Category Archives: Character of God

Character of God, Grace / Forgiveness, Hearing from God, Obeying God, Protector / Deliverer, Righteousness / Serving God

Abimelech Takes Sarah From Abraham

We continue our journey with Abraham in Genesis 20, after the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham repeats the mistake he made previously in Egypt which resulted in his wife being taken by Pharaoh. God intervenes again this second time when Sarah is taken. What grace that our God would intervene on our behalf even when we make the same big mistake twice.

20 Abraham moved south to the Negev and lived for a while between Kadesh and Shur, and then he moved on to Gerar. While living there as a foreigner, 2 Abraham introduced his wife, Sarah, by saying, “She is my sister.” So King Abimelech of Gerar sent for Sarah and had her brought to him at his palace.

3 But that night God came to Abimelech in a dream and told him, “You are a dead man, for that woman you have taken is already married!”

4 But Abimelech had not slept with her yet, so he said, “Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation? 5 Didn’t Abraham tell me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘Yes, he is my brother.’ I acted in complete innocence! My hands are clean.”

6 In the dream God responded, “Yes, I know you are innocent. That’s why I kept you from sinning against me, and why I did not let you touch her. 7 Now return the woman to her husband, and he will pray for you, for he is a prophet. Then you will live. But if you don’t return her to him, you can be sure that you and all your people will die.”

8 Abimelech got up early the next morning and quickly called all his servants together. When he told them what had happened, his men were terrified. 9 Then Abimelech called for Abraham. “What have you done to us?” he demanded. “What crime have I committed that deserves treatment like this, making me and my kingdom guilty of this great sin? No one should ever do what you have done! 10 Whatever possessed you to do such a thing?”

11 Abraham replied, “I thought, ‘This is a godless place. They will want my wife and will kill me to get her.’ 12 And she really is my sister, for we both have the same father, but different mothers. And I married her. 13 When God called me to leave my father’s home and to travel from place to place, I told her, ‘Do me a favor. Wherever we go, tell the people that I am your brother.’”

14 Then Abimelech took some of his sheep and goats, cattle, and male and female servants, and he presented them to Abraham. He also returned his wife, Sarah, to him. 15 Then Abimelech said, “Look over my land and choose any place where you would like to live.” 16 And he said to Sarah, “Look, I am giving your ‘brother’ 1,000 pieces of silver[a] in the presence of all these witnesses. This is to compensate you for any wrong I may have done to you. This will settle any claim against me, and your reputation is cleared.”

17 Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, his wife, and his female servants, so they could have children. 18 For the Lord had caused all the women to be infertile because of what happened with Abraham’s wife, Sarah.

Clearly God shows grace to Abraham and to Sarah after they repeat their earlier mistake of misrepresenting their relationship as a means of protection instead of trusting God. God then even uses the situation to bless them in both money and land. God knew Abraham genuinely wanted to follow and serve Him, but had made a mistake.

There is another point that is significant to note. It is reasonable to conclude that Abimelech did not know and serve God based on Abraham’s description of the area as ungodly. Never the less, God communicated directly with Abimelech to accomplish His will. Even non believers can hear from God when God wants them to.

It is also worth observing that there are serious consequences for not obeying God, even for someone who may not know Him well or serve Him. Abimelech chose wisely and obeyed, likely out of fear.

If God presents serious consequences for disobedience of those who do not know Him, then we can expect He holds even higher accountability for those who know Him and still refuse to obey His instructions? This does not mean we have to be perfect or without mistake. God shows us how He has grace for Abraham.  But we are expected to seek Him wholeheartedly and that should be reflected clearly in our lives.

—-

Please share our devotionals with your friends and family. Help us to share the good news of the gospel!

the way with scripture - for posts, medium 2

Character of God, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Praise / Worship / Glorify God

Forgiveness Comes From God Through Jesus Christ

2 Comments

God is righteous and holy. We fall short of His perfect standard. God is also just, meaning that we must pay the price for our sin. The cost of sin is death.  However, God in His grace has made a way for us to forgive others and to be forgiven by Him. God alone can blot out our sins. Our good works and our best efforts are not good enough.

