Wednesday, January 31, 2018

"The Benefactor"


"The Benefactor"


    Imagine that a wealthy gentleman contacts you one day.  "I want to place my immense wealth at your disposal for the benefit of others," he says.  "I've heard that you're a responsible, caring person, and I sure you'd like to help people in need.  If you're interested, I'd like you to inform me when you encounter someone we can help.  I'll analyze your request and if I think it appropriate, I'll dispense funds to the person in need according to my judgment and timing."

    Certainly it would be hard to turn down such an offer.  Why would we, in fact?  You likely see where this is going.  A Benefactor has offered to born again believers in the Lord Jesus Christ such opportunity to bless others will His largesse.  The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ possesses "unsearchable riches."  He calls His trusting children to offer prayers "for all men" and for one another (Ephesians 3:8; I Timothy 2:1; Ephesians 6:18).  As we see need, the Holy Spirit beckons us to "come boldly to the throne of grace to obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need" not only for ourselves, but more importantly, for others (Hebrews 4:16).  The indwelling love of Christ motivates and empowers us to look outward and away from ourselves as we live for the glory of God and the blessing of needy people.  We pray regarding our own needs, of course, and find the Benefactor to be abundantly faithful.  However, His primary calling involves a life of prayer that progressively delivers us from paralyzing self-centeredness.  If we could visibly see the holy Occupant of the throne of grace as we make our approach, we would witness His gaze most directed toward others in our lives rather than ourselves.  Such a focus of love redirects our own gaze in the unselfish devotion to others that most fills and fulfills our hearts.  "It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35).

   The Benefactor beckons us to the throne in this day.  He offers unsearchable riches to be administered according to His wisdom and per our request.  Our needy sphere of influence desperately needs His saving grace, His illuminating light, His abounding supply, His transforming truth, and His comforting presence.  Most of all, the people in our lives need Him.  We play a vital role in our Lord's bestowal of Himself, His grace, and His mercy.  We serve as "ambassadors for Christ" who represent the Benefactor in many ways (II Corinthians 5:20).  One aspect of such grace involves making requests for the benefit of those in whom we see need.  Such a calling constitutes the most blessed of privileges, and the most solemn of responsibilities.  We do well to consider the gift often, and far more, to seek the Benefactor's giving to others, as administered by His wisdom and our requests.

"Charity (love) seeketh not her own."
(I Corinthians 13:5)
"God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you."
(I Samuel 12:23)

Weekly Memory Verse
   See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
(Ephesians 5:15-16)
    

   
    
     
    



Tuesday, January 30, 2018

Dear Orange Moon Friends

Dear Friends,

Beginning tomorrow, I will include a link to Frances's blog, The Cafe Powder Room, in the Orange Moon devotionals. Some of you already read her essays, and I want to make them easily available to all. If you'd like to receive them directly to your email inbox, she'll be glad to include you on her mailing list. I think you will be greatly blessed.

Today's edition is especially interesting, and powerful in its lesson of the vital role of the Scriptures in our lives. Here's the link:

http://www.cafepowderroom.com

Thanks,
Glen

Monday, January 29, 2018

“More Glorious and Wonderful"



"More Glorious and Wonderful"


    I conducted a funeral service yesterday for a man whom I'd never met, but who I will nevertheless miss.  Steve was a friend of friends, one of whom served as his devoted caregiver for many years.  She asked me to perform Steve's homegoing ceremony, and after hearing about him, I was overjoyed to participate.  "Mr. Steve loved Jesus!" declared one of the friends he left behind,  leaving also in the wake of his life a beautiful legacy of God's grace and truth in Christ.  I heard many other wonderful things about Steve, all doubtless the fruit of His walk with our blessed Savior.

   "I thank my God, making mention of thee always in my prayers, hearing of thy love and faith, which thou hast toward the Lord Jesus" (Philemon 1:4-5).

