Reflection

December 31

As you reflect upon the year that concludes today, may you see with the clarity of vision that only God can impart so all the trials and all the joys you have experienced can be seen from His eternal perspective and as you celebrate the New Year that is unfolding before you, may you lay it at the feet of Jesus and trust Him to use you to His glory in the time He gives you.


May all who profess faith in and commitment to Jesus Christ have within the heart of who we are the mindset of Paul as he expresses his resolve to touch others with the message of hope that God has given to him. May we, as did the great Apostle to the gentiles, carry our reason to hope into the highways and byways of life and scatter our seeds of precious truth to all who know Him not.


May we encourage those of like-precious-faith in their trials and may we compel those who know Him not by our lives of surrender to join ranks with us at the foot of the cross. May each of us grow more steadfast in our confidence in the One who "is and was and is to come," Revelation 1:4.

May we ring out the old year and ring in the new with "the joy of the Lord that is our strength," Nehemiah 8:10, and with the "love of Christ that can never fail," II Corinthians 13:8.

Romans, Chapter 15

We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. 2 Each of us should please our neighbors for their good, to build them up. 3 For even Christ did not please himself but, as it is written: “The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.

5 May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had 6 so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

7 Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. 8 For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews[b] on behalf of God’s truth, so that the promises made to the patriarchs might be confirmed 9 and, moreover, that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written: Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles; I will sing the praises of your name. 10 Again, it says, Rejoice, you Gentiles, with his people. 11 And again, Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles; let all the peoples extol him.

12 And again, Isaiah says,The Root of Jesse will spring up, one who will arise to rule over the nations; in him the Gentiles will hope. 13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Paul the Minister to the Gentiles

14 I myself am convinced, my brothers and sisters, that you are full of goodness, filled with knowledge and competent to instruct one another. 15 Yet I have written you quite boldly on some points to remind you of them again, because of the grace God gave me 16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles. He gave me the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.

17 Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. 18 I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done— 19 by the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit of God. So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ. 20 It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation. 21 Rather, as it is written:

Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand. 22 This is why I have often been hindered from coming to you.

Paul’s Plan to Visit Rome

23 But now that there is no more place for me to work in these regions, and since I have been longing for many years to visit you, 24 I plan to do so when I go to Spain. I hope to see you while passing through and to have you assist me on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while. 25 Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the Lord’s people there. 26 For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the Lord’s people in Jerusalem. 27 They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in the Jews’ spiritual blessings, they owe it to the Jews to share with them their material blessings. 28 So after I have completed this task and have made sure that they have received this contribution, I will go to Spain and visit you on the way. 29 I know that when I come to you, I will come in the full measure of the blessing of Christ.

30 I urge you, brothers and sisters, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. 31 Pray that I may be kept safe from the unbelievers in Judea and that the contribution I take to Jerusalem may be favorably received by the Lord’s people there, 32 so that I may come to you with joy, by God’s will, and in your company be refreshed. 33 The God of peace be with you all. Amen.

Messages

December 30
Exchange of Messages between a Young Missionary and an Old Believer

Missionary: I watch as the veil that covers her heart manifests itself in the scowl on her face when I speak to her of the truth of the Living Word of Christ. And I praise God that even though she does not understand, she wants to know more. I see that the veil over her heart has acquired a bunch of tiny little snags as we have spoken together through our many conversations, and the beginnings of tears that will one day lead it to completely fall away and allow her heart to finally open to Jesus.

Old Believer: Thank you so much for your courage, your faithfulness, your love, your faith, your hope, your resolve, your fervent expectation that the One you love and serve, the One you have followed, is at work and His will is being done—one unraveled thread by one unraveled thread!

I have been praying for ISIS--that they would be among those visited in the night by the Living and Eternal GOD who is now beyond their comprehension and so unlike what they believe HIM to be; that their hearts would be melted and they would forsake the lie of the enemy and embrace the truth which the Holy One holds out to them.

I must add that my prayer includes the plea that if they would not allow their cold hearts to melt at the warmth of His tender invitation and they will not receive His message of love and His invitation to partake of His salvation, that they would be undone in their vile lairs before they can harm one more hair on the head of one more believer.

I pray HIS hedge around you, my brave and faithful young friend, remains secure. I pray He reveals to you when to speak and when to be silent; that He shows you who will receive the word in truth and who would use it against you...that you will be “wise as a serpent and harmless as a dove,” Matthew 10:16, in a place that has long been perverted by the twisted presence of the one who "would be like the Most High," Isaiah 14:14; who would be worshiped by all the earth, who would destroy all those who bow before the Throne of Mercy and Grace, who would “steal, kill and destroy,” John 10:10 all who oppose his evil intent.

God bless you always, precious child.

Commentary

December 29

Commentary on Genesis 18:23-25 by John W. Ritenbaugh

(23) And Abraham came near and said, "Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked? (24) Suppose there were fifty righteous within the city; would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous that were in it? (25) Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?"

God's justice is according to His righteousness, His holy character. Psalm 119:172 defines righteousness, stating "All Your commandments are righteousness." Those commandments reflect in writing the character of God.

What God does is always consistent with who and what He is, and what He has written. His righteousness is absolute purity. He is utterly incapable of an unholy, unrighteous, unjust act. For God to act unfairly, He would simply have to cease being God. It is totally impossible for Him to commit an injustice.

When Abraham uses the word "righteous" in verse 23, he is not saying, "Would You destroy the sinless with the wicked?" He means people who, through their fear of God and being conscientious, have kept themselves free from the iniquity of Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham's concern was that there were people in the city we might consider to be really good citizens. They were not sinless, but if there was a fear of God in them, maybe they were trying with all their might to obey God, but they were caught up simply in being in the environment which God had decided He was going to destroy.

God does not always act with justice; sometimes He acts with mercy. That is what He did with Lot and his family. God acted with justice against the city because it was so corrupt, so evil, so filled with sin that it even offended God's sense of what is right and wrong. It even offended God's patience, His longsuffering. And so in justice He wiped the city off the map, but in grace and mercy He spared Lot, his wife, and two children.

Mercy is not justice, but neither is it injustice, because injustice would violate righteousness, and God always acts according to His holy character, which is total righteousness. Therefore mercy, which manifests kindness and grace, does no violence to righteousness, and we may see non-justice in God—which is mercy—but we never see injustice in God.

A Word of Encouragement

by Charles Spurgeon

Perseverance is the badge of true saints. The Christian life is not a beginning only in the ways of God, but also a continuance in the same as long as life lasts.

It is with a Christian as it was with the great Napoleon: he said, "Conquest has made me what I am, and conquest must maintain me."

So, under God, dear brother in the Lord, conquest has made you what you are, and conquest must sustain you. Your motto must be, "Excelsior." He only is a true conqueror, and shall be crowned at the last, who continues till war's trumpet is blown no more.

Perseverance is, therefore, the target of all our spiritual enemies. The world does not object to your being a Christian for a time, if she can but tempt you to cease your pilgrimage, and settle down to buy and sell with her in Vanity Fair. The flesh will seek to ensnare you, and to prevent your pressing on to glory.

"It is weary work being a pilgrim; come, give it up. Am I always to be mortified? Am I never to be indulged? Give me at least a furlough from this constant warfare."

Satan will make many a fierce attack on your perseverance; it will be the mark for all his arrows. He will strive to hinder you in service: he will insinuate that you are doing no good; and that you want rest. He will endeavor to make you weary of suffering, he will whisper, "Curse God, and die."

Or he will attack your steadfastness: "What is the good of being so zealous? Be quiet like the rest; sleep as do others, and let your lamp go out as the other virgins do."

Or he will assail your doctrinal sentiments: "Why do you hold to these denominational creeds? Sensible men are getting more liberal; they are removing the old landmarks: fall in with the times."

Wear your shield, Christian, therefore, close upon your armor, and cry mightily unto God, that by His Spirit you may endure to the end."

...Worth the Risk...?

December 28
From Isn’t It Worth the Risk to Obey God? by Sandra Clifton

I once enrolled in a sewing course at a community college. The first night the class was held, the teacher instructed us, "Be thinking about why you are here."

Before the second class was over, that question was burning in my mind. Had I come to learn how to sew—or to thoroughly embarrass myself in public?

