Identify Yourself Unashamedly With Christ

On 2023-03-182023-03-18 By Ed AlgreenIn A Lamp unto My Path, Adoration, Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Awesome God, Beyond Description, Blessing, Celebrate God, Needs, Praise, Praise-worthy, Recognize God, Unashamed, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED: Saturday, 2023-03-18
WRITTEN AT: O’Brien, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: Luke 12:8-10
TRANSLATION: The Voice (VOICE)

BIBLE TEXT: ⁸That’s why I keep telling you not to be intimidated. If you identify unashamedly with Me before others, I, the Son of Man, will affirm you before God and all the heavenly messengers. ⁹But if you deny Me before others, you will be denied before God and all the heavenly messengers. ¹⁰People can speak a word against Me, the Son of Man, and the sin is forgivable. But they can go too far, slandering the testimony of the Holy Spirit by rejecting His message about Me, and they won’t be forgiven for that.

OBSERVATION: Jesus had just addressed the subject of hypocrisy, a word that is rooted in the idea of hiding behind a mask, as if ashamed about someone or something. Do you suppose Jesus still sees this in Christians today, or have we learned from the great preaching of today, or possibly from the Bible, that we can be honest about our relationship with Jesus? Hopefully you will examine that thought in your own life as you read my full devotional today!

APPLICATION: To better understand where Jesus may have been coming from, it might be best that we consider how many people use the word ‘hypocrite’ today. If we blame others for abusing alcohol, yet we drink excessively behind closed doors, then we may be referred to as a ‘hypocrite’. If we say we are a Christian, yet there is no sign of Christ-like living in us, then we may be referred to as a ‘hypocrite’. In Jesus’ day, the Jews held claim to being the beloved children of God, so they heavily criticized the Gentiles who could never be ‘good enough’ for the Jews. What do you suppose might be our greatest form of hypocrisy today, as seen by Jesus? Inside our church walls, I believe that all Christians might feel free to claim the name of Jesus, and lift up ‘holy’ hands in praise to Him for His awesome works. And while I may accuse Christians of the road they travel that causes them to lose their witness, I can really only share with you my own personal list of why Jesus might refer to me as a hypocrite. As I leave the church grounds, I might be faced with a reckless driver, at least in my view, and I might struggle with being the same loving and caring child of God to them, as I was able to do inside the church. Some are afraid to attach a bumper sticker with words that might indicate they are ‘Christian’, because they’re afraid that other drivers might look at their driving, or their hand motions and realize that they are not as patient, kind and loving as anything they’ve learned about Jesus. What would Jesus do to those drivers? While waiting on line at the restaurant, we see what appears to be a friend of the host move straight up to the front of the line and escorted into the restaurant. Our faces will probably change color, our demeanor will probably change from bad to worse, and we will not enjoy our meal as much because of, what appeared to us as, unfair practices. What would Jesus do? In dealing with customers while at work, you might do an excellent job for your boss, but what happens when irate customers come in, and they take out their frustration on you? Are you able to keep your calm and let Jesus shine through you to love that customer and still help them all you can? Or do they become even more frustrated because they didn’t see the slightest hint of Jesus in your character? What might Jesus do in that exact scenario? Friends, as long as we are on earth, Satan will find ways to test us to see if he could dissuade us from the idea of keeping Jesus being prominent in our lives. Jesus knew how Satan would be after His disciples, so He helped them prepare the way for many of the temptations that would come their way. Hopefully your church has some strong ministries in place to help you prepare for, and/or harden your stance, while you wait for the day that God will call you out of here. Please try to take advantage of ministries at your church, Sunday School; Small groups; Men’s group; or as applicable – Ladies Group; Prayer and/or Bible Study gatherings; etc. Not only will you find peace in knowing that others share your frustration and/or temptations, but in many cases these groups will be encourages to pray one for another. This will act as a sharpening tool for your faith, persistence and your walk with the Lord. Times with these groups of Christian friends will serve to strengthen your ties with the Lord. Without these, you will face the constant bombardment of the evil one, but you will have no incentive, strength or encouragement to stand firm in your faith. We are challenged in every way by the evil one, so having no support on our side will really serve to weaken us and pull us away from our relationship with the Savior of the World. There is no need to worry when you follow Jesus in obedience to His Word, so be faithful to the One you surrendered your life over to and, stand committed and firm in the same faith that saved you.

