpreted verses in the Bible. It is widely used as a call for leadership to cast vision or as a confirmation to set goals and objectives. But this word, translated “vision,” is not from an earthly source but rather a God-given vision or revelation.

It’s actually a subtle call for pastors and church elders to humble themselves and seek the LORD for a fresh word from His lips and new anointing from His hands. It’s a call to study the Scriptures and show yourself approved. It’s a call for holy men and women everywhere to lift their hands in worship and seek, and knock, and ask, and then when you receive, to obey.

God is not interested in just giving a vision or a revelation for the sake of giving. He is interested in what you do with it. How you handle His commands. God is not in the habit of speaking just to hear Himself talk. It is for our own good and our own spiritual growth. Many times God will speak no more until the last instructions that He gave are followed. And truly, what is the use of someone giving fresh, new instructions or revelations when the receiver treats them as common and not worth the follow-through?

And the word translated “perish” actually means people become morally unrestrained, lawless, or run wild without God’s guidance. So, the writer is saying that when God’s word is neglected or rare, as in the days of Eli, the people will throw off God’s restraint and run wild, as they did in Aaron’s day when they made the golden calf. In the days of Eli, Eli’s two sons were without restraint, sleeping with the women who served at the Tent of Meeting, taking the sacrificial meat, and sometimes by force. They did things that greatly displeased the LORD, and He put them to death for it.

Then, the verse finishes with, but happy, or blessed is he or she who keeps God’s laws. Our command from Jesus is to love one another, love our neighbor, and love even our enemy. We are instructed to bear fruit and to win souls. Are you doing that today? Are you sharing the Good News with friends and family? Are you taking someone with you when our LORD Jesus returns to get us? If not, you need to.

Father, give us revelation lest we run wild. Restrain our mortal flesh that is prone to leave the God that we love, and who first loved us. Help us to see, hear, and obey the revelation that you give or send, or that we receive. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

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Start With Your Mind

[28]  I tell you, among those born of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” [29] (When all the people heard this, and the tax collectors too, they declared God just, having been baptized with the baptism of John, [30] but the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the purpose of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.) [31]  “To what then shall I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? [32] They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, “‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.’ [33]  For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ [34] The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ [35] Yet wisdom is justified by all her children.” ~ Luke 7:28-35

Jesus was called a drunkard and a glutton by the Pharisees. The Pharisees were the teachers of the law. The ones who studied the Scriptures earnestly. The strictest party of the religion. These and the lawyers, those who argued, defended, and held others accountable to the Law. These not just called, but accused the LORD Jesus of being a drunkard and a glutton. Now, whether or not they realized when they said it doesn’t matter, it was said. When they accused Him of these things, they were condemning Him to death. Look at what the law says about drunkards and gluttons.

[18] If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and, though they discipline him, will not listen to them, [19] then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his city at the gate of the place where he lives, [20] and they shall say to the elders of his city, ‘This our son is stubborn and rebellious; he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton and a drunkard.’ [21] Then all the men of the city shall stone him to death with stones. So you shall purge the evil from your midst, and all Israel shall hear, and fear.

Deuteronomy 21:18-20

The Father already audibly declared Jesus His only begotten Son. By accusing Jesus of being a drunkard and a glutton, they were accusing Him of not obeying the voice of His Father. They, the elders, were making a judgment on behalf of that entire generation that Jesus was a rebellious son who does not listen to His Father. Jesus declared that He does nothing of His own accord, but only what He sees His Father doing (John 5:19-29).

We will be judged by our words (Matthew 12:36-37). Not just our actions, but the words let we allow to come out of our mouths. Solomon warned that life and death are in the power of the tongue (Proverbs 18:21). Jesus said it’s not what goes into a person’s mouth that defiles them, but what they allow to come out of their mouth (Mark 7:14-23). The Pharisees and lawyers knew Solomon’s verses, and now Jesus was calling them out for the words they had been speaking. Words they would be judged for if they did not repent.

Our words aren’t just empty phrases we put together, speak, and then they just vanish into thin air. No. They linger. They stay. They have power. Therefore, we cannot just speak them carelessly. So, what are we to do? Stop them before they come out of our mouths by monitoring and controlling our thoughts. Paul tells us to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5-6).

Peace. Love. Go forth and Start With Your Mind.

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My Blind Servant

Who is blind but My servant, Or so deaf as My messenger whom I send? Who is so blind as he that is at peace with Me, Or so blind as the servant of the LORD? (Isaiah 42:19 NASB1995)

If you think about this statement by the LORD, it is pretty frightening. He is not talking about the blindness or the deafness of the heathens, or those who hate Him. No, God is talking about His own people, His own servants. The one who is supposed to be working for Him. The one who should have a close relationship with Him. But instead of closeness, we find distance. Instead of intimacy, we find lukewarmness.

Just because we claim a relationship with the Almighty God does not mean we have one. God’s people, the ones who should know Him intimately and serve Him wholeheartedly, are the very ones who are trampling the blood of Jesus underfoot and making the Name of the Holy One something common. That’s why God asks the question in Isaiah 1:5, “Why will you be struck anymore?”

In other words, why continue to rebel after, with His own blood, He has washed you, cleansed you, and made you His own. Why rebel? Why disobey and receive just punishment, punishment that He takes no pleasure in?

It is not God’s will that anyone perish, but all come to repentance. But many people refuse to come, while others refuse to draw close to God because they love the pleasures of the world too much.

Let us forsake evil and turn from rebellion and lukewarmness and cling to God and pursue holiness.

Father, forgive me for not seeking You. Forgive me for not drawing close to You. Help me to know who You are, and how to draw close. Help me to turn from the things that glitter and sparkle. The things that draw me away from my God. Please open my eyes so that I am no longer blind or deaf. Thank You, Father. In Jesus’ Name, I pray, amen.

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Clear It Out

19 For seven days no leaven is to be found in your houses.

The Israelites were not to eat any leaven for seven days. They were not to look at it. No one was allowed to have it in their houses. It was to be removed from them entirely.

See, leaven is the same thing as yeast. No yeast was to be found in their houses; they had to get it out.

Yeast is that substance we put in the dough that causes it to ferment and rise, making the bread light, airy, and puffed up. Paul uses puffed up as a metaphor for pride, something that the LORD hates.

See, leaven represents the sin, the junk, the rubbish in our lives. Malice. Pride. Backbiting. Sexual impurity. Hypocrisy. False teachings. We are commanded to correct it and get rid of it, not overlook or tolerate it. This is a command from the LORD.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Clear It Out. 

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