Days of Praise

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March 13, 2022
Lean Not
“For, behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stay and the staff, the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water.” (Isaiah 3:1)

Isaiah lived and wrote during a time of spiritual poverty in the nations of Judah and Israel, as well as national decline. He foresaw and foretold in graphic detail the coming captivities of both nations, but was particularly concerned with the state and future of his homeland, Judah, and his hometown, Jerusalem.

The first several chapters of his book consist of a strong denunciation of the practices of the people of Judah. The nation was literally disintegrating due to rampant sin. In preparation for the coming national and ultimate judgments, Isaiah warned against personal pride and reliance on human resources. “The loftiness of man shall be...made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day” (2:17).

In our text, the words “stay” and “staff” are the masculine and feminine forms of the same word, both derived from the word meaning “support,” translated “stay of bread.” Thus, Isaiah uses this idiom and the next several verses to teach that God will remove any semblance of support for this sinful people, whether mighty man, soldier, judge, prophet, seer, elder, captain, artist, orator, or mature ruler (3:2-4), for the purpose of humbling them, “the people shall be oppressed,...every one by his neighbour” (v. 5), and demonstrating that the Lord, Jehovah Himself, could be their only real stay or staff. “In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious” (4:2).

The word “stay” is elsewhere translated “lean,” “rely,” or “rest.” “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6). JDM

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March 14, 2022
Stir Up
“Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance.” (2 Peter 1:13)

It is apparently rather easy, in this day of football games, rock concerts, and race riots, to get the emotions of a crowd all stirred up. The stirring of emotions can be either good or bad, of course, depending on the cause.

In our text, the apostle Peter says we need to be stirred up by our memories—that is, our remembrances of His “great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature.” For “he that lacketh these things,” said Peter, “hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins” and urgently needs “to have these things always in remembrance” (vv. 4, 9, 15).

Something else needs to be stirred up, said Paul to Timothy. “Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God” (2 Timothy 1:6). Each believer has received certain gifts from God, but these need to be stirred up and used both boldly and wisely for Christ.

Finally, Peter says that the purpose in writing both his epistles was to “stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance: That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour” (2 Peter 3:1-2). This was written especially for “the last days” (v. 3), indicating that they should stir up, not their emotions, but their minds! To meet the critical needs of the last days, they should have their minds full of the Scriptures of both Old and New Testaments. These Scriptures should even be memorized, if possible, so they can be called up “by way of remembrance” whenever needed. The Holy Scriptures are simple enough to be received by a child, yet they can stir up our minds with their heights and depths, and will stir our hearts as well. HMM

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March 15, 2022
A Bondslave and a Freeman
“Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God.” (Romans 1:1)

Paul identified himself as a “servant [literally ‘bondslave’] of Jesus Christ” as he began several of his epistles; and it is significant that he began the epistle to the Romans in the same fashion. The parallel phrase “bondslave of the emperor” was commonly used in governmental and commercial circles of the day, and the readers in Rome would fully understand the meaning of the new term.

The emperor of Rome not only was to be obeyed as a human slave owner and king, he also was to be worshiped as a god. Paul boldly proclaimed himself to be the bondslave of a different slave owner, the subject of a different King, and the worshiper of a different God.

Paul knew and expected to convince his readers that this new doctrine he was preaching would quickly replace the imperialism of Rome, and he fully realized that this challenge would quickly be recognized and fought by Rome. Paul himself, not many years hence, would stand before the emperor Nero, not as an imperial bondslave, but a bondslave of the King of kings.

Long before Nero’s executioner freed Paul from the limitations of his physical body, Paul had been made a “freeman of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 7:22). The common title of the day “freedman of the emperor” designated a bondslave of the emperor who had been elevated by the emperor to a higher position.

