by Pastor Cecil | Mar 24, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
Matthew 28:18b-20
“…All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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 everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
During His earthly ministry, Jesus told parables about servants who were unfaithful to their master. It is one thing to read these parables, but how often do we apply the teachings and principles to our own life? In other words, would we be considered faithful servants of the Lord Jesus Christ?
The area of discipleship is often talked about, but all too often neglected. We go to seminars to learn about it, and then return home to do nothing about it. We hear sermons on the necessity of being true disciples and teaching discipleship, but after saying our Amens! Shaking hands with the preacher, we do little about it.
The disciples of Jesus had been under His ministry for about three years. Except for a few rare instances, He had done the ministry while they observed. But now He had been crucified and resurrected and was about to leave them to carry out God’s plan and purpose.
In today’s Scripture we have what is known as the “Great Commission!” It is the MARCHING ORDERS for the army of the Lord. That is us! It is all too easy to be content with watching and listening, but fail to accept the order to make disciples.
Becoming disciplers is best described as spiritual parenting. I have learned that discipleship becomes meaningful if it is done without appearing preachy, stilted or pompous. I guess if I tried to act pompous I would quickly blow it. I would probably grin and have chives stuck between my teeth. I just have to be me!
When our oldest daughter, Brenda, passed away, it was as though the Lord gave us spiritual children to fill the void that her passing left. I always lovingly think of my own spiritual father, Dr. John Hall, and my spiritual grandfather, Mr. Jack Dedman. They freely and naturally shared Christ in their own way.
Some of the best spiritual insights that I received from these two spiritual parents, was while we were fishing for bass. But at other times it may be after a meal with one of their families. Jack Dedman was in his seventies and still working. He shared his tender insights while having us listen to his wonderful collection of sermon tapes.
I can still recall him sitting in his easy chair, falling asleep, snoring, then waking with words like, “Thank you Jesus!” “Praise the Lord!” He then would slip back into his sleep of the redeemed. Each of these men taught me deep truths in their own way. That is what I desire to do for those around me.
The apostle Paul had a son in the faith by the name of Timothy. In II Timothy 2:1-2, he gives valuable insights and instructions for Timothy as well as for all of us: “You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.”
Our spiritual life is like a relay race. We pick up the Word that has been passed to us by those who are our spiritual parents and then pass it along to those who are our spiritual children. It was never intended that we keep it to ourselves. It must be shared!
Two questions we must ask ourselves: 1. Who is our spiritual parent? Who is it that is able to take the precious Word of God and break it into small enough pieces that we can digest it, but always urge us to prepare our own food. Pre-digested food is only for babies. It is never intended that we remain in the spiritual highchair. We need to grow and mature, and we can only do that as we learn to feed ourselves. We must seek out our parents.
The second question is even more thought provoking. 2. Who are your spiritual children? Who looks to you for spiritual nourishment? Here is the way it works—we must get our own noses in our own Bibles, with a notebook beside us and be in an attitude of learning. Expect to find new insights and guess what? If you cannot think of anyone get on your knees and ask the Lord to lead us to a spiritual child to share it with. It may be a member of your own family, a fellow worker, a neighbor—only the Lord knows?
Good spiritual parents will move their spiritual children out of the nest as soon as possible. It is not healthy to foster dependence on themselves. It should be the Word that is the food for their children. Teach them to share with others who in turn will share with others! That is discipleship!
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today. Trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Mar 21, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
Luke 24:5-8
“In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, ‘Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; He has risen! Remember how He told you, while He was still with you in Galilee: The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’ Then they remembered His words.”
This Sunday is Resurrection Day. For years I have shuddered every time I hear believers refer to Resurrection Day as Easter. I wish we would always replace it with “RESURRECTION DAY!” In the Dictionary of Word Origins, we have this explanation of the word Easter:
“The English word Easter is from the Anglo-Saxon word Eastre, a pagan goddess whose festivals (called Eastron) were in the spring season. The festival represented the rising of the sun, new life and a new beginning. Also related are the words East, the directions of the rising sun and yeast, a substance which makes bread rise.”
The reality is that Jesus did rise from the grave in ultimate victory!
