My Daily Pause

Category: Devotional

  • That is Not an Excuse – It is a Warning

    There is a verse in Romans 3 we all know:

    … for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God… – Romans 3:23

    But that is not even a complete sentence. We know it is telling us that all people have sinned, regardless of who we are. We can see that the Jews had it in their head that they were righteous enough just by being Jews. Paul shows us in Romans 3 that there is much more to it.

    If we are not careful we are going to drift away from God, just like the Jews did.

    It was predicted in the Psalms this would happen (as quoted by Paul in Romans 3:10-18.) In fact, they were so far gone they completely missed that the Messiah came and went.

    Since we are all the same in God’s eyes, we all share the same potential to drift away if we do not practice the righteousness of God. The danger is thinking we are okay, when in fact we have drifted away because our faith is not the obedient kind like Paul describes in Romans 1:5 and Romans 16:26.

    When Paul said we are all sinners, he was not giving us an excuse – he was giving us a warning. This was not permission to shrug and and say, “Oh well.”  Many are calling themselves Christians because they completed some steps, but they continued on in their worldly ways.

    It is time to stop making excuses.

  • This is why Atheists are Dishonest

    The Creator left his signature on everything - even us!
    The Creator left his signature on everything – even us!

    Why are those that claim to be atheist so vocal about it?

    They form societies.

    They enter debates.

    They even work overtime to prove it through their so-called “science.” (Which they have never been able to do, by the way.)

    If they do not believe in God, why do they care about those of us that do?

    Because they know the truth!

    It is dishonest to believe this world exists only because of some cosmic accident.

    Those that desire to prove God doesn’t exist are looking for anything at all to make it happen. They will never do it, though – all creation serves as the signature of the Creator!

    Look at what Paul wrote:

    For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. – Romans 1:19-20

    Paul shows us that ignoring the evidence of God’s existence is neither new or innovative.

    The writings of Plato, Xenophon, Cicero and others prove [1] that there is and always have been enough evidence and logic to conclude that we have a Creator. They might not have known the Gospel, but men have always had enough evidence to believe when it was brought to them.

    So like Paul said, the world has no excuse.

    Get on the defense

    The danger in all of this for us is that we might unwittingly choose to fall into the trap of doubt. Through repetition, arrogance and peer pressure, the actively atheist community will continue to chip away at the general belief in God. We unwittingly contribute to their effort when we are slow to defend Him.

    I recently saw a clip of Bono, the lead singer of U2, answer an interviewer’s questions about his belief in God and Jesus as our risen savior. While he is wrong on some doctrinal matters in that interview, I was thoroughly impressed with his boldness. He just came right out and looked into the man’s eyes and said “yes I believe Jesus rose from the dead. I believe in his miracles.”

    We need to be bold like that.

    We might not ever be as influential as Bono, but I’m sure we all have a few people we can influence through that same kind of boldness.

    1. James Macknight, Apostolical Epistles (Nashville: Gospel Advocate Company, 1960), p. 56.
  • You Have It Too

    You Have It Too

    Ants are small, but get their work done.
    Ants are small, but get their work done.

     There are four things on earth that are small,
    but they are very wise:

    Ants are not very strong,
    but they store up food in the summer.

    Rock badgers are not very powerful,
    but they can live among the rocks.

    Locusts have no king,
    but they all go forward in formation.

    Lizards can be caught in the hand,
    but they are found even in kings’ palaces. – Proverbs 30:24-28 NCV

    You Have It – The Ability to do Great Things

    The Proverb writer listed some very small creatures endowed by their creator with great strength and  instinctive wisdom.

    These creatures are not pretty. They are not specimens of strength, but look at what they do have:

    • Wisdom of planning and follow through
    • Proper conduct and discipline
    • Industry and stamina to get the work done
    • Application of their resources to survival.

    If God gave all of these creatures the building blocks to do great things, why wouldn’t he have done it for us?

    Further, he gave mankind something he did not give the creatures:

    His Word!

    Think about what mankind could accomplish by using what God reveals to us about life and success and survival.

    Think about the power of hope he has given us.

    We often trust too much in ourselves rather than investigate the plan and design that God has laid out. Many of us even choose not to act on God’s plan when we know about it! Sadly, many even choose to work against the plans God gave us.

    Success can be defined in many ways, but in the end, it will not be defined without God’s involvement.

    What are you doing to insure you’re in sync with God’s plan? ( 2 Timothy 2:15)

  • What is Right?

    What is Right?

    Some people think they are doing right,
    but in the end it leads to death. – Proverbs 16:25 NCV

    When Tinkerbell tells Pinocchio to “let your conscience be your guide”, the world thought they had the answer to life. While the conscience is a pretty good tool for staying out of trouble, we must train it to do so. An untrained conscience is pretty useless to a Christian.

    Here is some food for thought on the subject of what I call the “Jiminy Cricket” philosophy:

    • The majority of people living in sin are not acting against their conscience – A lot don’t know right from wrong. Many don’t care. Either way, they are sinning under a good conscience!
    • Incorrect worship is sinful yet it makes people feel good – God authorized certain acts in worship. There are plenty of new additions that “feel spiritual” but have no place in proper worship.
    • A philanthropist that never obeys the gospel will be passed over at the judgment – There are some very kind and generous people that will die with a clear conscience. They are still subject to God’s word.

    Are you making sure you know what is “right”?

  • Cover Ups

     

    Hiding from God didn't work for Adam and it doesn't work for us.
    Hiding from God didn’t work for Adam and it doesn’t work for us.

    How much time needs to pass before an unforgiven sin no longer counts against us? Is that even possible? The Proverbs writer answers for us:

    If you hide your sins, you will not succeed.
    If you confess and reject them, you will receive mercy – Proverbs 28:13 NCV

    Sins can’t be hidden and they don’t expire when we just ignore them. What are the ways we hide and “forget” our sins?

    • We deny them
    • We extenuate them
    • We diminish them
    • We dissemble them
    • We blame others for them

    Sometimes we get good enough to quit thinking about them at all. Look at what David wrote when he was hiding from a sin:

    For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah. – Psalms 32:3-4

    People by nature “groan” when they are in the wrong – when they need to be forgiven. This is for our own good!

    because …

    …people are by nature sinful.

    God hears the repentant Christian’s call for forgiveness. (1 John 1:9) He wants us to lean on him, not hide from him. However, hiding our sin leaves us in a dangerous state (1 John 1:10)

  • Struggling to Get in the Trap

    Freedom doesn't always look like we thought it would.
    Freedom doesn’t always look like we thought it would.

    The world thinks that living outside of God’s boundaries provides some sort of freedom.

    The Proverb writer did not think so:

    Evil people are trapped by their own sin,
    but good people can sing and be happy. – Proverbs 29:6 NCV

    By looking at other versions we can see they used different words to try to get the point across:

    • snare
    • ensnared
    • caught
    • etc.

    In the Greek, the literal word is a noose or a nose hook. Sin does not give us freedom – it places us in a noose!

    Look at the things a careless lifestyle causes:

    • bad reputations
    • addictions
    • health issues
    • relationship problems

    The list could keep going, but isn’t that enough?

    Godly and faithful people have much cause for celebration. They have hope. (Hebrews 11:1) Those who will not or cannot turn from their sinful ways do not know hope. They also do not know the peace Paul describes in Philippians 4:4-8.

    Choose to stay with God’s freedom.

    Choose hope.