by Pastor Cecil | Jan 10, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
John 3:35-36
“The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in His hands. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”
Over the years I have received the following story from various people. It never ceases to thrill me with the beautiful comparison of what God the Father has offered to us through His precious Son, Jesus Christ. Please enjoy and apply it to your own life.
TAKE MY SON
A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Rafael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art. When the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier.
The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son. About a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands.
He said, “Sir, you don’t know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly. He often talked about you and your love for art.”
The young man held out this package. “I know this isn’t much. I’m not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this.” The father opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears.
He thanked the young man and offered to pay for the picture. “Oh, no sir, I could never repay for what your son did for me. It’s a gift.” The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected. The man died a few months later.
There was to be a great auction of his paintings. Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection. On the platform sat the painting of the son. The auctioneer pounded his gavel. “We will start bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for this picture?” There was silence. Then a voice in the back of the room shouted, “We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one.” But the auctioneer persisted. “Will somebody bid for this painting?”
“We will start the bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for the picture?” There was silence. Then a voice from the room shouted, “We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one.” But the auctioneer persisted. “What will somebody bid for this painting? $100? $200?” Another voice shouted angrily, “We came to see the Van Goghs, the Rembrandts. Get on with the real bids!” But the auctioneer continued. “The son! The son! Who’ll take the son?”
Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son. I’ll give $10 for the painting.” Being a poor man, it was all he could afford. We have $10, who will bid $20?” Another voice shouted, “Give it to him for $10. Let’s see the masters.”
The auctioneer pled with the crowd. “$10 is the bid, won’t someone bid $20?” The crowd was becoming angry. They didn’t want the picture of the son. They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections. The auctioneer shouted; “Going once, going twice, SOLD for $10!” He pounded the gavel.
A man sitting on the second row shouted, “Now let’s get on with the auction!” The auctioneer laid down his gavel. “I’m sorry, the auction is over.” “What about the paintings” Someone shouted? It was then that the auctioneer addressed the crowd.
“I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will. I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings. The man who took the son gets everything!”
God gave His Son 2,000 years ago to die on the cross. Much like the auctioneer, His message today is: “The Son, the Son, who’ll take the Son?” Because you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything!
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 9, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
Philippians 1:27
“Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come to see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel.”
Don’t you love it when you meet people who live their gospel more than they preach it? Now settle down, I am not putting down the teaching and preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ, but let’s face it—there is only so much preaching or teaching we can do. But we are a living testimony for good or bad at all times.
I was impressed by a report which appeared in the newspaper several years ago and then a few days later a follow-up story was given. A woman in Tacoma, Washington was on disability income and received less than $600 from the government. You can imagine how she had to scrimp to make ends meet from month to month.
One month, when her check arrived, she went to her bank and cashed the check. The teller gave her the cash of various denominations, including four $100 bills. She went from place to place to pay her monthly bills.
In one establishment it was discovered that one of the bills was a counterfeit. The people in this business knew her to be a woman of integrity and thus were sure she was not aware that the $100 bill was counterfeit. When she took the phony bill back to the bank, the manager indignantly said it could not have come from his bank and refused to replace it.
She notified the police about the counterfeit bill and they in turn passed it along to Federal authorities who in turn, destroyed it. This unfortunate woman was now missing $100 of desperately needed funds and those agencies and businesses who could have helped, refused to do anything in her behalf.
Word of the situation reached the local newspaper which ran it as a human interest item. As a result of the news item, there was an immediate flood of responses. Hundreds of dollars–far more than the original $100 was received.
When the newspaper contacted the woman, she refused to profit from the publicity. She would only accept the $100 which she had lost. She donated the rest of the money to several non-profit organizations who were helping others. That, my dear friends, is what living the gospel is all about. Something within this dear woman would not allow her to profit (even legitimately) from this circumstance.
As I read this wonderful story, I could not help but think that she taught more by what she did than what many others teach by what they say. It is not that we should fail to teach and preach, but our walk must be Christlike at all times. If we act or react in the same way the world behaves, what message are we sending?
Living the gospel is not getting by “under” the circumstances, it is rising above the circumstances of life. It is the life which is lived for the Lord as if no one else was around. It is the smile at a resident in a nursing home, the slowing down to allow some driver to slip in ahead of us, holding the door for someone, slipping a check in someone’s pocket that you know needs help, mowing a neighbor’s lawn when they have been laid up. We could go on and on.
You might ask: “What does this have to do with the gospel?” The answer is that it is the salt of the gospel. It can act to make people thirsty to know why we do the things we do. When they have seen the reality of the gospel in our lives, they will be more inclined to hear the gospel message which will bring them the hope of eternal salvation.
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 8, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
Matthew 28:19-20
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
When I was a boy (some of you may be amazed that I can recall that far back) I was struck dumb by a man who had landed a huge sturgeon. He had this monster in the back of his pick-up truck. The nose of the fish is against the back of the cab and the tail was sticking up above the tailgate. No fish story was necessary for this man.
Across the years I encountered fishermen who brought their catches home in order to “show off their catch”. I guess I was well into my thirties before I met a man who loved to “catch and release” very large trout. He never brought them home, but enjoyed the thrill of releasing them back into the stream.
While stationed in Newfoundland, I did a considerable amount of fishing. I knew that I would not be eating the fish I caught, so I entered the thrilling world of “catch and release”. It actually gave me much more pleasure than to destroy these creatures by taking them back to show them off.