Paul had been, and all believers have been, ransomed out of the slave market of sin by Christ’s blood and have been set free from the guilt, power, and penalty of that sin. Our willing response should be to permanently place ourselves into enslavement to our Redeemer, making us simultaneously both bondslaves and freedmen of the King. JDM

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March 16, 2022 David's Army “David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave Adullam: and when his brethren and all his father’s house heard it, they went down thither to him. And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men.” (1 Samuel 22:1-2) As David was fleeing for his life from King Saul, a rather pitiful and unpromising company began following him, and they became the nucleus of what would soon be his army. Others joined them, and David trained them, “for at that time day by day there came to David to help him, until it was a great host, like the host of God” (1 Chronicles 12:22). Soon they were no longer discontented misfits but a remarkable array of “mighty men” (v. 21). One group, for example, was said to be “men of war fit for the battle,...whose faces were like the faces of lions, and were as swift as the roes upon the mountains” (1 Chronicles 12:8). In many remarkable ways David was a type of Christ, his life foreshadowing the experiences of the greater “son of David” who would come a thousand years later. In such a parallel, his army is a type of the earthly “host of God,” the great company of those who have chosen to follow Christ, each of whom has been called to “endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ” (2 Timothy 2:3). The followers of Christ were once also in distress, for the “base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen” (1 Corinthians 1:28). He is now “the captain of their salvation” (Hebrews 2:10), urging that each one should strive to “please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier” (2 Timothy 2:4). When He is finally ready to take the Kingdom, these will be with Him in His triumphant return and eternal reign (Revelation 19:14; 22:5). HMM

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March 17, 2022
He Who Made the Stars
“Seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The LORD is his name.” (Amos 5:8)

This striking exhortation is inserted in the midst of a prophetic rebuke by God of His people Israel. They were rapidly drifting into pagan idolatry, and Amos was trying to call them back.

His exhortation, given almost 2,800 years ago, is more needed today than it ever was before. Modern pagan scientists have developed elaborate but absurdly impossible theories about the chance origin of the universe from nothing, and the evolution of stars, planets, and people from primordial hydrogen. But the mighty cosmos and its galaxies of stars—even the very constellations, such as Orion and the Pleiades (the “seven stars”), as well as the solar system—were made. All of these had to be made by an omniscient, omnipotent Creator, who certainly had a glorious purpose for it all.

Similarly, the global evidences that waters once covered all the earth’s mountains (i.e., marine fossils and water-laid sediments at their summits) cannot possibly be explained—as evolutionary geologists try to do—by slow processes acting over eons of time. God, the Creator, had to call massive volumes of water forth from their original reservoirs and pour them out on the earth in His Flood judgment on a rebellious world.

All of these witness to the fact of creation and judgment, not to impotent “gods” personifying natural forces. Men urgently need to seek the true God of creation and salvation before judgment falls again, for “it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:31). HMM

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March 18, 2022
The Flesh of a Little Child
“Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.” (2 Kings 5:14)

The familiar story of Naaman the Syrian was cited by the Lord Jesus as an example of God’s concern for people of all nations: “Many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus [Elisha] the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian” (Luke 4:27). It is also a striking picture of salvation.

Naaman was a great and highly acclaimed general but nevertheless was stricken with an incurable and loathsome disease. Similarly, any natural man, no matter how powerful, is afflicted with the lethal disease of sin. Before this proud official could be cured of his leprosy, he had to humble himself in several ways. First, he had to accept the advice of a slave girl from an enemy nation; then journey to that nation and its prophet, whose God his own nation had repudiated; travel still farther at the word of the prophet (who would not even come out to meet him); and, finally, immerse himself seven times in the despised river Jordan. Though he resented being so humiliated, his condition was hopeless otherwise, so he finally did all these things, and God marvelously healed him!

The leprous flesh became as the flesh of a little child again, but first he had to manifest the obedient faith of a little child. The same principle is true for every lost sinner. “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up” (James 4:10). Jesus said, “Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:3-4). HMM

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March 19, 2022
The Terror of the Lord
“Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences.” (2 Corinthians 5:11)

The use of the English word “terror” in this verse as a translation of the Greek phobos (from which we get our word “phobia”) indicates that the frequent Old Testament phrase “fear of the LORD” means much more than implied in the modern euphemism “reverential trust.” The only other New Testament use of this phrase is in Acts 9:31: “Then had the churches rest...and were edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied.”

These two passages seem to be informing us that when a church is “walking in the terror of the Lord,” its members will be seeking every means whereby to “persuade men” to come to Christ, and therefore its numbers will increase.

