A Daily Devotional

[Soldier4Christ]

The Ape Cargo

"For the king's ships went to Tarshish with the servants of Huram: every three years once came the ships of Tarshish bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks." (2 Chronicles 9:21)

This is a fascinating verse intended to help the reader sense something of the almost incredible wealth of King Solomon. Among other indications of his riches, he had been able to develop an Israelite navy that could sail to distant lands, returning with exotic and valuable cargoes. One wonders whether some of the items of gold and silver and ivory, and perhaps even the peacocks, would be diverted to please his 700 wives and 1,000 concubines.

But what about the apes? This is the only reference in the Bible to apes (except for a parallel passage in 1 Kings 10:22), and scholars are uncertain whether the "apes" were true apes, or perhaps monkeys or baboons. But why would Solomon go to such expense to import apes instead of more useful animals (he had a great number of fine horses, for example)? Did he maintain a zoo? He imported ivory, so why not elephants?

Could it possibly be that the king, or some of his scholars, were interested in studying possible ape-human relationships? We don't have any evidence of such investigations or speculations, of course, but the Bible does indicate the wide-ranging extent of Solomon's scientific and religious interests. He studied, perhaps wrote, and "spake also of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes" (1 Kings 4:33). And with so many wives and concubines practicing numerous pantheistic religions, he must have heard of such evolutionary beliefs in other lands.

In any case, among his last words were the following: "Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth . . ." (Ecclesiastes 12:1).

[Soldier4Christ]

Thou Art the God

"And Hezekiah prayed before the LORD, and said, O LORD God of Israel, which dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth." (2 Kings 19:15)

Good King Hezekiah was in what seemed a hopeless situation. The mighty armies of the Assyrian empire had been sweeping through the surrounding countries in an orgy of destruction and plunder, and now were at the gates of Jerusalem, demanding its surrender. Grossly outnumbered, the choice seemed either to capitulate or die!

But there was one other choice--Hezekiah could pray! The blasphemous Rabshakeh gloated that none of the gods of the other nations had been able to save them from the Assyrians . . . but that was beside the point. These other gods were mere personifications of natural processes, possibly energized by evil spirits, but all of these had been created in the first place by Hezekiah's God. "For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens" (Psalm 96:5). And that was true of Assyria's gods as well. All ancient pagan religions were evolutionary religions, rejecting the concept of true creation and a true Creator God.

Hezekiah knew the true God who had made heaven and earth, and he could pray in reliance on His word. God could dispatch and empower just one of His mighty angels in answer to Hezekiah's believing prayer, and thus destroy the great Assyrian host in a single night! "And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the LORD went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: . . . So Sennacherib king of Assyria, departed . . ." (2 Kings 19:35-36).

This God--maker of heaven and earth--is still on His throne, and can still hear and answer the prayers of those who call on His name.

[Soldier4Christ]

The Triune Comforter

"Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God." (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

One of the titles of the Holy Spirit, especially as used in the King James Version, is His beautiful identification as "the Comforter." The Greek word is parakletos, meaning literally, "one who is called along side to help." A familiar verse is John 14:26: "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, He shall teach you all things. . . ." He is our teacher, our guide, our helper, our Comforter.

The same word is also translated "advocate," meaning an attorney for the defense. In this capacity, it is applied to the Lord Jesus Christ. "And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous" (1 John 2:1). Though we are guilty and lost sinners, He takes our side before the Judge, pleading the sacrificial offering of His own blood for our sins, and we are saved (1 John 2:2).

Even the Father is our "paraclete," according to the verses cited above. He is "the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort" (Greek, paraklesis), and as we pray to our heavenly Father, He indeed does provide great consolation in every hour of trouble and sorrow.

Thus, each person of the Godhead--Father, Son, and Holy Spirit--serves as Comforter ("paraclete") to the believer, as needed, who also has access to the "comfort of the scriptures" (Romans 15:4). But there is still another "comforter." Each believer receives such comfort so that we ourselves "may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God."

