Matthew 5:13-16 – “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. 14 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. ” NKJV

Darkness was still covering my patio as I sat there in the stillness of the early morning with my cup of coffee and Bible.  There seemed to be a special presence as nothing was stirring, and the thought of my devotional for today came out of that stillness today.  Thanks for the reminder, Lord.

This morning, God spoke to my heart regarding being Salt and Light in this world, not Light Salt or being light salt or lightly salted.  Some believers seem to have allowed themselves to become “light salt” to this world rather than Salt and Light!  Light Salt is not salt but an imitation designed to provide an artificial taste and has no preservative powers. God wants us to be both “flavor” to this world and be a “preservative” as well.

We are added to the mix of this world to bring Jesus into it, not to get lost in the mix as one of a multitude of differing religious views! We are to be light to point the way to Him, the only access to God! If we become so watered down that we only give a token representation of Him to the world around us, we become nothing more than “another option” when there is no other option. We become a delusion and part of the problem rather than presenting the solution, the hope, and the way.

I am not saying you have to be caustic in what you say and do, turning people off before you even get a chance to share the Good News with them.  I am not saying you go around judging people and turning them away before they have heard the message.  I am saying that you become One with Jesus to the point that when you walk into the room, He walks into the room with and in you!   You become so enmeshed with Him that your attitude is His attitude, your compassion is His compassion, and your love is His love expressed.

The idea is to Manifest Him, not just represent Him. He lives IN you; the Holy Spirit is With and IN you.  The Father’s presence is manifested through you. Your words, life, and actions speak volumes to those that you come in contact with. I have found that through the years in my own life and in the lives of others with whom I have worked and known, we have seen people turn to God not because we preached to them but because we lived before them. Our lives are epistles known and read by men.

Let your Light (Christ) shine before men so they may see the way! Let your life be Salt to bring the flavor of His Love and mercy into their presence and be the preservative to help them stand before Him after they have come to him. Let them see you day in and day out as the consistent expression of the Lord, and you will touch their hearts. You may only sow the seeds, another may water, but GOD will give the increase!

Be encouraged. You may not be the most eloquent speaker, but you do not have to be your life speaks louder than words. Just be Salt and Light in this world and watch the Lord take that and do wonders in the lives of the hurting, hungry, and dying. Today is your day to be a new flavor added to the mix of your surroundings – “The Jesus Flavor”– and light pointing to the Victory of the Cross.

Blessings as you go through your day!

John 5:1-17 – “After these things there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porticoes. 3 In these lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, and withered, [waiting for the moving of the waters; 4 for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool and stirred up the water; whoever then first, after the stirring up of the water, stepped in was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted.] 5 A man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had already been a long time in that condition, He said to him, “Do you wish to get well?” 7 The sick man answered Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I am coming, another steps down before me.” 8 Jesus said to him, ” Get up, pick up your pallet and walk.” 9 Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and began to walk. Now it was the Sabbath on that day. 10 So the Jews were saying to the man who was cured, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet.” 11 But he answered them, “He who made me well was the one who said to me, ‘Pick up your pallet and walk.'” 12 They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Pick up your pallet and walk’?” 13 But the man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away while there was a crowd in that place. 14 Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you.” 15 The man went away, and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. 16 For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath. 17 But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.” NASB

This passage has fascinated me for years. The most fascinating portion is Jesus’s question and the man’s response. This man has been sitting at the pool daily for 38 years, hoping to get into the water first and be healed. He has had assistance getting there, but apparently, they left him there once they brought him to the pool for the day.

Think about it.  For Thirty-Eight Years, he had been on his bed or pallet watching person after person make it into the water sick or lame and come out well. For Thirty-Eight Years, he struggled to get to the water first but has been unable to do so.  For Thirty-Eight Years, he suffered disappointment after disappointment.

Jesus asks the most amazing question, “Do you wish to get well?” What?  I can imagine him thinking, “Sir, I have been here for Thirty-Eight Years; what do you think? OF COURSE, I WANT TO BE HEALED!”  That would have been my answer and probably yours, at least I think it would.

