Tag: Devotionals

¹² The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. ¹³ So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” ~ John 12:12-13

Today we celebrate Palm Sunday, also known as The Triumphant Entry. This is when we remember the day Christ Jesus rode triumphantly into Jerusalem. We are going to learn what the significance of this day is. We celebrate it, but we don’t really know the real significance.

So, what is the significance of Palm Sunday? It is simply this. That was the day the Israelites were to choose their Passover lambs. Now, think about this. If the Passover wasn’t until that weekend, why were so many people going to Jerusalem, and many were already in Jerusalem. Why?

Jesus is the crucified lamb of God. Sentenced to death, crucified as an offer for sin that you and I may live. Today is Palm Sunday. Today is selection day. Have you selected Jesus as your Passover lamb?

The Scriptures say, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion” (Hebrews 3:15).

Have you hardened your heart? Remember today is the day of salvation; tomorrow is promised to no man. Look around at what’s going on. Countries are closing their borders. The globalists are pushing for a one-world government. Jesus is coming back, and He’s coming soon. Do you know Him as LORD and Savior? You can. All you have to do is accept Him and His sacrifice and believe in your heart that your sins are forgiven.

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¹⁴ To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ¹⁵ I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! ¹⁶ So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. ~ Revelation 3:14-16

Jesus wants and even expects us to always be panting for more because it is those who hunger and thirst that are filled. In the Church today, we expect to live our lives however we want, and God will overlook it all. We don’t seek Him. We don’t spend time with Him. We place God at the bottom of our to-do list, all while we are professing our love for Him. When we do this, we are the church in Laodicea.

They were living as fools as they’re men and women who only confessed God with their mouths, but their hearts were far from them. In their heart, they said there was no God. God came to down to us, died for our sins, called us by name, and is now waiting for us to come home to Him. Yet, we only say we love Him; we don’t act like we do. We’re no longer hungry for God. We’re no longer thirsty for His Spirit. And because we no longer desire God, we no longer have the relationship the past churches had with Him.

The only miracle we hear about in our world today are the miracles read from the Bible. James wrote in the fourth chapter of his book that if we draw near to God, then God will draw near to us. That’s the kind of people God uses. Those who seek Him. Those who desire Him. Those who want more. If you want to see miracles, prayers answered, and God move in your life, then you have to desire Him. You have to seek Him. You have to draw near to Him.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Hunger For God.

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¹³When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” ¹⁴They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”  ¹⁵ “But what about you?” He asked. “Who do you say I am?” ~ Matthew 16:13-15

The world has many opinions of who they believe Jesus is, but that doesn’t matter to Christ. The only thing that matters who you say Jesus is. The world won’t stand for you on Judgment Day; we each have to answer for ourselves. Matthew 16:13-30 tells of Peter’s confession of Christ. Jesus asked His disciples first, who the world thought He was, but that did not get His attention.  He was looking for more, for someone to seek deeper, someone to acknowledge who He was.  So He asked directly – probed deeper.

¹⁶Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” ¹⁷Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, … ¹⁹I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” ²¹From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.

Matthew 16:16-19, 21

Upon Peter’s confession of who Jesus was, he received several things:

1. 1. A blessing
      • Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah
   2. Authority
      • I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven
   3. Power
      • Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
   4. Inside knowledge
      • From that time on Jesus began to explain to His disciples [what would happen to Him]

Peter received authority when Jesus handed over the keys to the Kingdom.  What does that mean?  The practice of bestowing a ceremonial “key to the city” dates back to medieval times. Feudal lords protected their cities with high walls and imposing gates. All manner of legal papers and customs taxes were required to enter and exit. A “key to the city” gave an important diplomat or merchant the authority to pass at will.

So, once we acknowledge and accept who Jesus is we have the privilege of:

1. 1. Being blessed by God
   2. Coming into His presents at will
   3. This binding and loosing is a misconception by the Pentecostals.  It says “Whatever you bind…” not whoever you bind.  It refers to things, rules, and regulations.  That is why it is so important that a pastor be a man of vision, foresight, and great Biblical knowledge, for it is he who has to give an account for the souls that are given him.

God reveals to His people an understanding of His Word as well as things to come. There is much privilege that comes with confessing who Jesus is.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Confess Who Jesus Is.

