Paul reminds us though that choosing to be slaves to sin STILL leads to no benefits. What do we reap but death? Why is it that we can so easily be caught jeopardizing everything that God has give us and promised us for simple pleasures and fleshy desires? It’s because we forget…and we need to remember, everyday. At least for me, if I thought on that verse, “For the wages of sin are death,” a little more often, I might not have done a lot of things in my time on earth. But, I’ve learned this, there is always time to change, and this year I already sense a season of change in my life at least.

There are certain things that I’ve done and I’m not proud of, but I thank God that I have another opportunity to be right with God and work on my relationship with Him. It’s time to start investing in stocks that will never go down, to set my sights on the goodness and the glory of the Lord. With that said, I claim victory over the enemy and dedicate my life as not just a soldier but slave to God. I’m learning to give God full control of everything in my life, and I’ve learned it’s time now to submit. Thank you, Lord! Amen.

As I was walking down the street today, I noticed my eyes wandering around today. Despite trying not to look at certain things, I still caught myself trying to sneak side glances or double takes. At that point, I immediately went to the Lord and called on Him and asked him to take control of my eyes and make me His vessel. It brought me to the realization that I am yet a living sacrifice that I would never be perfect but I would have to always be willing to sacrifice myself to the Lord and his Word. I have to constantly denying the fleshy parts of myself so that I may live spiritually, and renew myself in the Lord each day to be righteous and faithful in His sight.

Imagine my surprise then when I opened these  devotional verses today. It said that we don’t continue to sin because we are new creatures in God and that we are now dead to sin. Not to say that I’m going to perfect all the time, but dead to the hold of sin. This time I have a choice whether or not I want to sin and it’s a matter of acknowledging that choice and acknowledging that I don’t have to do it. Regardless of how good it looks, smells, tastes, feels, sounds…it’s not for me. The message for today is that God has granted us the power to conquer sin by choosing not to partake of it even in the slightest form.

It says in the last couple of verses, that we are dead to sin and that we should offer our bodies as instruments of righteousness to God because it was by grace that we are alive and breathing. I thank God for that grace and I thank Him for the power of choice, that I don’t have to be slave to ANY powers or principalities and I thank Him all the more that I may be able to tell others the Good News that we are free. Free from ourselves, our past, free from sin and addictions of all kinds, and free to be pleasing to God IF AND ONLY IF we believe that God sent his only Son to die for us.

Lord, I pray right now that you continue to use me and your people as vessels of righteousness and that you wash us clean in your Word, and make us white as snow so that you may use us for your glory. I pray Father God that despite our flaws and imperfections we continue to praise and worship you for your mercy and grace, and that we surrender our fleshy selves to your ways. Amen.

Often times, we go through rough situations and wonder Lord, why me? Why am I going through this? Why did it have to be this way and not that way? It’s so easy to see the plight of the situation and the terrible effects of some sins, but today’s devotional reminds me that even in the midst of our suffering we have to rejoice in the Lord! Verses 2-5 talk about the results of suffering if we rejoice in the glory of God: perseverance, character, then hope. Suffering isn’t meant to kill us but only make us stronger in the Lord and to rely and trust in Him more. We shouldn’t continue to worry about why we’re there, but we should move forward and rejoice that God is with us always and has purposed things in our lives for his glory and our benefit.

The second thing about today’s devotional was the depth of God’s love and grace. Like the Word says, people would think about dying for a good man not to talk about sinners and people that have done the worst kinds of evils. But to think, God sent Christ to die for sinners shows that agape love, a love that I don’t think I’ll ever be able to fully understand at least not in my earthly years. I’m so thankful that though death and sin were brought in by the first man, Adam, God can grant grace to people who didn’t even exist yet by the death of another.

Even though I’m going to end here, I’m going to continue to meditate on those two thoughts because they are powerful. I pray that I continue to recognize strife as a source of hope and that I continue to rejoice in God at all times. I also thank God for his everlasting grace and love for ALL of mankind, sinner and saved alike.  Amen.