That night when I had gotten up to join my fellow classmates on a break, I had noticed that I couldn't get out of my seat. I was stuck! I glanced down at the sewing machine and to my horror, discovered that the blouse I was wearing was stitched to the piece of cloth under the needle!

"Great, Sandra, "I blurted out loud. "How did we do this?"

Naturally, my question attracted the attention of my mercy-motivated instructor, who came over to help me out of my predicament. Unfortunately, her indiscretion outweighed her gift of mercy. In a high, falsetto voice that could have filled a stadium, she exclaimed, "Oh, Sweetie, what did we doooooo?"

I'll tell you what I DIDN'T do. I didn't go back. I know perhaps I should have stuck it out—gotten back up on that proverbial horse after I'd fallen—but my desire to avoid doing something the wrong way outweighed my desire to learn to do it the right way. So I played it safe.

My loss; I could have learned something.

My response was similar to that of the gifted students I taught some years ago in senior high honors English. Often, when given a choice in selecting a writing topic, they would pick up something with which they were comfortably familiar. They were playing it safe—not just for the grade, but to avoid the risk of failing they faced when tackling the unknown.

It was their loss because they could have grown.

The Word of God is full of stories of men and women who, in order to accomplish God's plan for their lives, had to risk failure. Ruth chose to follow Naomi into foreign territory where, because of their Moabite background, she would not be welcome. But despite the odds stacked against her, the outcome of her choice was victory. God had Boaz waiting for her. (See the book of Ruth.)

Consider the woman who washed the feet of Jesus with her perfume and tears, wiping them with her hair. She risked public scorn. The outcome: Jesus Himself praised her actions (see Luke 7:44-47).

And what about Rahab, who risked her life to help the soldiers scout out the Promised Land (Josh. 2)? Or, how about Esther, who risked her life when she approached the king for a favor—and ended up saving her people (Esther 4-5)?

Jesus risked public scorn when He sat and dined with sinners and tax collectors (Matt. 9:10-13), and He opened Himself up to condemnation when He healed the man with the withered hand on the Sabbath (Matthew 12:9-14).

The tasks God gives us generally require risk. If we fail, His purposes are not accomplished. If we succeed, others may be threatened. In either case, if we turn our eyes toward man, we lose. It is only when we keep our eyes toward Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith that we stand to gain.

I seriously doubt that if had I risked further embarrassment by continuing to attend my sewing class, I'd pose any great threat to Martha Stewart today. But in walking away from failure, I also walked away from potential success and blessings.

Today, as you contemplate the odds stacked against you in carrying out God's plan, ask yourself: Isn't it worth the risk to obey Him? He has so much in store! More than you can even ask or think (see Ephesians 3:20). Make a commitment to doing your best for Him who gave His best, Jesus, for you.

Romans, Chapter Two

December 27

You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. 2 Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. 3 So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment? 4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?

5 But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. 6 God “will repay each person according to what they have done.” 7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. 8 But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. 9 There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; 10 but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 11 For God does not show favoritism.

12 All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law. 13 For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God’s sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous. 14 (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law. 15 They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them.) 16 This will take place on the day when God judges people’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.

The Jews and the Law

17 Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God; 18 if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; 19 if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of little children, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— 21 you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? 22 You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? 24 As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”

25 Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not been circumcised. 26 So then, if those who are not circumcised keep the law’s requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were circumcised? 27 The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will condemn you who, even though you have the[c] written code and circumcision, are a lawbreaker.

28 A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. 29 No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God.

May we all take to heart the opportunity Jesus has given to us to become one of His 'Chosen People,' to be among those who will dwell with Him eternally because of the "UNSPEAKABLE GIFT" of salvation that has been given to us through His life, death and resurrection.

At this lovely season of family and friends and celebration, may we not lose sight of the eternal treasure that has been placed before us; may we embrace Jesus to our hearts, love Him throughout our lives, and receive the wondrous gift of eternal life that He has paid so much to give to us, to all the chosen people who have chosen Him as Savior and Lord.

Ebenezer

December 26

Ebenezer is one of those old-fashioned names we rarely hear these days. Every Christmas we watch again the classic A CHRISTMAS CAROL by Charles Dickens and we hear it, but it’s certainly not among the top list of names for boys of today’s parents. After all, who wants to name a child after Ebenezer Scrooge?

We hear names like Trevor and Kyle that have been selected for newborns—and they are perfectly good names—but we rarely hear the old names found in scripture that are filled with meaning. Perhaps parents should look through the ‘name’ books with not only the sound but also the meaning of the name in mind.

The name Ebenezer, for example, means ‘stone of help.’ In I Samuel 7:12, it says, “He named it Ebenezer, explaining, ‘The Lord has helped us to this point.’” This is where the prophet Samuel set up an altar of praise to the Lord for the help He had given His people Israel in defeating the Philistines.

Names like Ebenezer remind us of the all-encompassing presence of the Christ we serve. They remind us of His faithfulness. They remind us of His power that exceeds the might of our foes. They remind us that when we are confronted with the difficulties of life, Jesus, the Rock of our salvation, is with us.

Christmas Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus...As we open presents this morning and partake of the joys of friends and family; as we delight in the festivities of this warm, wonderful season, may we not loose sight of the fact that You left the Realm of Glory and came to earth as a humble man who would live a perfect life in our behalf.

And the reason You did was so You could be the Perfect Sacrifice for our sins. As we ponder that reality, may our celebration of Your birth be mingled with abounding thanks for Your life, death, and resurrection in our behalf.

May our lives, our love for You be our gift to You, placed at Your feet in exchange for the "unspeakable GIFT" You have given to us.

"Go Tell It on the Mountain"

While shepherds kept their watching
Over silent flocks by night,
Behold throughout the heavens,
There shone a holy light:
Go, Tell It On The Mountain,
Over the hills and everywhere;
Go, Tell It On The Mountain
That Jesus Christ is born.

The shepherds feared and trembled
When lo! above the earth
Rang out the angel chorus
That hailed our Saviour's birth:
Go, Tell It On The Mountain,
Over the hills and everywhere;
Go, Tell It On The Mountain
That Jesus Christ is born.

Down in a lowly manger
Our humble Christ was born
And God send us salvation,
That blessed Christmas morn:
Go, Tell It On The Mountain,
Over the hills and everywhere;
Go, Tell It On The Mountain
That Jesus Christ is born.

When I am a seeker,
I seek both night and day;
I seek the Lord to help me,
And He shows me the way:
Go, Tell It On The Mountain,
Over the hills and everywhere;
Go, Tell It On The Mountain
That Jesus Christ is born.

He made me a watchman
Upon the city wall,
And if I am a Christian,
I am the least of all.
Go, Tell It On The Mountain,
Over the hills and everywhere;
Go, Tell It On The Mountain
That Jesus Christ is born.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him," John 3:16-17.
Merry Christmas

December 25
Merry Christmas!

"For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of His government and peace
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this," Isaiah 9:6,7.

We come to this day with the fulfillment of the amazing prophecy of Isaiah 9:6, 7 fulfilled by the Babe lying in Bethlehem’s manger and by the exultant sounds of the Hallelujah Chorus ringing in our ears. We hear in our inner man the sweet strains of JOY that will redound to the glory of God at Easter. We know the Baby born at Bethlehem came to die on the cross at Calvary and He arose.

We know that the celebration of His arrival and the joy of His departure as He returned to the realm of glory were separated by a life set apart, by a life that was unique among men, because it was lived for all men.

What seemed to begin in a stable while his mother was complying with a Roman census requirement—“While they were there, the time came for her to be delivered and she brought forth her firstborn Son” Luke 2:6-7—was actually planned in the corridors of Heaven before time began (Revelation 13:8).

Because Jesus came in the fullness of time, we have the opportunity to receive the gift of salvation He came to bestow upon us. We may sing the redounding hallelujahs to His glory and we may anticipate the joy of His triumph over death! Because of Him, we may triumph over sin and death!

Halleluiah! Joy!

"Silent Night"

Silent night, Holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin, mother and child
Holy infant, tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace,
Sleep in heavenly peace.

Silent night, Holy night
Son of God, love's pure light
Radiant beams from thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord at thy birth
Jesus, Lord at thy birth.

