A Daily Devotional

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Vain Repetitions

“But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking” (Matthew 6:7).

This command of Christ is an important part of the instructions on prayer in His sermon on the mount (Matthew 6:5–13). These instructions end with what is commonly known as the “Lord’s Prayer.” This prayer was not intended for ritualistic repetition, of course, for Christ clearly told His disciples to pray “after this manner” (v.9), not just to repeat the words. It is ironic, however, that it soon did become a rote prayer of vain repetitions, mechanically uttered.

It is characteristic of most religions that their prayers consist mainly of incantations and recitations of ancient formulas and phrases. In the current New Age movement, eastern mysticism and pagan pantheism have permeated western civilization and so-called Christendom to an alarming degree, with their mantras and other repetitive prayers.

The “Lord’s Prayer” indicates, on the other hand, that our prayers should focus on the will of God and then on our personal needs. We are also exhorted by Paul to “in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God” (Philippians 4:6). There are so many prayer needs that we surely ought not to waste time on vain repetitions in our prayers.

Perhaps this principle should also be applied to our musical prayers. In recent years, some Christian services have been displacing the great hymns that have blessed many generations of wise and godly Christians with short worship sentiments repeated over and over again, possibly hoping that “they shall be heard for their much (singing).” Whether in prayer or meditation, in singing or in speaking, let us be sure that our offerings to God are substantive and sincere, not mere vain repetitions.

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Faithful Sayings

“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief” (I Timothy 1:15).

The adjective “faithful” is usually applied either to God or to those godly men and women who remain true to their words and convictions. However, there are eight New Testament references to words (or “sayings”) that are faithful.

Six of the references to sayings that are faithful are found in Paul’s pastoral epistles, as he gave counsel to young pastors Timothy and Titus, the first being our text for the day. Here are Paul’s faithful sayings: (1) “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners;” (2) “If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work” (I Timothy 3:1); (3) “Bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things” (I Timothy 4:; (4) “If we be dead with Him, we shall also live with Him: if we suffer, we shall also reign with Him: if we deny Him, He also will deny us” (II Timothy 2:11,12); (5) “They which have believed in God (should) be careful to maintain good works” (Titus 3:. The sixth reference is a command that any “bishop” must continue “holding fast the faithful word (same as ‘saying’) as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers” (Titus 1:9).

The final two references are in the Bible’s last two chapters, stressing that the words of Revelation are indeed true and believable. After stating His glorious promises for the future life, Christ told John: “Write: for these words (i.e., ‘sayings’) are true and faithful” (Revelation 21:5). Then, after the magnificent description of the Holy City, the angel said: “These sayings are faithful and true” (Revelation 22:6).

All the Bible’s sayings are true, of course, but these that are specifically called “faithful” surely warrant our special attention.

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Teachers And Soldiers

“And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will” (II Timothy 2:26).

We are in a great battle for the minds of young people today. The battle field may be the classroom, or the home, or the church, or the family television, or any place else where teaching—good or bad—takes place.

It is significant that one of the greatest verses on teaching, and one of the greatest on soldiering, occur together. “And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ” (II Timothy 2:2,3). Thus it seems clear that a faithful teacher is a good soldier, in the battle of Jesus Christ against the devil, for the minds of those we are trying to teach.

The battle is not to be fought with bullets, however, or even with ballots, but with “the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God” (Ephesians 6:17). Furthermore, our battlefield strategy is not to strike down our enemy with a sharpened tongue or to bludgeon him with a superior intellect. “Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man” (Colossians 4:6). Our text for the day gives us reason to continue, for it promises that those whose minds have been ensnared by the devil may yet be recovered. The words just preceding this verse describe our tactics: “The servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth” (II Timothy 2:24,25). Not even Satan can stand before the mighty sword of the Spirit, wielded by an apt soldier-teacher.

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A Better And An Enduring Substance

“For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise” (Hebrews 10:36).