[Soldier4Christ]

Pride Goes Before Destruction

"Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall." (Proverbs 16:18)

This is the middle verse of the entire book of Proverbs, and, in view of the obviously structured original verse divisions throughout the book, it may well have been divinely designed as such. In any case, the sin of pride is so deadly, it is appropriate that a solemn warning concerning it should be placed here right at the heart of God's book of true wisdom.

The sin of pride was the primeval sin of Satan: "Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness" (Ezekiel 28:17). It was the sin by which Satan led Adam and Eve to fall. "Ye shall be as gods" (Genesis 3:5), he had said. It is always the "easily besetting" sin of Christian leaders, especially those who have assumed such leadership prematurely. "Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil" (1 Timothy 3:6). Even Jesus was 30 years old before He began to teach.

Though pride is not named as such in the Ten Commandments, in reality it is implied in the very first one. "Thou shalt have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:3). The essence of all false religion is evolutionary humanism--worshipping and serving the creature more than the Creator (Romans 1:25). Pride and unbelief are two sides of the same coin. When men and women refuse the word of their Creator, it is fundamentally because they want to be their own "gods," as did Adam and Eve. Human pride is the hidden root of humanism, and of evolutionism, and of "every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God" (2 Corinthians 10:5). It is the very essence of the sin nature which we have inherited from our first parents. How carefully we need to guard against this secret sin of pride. If we do not, it will inevitably lead to humiliation and defeat.

[Soldier4Christ]

A Lesson from the Stork

"Yea, the stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed times; and the turtle and the crane and the swallow observe the time of their coming; but my people know not the judgment of the Lord." (Jeremiah 8:7)

The migratory behavior of birds is fascinating. If it only occurred once, we would call it a miracle. Yet we see bird migrations twice a year, so we are desensitized to the Creator-designed magnificence of these journeys.

Geographically, Israel sits center-stage among the great continents of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Many birds migrate from European and Asian winters to Africa, with the migrations reversed prior to summer. Yet, which bird is famous for its early return home? The stork! So faithful is the stork that its very name (Hebrew chasidah) means "faithful one!"

Jeremiah lamented the ignorance and unfaithfulness of God's people, and during his lifetime, Israel was called to exhibit faithfulness to God. Except for a faithful remnant, Israel refused to repent, bringing the prophecy of judgment. Sadly, most of Israel stayed in the path of oncoming judgment, neglecting their opportunity to escape the just consequences of their sin. God chastised Israel's unfaithful and ignorant behavior, contrasting their failure to "return" to Him with the wisdom and faithfulness of the returning migratory birds.

God's people need to learn a lesson from the early-to-return-home stork, for our true and safe home is none other than God Himself. When we drift away from Him, distracted by the world (or ourselves), let us be quick to recognize that it is time to admit our wrong (1 John 1:9) and return to Him, our true refuge.

[Soldier4Christ]

God's Standards

"Thus saith the LORD, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the LORD." (Jeremiah 9:23-24)

It is remarkable how different are our human standards of value from those of God. But what should be the criteria by which men recognize hearts of lovingkindness, attitudes of justice, and characters of righteousness? These are the attributes of our Creator and Savior, and it is our achievements in these areas that determine our real standing, in the scales of eternity, before Him. Human wisdom, might, and riches easily generate pride, and pride is "the condemnation of the devil" (1 Timothy 3:6).

Thus the Scripture has to remind us "that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: . . . That no flesh should glory in his presence" (1 Corinthians 1:26, 29). We should, indeed, desire wisdom, might, and riches, but not as measured by the world. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Proverbs 9:10). "As poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things" (2 Corinthians 6:10). "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness" (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Let lovingkindness become the standard of true wisdom; justice, the measure of real power; and righteousness, our criterion of riches. All are found fully only in Jesus Christ.

If we must "glory" in something, let it be the cross. "But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world" (Galatians 6:14).

[Soldier4Christ]

In Him Is No Darkness

"This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all." (1 John 1:5)

Light is the most fundamental and important form of energy, and energy includes every phenomenon in the physical universe. It is appropriate for John to affirm that God is light, because everything created must reflect the character of its Creator. The term "light," therefore, has come to be applied not only to light in the physical sense, but also to that which is true in the intellectual realm, and holy in the moral realm as well.