This impassioned persuasion of the lost is motivated by knowledge that “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:10). That is, we know that the Lord Jesus, who died for lost sinners and has commissioned us to tell them of His great salvation, will be highly displeased if we don’t do so, or if our testimony is compromised by our selfish lives. At His judgment seat, “the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is....If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire” (1 Corinthians 3:13, 15).

The terror of the Lord, when we appear before Him in that day, is not the only motive for witnessing, of course. “The love of Christ constraineth us,” and when our testimony is received (our motives being “manifest unto God” and even to the “consciences” of those to whom we witness), then the glorious result is “a new creature” in Christ! (2 Corinthians 5:14, 17). HMM

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March 20, 2022
Statement of Christ's Purpose
“For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you.” (John 13:15)

Schools, businesses, and institutions are all well-advised to develop and live by a “statement of purpose” if they are to be successful, evaluating each activity by its effectiveness in fulfilling that purpose.

As Christians, we should also have a well-defined purpose. Each individual’s specific purpose will vary somewhat, depending on that person’s giftedness, background, and circumstances; but since Christ is our example, each Christian’s statement of purpose should reflect His priorities and values.

In many ways, Mark’s gospel provides the most vivid and explicit insight into the work of Jesus, and in this book we see Jesus often repeating His statement of purpose. “Jesus came...preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying...repent ye, and believe the gospel” (Mark 1:14-15). Jesus Christ had come with the specific purpose of saving the lost, and everything He did pointed to that end. “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (2:17).

Christ not only preached to sinners, but He trained and sent out His followers to see that His mission was effectively carried out, even after He was gone. “And he called unto him the twelve, and began to send them forth....And they went out, and preached that men should repent” (6:7, 12). Regarding His approaching death, He explained: “The Son of man came...to give his life a ransom for many” (10:45). As He left them, He commanded, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (16:15).

Our priorities should be the same as His. If everything we do points toward this end, His mission will thereby be accomplished. “Whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it” (8:35). JDM

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March 21, 2022
By Any Means
“And because the haven was not commodious to winter in, the more part advised to depart thence also, if by any means they might attain to Phenice, and there to winter; which is an haven of Crete, and lieth toward the south west and north west.” (Acts 27:12)

This seemingly insignificant phrase “by any means” (Greek ei pos) is actually used to express the urgency of attaining some object sought, along with the means for its attainment. It occurs just four times in the New Testament, and it is interesting that these four occurrences seem to follow a significant order.

The first of them is in our text above and expresses a search for physical comfort, as the mariners, transporting Paul to Rome, sought by any means to find a convenient place to spend the winter.

The second expresses Paul’s search for spiritual ministry. When Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome, he told them of his constant prayers: “Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you. For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established” (Romans 1:10-11).

Thirdly, there was his search for conversion of others. “For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office: If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are my flesh, and might save some of them” (Romans 11:13-14).

Finally, and most importantly, there was Paul’s (and, Lord willing, may it be ours also!) search for a Christ-centered life. “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead” (Philippians 3:10-11). HMM

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March 22, 2022
The Word of the King
“Where the word of a king is, there is power: and who may say unto him, What doest thou?” (Ecclesiastes 8:4)

Perhaps the archetype of absolute monarchs was Babylonia’s King Nebuchadnezzar, of whom the prophet Daniel could say, “Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory” (Daniel 2:37). The word of this and every true king was with power, the king being answerable to no man but himself, for his authority came from God. “For there is no power but of God” (Romans 13:1). Many kings have had to learn this truth the hard way, however, for they have found that God could remove them as quickly as He had ordained them when they abused that power.

But there is one King who will never fall; one “who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings;...to whom be honour and power everlasting” (1 Timothy 6:15-16). The Lord Jesus Christ has asserted, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth” (Matthew 28:18), and one day all creatures in heaven and Earth will acknowledge: “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things” (Revelation 4:11). In that day all “the kingdoms of this world [shall] become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever” (Revelation 11:15).

This one, who is King of all kings, is also the One who is “called The Word of God” (Revelation 19:13). The word of this King is of such power that He could speak the mighty cosmos into existence. His word could calm a violent storm and call Lazarus back from death.