Silent night, Holy night
Shepherds quake, at the sight
Glories stream from heaven above
Heavenly, hosts sing Hallelujah.
Christ the Savior is born,
Christ the Savior is born.

Christmas Eve

December 24

The angel had told Mary that she would be the mother of the Messiah. She was in awe of her heavenly visitor but the magnitude of his announcement was not lost upon her. In response to the amazing pronouncement she had just heard, she said the following:

Mary’s beautiful Magnificat:: Luke 1:46-55

46 And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, 47 And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. 48 For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. 49 For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name. 50 And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation. 51 He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. 52 He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree. 53 He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away. 54 He hath helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy; 55 As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed forever.

We stand at the threshold of the celebration of the incarnation—Immanuel, God with us. May we allow our incarnate God, our Savior, our Lord, to be the heart of our joy.

Most believers have imagined themselves to have been at the Nativity scene. We’ve pondered the wonder of hearing the angel chorus announce the birth of the One who came to be Prince of Peace. We’ve contemplated the amazement of the humble shepherds who were privy to such grand news.

We think of the wise men, indeed wise beyond the knowledge of the astrological signs they analyzed in order to discern the arrival of One highly favored and anointed. This One, they knew, was unique among the potentates born into the realm of man; was worthy of their finest gifts of treasure and of homage.

When we think of how we would have acted or what we would have done, we know we would have been struck with awe and wonder, even as were the shepherds. And like them, we would have heard the angels reassure, “Don’t be afraid, for I bring you good tidings of great joy that is for all people” Luke 2:10.

Perhaps we would have proclaimed as did the elderly father of John the Baptist when he heard the news of Mary’s pregnancy and the imminent birth of the long-awaited One, “Through the tender mercy of our God, the Day-spring from on High has visited us,” Luke 1:78.

Perhaps we would have rejoiced to have Jesus as our Savior. That joy is still available to anyone who will receive it.

Prayer Request

A Special Prayer Request from Capitol Hill Prayer Partners:

Covering all Christmas Eve and Christmas Day church services in the Blood of the Lamb

It is a well-known and unfortunate fact that ISIS and other terrorist groups in many countries around the world have been successful in striking and killing Christian believers while they are assembled together, in worship, inside their churches.

For that reason, we ask you to join with us in standing against any planned terror attack the next two days on our homeland, in our churches.

We thank the Lord that it is written that "the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds." (2 Corinthians 10:4)

We praise Him, too, in the promise of His Word in Isaiah 55:11 that:

"So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it."

Lord, we ask the covering of Your love, the power of Your Holy Spirit, the conviction of your truth, the might of Your holy angels to stand guard around Your people during this season of celebration of Emmanuel, God with us. We claim that perfect covering for Your people through all the moments and days and years and decades until Jesus returns to take us to Himself eternally.

But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger," Luke 2:9,10.

And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased," Luke 2:14.

May we receive that good news of great joy...that a Savior has come to deliver us from evil, to rescue us from the worst of ourselves. He has indeed come to make us new...may we give Him space within to accomplish the work He desires to do for us.

"Angels We Have Heard on High"

Angels we have on heard high
Sweetly singing ore the plains
And the mountains in reply
Echo back their joyous strains

Gloria in excelsis Deo
Gloria in excelsis Deo

Come to Bethlehem to see
Him whose birth the angels sing
Come adore on bended knee
Christ the Lord the newborn King

Gloria in excelsis Deo
Gloria in excelsis Deo

See Him in a manger lay
Whom the choirs of angels praise
Mary, Joseph, lend your aid
While our hearts in love we raise

Gloria in excelsis Deo
Gloria, in excelsis Deo
Gloria in excelsis Deo

We Cannot Deny Such a Treasure

December 23

As we approach the night that we celebrate the nativity of the Lord, the night the Second Person of the Trinity entered the world as a Babe and began His trek through human experience, living the sinless life we were incapable of living and vicariously providing restored fellowship with our Heavenly Father, we cannot but think beyond the manger to the cross.

The beautiful Baby, lying in Mary’s arms, held tenderly to her breast would one day be roughly handled by disdainful religious leaders and cruel soldiers. He would endure the mockery of a trial; He would hear those who’d felt the gentle touch of His healing hand cry, “Crucify Him!”

He would bear the reproach of men and He would feel the Father with whom He was One turn away from Him. He would pray to His Father, “All things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me. Nevertheless, not what I will but what You will be done” Mark 14:36. Christ bore the pain and the mockery inflicted by men without complaint.

But He anguished at the breech between Himself and His Father who would not look upon Him while He bore our sin upon Himself. The great cost to Christ as He hung upon the cross, was not the wounds he endured on His back or the crown of thorns that pierced His brow or the nails that bound Him to the tree. He anguished that for the only time in all eternity, He was separated from the Father.

Because He was forsaken, we can be forgiven. Because He endured separation from the Godhead, we may be together with Him for eternity. Who would be so foolish as to turn his back on the most costly GIFT ever given? Surely, each of us must consider the price that was paid and embrace Bethlehem's Babe to our heart. If He was willing to pay such a price, we cannot deny such a treasure.

"O Little Town of Bethlehem"

1. O little town of Bethlehem,
How still we see thee lie!
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by;
Yet in the dark street shineth
The everlasting Light;
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight.

2. For Christ is born of Mary,
And fathered all above,
While mortals sleep, the angels keep
Their watch of wondering love.
O morning stars, together
Proclaim the holy birth
And praises sing to God, the King,
And peace to men on earth.

3. How silently, how silently,
The wondrous Gift is given!
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of His heaven.
No ear may hear His coming,
But in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive Him still,
The dear Christ enters in.

4. O holy Child of Bethlehem,
Descend to us, we pray;
Cast out our sin and enter in,
Be born in us today.
We hear the Christmas angels
The great glad tidings tell:
Oh, come to us, abide with us,
Our Lord Emmanuel!

That Holy Name

December 22

Some of us, even believers, have taken the name of the Lord Jesus Christ in vain. To those who are not inclined toward faith, His name is a mere cuss word in a repertoire of unsavory epithets that are uttered to express disdain for a situation or an individual.

Those who are well-practiced in the blasphemous usage of the “Name that is given above all names, the only Name by which men may be saved” (Acts 4:12) will have a rude awakening one day when the light of truth illumines the darkness in which they have chosen to live their lives.

In Matthew 17:6, we get a preview of the power of that Name, the Name that can save and the Name that can condemn to eternal darkness. Here we get a glimpse of the transfiguration of Jesus. The disciples hear a voice from Heaven declaring that God is well-pleased with Christ—and these men who had walked with the Lord, “fell face down and were terrified.”

If they who knew Him as companion and brother, they who walked with Him and talked with Him and saw His love extended to the masses fell on their faces in fear and trepidation at the revelation of His glory, we can only shudder to think of the horror of the blasphemer, the hater of God, the mocker of truth when he recognizes Who it is who offered him life and he despised the Gift.

At this season of Christmas, when the Holy Child in Bethlehem's manger compels our hearts to visit the salvation story once again, may we recognize with awe and wonder the reality of who this Babe really is, and in our grasp of the glorious truth that He is Emmanuel, God with us, may we hold Him and His matchless name in awe; may we bow before the Babe as we will one day bow before His Majesty in Glory.

As Paul has written in Romans 4:11, "Every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

"God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"

God rest ye merry, gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember, Christ, our Savior
Was born on Christmas day
To save us all from Satan's power
When we were gone Astray

O tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy
Tidings of joy

From God our Heavenly Father
A blessed Angel came
And unto certain Shepherds
Brought tidings of the same
How that in Bethlehem was born
The Son of God by name

O tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy

"Fear not," said the Angel
"Let nothing you afright
This day is born a Savior
Of pure a Virgin bright
To free all those who trust in Him
From Satan's power and might"

O tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy

Tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
Tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
Comfort and joy, joy, joy, joy

Now to the Lord sing praises
All you within this place
And with true love and brotherhood
Each other, now embrace
This holy tide of Christmas
All other doth deface

O tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy

Tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
Tidings of comfort and joy

We have gone astray
O tidings of comfort and joy

Future Residents

December 21

Many immigrants to the United States at the turn of the Twentieth Century came to this country with tales of the splendor of the nation’s cities dancing in their imaginations. Their disappointment must have been great upon their arrival when they found the sprawling urban poverty where they would live.

