THE CHRISTIAN JOURNEYMAN'S JOURNAL ©

THE CHRISTIAN JOURNEYMAN’S JOURNAL ©
Daily Devotional Thoughts From God's Word.
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Why Only One?

Jesus was not only walking along the boundary of two regions, but He was walking along a path of prejudice and hostility that existed for a long time. In the past the Jews and the Samaritans had no dealings with each other. *Back about 720 B.C. the Assyrians had invaded the northern kingdom of Samaria and had captured and subjugated it. They did what conquerors often did in those days---they transported practically the whole population to Media (2 Kings 17:6) Into the district the Assyrians brought other people---from Babylon, from Cuthah, from Ava, from Hamath and from Sepharvaim (2 Kings 17:24) Now it is not possible to transport a whole people. Some of the people of the northern kingdom were left. Almost inevitably they began to inter-marry with the incoming foreigners; and thereby they committed what to the Jew was an unforgivable crime. They lost their racial purity. In a strict Jewish household even to this day, if a son or a daughter marries a Gentile, his or her funeral service is carried out. So it is in this background that we find Jesus facing racial and national barriers as He meets up with a band of lepers. And one of them as we see in this event is a Samaritan. But the one thing we observe concerning this group is that in the midst of their misfortune, they had forgotten that they were Jew and Samaritans. The leprosy that they had in common, led them to realize that they were all men of need. All of them needed healing from Jesus. This is something that we need to get a hold of in our society. It doesn't matter concerning our race, education, or financial status; we all are sinners, who need a Savior. And we all need Jesus to help us in our lives. We need Him to help us in the decisions we make, in getting along with other people, in enduring the challenges of life. It doesn't matter who we are, we need Jesus. And we should be so thankful that He is apart of our lives. In response to their cry for help, Jesus tells them to go and report to the priests that they had been healed. In Leviticus 14:2-20, we find the ceremonial law concerning the healing of a leper. Jesus knew that it was still being enforced, so He called all the lepers to go and show themselves to the priests to begin the process of officially being pronounced “clean.” And on the way, they were healed. But Luke writes that only one, when he realized what had happened, came back, “glorifying God, with a great voice.” He was definitely grateful for what Jesus had done for Him, and He wanted Him to know it. It is sad that even today, there is just a few that truly give God thanks for the awesome blessings He bestows to us. I heard this preached one time, “You can do a great number of good things, and never get a compliment or praise; but you do one negative thing, and you will never hear the end of it.” I would be bold to say, that God hears more negative responses than positive, to the things that happen in people’s lives.

The question of why God is doing this to us is a common everyday response to the workings of God.

But I like Job’s response to a wife that told him that he should “curse God and die” (Job 2:9) Job said: “Shall we receive the good at the hand of God, and not receive the bad?” And the Apostle Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” God allows trials to come into our lives, to strengthen our faith, and to help us to have endurance, which produces maturity. (James 1:2-4) Jesus recognized that there were ten lepers who had been healed, and that only one had returned to give thanks for his healing. You can feel the disappointment in His words.

I hope and pray that the Lord will not be disappointed in us today. It has been the observation of some that, we go from Halloween to Christmas, and this time of Thanksgiving is ignored. In our hearts, in our homes, may it never be ignored.  God is good! He is good all the time. Even in those times, it doesn't seem like He is. He is an awesome God, who deserves our praise.  We pray that we will not be….the only one.

 * The Gospel of John Volume 1 by William Barclay P.149, Par 2 

I Have No Need!

