Month: February 2014

Daniel 6:28
“So this Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius, and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian.”

Prosperity is a relative term. What one calls prosperity may not be prosperity for another; however, when God says someone prospers then that would certainly define prosperity across the board. There is one person whom God said prospered, and that person was Daniel. When you study the life of Daniel, you find some very clear steps he took that caused him to prosper.

First, Daniel had a good attitude. Verse 3 says that Daniel had an “excellent spirit.” It is hard to find someone who has prospered who didn’t have a good spirit. I’m not just talking about a good attitude as you go throughout the day, but a good attitude towards life and its goals. You will never prosper if your attitude is negative towards everything. If you have an attitude that says it can’t be done, then you will never prosper. A good attitude towards the possibility of things happening is imperative if you are going to prosper in life.

Second, Daniel was dependable. It was said about Daniel that “he was faithful.” He was faithful to his job, and you also find that faithfulness was found in other areas of his life. If you can’t be depended upon, then don’t expect God to help you to prosper. One element you will find in everyone who is prosperous is that they are dependable. They show up for work every day no matter how they feel or what they are facing. Dependability is a must for prosperity.

Third, Daniel had character. When his enemies tried to find fault in him, it was said that “neither was there any error or fault found in him.” Character is a big ingredient to success. You will find that those who are prosperous throughout life are people who have character. In other words, they do right all the time whether or not anyone is watching. You will never prosper if the only time you do right is when someone is watching.

Fourth, Daniel had a love for God. Daniel’s enemies knew that the only way they could destroy him was through his walk with God. Everyday he spent time walking with God. As a Christian you will only find God to help you prosper if you spend time with Him daily. Your love for God must be greater than your love for the world. Daniel’s love for God caused him to walk with Him on a daily basis.

Fifth, Daniel lived by schedule. After the law was made that they could only pray to the king, Daniel went to the place where he prayed and spent time thanking God and praying “as he did aforetime.” He didn’t do this because of the law, he did this because it was in his schedule. If you live your life off the cuff and let life dictate what you are going to do, then prosperity will be hard to find. You will never find success in life until you learn to live by schedule.

Sixth, Daniel had the backbone to stand. When the law was made that he could not talk to God, he was not afraid of facing the lions for his beliefs. Friend, you must have some core beliefs in which you believe and are willing to stand for no matter the cost if you are going to be prosperous. A spineless person who only does what the crowd wants will not find success. Those who stand when others will not stand are those who tend to find success.

You will never find prosperity in your life if these six things are not a part of your life. Prosperity may not mean riches, but prosperity does mean success. If you want everything you do to prosper, then take these six things and implement them in your daily life.

Ezekiel 43:2
“And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east: and his voice was like a noise of many waters: and the earth shined with his glory.”

Every Christian should desire to let the glory of God shine through their life. Too often we have Christians trying to receive the glory when all glory should be given to God. There is nothing wrong with honoring a man, but man should never receive more glory than God. I find in the verse above that several things happen when a person allows God’s glory to shine through their life.

First, God’s voice will be clear when you let His glory shine in your life. Notice that Ezekiel recognized God’s voice clearly. It was very distinct to Him. He could tell you what it sounded like. When a Christian allows God’s glory to shine in their life, they will clearly know what God wants them to do. They won’t wonder about God’s will for their life, for God’s voice will be clearly understood. If a person is having a hard time knowing God’s will for their life, then they would be wise to see if they are letting God’s glory shine clearly in their life. The more you give glory to God, the more you will understand what God wants you to do in your life.

Second, God’s presence will be seen in your life when you let His glory shine in your life. Verse 3 shows that God’s glory was evident in the house of the LORD. The more you point to Christ, the more you will see God’s glory shine on your life. Moses pointed to God, and in return God allowed His glory to shine on Moses. When you don’t make yourself the issue, you will find that God shines through you to a darkened and needy world.