As Christians, we have certain heavenly possessions, and this knowledge helps us put our earthly possessions and welfare in proper perspective. Evidently, some to whom this was written had been imprisoned, and others impoverished for their faith. “For ye . . . took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance” (v.34). Peter called it “an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you” (I Peter 1:4).

These possessions are attainable; they are not in question; they are ours, given to us by one whose name is “Truth” (John 14:6), and whose word is trustworthy. We “know” (v.34) this beyond all doubt.

Furthermore, these possessions are valuable. We must “cast not away therefore (our) confidence, which hath great recompence of reward” (v.35). With this assurance, we are able to bear up under any suffering or persecution which comes our way (see also Romans 8:18).

Knowledge of these possessions is prescriptive, for it helps us cope with longstanding troubles. As our text tells us, we “have need of patience” to get through them, and do “the will of God.” “Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh” (James 5:7,8).

Lastly, realization of these possessions is imminent. “For yet a little while, and He that shall come will come, and will not tarry” (v.37). “He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (Revelation 22:20).

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Salvation In The Spirit

“Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” (John 3:5).

Nicodemus was confused that night when Jesus first spoke of the necessity of the new birth, and then equated it with the symbology of baptism. Christ then indicated that the reality in both was the supernatural work of God, the Holy Spirit. “Except a man be born of water—that is, the Spirit (better translation)—he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.”

The miracle of regeneration is thus a work of the Spirit, and, just as “the wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit” (John 3:. It is not some soul-winning methodology, but the Holy Spirit who does the work, and He (like the invisible wind) may work in a great variety of different ways.

This work of the Holy Spirit in bringing salvation to the unsaved is so great and so complex that it must be described in a variety of figures to convey the whole reality. In the first place, He must bring conviction of sin and the need of salvation. “When He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment” (John 16:.

Then, as the sinner repents and believes on Christ, the Spirit baptizes him into Christ. “For by one Spirit are (literally ‘were’) we all baptized into one body” (I Corinthians 12:13). As a member of Christ’s body, he thus is made a partaker of His resurrection life. Simultaneously, “after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise” (Ephesians 1:13), and “the Spirit of God dwelleth in you” (I Corinthians 3:16). And all of this becomes the mighty miracle of spiritual birth. “According to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost” (Titus 3:5).

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A Mighty Man

“And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour” (Judges 6:12).

Gideon was not a very promising leader, to all outward appearances. He was of the undistinguished and divided tribe of Manasseh, and “My family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house” (Judges 6:15).

But that’s exactly the kind of man God knows He can use, for “God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty” (I Corinthians 1:27). God, therefore, greeted him thus: “The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour” (Judges 6:12).

As a matter of fact, there were other qualities in Gideon which must have commended him to God. He was already busy threshing “wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites” (Judges 6:11). He was not sitting idly, but was already doing what he could for his people. Furthermore, even though he lived in a time of great apostasy, when even his own father kept an altar for the god, Baal, he still worshipped the true God, and was greatly exercised that “the LORD hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites” (Judges 6:13). He was burdened for His people, but all he had been able to do was to try to feed them, hiding his wheat from the invaders. Before the Lord could use him further, however, he had to destroy the family idol and offer his own sacrifice to the true God, even though he knew his family and neighbors might try to kill him (Judges 6:25–32). God, then, did indeed “save Israel from the hand of the Midianites” through Gideon (Judges 6:14).

If we would be mighty for God, like Gideon, we must begin like him: poor yet faithful, burdened for the Lord’s truth, and doing what we can—putting away every idol of the mind, and acknowledging our Savior’s sacrifice for us.

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The Golden Rule


“Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets” (Matthew 7:12).

This command of Christ is the famous so-called “Golden Rule” of conduct. As He said, it succinctly summarizes and crystallizes all the instructions given in the Old Testament Scriptures dealing with human interrelationships. In fact, somewhat similar guidelines can be found even in certain ancient extra-Biblical writings.

