LifeLink Devotions for Thursday, October 31, 2024

How do you get your day started? Every day is a new adventure as we journey toward the promised land of eternity, and every day we need to prepare for what might happen on that journey.

Today in our study of faith we move into the Old Testament book of Numbers as Moses and the Israelites prepare to set out on their journey to the Promised Land. All the law has been given and the people have been instructed in the ways of the Lord. The tribes are organized into their marching formation and the Ark of the Covenant was carried at the front of the line to lead the way.

Numbers 10:35-36 Whenever the ark set out, Moses said, “Rise up, O LORD! May your enemies be scattered; may your foes flee before you.” Whenever it came to rest, he said, Return, O LORD, to the countless thousands of Israel.”

There are some very simple yet practical applications from this for our lives. First, each day as we awaken and plan our daily activities, the Presence of God should be at the top of the list. Moses says, “Rise up, O LORD!” As we mentioned in our last devotional, if God’s Presence does not go with us, then we could just as well stay in bed for the day because there will be nothing accomplished of any value or meaning. Let every day of our lives be started with a devotional time of prayer and the study of God’s Word, seeking His Presence and direction.

Second, be prepared to march whenever and wherever God tells us to. Each day is an exciting new adventure as we follow the glory of the Lord. The Israelites saw the pillar of cloud and of fire, and knew precisely when it was time to move because it would rise up from the Ark of the Covenant and direct them where to go. We have been given the indwelling fire of the Holy Spirit who accomplishes the same purpose in our lives. It is through a prepared heart of prayer and Bible study that the voice of the Holy Spirit is heard and we can get moving.

Third, set out on each daily adventure with the confidence of God’s protection. Moses’ prayer for the beginning of every leg of their journey was the same: “Take care of whatever is ahead.” What a great way for each of us to start our daily walk with God. Moses prayed, as we should, that we would follow the Lord because we trust His Presence to provide us security and protection. We must ask God to go before us and show us His way. We can move into each new day with confidence in His power and protection so that we can accomplish His purpose.

Fourth, end each day with faith in God’s abiding presence. In those times of rest and inactivity, whether it be just the sleep of the overnight or the extended days of unemployment, sickness, or discouragement, invite the abiding Presence of God to sustain you. He will!

Take these four simple lessons and apply them to your life. They will enhance your understanding of the Presence of God.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions for Wednesday, October 30, 2024

 As we progress through our study of faith, I am convinced that in general we do not understand that everything in life is to be about God’s glory. But Moses makes a statement in Exodus chapter thirty-three that strongly identifies the need to reach that level of mature faith. Moses says in verses fifteen and sixteen.  “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here.  How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”

Moses admits to God that life is meaningless and has no purpose unless God’s Presence is visible to everyone. Unless other people can see the reality of God through His Presence in their lives, Moses says that they might as well not proceed with life. The Presence of God is the one thing that distinguished the followers of God from all other people on the earth.

WOW! What a deep well into which we should sink our buckets.  I trust that the Holy Spirit motivates you to spend some time pulling up more living water. Let me start the process by focusing on this aspect of Moses’ statements: the single identifying mark of a Christian is to be the visible Presence of God in their life, and the single identifying mark of a church that is truly following God is to be the Presence of God in its people.

We have allowed the influence of the world to change our methods of identification. We have moved from being identified by His Presence to wanting to be identified by the fulfilled promises. We have looked hard for those promises that personally benefit us, and if we can see them fulfilled in us then we can be identified as followers of God. Prosperity resulting in big bank accounts and lots of expensive toys shows the Presence of God in our lives, doesn’t it? Big buildings show the Presence of God in a church, don’t they? Why is it necessary to place a humanly tangible product on the Presence of God to prove that God is present? Aren’t the unsaved equally or more wealthy than the saved? Aren’t the buildings of the cults and unrepentant churches bigger and better than those of the saved? Why do we insist on competing for recognition at the world’s level?

So how is the Presence of God seen in people and in the church? It is not through the physical manifestations of God’s power, although that may accompany His presence. It is through the spiritual manifestations of God’s character in the lives of His followers. It is through people who live with merciful and compassionate hearts. When Moses asked God to reveal His Presence to him in Exodus 33:18, God responded this way in verse 19 – And the LORD said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”  When God did this, and Moses saw His glory, Moses heard these words from God as He passed by – “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.” 

There are the identifying marks of the Presence of God in our lives and our churches – compassion, grace, patience, love, faithfulness, and forgiveness. And when you draw living water from the well of God’s Presence, your life will be identified by those same traits. 

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions for Tuesday, October 29, 2024

Yesterday the challenge was to be people like Moses who are truly known to God by our reputation and character and find favor in His sight. Today the challenge is to be people like Moses who seek to know God fully.