(Luke 7:36-47)
 It happened in the home of a Pharisee named Simon, who invited Jesus to have a meal. And while Jesus was there, a woman (thought of by tradition as Mary Magdalene) slipped in, and brought an alabaster jar of perfume, and began to wet Jesus' feet with her tears. She wiped them with her hair, and then poured perfume on them. Right away Simon who had a heart of self righteousness, criticized Jesus for not recognizing the kind of person this woman was, a sinner. As Christians, how we look at people who are lost in sin, and are involved in worldly destructive pleasures and practices is very important. Important in the fact that we are the ones who are to be a beacon of light to those who are walking in this world of sinful darkness. If we look at these people and say, "I’m so glad that I am not like them.", "so glad that I am not where they are." and that is as far as our heart takes us. how selfish, and uncaring we are. But while we are expressing these thoughts, there are things in our lives that we would not want anyone to know. Our spiritual closets are not clean. Yet Jesus knows our thoughts, and our actions, even though the world is not aware of our short-comings. Jesus made it clear to Simon, that while He was there, Simon had not really made Him feel welcome with the customary courtesies of the day. But this woman who knew who Jesus was, and knew who she was, expressed her love and faith in Him. As a Christian, I cannot say, that I have no need of a Savior, because I need Jesus to save me every day. To help me in my journey every single moment of my life. It's not a onetime event, but an everyday event. And we need to have one hand in the hand of our Savior, and the other hand extended to those who have never given their lives to Jesus before. That is where our heart should be. As Jesus is the life preserver, we are the rope that casts it out into the sea, to rescue lost souls for Him. And if I say, "I do have need of Jesus in my life, everyday, it will be an encouragement to those who are lost, to see their need for Him as well. GP 

The Process Of Salvation (Part 4)

This week I will be concluding a series of messages entitled: 

"The Process Of Salvation"
Webster's New World Dictionary defines the word "process" as "a continuing development involving many changes." Going through this process of coming to Jesus Christ as Savior and Shepherd is a life changing process. You definitely will not be the same person you were  before. We have been answering some questions in this series. The question in this final message is: "What does the Christian life look like?" Briefly the Apostle Paul uses a word to describe the Christian life. 

In his letter to the Christians at Ephesus, he uses the word "Walk" six times. I like for you to look at the six "walks" of the Christian life.

1. A WORKING WALK (Ephesians 2:10)
    We are to walk in good works God prepares for us.

2. A WORTHY WALK (Ephesians 4:1)
   We are to walk a walk worthy of our calling.

3. A WHOLEHEARTED WALK (Ephesians 4:17)
   We are to walk wholeheartedly in the will of the Lord.

4. A WONDERFUL WALK (Ephesians 5:2)
   We are to walk in the love of Christ.

5. A WITNESSING WALK (Ephesians 5:8)
   We are to walk as children of light.

6. A WISE WALK (Ephesians 5:18)
   We are to walk circumspectly, not like fools.

Where are you in this process of salvation? The Holy Spirit is in the process of helping you to come to Jesus Christ for salvation, to help you to grow in Him, and to be involved in ministry for Him. All of this is something that takes time. It doesn't happen overnight!  As we close this series of messages. My prayer is that we will allow the Holy Spirit to get us on our journey. That we will open up our hearts to the best that God has to offer us. That we will allow God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the precious Holy Spirit lead us through a process that indeed is the best path one can take in their life. GP

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The Process Of Salvation (Part 3)

A nurse on the pediatric ward had a practice that, before listening to the chest of a little one, she would plug the stethoscope into their ears and let them listen to their own hearts. Their eyes would always light up with awe, but she never got a response equal to that of a 4-year old named David. Gently she tucked the stethoscope into David's ears and placed the disk over his heart. "Listen," she said. "What do you suppose that is?" He drew his eyebrows together in a puzzled line and looked up as if lost in the mystery of the strange tap, tap, tapping deep in his chest. Then his face broke out in a wondrous grin and he asked, "Is that Jesus knocking?" From CyberSalt Digest

Yes, Jesus is knocking and wanting us to begin the salvation process.
The Apostle Paul in dealing with the Christians at Ephesus, answers these questions concerning The Process of Salvation. Why do we need to be saved? The 4 part picture of the unbeliever.
How Can We be saved? 2 things: The Grace Of God, And Our Faith.

Theme: Today:What are our specific responses of faith?
Let’s look at what the Christians at Ephesus did: We will look at the Letter that Paul wrote, and what happened at Ephesus on Paul’s 3rd Journey. By grace we are saved, through our faith (Ephesians 2:8-9)

As we reach out in faith and receive the gift of God's Son to save us, we respond in four ways.
1. By Hearing The Word Of Truth (Ephesians 1:13a)
2. By Believing The Word Of Truth (Ephesians 1:13b)
3. By Repenting Because Of The Word Of Truth (Ephesians 2:1-3)
4. By Being Baptised, Because Of The Word Of Truth (Acts 19:4-5)
5. By Being Faithful In The Christian Life, Because Of The Word Of Truth
(Acts 19:11-20)

There is one more Bible Lesson to be featured in this series:
"The Six Walks Of The Christian Life" (Part 4) 

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The Process Of Salvation (Part 2)

"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of good works, lest anyone should boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9)

I have been working on a series of Bible lessons entitled: "The Process Of Salvation" In the first lesson we looked at the question: "Why Do We Need To Be Saved?" The Apostle Paul answers this question by showing us a picture of the condition of an unsaved person.
It is a picture of death, disobedience, depravity, and doom.
In the second lesson we look at another question: "How can we be saved?"
In our text the Apostle Paul shares with us two things that are vital to our salvation.