    At the end of the day, and of our earthly lifetime, one thing will matter most, indeed, the thing that matters most in this day.  Do we know, remember, and affirm the love of God with such spiritual and moral impact that we love Him in devoted response?  "We love Him because He first loved us" (I John 4:19).  Steve loved in response to being loved - and knowing it.  No human being born of Adam's fallen race loves the Lord Jesus apart from a mighty work of the Holy Spirit in both birthing and growth.  We come to Christ in response to the Spirit's convincing, convicting, and converting operation within our hearts.  We continue with Christ according to the same application of grace and truth.  "We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works" (Ephesians 2:10).  We freely respond, of course, and our faith and subsequent love comprise participatory rather than programmed devotion to God.  The legacy of Steve's life thus involves God loving him, and Steve loving God in a blessed fellowship wherein the Lord Jesus receives all the glory for a path well walked, and Steve being received into glory to the pleasure of his Heavenly Father.  "Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord" (Matthew 25:21).

    I raised the question as I began yesterday's message, "What would Steve tell us if he could speak to us now?"  I suggested a number of possible answers, the first and most  important being that our departed brother would testify that the Lord Jesus is more glorious and wonderful than can be imagined.  Every Heavenly saint would tell us the same, confirming the Apostle Paul's declaration that "the love of Christ… passeth knowledge" (Ephesians 3:19).  Indeed, an eternity awaits us into which we will forever sail upon a shoreless ocean that beckons us to come further into a Heart so sublimely unselfish that it changes the traveler into the same image (II Corinthians 3:18).  It changed Steve, and it will forever do so as he continues the eternal voyage.  It was a privilege and honor to participate in a homegoing ceremony for a brother who launched upon his journey in this lifetime by receiving the saving love and grace of God in the Lord Jesus.  And again, if he could speak to us now… "More glorious and wonderful than can be imagined!"

"But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of his grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus."
(Ephesians 2:4-7)

Weekly Memory Verse
   See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
(Ephesians 5:15-16)

    
   
    
     
    


   

Saturday, January 27, 2018

Saturday Songs -4- “Holy Is Thy Name”


(Friends, each Saturday this year, we are sending the lyrics and a recorded version of one of our songs.  This week's edition is one very special to Frances and me.  "Holy Is Thy Name" is one of the first songs I ever wrote, more than 30 years ago now, and the first song that Frances and I sang publicly together.  As many of you know, I came to music late, beginning to play guitar when I was 28, and piano at 30.  The songwriting began in those days also, of course, and has been one of the great surprises of my life.  Of course, I sing with the greatest harmony singer on the planet (build in reverb in her voice!), so I suppose the Lord had to find a way to give Frances opportunity to express the gift He gave to her.  We now sing at least a thousand hymns and songs together in more than 300 services a year, and as I write these words, the thought overwhelms me with wonder and gratitude.  While not my favorite song I've written, "Holy Is Thy Name" remains what you might call our signature song, and we hope you find it encouraging.  Thanks, Glen).



Holy is Thy Name
Words and Music by Glen Davis

Holy is Thy name, O Lord.
Holy is Thy name, O Lord.
Faithful is Thy way, O Lord.
Trust and justice are Thy robes,
Light and Life eternal hope,
Holy is Thy name, O Lord.

Holy is Thy name, O Lord.
Holy is Thy name, Holy is Thy name,
Holy is Thy name, O Lord.

Beauty is Thy face, O Lord.
All Thy heart is grace, O Lord.
In Thy presence, Love abounds,
Through al things Thy praise resounds.
Holy is Thy name, O Lord.

Holy is Thy name, O Lord.
Holy is Thy name, Holy is Thy name,
Holy is Thy name, O Lord.

Holy is Thy Name, O Lord.



Friday, January 26, 2018

“The Lion"


"The Lion"


    Born again believers in the Lord Jesus Christ have no need to state our case with bluster, arrogance, or anger at those who disagree with us.  We proclaim the Gospel from the strongest position, namely, the power of God and His Truth.  We therefore communicate with confidence accompanied by a quiet and assured dignity.

   "And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves" (II Timothy 2:24-25).