In terms of truth and genuine knowledge, "the entrance of thy words giveth light" (Psalm 119:130). "In thy light shall we see light" (Psalm 36:9). Without God's truth, there is only darkness. "The god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them" (2 Corinthians 4:4). The Bible also speaks of light as moral holiness. "For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light. . . . And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them" (Ephesians 5:8, 11).

There are still other analogies: "In him was life; and the life was the light of men" (John 1:4). Not only is light symbolic of life itself, but it also depicts God's daily guidance for our lives. "I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life" (John 8:12). Since there is no darkness in God, "if we walk in the light as he is in the light" (1 John 1:7), there remains no excuse for any darkness in our lives. "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6).

[Soldier4Christ]

I Will Guide Thee with Mine Eye

"I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye." (Psalm 32:8 )

The "instruction" of which this verse speaks is so important, the Hebrew word is incorporated in its very title. Psalm 32 is the first of the 14 psalms which are headed by the title Maschil ("Instruction"). These 14 psalms occur in the following symmetrical pattern: one of them in Book 1 of the psalms; four each in Books 2, 3, and 4; and one in Book 5.

This psalm (32) contains David's personal testimony of intense soul-searing conviction following his awful sin in the matter of Bathsheba, with whom he had committed adultery, and her husband (Uriah), whom he had arranged to have slain in battle so that he could have Bathsheba for his own wife. His bones had "waxed old" (literally "wasted away") and God's "hand was heavy upon me" (vv. 3-4), until finally "I acknowledged my sin unto thee," and "thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin" (v. 5). Once a sinning saint has come to God in confession and true repentance, there is indeed real forgiveness and cleansing, and the happiness of salvation is restored. Thus David could begin his psalm with "Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven!" The word "blessed" means "happy," and this 32nd psalm is only the second one in the psalms to begin with "blessed" (the first was Psalm 1). The one and only way to relieve guilt and depression is by confession of sin, genuine repentance, and then by restitution to anyone injured by the sin, if possible.

This, indeed, is sound instruction! God desires his children not to be "as the horse, or as the mule," (that have to be guided forcibly (v. 9), but to be so in tune with His word and His will that He can guide them gently and quietly, like a mother who directs an obedient and loving child merely by the look in her eye (the word "teach" actually means "direct"). The happy life is one of obedience to the guiding eye of the Lord.

[Soldier4Christ]

David's Great Grandmother


"And the women her neighbours gave it a name, saying, There is a son born to Naomi; and they called his name Obed: he is the father of Jesse, the father of David." (Ruth 4:17)

No one knows for certain who the human author of the fascinating Book of Ruth may have been, but it must at least have been written by a contemporary of David, able to carry the genealogy of Ruth's descendants down to her great-grandson, David. Quite possibly the story was told directly to David himself by his great-grandmother.

In any case, when David later became king, he must surely have been intrigued by the providential circumstances that had led to his anointing. He would have read Genesis 49:8-12 in which Israel had said that a member of the tribe of Judah would be the ruler of the children of Israel some day. He must also have marveled at the wonderful grace of God that brought Ruth, a Moabitess, into his ancestry, despite the proscription in Deuteronomy 23:3 stipulating that Moabites should not be brought into the congregation of the Lord. He undoubtedly noted also that Nahshon, who was the grandfather of Ruth's husband, Boaz, had been the chief captain of the tribe of Judah when Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt (Numbers 1:4-5, 7), but that he had apparently failed in that role and perished in the wilderness, with his fellow tribesman Caleb alone being permitted to enter the Promised Land (Numbers 14:22-24). Yet Nahshon, rather than Caleb, became David's ancestor.

David, like Ruth and like Nahshon, and like everyone of us, has been brought into the great family of the King, not because of our own merits, but by His marvelous grace! We have been born again "not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:13). "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us" (Titus 3:5).