“The word of God is quick, and powerful” (Hebrews 4:12), and “his word was with power” (Luke 4:32). Therefore, “all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen” (2 Corinthians 1:20). HMM

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March 23, 2022
The Mystery of Darkness
“And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.” (Revelation 22:5)

The Bible reveals that “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5), and also that, in the ages to come, there will be no more darkness. God promises twice that there shall be “no night there” (Revelation 21:25; 22:5) in the very last references to night in the Bible.

Why, then, is there darkness, and where did it come from? God gives the answer: “I am the LORD, and there is none else. I form the light, and create darkness” (Isaiah 45:6-7). Light was always in and with God, but the darkness had to be created! And it has a purpose, serving as a contrast to the light.

Men and women were created to love and have fellowship with their Creator, not as robots but in freedom. Darkness thus served as the choice that could be made against God and the light, for those so minded. Satan and his hosts of fallen angels and wicked spirits have become “the rulers of the darkness of this world” (Ephesians 6:12). The tragedy is that ever since Adam, men have “loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil” (John 3:19), and so have been practicing “the works of darkness” (Romans 13:12), and deserving nothing but “the blackness of darkness for ever” (Jude 1:13).

But our Creator has become our Redeemer. He “hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light” (1 Peter 2:9), paying the great price for our redemption on the cross. The Father “hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son” (Colossians 1:13); we are now free to enter into the eternal fellowship with God that He had planned before the world began. We should “have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them” (Ephesians 5:11). HMM

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March 24, 2022
God's Son in the Old Testament
“I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.” (Psalm 2:7)

There are many today (especially Muslims, Jews, and Christian “liberals”) who are monotheists, believing in one supreme God but rejecting the deity of Christ. They argue that the doctrine that Jesus was the unique Son of God was invented by the early Christians and that the God of the Old Testament had no Son. Orthodox Jews in particular emphasize Deuteronomy 6:4: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD.”

The fact is, however, that there are a number of Old Testament verses that do speak of God’s only begotten Son. Note the following brief summary.

First, there is God’s great promise to David: “I will set up thy seed after thee,...I will be his father, and he shall be my son....thy throne shall be established for ever” (2 Samuel 7:12, 14, 16).

Consider also the rhetorical questions of Agur. “Who hath established all the ends of the earth? what is his name, and what is his son’s name, if thou canst tell?” (Proverbs 30:4).

Then there are the two famous prophecies of Isaiah, quoted so frequently at Christmastime. “Behold, a [literally ‘the’] virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel [meaning ‘God with us’]” (Isaiah 7:14). “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given:...and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).

Perhaps the most explicit verse in this connection is our text. “The LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son” (Psalm 2:7). Then this marvelous Messianic psalm concludes with this exhortation: “Kiss the Son,...Blessed are all they that put their trust in him” (Psalm 2:12). HMM

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March 25, 2022
His Word Is with Power
“And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power.” (Luke 4:32)

God’s words, whether spoken by Jesus or written in Scripture, are indeed full of power, and it is noteworthy how many and varied are the physical analogies used to characterize and emphasize its power.

For example, consider Jeremiah 23:29. “Is not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?” The fire analogy is also stressed in Jeremiah 20:9, when the prophet became weary of the negative reaction against his preaching: “Then I said, I will not...speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.”

God’s Word is also called a sharp sword wielded by the Holy Spirit. As part of the Christian’s spiritual armor, we are exhorted to take “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesians 6:17). “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).

Even more significantly, perhaps, it is compared to light, for light energy is really the most basic of all forms of energy, or power. “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light to my path.” “The entrance of thy words giveth light” (Psalm 119:105, 130). The first spoken words of Christ our Creator were “Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3).

But no earthly form of power can compare to the power in the words of the One who is Himself the living Word of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, for He is actually “upholding all things by the word of his power” (Hebrews 1:3). HMM

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March 26, 2022
The New Heavens and New Earth
“For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.” (Isaiah 65:17)

There is a glorious future awaiting the redeemed. Although God’s primeval creation of the heavens and the earth is eternal (note Psalm 148:6, etc.), these are now groaning in pain under the effects of sin and the curse. When the Lord returns, they will be “delivered from the bondage of corruption into...glorious liberty” (Romans 8:21), and God will make them all new again, with all the scars of sin and death burned away by His refining fires (2 Peter 3:10).