   Insecurity sometimes leads to presenting Christ in bullying or belittling terms.  When one is unsure of the validity of his message, he must add components that, in his own mind, seem to bolster the argument.  This is never the case, especially when it comes to communicating God's Biblical truth.  As a voice of old once said, "Just let the lion out of his cage.  He'll take care of himself."  Of course, one must have utmost confidence in the lion of Scripture in order to trust his capability to proclaim and protect himself.  Believers weak in such assurance sometimes resort to an unChristlike demeanor and attitude when challenged.  They forget or either do not know that we "must not strive."  We rather trust the power of God's Spirit and Word to fight battles for the imprisoned hearts of human beings whose chains cannot be loosed by mere proclamation.  Indeed, the Apostle Paul referred to salvation as being turned "from the power of Satan unto God" (Acts 26:18).  Human argumentation alone could never accomplish such a spiritual purpose.  God certainly uses our communication of His truth.  However, He never requires our wielding of weapons that do not reflect the character and nature of Christ.

    As the saying goes, we do not fight for victory.  We fight from victory, the triumph of the crucified, risen, and ascended Lord Jesus.  "All power is given unto Me in Heaven and earth" declared our Savior (Matthew 28:18).  We do well to keep His place, position, and power much in heart and mind as we seek to share His truth with others. He does not require our use of force in any manner whatsoever to accomplish His redemptive purposes in the hearts of people.  We proclaim and explain the Gospel assertively, but never aggressively as we "earnestly contend for that faith that was once delivered unto the saints" (Jude 1:3).  The lion of God's Truth will fend and fight for itself in the hearts we seek to influence not only with the message we share, but the manner in which we share it.

"I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth."
(Romans 1:16)
"He sendeth forth His commandment upon earth: His word runneth very swiftly."
(Psalm 147:15)
"So shall My word be that goeth forth out of My mouth: it shall not return unto Me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it."
(Isaiah 55:11)

Weekly Memory Verse

    "Put them in fear, O LORD: that the nations may know themselves to be but men."
(Psalm 9:20)
   

"Light In the Darkness"


"Light In the Darkness"


    A reading of the Old Testament prophets presents Israel, Judah, and the pagan nations of the world under God's judgment.  Amos illustrates the sad saga of unbelief, disobedience, compromise, and darkness.

    "Hear this word that the LORD hath spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying, You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities" (Amos 3:1-2).
    "Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have despised the law of the LORD, and have not kept His commandments, and their lies caused them to err, after the which their fathers have walked, but I will send a fire upon Judah, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem" (Amos 2:4-5).
    "Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Moab, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because he burned the bones of the king of Edom into lime, but I will send a fire upon Moab, and it shall devour the palaces of Kerioth: and Moab shall die with tumult, with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet" (Amos 2:1-2).

    Such was life under the Law of Moses, or as with the pagans, life apart from God's law altogether.  No hope ever existed for God's chosen earthly people the Jews to fulfill His moral standard to the degree they constituted themselves as righteousness.   Certainly the unbelieving nations of the world could never have made themselves acceptable to the Lord.  We therefore read the prophets to see the Lord Jesus Christ by implication (and occasionally, a prophetic mention).  We remember the New Testament proclamation that the Savior alone can provide "a better hope" for acceptance with God, and a subsequent hope for a life lived to His glory (Hebrews 7:19).  Amos and his fellow Old Testament heralds provide a dark backdrop in which "the Light of the world" shines most brightly and gloriously (John 9:5).  Indeed, imagine reading the writings of the prophets without access to the New Testament revelation of the Lord and His apostles.  Glimpses of hope would occasionally dance before our eyes.  Mostly, however, the darkness of Divine judgment against broken or ignored law portray a humanity helpless and hopeless due to the mastery of sin in the heart.  Indeed, the pronouncement once uttered to Judah spoke to the entirety of humanity apart from Christ: "Ye have all transgressed against Me" (Jeremiah 2:29).  Or as Paul wrote, "There is none righteous, no, not one: there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one" (Romans 3:10-12).