[Soldier4Christ]

Lift Up Your Eyes

"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; not one faileth." (Isaiah 40:26)

Our text makes three majestic statements about the cosmos, each reflecting true scientific insight, as well as the work of each person of the divine Trinity. The omnipresent Father has "brought out" an infinite "host" of organized systems in the cosmos--galaxies, stars, planets, animals, and people. All are capable of description mathematically, "by number," and thus all bear witness to their great Designer. Chance processes never generate organization or complexity, so that special creation by God is the only legitimate explanation for the "numbered" host of heaven.

The Son is the omniscient Word of information, description, and meaning. Every system in the cosmos is not only numbered, but named! That is, in the mind of its Creator, it has a function and has been coded to fulfill its purpose. The Second Law states that systems never code themselves, but rather always tend to distort the information originally programmed into them. Only an omniscient Creator could thus implement the divine purpose for every created entity.

Finally, the Holy Spirit is the omnipotent Energizer who activates and empowers every system. The Second Law says that energy becomes less available as time goes on, so that only the Creator could provide the energy to activate the designed, programmed cosmos in the beginning.

When we finally look up and really "behold who hath created these things," we must see God the Creator--Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

[Soldier4Christ]

The Gospel and Health

"And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people." (Matthew 4:23)

This is the first mention of "the gospel" in the New Testament, and it is significant that Christ was emphasizing, first of all, the long-range future aspect of the gospel, the Kingdom. In that great day, all manner of sickness and even death itself will be eternally healed, when the earth's age-long curse, pronounced originally because of man's sin (Genesis 3:17), is finally removed (Revelation 22:3). As a token of this future deliverance, He demonstrated His power by supernaturally healing great numbers of needy people.

The next verse elaborates further on the ubiquity of His healing ministry--"all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatick, and those that had the palsy" (Matthew 4:24). No one was omitted. It was not a matter of only those who had faith, or those with psychosomatic ailments, or any other distinction. Everyone was healed of every infirmity of every kind!

Nothing was too hard for the Lord to cure--not even psychiatric disorders or demon possession. However, it was not that way later on in His ministry (e.g., Mark 6:5) nor in that of the apostle Paul (e.g., 2 Timothy 4:20) or the other apostles (e.g., Matthew 17:14-16). Evidently the tremendous scope of this initial healing ministry of the Lord was intended to serve as a type and promise of what will occur worldwide and eternally when His kingdom comes, and His will is done on earth as it is in heaven. In the meantime, this record serves to assure us all that He who came preaching the gospel of the kingdom should indeed be received by faith right now, as the great King of all creation!

[Soldier4Christ]

Negatives to the Unsaved

"Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven." (Luke 10:20)

How good it is to experience victories in spiritual warfare, to see God's values triumph, and to see an ungodly scheme thwarted! We especially rejoice if we somehow participated in the process.

The prophet Elijah saw "big" victories over the forces of evil: the defeat of hundreds of Baal's prophets, the bold confrontation of wicked Ahab and Jezebel (1 Kings 18). Elisha did likewise in the stunning and overcoming of Syria's army (2 Kings 6:8-23). Yet many of Elisha's victories would be ranked "little" by modern newspaper journalists, like rescuing an ax (2 Kings 6:1-7), curing a pot of stew (2 Kings 4:38-41), and helping a poor widow's cashflow crisis (2 Kings 4:1-7). God works out spiritual victories in "big" crises, but He also works in seemingly "little" problems.

God even cares about the artistic details of each snowflake, the inner structure and workings of each humble pine needle, and the edible seeds needed by desert-dwelling songbirds. Much more so, He cares for our "big" and "little" needs and problems (Luke 12:22-31). Yet our most basic need was to be created in the first place, and our greatest problem was (and is) our sin. Both of these are solved in Christ! He is our Creator (John 1:3) and He is our Redeemer (John 3:14-16). To be "in Christ" is always our main cause for rejoicing; its victory hangs on the Lord Jesus alone, not on changing circumstances or the outcome of our latest earthly skirmish. Put today's problems in perspective. Rejoice when a victory is won; thank God with promptness. However, prioritize appreciation for Christ creating us, and for His greatest victory for us, saving our souls forever (1 Corinthians 15:57).