Exodus 33:13-14 “If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people.” The LORD replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

Notice how Moses begins this dialogue with God: he builds upon what God has already said about him. “If you are pleased with me, then let me know you better.” Now we must be careful not to fall into the misinterpretation of this statement as some have. We do not earn the knowledge of God by doing all the good works necessary to please Him. Quite the contrary! God and Moses had a relationship based on faith, not works. But because of his faith in God and the loving relationship that had been established based on that faith, Moses’ character was changed and he responded to God by serving Him obediently. Works are always the result of faith, never the means to it.

When Moses realized that the character development that was taking place in his life pleased God, he wanted to be sure that he would continue to live in the favor of the Lord. I think far too many of us are content with where we are right now and don’t really care if we ever know more about God or experience more of God’s power. Such spiritual growth may threaten the lifestyle choices we make. But Moses wanted everything from God that was available to him, so he asked for it. 

It is important that God see the true condition of our hearts in the asking. As a father, I am most blessed with my children and grandchildren when they ask me for something. It represents a heart of trust and humble dependence: trust in the loving supply of the father and humble acceptance of one’s own inability to provide totally for self. This is how God views our asking Him to supply our needs and reveal His nature.

Moses also understood that if God would reveal His ways to him, he would be better able to understand His nature and character. That is how we evaluate each other in our relationships, and that is how we truly know another person. That is the way we are to know God. Many of us have limited understanding of the fullness of God’s presence because we are still doing too much in our own strength and wisdom. We must step back and ask God to show us His way of doing it, and then we will begin to truly know His heart.

In response to Moses’ request, God gives him two promises:

1.      “My Presence will go with you.” This is the Hebrew word “face”. Those who seek to know God will be blessed with the favor of God’s face shining upon them. Those who seek self will have the face of God turned against them (Ps. 34:16)

2.      “I will give you rest.” Seeking to know God in the fullness of His nature and character brings peace to our lives because of the faith and trust that grows out of that knowledge.

Seek God. Seek His face. Ask Him to reveal His ways to you so that you may truly know His character. Then you will find rest.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions for Monday, October 28, 2024

One of the blessings of the way God equipped me for ministry is that He gave me a memory for names and faces.  As I have gotten older the ability to remember the correct name that goes with the face has diminished, but if I work at it I can usually do it after just one conversation. Whenever we go somewhere, even out of state, the consistent theme of my grandchildren’s conversation is, “How long will it be before we run into someone grandpa knows?”

Exodus 33:12 Moses said to the LORD, “You have said, ‘I know you by name and you have found favor with me.’ 

This ability to know a person’s name is quite different from how God knows us by name. There is a much deeper meaning and significance to how we can be known by name to God than how we are known by name to most people. It is the same in the reverse, for there is much more to knowing God than simply knowing His Name.

In the Bible, the name of someone was a representation of their character. Some characters were able to be named before their birth because God knew what their lives would represent – like Jacob. Others had their names changed later in life because of what their lives grew to represent – like Abraham. Others simply earned a reputation that was attached to their name because of how they lived their lives. That is what is true of most of us.

When God told Moses that He knew him by name, He was stating that He knew and understood his character and reputation, and it pleased Him. When God dug into the deep parts of Moses’ life, he found favor with him. What an incredible thought: Almighty God, perfect and holy, found favor with the way Moses was living his life. Moses was far from perfect, and none of us will ever measure up to the perfection of God. But God saw in Moses the integrity of a maturing character and informed Moses that he was qualified to lead the people.

Our challenge today is two-fold:

1.      When God looks at the deep parts of our lives, does He find favor with us? Can He say that He truly knows us by name? What is the reputation that is attached to our name because of the way we live?

2.      Are we following the leaders God has placed over us so that we may attain full maturity in Christ? Paul says it this way in Ephesians 4:11-13, “It was he(Jesus) who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.”

Let us move from simply being known to God by name to being known to God by reputation and character, How much more precious is the relationship when we get beyond face and name recognition and move to heart understanding. 

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions for Friday, October 25, 2024

If we are going to be people of faith who follow God into the future, then it is vital that we truly know and understand God and His plan. Moses understood the importance of this, and his priority to know God was a model for the rest of the Israelites and for us.

Exodus 33:7 “Now Moses used to take a tent and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the “tent of meeting.” Anyone inquiring of the LORD would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp.”

The first thing Moses did was to establish a specific place where he and the people could go to meet with God. Moses put a tent outside the encampment where people could go to personally inquire of the Lord. This is a great statement of God’s intention to establish every believer’s right to enter the throne room and talk to the Father personally. The death of Jesus Christ made that possible when the curtain in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom as God opened the way for all His children to meet with Him face to face.

