Separation

       No one likes to be separated from someone that they love. There are occasions however, when separation takes place due to certain conditions in our lives. While in the Navy, there were times when I was separated from my wife and family due to the fact of being stationed aboard a ship and at sea. People that serve in the military often find themselves separated from their families and everything that they know and find themselves transplanted to a completely different environment, nation or culture. Then, also, there is the jail cell. It makes no difference if you are Al Capone or Martha Stewart. Serving time in jail will separate you from family and friends. In these, our latter days, we decided to move closer to our children and to leave our last area of ministry. Since we have been in our present residence, I am glad that we made that move. There is one separation that won't take place in our lives and it occurs in our spiritual life. I know that there are those people who seem to think that God will all of a sudden, kick them out or cancel their reservation or say, “I don't want you any more.” This is why I especially like the following passage of scripture. The Apostle Paul spoke of this in the latter verses of the 8th chapter of the Book of Romans where Romans 8:38-39 says, "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." 

          Although there are many different things that can cause separation, Paul goes to great lengths, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, to list everything that won't separate you from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. You can be especially fond of the phrase, "....nor any other creature." You see, that includes yourself. Not even you can separate yourself from the love of God. There may be times when you might feel as if God's love has left your presence but that is not the case. Our faith is not based upon our own feelings, but upon the promises that we read in God's Word. Therefore, even though we might feel separated, that is not the case. Our faith is based upon the facts that are related in God's Word. No matter what goes on in your life today, you can still be confident in God's promises. So, praise the Lord today for God's love and that it hasn't left you. It will always be there, with you and not even you can do something to remove it from you.

Coveting

           Sometime back I made reference to a statement by Ravi Zacharias that mankind had over 200,000 pages in law books because they couldn't keep ten laws written on a tablet of stone. Since then, I have tried to come up with just how many pages there are in those law books and how many different laws there are in existence. The search really went to extremes as there are major divisions of laws such as constitutional laws and laws of possession and the list goes on and on. The idea popped into my head about how many laws could be related to the Ten Commandments. We know that the Ten Commandments can be found in both Exodus and Deuteronomy and we pretty well know what they said. The Lord Jesus Christ even summed them up into two commandments dealing with our relationship to God and our relationships with other people. Exodus 20:17 says, “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.” 

          The Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Colosse in chapter 3 verse 5, “Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:” When you look at the three avenues of temptation, the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life, you soon realize that many of man's problems are in the area of covetousness. Achan saw the gold, wanted the gold and took the gold and then hid it in his tent. He coveted something that was not his but he decided to take it anyway. The Ten Commandments deal specifically with the issue of wanting something that is not yours but you are going to try to get it anyway. That is pretty much our problem. We have come up with a saying that goes, “The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.” That often applies to coveting. It is also connected with not being content with what you have and so you are continually seeking to get something bigger, better, more expensive and newer just because you want it. It not only applies to things but can also apply to people. That is why there are so many divorces in the world today. Partners lose interest with each other and begin looking for a “later model.” The law of coveting as found in the Ten Commandments, begins with the “wife” of another and then goes through each possession of the neighbor including the neighbor's animals, the neighbor's servants and the neighbor's possessions which can include any item that is owned by the neighbor. Is this an issue to consider today? The answer is, “yes.” It is probably one of the root sins that is found in mankind. It starts in the inner most being of desiring something that is not yours and slowly evolves into taking possession of it no matter the cost. The writer of Hebrews says in the Hebrews 13:5, “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” The answer to covetousness is found in contentment with such things that you have. This is where the rubber meets the road. Contentment is often hard to find especially in a world of material possessions. You may find that even after you possess the biggest and best of something, that you are still not content. Hebrews reminds us to focus our attention upon the fact that we actually possess the best of all, God Himself or rather, He possess us and that He will never leave us nor forsake us. Praise God today for His promises.

Never Alone

         Families are important especially to someone that is young. I would play outside as a child as long as I knew my parents were inside the house, or the garage of somewhere close by. I can't say that I ever enjoyed being left alone. I would have the opportunity to spend a week at my grandparents home near Mill Creek, Indiana. Mom and Dad would drive away and I was left under the care of an old man with a shotgun over his lap and an old lady who reminded me of Mammy Yocum in Little Abner. She was short and petite but her voice was law even to the man with the shotgun. There was that time when two geese landed in an open field and grandpa told us to circle around the geese and scare them up into the air. We did as we were told. The geese sprang up and flew over Grandpa and one of them became our dinner that evening. It landed about ten feet from Grandpa's rocking chair.   I seemed to count the days until Mom and Dad would return to take me home to my comfortable surroundings. It was tolerable in that I knew that at the end of the week, they wold come back to get me. John 14:18 says, “I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.” 

