Preparing For Desertion

On 2015-09-242015-09-24 By Ed AlgreenIn Desertion, Faithful, TrueLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (The New Living Translation – Matthew 26:33-35): ³³ Peter declared, “Even if everyone else deserts you, I will never desert you.” ³⁴ Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, Peter—this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny three times that you even know me.” ³⁵ “No!” Peter insisted. “Even if I have to die with you, I will never deny you!” And all the other disciples vowed the same.

THOUGHTS: Imagine for a moment the feeling of walking into a room with your subordinate staff and hearing them put you down to an indescribable degree – imagine how you will feel. Then imagine that there is a dangerous situation at hand, and all of your closest friends come and look on, but choose not to get involved, so they just move on and leave you to suffer through it. That’s how Jesus must have felt when Peter and his peers did exactly as I described, even after talking about the subject in advance. Now take a moment and think about how Peter must have felt. He swore up and down that he would never forsake his Lord, yet he did. By now you are probably anxious to see how this might apply to you and I, right? May I suggest to you that in the heat of our conversion, we all probably swore up and down that our decision and commitment was an eternal one and that we would live the rest of our days standing up and promoting Jesus, until the day He calls us together in heaven. So let’s look at what might have been important to us at the time we made such an awesome commitment: Probably things like Bible study, so we could learn as much about the Lord and His commands for our lives? Perhaps attending every church service possible, so we could learn from those who are also striving for the same direction as we are, and encouragement from the ways that God is alive and working in their lives? Probably to be a model Christian to any and all of our coworkers, friends or family, so they could look at us and see Jesus, or hear from, and be encouraged that we are speaking with the wisdom and faith of one who is walking the talk? So what has happened friend? Have you been, and are you still faithful to these things? Please don’t try to convince yourself that these things are no longer relevant, for God’s Word will prove you wrong in that. Desertion immediately hurts the one you are deserting, so please don’t hurt my Lord today. Desertion also hurts the one doing the deserting, so please don’t put yourself in that position today. All of the actions I suggested were probably important to you as a new Christian, but they are still just as relevant to you today. Seek God’s help, then concentrate on these things to help cement a solid relationship with your Lord today. He has promised never to leave or forsake you, please don’t even think about doing just that to Him. He loves you way too much to deserve that kind of treatment. To the unbeliever reading this devotional, may I remind you that your ongoing desertion will lead you through much ‘hell’ here on earth, but to an even worst place when you leave this world. Jesus loved us just as we were when He went to the cross for us. He still loves you enough to forgive you of your sin and direct you through the Christian life that I have described, but He wants you to ask for it. May I encourage you to read the tips I have included in my ‘Footnote’ and make this very important, life-changing decision today?

PRAYER: Dear God, please forgive us for often falling into the same path of Peter and his peers. We understand that the flesh is weak, even when the intent of our hearts are in the right place. This is evidence that we can’t do this alone. We need You, Heavenly Father, to fill our hearts with Your love and Your priorities, but most of all with obedience and faithfulness to Your powerful Word. Please use this devotional to stir the hearts of the saved, and provoke a renewed desire within the hearts of the unbelievers, so that today might be the day of salvation for them. We never want to be guilty of desertion. So help us to be faithful and true to You and strengthen the bond that must exist between us in order to fight off the evil one and fully serve You for the rest of our lives. Only You can intervene and help us achieve this kind of perfection Father, so I ask this in and through the precious name of 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 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!

Accountability Matters

On 2015-09-232015-09-23 By Ed AlgreenIn Faithful, gifts, ObedientLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (The New Living Translation – Matthew 25:19,29): ¹⁹ “After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money. ²⁹ To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away.

THOUGHTS: In today’s society we are very investment conscious, because we want to see our retirement dollars stretch as far as possible. To make sure that this occurs, we are trained to look for the best investors – people we can trust to achieve the same goals that we set for ourselves, and we hold them accountable to do just that for us, or we consider changing to a different investor. This is similar to what occurred in this story, for Jesus used an illustration of giving three individuals money, then returning to see whether they were responsible with the money. May I suggest that God has also given each of us great talents, gifts, abilities and opportunities and He will one day look for our response on how well we’ve done with those gifts? There’s a popular saying that if you don’t use a gift you might lose it. I wonder how many of us have already lost most of what God has blessed us with, because we have refused to invest our lives into the needs of others. When we give a gift to a kid, then see them abuse it and destroy it in no time at all, it often frustrates us and makes us angry. Do you suppose that God should feel any different? In verse 29 Jesus said that if we choose to ignore and not use the gifts we are blessed with, we will lose them. Please consider using all that you have, to bless as many as you can. I believe it is clear from verse 29 that our remaining gifts will be multiplied, not the opposite like the world might expect. It matters to God what we do with our gifts, He holds us accountable. Let’s make Him proud today as we seek to serve Him by helping others.

