Posted on

Seated at the Right Hand of God

Hebrews 10:12 But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God…

After Jesus died on the Cross and was was raised from the dead scripture says He ascended into heaven and sat down at the right hand of the Father, a place of honor and authority. Now that all seems well and good, but does that mean Jesus is just sitting up there doing nothing until the time of His Second Coming?

No! Jesus is still working on our behalf. The Bible says Jesus acts as the only mediator between man and God. (1 Timothy 2:5) He’s making intercession for us. (Romans 8:34) Jesus is our advocate before God. (1 John 2:1)

What does that mean? We Christians still sin, don’t we? When we do, Satan accuses us before God, but because we are saved by grace through faith, Jesus defends us. Therefore, God ignores Satan’s accusations because the penalty for our sins was paid when Jesus died for us on the Cross.

Jesus is our mediator before God and no one else can ever do that for us. Mary cannot do it, no so-called saint can do it, no priest, or pastor, or evangelist can do it. No mere human can intercede on our behalf. Only Jesus can do that. When we ask for forgiveness and repent of the sins Jesus steps in for us, and when He does God looks upon us and does not see our sin. Instead, God sees the righteousness of Christ covering us. So don’t ever think Jesus is not working. He’s always working on behalf of those who place their faith in Him.

Have a God Filled Week,
Brother Donnie

Posted on

Resurrection Faith

Romans 10:9 …if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

Scripture tells us we are saved by grace through faith, (Ephesians 2:8) but scripture is equally clear regarding what saving faith consists of. We must have faith in Jesus to be saved—we must believe in Him—but what are we to believe about Him? To simply say, “I believe in Jesus,” is not enough. Scripture says even the demons believe—and they tremble. (James 2:19) You see, it is what you believe about Jesus that saves you.

So, what must a person believe about Jesus to be saved? We must believe in the promises God made to us in the Bible regarding His Son, Jesus. We must believe Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross was a propitiation for our sins, that Jesus literally paid the penalty we deserve when He died for us on the cross. We must believe that our old man, the sinful person we used to be, died with Jesus and was buried with Him in the tomb.

But there is one final thing we must believe about Jesus to be saved, and Paul makes it very clear. We must believe God raised Him from the dead. You cannot possibly be saved unless you believe in the Resurrected Lord. To believe Jesus died for your sins and to believe your sins were buried with Christ means nothing unless you believe Jesus was resurrected from the dead. You see, Jesus was raised for our justification, and because He was raised, those who have faith in Him are raised with Him into new life, now. But understand this, not only are we raised to new life in this lifetime, our faith in Jesus’ resurrection also results in our being raised into eternal life when this life is over. That is why Jesus said, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16) So, if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

Have a God Filled Week and a Wonderful Easter,

Brother Donnie

Posted on

Palm Sunday

Luke 19:47 And He was teaching daily in the temple.

What many call “Holy Week” began when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey on Palm Sunday and ended with His resurrection on Easter Sunday. But what was Jesus doing between those two events? How did He spend that time?

All the Gospel writers tell us Jesus spent those days teaching in the Temple. He taught about the Kingdom of God. He spoke in parables and answered many questions. He taught about everything from paying taxes to the resurrection of the dead. Jesus spoke of the future destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple, and He answered questions about the end of time and His second coming.

During those days Jesus spoke to both Jews and Gentiles. He knew the age was coming when the Church would carry forward the work of God’s Kingdom. He taught about humility, giving, repentance, prayer, obedience, faith, hope, love…the list goes on and on.

The spiritual depths of Jesus’ teaching that final week are beyond human measure. So I encourage you to take some time to pick up your Bible and consider what Jesus taught in those days. Let me suggest Matthew Chapters 21-25, Luke 19:28-22:28, Mark Chapters 11-13, and John 12:12-17:26. I believe you will find many blessings in any or all those readings.

Have a God Filled Week and a Blessed Easter,

Brother Donnie

Posted on

Roaring Lion

1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

When Peter wrote those words, he was writing by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to saved Christians. What does he tell us? Be serious and keep our eyes open because Satan is out to cause us great harm if we let our guard down. Peter compares the devil to a roaring lion seeking to devour Christians.