Oh, yes, they found opportunity here and many of them rose, through their own hard work and ingenuity, to attain the wealth they thought would be available for the taking upon their arrival. But many of their number did not realize the dream—at least not to the degree they’d anticipated.

There is another City whose appearance is described in superlatives. It is the place John saw (Revelation 21:2), of which he said, “I saw the Holy City, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband.”

There won’t be disappointment upon our arrival to that wondrous place where Christ dwells. There won’t be any ghetto neighborhoods. The Word tells us that the beauty of the place is staggering. The wonder of it pales only by comparison to the glory we will behold when we see Jesus—face to face in all His glory!

As we contemplate the wonder of that glorious place, may we be mindful that it is because Bethlehem's Babe willingly exchanged that realm of splendor for a lowly manger that we have the right to account ourselves as future residents of the Heavenly Jerusalem.

Joy to the World!

Joy to the world! The Lord is come;
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare him room,
And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing.

Joy to the world! The Saviour reigns;
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy.

No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as, the curse is found.

He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders, of His love.

Trust

December 20

“When the men of Israel saw that they were in danger (for the people were distressed), then the people hid in caves, in thickets, in rocks, in holes, and in pits. And some of the Hebrews crossed over the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. As for Saul, he was still in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling. Then he waited seven days, according to the time set by Samuel. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him.

“So Saul said, ‘Bring a burnt offering and peace offerings here to me.’ And he offered the burnt offering. Now it happened, as soon as he had finished presenting the burnt offering, that Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might greet him.

“And Samuel said, ‘What have you done?’

“Saul said, ‘When I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that you did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered together at Michmash, then I said, The Philistines will now come down on me at Gilgal, and I have not made supplication to the LORD. Therefore I felt compelled, and offered a burnt offering.’

“And Samuel said to Saul, ‘You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the LORD your God, which He commanded you. For the LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your kingdom shall not continue. The LORD has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the LORD has commanded him to be commander over His people, because you have not kept what the LORD commanded you.’" 1 Samuel 13:6-14

Perhaps some of us must admit that we would have reacted as Saul did in a situation similar to the one in which he found himself. Perhaps we would have endeavored to take matters into our own hands even as he did when the plan of action established by the prophet didn’t seem to be working out.

What if Samuel had been delayed because of illness? What if he’d been ambushed by Philistines and killed? What if God expected Saul to take the initiative and perform the prophet’s duty in this extraordinary situation?

‘What if…’ has tripped up many an individual who professes to know the Lord and is endeavoring to serve Him. But in his confusion, Saul needed to look no further than to Father Abraham for clear insight into what was expected of him in his dilemma.

Remember that Abraham and Sarah were childless and after many years of awaiting the fulfillment of God’s promise that they would have a son, they took matters into their own hands:

Hagar was the servant of Sarah. God had promised Abraham many descendants, but, ten years after the promise, Sarah was still unable to have children, and they were both on the verge of becoming too old to have children at all. Sarah chose to give her servant Hagar to Abraham, in accordance with the custom of day, so that Sarah could have a child through her (see Genesis 16:2).

Hagar conceived, and Sarah despised her. Sarah began to deal harshly with her, and Hagar fled to the desert to escape the resentment of her mistress. The angel of the Lord met Hagar in the wilderness, commanding her to return to Abraham and Sarah. The angel relayed a promise from God: “I will surely multiply your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for multitude” (see Genesis 16:10). The angel also predicted Ishmael’s name and character (see Genesis 16:11-12).

Later, God fulfilled His promise to Abraham and Sarah. Sarah gave birth to a son named Isaac (see Genesis 21). Ishmael would have been about 14 years old at the time of Isaac’s birth. Abraham sent Hagar and Ishmael away after Isaac was weaned at around age 2-3, making Ishmael approximately 16, according to God’s command.

At that time, God repeated His promise that Ishmael would father a great nation. Hagar was in the desert and near death when the angel of God called to her, saying, “What troubles you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is. Get up! Lift up the boy, and hold him fast with your hand, for I will make him into a great nation” (see Genesis 21:17-18).

Ishmael and his mother lived in the wilderness of Paran, where he became an expert with a bow and later took an Egyptian wife (see Genesis 21:20-21). He is seen once again in Scripture when he returned to help bury his father Abraham (see Genesis 25:7-10). Ishmael, the son of a bond servant, became the father of 12 sons who were called princes. He lived to 137 years of age.

And the strife between the children of Ishmael and the children of Abraham’s promised son Isaac has not ceased, even into our day. The on-going mid-east conflict springs from the root of the discord within Abraham’s family.

Saul knew the outcome of Abraham and Sarah taking matters into their own hands so he should have understood that under no circumstances should he have taken the matter of sacrifice into his hands. So should we, when our problems defy solution.

And how could Abraham, how could Saul, how can we, in the throes of our most perplexing dilemma, continue to wait rather than to take action? How can we negate the challenge, ‘Don’t just stand there, do something!’

We can wait; we can do nothing at the point of our great perplexity, if we truly trust God. At those times when we are confronted with the option of obeying the Holy One or acting on our own, let us remind ourselves of the great examples of Abraham and Saul that we are given in the Bible.

Let us resolve that we won’t fall into the error that they made; rather, we will trust the Lord with a full heart of expectation that, “what He has promised, He is able to perform,” Romans 4:21.

"Hark! The Herald Angels Sing!"

Hark, the Herald Angels sing,
Glory to the new-born King,
Peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled.

Joyful all ye nations rise,
Join the triumph of the skies;
With th' angelic host proclaim,
Christ is born in Bethlehem."
Hark! The herald angels sing,
Glory to the newborn King!

Christ by highest heaven adored,
Christ the everlasting Lord!
Late in time, behold Him come,
Offspring of a Virgin's womb,

Veiled in flesh the Godhead see,
Hail the incarnate Deity!
Pleased as Man with man to dwell,
Jesus, our Emmanuel,
Hark! The herald angels sing,
Glory to the newborn King!

Hail the heaven-born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Son of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings,
Risen with healing in His wings.

Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that man no more may die,
Born to raise the sons of earth,
Born to give them second birth.
Hark! The herald angels sing,
Glory to the newborn King!

A Clear Reflection

December 19

“Hear the word of the LORD, you children of Israel, for the LORD brings a charge against the inhabitants of the land: There is no truth or mercy or knowledge of God in the land. By swearing and lying, killing and stealing and committing adultery, they break all restraint; with bloodshed upon bloodshed,” Hosea 4:1, 2.

"Harlotry, wine, and new wine enslave the heart. My people ask counsel from their wooden idols, and their staff informs them. For the spirit of harlotry has caused them to stray, and they have played the harlot against their God,” Hosea 4:11, 12.

“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man, for God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil,” Ecclesiastes 12:13, 14.

“Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God,” I Corinthians 2:12.

“Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, (and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him,” Colossians 3:9, 10.

Notice the progression in the above series of verses. The first two lay out several sins that are common to man. They were indulged by men in Biblical days and they are commonplace among men of our generation.

People who consider themselves to be good and honorable fall into these transgressions with a lightness that defies understanding—unless we factor in their total disregard for the existence of a Holy God. Whether indulging the sins of the tongue, remember the Word tells us that “liars shall have their place in hell,” Revelation 21:8, as will those who swear falsely, along with the murderer and the thief and those who indulge in harlotry.

To bow before false gods is spiritual harlotry and the Holy One does not take lightly the idols that modern man bows before (entertainment, self-indulgence, political power, to name a few) any more than He could tolerate the gods of stone and wood that ancient man bowed before.

To practice these transgressions is to offend the One who has the power to relegate us to eternal punishment, but to receive the Holy Spirit is to open the innermost recesses of our person-hood to the candle of truth that He shines within us, revealing the horror of our sin-filled nature and contrasting it to the transformation that can occur in the bosom of who we are if we will but invite the Savior into our heart.

When we have done that, when we have put off the old man with his proclivity to worldly and godless practices, and have put on Christ, according to the admonition in Galatians 3:27, we will be renewed in our minds.