1. "For By Grace You Have Been Saved" (Ephesians 2:8a)
There isn't a thing that we can do to obtain our salvation. It is a gift from God. We may think that our good deeds will accomplish it. But good deeds are not enough. Paul says, "Not of good works, lest anyone should boast"(v.9) No matter how involved we are in being good, and doing good, it will never be enough. We are all sinners (Romans 3:23) who have a sin debt, that needed to be paid. And that's what Jesus did on the cross of Calvary. He did, what we couldn't do. Jesus was the instrument of God's grace on our behalf.

The second thing that is vital to our salvation is..
2. "For By Grace You Have Been Saved, Through Faith."(Ephesians 2:8b)
The gift of God's Son as the sufficient sacrifice for our sin debt, is God's part in the process of salvation. To make it complete, we must reach out in faith, and accept the gift of God's Son, as our Savior. Trusting that His sacrifice is true, and sufficient, to cover our sins, and carry us all the way to our eternal home. The Apostle Paul said to the Christians at Philippi that we are to "Work out our own salvation with fear and trembling." (Philippians 2:12)
I look at faith as a response to the grace of God. And there are steps in our response to accepting God's gift to us. that we will look at in the next lesson.

The process of our salvation is a cooperative effort on both God's part, and ours. But how wonderful it is to know, that God's gift of His Son, is the demonstration of His extreme love for us. I ask, where would we be without it? GP

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The Process Of Salvation (Introduction)

The Process Of Salvation (Why Do We Need To Be Saved?) 

Introduction:
In Ephesians 2:1-10 The Apostle Paul presents to us The process of salvation. Warren Wiersbe in his book on Paul's letter to the Christians at Ephesus, entitled "Be Rich" shares a picture of the terrible condition of an unsaved person. There are four parts to this picture.

1. He/She Is Dead (Ephesians 2:1)
Spiritually dead. Unable to understand and appreciate spiritual things. He/she possesses no spiritual life, and he/she can do nothing of themselves to please God.

2. He/She Is Disobedient (Ephesians 2:2-3a)
As Adam and Eve were disobedient in the beginning. Man-kind as been disobedient since then. The three forces that encourage man-kind to be disobedient is:
the world, the devil, and the flesh.

3. He/She Is Depraved.(Ephesians 2:3b)
The unsaved person, only desires that which steals, and destroys. The lusts of the flesh, and of the mind will bring one to spiritual bankruptcy, and death. They may think that they can please others, and themselves, but they cannot please God. They by nature are children of wrath.

4.He/She Is Doomed (Ephesians 2:3c)
In this condition, there is no way that man-kind can save themselves. They need a Savior, to set them free, and set them on a course of spiritual rehabilitation.

And in verse 4 comes two of the most wonderful words:
"But God" who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)...Here is the answer to this terrible condition. The rescue of God's grace.

This is our introduction to God's process of salvation.
We see in this picture Paul shares, of why we need to be saved. I want us in the next few weeks to follow through with God's process of salvation. To see how He works to make us whole again, and sets us on a course of spiritual health, and spiritual hope. GP

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The Path Of Pride

"But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie
against the truth." (James 3:14)
In a world where selfishness abounds, it is not surprising that it creeps into the church.
I have seen churches that I have served, crippled by selfishness. The conduct we are to display as Christians, is to focus on our blessing others. Our personality, our speech, our actions are to be an encouragement and a help to others. The various gifts that the Holy Spirit bestows to us, are to be used (as The Apostle Paul said)" for the edifying of the body of Christ." (Ephesians 4:12) The focus is never to be totally on us, or our family. The objective is never to be, how can others enhance, or make me and my family look good in the sight of others. There should never be an attitude of envy, or striving to maintain a competitive spirit. There is a destructive path that Christians follow to often. There is pride, and boasting, and then deceit. The enemy can, and will carry us down this path of destruction. It destroys our relationships, our witness,  our effectiveness for ministry. Most of all it destroys our relationship with the Lord. A rich man once invited many honored guests for a feast. His own chair, richly decorated, was placed at one end of the long table. While he was away, each guest seated himself according to his own esteem of his position in sight of the master. When time came and all were seated, the master moved his chair to the other end of the table. It shouldn't matter where we are in the Kingdom of God. We should be glad that we are apart of something wonderful and productive. We should be glad that God can use us to be a blessing to others. We have God's love and care. For us, what more do we need? Let's not travel the path of pride. (GP)

