The Rapture of the Church could happen at any moment. I have had several series dealing with the end times, the Rapture and the Book of Revelation. But let’s look at it from another perspective. If you knew that the Rapture would happen next Thursday, would you be about the Father’s business?
I hope you are blessed by this series. Please feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts.
It’s time for a much-needed break. In the meantime, please take advantage of the various devotionals from the past. 👍😃 See you on March 1st.
Psa 119:39 Turn away my reproach which I fear: for thy judgments are good.
Good morning, Reader! When you read today’s verse, what comes to your mind? I believe that when we succumb to the devil’s temptations, we reap the repercussions of that sin. For example, indulging in drugs will result in an addiction that will be hard to break. It wears out the body and the addict quickly goes from a healthy body to an emaciated one. But there can be victory over this in Jesus Christ.
Matthew Henry’s commentary on this verse summarizes it best:
When Satan has drawn a child of God into worldly compliances, he will reproach him with the falls into which he led him. Victory must come from the cross of Christ. When we enjoy the sweetness of God’s precepts, it will make us long for more acquaintance with them. And where God has wrought to will, he will work to do.
God’s judgments may not seem good or fair to you at the time but they are always good. His judgments are always for our benefit. Don’t think for a minute that your sin will be overlooked by God.
Numbers 32:23 But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out.
As born-again believers, we have an Advocate, a lawyer if you will. He goes before the Father defending us:
1 John 2:1-6 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: (2) And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. (3) And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. (4) He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. (5) But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. (6) He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.
This is where “Christians” who continue in sin fail. They did not abide in Christ and are as the seed that fell upon the rock. But those Christians whose seed fell on good soil, we grow in the Lord and His love is perfected in our lives. (Matthew 13:3-9) So don’t be surprised when you are disciplined by the Lord when you succumb to the devil’s temptations. Acknowledge your sin before God and seek forgiveness. Ask the Lord to keep you from the hour of temptation so you are not so easily turned away. Each victory over sin brings a perfection of God’s love in us.
As we draw nearer to the Antichrist’s overtaking of the world, we can see the devil’s influence over the world. Can’t you see it? What used to be called evil is now accepted by the majority. Who would have thought that schools would have after school Satan clubs??? Parents who allow their young children to transition from their birth sex!
Isa 5:20 Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
I would not want to face God if I participated in this type of sin. What God has called good and holy will still be good and holy come Judgment Day!
Rev 20:11-15 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. (12) And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. (13) And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. (14) And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. (15) And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
There is nothing on this earth that is worth spending eternity in a Lake of Fire. There will be no escape and no second chance!
Friend, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
Psa 119:36 Incline my heart unto thy testimonies, and not to covetousness.
The word “testimony(ies) in this verse is very poignant. The Treasury of David has an interesting comment – I’ve added it below. David was the apple of God’s eye. One would think that he kept his heart focused on the Lord. But being human, I’m certain that he had tendencies to lean toward the opposite direction, as shown below.
“The only way to cure a wrong leaning is to have the soul bent in the opposite direction. Holiness of heart is the cure for covetousness.“
The Treasury of David
The only way to deal with sin is to be focused and centered on the Lord and His Word. Jesus quoted scripture to Satan when He was tempted by him in the desert. Jesus Christ took on human form and, therefore, could have succumbed to sin after 40 days of no eating. What human being wouldn’t? When the body is in pain and weak, it is harder to ward off the devil. Job is a good example of this. However, Jesus quoted His words from the Old Testament back at the devil. Is that what we do when we have fallen into temptation? Being tempted is not sin but giving into temptation is. The Lord promises to help us out of these situations.