We won’t think the way we used to think, we won’t talk the way we used to talk, we won’t act the way we used to act. We will not allow the impulses that drove us when we were under the influence of the world to control us; rather, we will surrender ourselves to the control of the Holy Spirit.

We will no longer strive to please our ‘self,’ while succumbing to the snare the enemy of our soul lays before us, but we will strive to know the Lord Jesus in the beauty of His holiness and to allow ourselves to be a clear reflection of His character and His salvation and His love.

The GIFT

That the Great I Am would come to earth as "the Lamb of God" sacrificed for the sins of all men, is too amazing to contemplate. May we just receive His "unspeakable Gift" in simple faith.

Ezekiel, Chapter 16

December 18

In the following chapter of the Bible, the Lord describes how He finds us when we are lost and helpless. He covers us with His righteousness and puts His love upon us. We who were lost in trespasses and sin become beautiful in His sight. If we will, we can live in the loveliness of Christ all the days of our life; but if we allow ourselves to be tempted by worldly lusts, we will revert to our wickedness.

The Holy One describes how abominable our unrighteousness is to Him and how devastating it is to us. He invites us again to turn away from the evil to which we have run so eagerly. The words of chastisement here remind us that there are indeed “pleasures of sin for a season,” Hebrews 11:25, but that “the wages of sin is death and the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord,” Romans 6:23.

May we read these sobering words of the Almighty to His people Israel and remind ourselves that we, like they, have been purchased at a great price, loved with a great love, and transformed by a mighty hand. May we cherish all He has done for us and abide in Him forever.

Ezekiel, Chapter16

Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, 2 Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations, 3 And say, Thus saith the Lord God unto Jerusalem; Thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan; thy father was an Amorite, and thy mother an Hittite. 4 And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee; thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all. 5 None eye pitied thee, to do any of these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee; but thou wast cast out in the open field, to the lothing of thy person, in the day that thou wast born.

6 And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live. 7 I have caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased and waxen great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are fashioned, and thine hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare. 8 Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord God, and thou becamest mine. 9 Then washed I thee with water; yea, I throughly washed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oil. 10 I clothed thee also with broidered work, and shod thee with badgers' skin, and I girded thee about with fine linen, and I covered thee with silk. 11 I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck. 12 And I put a jewel on thy forehead, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head.

13 Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom. 14 And thy renown went forth among the heathen for thy beauty: for it was perfect through my comeliness, which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord God. 15 But thou didst trust in thine own beauty, and playedst the harlot because of thy renown, and pouredst out thy fornications on every one that passed by; his it was. 16 And of thy garments thou didst take, and deckedst thy high places with divers colours, and playedst the harlot thereupon: the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so.

17 Thou hast also taken thy fair jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given thee, and madest to thyself images of men, and didst commit whoredom with them, 18 And tookest thy broidered garments, and coveredst them: and thou hast set mine oil and mine incense before them. 19 My meat also which I gave thee, fine flour, and oil, and honey, wherewith I fed thee, thou hast even set it before them for a sweet savour: and thus it was, saith the Lord God.

20 Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter, 21 That thou hast slain my children, and delivered them to cause them to pass through the fire for them? 22 And in all thine abominations and thy whoredoms thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, when thou wast naked and bare, and wast polluted in thy blood.

23 And it came to pass after all thy wickedness, (woe, woe unto thee! saith the Lord God;) 24 That thou hast also built unto thee an eminent place, and hast made thee an high place in every street. 25 Thou hast built thy high place at every head of the way, and hast made thy beauty to be abhorred, and hast opened thy feet to every one that passed by, and multiplied thy whoredoms. 26 Thou hast also committed fornication with the Egyptians thy neighbours, great of flesh; and hast increased thy whoredoms, to provoke me to anger.

27 Behold, therefore I have stretched out my hand over thee, and have diminished thine ordinary food, and delivered thee unto the will of them that hate thee, the daughters of the Philistines, which are ashamed of thy lewd way. 28 Thou hast played the whore also with the Assyrians, because thou wast unsatiable; yea, thou hast played the harlot with them, and yet couldest not be satisfied. 29 Thou hast moreover multiplied thy fornication in the land of Canaan unto Chaldea; and yet thou wast not satisfied therewith.

30 How weak is thine heart, saith the Lord God, seeing thou doest all these things, the work of an imperious whorish woman; 31 In that thou buildest thine eminent place in the head of every way, and makest thine high place in every street; and hast not been as an harlot, in that thou scornest hire; 32 But as a wife that committeth adultery, which taketh strangers instead of her husband! 33 They give gifts to all whores: but thou givest thy gifts to all thy lovers, and hirest them, that they may come unto thee on every side for thy whoredom. 34 And the contrary is in thee from other women in thy whoredoms, whereas none followeth thee to commit whoredoms: and in that thou givest a reward, and no reward is given unto thee, therefore thou art contrary.

35 Wherefore, O harlot, hear the word of the Lord: 36 Thus saith the Lord God; Because thy filthiness was poured out, and thy nakedness discovered through thy whoredoms with thy lovers, and with all the idols of thy abominations, and by the blood of thy children, which thou didst give unto them; 37 Behold, therefore I will gather all thy lovers, with whom thou hast taken pleasure, and all them that thou hast loved, with all them that thou hast hated; I will even gather them round about against thee, and will discover thy nakedness unto them, that they may see all thy nakedness. 38 And I will judge thee, as women that break wedlock and shed blood are judged; and I will give thee blood in fury and jealousy. 39 And I will also give thee into their hand, and they shall throw down thine eminent place, and shall break down thy high places: they shall strip thee also of thy clothes, and shall take thy fair jewels, and leave thee naked and bare.

40 They shall also bring up a company against thee, and they shall stone thee with stones, and thrust thee through with their swords. 41 And they shall burn thine houses with fire, and execute judgments upon thee in the sight of many women: and I will cause thee to cease from playing the harlot, and thou also shalt give no hire any more. 42 So will I make my fury toward thee to rest, and my jealousy shall depart from thee, and I will be quiet, and will be no more angry.

43 Because thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, but hast fretted me in all these things; behold, therefore I also will recompense thy way upon thine head, saith the Lord God: and thou shalt not commit this lewdness above all thine abominations.44 Behold, every one that useth proverbs shall use this proverb against thee, saying, As is the mother, so is her daughter.

45 Thou art thy mother's daughter, that lotheth her husband and her children; and thou art the sister of thy sisters, which lothed their husbands and their children: your mother was an Hittite, and your father an Amorite. 46 And thine elder sister is Samaria, she and her daughters that dwell at thy left hand: and thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters. 47 Yet hast thou not walked after their ways, nor done after their abominations: but, as if that were a very little thing, thou wast corrupted more than they in all thy ways.

48 As I live, saith the Lord God, Sodom thy sister hath not done, she nor her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and thy daughters. 49 Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.

50 And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good. 51 Neither hath Samaria committed half of thy sins; but thou hast multiplied thine abominations more than they, and hast justified thy sisters in all thine abominations which thou hast done.

52 Thou also, which hast judged thy sisters, bear thine own shame for thy sins that thou hast committed more abominable than they: they are more righteous than thou: yea, be thou confounded also, and bear thy shame, in that thou hast justified thy sisters. 53 When I shall bring again their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her daughters, and the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, then will I bring again the captivity of thy captives in the midst of them: 54 That thou mayest bear thine own shame, and mayest be confounded in all that thou hast done, in that thou art a comfort unto them.

55 When thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters, shall return to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall return to their former estate, then thou and thy daughters shall return to your former estate. 56 For thy sister Sodom was not mentioned by thy mouth in the day of thy pride, 57 Before thy wickedness was discovered, as at the time of thy reproach of the daughters of Syria, and all that are round about her, the daughters of the Philistines, which despise thee round about. 58 Thou hast borne thy lewdness and thine abominations, saith the Lord.

59 For thus saith the Lord God; I will even deal with thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the oath in breaking the covenant. 60 Nevertheless I will remember my covenant with thee in the days of thy youth, and I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant. 61 Then thou shalt remember thy ways, and be ashamed, when thou shalt receive thy sisters, thine elder and thy younger: and I will give them unto thee for daughters, but not by thy covenant. 62 And I will establish my covenant with thee; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord: 63 That thou mayest remember, and be confounded, and never open thy mouth any more because of thy shame, when I am pacified toward thee for all that thou hast done, saith the Lord God.