It should be stressed, however, that this maxim is not meant to be a prerequisite for salvation. No mere human being ever obeys this rule perfectly, any more than one can keep perfectly the Ten Commandments.

It was included by Christ as a part of what is known as “the Sermon on the Mount,” which the Bible clearly states was a series of instructions given only to believers—that is, to people already saved through personal faith in Christ. At the very beginning of this “sermon,” it says clearly that, “seeing the multitudes, He went up into a mountain: and when He was set, His disciples came unto Him: And He opened His mouth, and taught them, saying” (Matthew 5:1,2).

Thus the “Golden Rule” is only for Christian believers. It is a standard by which we should seek to order our personal lives, not to be saved, but because we are saved. “Be ye therefore perfect,” said the Lord, “even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). Not one of us—except Christ Himself, in His humanity—has ever perfectly kept the Golden Rule or been sinlessly perfect (note I John 1:8,10). Nevertheless, our standard can be nothing less. “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect,” said the apostle Paul: “but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:12). And so should we.

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Our Place In Heaven

“In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you” (John 14:2).

This expression, “a place for you,” is an exciting and substantial promise made by our Lord Jesus which is often overlooked by Christians. The Greek word for “place” (topos) carries with it the idea of location, like a contour map where one can find himself in three-dimensional space. In the context of the passage, Christ teaches that as surely as we can find our way to our own house, our heavenly home is equally real and accessible through trust in Him as Savior. “No man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). What a deep comfort for every believer, if he or she would only view heaven as a concrete reality, like salvation itself.

This Greek word for “place” means not only a spot or location, but also was used in Jesus’ day to mean “an opportunity.” Think of it! The Creator God is actively preparing an eternal opportunity designed for each believer. This will be an opportunity of service in a real job: “and His servants shall serve Him” (Revelation 22:3).

Just as God created the earth and the Garden of Eden as Adam and Eve’s “place” (Genesis 2:8,9), so He is preparing an eternal “place” for every Christian: “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: . . . and I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” (Revelation 21:1,2).

Always, when the eternal abode of the saints is mentioned in the Bible, it is in terms of words showing three-dimensional reality, not the cloudy analogies which many use to depict heaven. It is a real place—ours for eternity.

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Adam’s Rib


“And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the L SIZE="-1">ORD God had taken from man, made He a woman, and brought her unto the man” (Genesis 2:21,22).

This amazing record of how the first woman came into being has been the object of much ridicule, but it is completely and literally true. However, the “rib” which God used was most likely not a rib at all. Rather, the Hebrew word in most of its occurrences is translated either “side” or “side chamber.” This would probably be a better translation here, as well.

It may be that Eve’s body was formed by God from Adam’s side, or from something within the “chamber” of his side. Any such “surgery” must at least have involved the shedding of blood. Since “the life of the flesh is in the blood” (Leviticus 17:11), and since the circulating blood in one’s body cleanses and renews both flesh and bones, such a primeval blood transfusion from Adam’s body would be uniquely appropriate to bring life to Eve’s body.

Adam’s “deep sleep” thus becomes a prophetic foreshadowing of the deep sleep of death into which one day “the last Adam” (I Corinthians 15:45) would enter, when a spear “pierced His side, and forthwith came there out blood and water” (John 19:34). As Adam’s sacrifice gave life to his bride, so did the death of Christ quicken “the church of God, which He hath purchased with His own blood” (Acts 20:28). “Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it; . . . That He might present it to Himself a glorious church” (Ephesians 5:25,27). As Eve thenceforth shared Adam’s very life, so do believers today constitute Christ’s beloved Bride, and we are “hid with Christ in God,” so that Christ Himself is “our life” (Colossians 3:3,4).

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Many Books


“And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh” (Ecclesiastes 12:12).