[Isaiah 43:25] “I—yes, I alone—will blot out your sins for my own sake and will never think of them again.

[Matthew 6:14-15] 14 “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. 15 But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.

[1 John 1:5-10] 5 This is the message we heard from Jesus[c] and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. 6 So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. 7 But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.

8 If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. 9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.

What a gracious and wonderful God we have! We need only confess our sins to God, genuinely turn away from sin in repentance, forgive others as we would ask God to forgive us,  accept Jesus as our lord and savior, and seek Him wholeheartedly and God forgives our sins.

I am glad to depend on God for everything! Always be cautious of depending on anyone other than God… whether that is a government or yourself. Only God can we trust to always be there for us and never fail us. Praise God! He truly is king of kings and lord of lords. He rules over all.

—-

Please share our devotionals with your friends and family. Help us to share the good news of the gospel!

the way with scripture - for posts, medium 2

Bad Habits, Children, Consequences of Sin, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Righteousness / Serving God, Selfishness

Reject Sin In Your Life, No Matter How “Small”

1 Comment

Many of us who follow Jesus can easily recognize some obvious sin in our lives or the lives of others. We may even aggressively work to change some elements of our lives. However, Satan tempts Christians to accept some sin and leads us into rationalizing it.  To follow Jesus we must continually look to His word and the Holy Spirit to identify and then help us eliminate all sin from our lives. Though we will never fully eliminate all sin, we should not accept any.

[Psalm 119:9-11] 9 How can a young person stay pure? By obeying your word. 10 I have tried hard to find you— don’t let me wander from your commands. 11 I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.

[Luke 9:23-25] 23 Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me. 24 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. 25 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but are yourself lost or destroyed?

[Romans 6:10-14] 10 When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. 11 So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.

12 Do not let sin control the way you live;[a] do not give in to sinful desires. 13 Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. 14 Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace.

A few examples of sin we may be tempted to rationalize… there are many…

  • Someone who does not have much money and likes to shop or spend money carelessly may say “shopping is my hobby” or “It helps me relax”.
  • Someone who reacts with harsh and angry words, easily upset, may say to themselves “I am just hot-tempered.”
  • Someone who is overweight may just accept poor eating habits or lack of exercise saying they “have a slow metabolism”… to the detriment of their own health.
  • Someone who is selfish may accept and acknowledge it, even when it affects others around them negatively, and rationalize that it is ok or that they “deserve” whatever time, attention, or thing is in question… often putting themselves first.
  • Someone who is drawn to sexual sin outside marriage may rationalize that “I am not hurting anyone” or “we are consenting adults” or “I do not commit adultery because I and the other person are not married”.
  • Someone in a difficult marriage may convince themselves it is ok to be mad and harsh toward their spouse because their spouse is harsh toward them.

Don’t accept sin in your life. Don’t let Satan or the world tell you it is ok. Change your behaviors and thoughts to honor God. Even something you consider to be “just a bad habit” is still, by definition, bad. Do not accept it. Instead, overcome it through Christ Jesus.

—-

Please share our devotionals with your friends and family. Help us to share the good news of the gospel!

the way with scripture - for posts, medium 2

Character of God, Hearing from God, Obeying God

I Know The Plans I Have For You

God has long term strategies and plans for His people, for those who serve Him wholeheartedly. Often we can not even recognize His plans for us… our lives are but a single thread, woven into the fabric of a bigger tapestry that God is creating.

God’s has plans for us even when we have gone through or are going through difficult times as referenced in the beginning of Psalm 40 or the context of Jeremiah 29, while God’s people were in exile.

[Psalm 40:5] O Lord my God, you have performed many wonders for us. Your plans for us are too numerous to list. You have no equal. If I tried to recite all your wonderful deeds, I would never come to the end of them.

[Jeremiah 29:11-13] 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 In those days when you pray, I will listen. 13 If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.

God does not prepare us for something and bring us toward it just to abandon it when there is an obstacle. Obstacles may be created by our sin and selfishness or that of another person. Obstacles may be a test to our dedication to serve, trust, and follow God.

Consider as example, if you feel you have been led by God into marrying someone specific. You cannot then, a year later, also accept that God is leading you to abandon the marriage because it is difficult. God is not that short sited and He is not surprised by obstacles and challenges.