    The Old prepares us for the New.  The darkness contrasts with the Light.  The "first Adam" of unbelief and disobedience bows before the "last Adam" of perfect faith and faithfulness.  The prophets illuminate our need for the Prince of life.  Lost human beings reveal the desperation that necessitated the living Lord Jesus Christ as the better hope, the only hope, of escape from Divine judgment and entrance into Divine favor.  We think of such things when reading the prophets who tell us of the sad plight of humanity untethered and adrift from its Maker and Lord.  However, we think even more of the Prince, the Christ of hope, rescue, and life who came "to bring us to God" (I Peter 3:18).  He accomplishes such redemption in all who believe, and even as we make our sad way through the darkness portrayed by Amos and his fellow prophets, a Light shines.  Or, as a New Testament prophet of hope declared…

"The light shineth in darkness."
(John 1:5)
"For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."
(Romans 8:3-4)

Weekly Memory Verse
   See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
(Ephesians 5:15-16)
    
   
    
     

Thursday, January 25, 2018

"Dependent, Free"

"Dependent, Free"


    "If the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed" (John 8:36).

    What does the Son make free to do?  In simplest terms, to love God and others.  "For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another" (Galatians 5:13).  While completely dependent on our Lord for the power to love, believers nevertheless make sublimely free choices of devotion to His glory and the benefit of people.  Biblically defined love is not love at all without such freedom.  The Psalmist perhaps most clearly described the Divine-union of devotion: "I will love Thee, o Lord my strength!" (Psalm 18:1).  David determines to love God -"I will" - but he knows that God must motivate, lead, and empower such self sacrifice - "o Lord, my strength."  Or as he further requested, "Uphold me with Thy free Spirit" (Psalm 51:12).

   Originally created in God's image, and progressively changed into the spiritual and moral image of Christ, believers possess a breathtakingly beautiful capacity of liberty "to serve."  We bow upon our knees to affirm our dependence, but we arise to "walk in love, as also Christ hath loved us and given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor" (Ephesians 5:2).  Thus, we expect many opportunities to make choices of self sacrifice, most of them involving small matters regarding attitude, perspective, words, deeds, and willingness to forego our own benefit for the pleasure of our Heavenly Father and the blessing of others.  At the end of the day and of our lifetime, the Lord receives all the glory and honor for a life lived by His love.  Nevertheless, we exercise our Christ-enabled freedom to the degree that we have a real role in the matter of relationship with God and others.  He made us as persons in His image (Genesis 1:27).   A vital aspect of this nature involves freely chosen determinations to walk in such a manner that through Christ, our love is authentic and free.

    No other understanding of relationship and fellowship with God leads to our pleasing Him, blessing others, and knowing true fulfillment of heart, mind, and life.  The computer upon which I type these words has no capacity for joy and peace because it exists as merely a programmed device.  God made us rather for personal devotion, the fellowship of Heart to heart in our walk with Him, and heart to heart in our relationship with people.  This is life and love as the Lord of life and love made us to be and to know with Him, in Him, and by Him.  We do well to acknowledge such favor bestowed upon us in our creation, and liberated in us by our redemption.

"I have declared unto them Thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith Thou hast loved Me may be in them, and I in them."
(John 17:26)
"I will freely sacrifice unto Thee: I will praise Thy name, O LORD; for it is good."
(Psalm 54:6)
"Freely ye have received, freely give."
(Matthew 10:8)

Weekly Memory Verse

    "Put them in fear, O LORD: that the nations may know themselves to be but men."
(Psalm 9:20)
   

Wednesday, January 24, 2018

"Tender Or Tough"


"Tender Or Tough"


    There are times in our lives when we feel ourselves to need a tender hand from our Heavenly Father.  However, if we could audibly heart His voice, He might seem to respond quite differently.  "Get up and quit feeling sorry for yourself!  I have provided the grace for such a time as this.  Now arise and go forward!"  Conversely, we may sometimes expect great firmness, and again, if we could audibly hear His voice, a rebuke would surely seem to be forthcoming.  Instead, our Lord orchestrates things that greatly encourage us by His tendermercies.  "Thy lovingkindness is before my eyes" (Psalm 26:3).