But this man’s response was different. He said, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but another steps down before me while I am coming.” I hear it in his words, ‘I’M A VICTIM!” He was focused on his situation, no one to help. He focuses on his condition; someone else beats me before I can get there. He has become a Victim and has turned his focus on his condition and his disappointment; it is Poor Me, and for some, it becomes Pour Me Another!

To Be fair, he had been in this condition Thirty-Eight Years!  I am sure we would be less than hopeful had this been us.   I am quite sure that most of us would not have been brimming with faith at this point. I’m equally sure that most of us would have turned the focus on us, our situation, and our condition as he did.

But answer the question! Jesus asked a simple, straightforward question that should have received a simple, straightforward answer. Jesus healed him despite his self-focus, lack of faith and expectation, and his condition and situation.

Too often, Jesus asks us a question, and we fail to answer the question. We explain why it has not happened and why it is somebody’s fault, something, or someone else’s. We, too, focus on our situation, and I will be the first to say that this man had every reason to be disappointed, discouraged, and even in despair.

• Thirty-eight years of failure to receive healing!
• Thirty-eight years of seeing someone else receive healing!
• Thirty-eight years of beginning the day with a small glimmer of hope and ending it with utter disappointment.

Many would be bitter. Most would be discouraged. Some would have lost their faith entirely.

Frequently, when Jesus comes to us, He asks a question that can be answered simply from the depths of our hearts and out of our genuine desire.  Unfortunately, we sometimes give him something else.

Stop It!  Answer the Question!  No matter what it is, answer the question!  If it is healing, Answer the Question!

• If it is deliverance, Answer the Question. 
• If it is a restored relationship, Answer the Question. 

No matter what the question is, answer it!  Answer it straightforwardly and honestly! The answer does not lie in your condition or situation, nor is it dependent upon someone else – – the answer is IN JESUS!   Therefore, answer His question and obey His command. Never give up hope! Never allow the focus to become you. Always make your first look at The Kingdom of God and His Righteousness. Looking unto Jesus, who is the author and finisher of our faith!

I encourage everyone today to decide that you will always honestly and truly Answer His Question!  Today is the beginning of your liberty in a new fashion.

Blessings to each of you as you go through this incredible Day He has given us!

Genesis 1:1-3 – “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said….” NKJV

What more really needs to be said that IN THE BEGINNING GOD!  Unless we follow that with the creation of the heavens and the earth, it is a standalone statement.  I recently spoke to an evolutionist, and he could not grasp the concept of creation.  He said that it was not “scientifically or intellectually plausible.”  

I pointed out the intricacy and unfathomable makeup of the human body, the design of the universe, Earth, and the Solar System, and that design implied a designer. Still, they said they would stick with science, not religious fanaticism.

Then God said, in verses 3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 20, 24, 26, 29.  Each time God spoke, something of creation came into being, and it was good, right, established, and in verse 31, we see, “Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was VERY GOOD….” As the little boy in Sunday school said, “God don’t make no junk.”

Our magnificent Creator God spoke the world into existence and caused it to become a reality with His great power.  His Omniscience, Omnipotence, and Omnipresence were at work and are still working in the creation itself and our individual lives.  He created man as the central figure of creation.  

What God did He did for us out of His Great Love is Amazing!  If our God, who can speak worlds into existence, speaks to our situation, can we not believe that He is capable of bringing resolution to it?  He has invited us to come boldly before the Throne and ask what we will, and yet too frequently, we run and hide, as Adam & Eve, rather than running into His presence and resting under the shelter of His arms.

His love for us brought everything that we see in creation into being for us. His love for us caused Jesus to go to the Cross for us. His love for us has prepared a place for us to spend Eternity with Him. He invites us to “cast our care upon Him because He cares for us….”

Sadly, we frequently try to become creators in our own right and repair our own situation without His assistance.  That, my friends, is the most foolish thing we could do. No matter what you face today, in Him is the solution. No matter your trial, in Him is the answer. No matter your disappointment, in Him is Victory.