There are four explicit references in the Bible to these “renewed” heavens and Earth. In addition to our text, which assures us that they will be so wonderful that this present earth and its heavens will soon be forgotten, there is the great promise of Isaiah 66:22: “For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.” Thus, that heavens and Earth will remain eternally, and so will all who dwell there, with their true spiritual children. Note also that both God’s “creation” and “making” powers will be applied to the new heavens and new earth, just as they were to the first (Genesis 2:3).

The third and fourth references are in the New Testament. “Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness” (2 Peter 3:13). Not only will no sin be present there, neither will the results of sin and the curse. “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away;...And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away” (Revelation 21:1, 4). HMM

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March 27, 2022
God’s Grace Is Sufficient
“And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9a)

How many times have we been in dire situations and then looked back later and realized that we miraculously got through only by God’s grace? Leading up to this Scripture, Paul spoke of some unspecified continuing affliction God was allowing him to endure to humble him. Paul requested three times to have the affliction removed and then gave this direct message from the Lord Jesus in response to his repeated requests.

To the Greek reader of this passage, the thing that would have immediately jumped out from this section of the epistle is the contrast in verbal tenses. Paul’s request was recorded in the simple past tense (aorist), indicating an action that is completed rather than ongoing. In contrast, Christ’s message that starts with “he said” is derived from the Greek verb ereo in the perfect tense, which indicates an initial action with continuing application and ongoing effect.

Another important point in this ongoing application is that the verbs for “is sufficient” (arkeo) and “made perfect” (teleioo) are in what is known by grammarians as timeless or durative present tenses. In other words, Christ’s grace and strength are a present and active truth in every moment of the believer’s life!

Thus, Paul could then say, “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore, I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Corinthians 12:9b-11). JPT

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March 28, 2022
God of All Grace
“The God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” (1 Peter 5:10-11)

This passage lists another name for God in the New Testament—the God of all grace. Peter ends with amen, indicating that this is a prayer in which Peter is calling upon the God of all grace to “perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle” the suffering believers.

Not only do we desperately need God’s grace in the trials of life, but our faith journey also began in grace. Indeed, Ephesians 2:1-3 describes the terrible and hopeless state of Paul’s readers before their salvation. As unregenerate sinners, they were not only spiritually dead in their sin but enslaved to the ways of Satan according to the sinful desires of the flesh and the mind, being ultimately destined for God’s wrath.

Then God’s grace-alone remedy is given in Ephesians 2:8: “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.” And this amazing grace is not just for our original deliverance and the sustaining work of salvation, but for all eternity. “That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:7).

Thanks be to the God of all grace, “for thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee,” and “thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, long suffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth” (Psalm 86:5, 15). JPT

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March 29, 2022
The Lord Our God Is One
“I and my Father are one.” (John 10:30)

In this short but profound verse, Jesus claims deity and oneness with God the Father. The Jews who had encircled Him in the temple had said to Him, “If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly” (John 10:24). Instead, Jesus gave a discourse on who the true followers (sheep) of Christ were, claiming unity in the work of salvation with the Father. He said, “Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand” (v. 28), and “no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand” (v. 29). This is followed with “I and my Father are one,” which prompted the crowd to try and stone Him.

Their heated response was rooted in the writings of Moses, specifically Deuteronomy 6:4: “Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God is one LORD.” A more literal rendering of the Hebrew is “hear, Israel [imperative command]: Yahweh our Elohim [is] Yahweh—One.” Yahweh is the unique name of God, and Elohim is the grammatical plural of God (El), giving veiled reference to the Trinity toward which Jesus is now making a startling revelation.

When Jesus claims unity with the Father, we have the added bonus of its specificity being written in Greek, in which the word for “one” is hen, which is neuter as opposed to the masculine form heis. This distinction preserves the trinitarian aspect that is one in purpose and will with the distinction of its individuals.