    This says much about our Heavenly Father, and much about ourselves.  He always works in our lives according to His character, understanding, and purpose rather than our own.  Because He is love, this means He works according to our best interests, which always align with His best interests.  This often conflicts with our perception of things and of ourselves.  At best, we have limited understanding of our own needs, and more pointedly, of ourselves.  The Apostle Paul admitted the limitations of his own self-awareness: "the things which I do, I allow (understand) not!" (Romans 7:15).  Indeed, other than God, the person most mysterious to us is ourselves.

    Our Lord often operates in our hearts and lives pretty much as we might anticipate.  However, we do well to expect the unexpected.  He can be tough when we hope for tender, and tender when we are sure tough is coming.  Since we have committed our eternal well being into His heart and hands, we can always be sure He administers His love in perfection.  "As for God, His way is perfect" (II Samuel 22:31).   The Lord will often surprise us, whether pleasantly or unpleasantly, but He will never violate His loving devotion to the best possible administration of His love.  Tender or tough both proceed from God's infinite knowledge, understanding, and wisdom rather than our limited awareness of ourselves.  Let us be forever grateful.

"Thou, God, seest me."
(Genesis 16:13)
"O Lord, Thou hast searched me and known me."
(Psalm 139:1)

Weekly Memory Verse

    "Put them in fear, O LORD: that the nations may know themselves to be but men."
(Psalm 9:20)
   

Tuesday, January 23, 2018

"The Father's Gift"


"The Father's Gift"


    Frances and I began our courtship forty one years ago today, on January 23, 1977.  I awoke this morning with much thanksgiving, and the realization yet again that no man has ever been more the beneficiary of the gift proclaimed by Solomon:

    "Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favor of the Lord" (Proverbs 18:22).

    I do not have space to adequately describe the "good thing" and "favor of the Lord" bestowed upon me all those years ago as the completely undeserved gift of God's grace in the Lord Jesus Christ.  Suffice it to say that the Apostle Paul's measure of "exceeding, abundantly above all we can ask or think" comes closest to expressing the measure of mercy Frances is to me (Ephesians 3:20).  Indeed, if I were ever tempted to question God's love, His Spirit would only have to whisper in my heart "Frances."  This would instantly overcome the challenge as I would be reminded yet again of the Lord Jesus and His indescribably glorious love and kindness.  "Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift" (II Corinthians 9:15).

   "For two, saith He, shall be one flesh. But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit" (I Corinthians 6:17).

   Scripture refers to the church of the Lord Jesus as His bride.  "Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb's wife" (Revelation 21:9).  Believers are spiritually united to Christ in a union of oneness most vividly revealed in our earthly marriages.  Moreover, our Savior views us as His Father's gift to us.  "Behold I and the children which God hath given Me" (Hebrews 2:15).  Consider this wonder of grace: the Lord Jesus looks upon us as the bestowal of the Father's love to Him.  Just as we so rightly consider Christ as the gift to us of God's most magnanimous grace, so our Savior views Himself as a recipient of lovingkindness when thoughts of us come to His heart and mind (which is always).  "All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me; and him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out" (John 6:37).  Indeed, among the countless reasons the Lord Jesus loves His spiritual bride, the truth that she is the Father's gift to Him doubtless finds its blessed place deep in depths of His glorious heart.

    When gratefully pondering the gift Frances is to me, I remember that the Lord Jesus views His church with the same gratitude of love, but in an infinitely greater measure and degree.  I know of few more sanctifying thoughts, or few more sublime reasons to bow before our Lord in wonder, adoration, and praise.  This very moment provides such opportunity to be thankful for the Savior who, wondrously, is thankful for us.

"Father, I will that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am; that they may behold My glory, which Thou hast given Me: for Thou lovedst Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father, the world hath not known Thee: but I have known Thee, and these have known that Thou hast sent Me.  And I have declared unto them Thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith Thou hast loved Me may be in them, and I in them."
(John 17:24-26)

Weekly Memory Verse

    "Put them in fear, O LORD: that the nations may know themselves to be but men."
(Psalm 9:20)
   
  

Monday, January 22, 2018

"The Offense of Grace"


"The Offense of Grace"


    It is hard to imagine a more beautiful reality than God's grace, that is, His freely given favor in the Lord Jesus Christ.  Such goodness nevertheless offends the human heart apart from Christ and the flesh of even born again believers.

