Thank You, Father, for Mother
“Respect Your Mother” is a very nice sentiment—until it appears on a bumper sticker next to a graphic of planet Earth! (I don’t mean to suggest… Read More »Thank You, Father, for Mother
Devotions
Easter Customs or Jesus?
One gets concerned with all the baskets, eggs, and candy displayed before the eyes of our children this time of year. Long ago I tired of this blatant attempt to dishonor and discredit the most important day in the Christian church year, so my children and I used an old shoebox to make a replica of an Easter tomb. After the children had done some earth-tone painting on the box, I would painstakingly cut an opening in one side and then reseal the opening.
My children would wake up to see that during the night “miraculously” the tomb’s door would be open and the insides found EMPTY!
It helped teach them a great lesson. Our Lord’s PHYSICAL resurrection is the crowning proof and assurance from the Father that all Jesus came to accomplish has been accepted as payment in full for the sins of the world. Therefore our salvation is certain. Our children were not confused about the Easter Bunny playing any part in our salvation.
Now, the Christian faith is lacking something that almost every other religion in the world has: a dead man’s bones! Whereas other religions have a grave or a tomb containing the bones of its “saint,” the tomb of Jesus Christ is empty! Read More »Easter Customs or Jesus?
Witnesses of an Empty Tomb
On that first Easter morning the soldiers guarding Jesus’ tomb saw the angel come and roll away the stone, but they squandered the opportunity to be powerful witnesses and took the bribe to remain silent.
“You are witnesses of these things.” (Luke 24:48)
Mary Magdalene’s heart overflowed with love for her Lord—first in weeping as she witnessed the empty tomb and then with rejoicing after she met her living Savior.
On Easter evening Jesus appeared to the disciples who were gathered behind locked doors. First of all, He assured them that He was not a ghost and then“He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures” Read More »Witnesses of an Empty Tomb
This Blessed Brokenness
“Make me hear joy and gladness,
That the bones You have broken may rejoice.” Psalm 51:8
This heart of mine
keeps giving in
to hosts of sin
that live within.
The Tragic Results of a Denial of Christ’s Resurrection
Can a person be a Christian but not believe in the bodily resurrection of Jesus from the dead? The apostle Paul says that denying Christ’s resurrection brings tragic results. We list three of them below.Read More »The Tragic Results of a Denial of Christ’s Resurrection
“The Good Shepherd”
A name is more than a title, for nearly every name has a meaning. A name is more than a title when actions are joined with that… Read More »“The Good Shepherd”
GOOD FRIDAY 2013
Following the question “Whom do men say that I am?” Jesus turned to His disciples and asked, “But whom do You say that I am?” Peter… Read More »GOOD FRIDAY 2013
Noah, Daniel, and Job can’t save!
“…Even though Noah, Daniel, and Job were in [the land], as I live, says the Lord God, they would deliver neither son nor daughter; they would deliver only themselves by their righteousness.” (Ezekiel 14:20)
What do Noah, Daniel, and Job have in common? Each was well known for his righteousness. We read that “Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations” (Genesis 6:9). Of Job we are told that he was “a blameless and upright man” (Job 1:8). And by the time of the prophet Ezekiel, Daniel’s life had also shown him to be a righteous follower of the Lord in the court of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (see Daniel chapter 1).
And why are these three men in particular mentioned in the book of Ezekiel? For the simple reason that, as our text says, even if they were in the land, they would not be able to save the Jews from the destruction to come at the hands of the Babylonians.
God had sent prophets through whom He warned, encouraged, and pleaded with His people, but still they continued their idol worship. In His loving grace the Lord had shown great patience with them, but the Jews continued to rely on themselves for strength, to depend on their physical ancestry as an “in” with God. Read More »Noah, Daniel, and Job can’t save!
LENTEN . . . JOY?
“…(Jesus) who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2)
The term joy is not one we typically associate with the seven weeks of the Lenten season. Joy is an emotion usually reserved for the seasons of Christmas and Easter.
The emotions of godly sobriety and repentance are usually associated with Lent—and rightly so. Our thoughts focus on the need for forgiveness of sins, as we consider the suffering, sorrow, shame, and death our Lord Jesus endured to reconcile sinners unto God.Read More »LENTEN . . . JOY?
“Everybody Loves a Parade”?
PALM SUNDAY: (Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-10; Luke 19:29-40; John 12:12-15)
It has been said that everybody loves a parade. Large crowds of people young and old flock curbside to watch Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Rose Bowl Parade, or the St. Patrick’s Day Parade.
What makes parades popular are beautiful floats, waving celebrities decked out in finery, marching bands, and giant-size balloon characters. Many say they like parades because of the fun-filled entertainment and positive atmosphere.Read More »“Everybody Loves a Parade”?