Think about that a moment. A wild lion is a dangerous animal, but a lion is also cunning. When a lion hunts, he doesn’t seek out the strongest or the best animals to bring down. He preys on the weakest animals in the heard. He goes after the stragglers, the unprotected, or those who aren’t expecting an attack.

The same is true of the devil. His primary targets are Christians who are spiritually and morally weak; the ones who are disconnected from the Church, and who lack the Biblical wisdom to protect themselves. Peter goes on to warn us, “Resist him…” (1 Peter 5:9) How do we resist the devil? We remain spiritually strong and morally right; we get firmly connected to a good Church, immerse ourselves in studying the word of God, and we pray without ceasing.

When the devil’s attacks come, we need to understand that we are not alone. Peter goes on to says, “…the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.” (1 Peter 5:9) Every Christian will experience Satanic attack, so every Christian must remain sober and vigilant. We must resist the devil, and after we have suffered awhile the God of all grace who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus will perfect, establish, and strengthen us. (1 Peter 5:10)

Have a God Filled Week,
Brother Donnie

Posted on

Humility

Humility

2 Timothy 2:24-26 And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.

Most Christians understand our call to humility, that we do not think more highly of ourselves than we should think and think of others as better than ourselves. Most Christians appreciate that even though many find it hard to do.

In writing to Titus, Paul explains one area where Pastors (servants of the Lord) must be especially careful concerning humility. We must be humble when correcting people who oppose God.

Understand that; no matter how you slice it the Bible commands Church leaders to confront sinning Church members—those who oppose God. We can never just let sin slide in the Church. Some Pastors refuse to do it and that is a shame, but other Pastors pridefully come down on sinners like a hammer and that is equally shameful. Paul warns us not to do that. Pastors must confront those who oppose God with great humility.

Sinners usually do not know when they have been taken captive by Satan to do his will. So, it should always be the goal of the Pastor to humbly show sinners the truth of God in hopes they will come to their senses and escape the Devil’s trap. Then God can grant them repentance. That kind of humility is a requirement for every servant of the Lord.

Have a God Filled Week,
Brother Donnie

Posted on

Refuge

Psalm 62:8 Trust in Him at all times, you people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us.

Let me ask a question. Who or what do you turn to when things are not going the way they should? How you answer that question says a lot about your trust in God.

Most people answer that question with the name of a person; a spouse, a relative, a friend, a counselor… But as Job found out, friends and relatives are lousy comforters. Even Job’s wife told him to curse God and die.

Let’s face it, people are people. The mere fact that they are human means they have faults. Some of them are talebearers and some are gossips. Some only offer bad advice on top of bad advice. Most people are so caught up in their own problems they don’t have the time or energy to focus on yours. So, do you really want to put your trust in people when things turn sour?

What about drugs, alcohol, the internet, or social media? Are they worthy of your trust when times are hard? Can you take refuge in those things when life gets hard? No! Those things only make matters worse. They are addictive and harmful.

Some people would answer the question, “Me.” They would say the only person they trust in difficult times is their self but let me remind you that the heart above all things is most deceitful. Your heart will lie to you, so you cannot trust yourself to make good decisions under stress.

Let me rephrase the question. Who should you turn to when things are not going the way they should?

The only good answer to that question is God. You see, only God is trustworthy all the time. You can pour your heart out to Him without fear that He’ll spread it around. You can always take shelter in Him. He will protect you, comfort you, and protect you. God is our refuge.

Have a God Filled Week,
Brother Donnie

Posted on

Defining Love (A Valentine’s Day Devotional)

1 Corinthians 13:4-7 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Today we celebrate love, but in a culture that defines love in only physical and emotional terms most people do not understand what true love is. You see, the Bible defines love in different terms than our culture does.

How does God define love? He says people who really know how to love are patient and kind. They are not envious of what others have and they do not brag about what they have. People who know how to love will not selfishly expect to get their own way all the time. Loving people are not easily irritated by others and they are not resentful toward people who have wronged them.

In a society that prides itself on tolerance and acceptance perhaps one of our culture’s greatest misconceptions regarding love is this. Love does not celebrate sin or overlook it. Instead, love rejoices when sin is revealed and dealt with.

Love bears all the persecution and mistreatment the world throws at us because of our faith in Jesus. It is because of our love for God and each other that we place our hopes in all the promises God made to us, and we endure all the hardships this life brings because we know He will keep those promises.

