PT-2 "The Athlete" (2 Tim. 2:5)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 1/16/2025 8:36 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                                 Focus:  PT-2 “The Athlete”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                     Reference:  2 Timothy 2:5

 

            Message of the verse:  “5 Also if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not win the prize unless he competes according to the rules.”

 

            I want to continue looking at the athlete in this morning’s SD as I begin with a quotation from the commentary of John MacArthur.  “The very fact that we are Christians means we have met the qualification of being born again.  But the other two requirements are far from automatic and involve constant dedication and constant effort.  Together they constitute spiritual discipline, which come from the same root as ‘disciple’ and is the foundation of spiritual maturity.  The disciplined disciple has control of his affection, his emotions, his priorities, and his objectives.”

 

            This is especially true in the life of a believer, but it can be true also in the life of a non believer, but the difference is that in the believer’s life they have the Holy Spirit of God living in them to aid in these important issues that bring about spiritual maturity.

 

            I have read that when a boxer trains for an upcoming fight that they train for months and months in getting their bodies ready, and not just physical training but also mental training as they will study film of their upcoming opponent so that they know his weakness’s and his strengths.  If one takes this in the spiritual mode then one needs to know how the devil works to bring a believer down and the devil has different tactics, but he never changes them as they have worked good throughout the time he began to use them in the garden of Eden.

 

            MacArthur writes “It goes without saying that all serious athletes must exert special effort not just during a game or a race but for many months, even years, beforehand.  Writing to believers at Corinth, who were very familiar with the Isthmian games, which were played nearby, Paul asked rhetorically, ‘Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize.  Run in such a way that you may win.  And everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things.  They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.  Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I buffet my body and make it my slave, lest possibly, after I have preached to others, I myself should be disqualified’ (1 Cor. 9:24-27).    Paul’s victory in the realm of ministry was dependent on his body, with its lusts and impulses, not being in control of him, but rather he of it.”

 

            In the passage that we just looked at Paul also emphasizes the wreath which in the Greek is stephanos for which the Greek athletes competed and it was perishable, but the one for which the Spiritual Christian competes is imperishable.  What was Paul referring to?  It is ‘the crown [stephanos] of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me [Paul] on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing’ (2 Tim. 4:8), ‘the unfading crown of glory’ is what we will receive ‘when the Chief Shepherd appears’ (1 Peter 5:4), ‘the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who live Him’ (James 1:12; Rev. 2:10).  MacArthur concludes “One day, like the twenty-four elders, we ‘will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast [our] crowns before the throne’ (Rev. 4:10). 

 

            A long time ago after leading some neighbors to the Lord I was talking to them about the robes that believers will get when they get to heaven, and I mentioned that even though all will get robes that there will be some believers there who will get into heaven but will not have any rewards because they did not do what the Lord called them to do for the cause of Christ.  They would have what I called “smelly robes” because they just missed out on the flames of hell.  I certainly do not want to be wearing a smelly robe, but desire to do what the Lord has called me to do.

 

Spiritual meaning for my life today:  The disciplined disciple has control of his affection, his emotions, his priorities, and his objectives.”

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  To have control of those highlighted things in the paragraph above.

 

1/17/2025 8:16 AM

PT-1 "Satan's Children Murder God's Children" (1 John 3:12, 14)

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 1/16/2025 8:28 PM

 

My Worship Time                                          Focus:  “Satan’s Children Murder God’s Children”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                   Reference:  1 John 3:12, 14

 

            Message of the verses:  “12 not as Cain, who was of the evil one and slew his brother. And for what reason did he slay him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother’s were righteous…14 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death.”

 

            While I was listening to the sermon from John MacArthur that goes along with this section of verses he mentioned that this is the only Old Testament Reference that is found in 1 John.  I guess I think that is kind of unusual. 

 

            It is true that murder is the ultimate act of hate and there are some verses that and the first one is from the book of Numbers 35:20-21 “20 ‘If he pushed him of hatred, or threw something at him lying in wait and as a result he died, 21 or if he struck him down with his hand in enmity, and as a result he died, the one who struck him shall surely be put to death, he is a murderer; the blood avenger shall put the murderer to death when he meets him.  Next we will look at Matthew 5:21-22, and remember that these verses come from the Sermon on the Mount.  “21 "You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’ 22 "But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’ shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.”

