Text:  Psalm 15 & Psalm 24

Who can ascend into the Hill or Presence of the LORD?  The clear answer is the one who has applied God’s means of Grace and has met Him at the altar and laver.  The one that has committed their lives to Him completely.  That one is ready for a taste of God’s Glory and Presence.

I am Hungry!  I am Thirsty!  I want more than momentary flashes of God’s Glory and Presence, I want His fullness in my life!  David expressed it beautifully in Psalms 42:1-2 – “As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for Thee, O God. 2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; when shall I come and appear before God?”  Jesus echoed it in Matthew 5:6 – “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”

There must be a cry of release from the heart and the development of a longing for God that only God can fill.  That is a release and relief that can only be found in the Presence of the saving, healing, filling, delivering, baptizing, living, and loving LORD! Sadly, too often we come momentarily into His Presence and then drift away.  But that momentary ascension creates something inside that revolutionizes our lives.  We are no longer satisfied with the ‘status quo’, we want more of God!  That flash of His Glory and Presence and never be forgotten and the yearning never dies.  We either crave more of Him or we run from Him!

Tragically, we sometimes ascend into His Presence and then after a time, we drift back into what is perceived as normalcy.  Remember the disciples who were with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration and the Presence of God?  Then they came down to the demonic son they could not relieve of his oppression.  Jesus could, but they had drifted from His Presence. 

It’s like a roller coaster.  We are effortless lifted into His Presence by the Holy Spirit and come into places of spiritual splendor that are beyond our imagination.  Places we have never been before, but then we begin our downward descent back to what we deem to be normalcy.  We will repeat the cycle over and over unless we learn to press in or reject Him completely.  I pray that the latter never be a part of your mindset.

MANY HAVE ASKED: “Is This All That God Has for Us?”

Is it God’s ultimate plan and desire for us to come into His Presence for momentary flashes of His Glory then topple back to a norm far below?  I say NO!  Ten Thousand Times No!  God desires and has made available an intimate and abiding relationship and fellowship with Him.  We can have the Atmosphere of Heaven and the Culture of the Kingdom in our lives NOW!

God desires to walk and talk with us as He did with Adam.  He wants us to walk in His presence daily, as did Enoch.  He wants to communicate with us as He did with Moses.  He wants to abide with us as He did with Abraham. 

God wants us to learn to ASCEND out of ourselves and into Him.  Over 160 times the Bible declares that we are IN CHRIST.  Not simply touched by Him, stood before Him, seen Him, experienced Him, or encountered Him but IN HIM!

I want to speak to this one more time and will pause here and address ABIDING in Him in the next devotional.  My prayer is that the LORD will bless your walk and make your day a prosperous and profitable day.

God bless you as you enjoy this day in Jesus!

Text:  Psalm 15 & Psalm 24

We mentioned in the last devotional my personal quest and desire for more of God and my desire to have permanent residence in His presence in the here and now.  Is that unreasonable?  Is that biblical?  Is that something that can be seen in the biblical reference?  If the answers to those questions are yes, then I want it.

It is my convicting that God cannot be boxed up or boxed in.  He is God!  He is Sovereign!  He is Omnipotent, Omniscient, and Omnipresent!  People from all walks of life have come into His Presence.  Some were seekers as David, and others were contenders with God as Jacob.  Yet, each of them was allowed to ‘stand’, although sometimes briefly, in the Presence of God.  Therefore, entering His Presence is a reality that is verifiable biblically.

The Psalmist saw the problem and expressed it with a cry from his soul. Entering the presence of God was his passion and pursuit. He asked: “Who shall ASCEND into the hill of the LORD?”  The answer: “He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood, and has not sworn deceitfully.”  Therefore, we see that it requires some actions and attitudes on our part.  We must be clean in our actions, motives, attitudes, and there must be an inward cleansing through His Grace.

Those appear to be minimum qualifications for a person in a crisis situation to enter into God’s Presence.  That person is a candidate to enter into the Presence of the LORD and experience His Glory!  That means it is possible!

I believe it is valuable to our consideration to consider a Jewish Ritual something every Jew would have understood.  In David’s day the priest had to be cleansed by blood at the Brazen Altar and by water at the laver before he could enter the Holy Place.  This is a type of both inward and outward cleansing.  The inner cleansing is represented by the blood and was cleansing of the guilt of sin.  The outer cleaning was represented by the water for cleansing from their walk and service.  He had to be cleansed inwardly and outwardly before he could enter the Holy Place for a veiled encounter with Jehovah God.

