Trust and Follow

Trust and Follow

In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to your holy dwelling. Exodus 15:13 NIV

Where God leads, we must follow. We will all be lead to still waters and pastures of plenty. And the Lord will also lead us to the valley where many wither away from the faith. But none the less, where the Lord leads, we must always follow.

If we go with the Lord, even when He leads us into the wilderness, we are always in a good place because we are with Him. And even when we fall victim to death, He has promised to be there too, protecting us from the second death by the blood of Christ.

God gives us His Holy Spirit so that we have the ability to follow His lead. Not only that, but with the indwelling of the Spirit we have the right to come to God and the uncanny ability to look like Christ in this world. With the Spirit, we convey a life-witness to the world that draws others to Christ. The crowning realization of all who follow and trust the Lord is that someone will find God by experiencing our testimony of the Father. We trust and follow God for our own redemption, but we also do it with the hope of leading others to the same hope we have in Christ.

Our Intercessor

Our Intercessor

…, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will. Romans 8:26-27 NIV

Some time ago I had become a go-to person for bad news, troubles and prayer requests. During this time I heard anything from a person’s loss of faith, to cancer diagnoses to suicide and rape. Of course, this is not even connected to the anger and insults of people that were ‘disappointed’ with God. And if that wasn’t enough, someone stole a birdhouse in the shape of a church right off of our front porch, on Christmas. Who steals a church from Christians at Christmas?

During that time I was finding it hard to pray. Not out of discord with God, but because my heart was heavy. My heart was breaking for these people, even for the local thieves and the people that slighted me. My heart was so low that I was having trouble finding the words. My prayer time consisted of praise for what that the Lord had done in my life, tears and perplexed silence.

During difficult periods, the Holy Spirit picks up on this and intercedes. He has a way of taking my “inner voice” and translating it into "God Talk", a language between the Spirit and the Father. We have an intercessor in Heaven who is Christ Jesus and we have an intercessor that lives inside of us who is the Holy Spirit. No matter what I endure, the Lord sees, He hears and He understands.     

I was born that way

I was born that way

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. Ezekiel 36:26-27 NIV

I heard about a song titled, "I was born that way." The song is a reference to the singer’s bisexuality. For homosexuals and their supporters, there is no shame in doing what comes naturally. But with God, it is more than what comes naturally. God calls us to live beyond the impulses and cravings of this body and onto something Supernatural.

Here's the thing... the homosexual's "excuse" is that they were born that way. But we have all been born into "some way" that lures us into a life against God... It’s called sin. No matter what the sin-indulgence is, it is what separates us from God. Sin is the spiritual illness that will lead us all straight to Hell.

There is only one fix for our sin predicament, Jesus. When a person accepts the gift of salvation, God causes a change. The Lord may love you as you are, but He will not allow you to stay the same. God can (and will) do what none of us can do for ourselves; he can change our nature. He alters the things that come naturally and gives us a desire to be connected to Him in the supernatural. We who follow Christ are not defined by our sin; we are defined by the Cross of Christ. You and I were never born for sin; we were born to belong to God. We were not born to be hostile toward Him, but to be at peace with Him because of Christ. 

Fulfilling the Call

Fulfilling the Call

The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, "Return home and tell how much God has done for you." So the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him. Luke 8:38-39 NIV

I went to an evangelism class some years ago. The instructors focused on several techniques and use of the "Roman's Road." ** We even did role playing. On the first turn I got to be the pagan and on the next turn, I pretended to be the "upright" Christian. At the conclusion, our instructors asked if we had questions. I raised my hand and asked, "What do we say if they want to accept Christ?" The instructors looked at each other, and then slowly turned their attention back to us. One of them said, "Um, let me get the Pastor."

Some may think that evangelism is something reserved for pastors and those versed in apologetics. Some excuse themselves from sharing about Christ by saying that they have not been "called" by God for this purpose. Maybe fear is a factor that silences the testimony of the Saints? But one thing is certain, how can they believe unless someone tells them? How can the unbeliever hear about God if no one answers the Lord’s call (Romans 10:14-15)?