A second example… if you feel led to ministry consistently over a period of time and then fail to get admission into the seminary you were pursuing or turned down for your first job at a church. You can not accept that God has both led you to ministry and then subsequently led you away from it. Take time to reflect more deeply and seek Him in prayer for which is the right path.  Perhaps you have not found the right starting opportunity He wants for you.

We can take comfort in knowing that although we may be short sighted and fail to anticipate obstacles, God is not. When we genuinely hear from Him, we can trust Him to lead us and help us overcome obstacles in our way.

—-

Please share our devotionals with your friends and family. Help us to share the good news of the gospel!

the way with scripture - for posts, medium 2

Character of God, Consequences of Sin, Hearing from God, Interceding for Others, Righteousness / Serving God, Wickedness / Evil

Abraham Intercedes for Sodom

Genesis 18:16-33 gives us keen insight into the character of God and the relationship we can have with Him as His servants.

16 Then the men got up from their meal and looked out toward Sodom. As they left, Abraham went with them to send them on their way.

17 “Should I hide my plan from Abraham?” the Lord asked. 18 “For Abraham will certainly become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth will be blessed through him. 19 I have singled him out so that he will direct his sons and their families to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just. Then I will do for Abraham all that I have promised.”

20 So the Lord told Abraham, “I have heard a great outcry from Sodom and Gomorrah, because their sin is so flagrant. 21 I am going down to see if their actions are as wicked as I have heard. If not, I want to know.”

22 The other men turned and headed toward Sodom, but the Lord remained with Abraham. 23 Abraham approached him and said, “Will you sweep away both the righteous and the wicked? 24 Suppose you find fifty righteous people living there in the city—will you still sweep it away and not spare it for their sakes? 25 Surely you wouldn’t do such a thing, destroying the righteous along with the wicked. Why, you would be treating the righteous and the wicked exactly the same! Surely you wouldn’t do that! Should not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?”

26 And the Lord replied, “If I find fifty righteous people in Sodom, I will spare the entire city for their sake.”

27 Then Abraham spoke again. “Since I have begun, let me speak further to my Lord, even though I am but dust and ashes. 28 Suppose there are only forty-five righteous people rather than fifty? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?”

And the Lord said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five righteous people there.”

29 Then Abraham pressed his request further. “Suppose there are only forty?”

And the Lord replied, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the forty.”

30 “Please don’t be angry, my Lord,” Abraham pleaded. “Let me speak—suppose only thirty righteous people are found?”

And the Lord replied, “I will not destroy it if I find thirty.”

31 Then Abraham said, “Since I have dared to speak to the Lord, let me continue—suppose there are only twenty?”

And the Lord replied, “Then I will not destroy it for the sake of the twenty.”

32 Finally, Abraham said, “Lord, please don’t be angry with me if I speak one more time. Suppose only ten are found there?”

And the Lord replied, “Then I will not destroy it for the sake of the ten.”

33 When the Lord had finished his conversation with Abraham, he went on his way, and Abraham returned to his tent.

Abraham intercedes on behalf of the city of Sodom, in particular on behalf of the righteous people who may live in the city of Sodom. Likely he was thinking about his own family through Lot that lived there, but may have genuinely been interceding for others as well. Despite a healthy fear and respect for God, and recognizing that God is about to unleash righteous wrath on Sodom, Abraham takes courage to intercede for others in a way that respects God but still asks for mercy on behalf of His righteous people.

How gracious of our all powerful God to allow those who serve Him to personally talk with Him… to discuss things. He listens to His righteous servants. In this case, it would seem He listens with great patience… as a father listening to questions from a son he loves.

We also see that God is not only love but also righteousness and judgment. We know from later in scripture that God destroys Sodom. How sad that He could not find 10 righteous  people in that sinful city.  The judgment God put in place for those sinful people was just. He does, however, provides an opportunity for Lot and his family to leave Sodom  before it is destroyed.