 

            I want to continue with the thought that I began with in front of these verses that I quoted.  Murder demonstrates the absence of love in the most extreme way.  To illustrate that point, John inserted as mentioned the only Old Testament reference in the entire letter:  to Cain, who was the first murderer.  I don’t know how old these brothers of Adam and Eve were when this happened, but perhaps they were in their 20’s, so that means if that were true that this happened some 20+ years after the original sin of Adam and Eve.  Now the Bible is silent as to when these brothers were born and if there were any other brothers and sisters who were also born to Adam and Eve.  Let me just say that although the Bible is silent as to how the population grew after the earth began and after sin had come into the world, but it is my belief that because the gene pool of the offspring of Adam and Eve that brothers would marry their sisters and there would be no physical or mental problems because of that.  Look at Abram and Sara as they were brother and sister, but they had different fathers so that means half brother and sister.  When you get further along we learn that it was told by the Lord not to marry brothers and sisters but cousins could be married, and the reason is that the gene pool continues to grow weaker.  This kind of thing, marrying brother and sister would not work out well today as their children would have some very bad problems.

 

            John MacArthur writes “Cain, as a worshiper of God, offered Him a sacrifice (Gen. 4:3-5).”  Let us look at those verses now “3 So it came about in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the LORD of the fruit of the ground. 4 Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and for his offering; 5 but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard. So Cain became very angry and his countenance fell.”   “Unlike his brother Abel, however, Cain did not bring an acceptable sacrifice to God (Heb. 11:4).”  “4 By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks.”  “Able brought an animal sacrifice, which the narrative implies was in obedience to God’s command.  On the other hand Cain, in his self-styled religion, ignored the divine requirement and brought the fruit of the ground for his offering.”  Now I realize that the Bible is silent as to how Able knew what to bring as an offering, but it seems to me that the Lord had told theses two brothers what they needed to bring for their offerings, and Able just refused to do so.  Now let us look at this in light of what the Lord Jesus Christ did on the cross, which through that sacrifice that was His body that it paid for all the sins of the world, but a person has to accept that sacrifice on their behalf in order to become a child of God.  This has to be done in a personal way where a person realizes that he is a sinner, and then realizes that he on his own cannot do anything to become right with the Lord but can accept what Christ did for him or her in order to be saved.  That is the only way a person can become right with the Lord to accept what Christ did for them.  You cannot add anything to what Christ did for you, you just have to accept it.

 

            I believe that I will now end this SD for this evening and pick up the rest tomorrow, Lord willing.

 

1/16/2025 9:02 PM

PT-1 "The Athlete" (1 Timothy 2:5)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 1/16/2025 8:36 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                                 Focus:  PT-1 “The Athlete”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                     Reference:  2 Timothy 2:5

 

            Message of the verse:  “5 Also if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not win the prize unless he competes according to the rules.”

 

            This morning we move to the third figure that Paul uses to illustrate characteristics of a strong spiritual life which is the Athlete, this is a metaphor that Paul uses sever times in his letters.

 

            MacArthur explains “The phrase competes as an athlete translates the verb athieo which means to contest, contend, wrestle, struggle.  The idea is that of a struggle that requires great determination to win.  Athletes struggle, contend, compete, and strive to win.”

 

            Now as we watch athletes compete against one another, like at the Olympic Games, we can know that at times the differences between first and second places is not always a matter of talent.  Think about the fable of the tortoise and hare, as the less gifted athlete often surpasses another who is physically superior and more experienced, simply by having a greater determination and persistence.   

 

            Now I want to look at a story that MacArthur uses in this section:  “While watching a decathlon meet between the United States, and Poland, and the U.S.S.R., I asked a friend, who was coaching the American team, to identify the best athlete among all those competitors.  He point to a slender, lithe young man, and I asked, ‘Do you think he will win today?’  Surprisingly, he answered, ‘No.’ When I asked why, he pointed to another athlete and said, ‘He’s going to win, because he has the greatest determination, the strongest will to win.  He is the most mentally tough competitor I have ever seen.’  Sure enough, he did win that day.  His name was Bruce Jenner, and two years later he won the Olympic gold medal in the decathlon, which ranked him as the greatest athlete in the world.”  There is more to the story about Bruce Jenner that is hard to really understand, but if you are interested then look up his story on the internet.

 

            Now when we talk about spiritual competition it is, of course, not against other Christians.  Trying to outperform another believer is far from spiritual.  Rather, our competition is against our fleshly old self, against the world, and against Satan and those who serve him.  Also our goal is to “press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:14).

 

            MacArthur points out that “Even the most gifted and determined athlete, bringing the most effort to the struggle, however, does not win the prize unless he competes according to the rules.”