Hebrews 10:22 – “let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” 

This speaks to us today.  What they did was a picture of Grace at work.  The blood was sprinkled for them and the washing of water was done by them.  Grace!  In Ephesians 2:8-9 we read,” For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, that no one should boast.” 

God’s grace sought us, bought us, and brought us to His Cross were we the defiant, degenerate, and defiled could be cleansed.  In 1 Timothy 1:14 we are told, “and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus.”  In verse 16 of that chapter, Paul tells of his own experience and God’s infinite grace.

It is well to remember that Saul of Tarsus was a religious zealot bent on destroying this new move of God.  But Grace arrested him, and he saw the light and was totally transformed by Grace!  When Grace comes and we receive it we become candidates for an encounter with God.  We are ready to ASCEND into His Presence. 

Therefore, Grace must not only be seen but applied!  God cannot and will not have communion and fellowship with the defiled saint, but He can and will cleanse the defiled. That brings us to the obvious question: “Who Can Ascend?”  I will pause and attempt to give a limited answer to that question in the next devotional. 

Until then may the Grace of God guard you, guide you, and keep you as you enjoy this wonderful day in Him!

Text:  Psalm 15 & Psalm 24

There is something perplexing regarding the walk that most Christians seem to have with God.  We seem to move from mountaintop to valley.  Our lives are often roller coasters and there is the continual back and forth from the mountain to the valley.  We have momentary flashes of God’s Glory which lifts us into His presence and then we fall back into our valleys until we again receive another burst from God’s Glory.

I am perplexed because that pattern does not seem to fit the pattern of Jesus or His disciples.  If David, with all his mistakes and sins, could find an abiding and continuing experience in God, why can’t we?  We, New Testament Christians, who have a Better Covenant established on Better Promises and the fullness of the Holy Spirit.  We, who have unlimited grace, and the fullness of two covenants.  Should we not have the abiding manifest Presence of God in our lives?

Is it possible to break the erratic crisis-oriented approach to God’s Presence that many seem to have and learn to abide in Him continually?  I think of the words of Jesus in John 15:7, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you…”  If that place of the presence of God were not possible, He would never have uttered those words.  Also, I recall His response to the disciple’s request for Him to teach them to pray in Matthew 6 where part of the prayer included the request for God’s kingdom to come and His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.   That speaks volumes to my heart about what is possible in Him.

It is possible for us to have the spiritual breakthrough that elevates us into an attitude of Praise and Worship rather than petition and work?  Is it possible to have Permanent Residence in His Presence?  That is my question and my quest.  I want more, no I want all of God I can receive, in this life.  This life is where my commission is carried out.  I know I will have that in heaven, but I am living and working in the here and now and I want God’s Presence now!

I am Hungry!  I am Thirsty!  I am tired of living for momentary flashes of God’s Glory and Presence. I want more!  If I have ever moved into His Presence, even momentary, and I have, I want to move there to make that my habitation and reside in His Presence.  I want the atmosphere of Heaven to permeate my life and I want to learn to develop the culture of the Kingdom in this life.  I want more of Him!  John said, “He must increase but I must decrease.”  I want to decrease so that He can increase in me and live in the Fullness of His Presence, Person, and Power.

That brings us to the two parallel passages found in Psalms 15 & Psalms 24.  There is a clear contrast in these two Psalms, yet both ask essentially the same question.  “What does a man have to do to enter the presence of God?”  That is a vital question for each of us who want more of Him in our lives.

In Psalms 24:3 we read, “Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? And who may stand in His holy place?”  In Psalms 15:1 we find, “O LORD, who may abide in Thy tent? Who may dwell on Thy holy hill?”  

Notice that one Psalm speaks of “Ascending” into God’s Presence and the other speaks of “Abiding” in His Presence.  One desires to ‘stand’ in God’s Presence for a moment and the other wants to ‘live’ there.  I want the latter, I want to ABIDE in His Presence. 