Turn your eyes upon Jesus today and know that the God of all Creation cares for you no matter what you are facing and is not only able but willing to come into your situation and bring His Creative Solution!

Blessings as you go through the day. Go with the view that God is the beginning, the middle, and the end. HE WAS! HE IS! HE WILL ALWAYS BE GOD!

John 1:19-34 – “This is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent to him priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20 And he confessed and did not deny, but confessed, ” I am not the Christ.” 21 They asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” And he said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” 22 Then they said to him, “Who are you, so that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?” 23 He said, “I am A VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, ‘MAKE STRAIGHT THE WAY OF THE LORD,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.” 24 Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. 25 They asked him, and said to him, “Why then are you baptizing, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” 26 John answered them saying, ” I baptize in water, but among you stands One whom you do not know. 27 “It is He who comes after me, the thong of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.” 28 These things took place in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing. 29 The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! 30 “This is He on behalf of whom I said, ‘ After me comes a Man who has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.’ 31 “I did not recognize Him, but so that He might be manifested to Israel, I came baptizing in water.” 32 John testified saying, ” I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and He remained upon Him. 33 “I did not recognize Him, but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, ‘He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the One who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.’ 34 “I myself have seen, and have testified that this is the Son of God.” NASB

It is another amazingly beautiful morning here in North Texas.  The temperature is very pleasant as the morning breaks on the horizon.  All the sounds of everything coming to life are refreshing.  I have a hot cup of coffee in my hand and my Bible in my lap.  It is opened to a place that the Holy Spirit prompted, a song in my heart, praise on my lips, and a prayer for the laborers and labors of the day being sent heavenward.

The first five words are what I heard today! BEHOLD THE LAMB OF GOD!

Sometimes, we need to stop everything else and focus on the only truly important thing – HIM! We need to be reminded that Jesus is truly the “Lamb of God, slain from the foundation of the world for us.” As John Baptist said here, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the SIN of the world!”

The SIN that reaches back to the Garden of Eden where man lost his way and Satan became the god of this world and all the torment that has ensued subsequently – – Jesus bought us back. His sacrifice enabled us to be transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of God. We have moved from darkness into light. We have moved from servants of satan to servants of God. We have moved from lost sheep to the redeemed!

BEHOLD THE LAMB of God today! Meditate upon Him and what He has done. Mediate upon His ultimate and complete sacrifice – HIS FINISHED WORK! Rejoice in the relationship that you have and is available with and in Him.

• We shall behold Him.
• We do behold Him.
• We are beholding Him.

Today, make it your singular objective to Behold Him!  Like the old song, “Turn your eyes upon on Jesus… Look full into His wonderful face…” Then, truly, the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of HIS GLORY AND GRACE!  Make this a day of rejoicing and worship. Make Him the beginning of your day!

BEHOLD THE LAMB OF GOD!

May the Lord richly bless each of you as you begin your day. May this be the best day you have ever experienced, and may tomorrow be even better!

Psalms 144:1-4 – “Blessed be the LORD, my rock, Who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle; 2 My lovingkindness and my fortress, My stronghold and my deliverer, My shield and He in whom I take refuge, Who subdues my people under me. 3 O LORD, what is man, that You take knowledge of him? Or the son of man, that You think of him? 4 Man is like a mere breath; His days are like a passing shadow.” NASB

It is a Great Day to be Alive!   My usual morning routine is to take my Bible, a coffee cup filled with aromatic coffee, and read, pray, and listen to the stillness of the new day beginning.  I love the morning sounds and listening to the voice of the Lord speak to my heart.  My spirit almost lept from my chest as the Lord spoke so simply and clearly to my heart. He said, “I AM IN CONTROL…. I AM PREPARING MY CHILDREN FOR THE BATTLE!” (Yes, what I heard was emphatic!)

As we praise and worship the Rock of our Salvation, we should never forget that He has been and is “training” our hands for war and our fingers for battle. He is our defense, our pavilion tent of safety to run to when we become weary from the battle. He is our sword, shield, and defender.