Reading Romans 4 this morning reminds me that there is nothing we can do to earn our righteousness. No matter how hard we try, we are imperfect and subject to sin, and therefore we should have been condemned by Law. But instead of condemning us, God asks us to have faith, or as it is more popularly stated: Keep the Faith. It uses the example of Abraham and how his faith was credited to him as righteousness, not something we deserve like wages for work, but a gift of grace. Righteousness comes from faith in God who has the ability to speak life into dead or non-existant situations and circumstances. It reminds me that there is nothing too tough for God because he is all knowing and all powerful, and when He says it, He’s going to do it, good or bad. He spoke into existence nations for Abraham and Sarah who were old and infertile..and to think that he granted them child in old age seems impossible. But it was because of their faith that they came out victorious. To apply this to my own life, I don’t have to work to be righteous in God’s eyes, but I work because I have faith in God and obey Him which makes me righteous. There is NOTHING that any of us could do to deserve it, nothing, nothing, nothing at all. All we can do is trust that He is there and He has already taken care of it.  The phrase in verse 5, “God who justifies the wicked” especially touched me. God can break whatever tradition he wants to and deem what we have rejected as the cornerstone or consider trash as something justified and credited with righteousness. I hate to think of myself as wicked, but if I were to consider all the terrible things/thoughts I’ve done in my lifetime, I could most certainly be considered detestable by some.  Again though, all I need is God to justify me and make me whole and deem me righteous..I can’t rely on what we as humans consider righteous otherwise I’ll be living up to a crooked standard. So I’ll end with this verse, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and ALL these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33). I pray Lord that your people and more will continue to seek you first above all else and trust Father God that you have already worked it out for your glory. Amen.

I know I had to read this passage a couple of times to get the gist of what was going on.  The first two or three verses talk about the advantage of being a Jew or as I picture it the saved and chosen ppl of God. The answer that was given was that first we have been entrusted with the word of God. Reflecting on that, Christians have been given such an awesome power and responsibility because we have been trusted with something as precious as the words of God who has the power to speak things into existence. It only reminds me that we as Christians can’t doubt God or the power he has given us and required us to share with others.  And yet, some of us would hide the word just for ourselves without speaking a Word to others or worse we don’t even know the Word for ourselves. We can’t ever know the awesomeness of God and his faithfulness if we don’t read and digest his Word.

In the next verses, Paul makes the point that all men aren’t perfect, going about it in some biblical legalese. He talks about God always being true while all people are liars so that God may be proved right when he judges all as has been written and prophesied long ago. Of course, this seems like a set up because if we are all “liars” and unable to follow the Laws given to us by God, then why should we bother to follow the Law or worse be condemned for not being able to obey the law?

Because following the law is not a tool to measure our righteousness but rather to remind us that we are imperfect and that God has been just and good to us. See, it is not by observing the law that God redeems us righteousness as stated in the old contract and covenant. Rather, there is a new covenant by which God deems us righteous, as illustrated in verses 22-26 which have been included below.

“22This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, 23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement,^[i] through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.”

Isn’t that amazing? God in his infinite wisdom and power granted grace and mercy, sacrificing Jesus his only son to atone for those sins. It is only by these things that we are still living and breathing today, because God loved us enough to save us from our punishment and give us power to preach and teach this Gospel to others. This of course goes back to the first couple of verses that talk about being entrusted with the word of God, and being responsible enough to share that with others. Paul ends this by saying this faith doesn’t trump the law, but rather we uphold the law because of our faith. So it seems cyclical in effect that we are using the law as a constant reminder of God’s mercy to us despite our unrighteousness forcing us to further have faith in Him, to trust in Him, and know that God has all power in His hand.

So much power that, God can trump tradition and make anything he wants righteous. Haven’t you noticed that God uses people that the world has neglected and rejected and in return, God is glorified because of them? He certainly didn’t have to use Saul because of his history in persecuting God’s chosen ppl, and yet He had that much power to wipe Saul’s slate clean and make him into a new creature in Christ. Today, I pray that despite my history and how I could be considered unrighteous by tradition, that God will continue to mold me and shape me into a new creature in Christ Jesus. Thank you, Lord for your everlasting grace and mercy and all the honor and glory belong to you, forever and ever. Amen

25Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not been circumcised. 26If those who are not circumcised keep the law’s requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were circumcised? 27The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will condemn you who, even though you have the^[c] written code and circumcision, are a lawbreaker.

28A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. 29No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man’s praise is not from men, but from God.”

When I read verses 17 through 24, I think about my life and the lives of so many ppl in the church. So many times, we as Christians have been the worst hypocrites (sp?) doing the very thing that we have preached against. I know I have many, many , many times, and I’ve repented many times for these things. There comes a point though when you realize that what you’re doing is wrong, and worse other ppl are watching you or following you. Instead of being effective in our mission to teach and baptize others in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit, we realize that we are leading people astray and causing the very name of God to be blasphemed among the Gentiles or in my mind, the Unsaved. That can be damaging not only to the church but to the growth of others. Because of me and you, that person may never come back to Church and may never see the glory of God…

And then I think about the goodness of God, and how his Grace truly is sufficient. Because in spite of our flaws and deep imperfections, God still loves us enough not to strike us down dead. I know that for all the worldly and terrible things I’ve done I should have been dead yesterday, and yet God still wakes me up and puts breath in my body. Just for that, I praise God everyday because truly and honestly he didn’t have to do it.