Our Christians history is filled with examples of incredible spiritual awakenings and outpourings of His Spirit and the manifestation of His Presence.  At Pentecost in Acts, we find the first massive outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon people.  At the turn of the century there was an outpouring in Greenville, SC led by a Baptist minister, Robert R. Singleton in 1905.  In 1900 there was an outpouring at Bethel College in Topeka, Kansas led by Reverend Charles Parham and Agnes Ozman.  We have reports of spiritual explosions led by Hugh Cadwalder, W.J. Seymour, Elder C.H. Mason, G.B Cashwell, and E.M. Bell.

In those moves of God, there were Baptist, Methodist, Episcopal, Lutheran, Presbyterian, etc.  They and their churches and communities were touched by an outpouring of God’s Presence that thousands were won into the kingdom, lives were changed, people healed, delivered, and set free.  These people met God and would never be the same.  They were never again satisfied with ‘business as usual’ Christianity but wanted God’s Continuing Presence in their lives, home, cities, and churches.

We have seen it in history, but can we have it in our lives?  I have a conviction that you may or may not share and I will address it but will pause here and say, “Go with God and He will go with you.”  

Have a Great Day in Jesus!

Psalms 8:4 – “What is man, that Thou dost take thought of him? And the son of man, that Thou dost care for him?”  NASB

The Book of Psalms is loaded with glorious truths that excite the heart and explode in us a new sense of Spiritual Power and Spiritual Presence.  When we feast at the table of the Psalms we come away with a new awareness of God’s Person, Love, Grace, and Majesty!  Here in Psalms 8, we find David expressing a new infusion of Hope and a deep sense of Surety and Security for the Child of God. 

I love how he begins, “O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is Thy name in all the earth.”  In a very real sense, he is saying, “Jehovah, my God, You are my sovereign Lord and Master…”  In verses 1-3 he draws our attention to God in His Glory, in His Work, and in His Power. 

In verse 4 he draws a contrast between God and man.  Man, in comparison to God, seems so insignificant, helpless, frail, and utterly useless.  God, on the other hand, is filled with glory, majesty, power, and perfection.  The contrast is arresting and revealing of how dependent man is upon God, his creator to give and sustain life.  Without Him, we are hopeless and helpless.  In contrast to God’s Creation, David asks, “What is man?” 

It is easy for man to develop a sense of his unworthiness to the point that he gives up.  When we view the contrast between man and God some develop an unhealthy sense of unimportance.  They allow the enemy to plant the seed that we are without worth and worthless and that leaves man without Hope.  That is a terrible state to find oneself in but that is not the end of the story. 

Yes, we are insignificant in comparison to God.  Yes, we are without hope without God.  Yes, we have sinned and come short of His glory.  But, in God’s eyes, man is very important.  Man is far more important to God that most can see or believe.  I am convinced that one of the most needed things in the face of trial, difficulty, tribulation, or persecution is the realization that “I am important to God!”  I am important enough for Him to care for me and provide for me.  That is not Hopeless it is Hopeful.

I ask that you examine the Bible’s revelation of the Worth of Man to God.  We will touch on the high points and move rapidly through the discussion.  I hope that it will inspire you to dig deeper and meditate more on God’s View of Man.

MAN IS MORE VALUABLE THAN ALL THE CREATURES OF THE EARTH.

We need only refer to Genesis 1:26 to verify that assertion.  God gave man dominion over them.  None but man, of the creatures became living souls.  In fact, the animals became the source of food and clothing for man.  You are worth more than all the creatures of this earth to God. 

MAN WAS CREATED IN THE IMAGE AND LIKENESS OF GOD

You and I are the Reflections of God.   If you will, God wants us to be the Reflection of Perfection.  Are we perfect?  Far from it but In Him, forgiven, and filled with His Spirit we can fulfill his decree, “Be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect.”  (Matthew 5:48).  If it were not possible for us to be holy and filled with His perfection it would not be in the Bible. 

THE SOUL OF MAN IS WORTH MORE THAN THE ENTIRE PLANET.

In Matthew 16:26, we read, “For what will a man be profited, if he gains the whole world, and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”  We must remember and realize that God ascribes unparalleled worth to the soul of man.  That is true even in light of the reality that God knows everything about us.  Knowing our warts, flaws, and the kinks in our armor, He still ascribes that worth to man.  That is incredible!

