Tag: Devotionals

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Work To Rest

[1] Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. [2] For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. [3] For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said, “As I swore in my wrath, ‘They shall not enter my rest,’” although his works were finished from the foundation of the world. [4] For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.” [5] And again in this passage he said, “They shall not enter my rest.” [6] Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, [7] again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.” [8] For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. [9] So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, [10] for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. [11] Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. ~ Hebrews 4:1-11

The author of the book of Hebrews says that Joshua, though he led the people into the promised land, he never actually gave them their day of rest. See, when before they even fully entered the promised land they had to go to war with those in the promised land. Why? The people occupying the promised land at that time had corrupted the land. They were sacrificing their own innocent children to their demon gods. They were polluting the land with innocent blood and the LORD God said He had had enough of the senseless bloodshed. So, when Israel went into the land, they had to remove the wicked who were occupying that land and polluting it with their wickedness.

So, never did Joshua usher the people into a day of rest. They never had the pleasure of enjoying that promised day of rest, so what then? Is the promise forgotten? Is it too late? By no means. This day of rest will come for all who believe and follow Jesus the Messiah. That is what we are working to. The second coming of the Messiah when He will gather us to Himself and then at the very end of the age establish His throne on this earth and rule for 1000 years. That will be our day of rest. A time of peace when our God literally comes down to us and rules the earth from His throne.

So, how can we be sure that we will one day enjoy His promised rest? By working for Him today. We are to pick up our cross and follow Jesus. We are to build the Church by encouraging each other, helping each other grow, and winning souls for Christ. That is our work. We aren’t to keep Christ secret and tucked away in our hearts. He, the Light of Men, is to show through us every single day and lead others out of darkness and to Him.

So, this Labor Day, as you rest from your physical work on this earth, I want you to think about your spiritual work and that promised day of rest. I want you to truly think about and judge whether or not you are truly working for Christ. Are you building His Church? Are you winning souls? Are you discipling? Are you working?

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Work To Rest.

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Acknowledge The LORD Your God

13 And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, “To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” 14 And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped. ~ Revelation 5:13-14

This is a beautiful scenery of all creation, every creature in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and in all the sea acknowledging Jesus as the LORD of Lords, and the Father as God Almighty who is glorified forever and ever. We know that there is a day coming when every tongue will be required to acknowledge that Jesus is LORD, that God is real, and He is Almighty, but the greater blessing is for us who now acknowledge this fact out of love and adoration for our God.

For now, God is being patient with His creation, waiting and beckoning, not willing that any should perish, but that we all would acknowledge the LORD our God as Savior. His Name is the only name given by which we must be saved, for it was only He, the LORD Jesus, who left the splendor of heaven to bear it to dark Calvary to suffer and die on a Roman cross.

He was dead and buried for three days and three nights, no one stood with Him during His betrayal or His suffering, but He was forsaken by all. Even in death, He was numbered with the transgressors, though He Himself had done no wrong, nor was there any deceit found in His mouth or upon His lips. Because of His steadfast obedience, He was raised to life in power and is now seated at the right hand of the Father. He is coming back in all of His glory to administer justice to all evil doers, and to hand out rewards to the righteous.

Have you acknowledged Jesus as LORD? Don’t wait for His return to be forced to acknowledge Him, but submit yourselves now to the One who can and will save you. It was His shed blood that has set us free from the power of sin and the grave and given us the privilege of inheriting eternal life.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your love in sending Your only begotten Son to die so that we might live. Grant me the grace to live for You as I pursue Your kingdom and Your righteousness. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Stop Mourning Tammuz

[3] He put out the form of a hand and took me by a lock of my head, and the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven and brought me in visions of God to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the gateway of the inner court that faces north, where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provokes to jealousy. [4] And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, like the vision that I saw in the valley.

[14] Then He brought me to the entrance of the north gate of the house of the Lord, and behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz. [15] Then He said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? You will see still greater abominations than these.” ~ Ezekiel 8:3-4, 14-15

In the Book of Ezekiel, God takes Ezekiel to show him 4 abominations the house of Israel was committing in the Temple. With each abomination God showed Ezekiel, the abomination got worse. It started with an idol in the temple, moved to elders worshipping with incense carvings on a wall of beasts and creeping things in secret, then public worship of Tammuz, and finally open worship of the sun. Now, the worship of Tammuz is very interesting to me.