Third, when God’s glory shines on your life, you will see your worthlessness. When Ezekiel entered God’s presence, he fell upon his face because he saw his own worthlessness. You will always find in the Scriptures that those who are in the presence of God don’t see how good they are, but they see how bad they are. If you will allow God’s glory to shine in your life, you will begin to see your own worthlessness and His righteousness. This is why I find that those who tend to point to themselves often are those who are not living close to the presence of God. God’s presence has a way of humbling the best of Christians.

Fourth, God’s Spirit will guide you when you let His glory shine in your life. Verse 5 says, “So the spirit took me up…” God’s Holy Spirit will never point to man. He will only point to Jesus Christ. If you want God’s power on your life, then you must let His glory shine through you so that He will allow His Holy Spirit to empower you. The empowering of the Holy Spirit will always cause you to point everyone to Jesus Christ.

Finally, sin will be put away when you let God’s glory shine in your life. Verse 9 says, “Now let them put away their whoredom…” The Christian will not want any sin in their life when they let God’s glory shine. They don’t want sin because they know that sin will quench God’s glory. Friend, I encourage you to make sure you continually work on removing sin from your life if you want to see God’s glory in your life.

Are you letting God’s glory shine in your life? Imagine the change that would happen around you if you let God’s glory shine in your life. Imagine the change that would happen in your home, church, workplace and surroundings if God’s glory was shining on your life. One of the greatest needs of today is for Christians to let God’s glory shine in their life. I encourage you to make the daily effort to show God’s glory in your life. Take yourself off your pedestal of glory and only let God receive the glory for all that happens in your life. It is then that these five things will become evident in your life.

Ezekiel 33:32
“And, lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument: for they hear thy words, but they do them not.”

On my computer I have a playlist that has some of my favorite songs that I love to hear. Many times throughout the week I will play this list of songs I enjoy hearing. It is not just the songs, but the artists as well. One of my favorite singers on this list is Bro. Alvin Martinez. His music is Spirit-filled, and his singing touches my heart. There is no doubt that I would say his singing is lovely.

God told Ezekiel that his preaching had become a lovely song to those who were listening. Ezekiel’s problem was not that he didn’t have a crowd to whom he could preach. The people enjoyed watching his illustrations. They saw him preach the next day after his wife had passed away from a stroke. His preaching was not abrasive as was the Apostle Paul’s, but it was a well displayed sermon like a person who “can play well on an instrument.”

The problem with these people was that his preaching had become a lovely song that they loved to hear. They would listen to the preaching, but they would go home and do the exact opposite of what he preached. They loved Ezekiel, but they simply came to hear what he would say because they wanted to see his next illustration or hear the eloquence of his preaching. More important than seeing his illustrations, they should have listened to the sermon. More important than loving the man of God, they should have heeded to the warning of each sermon. Ezekiel would rather these people obeyed the message of his sermon than like his preaching. Though Ezekiel preached exactly what God wanted him to preach, and though he preached exactly how God wanted him to preach, the people wasted the message because they came simply to hear him preach.

Dr. Jack Hyles was my pastor for many years. In this preacher’s opinion, Bro. Hyles was the best preacher I have ever heard, and I’m not alone with this summation. Yet, I’m amazed that though Dr. Hyles was one of the greatest voices that preached against compromise in our day, many who heard him are doing the exact opposite of what he preached. Sadly, I believe what happened is that many people came to hear this man of God preach, but they only came because his preaching was a lovely song to them. They did not come to heed his preaching, but they came to be in the presence of one whom God used greatly.

Has preaching become a lovely song to you? Do you listen to your pastor or to your favorite preacher because their preaching is as a lovely song? Is it that you like their humor, stories or their delivery that draws you to listen to their preaching? It would be sad that preaching is nothing more than a lovely song to which you listen. It would be sad that you listen to your pastor every week, a man to whom you love and enjoy listening, but don’t heed the content of his sermons.