Lessons From A Fruit Tree

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law." Galatians 5:22-23 
The longer I am a pastor, the more I see an increase in people having problems with people.
In families, in communities, organizations, at work, at school, and yes, at church, I see such conflict. When I look at the fruit of the Spirit, that Paul presents to us in Galatians 5:22-23, it is clear that these virtues are to be evident in our relationships. I believe that we are to allow the Holy Spirit to show us, through the Word of God, how we are to treat one another. If we are in submission to the leading of the Holy Spirit, we are not to treat people in a way that suits us, but we are to treat them the way the Holy Spirit instructs us, no matter how we feel about it. It is called "being obedient to the Word of God". We are to never operate by passion, but we are to operate by principle. There is a lot of selfishness going around these days. That is the enemy's greatest tool. To totally focus on our feelings, and our needs, and totally ignore the feelings and needs of others; is a path of destruction, as far as our relationships are concerned. And Satan is very happy, when we follow that path.
When I look at these nine fruit of the Spirit, I don't see selfishness there.
When I look at a fruit tree, I see a tree that is always giving. Providing fruit for food, providing leaves for a covering for the ground for winter, providing a place for birds to build there nests, so they can raise their families.
God promised that He would take care of us, and he does. The question is, will we establish and maintain that outward focus towards others, at all times. When the nails were piercing our Savior's hands and feet, there was love in His heart for us, who put Him there. Let's not carry with us a negative spirit towards those who have hurt us, or desire to hurt us, let's display the fruit of the Spirit, and see how effectively they will affect our relationships. GP

The Path To Freedom

*It was the summer of 1776. Delegates had come from thirteen colonies to make a momentous decision. Conditions were troubled in the new world. Something had to be done. They no longer wanted to be governed by England.(RBC) The result was the compilation of 'The Declaration Of Independence". A statement declaring their desire to be a free nation. And later a war was fought, and won, to accomplish this pursuit of freedom which we enjoy today. Freedom is a precious thing. And many people today think that they are free, when in reality they are hostages of Satan and their sin. Satan has their minds, their focus, their lifestyle, their lives and their souls. But there is good news to those who are in spiritual bondage today. In John 8:31-32, there is a path to freedom in the Lord Jesus Christ.
BELIEF LEADS TO DISCIPLESHIP (John 8:31)
DISCIPLESHIP LEADS TO TRUTH (John 8:32)
TRUTH LEADS TO FREEDOM (John 8:32)
*Once there was a kite that loved to fly high. Nothing made it happier than to be caught in a stiff breeze that would send it soaring upward, far above the grassy meadows below. It loved the feel of the wind and the faraway view. But gradually the kite became dissatisfied. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if it could fly even higher than its string allowed? It could think only of sailing so high that the houses became dots far below, and it brushed against the clouds. So it tugged and tugged on the string, hoping to break free. Then one day the string snapped! For a moment the kite was ecstatic as it leaped skyward. But then it began to tumble and spin out of control, and soon it crashed to the ground below. Unfortunately, we are sometimes like that kite. We want to go places and do things that are morally out of bounds. We tug against the lordship of Christ and the truth that we are to live for Him (2 Cor. 5:15). We tell ourselves that if only we could get free, we would be happy. But like that kite, we would crash. Jesus died and rose from the grave to give us true liberty—freedom to soar safely within the bounds of His law and the constraints of His love.
*David C.Egner The Radio Bible Class, RBC Ministries (C)
Are you really free today? In Jesus Christ, you can be! GP

Do Our Children Know Jesus?