James 1:14-15 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. 15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
It is not until the temptation has been “conceived” in our heart that it brings forth sin. Therefore, do not let yourself get to that point. We have a choice as born-again believers! We do not have to sin. We can stay focused on God’s Word and quote it back to the devil when we are tempted. Be encouraged, Christian… it won’t be long now before the Rapture occurs. Our troubles here on earth will be gone and we will be forever with the Lord for all eternity! Oh joy! I love this hymn! It becomes sweeter to me as I see the day of Christ’s return to get His Bride in the Rapture of the Church! (1 Corinthians 15:50-55, 1 Thessalonians 1:10, 1 Thessalonians 2:19, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11, 2 Timothy 3:1-9, 2 Timothy 4:8, Titus 2:13, James 5:7-8, Revelation 3:10, Revelation 4:1) Be encouraged, believer!
WHAT A DAY THAT WILL BE
There’s coming a day when no heartaches shall come
No more clouds in the sky
No more tears to dim the eye
All is peace forever more
On that happy golden shore
What a day, glorious day that will beWhat a day that will be when my Jesus I shall see
When I look upon His face the one who saved my by His grace
When He takes me by the hand and leads me to the promised land
What a day, glorious day that will beThere will be no sorrows there
And no more burdens to bear
No more sickness and, no more pain
No more parting over there
And forever I will be with the one who died for me
What a day, glorious day that will beWhat a day that will be when my Jesus I shall see
When I look upon His face the one who saved my by His grace
When He takes me by the hand and leads me to the promised land
What a day, glorious day that will beWhat a day that will be when my Jesus I shall see
When I look upon His face the one who saved my by His grace
When He takes me by the hand and leads me to the promised land
What a day, glorious day that will be
But for the one who is not authentically born again, it is not so. The unbeliever is not looking forward to the Rapture, if he even knows anything about it. The bottom line is salvation. This determines where a person will spend eternity: forever burning in the Lake of Fire or in Heaven with the Lord Jesus. Friend, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
Psa 119:33 HE. Teach me, O LORD, the way of thy statutes; and I shall keep it unto the end.
Oh what a blessing today’s verse is!! I love how the Word of God (Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour John 1:1) has provided His words through the Scriptures! Through them, we learn about His saving power, grace and mercy! Through them, I came to know Him and was gloriously born again!
But His Word doesn’t stop there! Reading the Scriptures brings comfort in this Topsy Tervy world! What does one do when the world seems to be falling apart all around us? The Bible has all the answers. In fact, God doesn’t want you fretting and has given you everything you need to know to live life when everything around you is going crazy!
Approximately 2,500 prophecies appear in the pages of the Bible, about 2,000 of which already have been fulfilled to the letter—no errors.
(The remaining 500 or so reach into the future and may be seen unfolding as days go by.)
Reasons to believe website
We can trust God’s promise to fulfill the remaining 500 or so because of His track record! He gave prophecies to prophets of old and approximately 2,000 have been fulfilled without error! Who can do that? God can! Therefore, we can count on the remaining prophecies to be fulfilled without error! You can take God’s Word to the bank, Reader! Don’t be afraid of what’s to come but be afraid if you don’t know where you will spend eternity! If you don’t know Christ as your Saviour, you will not be able to take part in the glorious rapture of the church! Those who remain on earth after the Rapture, will suffer God’s wrath during the Tribulation which will come upon all the earth.
Rev 3:10 Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.
Eph 5:6 Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.
1Th 5:9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
Don’t be one who will be left behind! Friend, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
Psa 119:30 I have chosen the way of truth: thy judgments have I laid before me.
Do you see Jesus in this verse? He is the only truth that one must follow. We find that truth in His Word. (John 14:6) Not only is He the truth in all things, but He desires to have close fellowship with us. So much so, that He calls the church His Bride! (Revelation 21:2, 21:9, 22:17) The church has continued to build, from the time Jesus arose to Heaven to the day the Rapture takes place. After the Rapture, the church is not mentioned because the Bride has gone home to her Groom! He loves us so much that He gave His life for us!
Jesus took all our punishment upon Himself so that we could be free from sin. The penalty of sin has been paid on the cross over 2,000 years ago! What love!
John 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
John 15:15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.
Jesus made it clear that if we follow Him, we are not only His Bride, but His friends! We are not servants but friends! Jesus is my Saviour! My eyes are fixed on Him as He leads me! We all need Him today more than ever! The world is upside down with sin running rampant in our streets. It is only through Him that we find truth, peace and comfort. (Matthew 11:28-30) Thank you, Lord!