I think that the real qualifications for witnessing to the world are a willing heart and a testimony. Ask God for the same attitude he has toward the spiritually needy, then get ready. Don't be surprised when you feel a tug at your heart. Don't be shocked when you find yourself in front of someone needing salvation. God has prepared us for works of service. Or, let me put it this way; “This is the calling we were made for.” Tell them what God has done for you. In this, you are fulfilling the scriptures and the call of Christ. 

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**The Roman's Road consists of the following scriptures:

Romans 3:23 -Romans 5:8 - Romans 6:23 - Romans 10:9-10 - Romans 10:13**

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Rest in the Lord

Rest in the Lord
God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. Genesis 2:3 NIV

When God ordained the seventh day as a period of rest, it became mandatory for mankind. This is not just a cessation of physical activity; it is a rest for the whole person; the body, soul and spirit. Do you know how to rest, or what is required to properly recharge the soul?

The scripture says that genuine rest comes by waiting on the Lord (Psalm 37:7). When Abraham and Sarah stopped resting on the promises of the Lord and did their own work, they ended up with Ishmael. But when they waited on the Lord, they received the blessing He had promised, Isaac. When we stop resting on the promises of God, we give birth to the Ishmaels’, to unnecessary restlessness, trouble and worry. But when we hold strongly to the promises of God, we gain the blessing of the Lord. We give birth to the things that God has promised. He promised rest, hope and abundant life.

I know it is easy to lose site of the promises of the Lord. We live in turbulent times. And to these the Lord says, "Be still and know that I am God." -Psalm 46:10 Hold on to the Lord and rest in the hope He has given. Wait patiently for the promise to be fulfilled, in His time. He is worthy of praise and of our trust. Your blessing is on the way, your blessing is coming! Amen, amen and amen!

This devotional is an edited excerpt taken from Eric’s Hebrew word study and translation of the creation story of Genesis titled, Key Word Study Creation
*Available for free – just send an email request to eumontgomery@comcast.net

Evil has no more Power

Evil has no more Power

Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. Matthew 24:12-13 NIV

I think that evil or sin, when it comes to its full maturity, is what sends us away from the presence of God and straight to Hell. Even though evil seems so pervasive, working itself out through the acts of men, evil is ultimately powerless. We know that evil was overpowered by the cross (John 16:33). We know that evil was undone by the empty grave of Christ. We know that where sin abounded, grace did much more abound (Romans 5:20) for those who repent. And this same super-power that dethroned sin and uprooted evil lives in us! – 1 John 5: 4 & 5

Sin is the sore-loser that refuses to believe he has lost. Though sin rages on, always looking for a rematch, it has unequivocally failed and is doomed for Hell. Know that if we stand firm with Christ till the end, we will be saved. Know that to stand with Christ is to stand with the victor over every evil and every illness of body and spirit in this world. And the one that overcame sin and death lives in you through the Holy Spirit. Our hope has always been planted securely in Christ! And evil has no power to steal you from the hand of God when you have come to Him by way of Christ Jesus!

An Illustration of God's Love

An Illustration of God's Love

We love because he first loved us.

1 John 4:19 NIV

I was watching a television show where a mother and son were in the police department of a small town. The son was tearfully confessing to a vigilante killing, theft and an attempt to frame someone else for the murder. And as he sobbed his mother responded, "You are the love of my life, I love you son." The child responded, "I am a murderer and I don't deserve to be called your son." She sobbed and said, "You are my son and I love you."

Does this not look like God's love for us? Some of the more arrogant among us would say that we are better than or not as bad as a murderer. But the reality is that we have all fallen short of God's standards (Romans 3:23). We have all offended the righteousness of God and deserve hell-fire and brimstone, for eternity. And yet, God's response to our sin is to bludgeon His son, nail him to a cross and turn His back on him (Matthew 27:46). After we have done, said and thought enough things to be ushered right out of God's presence, He instead holds us close, looks us in the eye and whispers, "You are mine, and I love you."

In my opinion, love is not inherent, but is something learned. A person can learn to love incorrectly or in a twisted way that may seem well and good, but ultimately leaves a trail of false emotional connections to things that God does not accept nor approve. Now if a person learned love from God, then love presents itself in a way that is not self serving, breaks down barriers, lifts the lowly and restores the broken, even the worst of us.