—-

Please share our devotionals with your friends and family. Help us to share the good news of the gospel!

the way with scripture - for posts, medium 2

Fasting, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Parables

Do Not Put New Wine In Old Wineskins

Jesus teaches in Matthew 9:14-17 about the need to accept the good news of the gospel He brings, without holding on to the religious rituals that the people had gotten used to under leadership of the Pharisees. The new covenant builds on the foundation of the old covenant, and leads people away from onerous man-made rules. Instead, we are called to accept Jesus as lord and savior and follow Him… to accept His offer of salvation through grace.

14 One day the disciples of John the Baptist came to Jesus and asked him, “Why don’t your disciples fast[f] like we do and the Pharisees do?”

15 Jesus replied, “Do wedding guests mourn while celebrating with the groom? Of course not. But someday the groom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.

16 “Besides, who would patch old clothing with new cloth? For the new patch would shrink and rip away from the old cloth, leaving an even bigger tear than before.

17 “And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. For the old skins would burst from the pressure, spilling the wine and ruining the skins. New wine is stored in new wineskins so that both are preserved.”

When you accept Jesus Christ, you must leave man-made rules and requirements behind. It is not only the Pharisees long ago, but even many churches today that have created and maintain extra rules beyond what God commands. In some cases they are the basis for different denominations of faith in Jesus Christ.

You can not accept the grace of Jesus Christ and then require yourself to execute a bunch of rules made by men. It does not work… like putting new wine in old wineskins will burst the wineskins.

Focus on knowing the will of God and following Jesus Christ. When you serve and follow Christ it absolutely changes your behavior and attitude and you become more like Him and less like the world.

—-

Please share our devotionals with your friends and family. Help us to share the good news of the gospel!

the way with scripture - for posts, medium 2

Hypocrisy, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Repenting from Sin, Share the Good News

Bring the Good News to Sinners

Jesus clearly reminds us in Matthew 9:9-13 that we are to bring the good news of the gospel to sinners. To do so requires that we interact with sinners. However that does not mean we need to endorse their sin or sin with them. On the contrary, we show them by our behavior and teach them with our words the truth of God’s word.

9 As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at his tax collector’s booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. So Matthew got up and followed him.

10 Later, Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. 11 But when the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with such scum?[d]”

12 When Jesus heard this, he said, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do.” 13 Then he added, “Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: ‘I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.’[e] For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”

Matthew must clearly have known already who Jesus was or he would not have immediately dropped everything and followed Jesus. Matthew also must have known that he was a sinner and not worthy to serve a holy servant of God. Imagine his delight to receive the invitation. He leapt at the chance, leaving everything else behind.

Jesus extends that same invitation to us today. Will we sit in place, remaining in our sin? or jump up to leave sin behind, change our behaviors, and follow Jesus Christ?

There is a message here also for those who feel they are no longer sinners… that they have overcome sin… you have not. Maintain humility and submit to God. Continue on your journey to grow closer to Him. Remember, as soon as you believe you have “arrived”, that is as far as you will ever go.

As we follow Jesus, we are called to bring as many sinners with us as possible. Do not exclude anyone. We follow God’s example… we tell them the truth, allow them the choice to follow Jesus. They are responsible for making the decision to accept the gift of salvation from Jesus Christ. We cannot accept Jesus for them or force them to accept Him.

As a final word of caution as you evangelize… do not miss the example Jesus provides in distinguishing between His inner circle of disciples and those who are openly sinful. His close friends are those who are receptive to the message of the gospel and seeking God. He goes with them to visit with and share the gospel with open sinners who do not yet know God. It is a dangerous trap for someone to try to persuade open sinners to follow God by making them very close friends… you risk instead being influenced away from God.

—-

Please share our devotionals with your friends and family. Help us to share the good news of the gospel!

the way with scripture - for posts, medium 2

Jesus Christ / Yeshua

Jesus is Not a Prophet; He is God

I am surprised by people who claim that Jesus was a good man or prophet of God, but not God Himself. There are many scriptures in the Old Testament that prophecy and point forward to Jesus Christ. In the New Testament there are many references where Jesus claims to be God.  One such scripture is Matthew 9:1-7.

9 Jesus climbed into a boat and went back across the lake to his own town. 2 Some people brought to him a paralyzed man on a mat. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “Be encouraged, my child! Your sins are forgiven.”