Scripture says God is love, and God loved us so much He sent His only Son to die for us so that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. Jesus said this: No greater love has any man than to lay down his life for his friends. That is exactly what Jesus did for us.

Friends, that is the way God defines love. Let us celebrate that kind of love today and every day.

Have a God Filled Week and a Happy Valentine’s Day,


Brother Donnie

Posted on

Politics

Politics

Romans 13:1-2 Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves.

It seems in this current age of divisions that politics is always a hot topic. I remember hearing Senator Ted Cruz once define the word “politics” this way. He said the word “poli” means many, and a “tic” is a blood sucking parasite. Many blood sucking parasites; that’s politics.

But what does the Bible say about Civil Government? In truth, not much, but there are a few very important commands. One is the commandment above. We are to submit to governmental authority. Why? Because all government is appointed by God, and if you resist that authority, you resist God, and if you resist God, you bring judgement on yourself. Those are strong words, and we should heed them. We should submit to governing authority, meaning we should obey the government God places over us unless that government demands we act in a way that’s contrary to the Word of God. We cannot submit if government commands us to sin. We ought to obey God rather than men. (Acts 5:29)

There is one other commandment we should consider concerning government, and again, it’s a timely command for this time of year. When asked about taxes, Jesus said, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” (Matthew 22:21) In other words, pay your taxes.

That’s it. Concerning government, God commands us to submit to civil authority and pay our taxes. God has given us a democracy in this country and that means we have a small part to play in the government God appointed for us. We get to vote, and we should, but don’t get overly caught up in all the worldly drama surrounding our government; just submit and pay your taxes.

Have a God Filled Week,
Brother Donnie

Posted on

The Man

The Man

John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us…

Scripture’s clear that Jesus is both fully God and fully man. God came down to Earth to live with us. Now, think about what that means. Jesus experienced everything we do.

It’s cold here and although the weather is usually milder in Israel than it is here in Tennessee, they do have cold weather. Lows this time of year run in the low 40s and occasionally they have snow in the higher elevations. So Jesus knows what it means to be cold. He witnessed around thirty winters during His time here on Earth, so He knows what that feels like. He knows what it’s like to come in from the cold to a warm fire. Jesus understands the need for warm clothing.

It’s because of these experiences that Jesus understands us. Jesus was like us in every respect. That’s why He is a merciful High Priest; He suffered just like we suffer. His hands and toes numbed to the cold just like ours do. His face stung in a cold winter wind just like ours does. Jesus was tempted just as we are tempted. The only difference is that He never sinned whereas we do.

Yes, Jesus understands. He understands our weaknesses, our infirmities, and our shortcomings. He even understands what it’s like to be cold. I’m sure if Jesus was here on Earth with us today, He’d be looking forward to Spring.

Have a God Filled Week,
Brother Donnie

Posted on

Discerning the Signs

Discerning the Signs

Matthew 16:2-3 He answered and said to them, “When it is evening you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red’; and in the morning, ‘It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times.

The weather folks are predicting a “significant snowfall’ this coming week. They have access to a world of modern technology that allows them to forecast these events well ahead of time. Although less accurate, the men of Jesus’ days here on Earth made similar predictions based on what the sky looked like the previous morning or afternoon. They predicted future weather events based on the signs they saw in the sky beforehand, but Jesus called them hypocrites.

Now, a hypocrite is a fake, a phony, a person who says one thing and does another. The men Jesus spoke to claimed to be men of God, but they were fakes. They could discern signs regarding the weather, but they couldn’t discern the signs regarding the coming of Messiah, the Son of God, the Savior of the world. Jesus did miracle upon miracle. He performed mighty works and wonders, and He spoke with a wisdom no one had ever heard before. He did all that openly. Yet, those who saw Him and heard Him were unable to discern those signs.

Things haven’t changed all that much. People still cannot discern the signs today. Everything Jesus said would happen before His return is happening now. (Luke 21:7-28) The world is filled with hypocrites, people who claim to be believers in Jesus yet cannot discern to signs of the times. It’s time for God’s people to open their eyes and minds and see the signs around us for what they are. We don’t need a Doppler Radar to tell us Jesus will come again.

Have a God Filled Week,
Brother Donnie