          The Lord Jesus Christ was at this point, giving the disciples some final instructions about what was going to be happening in just a few days. John 12 through 17 records the final week in His earthly ministry. He was heading for the cross and He knew it would be a blow to the Disciples. The Disciples had been following Him around for almost three years but change was coming and they were not prepared for it. John 14 and 16 speak of the coming of the Holy Spirit Who would be providing the comfort to the disciples after Christ would ascend into heaven. They had the information in their heads, but they still didn't get the picture and they would not get it all together until Pentecost. Even after the resurrection, the disciples thought that Christ was going to remain with them until the land of Israel was going to be restored and the Romans kicked out. In His explanation of upcoming events, He promised that there would be “another Comforter.” They would eventually understand when the Other Comforter would arrive on the scene. I would long for being home after being away for a spell. I would long for the voices of Mom and Dad and my Sister. I would long for the fragrance of home and sense of safety that it provided. In the same way, we long for being in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. We have the assurance that He is coming back to get us. It just won't be in a 1938 Pontiac. There will be that upcoming meeting in the air when in the twinkling of an eyes, we shall be behold Him. You might be feeling a bit left out of things but be assured that God has not forgotten you or me or anyone else and that He is coming back simply because He promised to do so and God has never broken a promise. Praise God today that you are still under the protection of the Almighty God in heaven. As I often remark at the close of these devotions, Keep looking up.

What Are The Odds?

          I heard of a man who once thought he should go play golf on a work day. While he was supposed to be at work, he went out on the golf course and assumed, “What are the odds that someone will find out that I am out here all by myself?” Well, that was the one day that a news service decided to do a story at the golf course. In the story the man playing golf was recognized by his superiors and resulted the the man losing his job. His desk was cleaned out by his supervisor. What were the odds? They were probably well stacked in his favor, yet he lost the gamble and his job. John 1:29 says, “The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” 

          What were the odds that the prophecies of the Old Testament could possibly be fulfilled by this One Man Who walked toward John the Baptist that day. The Bible contains much prophecy in it even in the Book of Genesis and throughout the rest of the Bible. Many people come up with somewhere between 350 to 400 prophecies in connection with the Messiah. The odds of one man filling 8 of those prophecies and all of their ramifications was one in ten to the 17^th power. That number is 1 with 17 zeroes after it. That's a big number. The significance of that number is that your sins and my sins were paid for by the Son of God around 2,000 years ago. It was such an important event that the calendar became a living testimony to what happened. History was divided to before Christ, and After Christ, or B.C. to A. D. The unsaved world has tried its best to get rid of that by changing the calendar division to C.E., or Common Era. The unsaved population has tried to get rid of any Biblical reference in our culture, they have tried to eliminate the Bible by burning and banning it, they have mocked and ridiculed Christ and all disciples and yet He still remains to be the Messiah of the world. He is the Son that is mentioned in John 3:16 and He fulfilled every prophecy that made mention of the coming of the Messiah. There are only a few prophecies left such as that in John 14:3 where it says, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” or that of First Thessalonians 4 which describes the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. If I were a betting person, there would be some things that are pretty sure, and the odds of Christ doing what He said He would do are pretty sure. What are the odds that I will get something to eat today? They are probably pretty good odds. We might also come to the conclusion, that what are the odds that Jesus Christ is Who He said He is? Based upon the prophecies already fulfilled, I will put my trust and faith in Him rather than in the claims of the world system. What are the odds that God will bless you today? What are the odds that God will provide your needs today? It only takes a little common sense to realize that Jesus saves just as He said He would. Praise God today for His faithfulness to His Word from my daily bread to eternal life.

The Important Issue

          I once mentioned the fact that a tulip once popped up in the middle of my back yard. It didn't belong there and there were no other tulips even close to where this one popped up. I do not even have this particular color of tulip yet there it grew in the middle of the hill in the back yard. I presume that it came from one of the squirrels that like to plant things here and there for winter storage. The tulip looked strange the yard so one time about four or so years ago, I moved the tulip to a spot in my little flower garden near the house. I have two main email addresses and I receive about a hundred emails each day from the both of them combined that are advertisements. All of them are deleted. First, however, I go through the subject line of each of them looking for a personal email from one of my contacts. They are the tulips of my email and need to be moved to another folder. We live in an age of information in that we have more access to all kinds of information perhaps more than any other time in history, so far. I can pose any question to one of my browsers and have instant access to literally thousands of places that comment on the issue at hand. First John 3:22-23 says, “ And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment.” 

          People have taught, wrote, and spoke on almost everything that you can think of but what are the important issues of life? What are those issues that have meaning or purpose in our lives today? The above passage refers to “His commandment” which is that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another. We quite often forget much of what we have learned in any given day but there are some things that you should never forget and this is one of the most important. A vast amount of knowledge of unimportant items will do you no good except perhaps being thought of as being smart in today's culture but the solution to achieving eternal life is the most important issue of all. The Scriptures remind us that we should be believing on His name. It is also important to notice what is not present in this passage yet seems to be present in the institutions of man due to his collection of information in this age. First of all, denominations are not even mentioned. Denominations have tried to get as close as they can to authenticity by coming up with a great name such as Catholic, Orthodox, Assembly of God, Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian and even the Church of Christ. God, however, has left that all behind and gets to the root of it all by stating: “Believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ.” People, however, seem to feel it necessary to come up with all kinds of strings attached to this simple statement. Many came up with “catechisms” that were used to educate the people about God and were held to be necessary in order to become a “member” of some particular local church. I refer many times back to two instances in the book of Acts; with the Ethiopian Eunuch and the jailer in Philippi. The only question that needed to be answered was, “Do you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ?” What is most important in your life today? On what or on Whom are you depending for eternal life? One of the closing arguments for the Book of First John is found in 5:11-13. If you have the Son, you have life. If you don't have the Son, you don't have life. Verse thirteen then goes on to say, you can know for sure. Praise God today for salvation.