[Soldier4Christ]

The Grace of God in Creation

". . . he left not himself without witness, in that he did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness." (Acts 14:17)

There is abundant evidence of the mighty power and wisdom of God in the vast cosmos and the tremendously complex world. "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 1:20).

But in addition to such evidence of His wisdom and power, there is also wonderful evidence of the grace of God in nature. Although "the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now" (Romans 8:22), laboring under the awful curse on the ground imposed by God when Adam sinned (Genesis 3:17), it has been so subjected "in hope," with God's promise of ultimate deliverance from the "bondage of corruption," and "we are saved by hope" (Romans 8:20-21, 24).

This goodness of God is evidenced in the daily victory of light over darkness, the annual return of spring after winter, and the oft-repeated triumph of life over death. Although individuals die, new souls are born; and always, there is hope. Man must eat his bread in the sweat of his face as he labors to wrest a living from the cursed ground, but God does send the rain and the fruitful seasons, and the food is grown. Though he must eat of it in sorrow all the days of his life, somehow God nevertheless fills his heart with food and gladness. And all of the labor and sweat and sorrow is "for thy sake" (Genesis 3:17), urging man to return to God for both his daily bread and his eternal salvation. How foolish is the man who receives all these gifts of God's grace without acknowledging their source. "Despisest thou the riches of his goodness . . . not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?" (Romans 2:4).

[Soldier4Christ]

John's Creator/Savior

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made." (John 1:1-3)

It is remarkable how many names and titles are associated with Jesus Christ (meaning "anointed Savior") in the first chapter of John's gospel. In verse 9, He is called "the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world." He is "the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth" in verse 14, and "the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father" in verse 18. John the Baptist called Him "the Lord" in verse 23, "the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" in verse 29, and "the Son of God" in verse 34. The disciples then called Him "Master" in verse 38 and "Messias" in verse 41, as well as "Jesus of Nazareth" in verse 45. Nathanael acknowledged Him as "King of Israel" in verse 49, and Jesus called Himself "the Son of man" in verse 51.

But the very first title ascribed to Him by John, as he introduced his gospel, was simply "the Word" (v. 1), from a word hard to translate in its fullness. In the New Testament, it is rendered by "word," "reason," "communication," "doctrine," speech," and many others. With reference to Christ, it tells us that He is always the One who reveals, speaks for, manifests, explains, and incarnates the Heavenly Father.

John 1:1 even takes us back before Genesis 1:1, where we learn that the pre-incarnate Christ created all things (note Colossians 1:16). "In the beginning" He was, before He created! And all things were made by Him. "By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth" (Psalm 33:6).

As the eternal, omnipotent Word of God, the pre-incarnate Christ spoke all things into being. Jesus Christ is the Word; and the Word is God!

[Soldier4Christ]

Fellowlaborers

"|My| fellowlabourers, whose names are in the book of life." (Philippians 4:3)

This is the day our country has set aside to honor labor. The so-called "Protestant ethic" has long been a strength of our culture, since honest and diligent work is a clear principle in the Scriptures upon which the "new world" was founded.

The New Testament, however, encourages and exhorts Christians to concentrate on Kingdom labor, using "gold, silver, precious stones" (1 Corinthians 3:12) that will build "treasures in heaven" (Matthew 6:20), insuring that our works will follow us into eternity (Revelation 14:13).

The foundational term is "fellowservants," composed of the Greek preposition sun and the word doulos. The simplest meaning of the word is "one who serves the same master." Epaphras and Tychicus (Colossians 1:7 and 4:7) were "dear" and "faithful" fellowservants with Paul.

The martyrs resting under the altar in heaven were told to wait until their fellowservants and their brethren would join them (Revelation 6:11). Those who love the Lord Jesus are fellowlaborers serving the same Master.

Once, the term "fellowdisciples" is cited (John 11:16) to show the bond that had grown between those who were learning the same things.

Thirteen times the Greek word sunergos is selected by the Holy Spirit in the New Testament to identify work done for the same purpose--fellowlaborer, helper, worker. Here the emphasis is on names--a list of 16 specific people who labored with Paul in the ministry.

Would God that our names be so recognized "that we might be fellowhelpers to the truth" (3 John .