And They Said, 'Who....'"

"And they said among themselves, 'Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?'"  (Mark 16:3)

Answer?  Don't worry; Jesus has already taken care of that.

And, my friend, we can say the same thing about the madness now gripping the world.  I thought again today of Bob Mumford's statement of some years ago.  "You can control the Church, but you cannot control the Kingdom."  Church leaders and governmental leaders all over the world today are discovering the reality of this.  King Jesus is manifesting Himself as King of, "The Kingdom of GodT/Heaven."  The current "pandemic" is bringing home the term, "global events."  This is more "global" than previous "World Wars."

This is also an opportunity for you and me to hear and recognize the reign of King Jesus and His Words, as the Psalm refers to Him, "The Kingdom is the Lord's, and He rules over the nations."  We must not attempt to rely on past cliche responses to daily life or global events.  There is an aspect of Isaiah 24 loosed in the earth, "Behold, the Lord makes the earth empty and makes it waste.... And it shall be: As with the people, so with the priest;...as with the creditor, so with the debtor....The city of confusion is broken down; every house is shut up, so that none may go in."  

What we are witnessing is beyond the Church.  We are watching our Lord Jesus Christ moving in the Earth as, "King of kings, and Lord of lords."  Even in the midst of suffering and "uncertainty," I quote our Lord Jesus again, "And what I say to you, I say to all:  Watch!"  

Father, in Jesus' Name, keep me ever watching and listening to You.  Amen.

When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"

Hebrews 12:2

"Read What You Haven't Underlined"

"Gideon said to Him, 'O my Lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us?  And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about...?  But now the Lord has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites."  (Judges 6:13)

The church-going "never Trump-ers" seem to be unfamiliar with the theology of the Book of Judges.  Not only in the Bible, but also throughout Church History, Jesus has put forth some of the most unlikely personages to fulfill His Purposes, e.g., "This is what the Lord says...of Cyrus, 'He is My shepherd and will accomplish what I please.'"

There are seven cycles of rebellion and deliverance in the Book of Judges, and some of the "deliverers" were personages whom most "spiritual" people would not have chosen, e.g., Samson, Abimelech, even the fleece-laying, fearful Gideon.  As with President Trump, these men were not paragons of spirituality.  It would be amusing, if it were not pathetic, all the wailing that Trump is "not presidential."  Yea, where did presidential get us?!?

I submit that if anyone wishes to be in tune with what our Lord Jesus Christ has done and is doing in the Earth in these days, they take off their "Sunday School," evangelical, charismatic, I-have-it-all-pretty-well-figured-out-already glasses and-------read the Bible!  It will help us all to navigate these turbulent times.  Never, ever read the Bible, especially those "favorite," underlined passages with the familiarity of closed ears and heart.  I repeat Brother Charles, "If you want to know what God is saying, read what you haven't underlined!"  

Father, in Jesus' Name, if I every read Your Words with "familiarity," convict me deeply.  Amen.

When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"

Hebrews 12:2

"Your Words...The Delight Of My Heart"

"Your Words were found and I ate them, and Your Words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart; for I have been called by Your Name, O Lord God of hosts." (Jeremiah 15:16, NASB)

I hope and pray you are not tired of this, especially if you have been reading these devotionals over many years.  But Jesus repeats Himself every time we read the Bible, so, here I am.  I say again to you that our text is not religion for me.  This is my life.  50 years ago this summer the unimaginable happened in my life.  Yet, that summer of 1970 I discovered the reality of our text to be beyond Sunday School, sermons, teachings, theological discussions, and the pious platitudes which dominate too much of Christendom.

Jesus, "The Word of God," took me into His Words, aka, the Bible.  In that "slough of despond" summer, it was a literal, "Your Words were found and I ate them, and Your Words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart....  50 years later, I am still being sustained by Jesus, "The Word of God," and His, "Words of God." 

Whatever you may be going through now, I have no other "cure," no other "answer," no other, nor greater hope, confidence, and empowerment than, "Your Words were found and I ate them...."  May they also be for you, "....a joy and...delight of my heart...."

Father, in Jesus' Name, How can I ever thank You for such a "gift" as Your Words.  I agree with Moses, "They are your life."  Amen.

Is This Your Prayer Also?

"Your Words were found and I ate them.  And Your Word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; for I am called by Your Name, O Lord God of hosts."  (Jeremiah 1516)

"....Your Words..," referred to elsewhere in Holy Writ as, "the Words of God," and, "Your Word," referred to elsewhere in Scripture as, "The Word of God," our Lord Jesus Christ.

Can you remember when you, "....found and ate them"?  Can you remember also when His Word, even Jesus, became for you, "....the joy and rejoicing of my heart"  I certainly do.  And I'm alive today because of such a "discovery."

Sad that for so many centuries very few Followers of Jesus had access to His Words; they are Jesus' very Breath.  Reformers have referred to those over 1000 years of the dominance of Rome as, "the Babylonian Captivity."  It was.  Keeping, "Your Words," from the Church led to all sorts of superstition (and it wasn't just the absence of the printing press).  Now, however, we have Them/Him.  What are you doing about it?

Father, in Jesus' Name, I so thank You that You brought me to Jeremiah's declaration.  Amen.