PRAYER: Thank You Lord for Your blessings on me! Thank You for the gifts You shower on me and thank You for opportunities every day to use those gifts to bless others. Please touch the hearts of those who will meditate on this devotional today. May we all recognize our gifts and be willing to see them multiplied, by helping others in every way possible. We want to hear your words of affirmation “Well done good and faithful servant” when challenged by you with our accountability question. Please grant us grace to be obedient in every way to the needs You present to us every day. Thank You Lord for being so good to us. May we be faithful to You. For I ask this in the strong and faithful name of Jesus, AMEN!

Who do You Say Jesus Is?

On 2015-09-142015-09-14 By Ed AlgreenIn Bold Confidence, Honest, SincereLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (The Contemporary English Version – Matthew 16:13-15): ¹³
When Jesus and his disciples were near the town of Caesarea Philippi, he asked them, “What do people say about the Son of Man?” ¹⁴ The disciples answered, “Some people say you are John the Baptist or maybe Elijah or Jeremiah or some other prophet.” ¹⁵ Then Jesus asked them, “But who do you say I am?”

THOUGHTS: To my mother, I might be known as her firstborn and perhaps the one who gave her and my dad the most, or the least, trouble during their childrearing days. To my childhood friends I might be known as someone slightly different than I would be known as by my adult friends. To my child, I might be known as a good dad, or perhaps just the opposite if she couldn’t get her own way with me! In the case of my wife, I am probably most transparent to her, but still if asked who I really am, she might have a very biased or personal opinion. Jesus had been performing miracle after miracle around the towns He visited and especially around His disciples, so I’m sure that He would have expected an overwhelming response to His two basic questions: (1) Who do they (the people) say that I am? And (2) Who do you say that I am? As I meditated on this I couldn’t help but think about what response I would have for an unbeliever who might ask me. Then I wondered what I might respond if asked by a child, or my pastor, or my Bible School Teacher. I wondered what my wife or child might respond if Jesus asked them “what does Ed say about the Son of Man (Jesus)”? Friends, how would you respond to that question if it was posed to you by your boss? Your best friend – who may not be a Christian? By a classroom full of folk trying to decide if Jesus is for them, or not? How about if asked by Jesus in a variety of circumstances? Or how would folk say you feel about Jesus, based on your behavior, speech or witness around them? May I leave this challenge with us to contemplate today? I’m hoping that this might help us to become more transparent in God’s presence, and that includes at church, at work, at play or wherever else we might find ourselves. Friends, if Jesus is not Lord of all circumstances and in all areas of our lives, then He may not be Lord at all to us. May this be the day that you truly decide who He really is in your life. If you are reading this devotional today and have never invited Jesus into your heart and life, please read the tips in my ‘Footnote’ and feel free to contact me should there be any unanswered questions. I want you to know this Jesus I call Lord, Savior and King of my life!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, I acknowledge You as Savior and King. I thank You for providing the means for me to look forward to life eternally with You in glory. May my Christian friends and I boldly acknowledge You as Lord today. Father, I believe that when we deny You in our conversation and before our earthly unbelieving friends, we totally disappoint You and grieve Your precious Holy Spirit. Please forgive us for the times we have done exactly that. But please give us a new boldness today to stand firm in our faith and to acknowledge You before mankind. Unbelievers are looking for sincere, true and honest believers to help convince them that Jesus is alive because they see Him alive and reigning in our lives. Oh that they may truly see and believe today, is my humble prayer for all that claim You as Lord today. For I ask this in the strong, awesome, name of Jesus, AMEN!

Knowing the Heart of Man

On 2015-03-182015-03-18 By Ed AlgreenIn Purity, SincerityLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (New Living Translation – Titus 1:15-16): ¹⁵Everything is pure to those whose hearts are pure. But nothing is pure to those who are corrupt and unbelieving, because their minds and consciences are corrupted. ¹⁶Such people claim they know God, but they deny him by the way they live. They are detestable and disobedient, worthless for doing anything good.

