Year: 2021

“God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son…” Hebrews‬ ‭1:1-2‬ ‭KJV‬‬. What a wonderful thing this is that our Creator God, Who spoke in so many ways through man’s history, would choose to speak to us through His Son. For centuries past He had spoken through the patriarchs, prophets and kings. But when Jesus came on that first Christmas, God was choosing to speak to us through His Own Son. Before, He had sent messengers to proclaim His Word, but now the Son of God, the Living Word, came to dwell among men and speak the message of God’s heart of love. And we should realize that Jesus not only spoke those amazing words recorded for us in the Gospels, but everything He did as a Man speaks to us. His birth, His perfect life and His sacrificial death all speak clearly to those who will listen. Thank God, His atoning death on Calvary’s cross speaks to us of the great love God has for fallen man! So let us rejoice and open our spiritual ears to hear the message of God’s Son.

“For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them: But Thy right hand, and Thine arm, and the light of Thy countenance, because Thou hadst a favour unto them.” Psalm‬ ‭44:3‬ ‭KJV‬‬. In these verses the psalmist is reflecting on how the Israelites obtained the land of promise. It was not by their physical strength or abilities. It was not because they were better or lived more upright lives. It was all by God’s power and His unmerited favor to them. Today, there are many who imagine that the spiritual position they are in, is because of something good in them. As if God blessed them because they were better or stronger than others. But let us all humbly acknowledge, that we are what we are by the grace of God! It was not by our goodness or strength that we possess the spiritual land we do. In fact, it is in spite of who we were that God is able and willing to work in our hearts and lives. He is the One Who first sought us, not the other way around. It was His power that lifted us up from that pit of sin we were in. It is He Who keeps us and secures our soul each step of the way. So let us give Him the glory for everything.

“Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judæa in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭2:1-2‬ ‭KJV‬‬. What a different world we would have if more people were seeking Jesus as these wise men did. We see the signs at this time of year which say “Wise men still seek Him”, and that certainly is true. We prove that God’s divine wisdom is working in our hearts when we seek Jesus. But do we pause to think about how earnestly they sought Jesus? They laid aside everything else that was going on in their lives in order to seek Him Who they believed was the new born King. They sought Him over hundreds of miles and weeks of traveling. They sought him at great personal cost. And they sought Him until they found the One their souls longed for! But today, do we realize, that we must seek Jesus with all of our hearts? We must seek Him first above all others and all else that is going on. More than once God reminds us in His Word, “ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart”.

“O send out Thy light and Thy truth: Let them lead me; Let them bring me unto Thy holy hill, and to Thy tabernacles. Then will I go unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy…” Psalm‬ ‭43:3-4‬ ‭KJV‬‬. Many people seek for understanding, or light, for many different reasons. There are many in religion who claim to be seeking truth, in order for some personal gain. But these words remind us that the ultimate purpose of light and truth is to bring us to God. At the birth of Jesus, there were 3 wise men who were led by light and truth. For them, the light was physical, leading them to the right place. And it was the truth of the coming Messiah King that moved them to begin their journey. But the important thing is, they were led to Jesus! They were led to humble themselves in worship and devotion before the newborn King. Every honest soul should be seeking to be led by light and truth. But in all of our seeking, let us ask ourselves, “Is this bringing me closer to God?” If we are truthful people, this should be the test for everything that we are seeking after. So let us seek truth with all of our hearts! But make sure what we are seeking is drawing us closer to Jesus. As Paul writes, ‘knowledge puffs up in pride’, but the truth will always lead us to Jesus.

“The people which sat in darkness saw great Light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death Light is sprung up.” Matthew‬ ‭4:16‬ ‭KJV‬‬. These words were the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy about the coming of Jesus, the Messiah, into this world. When Jesus came, He was the Light of the world! Souls who had long been held captive in the darkness of sin, could finally see the Light. People who had lived in the dark prison house of hopelessness and despair could now rejoice that Jesus came to shine His light into the darkness! And for over 2000 years, His blessed Light has continued to shine in this dark world. There have been times, similar to what we are living in now, where the persecuting powers of evil tried to extinguish the Light of Christ in His church. Cruel men have made great efforts to stamp out the True Light of Jesus and to eradicate Christianity. But thank God, we have this assurance, that His Light will continue to shine! You may be in a time of personal darkness in your life. But hold on, because the Light is still shining! Soon the dark clouds will lift, and the Blessed Light of the Risen Saviour will lighten your soul.

“Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD…” Hosea‬ ‭6:3‬ ‭KJV‬‬. There are many people who hesitate in the life of faith because they do not know or understand things, because they can’t get their questions answered. And certainly, there is much in our human existence that is difficult to comprehend. But the question we should ask ourselves is, do we want to follow Christ and know what is supremely important? Or, do we want to remain in the dark about the mysteries of life and eternity? For those who refuse to step out in simple childlike faith and follow Jesus, they may learn many things about this material world, but they will never know the things of eternal importance. But for all those who choose to follow Him, they will know the One Who possesses all knowledge of all things. And one day all of our questions will be answered! Let’s choose to press on in the life of faith. Let’s not be discouraged or distracted by things we can’t understand right now. May we follow on to know the Lord in all of His love, power and grace, And then the unanswered questions will not matter. As the song says “I don’t know about tomorrow, but I know Who holds my hand”.

“…and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.” Daniel‬ ‭12:1‬ ‭KJV‬‬. Daniel was receiving a vision of things that would happen in the latter days. God warns us that there will come a time of great trouble. We know that evil men and seducers shall become worse. And yet, that is not all of the message God has for us! It is sad, that so many people focus only on the troubles, and they fail to see the blessing in these words. They don’t realize that even while wicked men become worse, the righteous will shine more and more unto that perfect day! And then God promises that even in the trouble, His redeemed, blood bought children will delivered! Thank God, when our names are written in the Lamb’s book of life we can rest our souls in God’s care! No matter what problems or troubles come our way, our Great Redeemer will keep our souls secure. May we live every day knowing that our Mighty God still keeps and cares for His own! He will deliver.

“…O man greatly beloved, fear not: peace be unto thee, be strong, yea, be strong. And when He had spoken unto me, I was strengthened, and said, Let my Lord speak; for Thou hast strengthened me.” Daniel‬ ‭10:19‬ ‭KJV‬‬. What a strength is ours when we open our ears to hear the Word of the Lord and our hearts to receive it. Daniel had a great desire to have God speak to him. He knew that when God spoke and he opened his heart to receive His Words, his soul would be strengthened and encouraged. And knowing this, he sought God very earnestly. He knew, that more than anything in this world, more than any word from man, his soul needed to hear from God. Today, we have many opportunities to hear from God. Every day we can open our hearts to His precious Word. We can read it, study it, listen to it, and hear it preached and taught. But we also must open our hearts to take it in and allow it to transform our lives. Too many today are merely having their ears tickled with nice sounding religious words. But we need the whole truth of God’s Word! We need the full Gospel that saves us from sin and makes us new creatures in Christ. Let us make the effort every day, to open our spiritual ears to hear and our hearts to receive the precious Word of God.

“…and the king spake and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions? Then said Daniel unto the king, O king, live for ever. My God hath sent His angel, and hath shut the lions’ mouths, that they have not hurt me…” Daniel‬ ‭6:20-22‬ ‭KJV‬‬. What a miraculous deliverance this was! The night before, Daniel had been thrown into a den of hungry lions with almost everyone thinking that he had no hope. They thought that no one could possibly survive such a situation. But thank God, He sent His angel to close the lion’s mouth and protect Daniel. This mighty deliverance moved the king to honor God and to destroy the evil men who had conspired against Daniel. And let us be encouraged from this. May we realize that it is not our place to rise up in pride and defend ourselves when people speak against and persecute us. God is still able to close the mouths of the spiritual lions that come against us. He has promised that He will deal with our enemies. Let us have a stedfast faith like Daniel and know that our lives are in God’s hands.

“Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of lions. Now the king spake and said unto Daniel, Thy God Whom thou servest continually, He will deliver thee.” Daniel‬ ‭6:16‬ ‭KJV‬‬. What a remarkable statement this was from a heathen king! Evidently, he knew enough about Daniel’s life and his past experiences to understand that Daniel was a man of great faith in God. The outward testimony of Daniel’s life was so real and powerful that all those around him could recognize the kind of Godly man he was. And what is more remarkable is, that Daniel developed this reputation while living in captivity in a heathen land! Rather than murmur and complain, his life had been one of extraordinary faithfulness to God and humble service to his fellow man. He had accepted that he was in that place because of the will of His Sovereign God. May God help us today to live so that kind of testimony will be ours as well. May those around us know that we continually serve the Living God Who is still faithful to deliver His children.