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A daily meditation for young Christians

November 2023

Thursday, November 30, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).

Just about everything we buy today has an instruction manual. Cars have them, and today they can be quite thick and complicated. Other things like refrigerators, microwaves, vacuum cleaners, lawn mowers, power drills — all of them come with a manual that shows us how to set them up and operate them.

Here in our verse today we have the perfect instruction manual for our life in the world — the Word of God. Of course, we can never know everything about God, but in His Word we find the knowledge of God. Whatever we need to know in this world in order to live to please the Lord, we can find in the knowledge of God through His Word. We have the perfect instruction book in the Bible.

Sometimes an instruction book in this world deceives us, for sometimes people make mistakes when they make the book. Sometimes we have a question that the manual does not answer. But the Word of God is perfect; it never makes any mistakes, and tells us all we need to know.

Wednesday, November 29, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“And when I [John] saw Him [the Lord Jesus], I fell at His feet as dead” (Revelation 1:17).

The Apostle John had known the Lord Jesus very well, for he was one of the disciples who had been with the Lord during all of His earthly ministry. He was also one of the disciples who was closest to the Lord, and at the last Passover, he was actually “leaning on Jesus’ bosom” (John 13:23). Yet here, when he saw the Lord Jesus, he was so frightened that he “fell at His feet as dead.” Why was this?

When the Lord Jesus was on earth, He looked just like any other man, and people could approach him easily. But here in Revelation, the Lord Jesus is seen as a Judge. As such, He appears with “eyes like a flame of fire,” “feet like unto fine brass,” “His voice as the sound of many waters,” and “His countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength” (Revelation 1:14-16). He appears as One who is to be feared, and even John was afraid.

Yet how beautiful is the Lord’s answer to John! He tells him, “Fear not.” He was the same Jesus that John had known, and His judgment was for unbelievers, not for those like John. Some day you and I will see Jesus in His judgment character too, but we will not have to be afraid.

Tuesday, November 28, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“Looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life” (Jude, vs. 21).

If we are true Christians, we know that we already have eternal life. As soon as we accepted the Lord Jesus as our Savior, we had eternal life, and we can never lose it. However, we do not yet have all the benefits that are part of having eternal life. We still have an old sinful nature, and we are still living in a world where eternal life is not at home. We are surrounded by sin, and our new life cannot sin. Also, we still have bodies that are subject to disease and eventually death.

All this will change when the Lord comes for us, and takes us home to be with Him. The “mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ” is really the Lord’s coming for us. It will be a mercy when He comes for us, for as this world gets worse and worse, it becomes more and more uncomfortable for us as Christians. We long to be taken out of it, and to be where we will really feel at home.

When that happens, we will suddenly have glorified bodies, and will no longer have a sinful nature. We will be taken out of this world, no longer to be surrounded by sin. It will be a wonderful time!

Monday, November 27, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“Keep yourselves in the love of God” (Jude, vs. 21).

Perhaps you have never thought of it, but the man who wrote the book of Jude was actually the brother of the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus also had a brother named James who wrote the book of James. They had grown up with the Lord Jesus, but it does not seem that they believed on Him until after He was crucified.

They would have had plenty of opportunity to see the love of God displayed in His life, and now Jude tells us to keep ourselves in the love of God. How do we do that? We know that the Lord’s love for us never changes; He continues to love us, even if we are doing something that displeases Him. However, we do not enjoy His love if we are displeasing Him; we need to confess the sin, and get right with the Lord. Then we can enjoy His love again.

So, keeping ourselves in His love means that we are on guard in our life, watching that we do not do things that displease the Lord. Then we will continue to enjoy His love for us.

Sunday, November 26, 2023

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Person and Work of Christ

“And Noah…offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the Lord smelled a sweet savor; and the Lord said in His heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake” (Genesis 8:20-21).

After the flood, Noah and his family came out of the ark. When he went into the ark, Noah had taken seven of every clean animal. When he came out of the ark, he was led of the Lord to offer burnt offerings with some of those clean animals, and it tells us that “the Lord smelled a sweet savour.” Why was this?

It was because those burnt offerings spoke of Christ. The Lord Jesus would not come and suffer on the cross for more than 2,000 years after the flood, but God looked on to this, and said that He would not curse the ground any more for man’s sake. God is a God of mercy, as well as justice. Yes, God will judge this world, and perhaps very soon, yet He smells “a sweet savour” when He sees the work of Christ on the cross. God knows that man can never improve through his own efforts, but in coming to Christ, our sins can be washed away. Through the value of that work sin will eventually be removed from this whole universe.