 

            Now thinking about rules, in the Greek games, which continued for centuries under Roman rule and they were still being held in Paul’s time, every participant had to meet three qualifications—of birth, of training, and of competition.  The first rule means that the athlete had to be a Greek, a true born Greek.  Second, the athlete had to prepare at least for ten months for the games, and then he had to swear to that before a statue of Zeus.  Third, he had to compete within the specific rules for a given event.  Now to fail in any of those requirements meant automatic disqualification.

 

            MacArthur adds “Comparable rules apply to spiritual Christians.  We must be truly born again; we must be faithful in study and obedience of God’s Word, in standards of discipleship.

 

            Lord willing we will finish this section in the next SD.

 

Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Following those rules is very important in order to serve the Lord Jesus Christ while in this world.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Trust the Lord to give me the desire to keep these rules so that I can bring glory to the Lord.

 

1/16/2025 9:11 AM

PT-3 "Introduction to 1 John 3:11-18"

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 1/15/2025 10:51 PM

 

My Worship Time                                                   Focus:  PT-3 “Introduction to 1 John 3:11-18”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                    Reference:  1 John 3:11-18

 

            Message of the verses:  “11 For this is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another; 12 not as Cain, who was of the evil one and slew his brother. And for what reason did he slay him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother’s were righteous. 13 Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death. 15 Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer; and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. 16 We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.”

 

            I want to pick up where I left off yesterday’s Spiritual Diary by talking about that John’s readers knew that truth, and the reason is because apostolic preachers had faithfully delivered it to them (cf. 1:5; 2:24).  The problem however is that false teachers had also come and taught, apparently, that brotherly love is not an essential mark of true salvation.  Now as we have been looking at John’s letter we know that he has told them that true believers are to love one another as this is part of the new nature that was given to them by the Holy Spirit once they became believers.  The trouble is that those apostates added to their erroneous view of Christ’s nature and their disobedience to God’s commands a lack of love for true believers.  One thing that is true in all of John’s writings is that he certainly talks a great deal about love, genuine Christian love.  Now in response, John directed his readers back to the message they had heard from the beginning, referring to the beginning of gospel proclamation.  Now that teaching included the truth about Jesus Christ, the gospel, mankind’s sinful condition, and the need for righteous living, as well as the command to love one another.  Now the apostle urged his readers to remember what they were first taught and not allow anyone to lead them astray.  Let us look now at the third verse in Jude’s letter.  “3  Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.”

 

          I will now quote from the ending of John MacArthur’s comments from his commentary on this introduction.  “In one sense, the Lord’s command in John 13:34-35 was very old (Lev. 19:18; Rom 13:10).”  Perhaps it would be good to quote Leviticus 19:18 because it is an Old Testament verse:  ‘You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the sons of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the LORD.”  Now back to MacArthur’s quote:  “But in another sense, it was new.  Love had never before been manifested as it was by Christ—culminating in His sacrificial death for those He loved,  ‘This is My commandment,’ He declared, ‘that you love one another, just as I have loved you.  Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends’ (John 15:12-13; cf Luke 19:10; Gal. 2:20; Rev. 1:5).  The Lord Jesus Christ is the perfect model of the love God has always commanded.  Though believers cannot love to the degree He loves, the can obey John’s command to love one another (3:23; 4:7, 21; 2 John 5; cf. Rom. 12:10; 13:8-9; Gal. 5:13-14; Col. 3:14; Heb. 10:24; 13:1; 1 Peter 1:22; 4:8) the way Christ loved, by the power of the Spirit (Rom. 5:5), lovingly and selflessly sacrificing for others.

 

            “Having stressed the importance of love in 3:11, John contrasted the children of God, who obey that command, with the children of the Devil, who do not.  Instead of being characterized by love, Satan’s children are marked by murder, hatred, and indifference toward the children of God.”

 

            Now Lord willing we will begin “Satan’s Children Murder God’s Children” which will cover 1 John 3:12, 14, in the next SD.

 

1/15/2025 11:14 PM

 

PT-5 "The Soldier" (2 Timothy 2:3-4)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 1/15/2025 10:11 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                                  Focus: PT-5 “The Soldier”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  2 Timothy 2:3-4

 

            Message of the verses:  “3 Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.”

 

            I want to begin this SD by talking about the parable of the soils, as Jesus identifies false believers whose non-saving faith is very short lived with “the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful” (Matt. 13:22).  Those are the kind of temporary professing Christians of whom Peter speaks:  “If after they have escaped the defilements of the world by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and are overcome, the last state has become worst for them than the first” (2 Peter 2:20).

 

            John MacArthur writes “The worry of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches” of which Jesus spoke are among the affairs of everyday life that can keep an unbeliever from receiving Christ and can keep believers from faithfully serving Him.  Just as the dutiful soldier places his life willingly on the line in service of his country, so the faithful Christian will willingly ‘deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow [Christ]’ (Matt. 16:24).  He will say with Paul, ‘I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, in order that I may finish my course, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus’ (Acts 20:24).”