BLESSING(S) NOTED: If you identify unashamedly with Me before others, I, the Son of Man, will affirm you before God and all the heavenly messengers! Praise God, if I am proud of Jesus before my peers, He will brag on me before the Father and His angels!

PRAYER: Dearest Lord Jesus, You endured beatings for me, even though You could have called ten thousand angels to protect every lash of the whip. You endured the embarrassment of the townspeople as you were drug through the streets towards Calvary, and You could have called ten thousand angels to protect you from the lashes and relieve the weight of the cross you had to carry. You endured the agony of being pierced and hung on a cross before Your mother and the crowd – just like the two other criminals, even though they deserved their punishment. Again, You could have called ten thousand angels to protect You, but You were determined to do Your Father’s will, and not Your own. You did all this so that I might have access to an eternity in Heaven with our Holy and Righteous God. Thank You Lord Jesus! I may be called a hypocrite here on earth because I cringe from the questions of the enemy or try to avoid confrontation from them. I’m sure the unsaved must look on and question if I really do have a relationship with You. For my readers and/or listeners who may be facing the same challenge as I do, please draw them close and give them reason today to know that You are close and therefore every reason to stay committed to their union with You and to gain strength from You when times are really challenging here on earth. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog might indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. You may also visit me on Spotify and listen to Nuggets while you’re out and about. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

I’m Not Ashamed

On 2020-10-23 By Ed AlgreenIn Christ's Representative, Like Jesus, Representation of the Master, Representative of Christ, UnashamedLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE FROM: 2 Timothy 1:11-14 (NET)

DATE WRITTEN: Friday, 2020-10-23
WRITTEN AT: Hope Hull, AL

TEXT: ¹¹For this gospel I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher. ¹²Because of this, in fact, I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, because I know the one in whom my faith is set and I am convinced that he is able to protect what has been entrusted to me until that day. ¹³Hold to the standard of sound words that you heard from me and do so with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. ¹⁴Protect that good thing entrusted to you, through the Holy Spirit who lives within us.

OBSERVATION: Paul was able to mentor the young man Timothy because he was convinced of his calling, and committed to the One that he served. Regardless of what happened to Paul, including beatings and imprisonment, he was unashamed of the One that he served. I wonder how many of us could truly pass that test today?

APPLICATION: Many churches in America, and perhaps other parts of the world, will celebrate when one of their own commits to the ministry of Jesus Christ. Some churches may even make particular mention of individuals who commit themselves to serving as elders, deacons, teachers or other leadership/servant roles in the church. Because of this recognition, often folk will be prideful of these positions, but nonetheless, committed to serve for the duration of their committed term. There are some ministry jobs and assignments that remind me a little of what Paul experienced, such as missionaries who travel to countries that they know are unfriendly to the gospel of Jesus Christ; pastors who serve in churches and they may or may not be able to pay them, yet they work endless hours to win the lost and disciple the saved, just as if they were serving the richest of congregations. Of course, all church positions require a heart for representing our Maker to those that we serve, and with hearts and mindsets of volunteering our time, effort and complete selves. But to put this all into perspective and try to identify with Paul, I believe that we need to think about the sacrifices we may make in serving and in our volunteering, even if we knew that we would be mocked, ridiculed, beaten, cursed at, or imprisoned for what we do. Would we still be able to stand upright and share, in the words of Paul, that we are unashamed of the message and person of Jesus Christ?I believe that my biggest appeal today would be for the lay persons who might read this devotional. Sure these verses were written to Timothy who was a young pastor. Sure these are very applicable to pastors, elders, teachers and other church leaders. But friends, let me remind you that God didn’t save us so that we might shut up inside of us that good thing that He did for us. I refuse to believe that He would have to create another Red Sea phenomenon, for us to truly believe, brag on, and boast about our God. For if we have permitted the lordship of our Savior and Lord to rule and reign inside of us, and if we maintain an active and sincere relationship with Him, then a river of life would flow out through our actions, our speech and it would become very evident in our outward expression and reactions to others. Remember, we don’t want others to see how cool we are, or how rude we could be, but instead, we want them to see Jesus in and through every aspect of our lives. Nothing to be ashamed of my friend, allow that good thing that has made a difference in your life, to be revealed to others so that they may desire our Savior also. Paul made reference to ‘that day’, meaning the day that we meet Jesus face to face. May we live in such a way that we will be overjoyed and filled with celebration on ‘that day’ because of the relationship we had with Jesus while here on earth, opposed to a time of regret because we were ashamed, and we kept everything about God’s goodness locked up inside of us.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for sending Your Son, Jesus, and for making the way possible for us to see You face to face one day! In fact, we are so thankful of that precious gift, that we want to commit ourselves wholeheartedly to evangelizing that ‘good thing’ that has gotten hold of this old sinful person, and caused a complete turn around in our walk. Lord, we surrender all to You, so that You may fill us with more of Yourself, so that others will see Jesus, and not the earthly sin-filled bodies that would constitute the alternate man. People need the Lord, not more of the same old sinful world. Use us Lord as Your instruments to fulfil Your purpose here on earth. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Sebring, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