A few days ago a dear friend forwarded a series of pictures of a unique catch and release experience. A man was fishing about a mile and one half off-shore when he noticed something swimming in the water. Upon closer inspection he discovered that it was a deer.
He and his fishing partners lifted the frightened animal out of the water and into the boat. The exhausted doe seemed to be grateful that she was saved from certain drowning. With her feet tied, she lay quietly on the deck leaning against her savior, who took her back to shore and released her. That gives a whole new meaning to “catch and release”.
In today’s Scripture we read a familiar portion of the Great Commission that Jesus left for His disciples. What truth can we gain from these words of Jesus? First of all we need to understand that this is a mandate—marching orders from our Great Commander and Chief. We are to go and do what He says!
The second truth that I see here is that it is only for believers. It is based upon something that we have “caught”. I do not mean to cheapen the good news of the gospel. When we confess our sins and open our hearts to the Lord Jesus, He has promised that He will come in and make His home in our heart.
That is the most electrifying news we can ever imagine. We have—in effect—caught the thrill and excitement of an eternity with God. We are told that we are now to release this wonderful message of the new birth to family, friends and those who the Lord brings across our path. Are you ready? Release the good news and be ready to spend time making disciples with those who need to grow in the Lord.
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 7, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
John 17:9-11
“I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those You have given Me, for they are Yours. All I have is Yours, and all You have is Mine. And glory has come to Me through them. I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to You. Holy Father, protect them by the power of Your name—the name You gave Me—so that they may be one as We are one.”
“Where is God when I need Him?” “If God is a God of love, why did He take my loved one?” “If there really is a God, why does He allow such terrible things to happen in our world?” “Why does God answer some prayers, yet seemingly ignore others?” “Why do the righteous seem to endure hardships while the wicked seem to prosper?” Have you heard these questions before? Have you asked these questions before?
I was sitting beside the hospital bed of our oldest daughter, Brenda. The doctors had made the prognosis that she had a very short time to live—possibly a matter of days. Brenda commented, “You know dad, I think I have been cheated.” I acted innocent although I was sure that I knew what she was referring to. She continued, “Grandpa lived to be 74. I am only 33. I feel that I have been cheated out of half of my life!”
That night I went into the garage and swept some sand onto a sheet of paper. I sat at the kitchen table and carefully counted out 74 grains of sand. I placed these in a small sample perfume bottle. The next day when I went to the hospital, I placed the small vial on Brenda’s bed. She asked; “What is that? I told her it was grandpa, or at least the number of grains of sand that represented the years of his life.
I asked her to imagine that each of these small grains of sand represented one year. Next imagine that the entire world to it’s very core was entirely made up of sand. That would be only a small iota of the length of eternity. “Now,” I asked, “What are these 74 small grains in comparison to our world of sand?” Brenda replied; “Nothing.” I then asked; “What is one half of nothing?” We began to laugh together.
The reality is that it is eternity that matters, not the length of our life or even the quality of our life. It is being washed in the blood of Jesus and becoming a new creation in Him that prepares us for eternity. Not the things we do for Him, but by accepting what He has done for us.
Jesus told a wonderful parable of the rich man and Lazarus. Here was a man who seemingly had all that the world could offer, yet he had made no provision for eternity. By not receiving eternal life in Christ, he was damned to a terrible eternity of suffering. Lazarus was just the opposite. He had experienced poverty and pain in his life, but he had also received the Lord as his Savior. His eternity was filled with peace and blessedness.
You may have recognized today’s Scripture as being part of the prayer which Jesus prayed for His disciples. The prayer was not restricted to the disciples of His day, but for us as well. He wants His disciples of all ages to focus our attention on Him, not the temporal things which will pass away.
Let me share a little more of the prayer Jesus prayed in our behalf. John 17:14-19; “I have given them Your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that You take them out of the world but that You protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; Your Word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify Myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.”
The Lord Jesus has prayed for our sanctification. That means that we are to turn from sin and walk in a new sense of commitment and dedication. Let’s quit trying to play God by blaming Him or questioning the things that occur in our life.
One last verse. Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 4, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
John 14:1-4
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.”
Last week we received word that my cousin’s husband, Warren, had passed away on Christmas Day. It seemed impossible that Warren had gone to be with the Lord. I can still recall our college days when he and his wife, Wilma, lived in campus housing with walls that were constructed of 1/4 inch plywood. Joyce and I lived in the same housing for a short time. With such thin walls, it gave new meaning to the Scripture; “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Right!
I worked with Warren on the campus one summer. One project that stands out was putting hot tar roofing on the administration building. Warren was always happy and would break out in a song that lifted our spirits as we worked on that blistering hot roof.
Perhaps I would not have mentioned Warren’s death if it were not for news that I just received this afternoon. My cousin, Warren’s wife, Wilma, passed away yesterday. He died on Christmas and Wilma on New Year’s Day. As I thought about her passing, I suddenly thought about how precious it was. They had been married over 60 years and she was lost in the hours after his death. Now they are together with the Lord for all eternity.
There is great comfort for every Christian who says farewell to a loved one who goes to be with the Lord. There is an old song that seems appropriate: “This world is not my home, I’m just passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue. The angels beckon me from Heaven’s open door And I can’t feel at home in this world anymore.”
Welcome home, Warren and Wilma!
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