Saturday, November 25, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“Praying in the Holy Ghost” (Jude, vs. 20).

It is a real privilege to be able to go to the Lord in prayer. Most people in the Old Testament did not know about prayer; God had not given them that privilege yet. But now, since the Lord Jesus has died, we may all go to the Lord, first of all to thank Him for all He has done for us, and then to bring before Him our needs, and the needs of others.

An old brother, now with the Lord, used to remind us that “a prayerless life is a powerless life,” and this is true. Prayer brings us into the Lord’s presence, and by the Holy Spirit we can go to the Lord at any time. Sometimes we hesitate to pray about little things, and perhaps reserve only the big things for the Lord to look after. But the Lord wants to hear about little things too, and He loves to hear us pray about simple things in our everyday life. I knew an older Christian lady who would put her glasses down, and then forget where they were. Since she could not see very well without them, she would have to ask the Lord to help her find them. She said that He always helped her find them!

Friday, November 24, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith” (Jude, vs. 20).

When we read the book of Jude, it is a rather sad epistle, for it tells us of some of the evil that was already coming in among Christians. People were pretending to be Christians, and then saying that since the Lord Jesus had forgiven their sins, they could do whatever they wanted. Jude reminds us that judgment is coming, and that such individuals will be severely punished for what they are doing.

But then, at the end of the epistle, there is real encouragement. There are four things we are to do, if we are real Christians, and the first one is to build ourselves up on our most holy faith. What does this mean? It means that as things get more difficult for us, we are to learn as much as we can about Christ, and all that He is to us. Getting saved is only the beginning, for God has many other things to teach us — things that will help us to live for His glory in this world. The more sin and turning away from God we see in this world, the more we should want to learn more of Christ. This comes from reading the Bible and going to meetings where Christians come together for prayer and reading of God’s Word.

Thursday, November 23, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“And the three companies blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers, and held the lamps in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands to blow withal: and they cried, The sword of the Lord, and of Gideon” (Judges 7:20).

Read Judges 7:15-23. This was a most unusual battle, for Gideon had only 300 men, while the Midianites had thousands. Yet the Lord defeated the Midianites, and it tells us in the next chapter that 120,000 of them died that day. But what is strange is that Gideon’s men did not have any weapons. They had lamps (or torches) in their left hands, and trumpets in their right hands; they did not have any hand for holding a sword. Yet the Midianites were defeated.

The Lord allowed the Midianites to fight with one another, for it says that “the Lord set every man’s sword against his fellow.” Then, when other Israelites saw the Midianites running away, they too came out and helped chase them.

Of course, there was a time later when Gideon and his men did use their swords, but not until after the battle was won. The Lord used Gideon, but He got the praise for it, and that is how it should be. The Lord works that way in our lives too. He may ask us to do something, but He supplies the power, and then He gets the glory.

Wednesday, November 22, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“Behold, I dreamed a dream, and, lo, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the host of Midian, and came unto a tent, and smote it that it fell, and overturned it…And his fellow answered and said, This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel: for into his hand hath God delivered Midian, and all the host” (Judges 7:13-14).

God had one more encouragement for Gideon before he and his men actually went into battle. Read Judges 7:9-15. The Lord knew that Gideon was still hesitant, so he told him to take his servant and go down to the camp of the Midianites. There he heard one man telling another man about a dream he had the night before. In his dream a cake of barley bread actually rolled down a hill and knocked over a tent! But the friend knew that this cake of bread was a picture of Gideon, and that the dream showed that the Lord would defeat the Midianites by Gideon.

It was rather humbling to be compared to a cake of barley bread, but then Gideon knew two things. First, he knew for sure that he would win the battle. Secondly, he knew that the Lord would do it for him. The Midianites were “like grasshoppers for multitude,” and Gideon’s 300 men were naturally no match for them. Only the Lord could defeat that big army!

Tuesday, November 21, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“And the Lord said unto Gideon, The people are yet too many; bring them down unto the water” (Judges 7:4).

Gideon must have been surprised when the Lord said that he still had too many soldiers. The Lord told him to bring them down to the water. Read verses 5-7, and you will see the further test God gave them. Those men who got down on their knees to drink were the largest number — 9,700. Those who took water up in their hands and drank like a dog, lapping with their tongues, were only 300 men. Then the Lord told Gideon that these 300 men would be his army to fight the Midianites.