Tell Them Everything God Has Done For You

On 2020-05-16 By Ed AlgreenIn Our story, Unashamed, WitnessingLeave a comment

DATE WRITTEN: Saturday, 2020-05-16
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

Bible Reference: Luke 8:38–39
Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

Bible Text: ³⁸ The man who had been freed from the demons begged to go with him. But Jesus sent him home, saying, ³⁹ “No, go back to your family, and tell them everything God has done for you.” So he went all through the town proclaiming the great things Jesus had done for him.

OBSERVATION: Perhaps a more appropriate title for this devotional today may have been ‘What’s your excuse?’. So many Christians today seek God, and they receive a touch from Him, or a bold miracle is performed, but their household family or next door neighbors are unaware that anything happened to them. However, in today’s Scripture we read about a man filled with demons, and those demons were miraculously eradicated. Will neighbors notice? Most definitely! Will they know what potion or spell actually worked to remove the demons? Perhaps not. As we meditate on this today, I want us to think of the times that God brought healing to our bodies, and why didn’t we tell the world about it?

APPLICATION: I wonder how many friends will be told that you went to church this weekend? How about the message that you garnered from the Word of God during your daily devotions? What about the touch of your Master during the Praise and Worship time? Are you feeling healed today of something you and your church members prayed about? Will you be brave enough to share that with critics at work today? In our scripture story today we read where Jesus healed a man of demon possession, and we see where he was excited and ready to board a boat and travel with Jesus to continue spreading the story of his salvation. Instead Jesus asked the man to go and share his story with his family. The man was way too excited to just tell his own family, so he went all throughout the town telling his story. Let’s put this into perspective. I challenged you at the beginning to share your worship experience with your coworkers today, and especially any extraordinary interactions with Jesus from your weekend. I believe I saw some dirty looks from some of you, but I still want to take that a step further and ask you to share your experience with a store clerk, or a waitress! Isn’t it interesting how we find it easier to share information about a movie we saw or an event in our child’s life, but not about the miracle, a miraculous event, that occurred when the Savior of the world reached down in love and touched a sinner such as we are? A total transformation, yet we don’t want to offend our friends by sharing our good news with them? Friends, I am convinced that if it’s in us, it will come out of us! Our genuine experiences with God will impact our lives and everyone will notice! Perhaps if we are ashamed to share the blessings God has showered on us, He should withdraw those blessings and give them to someone who will openly share the Good News with others! What is our hang up? Why would we be embarrassed? It happened to us! Why would we fear having the right words for message we have to share? It was a personal experience! If we are intimidated by our friends and afraid to share our story, did we forget that this is a personal experience and not one that we may have mistakenly overheard from a friend? Jesus is alive my friend, and He wants us to be open in sharing our experiences with our Father! This is first-hand experience, so definitely nothing that could be manufactured. Unless you tell your story, a friend may never know about your Lord, and may wind up in Hell for having never accepted the Lord Jesus as their personal Savior.

PRAYER: The privilege of being touched by the God of this universe is much more news-worthy than anything else that could possibly hit the front page of the paper today! Please forgive us Lord for placing you in a ‘forbidden box’ when it comes to sharing our experiences with others. I believe that others will be convinced of Your power and Your love, when they see us excited about it and they hear us bubbling over with the glory of having been in Your presence. Please embolden us with great power so that we will not be ashamed of the gospel, but will gladly share how it has impacted our lives. May others see Jesus, because of their encounter with us today. I ask these things in the wonderful and miraculous name of the One who saved me from my sin, Jesus my Lord, AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog at https://NuggetsFromGodsWord.org that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading or listening to this devotional, please go to the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and see all of my posts, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Who Are You?