And of God’s Son, John tells us in his gospel that Jesus is the Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the Light of the World, the True Vine, the Good Shepherd, the Bread of Life, and that all things were made by Him, our Creator. JPT

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March 30, 2022
A Lesson from Idolatrous Handiwork
“Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not: They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not: They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat.” (Psalm 115:4-7)

The overriding lesson in this Scripture passage is the solemn admonition that we shouldn’t worship anything, including the works of our own hands, above the living God, our Creator Jesus Christ. The modern equivalent of this idolatry is the mental construct of a mystical imaginary process of nature selecting and crafting creatures—otherwise known as Darwinian evolution. This fake agent put in the place of an omnipotent Creator God is not only idolatrous but also devoid of solid scientific evidence both currently and in the fossil record.

But there’s more to glean from this text. One of humans’ unique features is their ability to purposefully engineer and craft elaborate things. This is one aspect of being created in God’s image (Genesis 1:27) as compared to other living creatures. In these verses, the Lord uses this fundamental and inherently understood principle to highlight idolatry in a contrastive scenario, human engineering vs. God’s engineering. In the modern world of bioengineering, research scientists across the world use this same perception of design to imitate the elaborate systems created by God that are found in living creatures, whether they want to acknowledge it or not.

Thus, humans inherently perceive design. “For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made…so that they are without excuse” (Romans 1:20). JPT

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March 31, 2022
God of Peace
“Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen.” (Romans 15:33)

This short verse gives yet another New Testament name for God—the God of peace. The conclusion of this verse with amen tells us that what Paul said isn’t just a wish but a brief prayer. Paul uses this title again in another short prayer in 1 Thessalonians 5:23: “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” And in Hebrews 13:20-21: “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.”

This God title is also mentioned in Philippians 4:8-9 regarding the battleground of the mind: “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. 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.”

And let us remember that the Lord Jesus, the Prince of Peace, told us, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (John 14:27). JPT

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April 1, 2022
God of Love
“Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.” (2 Corinthians 13:11)

The title the “God of love” declared by Paul near the close of his second epistle to the Corinthians is another one of the New Testament’s descriptive names for God. But this title is especially unique because the apostle John tells us that “he that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love” (1 John 4:8). And again in verse 16, “we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.”

When John says “God is love,” he isn’t making an ontological declaration about what God is in essence but rather saying that God is loving in all His activity, and love is His essential quality and nature. In fact, the use of the Greek noun agapé (love) is without an article in this statement, indicating a nonsymmetrical relationship. In other words, the relationship between God and love is not equational, and thus it isn’t reversible to claim “love is God.”

In 1 John 4:9-11, John clarifies God’s incredible love toward us as revealed in the redemption provided through Jesus Christ: “In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” And the practical personal application in our lives is made clear: “Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.” JPT

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April 2, 2022
The Workmanship of God
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10)

The Greek noun poiēma (“workmanship”) is only used twice in the New Testament, which is noteworthy given that at least eight different noun options existed in this particular semantic domain that Paul could have used. In contrast, the verb from which it is derived (poieō, to do or to make) is quite common and used 576 times in the New Testament. Significantly, ancient pagan Greek literature typically used poiēma to refer to works of divine creation, which Paul has appropriated for two of his epistles to refer to the true Creator.

In this amazing workmanship of salvation, we literally become new creatures (2 Corinthians 5:17), created for good works that God prepared beforehand in order “that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). One of these scripturally mandated works is to “be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15).

This mandate to be prepared to share our faith in the midst of an increasingly evil world leads us to the second place where God’s workmanship (poiēma) is proclaimed. Romans 1:20 boldly points out the obvious handiwork of God: “For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made [poiēma, handiwork].”

Our mighty Creator God, the Lord Jesus Christ, has done the groundwork for us in creation and redemption, and it’s our responsibility to tear down the vain imaginations of evolution and point to His workmanship. JPT

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April 3, 2022
Learning to Make This Day Count
“So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12)

The book of Psalms is divided into five “books.” Book 4 begins with the oldest psalm written by the psalms’ oldest author, Moses. This book was assembled after the Babylonian captivity following the Jews’ return to Jerusalem during the lifespan of Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah.

Book 4 contains many parallels, including between Israel’s 40 years of desert wandering and the Babylonian captivity. Both scenarios, sadly, came about because a disobedient generation of Israelites defiantly rebelled against God.

Why put this psalm at the beginning of Book 4? The Holy Spirit through the pen of Moses wanted to impress on God’s chosen people then and now that there is only one Person in the universe who will teach His children to live in obedience. That person is Yahweh! God doesn’t want His people to repeat the same mistakes of the past, living life in disobedience apart from God’s wisdom. Think about the 40 years of wasted wandering and another 70 years in exile as a result of ignoring God’s precious Word.

