My Daily Dose of Courage

And he arose that night and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven sons, and crossed over the ford of Jabbok. He took them, sent them over the brook, and sent over what he had. Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day.  (Genesis 32:22-23) Jacob wrestled with God, just as he had been wrestling with every person and situation life had ever presented to him. He was a “born fighter,” even struggling with his brother Esau in the womb of his mother (striving to be born first). Then, He wrestled with Esau for the family birthright and Isaac’s blessing. He wrestled with Laban for Rachel and a living for 21 years. In this passage, he was anticipating yet another struggle with Esau. Fighting is all Jacob had ever done, but he did not realize he was only fighting himself. It would be quite a few more years before he would learn to fight the Lord's battles, not his. Many saints today are just like Jacob, fighting battle afte...

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.  (Romans 12:21) No other power can compete with love, so it never has to get even. Love will never allow us to act in kind with those who wrong us, or the world, or those who don't know the Lord. Our example is Jesus, and He never avenged Himself, vindicated Himself, or felt the necessity of explaining Himself. His love spoke for Him, and He ever lives as the Lover and Savior of all men. Remember, love is the best revenge.  “But I say to you who hear: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you . . .  (Luke 6:27) These are among the most powerful words ever spoken, and we must be careful not to miss what is most important. The central point is not,  "Love your enemies . . ."  The most important words here are,  "But  I  say to you . . ."   The fact that Jesus is the One speaking is what matters most, and His commands are only possible to obey in  His ...

But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth.   (1 John 2:20-21) . . . for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.  (John 15:15) Revelation is the means whereby a teacher accurately sees and conveys the things of God, and that teacher must first wait for God to reveal Himself. The true teacher of righteousness waits patiently on the Lord, and he or she is careful to speak only what is heard from the Father. Herein is the point of separation between the teacher who walks in the anointing of the Holy Spirit and all others. The anointed ones speak what they have heard from God, and they speak from His authority and no other. Christ alone builds the Church. Christ alone understands the Church. Anointed teachers hear Christ alone and share what they hear.   Let's Pray  -  Precious F...

And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.  (Matthew 16:18) Nicodemus answered and said to Him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?  (John 3:9-10) Any intellectually-based attempt at explaining the Church of God is the vain pursuit of men who think too much of themselves and too little of God. The Bible is the only explainer/expositor with the authority to speak on such matters. Only the Holy Spirit can lead us to an accurate assessment of what we witness as it pertains to Christ's Body. We must only repeat what we have been told in the Word, not what we have concluded or reasoned in our minds. The Cross is the only grounds for understanding the Church born out of its stark reality, and no man fully understands the Cross but the Son of Man, Jesus Christ.  There are legions o...

Then the Commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua, “Take your sandal off your foot, for the place where you stand is holy.” And Joshua did so.  (Joshua 5:15) This is a picture of the simple and unadorned relationship God desires with His children. Adam and Eve were “naked and unashamed” in the beginning, while enjoying intimate fellowship and knowledge of the Lord. Thus, the Lord was telling Joshua to come out from behind any covering, any agenda, or anything of self, and stand before Him on the basis of God’s holiness alone. This is the supernatural preparation the Lord desires for all those He commissions to do His will. Everything we do must stand on the sovereignty of God, and nothing else. So, take off those shoes! God will unmask every son or daughter He draws to Himself. He will first strip us of any sense of self-righteousness and the worldly knowledge we mistakenly call wisdom. As Joshua found out, God was not on His side, nor was He on the side of Israel and t...

Then Job answered the Lord and said: “Behold, I am vile; What shall I answer You? I lay my hand over my mouth. Once I have spoken, but I will not answer; Yes, twice, but I will proceed no further.”  (Job 40:3-5) We must be careful not to speak hastily about the things of God, because those things are spiritually discerned, and God may be working on a level we have not considered. Each of us, if we are to go on with the Lord, is going to have to lay our hand on our mouth like Job did, and not speak until the Spirit gives utterance. When Job saw God, he realized his error. He had reduced the Lord to a god of his own understanding, and that is no God at all! Like Job, we must come to see God as He is, not how we imagine Him. When we do, He calls us friends, and then He can trust us with His Word and witness. When Job finally saw the Lord, all his complaints and self-justification melted away in the presence of the awesome Lord of All. And when the Lord spoke to Job,...