On 2019-09-26 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, Truth, Truthful, Unashamed, WorshipLeave a comment

Thursday, 2019-09-26

Bible Reference: John 1:22-25
Translation: Living Bible (TLB)

Bible Text: ²²“Then who are you? Tell us, so we can give an answer to those who sent us. What do you have to say for yourself?”
²³He replied, “I am a voice from the barren wilderness, shouting as Isaiah prophesied, ‘Get ready for the coming of the Lord!’”
^24-25Then those who were sent by the Pharisees asked him, “If you aren’t the Messiah or Elijah or the Prophet, what right do you have to baptize?”

OBSERVATION: John the Baptist was in a position where he was recognized by the local authority as one who was different, and one who seemed to be honoring another king – Jesus. Was he a threat to the current leadership? Perhaps, but who exactly is he? Those were the questions needing an answer by the Pharisees. John could have run, out of fear, or he could have chosen to brag on himself. As we meditate, on this Scripture, let’s contemplate how we might have responded! Furthermore, how would we respond to similar questions today!

APPLICATION: I believe we should examine ourselves and decide how we would answer, in a variety of settings, the question posed to John the Baptist. Who are you? for we need to tell those who have sent us. OK, in a church setting where an elder or a deacon approaches you with that type of question, I believe you will first respond with your name, and perhaps your family relations, if you are from the local area. If they continue to gaze at you for more information, perhaps you will continue by giving them your past church affiliation, if any, otherwise you might share where your parents attended church. Next, you might share about your employment. Unless further provoked, I believe that’s about as much as you might voluntarily share. If specifically asked about your relationship with Christ, some might freely share, while some might squirm a bit, as they are uncomfortable talking about their religious beliefs – mostly afraid of follow-up questions, I believe. So that might be your response in a safe, Christian-type environment. What if questioned at your job, or in a public place where others are being asked the same questions? Will you respond as you did at church? Think carefully, because while in a ‘safe’ environment, it is easy to give honest answers to almost any question. One thing I would like to remind us about today is that in every scenario on earth, God is there, and listening to every response. While we hope that He will always be proud of us as we respond boldly like John the Baptist, I feel like we must always pray that we would not respond like Peter ‘I never knew the man’. Peer pressure will lead you to respond like you believe they want to hear from you. But remember, God said ‘look, I will send my Son to the cross to provide you forgiveness of your sin, and I will send Him now, even while you are still very much a sinner’. I believe God might be expecting us to be as bold as He was – willing to claim Him privately, and in public, regardless of any implications that might follow. Friends, be aware that there are times where people in the audience might chuckle about you claiming Christ as your Savior, for they may never have attended church, or been challenged with the gospel. May I encourage you to still be honest about the best relationship you will ever encounter? For there might also be one in the audience who heard of Jesus, but never experienced Him, nor anyone who has experienced Him. For you to wiggle your way out of an honest response tells that individual that there is no value in one’s relationship with Jesus Christ, and that He may not even exist. Who are you, dear one? I pray that your relationship with Jesus is at the very top of explaining who you are!

PRAYER: Dearest Lord Jesus, I humbly ask that You fill Your children with an extra dose of boldness today. I am thankful that in my country I can freely attend church, freely accept You as Lord, and declare you in public – free from the law of the land. Unfortunately, my friends and I are often challenged internally to talk about You in public places because of ridicule and our personal pride. So if asked publicly who we are, I’m not sure what automatic responses might come forth. In heaven, I believe that only one response will truly matter, so please help us to live in the light of eternity and therefore respond to earthly questions in much the same way that we will do when we stand before You. Speaking the truth, in love, may very well speak volumes to the one asking, and we want them to know Jesus more than anything else. We need Your strength Lord, because we want our boldness and honesty to speak Truth at all times. Please help us oh God! AMEN!

What If God Turned His Back On You?

On 2019-09-10 By Ed AlgreenIn Choice, Trust, Unashamed1 Comment

Tuesday, 2019-09-10

Bible Reference: Judges 10:9-14
Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

Bible Text: ⁹…. The Israelites were in great distress. ¹⁰Finally, they cried out to the Lord for help, saying, “We have sinned against you because we have abandoned you as our God and have served the images of Baal.”
¹¹The Lord replied, “Did I not rescue you from the Egyptians, the Amorites, the Ammonites, the Philistines, ¹²the Sidonians, the Amalekites, and the Maonites? When they oppressed you, you cried out to me for help, and I rescued you. ¹³Yet you have abandoned me and served other gods. So I will not rescue you anymore. ¹⁴Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen! Let them rescue you in your hour of distress!”