Picture this fictitious scene. Joseph of Arimathea has a new tomb which he has earmarked for his own burial. After Jesus has been crucified, Joseph makes his way to speak to Pilate. This representative of the Emperor of Rome could not believe what he was hearing. “Joseph, are you saying that you want to bury this man Jesus in your own tomb?” Joseph smiles a knowing smile and replies, “It’s only going to be for three days!” (It’s a joke, folks)
That may be a joke, but the Resurrection is certainly no joke. It is more documented than almost any other event of ancient times. Jesus was seen by: Mary Magdalene, early Sunday morning (Mark 16:9-10); Other women, early Sunday morning (Matthew 28:9-10); Two individuals on the road to Emmaus on Sunday afternoon (Luke 24:13-32); Peter, sometime Sunday (Luke 24:34); Ten of the disciples that night (Luke 24:36); The eleven disciples a week later with Thomas now with them (John 20:26-31); Seven disciples at a seaside breakfast in Galilee ) John 21); The eleven disciples in Galilee (Matthew 28:16-20); Five hundred faithful in Galilee (1 Corinthians 15:6); James the half brother of Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:7); To a group at His Ascension (Luke 24:44); and Paul on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:3-7).
If you were an attorney, presenting a case in court, just think what a delight it would be to have that huge slate of witnesses. One after another would tell their utter amazement at seeing Jesus alive and even bearing the wounds from His crucifixion, but more alive than words could describe.
As with cases which are decided today, when the verdict had been announced, some still doubted. The fact of the Resurrection is not decided by eye witnesses, it is by faith!
No one is exempt, and no one is innocent. God has made Himself known in their heart. They may be unwilling to admit that God has revealed Himself to them, but He has! Romans 1:20 gives us the final word; “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities-His eternal power and divine nature-have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today. Trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Mar 20, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
2 Timothy 3:1-5
“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.”
People have often asked me, “When will Jesus return to call His people to meet Him in the air?” My answer is that I do not know. One thing I do know, we are getting close. Paul begins this third chapter of 2 Timothy with a description of the “last days.” It is a common thing for people to seek to know what the signs of the last days will be.
In Matthew 24, Jesus’ disciples asked Him what the signs of the last days would be? This question was asked in verse four of Matthew 24. Many people have jumped down to verse 36 where Jesus indicated that no one knows the day or hour, and they thus conclude that we have no way of knowing what the signs will be. PARDON ME! There are 32 verses between the question the disciples ask about the signs and Jesus mentioning that no one knows the day or hour.
In those 32 verses Jesus described the end times. In verse 42 of Matthew 24 he told them (as well as us) to keep watch. Jesus also told them that the last days would be similar to the days of Noah before the flood. Now think about this. Noah, his wife, his three sons and their three wives, were the only humans spared from the flood. These eight people knew that the ark had to be completed, and the animals loaded before the conditions were right for the flood. We too can look for the right conditions.
By the way, let’s consider Jesus’ statement, “No one knows the day or hour.” Can you remember back to 1999? There was great concern that there would be chaos with computers moving from the 20th century to the 21st century. I can recall the New Year’s Eve of 1999. Reports came in from the areas on the other side of the International Date Line. Here on the Pacific Coast we were one of the last areas to move into the 21st century. It was very evident to all of us at that time that there are always different days and hours on this planet at the same moment of time.
In today’s Scripture the Apostle Paul paints a graphic picture of the people living in the last days. As we read his description of the last days, it very accurately describes many people in our present day society. They are filled with violence, anger, lack of respect and the obsessive pride. Very close to what he described.
Look what Paul says about how we are to respond to such people: “Have nothing to do with them.” This does not mean that we are to go to some mountain top and live as a hermit. Neither does it mean to become mean spirited and holier than thou. What Paul is saying is that we are not to become contaminated by the world.
We do that by refusing to expose ourselves to the music, talk, life styles, philosophy or behavior of these people. How do we live and exist above it? Use the Word of God as our foundation. Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible. In verse 9 the Psalmist asks a question: “How can a young man keep his way pure?” He answers in verse 10: “I seek You with all my heart; do not let me stray from Your commands.”
He then gives this great bit of pure gold in verse 11: “I have hidden Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against You.” What a valuable lesson. Memorize the Word of God! When was the last time you set a passage from God’s Word to memory? Feeling guilty? Try it today and see what a blessing it will be to you in keeping you free from the contamination of these last days.
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today. Trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Mar 19, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
John 16:29-30
“Then Jesus’ disciples said, ‘Now You are speaking clearly and without figures of speech. Now we can see that You know all things and that You do not even need to have anyone ask You questions. This makes us believe that You came from God.’ “
I think I have explained that I try to send out the Daily E-Votionals in the early afternoon Pacific Time. That is because some of the readers are in parts of the world that are many hours ahead of us. I want to share that some of Jesus’ disciples struggled to become strong in the faith.