MAN IS IMPORTANT ENOUGH FOR GOD TO ALLOW CHRIST’S BLOOD TO BE SHED FOR US.

Consider John 3:16 and Romans 5:8 as you allow that to sin into your spirits and encourage you.  He has provided a pathway for redemption and the unparalleled sacrifice at Calvary is evidence of how much God Loves us and Values us.

MAN IS IMPORTANT ENOUGH FOR JESUS TO RETURN FOR US.

I ask that you reflect on John 14 and as you meditate on that portion of God’s Promise you will find a serene calming of all your fears.  He is returning for those who are waiting for Him, walking after Him, and watching for Him.  As we consider the provisions, He has made for us, how can we not be filled with a sense of worth and peace?  You may feel inferior, unimportant, insignificant, worthless, hopeless, and helpless but God sees you as Valuable!  You are worth the Blood of God to God!  That is Amazing!

What have we to fear if God is for us?  Why worry if God is able to do all things and is on our side?  Remember who and whose you are.  You are Royalty, God’s Children!  Let the declaration of Matthew 10:28-31, sink deep into your being.  He said, “And do not fear those who kill the body, but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 “Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 “But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 “Therefore do not fear; you are of more value than many sparrows.”

What should we do?  Being praising Him for His Love and Truth.  Seek His assistance and guidance in our daily walk.  Come boldly before the Throne of Grace and ask His help, protection, provision, and guidance.  If you are born-again you are a King’s kid and an heir of God through Jesus!  I rebuke the spirit of unworthiness and helplessness right now and ask the Holy Spirit to flood you with Peace.   

God bless you as you bask in His presence today!

Job 40:6-9 – “Then the LORD answered Job out of the storm, and said, 7 “Now gird up your loins like a man; I will ask you, and you instruct Me. 8 “Will you really annul My judgment? Will you condemn Me that you may be justified? 9 “Or do you have an arm like God, and can you thunder with a voice like His?”  NASB

We have considered a couple of the most common excuses to justify sin and today it would serve us well to address one that is incredibly damaging.  It is the excuse, “I Can’t Fulfill God’s Requirements Because I Have a Sinful Nature.” 

When a person says that, are they saying that every faculty and even the very essence of their makeup was poisoned and made sinful by Adam?  That sin nature came to you through the bloodline?  Do they mean that they were born in sin and the substance of their being is so saturated with sin that they have become sin themselves?  Those are both true and false declarations. 

If a person is saying, “God You made my nature itself sin and I am and will always be a sinner, therefore you cannot blame me for my condition, you did it” that is an indictment against God. That position ignores the Lamb of Sacrifice and the work of Jesus on the Cross.  What is sin?  God says it is Transgression of the Law but beyond that, the Bible clearly reveals that sin is ‘missing the mark’ and to miss the mark we must, as did Adam, become rebellious and disobedient.

If God is responsible for my sinfulness, then I cannot be blamed and there can be no condemnation.  That would make God the most-evil being ever!  If I am not personally responsible for my sin, then I have no sin.  Yes, Adam brought sin into the race and yes, through Adam all are under the domain of the devil.  However, we must never forget that the Bible makes it clear that the ‘soul that sins shall die’ and that is the result of personal choice and personal rebellion against God’s Law.  If we make it solely about a ‘sin nature’ then it is God’s fault, not ours.  I suggest that God does hold you accountable for Adam’s sin but for your own. 

It is time that we stop blaming God or anything but ourselves for our failure to serve God and enter into a deeper relationship with Him.  He stands at the door and knocks.  He has invited us to enter into His presence.  He has provided the sacrifice in the Blood of Jesus on the Cross to atone for our sins.  Our sins not Adams, not parents, not society’s, but ours!  I am guilty LORD and I stand in repentance.  I make no excuse for my failure to comply with your Word and Will.  I ask mercy not judgment!

I have had some tell me that they are “Waiting for God’s Time” before they fully pursue His purposes.  I heard of a woman who had lived in sin for many years and she received Jesus in a church service.  She went to the pastor and told Him that she wanted to know God’s will for her life.  He said, “Well, God had to wait a long time for you to come to Him, so you will have to wait a long time for Him to come to you.”  WHAT?  No, No, No, a thousand times No!  God invites us to come and wants us to enter in NOW!  I am not saying rush out and pursue a ministry before you are prepared, established and ready, but God is not going to punish you by making you wait for Him to direct you because you waited a long time to accept His pardon.  That would be diabolical.