Again, this is a lesson for us. The men needed water, but some were quick about it, and took it up in their hands. They had important business to fight the Midianites, and they did not relax while taking a drink. But the others knelt down, taking a good long drink.

In this world we should be like those 300 men. We need food, shelter, clothing, and other things to live in the world, but we should not spend all our time on these things. We have important work to do for the Lord, and that should be what we are thinking about.

Monday, November 20, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“And the Lord said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many…Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart early from mount Gilead” (Judges 7:2-3).

Gideon’s army was small by modern standards — only 32,000 men. Yet the Lord said that this was too many, for Israel might think that they had defeated the Midianites by their own power. The Lord told Gideon to tell anyone who was afraid to go home, and more than two-thirds of his army left.

This might have discouraged Gideon, for now he had only 10,000 men. However, we know that the Lord does not need large numbers to win a battle. There is no point in having men try to fight when they are afraid.

It is the same in the work of the Lord today. If we are afraid of the world, or afraid of Satan, then we are not ready yet. We need to go home and learn a little about how the Lord has overcome the world, and defeated Satan. Then we can go out in confidence, not in ourselves, but in the Lord.

Sunday, November 19, 2023

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Person and Work of Christ

“Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it” (Song of Solomon 8:7).

“All Thy waves and Thy billows are gone over me” (Psalm 42:7).

Even among human beings, love has led people to make some tremendous sacrifices for others. Many times in the history of this world, people have suffered and even died for others because they loved them dearly. But no one ever endured the suffering that the Lord Jesus went through, yet nothing could quench His love.

Water in the Bible is sometimes a picture of the judgment of God, and especially when the water is the waves of the ocean. Such waves can be very high and very strong. Yet nothing could turn the Lord Jesus aside from His suffering on the cross, for His love was stronger than all that suffering. All God’s judgment for sin had to pass over Him, but His love rose above it all. Romans 5:8 reminds us that “while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” There was never any love like His!

Saturday, November 18, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“If the dew be on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth beside…let it now be dry only upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there be dew” (Judges 6:37, 39).

If you read about the way Gideon used the fleece, you will see that he put it out twice. The first time he asked that the dew be on the fleece, and all the ground be dry. When he put out the fleece, the next morning he was able to wring out a bowl full of water, but the ground was dry. Then, he asked that it be reversed. He asked that the fleece be dry, but dew on the ground, and God did that for him.

Have you ever wondered if there is a meaning to all this? The fleece is a picture of the Lord Jesus. During His life He was a “root out of a dry ground” (Isaiah 53:2). He was full of blessing, but everything around was dry. Then, at the cross, He became the dry fleece, for He could say, “My strength is dried up like a potsherd” (Psalm 22:15). But what was the result? Blessing for you and me, pictured by the dew on the ground. Everything in the Bible points to Christ.

Friday, November 17, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“And Gideon said unto God, If Thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as Thou hast said, Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor” (Judges 6:36-37).

Perhaps you are already familiar with the expression, “Putting out a fleece.” The expression comes from this passage, where Gideon wants a little more assurance about what the Lord wants him to do. It was not that Gideon did not trust the Lord or have confidence in the Lord’s power. Rather, Gideon just found it hard to believe that the Lord was going to use someone like him to do this great work.

For this reason, God did not rebuke Gideon for putting out the fleece. Gideon actually did it twice, if you read to the end of the chapter. Once Gideon asked that the fleece be wet with dew, while the ground was dry, and once he asked that the ground be wet, and the fleece dry. God did what he asked, and Gideon was confident that the Lord would use him.

Usually the Lord was not pleased when people kept asking for special signs, but here it was Gideon’s lack of confidence in himself that was the problem, and the Lord honored his request and gave him a sign.

Thursday, November 16, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down…and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built…Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die…and Joash said unto all that stood against him, Will ye plead for Baal?” (Judges 6:28-31).

Gideon had destroyed Baal’s altar and idol at night, and when the men of the city found out the next morning, they were very angry. They approached Gideon’s father Joash, wanting to have Gideon killed for having done this. The altar and idol of Baal had belonged to Gideon’s father, but when Gideon destroyed it, his father defended Gideon to the men of the city, and would not let them harm him.