Verses 25-29 remind me that just because we’re saved doesn’t stop us from being hypocrites and doing the wrong thing. They speak of the deeper truth that salvation isn’t the evidence of outward emotion, running up and down in church, teaching sunday bible school, being the pastor, minister, reverend, bishop, elder, or pope…Rather, salvation comes from true circumcision of the heart and keeping God in our hearts. It’s not about what’s on the outside but what’s hidden deep on the inside that keeps us saved and sanctified. That for me is the takeaway from today’s devotional, that God is reminding me to reflect deep within and see that my heart lines up with his will and not mine, that when I stand up and talk to people they may know I’m saved not because I say so but because I act like it…My prayer for today is that I hide these truths in my heart and pray that my heart is truly circumcised in the spirit so that I can be an upright and clean vessel of God. Amen.

Psalms 40: 4,9-15

4 Blessed is the man
who makes the LORD his trust,
who does not look to the proud,
to those who turn aside to false gods.

9 I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly;
I do not seal my lips,
as you know, O LORD.

10 I do not hide your righteousness in my heart;
I speak of your faithfulness and salvation.
I do not conceal your love and your truth
from the great assembly.

11 Do not withhold your mercy from me, O LORD;
may your love and your truth always protect me.

12 For troubles without number surround me;
my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see.
They are more than the hairs of my head,
and my heart fails within me.

13 Be pleased, O LORD, to save me;
O LORD, come quickly to help me.

14 May all who seek to take my life
be put to shame and confusion;
may all who desire my ruin
be turned back in disgrace.

15 May those who say to me, “Aha! Aha!”
be appalled at their own shame.

*When David was outnumbered and distressed he maintained his faith and proclamation of God’s authority. Even when his heart had failed, he knew that what he had in God was greater than any power that came from within himself.

When your troubles weigh you down and outnumber you…How do you respond?

Job 27: 3-10

as long as I have life within me,
the breath of God in my nostrils,

4 my lips will not speak wickedness,
and my tongue will utter no deceit.

5 I will never admit you are in the right;
till I die, I will not deny my integrity.

6 I will maintain my righteousness and never let go of it;
my conscience will not reproach me as long as I live.

7 “May my enemies be like the wicked,
my adversaries like the unjust!

8 For what hope has the godless when he is cut off,
when God takes away his life?

9 Does God listen to his cry
when distress comes upon him?

10 Will he find delight in the Almighty?
Will he call upon God at all times?

*Job trusted that his God reigned supreme even when his friends told him that God had forsaken Him and his end was not only certain but a bad one.

Is there a limit to how much you’ll trust God? Is there a point when your heart and mind betray your faith? Let’s strive to stand on our Father’s word when no one else can…not even ourselves.

Judges 7:1-21

1 Early in the morning, Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) and all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The camp of Midian was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh. 2 The LORD said to Gideon, “You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her, 3 announce now to the people, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’ ” So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained.

4 But the LORD said to Gideon, “There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will sift them for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.”

5 So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the LORD told him, “Separate those who lap the water with their tongues like a dog from those who kneel down to drink.” 6 Three hundred men lapped with their hands to their mouths. All the rest got down on their knees to drink.

7 The LORD said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place.” 8 So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites to their tents but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others.
Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley. 9 During that night the LORD said to Gideon, “Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands. 10 If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah 11 and listen to what they are saying. Afterward, you will be encouraged to attack the camp.” So he and Purah his servant went down to the outposts of the camp. 12 The Midianites, the Amalekites and all the other eastern peoples had settled in the valley, thick as locusts. Their camels could no more be counted than the sand on the seashore.

13 Gideon arrived just as a man was telling a friend his dream. “I had a dream,” he was saying. “A round loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent with such force that the tent overturned and collapsed.”

14 His friend responded, “This can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands.”

15 When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he worshiped God. He returned to the camp of Israel and called out, “Get up! The LORD has given the Midianite camp into your hands.” 16 Dividing the three hundred men into three companies, he placed trumpets and empty jars in the hands of all of them, with torches inside.

17 “Watch me,” he told them. “Follow my lead. When I get to the edge of the camp, do exactly as I do. 18 When I and all who are with me blow our trumpets, then from all around the camp blow yours and shout, ‘For the LORD and for Gideon.’ “

19 Gideon and the hundred men with him reached the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just after they had changed the guard. They blew their trumpets and broke the jars that were in their hands. 20 The three companies blew the trumpets and smashed the jars. Grasping the torches in their left hands and holding in their right hands the trumpets they were to blow, they shouted, “A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!” 21 While each man held his position around the camp, all the Midianites ran, crying out as they fled.