So it came to pass in the morning, that behold, it was Leah. And he said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served you? Why then have you deceived me?” And Laban said, “It must not be done so in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. Fulfill her week, and we will give you this one also for the service which you will serve with me still another seven years.”  (Genesis 29:25-27) Reaping and sowing is an unbreakable spiritual law, and Laban’s act of deceiving Jacob was a classic example of that law working itself out in real time. By deception, Jacob wrestled the blessing and birthright from his brother Esau, the firstborn of Isaac and Rebekah -- and now he was deceived when he was given Leah, Laban’s firstborn, when he thought he was marrying her younger sister. Remember, God is not mocked. His Word is true, and it applies directly to the lives of men and women, particularly His children. The promises and blessings spoken ov...

Now Samson went to Gaza and saw a harlot there, and went in to her.  (Judges 16:1)                                                                      Somewhere in Samson’s spiritual development, there was an abortion, and his manhood was the fatality. The result was an extended adolescence and careless behavior that complicated every effort God made to mature him and use him for His glory. Samson’s manhood was crushed to death by seduction, the archenemy of every male soul. Seduction is the tool Satan most often uses to derail men of God, and he is too often successful. Every man needs to heed God's call to wisdom, and men who sense that God wants to use them need to take heed all the more intently. Let every man be sure to accept the yoke of manhood bestowed on us by Jesus Christ. Let no one s...

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.  (1 John 4:7) It is impossible to express true love apart from God, and that may be an astounding statement to some. But John presents a definition of love unlike any other; that love is strictly a God-thing, and anything that is not from God is something less than love. Our feelings may be passionate, sincere, deeply felt, and lavishly expressed, but if they are not of God, it is not love. John says,  everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.  This statement takes love out of the realm of human thought and expression, and places it in the realm of the spirit. In other words, God is love, and only those born of God truly express love according to His Person and His measure. . . . because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.  (Romans 5:5) If we can satisfy God’s command to love without the H...

Then Jael, Heber's wife, took a tent peg and took a hammer in her hand, and went softly to him and drove the peg into his temple, and it went down into the ground; for he was fast asleep and weary. So he died.  (Judges 4:21) So the woman said to Joab, “Watch, his head will be thrown to you over the wall.” Then the woman in her wisdom went to all the people. And they cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri, and threw it out to Joab. Then he blew a trumpet, and they withdrew from the city, every man to his tent. So Joab returned to the king at Jerusalem.  (2 Samuel 20:21b-22) These two women demonstrated the shrewdness we must note and emulate in our dealings with Satan and sin. They were not fearful, but bold and decisive. They were wise and calculating in the most forthright and effective manner. They were not willing to abide the danger Sisera and Sheba represented to them and their people, so they took it upon themselves to do what must be done -- and the Lord w...

The spider skillfully grasps with its hands, and it is in kings’ palaces.  ( Proverbs 30:28) Our lives are to be testaments to the saving and sanctifying power of our God and Savior, and our bodies are rightly called the temple of the Holy Spirit. We are the dwelling place of the Most High, and He expects us to do all He instructs to keep our hearts clean and suitable for His habitation. Yet, even in the most pristine, finely appointed and decorated rooms (hearts), one may find a spider on the ceiling or the wall. The spider is there without invitation, unwelcome, and dreaded indeed! But, there it is, and we are wise and prudent to put away our dread and rid the room of the spider, whatever it takes. This is a picture of the life and work of even the loveliest Christian. We must have a fierce and deadly attitude when it comes to dealing with the sin that seems insignificant and seeks to go unnoticed, while dwelling comfortably among the beautiful furnishings appointed by God. ...

Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? But you have dishonored the poor man. Do not the rich oppress you and drag you into the courts? Do they not blaspheme that noble name by which you are called? If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well; but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors.  (James 2:5-10) James is not saying it is a sin to be rich, but saints must first be rich toward God. Material wealth must never be our focal point or primary goal, nor does having earthly riches commend us to God. Our Father always looks at the heart, and our hearts must be filled with His Spirit of grace and kindness toward all -- especially toward the poor and needy.  Understand clearly that the last will be first in the Kingdom. The forgotten will ...