    "The natural man receiveth not the things of God, for they are foolishness to him" (I Corinthians 2:14).
    "With the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin" (Romans 7:25).

    Grace intrudes on the deception long ago embraced in Eden by Adam.  "Ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil" suggested Satan (Genesis 3:5).  "No you shall not, and you are not!" declares the grace and truth of God in the Lord Jesus.  Grace comes to us with a blessed, but humbling message.  It affirms that God is God, and we are not.  We are rather His subservient creations by physical birth, and His dependent sons and daughters by spiritual birth.  Satan's lie infected our original parents, however, along with their subsequent offspring through the ages.  "In Adam all die" wrote the Apostle Paul (I Corinthians 15:22).  We seek to have life in ourselves rather in the living and true God.  The deception manifests itself in countless modes and measures, from braggarts who boast of their greatness, to the cowardly who live in fear because they will not forego their independence to trust God.  Grace speaks to both, and to all degrees of the deceived, commanding the knee to bow, the heart to receive, and the spirit to receive the freely given gift of life in Christ.  "Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound, that as sin hath reigned through death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 5:20-21).

   Even after salvation, grace confronts the law of sin that remains in our earthly members and faculties.  Born again believers are still susceptible to the pride, fear, and lust for self-centeredness that reveals the ancient "ye shall be as gods" deception.  We must recognize the temptation by growing in our understanding of God's grace and truth in Christ, and our fleshly inclinations to resist our Lord's freely given working in our lives.  We must live upon the knees of our heart, as it were, in order to walk upon our feet by the power of God rather than the deluded notion of our own ability.  "Without Me, ye can do nothing" pronounced the Lord Jesus to His disciples.  "I can do all things through Christ" exulted the Apostle Paul after receiving the Savior and His grace (John 15:5; Philippians 4:13).  "How sweet the sound!" sings the most well known hymn of the Christian faith regarding such goodness.  This is true regarding the hearts of every believer.  However, let us understand that grace and truth in Christ still offends our flesh.  Thus, we must overcome our native tendency to exalt and trust ourselves rather than the true and living Lord of Scripture.  God is God, and we are not.  Grace blessedly relieves us of a responsibility we could never bear.  But it often offends as it demands we drop our sword and our plow to receive the freest gift ever given, purchased at a cost paid by Another.

"Put them in fear, O LORD: that the nations may know themselves to be but men."
(Psalm 9:20)
"I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain."
(Galatians 2:21)
"For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."
(Romans 8:2-4)

Weekly Memory Verse

    "Put them in fear, O LORD: that the nations may know themselves to be but men."
(Psalm 9:20)

Saturday, January 20, 2018

Saturday Songs -3- "Thy Glory"

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…

(Friends, each Saturday this year, we are sending the lyrics and a recorded version of one of our songs.  This week's edition is entitled "Thy Glory."  It is about as simple lyrically as a song can be, and purposefully so.  I wanted the thought expressed to completely have the emphasis and consideration. We hope you find it encouraging.  Thanks, Glen).




Thy Glory
Words and Music by Glen Davis


Thy glory, Thy Will,
Thine eternal purpose in Christ -
nothing more...
nothing less...
nothing else.

Thy glory, Thy Will,
Thine eternal purpose in Christ -
nothing more...
nothing less...
nothing else.



Friday, January 19, 2018

"The One Who Came First"


"The One Who Came First"


    I'm not too bright or quick, but I had a better than usual moment today.  As I left our local superstore, one of those places where they check and count the number of items you've purchased, the lady at the door looked at the contents of my basket.  These included a roasted chicken and a carton of eggs.  "So, which came first, the chicken or the eggs?" she asked, smiling.  Immediately, I answered, "The chicken, of course!  Scripture says that God made the birds, who then lay the eggs."  She look at me quizzically, and I repeated my comment.  She smiled again, cocked her head, and then turned to the next customer.

    "And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven… Gavest thou the goodly wings unto the peacocks?  Or wings and feathers unto the ostrich, which leaveth her eggs in the earth, and warmeth them in dust?" (Genesis 1:20; Job 39:13-14).