See, it’s 2nd on the list of worst abominations the Israelites were committing. Tammuz was the Babylonian shepherd god of fertility and the cycle of life. He was married to Ishtar, the Queen of Heaven. Now Ishtar goes to the Underworld and is killed. When she returns, she finds her husband, Tammuz, is not mourning her death but instead enjoying life, so she calls demons to drag him away to the Underworld to take her place. Every year for 6 months he remained in the Underworld and then was allowed on earth for 6 months. During those months he was in the Underworld, the people mourned his death, including the Israelites.

It got so bad that they even named their month corresponding with our June/July after him because it was the beginning of mourning for him. Now, this worship was considered the second most wicked abomination they were committing in the time of Ezekiel. But why?

I believe it’s because they had not just welcomed another god into the temple and their nation, but because they replaced the Messiah Himself with a false one. In Judaism, they believe there will be two Messiahs: the suffering servant (Messiah ben Joseph) and the redeemer or establisher of Israel (Messiah ben David). Now, the prophecy of the suffering servant dates back to the time of Isaiah, about 100 years before the people of Israel began worshipping Tammuz.

So, they were so spiritually blinded and believing the lie that the LORD had abandoned them (Ezekiel 8:12) that they corrupted their own prophecies from God for false hope in a false shepherd who was only the sacrifice as a punishment. Imagine God tells you, “I’m going to do this for you,” and you don’t see it in your lifetime and neither did your parents or grandparents, so you start trying to fulfill it yourself with pagan gods and rituals. This isn’t just idolatry or paganism—this is replacing God and His promises with false gods.

We do the very same thing today. When God takes too long, in our own eyes, to fulfill something, we try to force it to happen. Or if God isn’t working the way we feel He should work, we introduce outside sources. Or if God doesn’t move the way we expect Him to, we add in other acts of worship of other gods and repurpose them. God has promises for us. Promises of generality for all people. More specific promises for the church as a whole. Then specific unique-to-you promises—but the catch is, if you’re not willing, He will find someone who is.

The name of the LORD is jealous. It is our strong tower, our safe haven. When we try to go outside of the name of the LORD and dip into other religions, we are no different than the women of Ezekiel’s day who were mourning as an act of worship for a pagan god that neither hears them nor cares for them.

When things don’t go as planned, who do you turn to? Is God your constant? Is He your safe haven? Is He your source of life, or do you slowly replace and mix Him with paganism that you’ve deemed not really evil, but beneficial?

I challenge you today to truly and honestly examine yourself. Bring your heart before the LORD and ask Him if there is anything within you that needs to be removed. If there’s any false gods or idols you have accumulated over the years. If there’s any pagan rituals that you didn’t realize were separating you from the LORD God. Today is the day of salvation—tomorrow is promised to no man. Don’t put off getting right with God. Take the time today to do so.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Stop Mourning Tammuz.

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Leave The Past For The Future

[8] Cush fathered Nimrod; he was the first on earth to be a mighty man. [9] He was a mighty hunter before the Lord. Therefore it is said, “Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the Lord.” [10] The beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. [11] From that land he went into Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-Ir, Calah, and [12] Resen between Nineveh and Calah; that is the great city. ~ Genesis 10:8-12

Nimrod is often labeled or painted as an evil tyrannical dictator who forced the people of his time to build the Tower of Babel in rebellion against God. The Bible, however, gives us an entirely different man. In Genesis 11, it states that all the people came together and decided to build the Tower of Babel. Nowhere in Scripture does he say or even hint that Nimrod forced anyone to build the Tower of Babel. His one crime? The city was the beginning of his kingdom, which was never finished.

So, if it’s the beginning of his kingdom, that’s now his jurisdiction that he will be held responsible for. What I find interesting is that after their languages are confused and they disperse, Nimrod goes and builds cities in the land of Shinar and Asshur (Assyria). See, these lands are more filled with men and women who don’t speak the same language as Nimrod. God had just confused their languages and they now cannot communicate with each other.

Nimrod, however, is still used by God to be the great bridge, if you will, between the language barrier. See, Nimrod was a mighty hunter before the LORD. To be before the LORD is to be in His favor. To be His, just as Isaac was before the LORD. Now, Nimrod’s kingdom, was like a bridge across the land of Shinar and Asshur (Assyria).

See, even when the LORD punishes us, He doesn’t remain angry. He always creates a way to fix everything. See, God didn’t necessarily want us divided, but He wanted us to go throughout the earth He created for us in order to populate it and keep it. The earth was created for man and man for the earth. When we gathered in one spot attempting to break into heaven, that’s where the LORD drew the line, but He gave us a way to still communicate. We know this because Nimrod built up these important major cities of the ancient world in land that weren’t his.