He is the Eternal All-Wise God, and we are mere mortals looking through a glass darkly, seeing only in part, but He sees the end from the beginning, and we do well to see the beginning from where we are, much less the end.  He is the author and finisher of our faith. In Him, we have refuge in the time of trouble.

Many things are bleak on the world scene today, but we have this confidence that He Is In Control, and He Trains Our Hands For War! He equips and prepares us and goes with us into every battle. He never leaves nor forsakes us. He guides our thoughts, words, actions, and divine encounters. He makes us harmless as doves but wise as serpents and ready for war. Our war is not with flesh & blood, but it is a war nonetheless, and with God and the whole armor He has provided, We Will Not Fail!

Let me give you a way to begin your day:

• Begin your day rejoicing no matter what you hear – GOD IS IN CONTROL!
• Begin your day with worship & praise – GOD IS IN CONTROL!  
• Begin your day with thanksgiving – GOD IS IN CONTROL!  
• Begin your day with Peace – GOD IS IN CONTROL!
• Do those things He directs, say those things you hear Him saying, and you will find that in that crisis moment, you will be prepared and know you are never alone.

You have God with you, and you have your true friends standing with you. Praise God from whom All Blessings Flow!

Have a Great Day today in the Lord! Blessings!

Psalms 122 – “I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD.”  2 Our feet are standing Within your gates, O Jerusalem, 3 Jerusalem, that is built as a city that is compact together; 4 To which the tribes go up, even the tribes of the LORD An ordinance for Israel — To give thanks to the name of the LORD.  5 For there thrones were set for judgment, The thrones of the house of David.  6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: “May they prosper who love you. 7 “May peace be within your walls, and prosperity within your palaces.” 8 For the sake of my brothers and my friends, I will now say, ” May peace be within you.” 9 For the sake of the house of the LORD our God, I will seek your good.” NASB

Reviewing the biblical accounts, I find that David’s love for Worship was unparalleled in Scripture.  His love for the Lord, his desire to be in the presence of the Lord, and his quick response to a revealed sin through repentance caused him to be identified by God as “a man after My own heart.”

It is essential to learn to worship and praise God while alone, but there is something irreplaceable in a gathering of others for the express purpose of worshipping God.  You draw strength from those around you as their joy, exuberance, faith, and presence encourage you to enter in and continue.  No man is an island.  No man or woman lives or dies to themselves; we need others for this journey.

David recognized that God’s presence was the key to life, and in the second portion, he identified a need to Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem.  Why?  Jerusalem represents the seat of the government of God.  David was crying that God not only be Lord in Jerusalem but also in the hearts of all men.  Only as God is the center of our lives can we walk in victory continuously.

God is to be sought first and foremost.  He is to be placed above all else. He is to be relied on and trusted explicitly. He is to govern our lives in every aspect and dimension.  As we allow His love to permeate our hearts and lives, we become vessels of honor to be used by Him in the labors of His Kingdom.

May God bless you as you go through your day.

1 John 4:15-19 – “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. 19 We love, because He first loved us.” NASB

In these few verses, there are several life-changing truths that I want to highlight and discuss briefly:

• The Way to God – – “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.”
• God Is Love – – “We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us.  God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.”
• As He “is,” So Are We IN THIS WORLD – – “By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.”
• Love Defeats Fear – – “There is no fear in love, but perfect love cast out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.”
• God’s Love Draws Us to Him – – “We love because He loved us.”  The New King James says it better – “We love Him because He first loved us.”

Today, we will consider number four – “Love Defeats Fear.”

Consider what the passage says: “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts our fear; because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.” 

First, we know that God IS Love; therefore, fear cannot reside in God, and God lives in us.  That means that fear cannot reside in us if we allow God to live “in” us and “through” us.  David said in Psalm 56:3 – “Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You.” NKJV

 Isaiah declared it a little differently in Isaiah 12:2 – “Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; ‘For YAH, the LORD is my strength and song; He also has become my salvation.’ NKJV David said when fear comes, “I will trust You, Lord.”  Isaiah said, “I will trust and not be afraid.”  With David, it is as we are most of the time – “Fear then trust.”  With Isaiah, the call was to “Trust and not fear.”