3 But some of the teachers of religious law said to themselves, “That’s blasphemy! Does he think he’s God?”

4 Jesus knew[a] what they were thinking, so he asked them, “Why do you have such evil thoughts in your hearts? 5 Is it easier to say ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Stand up and walk’? 6 So I will prove to you that the Son of Man[b] has the authority on earth to forgive sins.” Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!”

7 And the man jumped up and went home! 8 Fear swept through the crowd as they saw this happen. And they praised God for sending a man with such great authority.[c]

One must accept Jesus Christ as God Himself, a madman, or a liar. There is no middle ground of “good man” or “prophet of God”.  For those of us who have eyes to see and ears to hear… we know Jesus as God.

—-

Please share our devotionals with your friends and family. Help us to share the good news of the gospel!

the way with scripture - for posts, medium 2

Am I on the path?, Demons, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Righteousness / Serving God

Jesus Casts Out Demons

1 Comment

In Matthew 8:28-33, Jesus casts out demons from two violent men. We gain some insight into the relationship of Jesus, demons, and the people.

28 When Jesus arrived on the other side of the lake, in the region of the Gadarenes,[g] two men who were possessed by demons met him. They lived in a cemetery and were so violent that no one could go through that area.

29 They began screaming at him, “Why are you interfering with us, Son of God? Have you come here to torture us before God’s appointed time?”

30 There happened to be a large herd of pigs feeding in the distance. 31 So the demons begged, “If you cast us out, send us into that herd of pigs.”

32 “All right, go!” Jesus commanded them. So the demons came out of the men and entered the pigs, and the whole herd plunged down the steep hillside into the lake and drowned in the water.

33 The herdsmen fled to the nearby town, telling everyone what happened to the demon-possessed men. 34 Then the entire town came out to meet Jesus, but they begged him to go away and leave them alone.

A few observations to highlight:

  • Jesus wants to help even violent men whom others have given up on. Jesus, as son of God, has no fear of the two men in the cemetery.
  • The demons not only believe in Jesus, but they also recognize Him as son of God, when many religious people do not. However, they do not follow or serve Him. If we tell ourselves we “believe in” Jesus, or “know” Jesus… that puts us in the same relationship with Him as demons. The better question is “Do we follow and serve Jesus?”
  •  The demons recognize that Jesus has power over them. They know they can not win over Him. They simply ask why He is coming before the appointed time to torture them, presumably to cast them into Hell.
  • Jesus is not there to change the appointed time for the demons to be destroyed, just to help the men and demonstrate the power of God.  He casts the demons into the herd of swine at their request.
  • The immediate and dramatic change in the behavior of both the men and the pigs demonstrates a conclusive picture for those who witnessed it of the real existence of demons. They exist to destroy,  but are constrained by God to within certain boundaries.
  •  The herdsman fled and told everyone what happened to the demon possessed men. Instead of celebrating or worshipping Jesus, they asked Him to leave. How sad for people to clearly see the power of almighty God and have a response to push it away.

Reflect on these points and others in the scripture. How can you apply them to your life today?

Are you celebrating the power of God in your life? or pushing it away?

Do you “know” and “believe in” Jesus? or do you serve and follow Him? Can others tell? How does your life reflect this by being different from those around you who do not serve Jesus?

—-

Please share our devotionals with your friends and family. Help us to share the good news of the gospel!

the way with scripture - for posts, medium 2

Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Obeying God

The Cost of Following Jesus

Jesus reminds us Matthew 8:18-22 that to be His followers we must leave behind many things that are be important to us.  He must come first… before anything else.

18 When Jesus saw the crowd around him, he instructed his disciples to cross to the other side of the lake. 19 Then one of the teachers of religious law said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” 20 But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man[e] has no place even to lay his head.” 21 Another of his disciples said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.” 22 But Jesus told him, “Follow me now. Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead.[f]”

When we put Jesus first, even ahead of our own family, He shows us how to take care everything else. The relationships and things that honor God and are consistent with His word will still fit and have the correct priority. The relationships or things that are inconsistent with God’s word must be left behind and quickly.

—-

Please share our devotionals with your friends and family. Help us to share the good news of the gospel!

the way with scripture - for posts, medium 2