The first martyr to die for his Christian beliefs was Stephen…a very persuasive public speaker who gave a very masterful, clear and concise presentation of the Gospel Message. And it was for this that he was stoned to death by a furious mob who refused to listen. The Greek word for martyr means witness…a steadfast refusal to compromise in the face of suffering…with their witnessing of Jesus Christ becoming the actual cause of their death. Stephen was the first, but many followed in their unwavering faith to bring light and truth to a very dark world regardless of the persecution…the Apostle James, Apostle Simon Peter, and the Apostle Paul all were martyred for their faith. So I wonder if it was just a coincidence that Peter wrote in I Peter 4:12-19, exhorting fellow Christians that suffering and persecution was part of God’s Will, and that they needed to stand firm in their faith, refuse to back down, remain unafraid of what may happen, and entrust their souls to God.
Category: Daily Inspirational Devotional
Proverbs 9:13-18 ” The woman Folly is loud; she is undisciplined and without knowledge. She sits at the door of her house, on a seat at the highest point of the city, calling out to those who pass by, who go straight on their way. ‘Let all who are simple come in here!’ she says to those who lack judgment. ‘Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!’ But little do they know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of the grave.”
Folly, the opposite of wisdom, is personified in this passage. While wisdom offers rewards that are more valuable than riches, (Proverbs 8:10-11) foolishness recommends the excitement of forbidden activities…a “getting away with” something prohibited…all the while offering immediate gratification and appealing to our very base human appetites. Very often, folly masquerades as “wisdom-like”, but where wisdom is disciplined, humble, and trustworthy…folly is full of seduction, swagger, and deception…and in the end, the result is never good.
“Those things which we allow to take the chief place in our hearts have the most power to give us grief.”
Both in Matthew and Luke Jesus warns us that we can not serve two masters…we either serve the living God or in these verses, the love of money. While again, in Matthew 23:8, Jesus exhorts us to not fall into the temptation of exalting ourselves with titles, and the self-seeking of authority and honor…thus, serving ourselves not God. So as Believers, we must constantly remember that, ” Sin shall not be your master…” (Romans 6:14) or as Paul continues in verse 16, we are slaves only to the one we obey…that being either death or obedience to God. But besides these examples, we also can’t allow the masterful dominion of our heart with greed, resentment, lust, pride, or hatred….all which can and will only cause us unending grief and suffering.
Daniel 2:19 ” During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven.”
In the second chapter of Daniel, King Nebuchadnezzar had troubling dreams, so he summoned all his magicians, enchanters, sorcerers, and astrologers to not only interpret these dreams, but tell him what he had witnessed in the first place. As might be expected, none of these wise men could explain the dreams, so in a fit of rage, the king ordered the execution of all the wise men of Babylon…including Daniel and his friends. When the commander of the king’s guard arrived at Daniel’s home, Daniel spoke to him with wisdom, tact, and good sense rather than reacting out of fear or anger. He then sought time from the king, and as all of Daniel’s friends prayed and pleaded with God for mercy, the mystery of the king’s dreams were revealed to Daniel in a vision. This stands as an excellent example of how Believers should relate to those in authority. There must be respect, going through proper channels, and not challenging anyone’s authoritative position…for we are to obey our leaders and submit to their authority, (Hebrews 13:17) and in addition, we are to pray for those in authority over us. (I Timothy 2:2).
God promises – You can know how great His love is for you.
God loves you despite yourself. (Ephesians 2:4) For God loves all of humanity without distinction. (John 3:16) How do we know? If I asked you to sacrifice your child for a stranger, would you be able to do it? Yet, God willingly gave up His precious and beloved Son, demonstrating His infinitely more costly love…by not withholding His only Son to die in our place. (Romans 8:32) Why did He do it? So that God could show us His everlasting love… in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us so we might be reconciled to God the Father. (Romans 5:8) More than 700 years prior, Isaiah heralded this great love to us, the unworthy, when he wrote, “For to us a child is born, to us a Son is given….”
God’s promise – You can know His power.
John 1:3 says, “Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made.” So in other words, as Colossians 1:16 tells us, when God created all things, there was nothing that preexisted, and He created everything out of nothing. (Hebrews 11:3) Thus, if we can somehow wrap our heads around this kind of power…our heads will surely explode with the concept that the same power that raised Jesus Christ from the grave will also raise us up. (I Corinthians 6:14) For when we are “buried” in baptism, we are then “raised up” with Him through faith in the powerful work of God in our lives… Who by His power, raised Jesus (and us) up from the dead. (Colossians 2:12) So in the end, God promises that we can truly know and have confidence in this kind of power… as we grow deeper and deeper in wisdom and fellowship with Him.
God’s promise – His Word can build your faith.
Romans 10:17 tells us that, “Faith comes from hearing the Message, and the Message is heard through the Word of God.” It was the Protestant Reformation and Martin Luther who declared that justification by faith alone was the article upon which the Church stood or fell. And this faith in the Gospel Message was then seen as the cardinal doctrine in the Reformation’s battleground back then, and even now. It’s this type of “saving “faith that goes beyond head knowledge to heart knowledge…it’s a “living” faith, not just an empty profession of trust with no commitment…and it’s a very “personal” faith trusting in Jesus Christ alone not only as Savior, but as Lord. We are to let the Word of Christ dwell in us richly, (Colossians 3:16) and then believe what we have heard…(Galatians 3:2-5) both building our faith and trust in God’s Word…one confident hope in His promises at a time.
God’s promise – strength, comfort and hope can be yours.
We can glean much from God’s Word in these three verses in Psalm 119. Verse 28 says, “My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to Your Word.” In Jeremiah 45:3, Baruch, Jeremiah’s scribe, echoed these very words when he lamented, “Sorrow has been added to my pain; I am worn out with groaning and find no rest.” Nothing can zap our strength like sadness, sorrow, and mourning. It seems like never ending days that transcend into unending nights filled with tears, anxiety, and exhaustion. But God’s Word is quick to reassure us that He gives strength to the weary, (Isaiah 40:29) and with Him, we can stand strong in the midst of it all. In verse 50 we see that our comfort from our suffering and affliction comes from this… God’s promises preserve our life…His compassion and consolation helping us to gain back our life as we dwell in His Word. Finally, verse 114 tells us that God is our refuge and hiding place, so we can confidently place our hope in Him as we rest under His protective hand.
God’s Promise – You can walk in healing and deliverance.
One of the most hope-filled Scriptures found in the Bible is Psalm 107:20, “He sent forth His Word and healed them; He rescued them from the grave.” This verse not only shows God’s steadfast love and compassion, but the Word’s power and effectiveness, and God’s readiness to answer the prayers of His people. This promise is filled with redemption and hope that we can walk in healing and deliverance just as David did in Psalm 56:13, “For You have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light .” For even though David was in terrible danger, he chose to turn his lament into gratitude for God’s protection and willingness to save him….turning David’s fear into faith.
God’s Promise – You can walk in God’s Will for your life.
Psalm 119:105 says to us, “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” We don’t have to travel through this uncertain and scary life on a darkened highway filled with pitfalls, hidden dangers, and booby-traps. God’s Word and His Divine Revelation can provide insight and guidance as to a lamp shining in a dark place…illuminating the road ahead. (II Peter 1:19) For when we accept God’s commands, we learn from them…gaining Godly wisdom, insight, and perspective in the process. That’s because His Word is reliable, showing us how to live our very best life. And as we walk in God’s Will, we’ll see that it is very personal, practical, and powerful… with His plan & purpose for our life fitting perfectly within who we are.
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