Since the resurrection of Christ and the sending of the Holy Spirit to dwell in us we always have God’s presence with us, but I think the principle of setting aside a time and a place to meet with God still holds true today. Many of you are doing that right now as you read this. You have set aside the spot you are in as a place to meet with God, and reading this devotional is part of hearing from God and knowing Him better so you may follow Him more faithfully.

Exodus 33:8-11a “And whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people rose and stood at the entrances to their tents, watching Moses until he entered the tent. As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at the entrance, while the LORD spoke with Moses. Whenever the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance to the tent, they all stood and worshiped, each at the entrance to his tent. The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend.”

Moses had a unique relationship with God at that time and would go to speak with God face to face, as a man speaks with his friend. What an incredible statement of intimacy! That is the potential for all of us and should be our passion.

When God spoke with Moses, His glory was visible to the people, and they responded by standing and worshiping at the entrances to their own tents. In other words, each person made his own home a place of worship. The fact that we have a specific place called a church where we come to meet with God and hear from him is not an excuse to disregard the daily worship of God when we experience His presence and glory. Let us make the worship of God the priority of our homes.

Exodus 33:11b “Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young aide Joshua son of Nun did not leave the tent.”

Finally, notice the young man Joshua, who has taken on the responsibility of guarding the tent of meeting. Here was a young man who had a passion to know the God of Moses and to hear from Him intimately. He sacrificed everything to pursue God’s presence in his life. What a dividend was later reaped by Joshua when, based on his relationship with God and faithfulness to God’s plan, he was chosen to replace Moses as the leader of Israel. His leadership success is directly traced to this passion to be in the presence of God always.

May God’s Spirit make these truths powerful in our hearts and change us into people who passionately pursue intimacy with God.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions for Thursday, October 24, 2024

Years ago my wife and I had a great time with a missionary family that our church supported. After the morning worship service and lunch,  they came to our house and we loaded up the boat and headed for the Chippewa River for some tubing fun. We had a fabulous time getting everyone worn out hanging on for dear life. The river was crowded so there were plenty of waves to navigate, and there was some serious airtime being experienced by the tubers.

At the end of the day, after driving the boat for everyone else, one of the other families invited me to get in a three-person tube for one last run. I agreed, and it was obvious from the start that the boat driver had it in for me. Everything was done to throw me from the tube, including putting me in a faulty portion of the tube. Finally, after hanging on for dear life, the tube collapsed under me, and I was gone. It was a great tumble, but I came up laughing.  

The next day my shoulders and neck were sore. I must have hit my head funny when I fell into the water at breakneck speed. I have a definite understanding of being stiff-necked. However, mine is for a very different reason than the stiff-necked Israelites. Mine is muscle stiffness: theirs was moral stiffness.

Exodus 33:3 “ Go up to the land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you, because you are a stiff-necked people and I might destroy you on the way.”

The background of the word stiff-necked is agricultural, and comes from a term used to describe a stubborn ox or horse that won’t respond to the yoke or the reins. These animals have their own disposition and refuse to be broken to obey the master. That is how the people of Israel are described three times by the Lord because of their continual complaining and repeated return to their old ways of sin. So serious is this that God, in His mercy, refuses to accompany them on their journey to the promised land for fear that He will destroy them.  

It is a serious thing to have claimed to have taken the yoke of God’s leadership onto our shoulders and then replace it with the yoke of self-gratification. It is a serious thing to set our necks stiffly against the leading of God in our lives. It is a serious thing to set ourselves up as being more qualified to determine our outcomes than God. It is a serious thing to oppose the plan of God for our lives. It will lead to serious consequences and may end in the destruction of all that we once held dear.

But Jesus offers an alternative to that kind of burdensome living. In Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  This is the cure for a stiff neck that has been caused by the burden of guilt carried on the shoulders of a morally corrupt person. Come to Jesus for forgiveness and healing of the heart, for when the heart is overwhelmed with the love of God, the will is broken, and the surrendered soul finds rest.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions for Wednesday, October 23, 2024

Most of us don’t like reading stories like this one from the Bible.

Exodus 32:25-29 “Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control and so become a laughingstock to their enemies. So he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the LORD, come to me.” And all the Levites rallied to him. Then he said to them, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each man strap a sword to his side. Go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other, each killing his brother and friend and neighbor.’” The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people died. Then Moses said, “You have been set apart to the LORD today, for you were against your own sons and brothers, and he has blessed you this day.”

We do not like to think about the brutality of men with swords piercing the hearts of men with sin and putting them to death. We certainly do not want to think about the screams for mercy from the dying and the cries of mourning from the living.  We avoid reflecting on the fact that men killed their own family members and the horror of such an action. But we must take the time to review these events and let this be a teachable moment for us as it was for the nation of Israel.

