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The Family of a Disciple June 4, 2012   "Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee. And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God’s sake, Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting." (Luke 18:28-30)  Unfortunately, this and parallel passages have been wrongly used all too often to justify the abandonment of responsibilities to family in the name of following Christ.  ...

Arrows in the Hand May 25, 2012  "As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth." (Psalm 127:4)  This is the central verse in the 101 verses contained in a remarkable group of fifteen psalms called "The songs of degrees" (Psalms 120-134). The central verse in the central psalm of this group is the preceding verse: "Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward" (Psalm 127:3). The origin of these psalms and this peculiar superscript has always been uncertain. Four are said to...

God's Complete Supply May 24, 2012  "But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:19)  The key to this promise in today's verse is the need that must be met by the riches of the Great King as we render our service in His Kingdom. But how vast those needs can be and how different the supply is!   Millions of Israelites needed food in the wilderness, and the manna came fresh from heaven each day for 40 years (Exodus 16:35). Gideon needed victory over the innumerable Midianites, and...

A Test for False Prophets May 10, 2012  "Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him." (Deuteronomy 13:4)  Our text for today seems somewhat out of place, for it is tucked into a passage dealing with false prophets: instructing the people of Israel in ways to detect one who would lead them into false worship. The penalty was death, "because he hath sought to thrust thee away from the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land...

Watching for Christ's Return May 8, 2012  "Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. . . . Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh." (Matthew 24:42, 44)  Those who try to predict Christ's return may become skeptical about biblical prophecy. But this would be a sad mistake. Regardless of just when it will happen, Christ will return, for so He promised, and He cannot either lie or fail. He has repeatedly made it plain that no one can determine the date of...

He Counted Me Faithful May 7, 2012  "And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry." (1 Timothy 1:12)  The testimony of a changed life is perhaps the best evidence that God is alive and active today. The fact that at salvation a dead slave to sin is given life and a new nature, comprises the only rational explanation for one who lives in victory and power after a lifetime of defeat.   Take Paul, for example. Our introduction to him is at the stoning of...

The Trinity in Salvation May 2, 2012  "How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" (Hebrews 9:14)  There are a number of significant references to the work of all three Persons of the Trinity in the great work of salvation. Note the implicit reference to the Trinity in our text: "The blood of Christ . . . through the eternal Spirit offered . . . to God." There is also a beautiful Trinitarian implication in Ephesians 2:18:...

The Power in Us May 1, 2012  "Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us." (Ephesians 3:20)  This amazing assurance of God's unlimited ability to answer our prayers is related to a unique "power [Greek dunamis] that worketh in us." Paul had used the same word twice before in this same epistle, speaking of "the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe," and "the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power"...

Christ the Foundation April 30, 2012  "For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." (1 Corinthians 3:11)  The only sure and lasting foundation, for either a Christian institution or an individual Christian life, is the Lord Jesus Christ. No other foundation will endure in that coming day when "the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is" (v. 13).   It is vital, therefore, to build on the foundation that Christ Himself has laid. This is laid in three courses, each of which is essential for its permanence. First...

The Godhead April 23, 2012  "For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily." (Colossians 2:9)  The term "Godhead" occurs three times in the King James translation. Each time it translates a slightly different Greek noun, all being slight modifications of the Greek word for "God" (theos, from which we derive such English words as "theology"). It essentially means the nature, or "structure," of God, as He has revealed Himself in His Word.   The first occurrence is in Acts 17:29: "We ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone,...

Pay Attention April 20, 2012  "Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you." (Philippians 4:9)  From earliest childhood, we learn by watching the actions and lives of others. First, of course, our parents, then our peers and educators, politicians, business leaders, musicians, celebrities--the list is nearly endless. We learn by what we receive, hear, and see.   Jesus said, "They shall be all taught of God" (John 6:45). The foundational learning process that enables the receiving and hearing of further truth must...

Blessed Assurance April 17, 2012  "And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever." (Isaiah 32:17)  As expressed in the old gospel hymn, the "blessed assurance, Jesus is mine" is a "foretaste of glory divine." According to our text, this "assurance for ever," together with true peace of soul and quietness of spirit, are products of the "work of righteousness."   The New Testament exposition of genuine righteousness makes it clear that we who have received Christ's work of righteousness by faith have been "made the righteousness of God in...

Boldness in the Holy Place April 16, 2012  "Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus." (Hebrews 10:19)  In the ancient tabernacle only the High Priest was allowed to enter the "holy of holies" to commune with God, and that only once a year, on the great day of atonement. This most holy place was separated from the rest by a very heavy veil. When Christ died, however, as the one final and perfect sacrifice, "the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom" (Matthew 27:51).  ...

Peaceful Security April 13, 2012  "And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:7)  This precious promise is rooted in the "garrision guard" that God will set around our hearts and minds through His peace. Imagine the war circle of angels "full of horses and chariots of fire round about" that Elisha spoke of (2 Kings 6:17).   And it is a war! "But I see another law in my members," Paul wrote, "warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law...

Gospel by Revelation April 12, 2012   "But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ." (Galatians 1:11-12)   In writing to the believers in Galatia, Paul was concerned that they were "so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel" (v. 6).   What was Paul's gospel that he was so concerned about? "Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and...

The Same Mind April 11, 2012  "Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment." (1 Corinthians 1:10)  The days of the early church were the days of its greatest power because they were days of its greatest unity. "They, continuing daily with one accord . . . and singleness of heart." "And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and...

A Good Name April 10, 2012  "A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one's birth." (Ecclesiastes 7:1)  It seems odd at first that Solomon would link these two maxims together. How is the day of death better than birth, and what has this to do with the value of one's good name? The great king had once enjoyed a name synonymous with godliness and great wisdom, but his name had eventually become so sullied with the excesses of wealth and fleshly indulgence that he began to long even for...

Judgment Is Coming April 9, 2012  "So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God." (Romans 14:12)  There is only one thing that is absolutely sure to happen to every person--everyone will have to face God some day. Not even "death and taxes" are certain for every one, but meeting God for an accounting of one's life is certain!   Therefore, as the prophet Amos warned some 2,500 years ago: "Prepare to meet thy God, O Israel" (Amos 4:12). "It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment" (Hebrews 9:27).  ...

Born to Die April 6, 2012  "For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45)  Especially as noted in the Gospel of John, Christ identified many reasons why He had been born. Consider the following sampling of verses and references. First and foremost, Christ came to redeem those who would believe: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16). But under that umbrella...

Careful for Nothing April 5, 2012  "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God." (Philippians 4:6)  Many of us know those types of precious people who seem to thrive on making sure the details are right. They keep us careful, insure our safety, and strengthen our plans, and yet that same strength can lead to anxiety, troubling our souls and dominating our lives. Our verse today warns us about this facet.   Our Lord gently admonished in Luke 10:41: "Martha, Martha, thou art careful and...