Before we, living in the 21st century, cast proverbial stones at these people, let’s ask ourselves this question: How are we ordering our lives and allowing Yahweh to teach us so that we may “gain a heart of wisdom” as we live out the few numbered days we have on this earth?

Our goal as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ should be to refrain from following the same sinful patterns of disobedience depicted in this psalm and make this day count for Yahweh. CM

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April 4, 2022
Follow Me
“And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.” (Matthew 4:19-20)

It was not unusual for a man with a political cause or message to develop a following in the Israel of Jesus’ day (see Acts 5:35-37, for example). It was even common for a Jew to follow a religious “master,” calling him Rabbi and becoming his disciple. But what made the disciples leave the lives they knew and follow Christ? Perhaps they hoped He would lead a successful rebellion against Rome, but He had done nothing to make them think so. Nor had He promised them a life of luxury and ease, but rather hardship and hard work in their new occupation as “fishers of men.”

However, John the Baptist had prepared the way for the Lord. He had trained at least most, possibly all, of the men who would eventually become Jesus’ disciples. “John stood, and two of his disciples; And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God! And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus” (John 1:35-37). Training by John even became a requirement for a potential replacement for Judas (Acts 1:20-22).

But a credible witness in John was not their only reason to follow, for they had a great body of compelling evidence. For example, Luke records in Peter’s case, Christ had already gained local recognition (Luke 4:14-15). Jesus had been to Peter’s house for dinner, where his mother-in-law had been healed (4:38-39). Christ had used his boat for teaching (5:3) and had miraculously directed them to an overwhelming catch of fish (5:6). In response, Peter and his partners “forsook all, and followed him” (5:11).

We have a much surer testimony and much more evidence. Should we not do likewise? JDM

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April 5, 2022
Arrows in the Hand
“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 15 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 be by David, one by Solomon; the other 10 are anonymous.

A reasonable supposition, however, is that they were composed by King Hezekiah after he had been miraculously healed of a lethal illness. “I will add unto thy days fifteen years,” God had said, and gave Hezekiah a miraculous sign as confirmation, causing the shadow on the sundial of Ahaz to go “backward ten degrees” (2 Kings 20:6, 10). In thanksgiving thereof, the king proclaimed, “Therefore we will sing my songs...all the days of our life in the house of the LORD” (Isaiah 38:20).

It is significant that the word for “degrees” is the same in both cases. It apparently means “steps” or “ascents.” The shadow miraculously ascended 10 steps back up the sundial after it had gone down, and Hezekiah’s life was miraculously extended 15 years. Perhaps, therefore, “my songs” mean the 10 songs the king composed in commemoration of the 10 degrees. He then added five songs of David to round out the total to 15, corresponding to his added “days of our life.” And right at the center was his great testimony to the blessing of children. He was childless at the time, but he had a son three years later (2 Chronicles 33:1) by whom he was able to continue the Messianic line promised to David through Solomon. HMM

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April 6, 2022
Like a Wave of the Sea
“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.” (James 1:5-6)

A contrast is set up in these verses between faith and doubt. Jesus taught that “if ye have faith, and doubt [same word as ‘waver’ in our text] not ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive” (Matthew 21:21-22).

James explains that a doubter can be compared to ocean waves. Waves (in contrast to the tides that are caused by the gravitational attraction of the moon and sun) are caused by wind that imparts energy to the ocean water that scarcely attenuates until the wave crashes onto the shoreline, perhaps many miles from its original source of energy. A wave cannot stay in one place. It surges onto the shore and recedes backward. It rises up and sinks down. It contains much froth, as well as great energy, which cannot efficiently be harnessed for good but has the potential to cause great damage.

What an elegant picture of the doubting, half-believing soul. Willingly receiving onward and upward impulses, he cannot sustain them, quickly sinking to former depths, only to rise again, in an endless cycle, until ultimately dissipating all energy on some rocky shoreline of life. “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways” (James 1:8).

In much the same way, Paul urges that we “be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ” (Ephesians 4:14-15). JDM