In Matthew 19:13-15 it is evident that Jesus loved children, and wanted to interact with them. That's something that a lot of parents need to really work on these days. As Mother's Day" is just around the corner, I wanted to take this opportunity to encourage us as parents, to really work on our interaction with our children. We know that with families today, it is a balancing act. Trying to work around a lot of things, in order to find good, solid, quality family time. And if our goal as Christian parents, is to have our children have a life in Jesus Christ, than we must take time to interact with them.
Let's look at what Jesus did in regard to the children that were brought to Him, and apply this to our quality family time.
1. THERE WAS ENCOURAGEMENT (Matthew 19:14a)
"Let the little children come unto Me"
Jesus looked forward to this opportunity to express positive encouragement to these little people.
We encourage our children in many things: school work, sports, programs that develop ability, skill, accomplishment.
We spend a lot of money for our children to have the best education they can get, so they will be able to obtain a good job, a successful vocation.
But what about their spiritual lives? What about their spiritual future? Will they ever know the one who saved them from sin, and eternal destruction? Will they ever know the one who can help them with every aspect of their lives? They will if we as parents will take every opportunity, to communicate this to them.
2. THERE WAS AN EXAMPLE (Matthew 19:14b)
"and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."
Jesus wanted to show to the disciples,and to all that was watching, how important this time was. He was setting an example to the children of how important this time was.
Sometime in their lives down the road, when they would have children, they would remember how important this interaction was for them.
A storm wrecked a ship. The only survivor was a little boy who was swept by the waves onto a rock. There he sat all night long. In the morning he was seen and rescued. One of his rescuers asked him, "Didn't you tremble while you were on the rock during the night?" His answer: "I surely did tremble, but the rock did not!" I hope as parents that we would want Jesus (who is our rock and our salvation) to be a big part of our children's lives. How does that happen? It happens when we constantly share with them about our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and the difference He can make in their lives. (GP)

Living In The Hope Of The Resurrection

Six year old Judy complained, "Mother, I've got a stomachache!" "That's because your stomach is empty," her mother replied. "You would feel better if you had something in it." That afternoon, the minister came to visit, remarking in conversation that he was suffering with a headache. Little Judy perked up. "That's because it's empty, she said. "You'd feel better if you had something in it."
Well I have a message that definitely has something in it that will make us all feel better.
JESUS IS ALIVE! And because He is alive, we have a LIVING HOPE!
I read once of a little girl whose home was near a cemetery, and in order to go to the store, she had to follow a path that led through the cemetery. But this little girl never seemed to have any sense of fear, even when she returned through the cemetery at dusk. Someone asked her, "Aren't you afraid to go through the cemetery? "Oh no" she replied, "I'm not afraid, for my home is just beyond."
Are we afraid of the cemetery?
We shouldn't be, because our eternal home is just beyond this life.
Theme: Looking back on Jesus' resurrection, and looking forward to our own resurrection, we are to live (here and now) in the bright hope of the resurrection. (How?)
1. BY BELIEVING IN THE FACT OF THE RESURRECTION (1 Corinthians 15:1-3)
2. BY LIVING IN THE POWER OF THE RESURRECTION (Philippians 3:10)
3. BY REJOICING IN THE HOPE OF THE RESURRECTION (1 Peter 1:3)
All of this is contained in a strong relationship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Do you have that relationship today? You can! Read Acts 2:38, and follow through with what it says concerning one being saved, and having the hope of eternal life. Don't wait, do it today! GP

Going On A Journey, And Not Reading The Map.

"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
In his inaugural address, the President, mentioned that we are on a journey. A journey that will involve a lot of challenges to face. And the key to meeting those challenges, is that we as a nation, are to face them together. I agree with that message. But I also see us as a people, who are going on a journey, but refusing to read the map.
The map illustrates the Word of God.
The Apostle Paul told Timothy that the Word of God was profitable for:
Doctrine (What is right)
Reproof (What is not right)
Correction (How to get right)
Instruction in righteousness (How to stay right)
It is interesting to me, how we can mention God's name, but at the same time, refuse to accept and live out the principles He has placed before us, in His Word. The feeling is clear to me, that as a nation we do not want to be "Under God" any longer. But the farther we go in NOT being "Under God", the more sorrow and destruction we will find. Is this what we want as a nation?
God is more than just a mention of His name. He is our divine parent, who knows what is best for us. He knows the way that we should go.
I encourage  us, as citizens of this great nation. Let's not go on our journey, without reading the map of God's Word. Because if we do, we will not like the places, we will end up! GP