God’s love “banishes” fear, for it is a foreign element in the Kingdom of God!  If God is the ALMIGHTY, then what is there to fear?  If the devil somehow manages to “kill us,” what has he done?  Nothing; we are then translated into our “new bodies” and enter into the presence of the Lord.  If we somehow lose everything we possess here on earth, did God not feed the Children of Israel for 40 years in the wilderness and Elijah with the Ravens and the 5,000 and the 4,000 in miraculous fashion?  God is our source, not man, government, local church, or denomination.  God! 

Punishment is gone from our lives in the sense that we will not face eternal punishment because we are “walking with the Lord,” “covered with the Blood of Jesus,” and have our “sins forgiven.”  So, what is it that we are to fear?  If we allow fear to place, it indicates that we need to work on our “view” of God and our “relationship” with Him. Indeed, we can “trust” Him, and if we can “trust” Him, then if God is for us, what difference does it make who is against us?

May the Lord be with you and banish all fear from your life.  Tomorrow, we will consider the last of the five – “God’s Love Draws Us to Him.”

1 John 4:15-19 – “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. 19 We love, because He first loved us.” NASB

In these few verses, there are several life-changing truths that I want to highlight and discuss briefly:

• The Way to God – – “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.”
• God Is Love – – “We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us.  God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.”
• As He “is,” So Are We IN THIS WORLD – – “By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.”
• Love Defeats Fear – –“There is no fear in love; but perfect love cast out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.”
• God’s Love Draws Us to Him – – “We love because He loved us.”  The New King James says it better – “We love Him because He first loved us.”

Today, we will look at item number three – “As He ‘is” So Are We IN THIS WORLD.”

 For almost endless ages, we have sung in Church, “When we all get to heaven,” as somehow being the time when we will become “like Jesus.”  But if you consider the teachings of our Lord and this passage, you will come to a completely different view and realize something dynamic.

For too long, we have justified our failures and lack of demonstration of God’s love, mercy, grace, and power by saying, “Well, I’m only human, and there was only one perfect one.”  Both are true, but He “lives in us.”  The life that we now live in the flesh, we live by the faith “of” and “in” the Son of God. 

Jesus said in John 7:38-39 something incredibly revealing and powerful – “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”  39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” NKJV 

Consider that statement and this verse that we are reflecting upon.  Jesus said that as believers, there are “rivers” of living water flowing from our innermost being through the work of the Holy Spirit.  That “living water” can and will touch everything around it and bring life wherever it touches. 

My question is not “How WAS Jesus” when He walked on Earth but “How IS Jesus NOW?”  Has He not overcome the devil?  Does He not have direct access to the Father?  Is He not more than a conqueror over all the power of the devil?  Then, HOW ARE WE?  According to this passage, we are the same as He IS!  If we are not, I must ask why.

I believe the answer lies in our expectations and beliefs.  Consider what Jesus said in John 14:12-14 a most revealing, penetrating and powerful truth – “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.  13 And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  14 If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.” NKJV  

• Are we “doing” Greater Works? 
• Are we doing Comparable Works? 
• Are we doing Any Works? 

Or have we relegated that to some bygone era and dismissed it without taking into account the words, desires, or promises of the Lord?

We have made “Canaan” heaven, but I suggest that “Canaan” was the Place of Promise and is a picture of living here on Earth in Victory.  It was a land flowing with “milk and honey,” but there were “giants” in the land and people “occupying” the land that had to be “dispossessed.”  That is not a picture of Heaven.  We will not have to defeat the enemy once we get there, for he will not be there.  Therefore, all the powerful weapons of Spiritual Warfare and the Promises of God for overcoming are for NOW!

We need to settle in our hearts that “AS HE IS, SO ARE WE in this present world.” 

May God be with you as you go through your day!  Tomorrow, we will consider number four – “Love Defeats Fear!”