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¹⁹ “There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. ²⁰ And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, ²¹ who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. ²² The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried, ²³ and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side.” ~ Luke 16:19-23

First of all, we notice that both the rich man and Lazarus were descendants of Father Abraham, but that was not a qualification. So, don’t be fooled; no one can get in on ancestral credentials alone. It doesn’t matter if gra’ma was a prayer warrior or if papa was a good Christian man. As they say, God doesn’t have any grandchildren. Each will answer for themselves.

With that said, the next thing we notice is that neither the rich man nor Lazarus expected to die the day they did. In fact, I bet dying was the last thing on the rich man’s mind. That’s how a lot of us are today. We live our lives as if we will live forever as if we are our own judge and jury. We get so caught up in our day-to-day lives and all that we have that we forget that one day we each will stand before God and give an account of our lives.

Today is the day of salvation; tomorrow is promised to no man. What have you done with the time given to you? We hate to think about death, but maybe that’s what we need. Maybe we need to think more about our eternal souls and less about our mortal life. If you were to die tonight and wake up in Eternity, where would you be? Would you be welcomed with peace and comfort? Or would you be welcomed with flames and torment?

Dear LORD, please help us to think eternal thoughts instead of carnal thoughts alone. May our minds be on You, oh LORD, instead of on ourselves and what we can gain. Help us to love You as we ought. Open our eyes so that we can see all that we need to change to be closer to You. Mold us into Your masterpiece. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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¹¹ “Who told you that you were naked?” the Lord God asked. “Have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?” ¹² The man replied, “It was the woman you gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it.” ~ Genesis 3:11-12

When God asked Adam if he had eaten from the forbidden fruit, Adam blamed his wife. Today, men love to make jokes, well I hope they’re just jokes, and they’re not being serious, that Adam had to eat the fruit because Eve was naked. What else could he do? First off, let me just say that this is such a lame excuse. Even though men are, for the most part, joking when they say this, this is how we are today.

We make lame excuses for why we sin. We hate owning up to our sins. Why? I believe it’s because we don’t want to change. See, sin thrives in darkness. If we can make an excuse that allows us to continue in sin, or at least make us feel better for doing it, we don’t have to repent. We can live in the realm of, “it’s not my fault.”

But when we don’t take responsibility for our actions, we can’t have forgiveness. Sin cannot survive in the light, so we have to confess our sins before our God. We have to repent so that we can be saved.

⁸ If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. ⁹ But if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.

1 John 1:8-9

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Stop Making Lame Excuses.

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¹ Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” ² The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, ³ but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” ⁴ “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. ⁵ “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” ~ Genesis 3:1-5

I remember a few years ago, one of my friends told me she wanted to be a Youth Pastor and asked me if I thought it was a good idea. So, I simply asked if she understood the Bible and could explain it to people easily. She responded with, ‘No, not really. Not really at all, actually.’ Then, I asked her if she thought reading her Bible was important. She responded with, ‘Yeah. Well, I don’t think you need to read it every day.’ Even though part of her wanted to know God and do God’s work, she didn’t want to take the time to get to know God and His Scripture.

This is the mentality of most of the Church today. Part of us wants God, but the other part doesn’t want to put the time into God. We don’t want to take the time to read God’s word so that we know what He has planned for us, what He expects from us, who He is, His characteristics, His likes, and dislikes. In today’s world, we know more about celebrities than we do our own God. This is the biggest problem in the Church today.

See, Satan knows the Scripture forwards and backward. That’s how he trips us up. He’ll ask us, “Did God actually say…” and if we don’t know the scripture, then we’ll begin to doubt. We’ll have no defense against his attacks and schemes. Look at what the Psalmist writes about how to keep your heart pure.

⁹ How can a young person stay pure? By obeying your word. ¹⁰ I have tried hard to find you— don’t let me wander from your commands. ¹¹ I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. ¹² I praise you, O Lord; teach me your decrees. ¹³ I have recited aloud all the regulations you have given us. ¹⁴ I have rejoiced in your laws as much as in riches. ¹⁵ I will study your commandments and reflect on your ways. ¹⁶ I will delight in your decrees and not forget your word.

Psalms 119:9-16

The only way for us to overcome sin and withstand the schemes of the enemy is to know the Scripture. This is our main weapon against the enemy. When we know Scripture, we can put it into practice, and we can overcome any obstacle that may come in our way. Don’t allow laziness to keep you from your most important Spiritual Weapon.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Spend Time In The Scripture.

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