Friend of Sinners

Praise God, Always About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. - Acts 16:25Have you ever done the right thing and yet ended up “getting in trouble.” That's what happened here to Paul and Silas, they healed a girl who was demon possessed, the only problem, she was making some people a lot of money because she could predict the future. So, Paul and Silas were thrown in prison for what they did. But, we can learn a lot by how they conducted themselves following this. They didn't get discouraged or give up or think that the Lord had abandoned them, rather they sang praises and hymns to God. Perhaps we can better understand when we read these words Paul wrote in Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” Paul and Silas kept trusting God knowing that He was in control, they simply just needed to keep doing His will. So for us, whatever situations or circumstances we may face the answer is simple: do the right thing, trust in the Lord, and regardless of the outcome praise God, always.

Holds No WaterLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Saturday September 19th, 2020. Todays verse is Jeremiah 2:13, “For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.”All too often as sinful human beings we take the toughest road possible. We snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. God, who loves us and offers us the living water freely and lovingly right in front of us and all we have to do is just take it. Yet, sadly, we think that we have a better way. A way that can accomplish all the things that we hope to accomplish, plus having the added benefit of us still being in charge. The only problem is that at the end of the day our way holds no water.

Talking TrashLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Friday September 18th, 2020. Todays verse is Proverbs 18:6, “A fool's lips enter into contention, and his mouth calleth for strokes.”As someone who grew up playing sports I am quite familiar with trash talk. When going up against someone you try to get in their head and get one over on them. At the same time though it was always best to let your game do the talking. If you were good the way you played said way more than your trash talk ever could. Unfortunately, the trash talk sometimes occurs not in the confines of sports, but in the real world. What happens when you say the wrong thing to the wrong person. Well suffice to say that your mouth writes a check… This is where wisdom of God comes in to play.

Do GoodLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Thursday September 17th, 2020. Todays verse is Luke 6:33, “If ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? for sinners also do even the same.”When you do good to those people in your life that are nice to you, or that help you, that’s good, but it’s not doing anything that is going out of your way. Everybody in the world is nice and does good to the people they like and get along with, or even get things from. However what Jesus expects is for us to go the extra mile and for us to go out of our way to do good to those people that don’t like us. You see when we do good unto and love our enemies that’s when we’ve done something.

The Goodness of the LORDLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Wednesday September 16th, 2020. Todays verse is Psalm 27:13, “I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.”Often God seems confusing to us and we simply don’t understand what is going on around us and why He allows it. But, His ways are higher than our ways. Sometimes our faith is really tried and put to the test. And we will lose heart, just give up and quit, if we aren’t firmly rooted in our faith. Knowing that we will see the goodness of God, not just when we die and go to be with Christ for eternity. No, in spite of all circumstances we remain confident that we will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.

Ought Not BeLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Tuesday September 15th, 2020. Todays verse is James 3:10, “Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be.”James rights in Chapter 1 Verse 8 that, “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.” I like the way the that New Living Translation renders this verse, “Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.” Basically, we can’t ride the fence. Too often we want to toe the line and get just as close to what we are wanting to get away with without technically crossing the line. But, as Jesus taught we can’t serve two masters. We need to flee from even the appearance of evil. This is so that what we say and do is good and anything else ought not be.

InexcusableLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Monday September 14th, 2020. Todays verse is Romans 2:1, “Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.”Hypocrisy is not a pretty thing and is something that no one wants to be accused of. But I’ll go ahead and say it we are all guilty of it. Yet, so many of us look upon and cast judgment on others for things that we ourselves are guilty of. Stephen M.R. Covey wrote in The Speed of Trust, “We judge ourselves by our intentions and others by their behaviour.” Meaning we tend to give ourselves a break, because we know our heart. God’s judgement however isn’t restricted by perspective, it is only holy and just. Before Him we are all sinners. Those of us who have received His salvation have no place to judge, only to extend the same gift of salvation to others. Anything else is inexcusable.

Keep the UnityLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Sunday September 13th, 2020. Todays verses are Ephesians 4:2-3, “With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”Love thy neighbor, do unto others as you would have them do unto you. You know the Golden Rule. We all have heard these and know them well, but we can’t just let them be cliches. If ever there was an example of long-suffering think of God toward humanity. All that He has been willing to go through and put up with because He loves us and desires a relationship with us. We need that same patience and love, along with a dose of humility, as we struggle through this Christian life with other believers through the power of the Holy Spirit. This is how we keep the unity.

This is VanityLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Saturday September 12th, 2020. Todays verse is Ecclesiastes 5:10, “He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.”If I only had… fill in the blank. We can all think of something that if we just had it we’d be perfectly happy and content. Then the next thing comes along. We live in a world that is in love with money and worships the haves, while shunning the have nots. We see all the abundance and want part in it. However, we can strive and strive and strive to reach the pinnacle of wealth and possessions only to realize that there will always be something new or something we can’t or don’t have and that this is all vanity.

Love GodLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Friday September 11th, 2020. Todays verse is Mark 12:30, “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.”The first commandment in Exodus 20 verse 3 reads, Thou shalt have no other gods before me. A better wording might be no other Gods above me, or even on the same level. Here Jesus is telling us the place that God must occupy in our lives. We need to love God with all of our heart as He loves us and demonstrated that love toward us, with all our soul that He purchased on the Cross, with all of our mind thinking on the things above and meditating on His word, and with all of our strength making every effort to keep His commandments and demonstrate His love. This is the first commandment, love God

Give With Sincerity Let’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Thursday September 10th, 2020. Todays verse is Matthew 6:2, “Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.”Giving to those in need is something that is an important and necessary thing for us to do as Christians. It falls directly in line with the heart of Jesus. While He was on earth think about how much He helped those that were in need. However, when we give to, or help, those in need we must do it with sincerity of heart, not seeking attention or congratulations for ourselves. Doing so, that becomes our reward, but giving to those in need, as unto the Lord and out of love is how we demonstrate Christ’s selfless love. Therefore, give, but give with sincerity.