Just because you mess up doesn’t mean God’s finished with you. If you have a willing heart, God will use you. We all have a past. But we all have a future as well. God knows the plans He has for you. Plans to give you a hope and a future.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Leave The Past For The Future.

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Prosperity And Good Success In The LORD

8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success (Joshua 1:8).

God was speaking to Joshua and commanded him not to let the Book of the Law depart from his mouth. He was to speak it constantly. Today’s society says that we cannot speak the Word of God outside our homes or our churches. It is not “politically correct” to talk about Jesus or discuss His salvation in the workplace. However, God has a different opinion. He believes that we should meditate upon His Word day and night, and we are to be careful to do everything written in it.

And is it for nothing? No, God says that for then we will make our way prosperous, and we will have good success.

Do you want prosperity? Do you want good success? Seek the LORD and read and study His word, and meditate on what you’ve read and what you’ve learned. Then your way will be prosperous, and your work will be successful, and at the end of time, you will inherit eternal life.

Jesus did not come to this earth to die such a cruel death for nothing. He came so that we might have life and life more abundantly. Make no mistake, Jesus is coming back. He is coming back to get those who wait, those who believe, and those who have been redeemed by His shed blood.

Are you ready for His return? Have you been reading and meditating? Do you believe? Then Jesus is coming back for you.

Heavenly Father, please give me the desire for Your Word. Give me the zeal to keep Your commandments. Please help me in my day-to-day life so that I might not falter or fail. Thank You for all that You do for me, in Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Who Is The LORD?

1 Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let My people go, that they may hold a feast to Me in the wilderness.’ ” 2 But Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go” (Exodus 5:1–2).

The LORD had sent Moses and Aaron to Pharaoh to say to him, “Let My people go.” But Pharaoh asked a very pertinent question: “Who is the LORD?”

It’s a question that is still being asked today. “Who is the LORD that we should obey Him?”

Unlike other famous personalities, such as Socrates, Homer, Plato, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, and others, whom we only know about because of a few manuscripts that attest to their existence, with a combined total of less than 3,000. Whereas with Jesus, we have more than 24,000 manuscripts that testify to the truth of the Gospel and proclaim Him as God.

So, who is the LORD? He is Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of the living God. He was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, performed many signs and wonders, miracles, and incredible acts of healing. He raised the dead, healed the sick, cleansed the leper, the blind saw, and the lame walked because of the word of His power.

He suffered and died on a Roman cross, was dead and buried for three days, but on the third day, He was raised to life again. He was seen by more than 500 eyewitnesses who were still alive at the time the Gospels were written. He ascended into heaven in a cloud, and He is coming back the same way that He was taken up.

Jesus existed before time started, and He will still exist after time is no more. Jesus is the eternal God, the creator of the heavens and the earth. Paul said that there are many gods and many lords, “yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist” (1 Cor 8:6).

Jesus is coming back one day to judge the living and the dead, and those who have rejected Him will be cast into the burning Lake of Fire, whose flames are never quenched, and the torment never ends. But for those who love Him and wait for His return, there will be peace and joy unspeakable and full of glory.

There will be no more hunger or thirst or pain or fear, or need, or want, for every need will be supplied and every wish fulfilled. Jesus is coming back. So, who is the LORD? He is the great God, the Savior and judge of the whole earth.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Son Jesus Christ. Thank You that You sent Him to die for me. Thank You, LORD Jesus, that You were obedient unto death, even death on a cross, so that I might live in eternity with You. In Jesus’ Name I pray, amen.

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Return To Discipleship

15 For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel. ~ 1 Corinthians 4:15

When we read each letter from Paul to one of the Churches, we tend to take them for granted for what they truly were. See, Paul wasn’t just writing these letters just because they were important teachings, but because Paul was spiritually responsible for these churches. Each of these churches he helped plant and grow. He was spiritually invested in them. So, each letter was specifically detailed and tailored to each church.

So often, we think that one size fits all, and we miss the opportunity to truly help souls in the way that they need. We’ve forgotten the importance of discipleship. Without discipleship, there can be no growth. See, a new Christian is a baby in the faith. They’re going to make mistakes, fall prey to false teachings, and need direction and guidance in their walk of faith. We should take a page out of Paul’s book and disciple once again.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Return To Discipleship.