OBSERVATION: We have become such a spoiled people, that we seldom ever think of God turning His back on us. We hear it all the time: Oh, well, I will just ask God to forgive me; Oops, I shouldn’t have done that, but God will forgive me; God always forgives me; etc, etc. I’m sure you may have even uttered these words as well, so I hope that our Scripture passage will not be a shock to you today, for God told the Israelites “NO”! Meditate with me friends, for we must know the truth about God, and His plan of forgiveness.

APPLICATION: We hear so much about death-bed conversions – that is, folk who do not want to make a decision while they are healthy and enjoying life, but when they know that there is no choice and they are indeed dying, then they ask to know and accept Jesus. Friends, I’m not saying that those decisions are necessarily hopeless, but there are at least two dangers:

1. Who knows whether you will survive a fatal crash and have the ability, and possibly last opportunity, to accept Jesus before passing away from this world? We could be snatched from this world instantly and without further opportunity to accept Jesus.

2. The Israelites in this Bible story, were blessed by God, protected, guided and loved dearly, but they were easily led by Satan to follow other gods. However, when they got into serious trouble and needed rescuing, they didn’t turn to these ‘little’ gods for help, but rather turned to the Almighty God. The good thing is that, like the prodigal son, they came to their senses and they realized that they needed something/someone greater – God.

Words that I wish no one meditating on this would ever hear, “Go away for I never knew you” or “I will not accept you, because you rejected me and worked against me so much during your lifetime”. But the Israelites heard similar words because of their stubbornness and ungodly acts.

I would beg all that may meditate on this today, and especially all that I know and love, to not delay in surrendering your life to Jesus. Please know that He loves you, and loved you enough that He gave up life itself so that you may have life everlasting with Him in glory. That’s a gift offered to you today, but its only yours if you accept it. Please respond to this post if you would like to learn more about accepting the gift of eternal life with Jesus, I would be overjoyed to help you biblically with this. Alternately, you are free to read every detail in my Footnote, and follow the plan outlined in the Bible.

PRAYER: My prayer today is that I will always be steadfast in my faith and my commitment to Jesus. May He find me faithful. My prayer for family and friends who may read this devotional and might be afraid of giving up a life of ‘fun’ to accept Jesus, I pray that God would open your eyes and help you see that there is never as much fun when you are living in fear. Living life without the fear of hell and the fear of dying unprepared is a life of peace and assurance – a life worth living! Friend, know God and know peace! When there is no God, there is no peace. May God grant you the boldness and the strength to make the right decision today. AMEN!

Not Ashamed

On 2018-09-05 By Ed AlgreenIn Christ's Representative, Like Jesus, Representation of the Master, Representative of Christ, UnashamedLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE FROM: 2 Timothy 1:11-14 (NET)

APPLICATION: Many churches in America, and perhaps other parts of the world, will celebrate when one of their own commits to the ministry of Jesus Christ. Some churches may even make particular mention of individuals who commit themselves to serving as elders, deacons, teachers or other leadership/servant roles in the church. Because of this recognition, often folk will be prideful of these positions, but nonetheless, committed to serve for the duration of their committed term. There are some ministry jobs and assignments that remind me a little of what Paul experienced, such as missionaries who travel to countries that they know are unfriendly to the gospel of Jesus Christ; pastors who serve in churches that may or may not be able to pay them, yet they work encless hours to win the lost and disciple the saved, just as if they were serving the richest of congregations. Of course, all church positions require a heart for representing our Maker to those that we serve, and with hearts and mindsets of volunteering of our time, effort and complete selves. But to put this all into perspective and try to identify with Paul, I believe that we need to think about the sacrifices we may make in serving and in our volunteering, even if we knew that we would be mocked, ridiculed, beaten, cursed at, or imprisoned for what we do. Would we still be able to stand upright and share in the words of Paul, that we are unashamed of the message and person of Jesus Christ?I believe that my biggest appeal today would be for the lay persons who might read this devotional. Sure these verses were written to Timothy who was a young pastor. Sure these are very applicable to pastors, elders, teachers and other church leaders. But friends, let me remind you that God didn’t save us so that we might shut up inside of us that good thing that He did for us. I refuse to believe that He wanted to create another Red Sea phenomenon, but instead a river of life that would flow out through our actions, our speech and become very evident in our outward expression and reactions to others. Remember, we don’t want others to see how cool we are, or how rude we could be, but instead, we want them to see Jesus in and through every aspect of our lives. Nothing to be ashamed of my friend, allow that good thing that has made a difference in your life, to be revealed to others so that they may desire our Savior also. Paul made reference to ‘that day’, meaning the day that we meet Jesus face to face. May we live in such a way that we will be overjoyed and filled with celebration on ‘that day’, opposed to a time of regret, God being our helper and guide.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for sending Your Son, Jesus, and to make the way possible for us to see You face to face one day! In fact, we are so thankful of that precious gift, that we want to commit ourselves wholeheartedly to evangelizing that ‘good thing’ that has gotten hold of this old sinful person, and caused a complete turn around in our walk. Lord, we surrender all to You, so that You may fill us with more of Yourself, so that others will see Jesus, and not the earthly sin-filled bodies that would constitute the alternate man. People need the Lord, not more of the same old sinful world. Use us Lord as Your instruments to fulfil Your purpose here on earth. AMEN!