Since the beginning of their deliverance from Egypt, the people of Israel were being shown more than just a path to follow – they were being shown a God to follow. It has been God’s intention in all of creation to make Himself known and reveal His glory to us.  That requires more than just intellectual understanding: it must also be experienced. The glory of God can only be known through the full experience of God, and that means we must experience every aspect of His nature.

In today’s story, the people of Israel experience the holiness of God. They had seen His holy character manifested in the destruction of their enemy Egypt, but they did not yet understand that all sin is equally punishable. They did what we do – qualify sin and sinners into categories so that our sin is justifiable. God will certainly punish the rapist before the one who lusts and the murderer before the gossiper.  But God said that the breaking of any moral law is direct rebellion against Him, and is punishable by death.  

Isaiah experienced the holiness of God and tells us about it in chapter 6 of his book.

“I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple…“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips,  and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.”

Notice what Isaiah expressed as his condition of sin – unclean lips. Not murder, not rape, not adultery, not stealing, but unclean speech. Isaiah understood God’s principle that “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks”, and he knew his heart was unclean. It’s true of us as well.

Here’s the point – in our human flesh we are unclean before a holy God. We deserve the punishment of death, even for what we consider to be the least of our sins. In God there is no darkness. Yet the blood of Jesus Christ shed on the cross on Calvary can wash away the guilt of all such sin. Many of you have experienced God’s grace that saves you from death. And yet God may be dealing with you today because of your choice to continue to live under the influence of sin’s passions. Is it not time for us to get on our knees and surrender to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and live in the promised land of victory? Is it not time to accept personal responsibility for the smallest of offenses against the holiness of God? Is it not time to fully know Him by fully experiencing Him and thus fully dwelling in His glory? To all of this I say an emphatic “YES!” and “AMEN!”

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions for Tuesday, October 22, 2024

When I was 6 years old I went with my mom to the local pharmacy in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. They had a toy section, and I knew there had to be something there that would make my life more fun and fulfilling. While mom was getting her things, I got mine. It was a red ball, about the size of a tennis ball, and it fit perfectly into my pocket. We walked out of the store, and it was mine…for a while. I couldn’t contain my excitement so on the way home I took the ball out and started tossing it in the air. Of course, mom noticed, and asked me where I got it. I lied. I said I had found it. Unfortunately, the price sticker was still on the ball, so that deception fell apart quickly. She turned the car around and marched me right back into that store where I had to confess what I had done to the owner of the store. I was humiliated.

At the time I thought about what I could learn from this, but I only thought in terms of how to not get caught. I thought about how to get away with it the next time: take off the price tag…scuff up the ball so it looks used…leave it in my pocket longer…and so on. But every one of those thoughts was a temptation by Satan to hide the sin and avoid the consequences. The real lesson I learned that day, even though I may not have learned it on that day, is this – I must take personal responsibility for my choices, and when I do there is forgiveness and restoration.

The real issue with lying is not the avoidance of consequences, but rather the protection of personal value and worth. When we really think about it, the consequences of our choices are not nearly so frightening as the thought of having a diminished value in the eyes of another person. That’s what really hurts, and that’s what causes our lying. Lying is an attempt at people pleasing, and the primary person we are trying to please is self.

Here’s how Aaron tried to maintain his image when Moses came down from the mountain and found the people dancing to a false God.

Exodus 32:24  “So I told them, ‘Whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off.’ Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!”

Aaron told an incredibly stupid lie when he claimed that the golden calf created itself. Did he think that because Moses had just been in the presence of God that he would easily believe any miracle? When self-protection mode is engaged in our lives we can easily be convinced to do and say anything that appears to benefit us. Aaron feared that Moses’ opinion of his leadership qualities and spiritual maturity would be diminished, so he tried to protect his reputation with a lie. So blindingly powerful is this need for self-protection that logic is thrown out the window. It was so very easy for Moses to disprove Aaron’s statement simply by asking other witnesses what happened. But Aaron’s lie was so rooted in pride that he believed that his word was more influential and trustworthy than anyone else’s word. He thought Moses should have no reason to doubt him even though the preponderance of evidence was against him.

We have all been in this situation, and we have all been at the crossroads where the paths of humility and pride meet and bring us to a moment of decision.  Moses brought the people to that crossroad when he declared to them, “Whoever is for the LORD, come to me.”  He gave the guilty people a chance for forgiveness and restoration. Those who responded received both. You may be at that crossroad today and must choose between faithfulness to God and faithfulness to self. Be careful, the choice of pride will end in destruction. The choice of humble personal responsibility will honor God and bring life. Choose wisely.

Pastor John