It seems amazing, at first, that we should be reading a complaint from almost 3,000 years ago that too many books were already being published. The greatest book, of course, is the collection of 66 books known as the Bible—that is, the Book (which is the meaning of “Bible”). This Book has been “for ever . . . settled in heaven” and “endureth for ever” (Psalm 119:89,160).

The first mention of “book” in the Bible is found in Genesis 5:1, “This is the book of the generations of Adam.” Similarly, the first mention of “book” in the New Testament is Matthew 1:1, “The book of the generation of Jesus Christ.” These “books” are now incorporated into the Book and, in a striking way, emphasize the continuity of Old and New Testaments: the one dealing with the first Adam; the other with the last Adam.

The final mentions of “book” also are very important, again dealing not with books that are temporal, but with books that are eternal. In the Old Testament, we have the beautiful promise of Malachi 3:16: “Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for them that feared the L SIZE="-1">ORD, and that thought upon His name.”

The final mention of “book” in the Bible, on the other hand, is a sober warning not to tamper with the Book. “If any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book” (Revelation 22:19). Let us honor it, guard it, believe it, and follow it.

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The First Day Of The Week


“And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight” (Acts 20:7).

It is appropriate that this important phrase, “the first day of the week,” occurs exactly eight times in the Bible. The first six of these (Matthew 28:1; Mark 16:2,9; Luke 24:1; John 20:1,19) all stress the fact that it was on this day that the greatest event in history since the creation had taken place. The creation of the universe had taken place on the first day of the week, and now its Creator had conquered sin and death itself on that day. In the Bible, of course, the number “seven” represents completeness, so “eight” represents a new beginning—a new creation, a resurrection.

The last two references tell us just how the early Christians remembered this day. Our text verse tells us this was a day on which the disciples assembled together, had a preaching service, and then “broke bread.” This was not a special assembly called just for Paul, for he had already been waiting there six days (see previous verse). This was about 25 years after the resurrection itself and the Jewish believers were evidently still observing the seventh day as a rest day, but then they also observed the first day of the week as the time to commemorate the Lord’s death in “breaking of bread,” to celebrate His resurrection, and especially to hear the preaching of His Word. The final reference tells us one other vital thing they did: “Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him” (I Corinthians 16:2). The first day of the week should always be a time of remembering Him in these joyful ways, for He is our living Lord and Savior.

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Prophecy


“I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him” (Deuteronomy 18:18).

Two types of prophecy must be distinguished. When a prophet foretells or predicts, he represents the future in light of the present. But frequently the prophetic message consisted of rebuking, reproving, counseling, or admonishing, i.e., forth-telling, rather than fore-telling. As such, he portrays the present in light of the future.

It is the predictive type of prophecy which provides such a strong argument for rational faith. Neither human intuition about the future nor limited Satanic control of the future can account for the hundreds of specific Biblical prophecies that have been literally and specifically fulfilled. These could only come by Divine revelation from the One who both knows and controls the future.

Actually, predictive prophecy provides a double defense: Not only does it prove the divine origin, inspiration, and authority of Scripture, but since over half of the prophecies converge on the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ, it advocates His deity and Messiahship. One could hardly read Isaiah 52:13–53:12 or Psalm 22 without recognizing that these are prophetic portraits of Christ on the cross. Others, equally specific, deal with other aspects of His life and ministry.

Still others predict the coming Kingdom to be set up by Christ, in which we as believers will have a part. Having seen so many prophecies literally fulfilled, we can have complete confidence that these will come to pass as well. “We shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is pure” (I John 3:2,3).

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Our Daily Bread


“Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11).

This very short and very familiar verse is the middle verse of the five-verse model prayer taught by Jesus to His disciples. It contains the only occurrence of the word “daily” in the New Testament, and thus emphasizes the fact that we should ask the Lord for our material needs, for just one day at a time—not our weekly wages or our annual salary, but our daily bread!

“Therefore take no thought [i.e., no anxious thought], saying, what shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? . . . But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:31,33). These are words of comfort and assurance by the Lord to believers, but with the condition that we put God and His kingdom first.