Love Your EnemiesLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Wednesday September 9th, 2020. Todays verses are Luke 6:27-28 , “But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.”Jesus and all of His disciples were martyred for their faith, and many of the believers that followed met the same fate, yet they spent their lives sharing the love of God with people who wanted them dead, literally. That shows the love that they had for sinful man. Even facing the worst persecutions they refused to stop telling the world the Jesus loved them and they lived that out. Think about it, possibly the biggest enemy of the early church was Saul. Yet, even he the chief of all sinners was able to be reached and that only happens when you love your enemies.

Keep His CommandmentsLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Tuesday September 8th, 2020. Todays verse is Deuteronomy 7:9 , “Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations.”Jesus tells us in John 14:15, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” One thing that needs to be understood is what love is. Love is an action, it is something that is displayed. Think about it, how do we know that God loves us. He demonstrated it for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. We saw His love in action. So how then do we show that we love God. It certainly isn’t by just saying it. After all Jesus said in Luke 6:46, “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” If we love Him, we will keep His commandments.

Ready AlwaysLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Monday September 7th, 2020. Todays verse is 1 Peter 3:15, “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.”This verse is one that is championed amongst ministers. Always be ready to let someone know about Jesus. While this is true and something that we should definitely be doing, this says when someone asks us the reason that we have hope. That part is important and answered by the first part of the verse. Sanctifying God in our hearts. That is we should honor God as Lord in our hearts and in our deeds. This is what leads someone to asking why we are different. Then when they ask we are ready always to give an answer.

The Lord Will Take Me UpLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Sunday September 6th, 2020. Todays verses is Psalm 27:7, 9-10, “Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me. ... Hide not thy face far from me; put not thy servant away in anger: thou hast been my help; leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation. When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up.”In Deuteronomy we learn that God will never leave us or forsake us. Even when the world seems to be falling apart around us and we feel that everyone has abandoned us. Even those that we believed would never walk away from us. We can begin to believe that even God Himself has forsook us. But that is not the character of God. God loves us and Jesus came to save us, so we can rest assured of one thing and that is the Lord, even at our worst, loves us and will take us up and be our salvation.

No Other NameLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Saturday September 5th, 2020. Todays verse is Acts 4:12, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”In Finding Nemo the character Gill tells Nemo, as they are looking for a way out of the tank they are trapped in, that all drains lead to the ocean. Sounds great right. All they need to do is just find any drain and they have the path to paradise. As it turn out, that’s not true. Not all drains lead to the ocean. This lead to many fish being flushed to their deaths because of this misunderstanding. But there is an even more dangerous belief that is shared all too often. That is “all paths lead to God.” This is directly counter to the truth found in the Bible that Jesus is the only Way to God and there is no other name by which you can be saved.

Humility Leads to HonorLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Friday September 4th, 2020. Todays verse is Proverbs, “18:12 Before destruction the heart of man is haughty, and before honour is humility.”We’ve all heard the expression “The bigger they are the harder they fall” and I believe that’s true. The word haughty means an arrogant superiority. Thinking you are better than you are. I have always been in recovery ministries and this rings true every time. When someone begins to become overconfident, thinking they got this and ain't got nothing to worry about, the next thing you know they’ve fallen. But, those that have been successful have learned something that we all can benefit from learning. We ain’t go this. Jesus has got us. Realizing that Jesus is the reason that we are standing, or how we get back up, that requires humility and that leads to honor.

Make Known His DeedsLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Thursday September 3rd, 2020. Todays verse is Psalm 105:1, “O give thanks unto the LORD; call upon his name: make known his deeds among the people.”I used to work at a shop as a mechanic and where I worked there was a bad curve out front. When it rained the curve became particularly dangerous. I recall one especially bad crash and I remember running out to the crash while I was calling 911. All I could do was tell the lady when I got out there that help was on the way. Well, a few months go by and she stops by the shop, simply to thank me. Come to find out she also told everyone about how I called 911 and came out and checked on her. Now, think with me how much more deserving of praise is Jesus for what He did for us. He actually rescued us, not just called for help. That’s something worth bragging about and making known His deeds among the people.

Praise the LordLet’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just a Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s Word. It is Wednesday September 2nd, 2020. Todays verses are Isaiah 12:4-5, “Praise the Lord, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted. Sing unto the Lord; for he hath done excellent things: this is known in all the earth.”Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 3:2 that we are the epistles read amongst men. Yes, it’s true that part the Gospel is the good news of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, but also it is what that accomplished. The salvation of sinners. We each have a gospel to share, the good news of what Jesus has done for us. We ought to praise and sing thanks unto the Lord for all that He has done for us. Also, we must share what He has done for us to all the people of the world, for He desires to do the same for them, praise the Lord.

Nothing Else Matters
Let’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just A Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s word. It is Tuesday September 1st, 2020. Todays verse is Philippians 3:10, “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.”What Paul is saying here is that nothing else matters, except being in Christ. Even if that means giving up our status in life, our possessions in life, or even our life itself. I encourage you to read all of Philippians chapter 3 to see what Paul was willing to give up to show where we need to be, willing to give up everything for Christ. It isn’t easy and it ain’t always fun, but we need to strive to reach that place in our life where Christ is the only thing of importance, and nothing else matters.

Let’s get rid of that morning fog. This is “Just A Vapor” a quick glimpse into God’s word. A verse of the day everyday. Monday-Friday at 5am. Saturday and Sunday at 10am.