What’s Your Excuse?

On 2016-05-182016-05-18 By Ed AlgreenIn Excuses, Unashamed, WitnessLeave a comment

May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider feeding even us with His Word! May I encourage you to read the whole devotional, and look for a blessing, friend!………

Today’s Bible Reference: Luke 9:59–62
Today’s Bible Text: ⁵⁹ He said to another person, “Come, follow me.” The man agreed, but he said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.” ⁶⁰ But Jesus told him, “Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God.” ⁶¹ Another said, “Yes, Lord, I will follow you, but first let me say good-bye to my family.” ⁶² But Jesus told him, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.”
The Bible Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

My Take Away: There’s probably a sermon in the initial command from Jesus; in each of the excuses given by the men He addressed; and also in the responses given back by Jesus. I want to reflect for a moment on the challenge Jesus faced when He knew that He was destined for the cross. No excuses, but instead, just His willingness to do the will of the Father. Now, before we beat up on the excuses used here by the men in this story, I wonder what excuses we give Jesus every day for prioritizing Him out of our daily schedule. Oh how it must hurt Him when His own children admits day after day that He was not a priority in their lives. Instead of digging into God’s Word we _________. Instead of bowing our knees before our Holy God and talking to Him about the challenges we were expecting yesterday, we took our chances, and saw pitiful results. Instead of giving God credit for our blessings, a chance to witness to our neighbor, instead we bragged about how good we are and how we planned for that moment of success, or we may have even attributed our success to good luck. Friends, did we do enough and say enough to encourage a sinner to follow us to the cross of Calvary to meet Jesus? Let me be daring and remind you that someone is watching you. They thought that they heard you were a Christian, so they believe they are safe in following in your footsteps, hoping that you would lead them to Jesus. How did you do yesterday? Are there any changes that you need to make today to help ensure that your closeness to the cross and to the Master will be a bold witness to someone who needs Jesus? It’s not a thing of pretense, for Jesus knows your heart, and your friends will quickly identify the intent of your heart based on your character. Let’s act today in preparation for meeting face-to-face with the Master tonight. Hopefully we can meet with Jesus unashamedly, and with no excuses!

Prayer: It is unfortunate dear Lord that we are still as full of excuses as these men that you challenged in this scripture today. Even after all that You did for us at Calvary, and even after all that You do for us each and every day. Please forgive us Lord. There are no really legitimate excuses. We admit that we have allowed this old world with its many time constraints, to take priority in our lives, and we have therefore pushed You aside and will try to satisfy our broken relationship with You through excuse after excuse. Please forgive us, and refill us with the joy of our salvation. Please remind us of the awesome God that we serve, adore and love. May we draw close to You today, is my prayer of faith and commitment, AMEN!