*Could you lead your forces on God’s word? God, reduced Gideon’s army from over 30,000 men to a mere 300 before he gave the Mideonite camp over to them. But on top of that he then had them not pick up swords but jars and trumpets! I know they were like God! I know you said you’d fight my battles…but glory!

What do you do when you are disarmed with a army before you? Could you still charge forward?

Proverbs 1: 20-27

20 Wisdom calls aloud in the street,
she raises her voice in the public squares;

21 at the head of the noisy streets ^[c] she cries out,
in the gateways of the city she makes her speech:

22 “How long will you simple ones ^[d] love your simple ways?
How long will mockers delight in mockery
and fools hate knowledge?

23 If you had responded to my rebuke,
I would have poured out my heart to you
and made my thoughts known to you.

24 But since you rejected me when I called
and no one gave heed when I stretched out my hand,

25 since you ignored all my advice
and would not accept my rebuke,

26 I in turn will laugh at your disaster;
I will mock when calamity overtakes you-

27 when calamity overtakes you like a storm,
when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind,
when distress and trouble overwhelm you.

*Stick to what you know is going to take you to where you need to be. You don’t want to be caught on the wrong side. When it seems like adhering to the wisdom of our faith is the hardest thing to do. Do it! It’s where you want to be!

2 Samuel 12:15 – 23 says,

After the Lord revealed David’s sin to him by way of Nathan, David sought repentance so that the judgement of the Lord did not fall on his child. However, after a week of fasting and praying, the child died anyways and then David stopped fasting and praying. The servants, however wondered at his change in demeanor. David realized that at that time, just like a broken pencil, his actions were pointless. ( get it?) While, God does give us room to pray and make supplication for circumstances, there are instances when we can do nothing.  As another example, in Matthew 10:14, Jesus tells the disciples that if after they brought the good news to a people that “ whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet.”  As seen here again, there is a point when all that you do has become futile.  Notice, though, that in both these cases much work was put in beforehand, David did his works for a week and the disciples were given a list of duties before they could consider their work over. Now you may ask, ” Well, how do I know when I should stay and when I should go?” The way to determine when something is futile is to ask God for discernment in the matter.  In David’s case, his son died, and he stopped his acts for he realized that ” the wages of sin is death” ( Romans 6:23).  In the case in Matthew, it is somewhat of a reference to when Jesus says that “many are called, but few are chosen”(Matthew 22:14)  The Word is also a good place to look for discernment over situations in your life.  A wise man will be able to discern between the useful and the useless.  Ask God for discernment over your life issues so that the proper measures can be taken to progress beyond your current status.

It’s pretty easy to identify the beginning and the end of something, but not so much the middle.  It can go on for miles or stop in a couple of inches; it can be lumpy in some places and dry and cracked in others.  However, it is only a section, and depending on how we manage it, it can help to make the sandwich complete.

Numbers from Biblical Numerology

            1 Unity, new beginings

            2 union, division, witnessing

            3 divine perfection, completeness

Life is a process

            Genesis 2:1-7

            1 Corinthians 3:6-7

Processes produce fruit

            Matthew 12:33

            Hebrew 6:7,8

The tree must be prepared

1 Corinthians 9:26,27

Genesis 50:19-21

The process does not stop there

            Luke 3:21-23

            Jonah 1:17;2:1;2:10;3:1

There are mile markers

            Luke 2:46-52

            Numbers 22:21-34

Working patience ….

In punishment

            Jeremiah 9:1-9

            Hebrews 12:7,11         

In salvation and deliverance

            Psalm 7:1        

            Psalm 121:1-3

In tribulation and testing

            1 Corinthians 10:13

            Romans 8:18-21

In process

            Philippians 1:6

Matthew 21:12,13says,

“12Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves.

13“It is written,” he said to them, ” ‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’^[e] but you are making it a ‘den of robbers.’”

 As I was (starting) cleaning my room today, I realized why it is so hard to clean; the first thing I have to do is to admit that it is dirty.  It is SO easy to clean up other people’s mess because we are not necessarily attached to the sources of the problem.  On the flip side, we have trouble cleaning out own messes.  However, we can take an example from Jesus while we clean out rooms or our lives: He kicked butt and took names; i.e.  He came at it hard and without tolerance.  We must be serious about getting rid of the dirt in our lives ( and our rooms) if we are to progress.  I know I like to clean half the room today and the other half tomorrow.  The problem with that situation is that I often get comfortable in the fact that at least half the room is clean and that I will eventually get to the other half.  Sooner or later (usually sooner) the clutter takes over the whole room and the work I did previously is made useless. If I had just done the whole thing at once, watch this, I would have gotten an idea of what clean was so that even a little dirt would annoy me. As we grow closer to God, we will see more of the dirt in our lives, and thus(yeah, I said “thus”…and what?) we will not allow just anything to dirty us. So…

“1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”