This is also the emphasis in the Lord’s model prayer. The prayer begins neither with personal thanksgiving nor with personal requests. Instead, it acknowledges that the most important things are our Creator’s purposes for His creation, rather than for our own material needs. “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven,” we are first to pray (Matthew 6:10). Only then should we make our personal requests.

In this verse is the first occurrence of the word “will” in the New Testament, and significantly it refers, not to man’s will, but to the will of God. We should pray, not for God’s blessings on the plans we have made, but that we might know and do His will in making our plans in the first place.

And we should, indeed, then pray that He would supply our daily needs, for this He has commanded us to do, and then has promised that He will do this. But our motives must be primarily to please Him, advance His kingdom, do His will—not merely to please ourselves.

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Father Of Believers

“And he believed in the LORD; and He counted it to him for righteousness” (Genesis 15:6).

The key New Testament doctrine of imputed righteousness, received through saving faith in the Word of God, is foreshadowed beautifully in the life of Abraham. Because of his strong faith, demonstrated again and again in difficult acts of obedience, Abraham has been called “the father of all them that believe” (Romans 4:11). Our text verse is quoted four times in the New Testament (Romans 4:3,22; Galatians 3:6; James 2:23), and is made the basis of the great gospel theme of salvation and righteousness. This is obtained, not by one’s good works, but by imputation, and is received through faith in the gracious promises of God through Jesus Christ. “For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him” (II Corinthians 5:21).

“Therefore it is of faith, that it might be of grace; to the end the promise might be sure . . . to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all” (Romans 4:16). Just as “Jerusalem which is above . . . is the mother of us all” (Galatians 4:26), so faithful Abraham is “the father of us all.” Spiritual Jerusalem speaks of salvation by grace, rather than by law, and Abraham testifies of righteousness through faith, rather than by works. And yet, twelve of the forty verses of Hebrews 11, the great “faith chapter,” deal with the outward evidences of Abraham’s inner faith.

There is still another reference to Abraham’s spiritual seed: “Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham” (Galatians 3:7). As Abraham’s spiritual children, therefore, we also ought to believe God’s Word at whatever cost, demonstrating the reality of our faith to the world—as did father Abraham—by obeying God.

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The Wonderful Angel

“And the angel of the LORD said unto him, Why askest thou thus after my name, seeing it is secret?” (Judges 13:18).

This intriguing encounter occurred during one of Israel’s periods of apostasy and servitude, when the people had been ruled for forty years by the pagan Philistines. There was one godly couple in the tribe of Dan, however, who evidently had long been praying for a son, and God finally answered their prayers. “The angel of the L SIZE="-1">ORD” came to give the good news to Manoah and his wife. The remarkable son who was to come was mighty Samson, who later would free his people.

But it is the Angel, Himself, who is most intriguing here. His name was “Secret,” meaning “too marvelous even to comprehend.” The same word is translated “Wonderful” in Isaiah 9:6, where it is cited as a name of the coming divine Son, whose name would also be “the mighty God” and “everlasting Father.”

This “angel of the LORD” was thus none other than God the Son in one of His rare pre-incarnate appearances, or theophanies, when the invisible God manifested Himself visibly to man. There are many created angels (Hebrews 12:22), or “messengers,” of God, but on certain occasions, this one who is called “the Angel of the L SIZE="-1">ORD” (also “the Angel of His presence,” as in Isaiah 63:9, and “the Angel which redeemed me,” as in Genesis 48:16), is clearly none other than God Himself. In such cases, it could only have been the pre-incarnate Christ, for the Bible says: “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him” (John 1:18).

God had already revealed Himself in this way to great men of God, and now even to an unknown couple. Eventually this Angel, whose name is Wonderful, “was made flesh, and dwelt among us” (John 1:14), and will one day dwell with His people forever (Revelation 21:3).