Friend, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
Psalm 119:26 I have declared my ways, and thou heardest me: teach me thy statutes.
Admitting when I’m wrong has gotten easier as I have grown older. It’s never easy to admit you’ve done something wrong or that you have sinned against God. But once you’ve done it a few times, it does in fact get easier. Why? Because confession is good for the soul. It frees the soul from guilt and worry.
Is it any wonder that many Christians today are not walking closer with Jesus? Many have not declared their ways to Him. In a time where pride is at the pinnacle of society, Christians must beware of adjusting their spiritual walk to society’s “walk.” It is of the utmost importance to stay away from the evil doctrine of this world. We are most certainly living in the end times, of this I am certain.
1 Thessalonians 5:22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.
Admitting to Jesus our sins sets us free, especially when we come to salvation! A closer walk with Jesus helps us to keep our sin list short. We must desire that close relationship with Him. The closer we get to Him, the less we fall prey to sin. Furthermore, notice the verse says that He hears us in Psalm 119:26? Praise the Lord that our prayers for forgiveness are not lost in the air but are actually heard by the Lord! Praise Him!!
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
Ephesians 1:7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
Amen and amen! Jesus’ grace is sufficient each and every moment! Keeping ourselves centered around God’s Word helps us to deal with the pressures of today. Our world has gone crazy! They call that which is sin, good, and that which is good, evil!
Isaiah 5:20 Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
I don’t know how people make it through the day without fretting or worrying about what is happening around us. We all need the Lord and with Him, there is peace and rest.
Matthew 11:28-30 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (29) Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. (30) For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Friend, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
Psa 119:24 Thy testimonies also are my delight and my counsellors.
My love of lighthouses goes back to when I was first saved in 1980. I look at a lighthouse as Christ shining His light on my heart and illuminating His word and love. I would find peace and solace whenever I went to Heceta Head Lighthouse in Florence, Oregon. The view is spectacular, no matter where you stood! When I was at the shoreline, there were those three beautiful and large rocks in the foreground. As I climbed the hill toward the lighthouse, the view below was beautiful. But the view from this angle (behind the lighthouse) takes my breath away. It is there I could imagine sailors trying to navigate their ship during a storm or through dense fog.
My friend, it is that thought that draws me to the Saviour! He is my lighthouse who navigates me through the storms of life. Little did I know then what I would go through in the future with my husband’s illnesses. I’m glad I didn’t know because I surely would have gotten discouraged. But at the time, the Lord gave me exactly what I needed, when I needed it. Today’s verse truly describes my heart’s journey through my Christian life: Jesus is my delight and my counselor.
Can this be any more exciting???!!! Jesus is the fulfillment of the law. All the laws, precepts, testimonies, etc. are fulfilled through Him. Is Jesus Christ your delight and your counselor? Are you easily sidetracked because of today’s political climate and evil world? Our world has changed, no doubt. What is evil is now called good and what is good is called evil. Christians have the wonderful blessing of possessing God’s very words and turning to those words for direction, counsel and peace.
Psalm 119:165 Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.
Do you see that? Nothing from God’s word offends those who live by it. God’s Word points out our sins and leads us to repentance over them. We must take counsel in every book and chapter of the living word of God. Jesus’ Spirit breathed inspiration in its pages. The world doesn’t believe that the bible is real. Their cold hearts depend on man’s reasonings. But the Bible IS a living, breathing book and it illuminates God’s words in our hearts – at least for those who are seeking.
2 Peter 1:19-21 We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake [as they were] moved by the Holy Ghost.
The child of God is able to discern what God wants us to learn because that child possesses the Spirit of God within him. The Spirit will teach us what Christ wants us to know.
Joh 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
Neh 9:20 Thou gavest also thy good spirit to instruct them, and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst.
Mat 10:19-20 But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. (20) For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.