Footnote: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

2016

Sharing Your Story

On 2016-05-162016-05-16 By Ed AlgreenIn Our story, Unashamed, WitnessingLeave a comment

Today’s Bible Reference: Luke 8:38–39
Today’s Bible Text: ³⁸ The man who had been freed from the demons begged to go with him. But Jesus sent him home, saying, ³⁹ “No, go back to your family, and tell them everything God has done for you.” So he went all through the town proclaiming the great things Jesus had done for him.
The Bible Translation: New Living Translation (NLT}

My Take Away: I wonder how many friends will be told that you went to church this weekend? How about the experience resulting from what you garnered from the Word of God? Or perhaps the touch of the Master during the Praise and Worship time? Are you feeling healed today of something you and your church members prayed about? Will you be brave enough to share that with critics at work today? In our scripture story today we read where Jesus healed a man of demon possession, and we see where he was excited and ready to board a boat and travel with Jesus to continue spreading the story of salvation. Instead Jesus asked the man to go and share his story with his family. The man was way too excited to just tell his own family, so he went all throughout the town telling his story. Let’s put this into perspective. I challenged you at the beginning to share your worship experience with your coworkers today, and especially any extraordinary interactions with Jesus from your weekend. I believe I saw some dirty looks from some of you, but I still want to take that a step further and ask you to share your experience with a store clerk, or a waitress! Isn’t it interesting how we find it easier to share information about a movie we saw or an event in our child’s life, but not about the miracle that occurred when the Savior of the world reached down in love and touched a sinner such as we are? A total transformation, yet we don’t want to offend our friends by sharing our good news with them? Friends, I am convinced that if it’s in us, it will come out of us! Our genuine experiences with God will impact our lives and everyone will notice! Perhaps if we are ashamed to share the blessings God has showered on us, He should withdraw those blessings and give them to someone who will openly share the Good News with others! What’s your hang up friend?

Prayer: The privilege of being touched by the God of this universe is much more news-worthy than anything else that could possibly hit the front page of the paper today! Please forgive us Lord for placing you in a ‘forbidden box’ when it comes to sharing our interactions with You to others. I believe that others will be convinced of Your power and Your love, when they see us get excited about it and they hear us bubbling over with the glory of having been in Your presence. Please embolden us with great power so that we will not be ashamed of the gospel, but will gladly share how it has impacted our lives. May others see Jesus, because of their encounter with us today. I ask these things in the wonderful and miraculous name of the One who saved me from my sin, Jesus my Lord, AMEN!

2016

Why You Believe What You Believe

On 2015-08-102015-08-10 By Ed AlgreenIn Sincerity, UnashamedLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (Easy To Read Version – 1 Peter 3:15-16):¹⁵ … keep the Lord Christ holy in your hearts. Always be ready to answer everyone who asks you to explain about the hope you have. ¹⁶ But answer them in a gentle way with respect. Keep your conscience clear. Then people will see the good way you live as followers of Christ, and those who say bad things about you will be ashamed of what they said.

THOUGHTS: I believe that it would be amazing to ask, as a survey of those exiting our church buildings over the weekend, “Why do you believe in Jesus Christ?” or “Why do you believe what you believe?” The importance in these questions become very important when we are asked by a coworker first thing Monday morning: “So what did you do over the weekend?” I find that often I will talk about everything else besides the blessing I received at church, or the refueling I received in worshiping with other believers. What about the close call you had in driving down wet roads over the weekend? What do you attribute that to when explaining it to your coworkers? In the case of most of my readers, I believe that it is probably still safe in each of our countries to attribute the blessings just suggested, to the powerful hand of the Master that watches over us, keeps us, protects us and loves us so very much. Why then would we try to avoid giving credit where credit is due? Imagine that most of you are blessed, as I am, to have a wonderful wife. When asked about your happiness, or how well your clothes look, or your packaged lunch looks that you brought from home, do you find every way to avoid giving credit to your wife. What will that say about the great wife that you married, and your relationship with her? What if your wife was in an adjacent room hearing you trying to avoid giving her credit? Further, Paul cautioned us to also keep our attitudes in check. Don’t be obnoxious in the way you respond, for you may win a Brother, or encourage a Sister, if you handle the response humbly and respectfully give credit to Your Savior. Remember, it is only the grace of God why He would bless you in such a rewarding way. Nothing deserving, based on your goodness. The other caution that Paul gave, is that we respond with a clear conscience. I interpret this as meaning that we are totally honest and totally upfront with our response. Don’t respond in a way that you think the inquirer wants to hear, but respond from the depth of a thankful and appreciative heart. It is amazing how folk can see through pretense, but how quickly they feel sincerity and honesty. We have nothing to be ashamed of in our responses friend. Our Savior died so that we might live eternally in the glories of heaven. How can we be anything short of appreciative when talking about our Savior? The scripture says that if we are ashamed of our Savior here on earth, He will be ashamed of us before His Father in heaven. I believe that the opposite is also true, which is that our Savior will boast of His saints before His Father when He sees our obedience and boldness in telling others about His goodness and mercy! You have a choice today friend!