This shows us that Joash also had a conscience about worshiping false gods, but did not have the courage himself to do something about it. But when Gideon did it, he defended him. Sometimes when we take a faithful stand for the Lord, we will find that others will step up and agree with us. Let us never hesitate to be faithful to the Lord; perhaps someone else just needs a little courage to do the same.

Wednesday, November 15, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“The Lord said unto him [Gideon], Take thy father’s young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it…and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which thou shalt cut down” (Judges 6:25-26).

The Lord was going to use Gideon, but several things had to happen first. One thing that was most important was that there was an idol to the false god Baal, right in Gideon’s backyard! The Lord told Gideon to destroy the idol and the altar to Baal, and then to take the second bullock and offer a burnt offering unto the Lord. God could not use Gideon until that idol was gone.

We notice how this bullock speaks of Christ, for it had to be the second bullock. Adam was the first man, but Christ is the second man, in the sense that He is now the Head of new creation, as Adam was head of the first creation. Also, the children of Israel had been under the control of the Midianites for seven years, and the bullock was seven years old. God had prepared the bullock as soon as Israel sinned. As soon as sin entered this world, God told Adam that “the seed of the woman (Christ) would crush the serpent’s head.” God knew that sin would come into the world, and had the remedy for it all ready.

Tuesday, November 14, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites. And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him, and said unto him, The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valour” (Judges 6:11-12).

Gideon was a young man, but he is a real encouragement to us. He came from a poor family, and he was one of the younger ones. Also, it was a difficult time in Israel’s history, for the Midianites had taken control of the land, and took all the food that God intended for Israel.

But Gideon had faith and was going to have food in spite of the Midianites. He was threshing wheat by the winepress, to hide it. We do not know where he got the wheat, but this is a good lesson for us. If we really want spiritual food, God will provide it for us. We may have to work for it, but the Lord will give us food in spite of Satan’s efforts to take it away from us.

Also, God needed a man like Gideon, and we know very well how the Lord used him to deliver Israel from the control of the Midianites. Tomorrow we will see how God prepared Gideon to do this. Perhaps the Lord is going to use some of you young people too.

Monday, November 13, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“Little children, keep yourselves from idols” (1 John 5:21).

What John says by the Spirit of God in this verse might seem rather strange to us. He was writing to believers in the Lord Jesus. Was he really concerned that they would leave Christianity and go back to worshiping idols? No, John was not concerned about that. But John wrote quite some time after the other apostles had gone to be with the Lord, and already serious worldliness was coming into the church. True believers were deciding that the Christian pathway was too difficult and were paying less attention to their Christian life, and more to the world around.

John was telling them not to have idols in this world, for anything down here can become an idol to us. An idol is something that people worship, and on which they place a high value. We can make an idol of anything in this world, and that is why John says earlier in this epistle, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world” (1 John 2:15). The things in this world may not be idols that we worship as gods, but they can take the place of Christ in our hearts. We need to be on guard against these idols.

Sunday, November 12, 2023

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Person and Work of Christ

“This do in remembrance of Me” (Luke 22:19).

Yesterday was November 11; it is called “Remembrance Day” in Canada and “Veteran’s Day” in the United States. In other countries it is sometimes called “Armistice Day.” It got its name because it was the day on which World War 1 officially ended, back in 1918. No one who is alive today is able to remember that war, for it ended more than 100 years ago. Yet still people come together and hold remembrance meetings, and old soldiers get together at special monuments to pay their respects to those who died in that war. Dignitaries such as the Queen, the Prime Minister or the President lay wreaths and make speeches in remembrance of those who died, not only in World War 1, but in all wars.

While the day is a statutory holiday in many countries, many people do not pay much attention to it. Wars are only history, and there have been many of them. But the Lord Jesus wants us to remember what He suffered for us, even though it was nearly 2000 years ago. He has asked us to do this, and surely our hearts want to respond to His request. He has done so much for us, and He does not want us to forget.

Saturday, November 11, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“We love Him, because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19).

This verse is beautiful, and we can understand that we love the Lord Jesus because He first loved us, and died for us. But in a better translation of this verse, the word “Him” should not be there. It should read, “We love, because He first loved us.” There are several words in the Greek language for love, and the love spoken about here is divine love. It is a love that keeps on loving, even if the other person does not love us back. That is the way God’s love works, and that is why the Lord Jesus went to the cross and died for us, even though people hated Him.