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The Clear Intent

Genesis 1:26-28,

[26] Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” [27] So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. [28] And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

The idea of creation dates back to the very beginning of recorded history. There isn’t a single ancient culture that did not believe in a creation story. What’s interesting to me though, is that all of those creation stories lack something our creation story doesn’t, love. See, the ancient Babylonians believed they were created after a war, from the blood of the slain god to be slaves. The Canaanites believed that humanity was created almost accidentally without clear intent as a byproduct of gods at war. Even the ancient Greeks saw no clear purpose for mankind. This is where the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is different.

See, our God, spoke everything into being in a specific order, on specific days, to foreshadow different things for us. Then He gets to man and He doesn’t speak, He molds him from the dust of the earth with His own hands and breathes His own breath into the man’s nostrils. God molded that very first man in His own image and His own likeness.

This is vastly different from every other ancient belief. They all have wars, chaos, destruction, and even slaves, but our God creates out of order and love. He sets man and woman as rulers of the earth, not His slaves. Not mistakes, accidents, or just the byproduct of the main event. Our God, instead, created us with intent, purpose, and love. He created the entire earth for us. The Earth is ours to keep, take care of, and enjoy.

Dear LORD, thank You for showing us Your love from the very beginning. Thank You for giving us another chance to redeem ourselves and fulfill Your purpose for our lives through Christ Jesus, our LORD and Savior. Please help me to never give into the lie that I have no purpose, that I am a mistake, or that I am not created by design, for I know that I am fearfully and wonderfully made by my loving creator, God, and Savior. Thank You, LORD. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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The Heart For God

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. ~ Psalms 51:10

David, wrote, “Create in me a clean heart …” after he slept with and impregnated another man’s wife and then had him carry his own death note. A man honorable and loyal he not only betrayed but had murdered in order to cover his own original sin of sleeping with and impregnating this man’s wife. After he’s committed this great sin, the LORD sends Nathan to correct the situation with King David. So, what does David do? He repents.

He humbles himself. His heart is grieved when he truly understands the severity of what he has just done. This is why David is called a man after God’s own heart. Not because he’s perfect, but because when shown the error of his ways, his heart breaks. He yearns for the righteousness of God. He seeks the LORD with all that is within him. He pants for the LORD as a deer pants for the streams.

Out of his heartbreak and distress and shame and guilt David cries out:

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

It’s these moments that the LORD desires from us. Not vain attempts at looking outwardly perfect but falling to our knees in desperation as we cry out to Him because we finally grasp how imperfect we truly are. How evil and wicked our natural heart is. So, we cry out to Him longing for a heart not of stone not of deceit, but a pure heart. A clean heart.

Dear LORD, thank You for abounding in steadfast love, mercy, and grace. Thank You for giving me chance after chance. Thank You for never giving up on me though I deserve it. Thank You, God for all that You have done for me. Please forgive me for all the times I have fallen short. Every time I have blatantly and knowingly sinned. Please forgive me for the hardness of my heart and the wicked desires I continuously give into. Please create in me a clean heart. Renew in me a right spirit. Write Your Word upon my heart so that I might not sin against You. Continue to guide me in the ways of righteousness. Convict me, oh LORD, of any and all sins that grieve You. Let what grieves You, grieve me as well, LORD. Let not my flesh dictate my desires, but may You be my desire LORD God. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Pray For Them All

 

I was born on July 1st 1997, so by definition, I’m a part of Gen-Z. Gen-Z is the generation spanning from 1997 to 2011. Gen-Z is probably the most hated on generation we have today. We talk about the annoying trends, erratic behavior, sexual promiscuity, anger issues, extreme wokeness, etc. but we never really talk about the most horrifying and heartbreaking thing about Gen-Z. Gen-Z survived a genocide.

Between the years of 1997 and 2011 there has been 19.5 million documented abortions. That’s not counting the illegal, secret, mislabeled abortions. There are currently 69.3 million Gen-Z alive today. That means that roughly 20%-28% of Gen-Z was murdered in their mother’s womb before they even took their first breath.

When those in charge are speaking against population growth and pushing a de-population belief, while simultaneously pushing abortion, it’s truly impossible to he honest and come to any other belief other than this is an actual genocide.

We are all fearfully and wonderfully made and loved by our Creator, yet we are taught, programmed, brainwashed to believe we’re just more evolved animals. That we’re not really a person until viability and viability is debatable. When we look at an entire generation losing a quarter of their population to selective pre-birth murder our hearts should break.

If our parents could commit such atrocities because of the brain washing and programming from such a young age, what atrocities will this generation commit since we are born into the program itself? It’s time we take a step back from teasing, mocking, and laughing at Gen-Z and begin to truly pray for Gen-Z.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Pray For Them All.

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