 

            Now we move onto the third mark of a good soldier which is a genuine desire to please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.”  Now before I once again quote from the MacArthur commentary I has to write something that to me is ironic.  I have mentioned this in earlier SD’s but for those who read this one, they may not have looked at the one I wrote about some of the things that led me to become a believer in Jesus Christ.  I mentioned that it was on July 5, 1966 I was inducted into U.S Army, something that I was willing to do, but not looking forward to.  There was a war going on and many of my age group who were in the service were being killed, and so it was kind of freighting to me, and I suppose others to.  I was kind of a “religious” young man but not at all following the Lord, however I did ask the Lord to get me out of the army if that was possible.  Three days later that prayer was answered, and the deal I made with the Lord was that I would not swear anymore, which I stopped for a couple of weeks.  I would go home serving my country in the army as a soldier for 27 days.  It was on January 26, 1974 that the Lord inducted me into His service as a soldier of the Lord, something that I did not know at the time.  To me this is ironic as one might see as I was reluctant to serve in the US army but now am serving as a soldier in the army of the Lord.

 

            MacArthur goes on to write In the same way, but of far greater importance, a Christian’s deepest desire is to please the Lord Jesus Christ, his commander in chief, the one who enlisted him.  It is impossible to serve two commanders in chief, just as it is impossible to serve two masters (Matt. 6:24).  The faithful Christian’s fondest hope is to be rewarded for loyal service and to hear his Master say, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave; you were faithful with an few things, I will put you in charge of many things, enter into the joy of your master’ (Matt. 25:21).”

 

            All who are born into this world are born as unbelieving sinners, and I know that is a hard statement to believe and to understand the truth of it.  When Adam sinned, he sinned with his eyes wide open, as Eve was tempted by Satan and that is why she sinned.  The result was that the sin-nature would be passed on by the man, and that is the reason that the Lord Jesus Christ when He became the God Man had to be born without the sin nature and that is the reason for the virgin birth, as Jesus was fathered by the Holy Spirit of God to the virgin Mary.  Don’t ask me to explain how all of that came about, but the Bible says it did and that is all I need to know.  This means that the Lord Jesus Christ was the only Person who was born without a sin nature.  Now with that hopefully explained I can go on to write that because of our sinfulness the strong desire to pleas other people is an integral characteristic of fallen man.  Now even Christians want to be men-pleasers.  MacArthur writes “Many Christians succumb to that temptation and become more concerned about pleasing their fellow workers, their neighbors, and their friends than about pleasing the Lord.  And for the same reason, many pastors fall into the trap of wanting to please their congregations or their communities more than to pleas the Lord.  That the desire inevitably leads to moral and spiritual decline, because pleasing the world, including worldly Christians, demands compromise of God’s truth, God’s standards, and the situation of the Ephesian church some years after Paul wrote this letter to Timothy (who was pasturing in Ephesus), we know that forsaking Christa s our first love is possible even when our doctrine is sound and we toil and persevere for Him (see Rev. 2:2-4).  When that happens, we must ‘remember therefore from where [we] have fallen, and repent’ (v. 5).  We must remind ourselves of Paul’s sobering testimony:  If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ’ (Gal. 1:10).  When Christ is our first love, we will ‘have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him’ (2 Cor. 5:9; 1 Thess. 2:4).”

 

Spiritual Meaning for my Life Today: I desire to have Christ first place in my life and as a soldier of His to serve Him with all my heart.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Part of serving the Lord is to also serve others in His name, and not only today but every day I desire keep my eyes out for how I can serve the Lord by serving others.

 

1/15/2025 10:52 AM

 

PT-2 "Introduction to 1 John 3:11-18"

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 1/14/2025 10:57 PM

 

My Worship Time                                                   Focus:  PT-2 “Introduction to 1 John 3:11-18”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                    Reference:  1 John 3:11-18

 

            Message of the verses:  “11 For this is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another; 12 not as Cain, who was of the evil one and slew his brother. And for what reason did he slay him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother’s were righteous. 13 Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death. 15 Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer; and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. 16 We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.”

 

 

            Let me begin with the last part of the last SD so that I can then quote the verses that go along with this paragraph.

 

            “Love, then, in contrast to those in Satan’s realm, has always been an essential characteristic of every true Christian.  The rest of the New Testament consistently bears out this truth.”

 

Hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us (Rom. 5:5)

 

  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law (Gal. 5:22-23).