Luk 12:12 For the Holy Ghost shall teach you in the same hour what ye ought to say.
1Jn 2:27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.
Therefore, Christian, is Jesus your delight and counselor? He should be! Let Him be your lighthouse! If you happen to be reading this searching for comfort and direction; if you are not a born-again Christian, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
Genesis – Creator & promised Redeemer
Exodus – the Passover Lamb
Leviticus – High Priest
Numbers – water in the desert
Deuteronomy – He becomes the curse for us
Joshua – Commander of the army of the Lord
Judges – delivers us from injustice
Ruth – our Kinsman-Redeemer
1 Samuel – all in one, He is the Prophet/Priest/King
2 Samuel – King of grace & love
1 Kings – a Ruler greater than Solomon
2 Kings – the powerful prophet
1 Chronicles – Son of David that is coming to rule
2 Chronicles – the King who reigns eternally
Ezra – Priest proclaiming freedom
Nehemiah – the One who restores what is broken down
Esther – Protector of his people
Job – Mediator between God and man
Psalms – our song in the morning and in the night
Proverbs – our wisdom
Ecclesiastes – our meaning for life
Song of Solomon – Author of faithful love
Isaiah – Suffering Servant
Jeremiah – the weeping Messiah
Lamentations – He assumes God’s wrath for us
Ezekiel – Son of Man
Daniel – the stranger in the fire with us
Hosea – faithful husband even when we run away
Joel – He is sending His Spirit to His people
Amos – delivers justice to the oppressed
Obadiah – Judge of those who do evil
Jonah – the greatest missionary
Micah – He casts our sin into the sea of forgetfulness
Nahum – proclaims future world peace we cannot even imagine
Habakkuk – crushes injustice
Zephaniah – the Warrior who saves
Haggai – restores our worship
Zechariah – prophesies a Messiah pierced for us
Malachi – sun of righteousness who brings healing
Matthew – the Messiah who is King
Mark – the Messiah who is a Servant
Luke – the Messiah who is a Deliverer
John – the Messiah who is a God in the flesh
Acts – the Spirit who dwells in His people
Romans – the righteousness of God
1 Corinthians – the power and love of God
2 Corinthians – He is the down payment of what’s to come
Galatians – He is our very life
Ephesians – the unity of our church
Philippians – the joy of our life
Colossians – holds the supreme position in all things
1 Thessalonians – our comfort in the last days
2 Thessalonians – our returning King
1 Timothy – Savior of the worst sinners
2 Timothy – leader of the leaders
Titus – foundation of truth
Philemon – our Mediator
Hebrews – our High Priest
James – He matures our faith
1 Peter – our hope in times of suffering
2 Peter – the One who guards us from false teaching
1 John – source of all fellowship
2 John – God in the flesh
3 John – source of all truth
Jude – protects us from stumbling
Revelation – King of Kings and Lord of Lords, The Alpha and the Omega, The Beginning and the End, and He is coming again and the One who makes all things new.
Psa 119:18 Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.
Today’s Psalm reveals that when God opens our eyes, we are able to not only behold God’s law but to understand God’s law. This is how we find Jesus, the Messiah: it’s through God’s Word!
It has been said that the eyes are the window to the soul. The Scriptures indicate as much in:
Mat 6:22-24 The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. (23) But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! (24) No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
This world has been turned upside down with the woke agenda. The idea took off like wildfire and it cannot be quenched if good people don’t do what is right. There is only one truth, not “your truth and my truth”! If we do not have truth, how can we possibly maneuver in today’s warped thinking?
Reader, there is only one way to Heaven and that is through Jesus Christ. It takes the Holy Spirit of God to reveal this to us. When we are yearning for truth in the deepest parts of our heart, the Holy Spirit reveals to us that one true path, and that is Jesus Christ.
John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
The link below will guide you through verses that will lead you to salvation. There is no comfort to be had in a heart that doesn’t have Christ. Every human heart has a God-size hole in it that only He can fill. You will never be happy nor will you have peace. Only Jesus can give you peace! (John 14:27)
Friend, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
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