May 20 – Being Known as His

“Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, men who have gone astray from the truth saying that the resurrection has already taken place, and they upset the faith of some. Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, “The Lord knows those who are His,” 2 Timothy 2:17-19 (NASB)

Don't be like Hymenaeus and Philetus, who Paul called out. Our passage today is from three verses of 2 Timothy chapter 2 bringing us a truth and promise from God.  Every person putting his or her faith in Jesus Christ as Savior has this assurance⸺that God knows about it. He is aware of our faith. God welcomes each of us into His family. He knows us personally and we can know that we belong to him because of that knowledge.  Hymenaeus, named in 1 Timothy 1:20 and again here had first with Alexander and then with Philetus later spread false teaching about the resurrection and created a crisis among believers in Ephesus. Paul calls them out and reassures Timothy, and us, that God is intimately acquainted with each of us. That is what our verse means when it says, “The Lord knows those who are His.”  Our heavenly Father has a personal connection with each of us who by faith believe. This gives us a special assurance, doesn't it? We have a special confidence and encouragement today that God knows each of us and He knows just were we are and what we need. A cause to  rejoice.

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February 18 –Chosen and Blameless

“He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.” – Ephesians 1:4 (NASB)

 

One blessing which we’ve received – is defined in our verse. It is God’s choosing of us by Himself for Himself. And all that God does for us is in His love. Imagine being called to play on a community softball team. When you show up you discover that you don’t have to qualify to make any of the teams. There are no try-outs. In fact you’re already accepted as qualified. A long time ago, it became a done deal the same for every member of the team. You’re asked to do your very best in every game for the coach and teammates. But this is not the way it works in community sports is it? Rather it depends on who you know and who knows you. It depends on how well others have seen your play. Can you catch? Can you throw? Can you hit? We might see our lives as Christian the same way. Strive to do good enough to qualify, hope we’re accepted, and we must live as good Christians. But God made His choice of us to be holy and blameless before Him way back before he made the world before we existed too.

 

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March 4 – God’s Questions - Finding God in Job Part 2

“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding.” - Job 38:4 (ESV)

God answered Job’s “Why?” questions with a great deal of pointed interrogations. God asked: “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much.” One such question would have been enough for Job, but it isn’t enough for God.  God pours out the questions to Job and holds him accountable for his presumption of knowing and understanding God’s ways. Like a furious waterfall, or huge breakers, questions burst forth. Questions dash against the walls in the chambers of Job’s heart. God’s questions to Job aren’t intended to teach; they are intended to shock. They aren’t intended to stir the mind; they are intended to bring him to his knees.  “Shall a faultfinder contend with the Almighty?” God pins Job’s ears to the wall. “Whatever is under the whole heaven is mine” (Job 41:11). Job has no argument, no snappy comeback. Our Sovereign God owes no one anything. No explanations, no excuses. It’s this astounding fact that flattens our feeble human reasoning in wonder and awe that God has given us anything at all⸺including his only begotten Son Jesus to die in our place for our sin. 

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The book of Job is not easy to read or to understand. When trying to grasp its truth as a whole, it seems nearly unreachable. Thanks to the daily devotional “All Up Words” by Max Lucado. Acknowledgement and thanks for some of these ideas is given to his words        https://maxlucado.com/listen/gods-questions/

October 9 – Blameless

“…just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.”   Ephesians 1:4 (NASB)

Context is important because it is from the context that we can learn the full meaning and intention of a passage.  Such as this one. The immediate context includes verse 4 and runs through verse 14. Which runs too long for the format we use so we will divide it over a few days. Paul continues his discussion of believers’ spiritual blessings by showing that they are based on the work of the three Persons of the Trinity: the selection of the Father (vv. 4–6), the sacrifice of the Son (vv. 7–12), and the seal of the Spirit (vv. 13–14). The first word, sometimes translated ‘for’(NIV), is better rendered “just as” or “even as.”  It connects God the Father’s choosing from eternity past as part of the heavenly blessings we learn about in verse 3. We receive the spiritual blessings as believers are because of and on the basis of the work of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. God choosing us in Him so that we would be holy and blameless before Him. This is the only way for us to be blameless, through the work of Christ Jesus and the Holy Spirit. 

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April 6 – It Comes To Pass

“In his days Hiel the Bethelite built Jericho; he laid its foundations with the loss of Abiram his firstborn, and set up its gates with the loss of his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the Lord, which He spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.”  - 1 Kings 16:34 (NASB)

We know God fulfills his word because He promises to do so.  Most days we consider promises of blessings from God.  Sometimes these promises call for a certain preparation on our behalf.  Today’s promise is of a different kind.  When God says that something will be or will come to pass, it will.  Jericho, was the first city in Israel’s Promised Land to be destroyed by the hand of God. God declared all was to be destroyed (except the treasures which were kept for God and Rahab’s family). Nothing else was to be spared or taken as booty. The re-fortification of Jericho was forbidden by God, who had supernaturally destroyed it so God then put a curse on the city through Joshua’s prediction.  Whoever was to rebuild Jericho would lose their first born son at the beginning and the last born son at the finish.  The eldest and the youngest sons of Hiel, a man living during the time of the wicked King Ahab, died just as God promised when he rebuilt Jericho. Today’s verse gives us the fulfillment of that promise.  What God promises, comes to pass.