Our Promise Keeping God

December 17

The expectation for the return of Jesus Christ to Earth is not new with our generation. The apostles were anticipatory of His soon return; they expected Him to come before they were martyred for their faith. Through all the generations since their time, believers have read the words of the Bible and concluded that the Lord will indeed come again.

Some of the scripture upon which this hope is based include those of Romans 8:22 where the Apostle Paul says, “For we know the whole creation has been groaning as in the pangs of childbirth up until this present time.”

Paul goes on to declare in I Thessalonians 4:15-18: “I can tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are alive when the Lord returns will not rise to meet Him ahead of those who are in their graves. The Lord Himself will descend from Heaven with a shout and with the call of the archangel and with the trumpet of God. First, all the Christians who have died will arise from their graves, then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we shall all be with Him forever, so comfort and encourage each other with these words."

The Bible also says, “When you see these things, look up, for your redemption draws nigh,” Mark 13:29, and the very human inclination is to be overwhelmed with fear at the thought of the calamity that is befalling the earth, but we must be bold as the Psalmist David who says in Psalm 27:

The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked came against me to eat up my flesh, my enemies and foes, they stumbled and fell. Though an army may encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war may rise against me, in this I will be confident. One thing I have desired of the LORD, that will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life....

Yes, our Earth is groaning with birth pangs. Frightful things are happening to believers simply because of their faith in Jesus, but be encouraged, for our Lord and Savior is coming soon!

The devil and his human minions are desperately trying to circumvent Christ’s return. They are endeavoring to move the Temple site; they scheme to divide the Holy City of Jerusalem. A cemetery has been placed at the spot where Jesus is prophesied to return because a High Priest is not supposed to tread among the deceased. But no scheme of hell or of man can stop the Holy One from returning at His appointed time!

The prophecy in Ezekiel about the valley of dry bones and the spirit of God breathing on them (Ezekiel 37) has been fulfilled. The prophecy of Isaiah proclaiming that a nation would be born in a day (Isaiah 66:8) was fulfilled on May 18, 1948. God has kept every promise to His people.

He has kept the Hebrew language alive through the Dispersion. Jerusalem has been reunited. God’s ancient people have brought to pass His promise that the desert would bloom like a rose (see Isaiah 35:1). He is a promise-keeping God! Every promise He has already kept assures us that Jesus will indeed keep His promise to return.

Are You Ready?

December 16

From the Holy City of Jerusalem, Jesus described our day.

In Matthew 24:2-44 He says, “See ye not all these things? Truly, I say to you, that there shall not be left here one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down.”

The passage goes on to tell us: “3 As he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when shall these things be? What shall be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the world?’

4 And Jesus answered them saying, “Take heed that no man deceive you. 5 For many shall come in My name, saying, I am Christ and they shall deceive many. 6 And you shall hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see that you be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in many different places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows. 9 Then shall evil men deliver you to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and you shall be hated of all nations for My name's sake. 10 Then many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. 11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. 12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall become cold. 13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness to all nations; and then shall the end come.

“15 When you see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place,16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains! 17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take anything out of his house: 18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. 19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! 20 But pray that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath. 21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.

“22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened. 23 Then if any man shall say to you, ‘Here is Christ,’ believe it not.

24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. 25 Behold, I have warned you. 26 So if they say unto you, ‘Behold, He is in the desert, do not go, or ‘He is in the secret chambers,’ believe it not. 27 For as the lightening comes out of the east and shines even to the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 28 For wherever the carcass is, there will the eagles be gathered together.

“29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: 30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in Heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of Heaven with power and great glory. 31 And He shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of Heaven to the other.

“32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When its branch is yet tender, and it puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near: 33 So likewise ye, when you shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. 34 Truly I say unto you, this generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. 35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away. 36 But of that day and hour no man knows, no, not the angels of Heaven, but my Father only. 37 But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, 39 and knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

“40 There shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 42 Watch therefore: for you know not what hour your Lord will come. 43 But know this, that if the good man of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.

44 Therefore, you be ready: for in such an hour as you think not, the Son of man shall come.

Jesus went to great lengths to expound upon the condition of the world at the time of His return. Many in our day mock the idea of the Second Coming of Christ, but the evidence described here points to the imminence of His return. Are you ready?

In Christ Alone

In Christ Alone Worship Video with Lyrics - YouTube
www.youtube.com/watch?v=8welVgKX8Qo Cached
Feb 16, 2007 · "In Christ Alone" music video featuring scenes from "The Passion of the Christ". It is sung by Lou Fellingham of Phatfish and the writer of the hymn is ...

When Heaven Seems Silent

December 15
Excerpt from: When Heaven Seems Silent by Mark and Tammy Endres

Are you believing God for something big—a healing, a loved one's salvation, a marriage restored or the fulfillment of a promise? There are many things we pray and believe God for on life's path and when the answer is delayed or the situation doesn't change it is easy to give in to disappointment.

Disappointment is hard, but the process of working through the delay can teach us valuable lessons and develop our character. A child given everything on demand can become arrogant, ungrateful, disrespectful, and selfish. On the other hand, a child who learns to wait and persevere is often humble, grateful, respectful and compassionate. Perseverance is a key in our being useful and fruitful for God (2 Peter 1:6-10).

One of the most amazing truths about God is that He empowers us to persevere in what He is calling us to do. The Bible gives us example after example of people who waited to see the fulfillment of promises God made to them. Abraham waited 25 years for Isaac to be born. Moses led the Israelites through the desert for forty years before they entered the promised land. David was anointed to be king as a youth, yet he didn't have access to the throne until years later. Mary, the mother of Jesus, waited more than 30 years to see her Son fulfill His destiny as the Messiah. All of these persevered through disappointment and all grew in character.

There is no doubt that persevering through obstacles allows us to develop patience. When we are disappointed, we can either learn patience or spend our days frustrated and angry. I think it's interesting that the love chapter in 1 Corinthians 13 starts with, "Love is patient." Patience is also a fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5:22.

Disappointment is an emotion, and emotions are neither right nor wrong. However, disappointment that is stuffed down and left to fester can tempt us to sin. Disappointment, if unresolved, can lead us to doubt God.

If we are aware of how doubt can take root in our hearts, we can dig it out before it has a chance to grow. In his teaching, "Tools for Healing Past Disappointments" Bill Johnson makes this statement: "I believe that one of the greatest conflicts to the flow of miracles in an individual life is unresolved pain in the heart from disappointment."

Bill goes on to describe how he handles disappointment. He says he gets alone with God and attempts to get "gut-level honest with no religious pretense."

He may tell God that he feels betrayed or that God didn't back him up. The next thing he says to do is vitally important:

"But here's the deal: you do not have the right to walk into the throne room, dump your garbage and then leave. If you're going to engage in that kind of encounter with the Lord: bring it, be honest and dump it, but stand there and wait for the Lord to respond."

Prayer is two-way communication. We should not initiate a conversation with God unless we have the time to listen for His response. Give Him a chance to comfort you. Desiring God's will also draws us into His heart. Pressing into God may not bring the answers we want, but it does bring security and hope.

Don't Forget:
• Regaining hope after disappointment usually involves a process of suffering leading to perseverance, perseverance leading to character and character leading to hope.
• Sometimes God calls us to press through and fight for answers, and other times He calls us to rest and wait for answers. There are times when God's answers are instantaneous, and we neither have to press in nor wait. We can know which action to take by asking Him.
• When disappointment begins to cause us to doubt God's goodness, we must be honest with God about our feelings and then wait for His response. We may not get to know why but we can get to know Him (see Jeremiah 9:24; John 17:3).
• Praying above our circumstances (by declaring the truth of God's Word) in addition to praying about our circumstances (sharing how we are feeling) can help us regain hope.
• Disappointment is not a sin, but it can tempt us to sin. We can either draw close to the heart of God in the midst of our disappointment, or we can distance ourselves from God.