   If I'm going to have a rare moment of cleverness, I'm glad it involved opportunity to declare God's Truth, particularly regarding the glory of His creative ability.  Our Lord reveals His brilliance and artistry thereby, or as a friend and I discussed today, God is both the Great Engineer and the Great Artist.  Of course, we live in a generation that often denies the Lord's existence and origination of all things.  It's hard to imagine such willful blindness, but the effects of sin in the human heart and mind lead many to deny the very source of their life and being.  Deeply within, they know because God's nature and being are "clearly seen" by all (Romans 1:20).  However, unbelievers sometimes deny the very nose on their face, including their nose's Maker.  Christians therefore have the great privilege and responsibility to state the obvious, namely, the fact of God and the truth that "all things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made" (John 1:3).

    Creation comprises a gallery of God's sublime art, and a complex system of His design and construction.  Let us ask our Heavenly Father for many opportunities to proclaim His heart and mind "by the things that are made."  I'm grateful for today's opportunity, and pray that my rare moment of a clever response (as led and enabled by the Holy Spirit) shined a light into the lady's heart that will cause realization and appreciation of the one who came first, the chicken, and far more, the One who made the chicken.

"Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: He calleth them all by names by the greatness of His might, for that He is strong in power."
(Isaiah 40:26)

Weekly Memory Verse
   For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
(Romans 5:10)
    

"The One Who Came First"


"The One Who Came First"


    I'm not too bright or quick, but I had a better than usual moment today.  As I left our local superstore, one of those places where they check and count the number of items you've purchased, the lady at the door looked at the contents of my basket.  These included a roasted chicken and a carton of eggs.  "So, which came first, the chicken or the eggs?" she asked, smiling.  Immediately, I answered, "The chicken, of course!  Scripture says that God made the birds, who then lay the eggs."  She look at me quizzically, and I repeated my comment.  She smiled again, cocked her head, and then turned to the next customer.

    "And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven… Gavest thou the goodly wings unto the peacocks?  Or wings and feathers unto the ostrich, which leaveth her eggs in the earth, and warmeth them in dust?" (Genesis 1:20; Job 39:13-14).

   If I'm going to have a rare moment of cleverness, I'm glad it involved opportunity to declare God's Truth, particularly regarding the glory of His creative ability.  Our Lord reveals His brilliance and artistry thereby, or as a friend and I discussed today, God is both the Great Engineer and the Great Artist.  Of course, we live in a generation that often denies the Lord's existence and origination of all things.  It's hard to imagine such willful blindness, but the effects of sin in the human heart and mind lead many to deny the very source of their life and being.  Deeply within, they know because God's nature and being are "clearly seen" by all (Romans 1:20).  However, unbelievers sometimes deny the very nose on their face, including their nose's Maker.  Christians therefore have the great privilege and responsibility to state the obvious, namely, the fact of God and the truth that "all things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made" (John 1:3).

    Creation comprises a gallery of God's sublime art, and a complex system of His design and construction.  Let us ask our Heavenly Father for many opportunities to proclaim His heart and mind "by the things that are made."  I'm grateful for today's opportunity, and pray that my rare moment of a clever response (as led and enabled by the Holy Spirit) shined a light into the lady's heart that will cause realization and appreciation of the one who came first, the chicken, and far more, the One who made the chicken.

"Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: He calleth them all by names by the greatness of His might, for that He is strong in power."
(Isaiah 40:26)

Weekly Memory Verse
   For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
(Romans 5:10)
    

Thursday, January 18, 2018

"Clearly Seen"


"Clearly Seen"


    God's execution of judgment and wrath proceeds in direct proportion to His revelation of Himself and His truth. 

    "The wrath of God is revealed from Heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who hold the truth in unrighteousness, because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them.  For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse" (Romans 1:18-20).