THOUGHTS: Paul warned Titus about what to expect when he went to minister to the people of Crete. Ever stop to ponder what the Elders or Deacons might warn a new pastor or evangelist coming to minister at your church, about you? Chew on that for a few moments! There is an old saying: ‘you can fool some of the people some of the time, but never all of the people all of the time’!! I’m afraid that we may convince ourselves that our outward appearance and actions at church might have everyone convinced how good we truly are, but friends may I remind you that it is God who truly knows us, and since it is He that we supposedly go to worship at church, then it is He that we must convince of our goodness and worth. This presents a challenge, because He knows our heart, our intentions, and our façade. We just can’t fool Him. We might try to put on a smile to avoid depressing friends at church, but God truly knows the hurt deep inside of us. Please don’t get me wrong friends, I’m not suggesting that we go before God’s people with long drawn out faces when it seems like life is unfair. But as I share the Word of God with you, I believe you will reflect on His goodness; the assurance of His presence; the comfort of His touch on your life; and the worthiness of His honor – for which you will burst forth in praise and adoration, in spite of life’s circumstances! We must remember that when it appears like we have been dealt a ‘lemon’ in life that we are to make lemonade, or lemon meringue pie, and not to complain about the sour lemon we seem to have inherited. I believe that Paul is warning us that for those with impure hearts (non-believers in Jesus Christ), they are detestable to God and therefore cannot do anything truly ‘good’ in His sight. How is it with you today friend? Will God see your actions and your attitude from a heart filled with His grace and mercy today? Or is He still seeing you from an impure state and merely doing good from a worldly standard and for personal praise and attention? Knowing my Savior not only assures us of honesty in our demeanor today, but provides a bright future for us in knowing that we will be with Him eternally in heaven! Invest in your day and in your future by searching out my Lord today. He loves you and wants His very best for you, but you must surrender self and accept Him as your Master – your Lord and Savior. Please refer to the ‘Footnote’ for any help needed in making this vital decision friend!

PRAYER: Father in Heaven, God Almighty, thank You for providing a sacrifice for us, because You knew that we could never handle this thing called ‘life’ on our own. Thank You for doing that in spite of the sin of mankind. Thank You for loving me in spite of the worldly things I do and think at times. Humbly I ask that You might fill me with so much of Your Son that my mouth will constantly overflow from the abundance of grace, love and adoration that fills my heart. Lord, I want others to see Jesus in everything that I do and in everything I say, so that You might be magnified and that others might be drawn to You. This scripture reminds me again of Your dislike of hypocrisy, especially in Your church, and in the lives of those who claim You as Savior and Lord. Please warm the hearts of Your saints to once again be pure in spirit and in the grace of Your amazing love. Fill us Lord, and use us for Your glory. We want to know You better and we want to be an influence in the lives of relatives and friends that have not accepted You as Lord. Please endow us with so much of You that our lives might overflow with the love of our Savior! I ask all this in the powerful name of Your Son, Jesus my Lord, 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 this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to blogger.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!

The Complete Picture

On 2015-03-132015-03-13 By Ed AlgreenIn Bible Believing, Preach, TeachLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (Contemporary English Version – 2 Timothy 4:1-4): When Christ Jesus comes as king, he will be the judge of everyone, whether they are living or dead. So with God and Christ as witnesses, I command you ² to preach God’s message. Do it willingly, even if it isn’t the popular thing to do. You must correct people and point out their sins. But also cheer them up, and when you instruct them, always be patient. ³ The time is coming when people won’t listen to good teaching. Instead, they will look for teachers who will please them by telling them only what they are itching to hear. ⁴ They will turn from the truth and eagerly listen to senseless stories.

THOUGHTS: Paul offered a warning and a strong word of advice to Timothy about the urgency of preaching the Word of God, and to do it in spite of opposition or disinterest of the people to whom he would preach. He not only indicated the disinterest of the people, but also went on to say why they would appear to be like that. Friends, I believe that God got my attention to this and caused me to apply this to my life today. So I want to share my thoughts with you. I believe that we have some excellent pastors/shepherds today and I am convinced that we have some excellent teachers of the Word. I believe that some of these preach and teach from the depths of their heart as touched by God while in His Word. However, these men are mere humans and they will be tempted to please the crowds, and this may even extend to the pulpit where they might try to be politically correct in order to soften the impact of the Word of God to those who are living in opposition to Its teaching. There are some who preach only the good, the positive, the uplifting parts of the Bible, and this pleases the people, but it is NOT the whole teaching of the Word of God. From personal experience I can tell you that there was a time in my life where I just couldn’t see the importance of the Old Testament because of all the gory war and slaughter that is told in many of Its pages. However, today my study time involves time in both Testaments, and while I am still amazed at how fortunate we are compared to the strong actions by God in the Old Testament, yet I realize that lessons are taught throughout, and often meld with teachings by Jesus in the New Testament. I believe that the very portions that pastors refuse to teach on, could often be the portions needed by the church, but could perhaps ‘sting’ a lot because of the present spiritual condition of many in the church. Pastors are blessed with an awesome responsibility ordained by God to shepherd His flock. Being disobedient to any part of His commands are as bad as disobeying the whole. I pray that none will be guilty of this when they stand before Christ. Now for the flip side of this, vs 3 indicates that people will naturally resort to listening to a pastor or teacher who tells them what they want to hear. The good stuff, the encouraging words, the positive things, and one who never ‘beats up on them’ by pointing out their disobedience to God’s Word. I believe you might agree that these types of pastors are filling stadiums with people who could ‘put up’ with that type of teaching, right? Friends, please be aware of this when trying to decide on a church home. Please be sure that the ‘whole’ Word of God is taught. God speaks to us through the teaching/preaching /words of His Book of Instructions. When we don’t hear all of it, we are incomplete in our full understanding of the Word. Pray for your pastors and teachers that they would not feel pressured in any way to not disclose the full Word of God.

