Praise God: it is almost Sunday! We get to re-start our lives in Jesus again. In order to help us get ready for worship, here are some great words from Aug-ustine of Hippo, the church’s greatest post-apostolic theologian. This citation comes from his excellent book, entitled, “The Literal Meaning of Genesis.” . . .
“The other interpretations that I have put forth in this book should be of some interest to the reader: either he may discover from them how one must in-vestigate without rash assertions the questions which Scripture does not clearly answer; or if my way of investigation is not to his liking, he may see how I carried it on, and as a result I hope that if he can instruct me he will not refuse, and that if he cannot he will join me in searching for someone from whom both of us may learn."
Friday, January 31, 2020
Thursday, January 30, 2020
Thurs., 1/30/20 Devotion (Gen. 31:16b)
Today's encouragement comes from Genesis 31:16b, where we read these words:
" . . . whatever God has said to you, do it."
These words (above) of Jacob's wives, to him, are pretty good. How encour-aging is it, when other believers urge us on in our holy faith in Jesus, and in our keeping the loving injunctions it puts upon us? This is especially true, when what we are called upon to do, by God, is not easy, and it grates against our natural tendencies.
Let all the faithful church be found saying this to one another: "Whatever God has said to you, do it." And what is it that God would have us always do? To be united to Christ, by grace through faith in Him. When this is the case, we can do *anything* our Lord calls upon us to do. When this is not happening, we can do *nothing* of any eternal value whatsoever.
[AUGUSTINE quote of the day: “Evil is not a substance: the loss of the good is what we call evil.” —from “The Literal Meaning of Genesis,” Bk. 8]
" . . . whatever God has said to you, do it."
These words (above) of Jacob's wives, to him, are pretty good. How encour-aging is it, when other believers urge us on in our holy faith in Jesus, and in our keeping the loving injunctions it puts upon us? This is especially true, when what we are called upon to do, by God, is not easy, and it grates against our natural tendencies.
Let all the faithful church be found saying this to one another: "Whatever God has said to you, do it." And what is it that God would have us always do? To be united to Christ, by grace through faith in Him. When this is the case, we can do *anything* our Lord calls upon us to do. When this is not happening, we can do *nothing* of any eternal value whatsoever.
[AUGUSTINE quote of the day: “Evil is not a substance: the loss of the good is what we call evil.” —from “The Literal Meaning of Genesis,” Bk. 8]
Wednesday, January 29, 2020
Wed., 1/29/20 Devotion (Gen. 30:2b)
Today's encouragement comes from Genesis 30:2b, which says this:
" . . . And [Jacob] said, 'Am I in the place of God . . . ?' "
Whenever anyone fails to look to the Lord Jesus Christ for the fullest level of life and satisfaction, the inevitable consequence is the "deification of man." This is a common form of idolatry. The simple fact is that no human being (who is not divine) can fully satisfy us. This would be true, even if this (non-divine) person was without sin.
Jacob could not give Rachel what she wanted (in the Genesis account above). Only God could do that. Let us be careful not to ascribe to anybody what only belongs to Christ alone: namely, the ability to make us supremely happy, content, full, and free.
[AUGUSTINE quote of the day: “You [God] have made us for Yourself; and our heart is restless until it rests in You.” —from “Confessions,” Bk. 1]
" . . . And [Jacob] said, 'Am I in the place of God . . . ?' "
Whenever anyone fails to look to the Lord Jesus Christ for the fullest level of life and satisfaction, the inevitable consequence is the "deification of man." This is a common form of idolatry. The simple fact is that no human being (who is not divine) can fully satisfy us. This would be true, even if this (non-divine) person was without sin.
Jacob could not give Rachel what she wanted (in the Genesis account above). Only God could do that. Let us be careful not to ascribe to anybody what only belongs to Christ alone: namely, the ability to make us supremely happy, content, full, and free.
[AUGUSTINE quote of the day: “You [God] have made us for Yourself; and our heart is restless until it rests in You.” —from “Confessions,” Bk. 1]
Tuesday, January 28, 2020
Tues., 1/28/20 Devotion (Esth. 5:2a)
Today's encouragement comes from Esther 5:2a, which says this:
"And when the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, she won favor in his sight, and he held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand." (ESV)
When God sees His church, the bride of Christ, approach the throne of grace, He is pleased to hold out the golden scepter of His love, mercy, and grace. All of this is because Jesus shed His precious blood for His regenerated cove-nant people.
Do we need to approach the throne of God today? Undoubtedly, we do; but let us not come empty-handed. We must bring, in the arms of our faith, the Savior of our souls, the "Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world," (Jn. 1:29)—our Lord Jesus Christ. No other offering will be accepted.
[Puritan quote of the day: "A child of God keeps two books always by him: one to write his sins in, so that he may be humble; the other to write his mer-cies in, so that he may be thankful.” —Thomas Watson, in, "The Godly Man's Picture"]
"And when the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, she won favor in his sight, and he held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand." (ESV)
When God sees His church, the bride of Christ, approach the throne of grace, He is pleased to hold out the golden scepter of His love, mercy, and grace. All of this is because Jesus shed His precious blood for His regenerated cove-nant people.
Do we need to approach the throne of God today? Undoubtedly, we do; but let us not come empty-handed. We must bring, in the arms of our faith, the Savior of our souls, the "Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world," (Jn. 1:29)—our Lord Jesus Christ. No other offering will be accepted.