My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality. For if there should come into your assembly a man with gold rings, in fine apparel, and there should also come in a poor man in filthy clothes, and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say to him, “You sit here in a good place,” and say to the poor man, “You stand there,” or, “Sit here at my footstool,” have you not shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?  (James 2:1-4) Pride will always manifest in our treatment of those we deem "other." You can tell the truth about a man by how he treats those who are not like him and can do nothing tangible for him. Our treatment of those who may have or know less than us is a deadly accurate test of Christian character, and God will judge us if we judge others. The attitude that pleases God manifests itself in thinking well of "the least of these," and in doing well by servin...

And the chief priests and scribes stood and vehemently accused Him. Then Herod, with his men of war, treated Him with contempt and mocked Him, arrayed Him in a gorgeous robe, and sent Him back to Pilate. That very day Pilate and Herod became friends with each other, for previously they had been at enmity with each other.  (Luke 23:10-12) The voices of evil seek to shape the context of every conversation and to bring about their own version of reality. The voices of envy, jealousy, greed, ridicule, and hypocrisy still seek to drown out the sweet sound of the Good News of Jesus Christ. Yet the answer is the same,  "I Am."   Jesus came into the world to save sinners, and to do so, He paid the cost for our sins -- and those of us who believe receive everlasting life in return for our faith. So, we must stand with Him, even in our most difficult moments -- for if we suffer with Him, we will also be glorified together with Him (Romans 8:17). Let the voices shout, but the...

Immediately, in the morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council; and they bound Jesus, led Him away, and delivered Him to Pilate. Then Pilate asked Him, "Are You the King of the Jews?" He answered and said to him, “It is as you say.” And the chief priests accused Him of many things, but He answered nothing. Then Pilate asked Him again, saying, “Do You answer nothing? See how many things they testify against You!” But Jesus still answered nothing, so that Pilate marveled.  (Mark 15:1-5) Jesus committed Himself to the will of the Father, and He had no interest in defending or shielding Himself from the slanderous accusations of the Jews. He was fully reconciled to the plan of redemption and determined to take His place as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. There was no need to plead His case or promote His cause, and He did not open His mouth even once to tell His side of the story. There was only ...

Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!  (Psalms 46:10) Stillness is a powerful tool in the hands of a believer. It is the temper of mind that allows God to perfect us in the wisdom that comes to those who wait on Him. While activities and busy-ness may gratify our souls for a moment, we are never truly satisfied until we are standing on the Rock of Ages, quiet and still in His presence. The Psalmist says we are planted like trees by rivers of living water (Psalm 1). There we find the blessed assurance of His care for us and His sovereignty over all things concerning us. The saint who acknowledges the Lord as he should is sure to be found at the feet of Jesus, in confidence and strength. We have to get to the point where we are sick and tired of ourselves and our own devices, because God will not move until we are. He will not partner with a believer who is not yet surrendered to His will; but the instant w...

Be angry, and do not sin. Meditate within your heart on your bed and be still . (Psalms 4:4) Anger and sin are bedfellows; they have always been and always will be. Sinners are angry, and angry people easily fall into sin -- and we should all take heed. The Lord wants each of us to know that He cares deeply for us, so that we are not perpetually worried or angry about what others say or do. We must learn to trust Him with every outcome, and to refuse to respond in kind to the people and things that anger us. The Lord has not instructed us to deny or ignore our righteous anger, but to put our lives in His holy hands, and to know that He will judge every word and deed rightly, righteously, and in His time. God does not deal angrily with us, and neither should we with others. Handling anger poorly leads to sin and sorrow, while being still and quiet gives God the opportunity to move as He sees fit. Give everything over to Him, my friend -- be still and wait on the Lord. ...