Be careful that you don’t allow preaching to become a lovely song. Don’t miss the content of the sermon for the beauty of the delivery. Don’t listen to the sermon just because you enjoy preaching and walk away and do the complete opposite of what you just heard. God has not given you the opportunity to hear a truth from your favorite preacher just so you can walk away and do the opposite. Every time you listen to preaching, listen to it so you can correct what you’re doing wrong. Make the sermon more than a lovely song. Make it the alarm that causes you to correct the things in your life that are wrong. Don’t be guilty of hearing what you are supposed to do, but walk away and do the opposite. Don’t just listen to preaching, but respond to its message and correct what it tells you to correct.

Proverbs 29:15
“The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.”

One of the hardest things a person will do in life is be a parent. Parenting is not easy. If someone knew the formula for turning out good children, that person would be wealthy. The problem with child rearing is that each child has their own personality, and that personality makes them unique in every way.

When it comes to child rearing, there are some principles that help in parenting. The Scriptures are filled with parenting advice that if followed children will turn out for the good. The verse above is one of those verses that gives some parenting advice. God shows us some mistakes that parents make in rearing their children. If you will learn the principles God is teaching in this verse, then you will have a greater chance of your children doing right. Let me show you three mistakes from this verse that you should avoid as a parent.

The first mistake is using the rod alone. Notice the verse above says, “The rod and reproof…” A parent who only uses punishment without the reproof that comes with punishment is setting their child up to become angry with them. Parents should punish their children, but their children need to know why they are being punished. Every time you punish your child, it should be a teaching moment to teach them about life. Punishment alone will drive your child away from you.

The second mistake is using reproof alone. Reproof without punishment does not teach the child that sin has consequences. Many parents think it is cruel to punish their children, but if they don’t learn consequences come with wrong actions, then you are setting your children up for much heartache. I believe it is important to reprove your children and teach them why something is wrong, but when they do wrong they also need to learn the consequences that are a result of doing wrong.

The third mistake is spending time with your children, but not reproving and punishing them when they do wrong. The spectrum in this area goes both ways. Some parents reprove and punish but they don’t spend time with their children, and then there are other parents who spend time with their children but don’t punish and reprove them. All three are important to helping your children turn out right. A parent who does not spend any time with their children is a parent who is allowing others to influence over them. The greatest influence on a child should be their parent, and the only way they are going to have the prominent influence is by the parent spending time with them.

Are you making these common parenting mistakes? Punishment without reproof and lack of time together will cause a child to become foolish. Reproof without punishment and time together will again cause a child to live a foolish life. Punishment and reproof without a parent spending time with their child will bring shame to their parents. All three are important to children choosing a wise life and bringing honor to their parents. Make sure as a parent that you use all three tools to influence your child for right.

Ezekiel 11:3
“Which say, It is not near; let us build houses: this city is the caldron, and we be the flesh.”

The prophets in Ezekiel’s day were lying prophets. They knew very well that Ezekiel’s prophecy was correct, but they gave the people a false assurance by telling them Jerusalem would not be taken captive. They said that Jerusalem was a caldron, and they were the flesh. A caldron is a vessel used to boil flesh over a fire. You would put the flesh in the caldron, and hang the vessel on a hook over the fire. Though fire would heat up the caldron, the flesh inside would not be burnt. These prophets were saying that no matter what happened outside the walls of Jerusalem, they were safe inside those walls. Though what these prophets prophesied was comforting to the people, all they did was give them a false assurance that eventually led to their demise.

Many Christians have thought of themselves like that caldron. No, they may not have exactly used that analogy, in their mind they had the same false assurance that Jerusalem had. I look at this verse and I see three false assurances many people have about their sin.

The first false assurance is that it won’t happen to them. Jerusalem thought they were safe inside the caldron of the walls. They thought it would never happen to them. Many Christians have ruined their lives in sin using this mentality. For whatever reason they believe it won’t happen to them, they rest on that false assurance. You may think that sin will not touch you, but you must always realize that sin has a price that must be paid.