[Puritan quote of the day: "A child of God keeps two books always by him: one to write his sins in, so that he may be humble; the other to write his mer-cies in, so that he may be thankful.” —Thomas Watson, in, "The Godly Man's Picture"]
Monday, January 27, 2020
Mon., 1/27/20 Devotion (Gen. 28:12)
Today's encouragement comes from Genesis 28:12, where we read these words:
"Then he [Jacob] dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it."
In Jacob's dream, notice where the ladder is "set up." It is not set up in heav-en, but on the earth. This is intriguing, because sometimes we mistakenly separate heaven and earth, and imagine that they are radically "separate" from one another. The actual truth is that they are *united* in the "Ladder," the Lord Jesus Christ.
Why is this an encouragement for us who are alive "down here” today, in the church militant? Because it reminds us that our lives here are as full and rich as the lives of the saints above (in the triumphant church). They have Jesus; we have Jesus. Heaven is where Jesus is. The closer we are to Him in this world, the closer we are to heaven (in its essence).
[Puritan quote of the day: "Let me not deny myself comfort and God glory both at once.” —Richard Sibbes, in, "Glorious Freedom"]
"Then he [Jacob] dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it."
In Jacob's dream, notice where the ladder is "set up." It is not set up in heav-en, but on the earth. This is intriguing, because sometimes we mistakenly separate heaven and earth, and imagine that they are radically "separate" from one another. The actual truth is that they are *united* in the "Ladder," the Lord Jesus Christ.
Why is this an encouragement for us who are alive "down here” today, in the church militant? Because it reminds us that our lives here are as full and rich as the lives of the saints above (in the triumphant church). They have Jesus; we have Jesus. Heaven is where Jesus is. The closer we are to Him in this world, the closer we are to heaven (in its essence).
[Puritan quote of the day: "Let me not deny myself comfort and God glory both at once.” —Richard Sibbes, in, "Glorious Freedom"]
Friday, January 24, 2020
Fri.-Sabbath, 1/24-26/20 Devotion
Praise God: another Sunday is almost here! In order to prepare us for church worship, here is Thomas Watson, from "All Things for Good":
"If we do not love God, we will love something else, either the world or sin; and are those things worthy of our love? Is it not better to love God than these? It is better to love God than the world, as appears in the following par-ticulars. . . .
"If we set our love on worldly things, they will not satisfy. We may as well sat-isfy our body with air, as our souls with earth. . . . Is it not better to love God? He will give us that which shall satisfy. . . . If we love worldly things, they can-not remove trouble of mind. If there is a thorn in our conscience, all the world cannot pluck it out. . . . But if we love God, He can give us peace when no-thing else can. He can turn the 'Shadow of death into the morning,' (Amos 5:8). He can apply Christ’s blood to refresh our souls. He can whisper His love by The Spirit, and with one smile scatter all our fears and concerns."
"If we do not love God, we will love something else, either the world or sin; and are those things worthy of our love? Is it not better to love God than these? It is better to love God than the world, as appears in the following par-ticulars. . . .
"If we set our love on worldly things, they will not satisfy. We may as well sat-isfy our body with air, as our souls with earth. . . . Is it not better to love God? He will give us that which shall satisfy. . . . If we love worldly things, they can-not remove trouble of mind. If there is a thorn in our conscience, all the world cannot pluck it out. . . . But if we love God, He can give us peace when no-thing else can. He can turn the 'Shadow of death into the morning,' (Amos 5:8). He can apply Christ’s blood to refresh our souls. He can whisper His love by The Spirit, and with one smile scatter all our fears and concerns."
Thursday, January 23, 2020
Thurs., 1/23/20 Devotion (Gen. 24:3a)
Today's encouragement comes from Genesis 24:3a, where we read these words:
"And I will make you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and the God of the earth . . . "
I like this phrase: "The God of heaven and the God of the earth.” Let us focus on the "earth" part. Are we ever tempted to think that God runs heaven; but that the devil, or maybe sinners can do what they want with the earth? If we are, we are quite mistaken. The glorious truth is that the church’s God is the supreme governor of the earth, (as well as heaven).
The Lord put earth under His church's feet (1 Cor. 3:21b-23); and we are His vice-regents, to rule and tend it. But, in the greatest sense, the Lord, the Cre-ator Himself, is "God of the earth." Let us be thankful for this; and commit ourselves to serving Him well—all in Jesus.
[Puritan quote of the day: "Whoever is set up on earth, they are set up by our Lord. 'By Me,' says He, 'kings reign, and princes decree justice.’ “ —John Bunyan, in, "All Loves Excelling"]
"And I will make you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and the God of the earth . . . "
I like this phrase: "The God of heaven and the God of the earth.” Let us focus on the "earth" part. Are we ever tempted to think that God runs heaven; but that the devil, or maybe sinners can do what they want with the earth? If we are, we are quite mistaken. The glorious truth is that the church’s God is the supreme governor of the earth, (as well as heaven).
The Lord put earth under His church's feet (1 Cor. 3:21b-23); and we are His vice-regents, to rule and tend it. But, in the greatest sense, the Lord, the Cre-ator Himself, is "God of the earth." Let us be thankful for this; and commit ourselves to serving Him well—all in Jesus.
[Puritan quote of the day: "Whoever is set up on earth, they are set up by our Lord. 'By Me,' says He, 'kings reign, and princes decree justice.’ “ —John Bunyan, in, "All Loves Excelling"]
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