ALL EXCUSES FOR SIN ADD INSULT TO INJURY

When accused of a wrong we find ourselves in a position where we must confess, justify, or deny.  Regarding our sin, there is no justification, so the only wise course is confessed and repent.  Excuses render repentance virtually impossible.  You cannot repent of what you do not believe you are guilty of and refuse to admit.  Therefore, I urge each of us to take all our excuses and self-justifications to the Cross and lay them at the feet of Jesus in repentance.

God requires no more of us that we are reasonably capable of doing.  He asks that we give all of ourselves to Him and serve Him with our whole heart.  He has promised that He will give us aid and comfort.  He will guard and guide.  Excuses are evidence that things are not right on the inside and we are, in a very real sense, blaming God for our condition.  Sin is not God’s fault it is the fault of the individual.  We, as did Adam and Eve, choose the path we will take and in that choice is our guilt.

This is a simple prayer we could and should pray: “LORD, I am guilty, and I ask you to forgive me for my disobedience.  I ask that you cleanse me with the Blood of Jesus and receive me into the beloved.  I thank You that You promised that if I would come You would not turn me away.  I receive Your forgiveness and will make no more Excuses!  Amen!“

God bless you as you embark on the adventures of today in Him!

Job 40:6-9 – “Then the LORD answered Job out of the storm, and said, 7 “Now gird up your loins like a man; I will ask you, and you instruct Me. 8 “Will you really annul My judgment? Will you condemn Me that you may be justified? 9 “Or do you have an arm like God, and can you thunder with a voice like His?”  NASB

We considered the excuse of “Inability” last time. Today I would like to invite everyone to consider some additional excuses used to justify sin or disobedience, which is what sin is.

How many have said or heard say, “I just don’t have the time.”  I heard someone give the following illustration:  They said, “Suppose I were to tell one of my children, ‘Go do this thing and if you do not, I will disinherit you or punish you with the worst possible punishment.”  Then that child responds, “But Dad, I cannot possibly do what you have now asked, because I have the other things you have given me to do, there is not enough time to do both.  If I had nothing else to do, I could fulfill this directive, but I do not have time to take on a new task.” 

If that child’s statement was a factual expression of the situation and you knew it when you gave the second command, then you are being an diabolical tyrant.  Therefore, if God were to require you to do something that you do not have time to do, He is totally to blame for your failure.  He not you should be punished.   We know that God is not unfair or unkind so where must the fault lie?

Do we really think that God is unaware of the amount of time required and the amount of time we have available?  God never requires us to do beyond our ability.  He does not say, “Love the LORD your God with the power of an angel, He says with All Your Heart!”  For us to insist that we do not have time to fulfill the directive of the one who is beyond time, is to charge God with being unreasonable. We know that God is the most reasonable of all.  God desires that we redeem the time and utilize each moment for His glory, and He will give us the needed and required help to succeed.

I have heard mothers insist they could not do something for God because they had to care for their children’s needs.  God never asks us to neglect our family duties!  But to assert that God is asking something of us that depletes our ability to fulfill our family duties is to charge God with being unreasonable.

I heard a farmer argue that he could not fulfill something that God was asking of him.  He said, “I have to plant my crops.”  I have heard teenagers insist they could not fulfill God’s request because they were too loaded with schoolwork.  The truth is that everything we do should be done for the glory of God.  What is a mother’s first duty?  Her family.  What is a farmer’s first duty?  His farming.  What is a student’s obligation?  His education.  Why?  To enable them to enhance their lives for God’s service!

It is important to remember that everything does not depend on us alone.  We are the Body of Christ not simply isolated and individual entities in the Kingdom of God.  I believe that to be religious or spiritual also requires being industrious.  I do not believe that an idle person can fulfill the purposes of God.  God expects us to do the daily and practical duties of life and is fully aware of the time and effort required to fulfill them.  All we do is to be done for His Glory.  Who owns the family?  Who owns the farm?  It’s God’s!

I want to deal with another excuse that I believe incredibly germane and one that needs to be viewed carefully.  We will do that in the next devotional so I will pause here.

May the LORD be with you on this wonderful day!