Then it happened, as they were parting from Him, that Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he said. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were fearful as they entered the cloud. And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!”  (Luke 9:33-35) Peter spoke when he should have been quiet, and he proposed human works where worship was due. So it is with much of the restless activities of Christians today. Yet, the Father spoke clearly and forthrightly to correct Peter's error, instructing him to be quiet and,  "Hear Him!"  In the same way, the Lord is redeeming and re-training our instincts, so that we will know when to speak and when to be silent -- when to be still, and when to move. Teach us, Lord! There is not a single great Christian enterprise or movement in the entire New Testament...

"But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them."  (Luke 6:32) The question is not whether people are lovable, peaceable, kind, and gentle -- but, am I? We are not to be concerned with receiving fairness and justice, but we are to be fair and just always. Jesus is our standard, and He died for those who spit on Him and beat Him. That is the true measure of Christlikeness -- we love and respect those who may never offer us the same grace in return; and we do so without partiality or prejudice of any kind. Help us, Father! God's standards are higher than even the most noble man and woman among us, and they are impossible to reach without the Holy Spirit. Surely, we have all tried to do those things Jesus commanded in our own strength, and we failed miserably. Pray for those who hate us? Do good those who attack us with their words and actions? Honor those who dishonor us? No, many Christians are not even wi...

By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible . (Hebrews 11:1-3) God's Word was manifested in all that we see around us. His Word "framed" or hung the galaxies, and their order is maintained by that Word. This verse categorically disproves evolutionary science and popular theories on the origin of man and the universe. There was no "big bang" or "primordial soup," no Cro-Magnon man or simian ancestors. By faith, we understand the Word the Lord speaks, and that Word brought the entire universe into being. Amen. Never get frustrated with anyone’s inability or unwillingness to receive or believe the scriptures. The truth we believe is only accessed by faith -- a faith they do not have.  By faith we understand .  . .   It is foolish to expect a blind person to see, or a faithless man to believe. Spiritual things are only ascertained by faith, and G...

Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me.” He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”  (Matthew 26:38-39) The Lord Jesus came to earth on a mission, and in order to accomplish that mission, He was going to have to give His life in the most painful and humiliating way. He was not the kind of king, nor was this the kind of kingdom His disciples or Israel expected -- nor could they understand the words He spoke or the path He walked. Jesus was keenly aware that no one on earth would understand, and He would have to resist every fleshly temptation to consider anyone's will other than the Father's -- even His own. There will be times when doing the Lord's will is very painful, and we may even question why things are as they are or must be done a certain way. No one around us may unde...

Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.  (2 Corinthians 5:20-21) God has committed to us the "word of reconciliation." Our sanctified lives are the message God is communicating, and we have overcome by the Blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. The blood has accomplished all God intended in providing the substance of our victory, and our lives are the undeniable proof that the blood will never lose its power. As His "ambassadors," we represent His interests in the world, the salvation of many souls, and the Kingdom established everywhere He sends us. We have no interest or agenda of our own. We are representatives of a higher authority, and our message and methods are spiritual. The Bible calls us ministers of a New Covenant -- that which has ta...

Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. (2 Corinthians 5:18-19) We have been "reconciled" to God through the atonement of Jesus Christ, whose blood erased the stain of the sin and the tragic record of our past. We are "new," untainted, unencumbered, and set free from a debilitating record of moral and spiritual failure, and the Gospel speaks to the new creature. The old man seeks to convince us that a cleaned-up version of ourselves is sufficient, but it clearly is not. God would have us move and think forward, and in terms we have never considered -- spiritual terms. Our preaching is not to focus on how sad and sinful men are, but how good and gracious our God is. We are to be walking, loving, and living examples...

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.  (2 Corinthians:17) The new man and woman are a work wrought in the Spirit, therefore, the "new" is not at all dependent on the old. God is not bound by the past when He shapes us for the future. He does not have to re-invent us, to clean us up, or re-outfit us. We are not re-creations, but new creatures, and the new man is not hindered by old considerations. God does not need the permission or approval of anyone in our past to bless and help us in the present and future, because He alone is our God and Provider. What the Lord is going to do with us is not dependent or determined by our experience, nor does He take heed to our résumé or qualifications. He does the new thing in us according to His own will and counsel, not according to what we've done, or what anyone says. We must learn to see ourselves in the light of God's sovereignty, not ou...

"Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know."  (Jeremiah 33:3) God longs for us to look to Him in prayer. He has chosen to present Himself and His will to those who ask in faith, believing that He is present and deeply concerned with our needs and desires. When we set ourselves to pray, we cannot be defeated, we are not easily discouraged, and we expect to hear the voice of God who promises to respond to our prayers. Since God promises to answer, we must call, and we must call more often and earnestly. Yet you do not have because you do not ask.  (James 4:2) There is a realm that opens up to us through prayer that will remain closed otherwise. The Lord so loves conversation with us that He simply will not move until we speak to Him in earnest prayer and intercession. Yes, there is much in the way of joy and blessings that lie dormant in the fallow ground of prayerlessness. That is because, God only trusts those wh...

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.  (Philippians 3:13-14) Believers in Christ are the only people on earth with true hope. There is no other reliable source of genuine hope in the universe, as men without God can only look upon their past with regret, their present with frustration, and their future with dread. The outlook is bleak for the sinner, and every attempt at hope without God is a fairy tale and empty promises that cannot be fulfilled by the one making them. God's children are the only people on earth who can reasonably expect and declare that the best is yet to come. The Bible teaches us to be intensely forward-looking. That is because we have only begun to understand the height, breadth, and depth of the Father's love. It will truly take all eterni...

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  (Hebrews 13:8) Jesus is our only reference point for true manhood, righteousness, holiness, wisdom, and love. He alone is without sin, thus, He alone can afford to remain the same -  yesterday, today and forever.  We find our assurance in Him, His promises, His sacrifice, His death, His resurrection, His relationship to the Father, His Holy Spirit, His promises, and His Word. The fact that He will never change is the Solid Rock of our salvation, and we have confidence that allows us to walk boldly before God and men, with never a hint of compromise or fear. When Adam and Eve sinned, they created a great chasm between God and man, between heaven and earth, and between the spiritual and natural realm. Even the ground was cursed for man's sake, and that which God created "good" suffered because of Adam's sin. The eternal Son of God (the second Adam) took on flesh and came to earth at the appointed time, an...

Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.  (Romans 13:13-14) Walking "properly" - (decorously, decently, in a seemly manner, beautifully, modestly, with charm and winsomeness). We are to walk in the light and in a manner which God displayed in Christ. Ours is to be a life of integrity, transparency, and righteousness. We are instructed to put off carelessness, recklessness, unseemly and indecent behavior, as well as ugly and offensive speech to one another. We are to "put on" Jesus Christ, walk in the Spirit, and remove all vestiges of the self-centered life we once lived. The Lord dwells in us to help us do all these things. Hallelujah! The most prominent characteristic of the church of Jesus Christ is the love we show one another, and that is how we should be known. Thus, the true chu...

Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “One thing you lack: go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.” But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.  (Mark 10:21-22) Even the most noble of us fall short of God's glory and His righteous requirements. Our most sincere efforts to do good cannot bridge the gap between us and the Lord, for our righteousness is like filthy rags to Him. Even our valiant efforts to "give back," to show love and kindness, and come to the aid of others are insufficient at best; and our sin makes us contributors to the death, disease and suffering we're trying to relieve. There is no other way to God than the cross. Pick it up and follow Jesus. Our own noble works and best intentions are an insult to the Holy Spirit. Christianity is overrun with good people doing good things. Yet, they ...

Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.  (2 Corinthians 7:1) There are those who preach that Jesus is somehow sympathetic with our struggles against self and sin. I've even heard those struggles called a "beautiful mess!" Nothing could be more foolish! Our "mess" is not attractive or beautiful to God, and we only need to look to the tragedy of Calvary to see what God thinks of our "mess." Jesus dealt with sin ruthlessly on the Cross, where He set us free from the law of sin and death. Therefore, we must never tell the Lord that He is not able to sanctify us and make us holy, or we are too broken and helpless for Him to perfect us. If He is not able to do that, He is not God. But He  is  God, and God Almighty. He  has  sanctified us wholly; and, now, we must put the mess of selfishness and sin to death in our members. That is the supre...