World's Most Famous Photo

The Untold Story Of The World's Most Famous Photo

The Booster Rocket

December 14
The Booster Rocket by Oz Hillman

"After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses' aide: "Moses My servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them-to the Israelites." Joshua 1:1-2

A rocket launch is truly an amazing phenomenon to me. Tons of weight is stacked vertically to the sky with thousands of gallons of fuel exploding in a matter of moments. Soon the rocket drops its take-off boosters and uses additional boosters to move the rocket to the next stage of the mission. The first engines have a unique purpose...to get the rocket to the next stage.

Joshua was known for almost 40 years as "Joshua, servant of Moses." God's preparation for him required years of selfless service, training in the desert, and tests of faith. Those preparation years were booster rockets designed to move Joshua into each new stage of his development and his ultimate calling.

God allows each of us preparation times to lay a foundation that He plans to build on. Some of those foundation times appear to be laborious and meaningless, yet these varied experiences are what God is using to frame your life for the message He plans to speak through you. Without these foundational experiences, the Jordan River can never be crossed and we cannot enter the Promised Land.

Embrace these times of seeming inactivity from God. They, too, are a rocket booster to your next stage of your walk with God.

Being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus (Philippians 1:6).

Louis Pasteur by William Federer

December 13

"Something in the depths of our souls...tells us that the world may be more than a mere combination of events."-Louis Pasteur

Washing hands to prevent the spread of disease was recommended in 1844 to the doctors of the Vienna General Hospital by Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis. He had noticed that doctors would go straight from doing autopsies on those who died of puerperal fever to delivering babies and soon after the mothers would die of puerperal fever.

Nearly 25 percent of all mothers giving birth in hospital maternity wards died of puerperal fever, with epidemics sometimes reaching 100 percent. Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis was so ridiculed for his 'hand-washing' suggestion that he was forced to leave Vienna and eventually died in a mental asylum.

In America, Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., made the same suggestion and was similarly criticized by medical professionals. It was not until Louis Pasteur confirmed the existence of microscopic germs that 'hand-washing' became an accepted medical practice to prevent the spread of disease.

Dr. Joseph Lister in Scotland applied Louis Pasteur's studies of infectious microbiology to the pioneering of sterile surgery. "Listerine" antiseptic mouthwash was named for him. Dr. Joseph Lister stated: "I am a believer in the fundamental doctrines of Christianity," and told a graduating class: "It is our proud office to tend the fleshly tabernacle of the immortal spirit, and our path, if rightly followed, will be guided by unfettered truth and love unfeigned. In pursuit of this noble and holy calling I wish you all God-speed."

Louis Pasteur became a professor of chemistry at the University of Strasbourg, where in 1849 he married Marie Laurent, daughter of the University's rector. Tragically, three of their five children died of typhoid, which led him to research the causes and preventions of diseases. Louis Pasteur's study of micro-organisms and his germ theory revolutionized medicine.

Pasteur developed vaccines for rabies and anthrax, drawing on Edward Jenner's 1796 method of inoculating people from smallpox by "vaccinating" them with cowpox - ("vaca" being Latin for cow). Louis Pasteur laid the foundation for the control of tuberculosis, cholera, diphtheria and tetanus - diseases which had killed millions. Louis Pasteur along with Ferdinand Cohn and Robert Koch are considered the fathers of the science of microbiology.

Describing anaerobic (without oxygen) bacteria, Louis Pasteur commented: "The more I study nature, the more I stand amazed at the work of the Creator. Into his tiniest creatures, God has placed extraordinary properties that turn them into agents of destruction of dead matter."

In The Life of Louis Pasteur, by Rene' Vallery-Radot, Louis Pasteur is quoted, "Life is in the germ, it has been but in a state of transmission since the origin of creation." In an interview with the Mayor and the President of the Chamber of Commerce of Orleans, France, Louis Pasteur talked of: "Science, which brings man nearer to God."

Louis Pasteur, as Dean of the Faculty of Sciences at Lille University in France, researched how micro-organisms spoiled beverages, such as beer, wine and milk. In January, 1860, Louis Pasteur wrote to Chappuis (Vallery-Radot, Life of Louis Pasteur): "I am pursuing as best I can these studies on fermentation which are of great interest, connected as they are with the impenetrable mystery of Life and Death." Louis Pasteur developed the process of heating the liquids to kill most bacteria and molds, which became called "pasteurization.

"President Eisenhower wrote January 8, 1954: "Pasteurization of milk has prevented countless epidemics and saved thousands of lives."


As a young man, Louis Pasteur wrote to his sisters, November 1, 1840 (Rene' Vallery-Radot, The Life of Louis Pasteur, translated by Mrs. R.L. Devonshire, Vol. I, NY: McClure, Phillips & Co., 1902): "These three things, WILL, WORK, SUCCESS, fill human existence.

WILL opens the door to success both brilliant and happy; WORK passes these doors, and at the end of the journey SUCCESS comes to crown one's efforts. And so, my dear sisters, if your resolution is firm, your task...is already begun; You have but to walk forward... If perchance you should falter during the journey, a hand would be there to support you. If that should be wanting, God, who alone could take that hand from you, would Himself accomplish its work."

At his formal inauguration to the Faculty of Letters of Douai and the Faculty of Sciences of Lille, Louis Pasteur remarked, December 7, 1854: "Dans les champs de l'observation, le hasard ne favorise que les esprits préparés" (In the field of observation, chance favors only the prepared mind.)

President George H.W. Bush referred to this statement, February 13, 1989: "You know, Louis Pasteur once said: 'Chance favors only the prepared mind.'...For America to be prepared for the future, our children must be educated."

In a letter to his father, February 7, 1860, Louis Pasteur wrote: "God grant that by my persevering labors I may bring a little stone to the frail and ill-assured edifice of our knowledge of those deep mysteries of Life and Death where all our intellects have so lamentably failed."

Upon his father's death, Louis Pasteur wrote: "Dear children, the dear grandfather is no more... Until the last moment I hoped I should see him again, embrace him for the last time...He died on the day of your first communion, dear Cécile; those two memories will remain in your heart...I was asking you to pray for the grandfather at Arbois College. Your prayers will have been acceptable unto God, and perhaps the dear grandfather himself knew of them and rejoiced with dear little Jeanne over Cécile's piety."

In The Life of Louis Pasteur, written by Rene' Vallery-Radot, translated by Mrs. R.L. Devonshire, (Vol. I, NY: McClure, Phillips & Co., 1902, p. 257), Louis Pasteur wrote: "Great discoveries...introduce into the whole of Society that philosophical or scientific spirit, that spirit of discernment, which submits everything to severe reasoning, condemns ignorance and scatters errors and prejudices. They raise the intellectual level and the moral sense, and through them the Divine idea itself is spread abroad and intensified."

In the book, Louis Pasteur by Patrice Debre', translated by Eblorg Forster (John Hopkins University Press, 1998), Louis Pasteur is quoted as saying: "In each one of us there are two men, the scientist and the man of faith or of doubt. These two spheres are separate, and woe to those who want to make them encroach upon one another in the present state of our knowledge!"

President Lyndon B. Johnson stated April 7, 1966: "Years ago Louis Pasteur said, 'I hold the unconquerable belief that science and peace will triumph over ignorance and war; that nations will come together not to destroy, but to construct; and that the future belongs to those who accomplish most for humanity.'"

A Catholic, though sometimes described as a free thinker, Louis Pastuer died on SEPTEMBER 28, 1895 while listening to the story of St. Vincent de Paul, a French priest who escaped Muslim slavery in 1605 and helped found religious orders to care for suffering humanity in hospitals.

Shortly after his death, Louis Pasteur was attributed with the quotation: "The more I know, the more does my faith approach that of the Breton peasant. Could I but know all, I would have the faith of a Breton peasant woman."

His son-in-law described him, as recorded in The Life of Louis Pasteur (Rene' Vallery-Radot, 1911, vol. 2, p. 240): "Absolute faith in God and in Eternity, and a conviction that the power for good given to us in this world will be continued beyond it, were feelings which pervaded his whole life; the virtues of the gospel had ever been present to him.

Full of respect for the form of religion which had been that of his forefathers, he came simply to it and naturally for spiritual help in these last weeks of his life."