PRAYER: Thank You Jesus for boldly showing Your love for us when You willingly surrendered to the cruelty of the cross. Thank You for Your patience with us as we try to be politically correct in our responses to loved ones and coworkers and find every possible explanation for our blessings, instead of giving You supreme credit. Lord, You are so good to us – every day and through every circumstance of life. We are quick to call on You in times of trouble and despair, please help us to be equally as quick to give You credit for answers to those prayers and so much more, for we are such a blessed people! I believe that people who need the Lord, must be convinced that we have the real thing before they will want to know that One of whom we speak. This should be evident in our speech and in our actions, so oh Lord I ask that You saturate us with Your love and bless us with boldness to proclaim that it’s You we live for and You who bless us daily beyond anything we deserve. I ask all this in the precious name of Jesus, while thanking Him sincerely for all His manifold blessings, AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or read through Biblical truths on How To Know Jesus, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, Sebring, FL! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

What Say Ye, Christians?

On 2014-10-082014-10-08 By Ed AlgreenIn A Lamp unto My Path, UnashamedLeave a comment

The Holy Bible

^{Now, let me ask you something profound yet troubling. If you became believers because you trusted the proclamation that Christ is alive, risen from the dead, how can you let people say that there is no such thing as a resurrection? If there’s no resurrection, there’s no living Christ.}

(The Message – 1 Corinthians 15:12-13)

Thoughts:

I bet I am accurate in assuming that you are human, just like I am, and that you have sat idly by and allowed a friend to say something derogatory about our Lord and Savior. I wouldn’t even go as far as to say that the words that made you cringe were things like curse words, or something where folk have used alternate words to really mean something else that may otherwise offend you. I am of the impression that Paul faced a situation similar to that I just explained, where followers of the Corinthian church stood by and said nothing when friends made fun of their belief in the resurrection. God really spoke to me through this passage friends, because way too often we hold our tongue/words for various reasons: we don’t argue over religion; or I can’t afford to lose that friendship so I will keep quiet; or I can’t quote book and verse in my argument, so I had better keep silent; and I’m sure there is a multitude of other excuses that we convince ourselves of. If you read the whole chapter of 1 Corinthians 15, you will see how Paul was very critical of his followers for behaving in this manner. How do you suppose God feels about us when we act like that? Can you imagine how demanding you would be of folk for whom you permitted the sacrifice of your son/daughter/mother/father/brother/sister, and they were humiliated and put to death just for their freedom? Can you imagine how you would feel if you heard them talking about that loved one in a derogatory way, or even if they sat silently and allowed others to speak unkindly about your loved one? Friends, we accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior because we believed that He died and rose again just for us and our freedom. Let’s hold Him in highest esteem and love Him with every fiber of our being. Although I am not encouraging you to fight, don’t you know that the easiest way to infuriate an opponent is to ‘bad mouth’ their loved one(s)? As children of the Lord of lords and King of kings, we should also be infuriated when we hear others speaking unlovingly of our Savior, and I believe that if we whisper a quick prayer to God, He will give us the right words for the moment, words that will reveal the love that God implanted into His kids so that we may imitate Him here on this earth, and impact the lives of those who are offending Him.

Prayer:

Father, please forgive us for our coward-ness and unappreciative attitudes in allowing just about anything to be said about You in our presence, but failing to speak up appropriately, and failing to defend the name above all names, the King of all kings and the Lord of all lords. I can honestly say that You mean the world to me. Please make me bold so that I may say the same thing in the presence of those that may feel otherwise. May my actions and words prove my relationship with You. May I represent You so diligently, that the lost might have a desire to know the Lord in whom I believe. Please touch the lives of those meditating on this devotional today and impress upon them the same need to be Your sincere representative inside the church doors and especially outside the doors, as we face the world, who is falling apart without You in their lives. I appreciate Paul, and our pastors today who are unashamed of the gospel, and encourages us to do the same. Huge requests today, but I ask this in the name of the One who arose from the dead and did many wonderful miracles, so I ask this believing, and in the precious name of Your son Jesus, AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, Sebring, FL!

Nuggets From God's Word

Category: Unashamed