We all have the ability to love naturally, such as love in our families, love among good friends, etc. But divine love can only exist when we have a new life in Christ; it enables us to love those who do not love us. When we are saved, we have the capacity to love others, and to do things for others, even though they dislike us.

That is how the Lord Jesus could tell His disciples to love their enemies, and to do good to those who treated them badly. That is not natural to us, but we can do it if we have a new life in Christ. See if you can find the verse that tells us to love our enemies. It is in what is often called “the sermon on the mount” in Matthew.

Friday, November 10, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“He that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as He is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the devil….In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil” (1 John 3:7-8,10).

In this world we can divide people in many different ways. We can divide them by their racial origin, by their nationality, by their language, by their religion, and by their political persuasion. But as far as God is concerned, there are only two groups of people in this world. There is the family of God, and the family of the devil. Everyone in this world today belongs to one of these two families.

Most people who are not saved would be shocked and insulted if we told them that they belonged to the family of the devil, but this is true, if they are not saved. As we have noted before, Satan is now the god and prince of this world, and those who do not know Jesus Christ as their Savior belong to this world.

It is important to remember this, for people in this world can be very nice and very friendly. However, if we speak to them about Christ, they will not want to listen. This is because they really belong to Satan’s family, and do not want God’s family.

Thursday, November 9, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“We know that, when He shall appear, 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” (1 John 3:2-3).

It is a wonderful thing to know that we are sons of God, and that when the Lord comes and takes us home, we are going to be perfectly like Christ. We will always be creatures, of course; we will not be gods. However, we now have the very life of Christ, and when He comes, we will have glorified bodies like His, and we will no longer have the old sinful nature that we have now.

But God wants this process to begin down here. If we have this hope in Christ, of being like Him then, we will want to purify ourselves now, in order to be like Him as much as possible in this world. This means that we put aside things that are not pleasing to the Lord, and things that are of this world. We already have a new life in Christ, and the Lord wants to see this new life displayed in us, more and more.

Wednesday, November 8, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“All that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever” (1 John 2:16-17).

When we are young, the things of this world are especially attractive to us. Of course, they are attractive to us older ones too, but perhaps not in the same way. That is why this verse is especially directed to young Christians. We can easily get our heart set on something down here, and then spend our time, energy, and money trying to get it.

But all of those things will pass away; they are things in this world, and we cannot take them with us when we leave this world. Our desire (lust) for them will pass away too, for we shall not want those things in heaven. However, our verses remind us that doing the will of God will last for all eternity. How can this happen? It is because the Lord will reward you and me for what we have done for Him down here, and we will have that reward for all eternity.

It is a serious thought that what we do for a few short years down here in the world will have an impact for all eternity, but it is true. It is important for us to use our time properly during our life, for not only will it benefit us for all eternity, but it pleases the Lord, who gave Himself for us.

Tuesday, November 7, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all…If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin” (1 John 1:5, 7).

We are all familiar with bright light that exposes everything clearly. For example, we may think a pane of glass is clean, but when the sun shines through it, we often see that it is really quite dirty. God is light in a moral way, and His light exposes our sin. No darkness can exist in His presence; His light reveals everything. This is frightening to us naturally, and makes us want to hide from that light. That is why unsaved people do not want to be in God’s presence; it shows all of their sin.

But when we are saved, we walk in the light, and have the confidence that whatever that light has exposed, the blood of Christ has covered. We do not have to be concerned about the brightness of God’s light, for the blood of His beloved Son has put away our sin. His light shining on us shows only the purity of Christ Himself. What comfort this gives us!

Monday, November 6, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“And Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba…and Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, Let the Hebrews hear. And all Israel heard say that Saul had smitten a garrison of the Philistines” (1 Samuel 13:3-4).

Saul was the king of Israel, but he did not have the spiritual energy to go out himself and fight with the Philistines. But when his son Jonathan did it, Saul took the credit for it. This has been a pattern of man’s sinful heart all through his history. You have all heard of Alexander Graham Bell, who invented the telephone. But after he had patented his invention, many other people tried to take credit for it, and to make money from it. His patent was contested more than any other previous patent in the history of the United States.

This kind of thing occurs even among Christians, and is a real dishonor to the Lord. Let us not be guilty of doing it; let us be ready to praise others for what they have done for the Lord, instead of trying to take the credit to ourselves. However, if someone else takes credit for something we do, what should we do? We should ignore it, for if we really did it for the Lord, we can be sure that He has the record straight. At the judgment seat of Christ, He will know whom to reward in the right way.