    From the moment of our conception, God begins to shine the light of "His eternal power and godhead" upon our spiritual being.  If we reject the truth our Lord communicates, we do so having "clearly seen" His reality.  Our refusal to trust and obey God therefore involves a decisive turning away from Him, whether the response seems passionate or indifferent.  Deeply within, the unbeliever affirms a strong "No!" to his Maker, thus evoking from the Lord an equally decisive revelation of wrath, based upon justice, righteousness, and holiness.  We see this when reading the Old Testament prophets and their warnings or reports of Divine retribution.  The recipients thereof have categorically turned away from God unto idols, and from Truth to error.  Thus, the Lord must respond in kind in order to maintain His integrity and truth.  "For the day of the LORD is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head" (Obadiah 1:15).

   God reveals Himself by creation.  He communicates His truth by His Spirit.  He declares the Gospel with great power.  And He sends His church into the world to exemplify and proclaim the saving grace of the Lord Jesus (Psalm 19:1; John 16:8-11; Romans 1:16; Philippians 2:15).  Perhaps most vividly, the Apostle Paul told the unbelieving Athenians that "in Him we live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28).  Thus, if a person rejects the Lord Jesus, he does so decisively disbelieving the great fact of of His being, and the brightest light that shines upon his heart and mind.  How else other than wrath could a loving, righteous, and just God respond to such willful rejection of grace and truth?  Thus, believers do well to play our vital role in exemplifying and proclaiming the Gospel of hope and salvation to all in our sphere of influence.  But we must also join the prophets in their warning and reports of Divine response to human rejection of God's loving overtures.  We preach to the choir as we do so because all have "clearly seen" enough to respond to the Gospel - if they will.

"And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation, to wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.  Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God."
(II Corinthians 5:18-20)

Weekly Memory Verse
   For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
(Romans 5:10)
    

Wednesday, January 17, 2018

“Recognizing the Danger"


"Recognizing the Danger"


    If Satan, through one of his unbelieving human agencies, tells us there is no God, the Bible is not true, and Jesus Christ is not the Savior, even the most nominal believer will quickly identify the deception as devilish in origin.  We will remember and affirm, "There is one God," and "the fool hath said in his heart, there is no God" (I Timothy 2:5; Psalm 14:1).

    Conversely, if the same Satan, through a false preacher or even a faithful one in error, presents to us an erroneous notion accompanied by Scripture and the name of the Lord Jesus, we may be far more likely to identify the deception as truth.  Thus, the Apostle Paul prayed "that we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive" (Ephesians 4:14).

    Which devilish ploy is more dangerous?  The latter means of attack bears far more danger because it presents itself as light rather than darkness.  The pulpit may sometimes better serve the devil's devices than any unbelieving agency that blatantly - and obviously - denies God's truth.  We must therefore "try (test) the spirits, whether they be of God" (I John 4:1).  This presents a great challenge because believers rightly expect preachers, teachers, and writers who profess Christ to be genuine and trustworthy.  Moreover, most Christians have not read, pondered, and studied the Bible as much as those who occupy pulpits, Sunday School lecterns, and electronic media, or whose written words find their way into books, articles (or suspicious email devotionals!).  How then does the earnest believer stand against deception in a generation wherein countless voices beckon - truthfully and erroneously - "This is the way; walk ye in it"? (Isaiah 30:21).

    No easy answers present themselves to answer this vital question.  Obviously, we pray for protection against deception.  We consistently read and ponder the Scriptures in order to discern truth from error.  We also fellowship with like-hearted believers who share the desire to walk in God's light.  However, we can practice all of these protective measures and still be deceived.  Herein lies another vital aspect of avoiding deception, namely, recognizing the fact that we have a cunning foe, and we can all fall victim to his subtle devices.  Indeed, if we do not recognize the danger, we are already deceived and open to far greater possibilities of error.   We do well, therefore, to trust our Lord for His keeping, read His Word for illumination, and associate ourselves with fellow believers who help to confirm Truth and diagnose error.  The challenge is great.  Our enemy is subtle.  But God is greater, and His knowledge, understanding, and wisdom will preserve our walk in faith and faithfulness so long as we realize the dire necessity of His ongoing administration of light, grace, and truth to our hearts and minds.

"But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ."
(II Corinthians 11:3)
"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour."
(I Peter 5:8)

Weekly Memory Verse
   For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
(Romans 5:10)