Being one of the first European scientists to reject the evolutionary theory of spontaneous generation, Louis Pasteur insisted that life only arises from life, stating: "Microscopic beings must come into the world from parents similar to themselves... There is something in the depths of our souls which tells us that the world may be more than a mere combination of events."

Follow His Infallible Word

December 12

“God can give you more blessings than you need so you will always have plenty of everything—enough to give to every good work,” II Corinthians 9:8.

“My God will use His wonderful riches in Christ Jesus to give you everything you need,” Philippians 4:19.

“I tell you to believe that you have received the things you ask for in prayer, and God will give them to you,” Mark 11:24.

“We are not saying that we can do this work ourselves; it is God who makes us able to do all that we do,” II Corinthians 3:5.

We see a pattern of promises in the above verses that is repeated over and over throughout the Word. The frequent repetition of these promises is indicative to us of their significance to the Holy God who made them.

When we ask Him for spiritual treasure, when we desire that great spiritual gifts be entrusted to us, we are often reluctant to ask for them. We rationalize our inhibition by telling ourselves that if He wants us to have extraordinary gifts, they will be ours without asking; for He will simply impart them to us.

Jesus Himself stated in Mark 4:24 that we would have the things for which we ask in prayer, if we would but believe that they are ours. The two requisites to our receiving are that we ask and that we believe. Nowhere does He say that He will lavish His spiritual treasure upon those who do not care enough about it to beseech Him for it.

Another important point is that God wants to give us unsparingly of His finest spiritual gifts, and His reason for desiring to impart much of His eternal treasure upon His people is rooted in His desire that from our abundance we will “give to every good work,” II Corinthians 9:8.

The Lord predicates His gifts to us upon His desire that they flow from Jesus. It is His will that all we do in the behalf of His Kingdom’s purposes be recognized as flowing from the riches we have in Christ, not out of our own abundance (see Philippians 4:19.)

The reality is that nothing we do for the sake of the eternal Kingdom of the Living and True God can be achieved through temporal treasure. We can spend all we own without accomplishing anything of significance for the Kingdom of Christ, but we cannot contribute one jot or title of the Heavenly treasure He imparts to us without it accruing greatly to the spiritual welfare of our fellow sojourners through Earth’s dark valley.

With His own infallible Word to lead us, may we follow Him in giving to all mankind of the “unspeakable gift” (see II Corinthians 9:15) that has been entrusted to us.

Hebrews, Chapter Ten

December 11
HEBREWS, Chapter 10

The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. 2 Otherwise, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. 3 But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins. 4 It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

5 Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said:
“Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; 6 with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased.7 Then I said, ‘Here I am—it is written about me in the scroll—I have come to do your will, my God.’”

8 First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them”—though they were offered in accordance with the law. 9 Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. 10 And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
11 Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, 13 and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. 14 For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

15 The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says: 16 “This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord, I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.”

17 Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.” 18 And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.

A Call to Persevere in Faith
19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

26 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. 28 Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”[d] and again, “The Lord will judge his people.”[e] 31 It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

32 Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you endured in a great conflict full of suffering. 33 Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. 34 You suffered along with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. 35 So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.

36 You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. 37 For, “In just a little while, he who is coming will come and will not delay. “But my righteous[g] one will live by faith. And I take no pleasure in the one who shrinks back.” 39 But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved.

Care for the Souls of Men

December 10

"We ourselves speak proudly of you among the churches of God for your perseverance and faith in the midst of all your persecutions and afflictions which you endure," 2 Thessalonians 1:4

Some people believe they will walk the rest of their days on a bed of rose petals when they give their hearts to Jesus. It’s easy to arrive at that conclusion—especially if you live in the United States of America. This is the land where one can hardly turn on the TV without coming upon religious programming, and it is a well-known fact that many religious broadcasters are extremely wealthy.

The palatial homes and lavish life-styles of those who seem to preach the Gospel for personal gain would indicate—that for some at least—God holds out great temporal reward to those who preach Christ’s Eternal Kingdom. Of course, I have no right to name their names or to judge their hearts, but the verse does come to mind which says, “’Lord, Lord, didn’t I prophecy in Your name and didn’t I do mighty works in Your name?’ and He will say, ‘Depart from Me. I never knew you,’” Matthew 7:22.

Yes, most of us would like to enjoy lavish creature comforts. Most of us would prefer to have great wealth than to live in poverty or to be one of the ordinary folks in the work-a-day crowd. Most of us strive to save money, invest well, and accrue a nest egg that will suffice us at times of crises or for our old age. We hope to have something of value to bequeath to our children when we’re gone. We want our cup to be more than half full.

But, most of us work toward these desired ends by employing our own ingenuity, our own skills, our own resources toward attaining them. We do not use the preaching of the Word of God and the sharing of the good news of the free gift of salvation provided by Jesus Christ in order to obtain great wealth for ourselves or to set up a preaching dynasty that we bequeath to our children.

In reflecting upon today’s introductory verse, it seems the opposite is required of those who profess to walk in faith in Christ. Those who endure persecution and affliction in service to Him are the ones who are well-spoken-of by the Apostle Paul. They are the ones whose faith and perseverance He declares. They are the ones to whom the Lord Himself will say, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant. Enter ye into the joy of the Lord,” Matthew 25:23.

To those who gain vast personal wealth through the preaching of the Word, a plea for self- reflection may be in order…do you prefer temporal gain or eternal blessing? Are you truly serving the Living Christ through your ‘ministry’ or are you serving your own self- interests? Do you care for the things about which Jesus cares—the souls of men—or do you care about the aggrandizement of your worldly coffers? Your answers to those questions may determine your eternal destiny.

When the Tempter Comes

December 9

“Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread. But He answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God,” Matthew 4:3, 4.

Jesus had been led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit and while there, He had fasted for 40 days and 40 nights. By the end of this long period of time, He had probably lost the initial pangs of hunger and had entered a state of emaciation associated with prolonged periods without food.

It was at this time when He would have been aware that further prolongation of His fast would be devastating to His physical well-being that His archenemy satan approached Him with the taunt that He had the power to relieve His hunger then and there. The evil one was suggesting that the Divine Second Member of the Triune Godhead had every right to resort to turning stones into bread in order that His own need might be met.

Of course, Jesus could have done that, just as He could have negated the ravages of starvation upon His body, but He did neither. Instead, He quoted the Word of Truth, “It is written, man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God,” Matthew-4-4.

The temptation did not end at this point of victory for the Lord, for the evil one was not finished with his assault on the Holy One. At this juncture, he took Him to the pinnacle of the temple and again quoted scripture to Him. Here he said, “If You are truly the Son of God, cast Yourself down from here for it is written that God shall set His angels around about You that You may not dash Your foot against a stone,” Matthew 4:6.

Jesus’ retort to this blasphemous use of His power was, “It is written that you must not tempt the Lord your God,” Matthew 4:7.

With this clear denunciation of abusing the power He possessed, Jesus should have been done with the temptation of satan, but He indulged him one more attempt at breaking His own commitment to leave the trappings of deity (see Philippians 2:6, 7).

In Matthew 4:8-11, we see the following scenario unfold: the archenemy of our Almighty God takes Jesus to a high mountain and shows Him all the kingdoms of the earth. We may suppose that this includes not only all the peoples and governments of that day but of all future religious and political systems that would ever exist on planet Earth.

The evil one posed to Him a proposition: simply worship me and I will give all these kingdoms to You. There will be no need for a cross; simply bow before me and You can have it all without any cost to yourself. In other words, You, Jesus, will be my administrative chief while I attain the worship of the people as god.

Jesus refused this blasphemous scheme with the words, “It is written that you shall worship only the Lord your God and HIM only shall you serve.” At this juncture, the devil left Him, realizing his attempts to undermine the plan of salvation were futile.

This requires us to ponder the God-ordained purpose of our calling. It requires us to evaluate our methods of living life. Do we, "Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness,” trusting that as we do, all these things will be added," according to Matthew 6:33? Or do we seek gratification for our needs and desires through the world’s compromised methods?

Do we trust the truth of God that He will supply what we need? Lord Jesus, help us to have complete confidence in our Heavenly Father who promises us that He shall provide our needs through You by His riches in glory, according to Philippians 4:19.