In the seventeenth chapter of John, Jesus begins His prayer by glorifying His Father in heaven and speaking of the things that have been fulfilled through Him, and that the time of His departure and return to be once more with His Father was very near. He then begins to pray for His disciples. Note what He has to say in John 17:6-8: “I have revealed You to those whom You gave Me out of the world. They were Yours; You gave them to Me and they obeyed Your Word. Now they know that everything You have given Me comes from You. For I gave them the Words You gave Me and they accepted them.”
As I meditate on those words, I try to imagine that group of twelve disciples who behaved in very much the same way as we do today. Two steps forward and one step back. It makes you wonder how the Lord could have any confidence in them to found the church. Little by little, they began to demonstrate faith in Him.
Faith is always a choice. If we believers had to have things proven to us before we chose to believe, it would not be faith, but a rational action. Real faith requires us to step into the unknown and believe in Jesus because of what we read in His Word, not as a result of what we rationalize.
I just heard Ken Ham, on his program, “Answers In Genesis”, make an interesting observation. He noted that there have been so many discoveries refuting the theory of evolution, that many modern scientists have been forced to theorize that our earth was developed by some intelligent source outside our world. They are willing to believe that little green men in space ships caused it, but reject the reality that a powerful God spoke our world into being.
If we as believers must have things proven to us before we choose to believe, it is not faith, but the result of our rational action. True faith demands that we walk by faith because of what we read in God’s Word. God says it—I believe it—that’s good enough for me.
As disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ, we need to come to the place in our spiritual life where we quit the impossible task of trying to figure things out. The Lord knows our present situation as well as what lies ahead for us. One of our biggest problems is that we spend too much time looking at our personal situation instead of looking to the One who is able to control our situations.
Mark chapter nine records an incident in which a man brought his son to Jesus. The son was possessed by an evil spirit. From a human view point, there was no hope for the boy. But the father knew if he brought his son to the Master, he would be healed.
Jesus told the father that everything was possible for him who believes. Watch the words of the father as he responds to Jesus. Mark. 9:24; “Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, ‘I do believe; help me to overcome my unbelief.’ ”
We are told that Jesus rebuked the evil spirit and it left the boy. Jesus’ healing took place right after the confession of the boy’s father. We can paraphrase it as: “Lord I believe a little bit, but I need you to give me the power to believe totally.”
What is the impossible thing in your life that dominates your life? Let me tell you that you have three choices: 1. You can try to solve the problem with your own abilities and continue with the conflict you now are experiencing; 2. You can place it in the hands of the Lord, but still keep your focus on the impossible situation; or, 3. You can place it in His hands and then keep your eyes on Him. The choice is yours. I trust and pray that you make the third choice and that it will be your final answer!
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today. Trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Mar 18, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
James 1:2-3
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
Some comic character once said, “The hurrier I go the behinder I get!” Do you ever feel that way? Like it or not, there are times when we feel like throwing in the towel. It seems like the harder we try, the less we accomplish. That is true in all areas of our life.
The problem is that we focus our attention on what we feel like doing instead of doing what God’s Word says we should do. Doing things our own way, in our own strength and for our own motives will inevitably result in failure and disappointment.
I have been thinking about the word, “perseverance” as it relates to my own life and ministry. It is one thing to study, pray and write these Daily-E-Votionals five times each week. In a way that is the fun part of my ministry.
The perseverance is trying to keep from being overwhelmed by messages. On a typical day I receive several hundred e-mail messages. Many of them do not require a response or if they do, I leave them until I have the time to respond. The problem is that my backlog grows to the point that it requires perseverance to work on clearing it to a workable level.
From time to time I discover that perseverance has unexpected rewards. Several years ago we were in Idaho for a visit. While we were there I was invited to attend an early morning Men’s Bible Study.
I had started this particular Bible Study over thirty years ago. A few of the men from the original group were still there, but for the most part it was a completely new group. Someone mentioned that the group had expanded from our original group of about 20 men and now more than doubled in size.
I recalled some of those cold early morning hours when it would have been easier to remain curled up in my nice warm bed, but here was the reward of perseverance. Staying with a calling will produce benefits beyond our view.
As we go through this life, the things that the Lord leads us to originate may continue long after we are out of the picture. It does not matter whether we see the results or not. I had the joy of seeing results that have lasted for over a quarter of a century. But even if I had not been able to see it, that group of men still continued on what had started with just a group of three or four men.
I urge you to commit yourselves to set your course with a new resolution to study God’s Word and then to put it into practice. Learn a little and do what it says. Then learn a little more and do that too. Then learn a little more and so on and so on. Here is a good definition of perseverance: Here a little and there a little and KEEP ON KEEPING ON!
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today. Trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