PRAYER: Thank You for Your inspired Word dear God. Thank You for all the reasons You wanted us to learn about the ups and downs of our ancestors, as well as the wonderful message of Your resurrection from the dead and the beauty of our future home, Heaven! I realize that our lives are much like this, where there are pieces that we would just rather not talk about, but things that are so uplifting and glorious, especially after we allowed You into our lives. However, to know us today without getting an appreciation for our past is not portraying the full picture of who we really are. Please help us to never be ashamed of any piece of Your message in the Bible, for I believe that it was placed there for our edification and understanding of the good things that followed. Our pastors and teachers are really pressured by us to ‘dance around’ certain teachings, but Father, we want to be complete in our understanding of Your Word and the intentions of Your heart for us. Please vitalize our pastors and teachers with an encouraging word today so that they may be reenergized and encouraged to teach and preach the whole, unadulterated Word of God for truth and good works. Because Your Word is a light unto my path, I must know the right path and the wrong path, so please continue to point out my wrongs and my incorrect path when I stray. Please bless us with good church leaders who serve You and teach Your principles. We continue to need You each and every day Lord, so I am asking again today for Your ongoing love and direction, for I ask all this in the name of Jesus, AMEN!

Our Lives – An Expression of Whose We Are

On 2014-11-272014-11-27 By Ed AlgreenIn Role ModelLeave a comment

The Holy Bible

^{Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine,” but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.}

^{Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God’s grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily.}(Bible Translation and Location: The Message – Galatians 2:20-21)

Thoughts:

As in Paul’s day, I believe that today we find some Christian leaders who are in the church ministry business for an income, a place to work, prestige, or in some cases just to find an opportunity to use their knowledge from years of Bible College that their parents forced upon them. However, I also believe that we have some Christian leaders who, like Paul, are pastoring or leading various ministries because of a deep, fully committed relationship with the Lord, and obedient to the special call on their life by the Master of this universe. The difference will be obvious to those being served, for one will be speaking and acting from the learned, head knowledge, while the other will be responding to a deep, spiritual, personal relationship with the God that they follow, and serve. One will be committed to pleasing the ones that they serve and receive their paycheck from, while the other will be committed to serving the Lord God Almighty who distinctly called them into the ministry. Now the latter personality, while serving God and faithfully following Him, will also faithfully minister and serve the children of God, as that exemplifies exactly what God demonstrated to them/us. I believe that the difference will be very evident in the pulpit and in personal relationships with the congregation. The eye opener here for you and I, Mr. and Mrs. Layperson, is that individually we fall into one of these same two personalities. Using Paul’s analogy, you might say that in one person we might find ourselves committed to rule-keeping, and peer pleasing but without true dedication to the things of the Lord. While another person might be so filled with God that the fruit of the Spirit is being wonderfully and miraculously expressed through us. The big question is: Do others see enough of Jesus in you to convict, or accuse you of being a follower of Jesus Christ, and a faithful servant of His? Are you bearing fruit that family, friends and acquaintances will recognize your source of life?

Prayer:

Lord and Savior, Jesus my Lord. I just want to thank You for not only creating me and placing me on this earth to follow the same evil actions of those that I come into contact with, but instead, You loved me enough to show me through Your Word, and demonstrate for me though Your life while here on earth, the way that is pleasing to the Father. Please continue Your marvelous work in me, and please also speak to the hearts of those that might meditate on this devotional today. May we seek to serve You and You alone, without the need or desire of praise from those around us, for we want serve You oh God. May the people see Jesus in everything we do, say or think so that they may be drawn to You and not repulsed by us. Have Your will and way in the lives of those that claim You as Lord today, is my prayer that I ask in the name of Jesus, AMEN!

Nuggets From God's Word

Tag: Honest