Category: Daily Inspirational Devotional

To just look at a tree in the orchard, the untrained eye may see nothing wrong….but come harvest-time, anyone will be able to see the empty branches and barrenness. Jesus spoke of this in Matthew 7:15-16 when He warned, “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them.” Outwardly, a person may seem honorable, and with good character…their message may be attractive and on face value ring true. But with time, the words they speak will reveal the true condition of their heart…whether good and healthy, or bad and diseased. For just as a blind guide can only lead others astray, a false teacher can only produce false disciples.

If you never use the gifts God has given you, you are like an empty manger…a food trough, or life, that contains nothing or is full of uneaten grain…either way, meaning your oxen are not working. Our strength is found in our giftings, but for many of us we falter out of fear in actually using them in God’s service. But remember, these God-given gifts were not given to us to hoard or hide, but they were given for the common good of all and to build up the Church. (I Corinthians 12:7 & 14:12) Your manger will remain empty if you never accept the cost… for if anything is to be accomplished in your life for God, you need to work your oxen.

Back in the Old Testament, Jeremiah wrote of the New Covenant coming where the law would be not just learned but written on our hearts. In John, Jesus told His disciples that the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, would come in His Name and would teach them all things and would remind them of everything He had spoken to them. So as Believers, we too have been gifted with this anointing, God setting His seal of ownership on us and putting His Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. (II Corinthians 1:21) The Holy Spirit is our very best teacher, protecting us from falsehoods and deception…always speaking the truth and reminding us of the words of Jesus. But it’s our responsibility to listen and obey the promptings of the Holy Spirit and not pridefully ignore Him…for He is also a gentleman and His still small voice can be easily blotted out by the world’s din and our rebellious nature.

Ruth’s mother-in-law, Naomi, had lost everything and everyone important to her. She had watched as the severe famine had taken her husband and both sons…leaving her destitute, alone, and abandoned. One of her daughter-in-laws had returned to her own people…but Ruth choose to remain and return with Naomi to Bethlehem. But why? Why was Ruth so emphatic in her need to go with Naomi? Ruth looked behind her and saw her godless nation of Moab…she then looked forward to the land of her adopted family that was once Naomi, Elimelech, Mahlon, and Chilion, and made her choice to forsake her past to pursue her future. When Ruth said, “Where you go I will go.” she was saying, I will not only physically walk with you Naomi assisting, serving, and honoring you, but I will walk spiritually in relationship with your God, seeking after Him until He becomes my God too.

Paul’s writing here was straightforward and very direct. In three simple sentences he laid out the gist of the Gospel Message and the meaning of Sanctification. Jesus taught us to love one another, love our neighbor as ourselves, love our enemies, and to love God. When we live in harmony with one another there’s peace and fellowship and exactly what Jesus, the Prince of Peace, came extoling us to do. And as we allow the Holy Spirit to move in our lives, there is the sanctifying renewal of our minds called Sanctification, and with it comes humility…a realization that irrational arrogance, pride, and vanity is far from what Christ wants for us. We are not to seek great things for ourselves, (Jeremiah 45:5) but rather be a servant to all.

On the one hand, this verse could cause us to bristle with indignation and resistance. How dare God think He can do whatever He sets His desire on in my life! Don’t I even have a say in what’s happening? We could then be like Job and complain out loud, “We can’t dispute what God does.” (Job 9:3) In other words, we can’t cross-examine God, quizzing Him on His motives. So in the end we could end up blaming God, bitter for what has happened in our life, and very unhappy. But if we look at this verse from the viewpoint of God’s sovereign control, we can then rest in His decisions. For even though we may often not understand, we can still trust that God will always accomplish His perfect plan and purpose in our life. Isaiah 55:11, a very familiar passage, reminds us, “So is My word that goes out from My mouth: It will not return to Me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” The bottom line is…the Lord’s word, by which He governs history, always carries out His desires…perfectly timed, perfectly executed, perfectly perfect.

These verses give us a beautiful picture of the early Church. From meeting together daily in the Temple to praise and worship the Lord, to sharing meals together and celebrating the joy of the Lord in what they called Table Fellowship… the early Church was united with mutual love and concern one for another. And this kind of lovingkindness did not go unnoticed…for their Christ-like actions and attitudes spoke volumes to those unsaved watching them…”And the Lord added to their number daily.” So what can we take from these verses? Maybe the Church today needs to go back to the basics of the early Church, changing focus from building programs to building up people, from disunity and descension in the pews to unity, righteousness, peace, and joy within the walls…so that others may see our fruit and desire what we have.

” Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne.” (Psalm 97:2) In other words, the bedrock of God’s heavenly reign here on earth is honest and truthful, unswerving in adherence to His standard of fairness and divine judgment. God does not judge arbitrarily according to His whim. He never adjudicates His power in an unrestrained or tyrannical manner…that’s because God’s judgment is always fair…always full of integrity…always full of truth.

This verse boils down to one word…unbelief… and whether you’re a Christian or not, you need to be alert for the clever and cunning deception of the world today that will make you question the validity of the Gospel Message. Jesus Christ came preaching salvation for all, but many rejected Him, even though as a Son He spoke on behalf of his Father. He warned of the consequences of rejecting His divine and absolutely binding Word. But still even today people refuse to believe the truth and turn away from the Gospel. But it’s not just unbelief we need to be on guard against but also the subtle nature of deception that introduces doubt and reluctance that can be just as damaging in our life.

The only way to expel the darkness from your life and allow the light in, is to give yourself away. It’s too easy to become introspective and cut off from the world when distress and suffering comes into our lives. We tend to look inward, absorbed with our own thoughts and feelings, unaware of the poverty around us. And as depression and anxiety grows within us, so does the darkness…shrouding our way out of our misery. But it tells us here to give ourselves to the hopeless condition of others…taking our eyes off our own circumstances. The result is an attitude adjustment on our part….a renewed trust in the Lord, relying on His faithfulness to bring us through our trial…and an assurance that regardless of the challenge we’re going through, nothing will stop God’s plan and purpose from being put into effect for us or the people we’re helping. Darkness will give way to light, or as Isaiah 42:16 tells us, “I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.”