The second false assurance is, “I’m not like everyone else.” This is nothing short of pride. This comes from the mentality that you think you are smarter than everyone else. This comes from the thought that others were not as smart as you, and that you have contrived a plan to enjoy your sin so that God won’t punish you. Friend, you are like everyone else. You are not smarter than those who succumbed before you. If you have sin in your life and this devotional is simply a bunch of words that you’re reading, then you have fallen for this false assurance. Sin is not a respecter of persons, and you will have to pay sin’s price.

The third false assurance is, “We are stronger than our sin.” This is haughtiness to the core. This comes from the mentality that you have everything under control, but what you don’t realize is that sin has you under control. You may feel that you’re in control, but sin allows you to feel that way until its payment comes due.

There is only one caldron in which you are safe, and that is the caldron of Jesus Christ. When you live according to His Word, then you will be safe no matter what goes on around you. Living in Christ is a caldron that the fire cannot touch. Christian, I encourage you to live inside of that caldron. Sin’s caldron is weak, and the fire around it will get to you, but the caldron of Christ has been tried and tested over time, and the results show us that the fire cannot hurt you as long as you live inside of that caldron.

I encourage you to look at which caldron you are in, and make sure that Christ is the only One in Whom you trust. Don’t live in the false assurances of sin, but let Christ’s Word be the confidence in which you put your trust.

Lamentation 1:1
“How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people! how is she become as a widow! she that was great among the nations, and princess among the provinces, how is she become tributary!”

Sin’s last word is much different than it promised. Sin is one of the biggest liars you will ever hear. It promises dreams, but gives you heartache. It promises everything, but gives you nothing. It promises the world, but gives you bondage. Sin’s promise is truly empty.

Jeremiah laments what sin had done to the people of God. The Book of Lamentations is truly the last word of sin. Jeremiah shows that the promises of sin never came through. Certainly, they enjoyed their sin for a bit, but when the last word is spoken you see a people who realized the emptiness of sin’s promise. Let’s look at the last word of sin.

Sin’s last word is that it will leave you alone. One of the promises of sin is that it gives you a lot of friends, but when you look at the verse above you realize that sin left these people solitary. Sin left a city that used to be filled with people a solitary place. Sin left the city a ghost town. This was not what sin promised, but these people found out that sin leaves you all alone.

Likewise, sin will not give you the friends that you think it will. Yes, they may come in the beginning, but when all is said and done, you will be alone to deal with the affects of your sin. I have watched many people who accepted sin’s invitation find that when their sin was revealed, the friends they had were gone. Don’t believe sin’s promise of friendship, for sin’s last word is loneliness.

Sin’s last word is that it will leave you in sorrow. Jeremiah makes the statement that the city had “become as a widow.” In other words, they were grieving their loss. Sin promised them so much but left them with nothing. Sin will do the same thing for you. It will promise you everything but it will leave you grieving your losses. Sin always leaves a person to wonder, “What if…” What a terrible way to live the rest of your life! God wants His children to enjoy their life “more abundantly.” (John 10:10) Friend, you can live the abundant life if you will stay away from sin, but if you let sin have its way in your life the last word will leave you grieving what you could have had.

The last word of sin is that it leaves you serving. Notice that the city had “become tributary.” Sin promised them that they would be in control of their own lives, but the last word of sin left them serving sin. When you accept sin’s invitation, you are accepting the chains that come with sin. Sin eventually controls you. When you want to quit, it will keep you coming back. The freedom it promised will never be realized. Don’t ever think that sin will give you more freedom than doing right. Once you start down the road of sin, you will then have to deal with the heartache of its servitude.

Christian, don’t let sin have the last word in your life. The last word of sin is always heartache; whereas, the last word of doing right is an abundant life. Now is the time to deal with your sin. You can stop sin from having the last word in your life by forsaking it now. Don’t be the next statistic of sin. Whatever sin you have allowed in your life, take care of it today by confessing it to God and forsaking it!