 

Now as to the love of the brethren, you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another; (1 Thess. 4:9).

 

Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart, (1 Peter 1:22).

 

And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it (2 John 1:6).

 

“God not only commands those who are in Christ to show love (cf. John 5:12; Rom. 12:10; 1 Peter 4:8).  He also enables them to obey that mandate, granting them the capacity to do what He requires (cf. Rom. 5:5).”  “and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”

 

            I wish to quote one more paragraph in ending this Spiritual Diary.  “There is nothing novel or unprecedented, then, about John’s teaching that Christians are marked by love for one another. (His teaching—cf. 2:7-11).”  Now I will quote 1 John 2:7-11 before continuing with this quotation from this paragraph.  “7 Beloved, I am not writing a new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word which you have heard. 8 On the other hand, I am writing a new commandment to you, which is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true Light is already shining. 9 The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now. 10 The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him. 11 But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes.”  “Because God loves them (Rom. 5:8; Eph. 1:3-14; 2:4-5), people (Matt. 22:37-39; Eph. 5:2; 1 John 4:19).  Thus the apostle’s instruction here is not new, but is ‘an old commandment which you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word which you have heard’ (2:7; cf. v. 10; 4:7-8).”

 

1/14/2025 11:22 PM

PT-4 "The Soldier" (2 Timothy 2:3-4)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 1/14/2025 10:31 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                                  Focus: PT-4 “The Soldier”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  2 Timothy 2:3-4

 

            Message of the verses:  “3 Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.”

 

            We have been talking about the soldier is always on alert ready to do what his Commander wants him to do for the cause of Christ, so consequently, he is separated from his normal environment so that he will not entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life.  MacArthur writes “Entangle himself translates a passive form of empleko, which literally means to weave.  Paul is not speaking about things that necessarily are wrong in themselves.  It is not that a soldier should have no contact at all with his former friends and surroundings, but that he is not to become caught up and enmeshed in them.  Those things are irrelevant to his soldiering and are always subject to being relinquished.  In the same way, a good soldier of Christ Jesus refuses to allow earthly matters to interfere with the fulfillment of his duty to his Lord.  Many Christians, pastors, special ministries, and doctrinally sound churches have been undermined by concerns and activities that are innocent in themselves but have been allowed to crowd out the primary purpose of serving Jesus” (I have highlighted this portion).

 

            As I think about this highlighted part above I think about when I first became a believer in Jesus Christ, which will be 51 years ago twelve days from now.  I knew in my heart that I had to break away from those friends that I was hanging around with but it took some time for me to do that.  My daughter turned 48 years old two days before Christmas and the day before she was born I was hanging around with my old friends and some things happened that caused me to not want to hang around with them any longer.  I have a really good friend that I was with that evening and I can say that I have prayed for him to come to know the Lord for over fifty years.  Recently I have got together with him and some other friends I use to hang around with as we are not much older and I have had a little bit of time to witnesses to them as we once in a while meet for breakfast.  I have to say that it is my desire to meet with my friend Troy and his wife to once again tell them the good news of the gospel, and perhaps because he is older now and realizes that he will not live forever that both of them will allow me to tell them what happened to me almost 51 years ago.  I pray that is true.  Now the other part of this highlighted portion seen above has to do with when a person is a believer and how believers can be taken away from the things that the Lord wants them to do, and perhaps this partly happens from Satan, and partly happens from the old nature that can still tempt a believer and will until he receives a new body and I have to say that I am looking forward to that, and it is my hope that I will be alive when the rapture happens. 

 

            “Jesus recognized that such disconnection and call to duty required of His faithful disciples, a soldier in His active service, is not easy.  As He and His disciples

 

  57 As they were going along the road, someone said to Him, "I will follow You wherever You go." 58  And Jesus said to him, "The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head." 59 And He said to another, "Follow Me." But he said, "Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father." 60 But He said to him, "Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God." 61 Another also said, "I will follow You, Lord; but first permit me to say good-bye to those at home." 62  But Jesus said to him, "No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for

the kingdom of God’ (Luke 9:57-62).

 

            It looks like that I will have one more SD in this section of verses on the life of the soldier, and Lord willing will do it tomorrow morning.

 

Spiritual meaning for my life Today:  One thing that I have realized since I retired from my main job that a believers is really not to retire from serving the Lord.  I have mentioned that a former Pastor of mine when he was about to retire said that he was going to retire from something to something.  I have never forgotten that and try to live by his good advice as the Lord has kept me pretty busy since I retired in June of 1999.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  It is my desire to be a good soldier of Jesus Christ and do the things that He has called me to do for the cause of Christ.

 

1/14/2025 11:06 AM