beholding the Glorious

           I remember getting a notice from the government as to how much money I had made in my life time. It all had to do with my contribution to Social Security over the years and each preceding year had the amount of money I had made and how much I had paid into Social Security. At the time, it seemed to be a pathetic amount and I often thought that I will never be a rich man. Then, one day, I was informed that if I had change in my pocket which was deposited in a tin can or a dresser drawer each day, I was probably among the top 15% of the wealthiest people on the earth. I seem to always have lived just a couple of percentage points above what I actually made. Hence, I was in debt, not a lot, but nonetheless living beyond my means even if by only a little bit. Proverbs 27:20 says, “Hell and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied.” 

           We learn a very important lesson from Genesis 3 and Matthew 4 and First John 2 and it is that there seem to be just three avenues of sin that plague us day after day and they are, the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life. Satan used it in the Garden of Eden and in Matthew 4 and John goes on to mention that He is still using it in the lives of people today. Our eyes are important to say the least, but they behold many wondrous things that are just beyond our grasp but that doesn't stop us from continually reaching out to get more and more. My parents never gave me an allowance. If I wanted some money, I had to work for it somewhere else. I have mentioned before about my first job that paid twenty-five cents and took me about an hour to accomplish as I was to unload a wagon full of corn into the corn crib. The owner of the farm would leave me one each evening during corn picking season to unload after school. As usual, the quarter was okay, but I wanted just a little more so in time I got forty cents an hour to assist around the farm. Plowing a field for several hours would result in a dollar and twenty cents. Before college, I got my first factory job working for Allis Chalmers Corn Picker factory in the nearby city. I was on the orange paint line and would bring home about 70 dollars a week after taxes and such. Of course, money is not the only thing we pursue after. Our eyes behold many different kinds of material things which always seem to be so close, yet out of our reach. The devil knows how to dangle the carrot in front of you. That is the point of the Scripture today. The eyes of man are never satisfied.” Between Google and Yahoo, I delete almost one hundred emails a day advertising almost everything under the sun. If, perchance, I look for something, the advertisements begin popping up on the borders of my computer screen always advertising something bigger and better than last week. If the lust of the eyes is one of the big three avenues for sin, then we ought to be turning our vision towards something or Someone more profitable in our lives. One song writer wrote, “Turn your eyes upon Jesus...” Have you ever had one of those moments that while looking at something glorious, you just didn't want to look away for fear of missing something? Perhaps it was your first look at the Grand Canyon or a sunset or sunrise or the Northern Lights. Even greater, just look forward to the time when you arrive in heaven and what it will be like beholding something as glorious as that will be! Fanny Crosby, who was blind, often wrote hymns that would say something about vision. “Visions of rapture now burst on my sight.” Take your eyes of the things of the world and behold the mighty works of God. Praise God today for His working in our lives, all around us and in us and through us.

Watch What You Say

           Some people love confrontation.  Others do not.  I am the type of person that doesn't really like it.  Some times, I would find myself in a place of opposition in that I would want to say something with a more opposing view than other members of the group but reluctant to do so.  It usually ended up with people trying to outwit one another and to see who could come up with the best argument and the last word on any given matter and I never seemed to be able to do that.  At times, knowing what was likely to happen, I would write on the top of my agenda notes, "Keep your mouth shut!"  Other times, I would even come up with my own Spanish phrase, "Cierra la boca."  It is in those times that I would recall my Father's words, “It is better to be thought of as a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.” It worked for me.  But, I think the Psalmist had a better idea.   Psalm 17:3 says, "Thou hast proved mine heart; thou hast visited me in the night; thou hast tried me, and shalt find nothing; I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress."  

           You notice that words can't be taken back.  Once you say something, it is out there for all eternity and there is nothing that you can do to retrieve what you said.  It is gone.  This same verse in another translation reads, "You have scrutinized my inner motives; you have examined me during the night.  You have carefully evaluated me, but you find no sin.  I am determined I will say nothing sinful."  The word "purposed" in the KJV is the one I want to zero in on today.  Sometimes, it is necessary to purpose to do something or as in this case, not to do something.  If a person has no purpose, then, they just seem to "react" to what takes place around them.  They say what they think regardless of who they hurt.  After all, they assume that is their right.  The Psalmist however, wishes to not sin or to not say anything sinful.  Those sinful words are the worst ones.  They hurt people, they give wrong information, they puff up the speaker and worst of all, they can't be taken back.  Maybe you have tried to take back words that you have spoken.  It usually begins with the phrase, "Oh, I was only joking."  You already know that is not true.  It is just one more sin that has been added to the speaker's already growing list.  It would be far better for us to get up in the morning and say as did the writer of the Psalms, "...I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress."  Praise God today that He has the power to control our tongue.