Sunday, November 5, 2023

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Person and Work of Christ

“And men appointed His grave with the wicked, but He was with the rich in His death” (Isaiah 53:9 JND).

When the Lord Jesus was crucified, men did all kinds of cruel things to Him, such as placing a crown of thorns on His head, striking Him on the face, spitting on Him, and scourging Him, as well as mocking and insulting Him. Then they crucified Him, which was a most brutal death. When the Lord Jesus died, they would likely have placed His body in a common grave, with criminals such as the two thieves who were crucified with Him.

But when the work of redemption was finished, God did not allow wicked hands to touch the body of His Son again. He worked in the heart of Joseph of Arimathaea to ask for the body of the Lord Jesus. He was a true disciple of the Lord Jesus and was also a rich man. He placed the Lord’s body in his own new tomb. The Lord Jesus had a rich man’s burial, because God had said it would be this way. When the Lord Jesus had borne the penalty for sin, God gave Him the honor He deserved.

Saturday, November 4, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“For He saith to the snow, Be thou on the earth; likewise to the small rain, and to the great rain of His strength” (Job 37:6).

I am actually writing this in the month of November, 2021, and we had our first bit of snow last night. It has nearly all melted now, but it reminded me of this verse. It is the Lord who controls the weather — snow, rain, sunshine, clouds — all of it. Job had to be reminded of all this, and the Lord used a man named Elihu to say all these things to him.

We are accustomed to snow where I live in Canada, but in some places they get rain, not snow. In some parts of Canada now, and also in other parts of the world, they are experiencing the “great rain of His strength.” Too much rain is almost as bad as too little, and causes big problems for farmers as well as others. But all of it is allowed of God, and we can learn from it.

The Lord often uses weather patterns to speak to man, and to remind him that God is in control. Man is no match for strong weather patterns; he must submit, and recognize God’s hand in them.

Friday, November 3, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“The world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: but the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment” (2 Peter 3:6-7).

The flood in the time of Noah is an established fact. Not only is it recorded in the Bible, but evidence of it is to be found in the traditions of many different peoples in the world. After the flood in Noah’s day, God promised that He would never again destroy the world with a flood.

However, this did not mean that God would not act in judgment again. He rained down fire and brimstone on the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and will one day destroy, not only this earth, but also the heavens, with fire. This will be a more serious judgment, for it will be final, and result in the creation of a new heavens and a new earth. Peter tells us that we “look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness” (2 Peter 3:13). Sin will never enter that new creation; it will last forever. But you and I, as Christians, will not live on this earth; we will enjoy the Father’s house forever.

Thursday, November 2, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“Shimei, the son of Gera…cursed….Come out, come out, thou bloody man, and thou man of Belial” (2 Samuel 16:5, 7).

“And Shimei the son of Gera…came down… to meet king David….And said unto the king….thy servant doth know that I have sinned” (2 Samuel 19:16,19-20).

When David was fleeing from his son Absalom, a man named Shimei, who did not like David, cursed him and threw stones at him. Shimei thought that Absalom would surely win the battle and become king. But when David won the battle and was brought back as king, Shimei apologized for his bad conduct, and David forgave him. This is a good example for us, if someone wrongs us. If they confess their sin, our place is to forgive them, and accept their apology.

However, we find that many years later, when David was dying, having carefully considered the matter, he told his son Solomon about Shimei’s cursing, and left Solomon to deal with the matter. Evidently Shimei had not really repented as he should, for he failed the test Solomon gave him, and came to a sad end. See if you can find out what happened to Shimei when Solomon became king. It is in the next book — the book of 1st Kings.

Wednesday, November 1, 2023

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Daily Meditation

“For ever, O Lord, Thy word is settled in heaven” (Psalm 119:89).

As the Covid virus problem lingers on, and in some places seems to get worse, many things are unsettled in this world. Supply chains for various products have been disrupted, jobs have been lost, careers have been “put on hold,” and schooling has been much more difficult. No one really knows what is going to happen, and many people are having problems.

It is very encouraging to know that the Lord never changes, and that His Word is settled, not here in this world, but in heaven. Nothing that happens in this world can change God’s Word, nor can they change God’s purposes. His Word will unfailingly come to pass, for God is in control of everything that happens in this world. Yes, Satan may still be the god and prince of this world, but he cannot go any further than God allows. What peace this gives to our souls!