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November 12 – Pure and Godly Happiness

“These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”  -  John 15:11 (ESV)

Have we ever taken time to consider that our God is a Happy God and why He has so much joy?.  These words Jesus was saying to his disciples, just prior to His arrest  which lead to his execution by crucifixion.  It is nearly impossible to imagine Jesus, knowing what was soon to happen experienced joy and was wishing His joy to fill his disciples.  God the Father was allowing His One and Only Son to be lead to the cross to die.  He so loved the world that He gave us Jesus and the result of His gift is our opportunity for salvation.  God's happiness was the foundation of His delight in what was happening and what it meant to the world. That was what He was so Happy about, the worst thing imaginable would bring the best thing possible for us.  That was His joy and should be our joy if we know now why it all had to happen.   

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July 3 – Loved From Before Time

“Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.”   John 17:24  (ESV)

Jesus prayed this way for His followers on the night he was arrested and eventually crucified.  These words express His desire for those who had followed him during his ministry and had walked with Him.  We believe that He intended to and did include all who would follow Him from then on.  Yes, we believe this prayer includes us all and that Jesus is planning for us to be with him in heaven.  Our promise today is that one day, we will be with our Lord and Savior in heaven able to worship God and see Him in His full glory.  Jesus is in heaven now and He wants us to see it and to experience it.  He is also with us here and is helping us to prepare us for that experience.  If we all trust in Jesus as our Savior now, we can look forward to a glorious eternity.  All this was provided from before time, before the foundation of the world. 

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June 22 – Where We Are, He Is

“Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.”  John 17:24 (NASB)

Remember that the evening before Jesus was crucified, He prayed a prayer which is recorded in the Bible by John in Chapter 17. Jesus was praying for His disciples as He was leaving them. He was also praying for those who would believe on Him through the message of salvation they would be telling the world. (v. 20*) These words in our verse reveal our Lord's great love for us. He wanted His followers to be with Him in heaven even though they had not be perfect as they had followed Him.  We remember how they had disappointed Jesus at times. They failed Him often but He still wanted them to with Him in heaven. We remind ourselves of this promise often that Jesus is continuing to pray for us in heaven. Even though we often fail Him He is still anxious to bring us through. Yes, we believe that He is still praying for you and me as He prayed to His Father in the verse we have selected today.  One day we will be with Jesus where He is and today He is with us where we are, and loving us.

* “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message,”  John 17:20 (NIV)

May 20 – Being Known as His

“Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,”” 2 Timothy 2:19a (NIV)

The truths that we have in the Bible are expressed in varying ways.  Today's verse brings us a precious truth and promise.  Each and every person who puts his or her faith in Jesus Christ as Savior has this assurance that God knows about it – He is aware of our faith. God welcomes each of us into His family. He knows each of us personally and we can know that we belong to him because of that knowledge.  God is not a distant “man upstairs” but he is intimately acquainted with each of us. That is what our verse means when it says, “The Lord knows those who are His.”  Our heavenly Father has a personal connection with each of us who believe. This gives us a special assurance, doesn't it? We have a special confidence and encouragement today that God knows each of us and He knows just were we are and what we need. Today, let's rejoice in this promise.   

February 26 – Perfect Peace

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” Isaiah 26:3 (ESV)

We receive a very marvelous promise in our verse today. It is a promise that proves itself through the difficult times we encounter.  Our God is one who never changes. He is a God who keeps His promises and we can always depend on Him to meet our needs every day, in every situation.  Although our situations change from pleasant to challenging God never changes. That is why the secret of true peace in our hearts and minds is to fix our thoughts and our aspirations on our unchanging God – not on our own understanding. Trusting in God is like building on an unshakable foundation and keeping our mind anchored in the truth we learn from God and His Word. So, let's base our thoughts on God's faithfulness. Our verse says that this will give us perfect peace. Who can improve on that?  Of course, nobody can. Trust in God – He will keep you in perfect peace no matter what you might face today, or tomorrow or ever in your future.  

January 13

“Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.” Psalm 55:22 (NIV)

We are thinking especially today of one special word in this verse.  It is the word “sustain.” We think of this word as being made-up of two words in a long ago language. It really means to hold up from underneath. So the promise of our verse today is that if we allow God to take care of things that are a burden for us he will do that and will also hold us from underneath. Our verse also says that He will not let us fall if we allow Him to handle problems for us – he will not allow us to be shaken off our foundation which is Himself.  God wants to carry our burdens and also to carry us. Let us never forget the promise of this verse.