LifeLink Devotional

Monday, December 23, 2019

There were those in ancient Israel who were still anticipating the coming of the Messiah. Though they had not heard from a prophet for over 400 years, the prophecies of Isaiah and others of his time still stood as the shining hope of national rescue and renewal. Four-hundred years is a long time to maintain hope in the fulfillment of a promise. Most people had forgotten the tiny details that would validate His coming.  One such detail was the fact that He would be born to a virgin.

Matthew 1:18 – 23  ¹⁸This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.  ¹⁹Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. ²⁰But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  ²¹She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” ²²All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:  ²³“The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, “God with us.”

Try to put yourself in the position of the average citizen of rural Israel. You have heard of the promised Messiah, and you have had the writings of faithful men who proclaimed the promise read to you in the synagogue. You have never had a reason to doubt the reality of the ancient prophets and the validity of what they wrote, and you have looked for His coming. But doubt certainly rises in your mind when someone from Nazareth tells you a rumor that a young girl is pregnant without ever being intimate with a man. You immediately conclude that this must be a deeply troubled young girl who is seeking attention. She most certainly has lied to protect some man’s reputation. Who could believe that she is really carrying the Messiah?

Yet that was the sign that God proclaimed would validate the birth of His Son – it would be a virgin who would give birth. How else would it be possible for God to dwell with men as man and still be God? An earthly father would have continued the lineage of sinners. But this baby was a child of the heavenly Father, created by the power of the Holy Spirit who overshadowed Mary’s sinful flesh. What an incredible miracle – God born as a man.

Because I know the rest of the story of His life, I believe it all to be true. But what would I have believed if I had been there? Would I have left my sheep in the field to go see Him in the manger? Would I have traveled for two years from the farthest reaches of the known world to worship Him because I saw a star?

Here’s how I know whether I would have or not – Did I get up today and prepare myself for His next coming? I have never had any reason to doubt the reality of the ancient prophets and the validity of what they wrote. I have not doubted the truth of what Jesus has said. But did I arise today in anticipation that this might be the day the Messiah returns? Do the tiny details of world events cause me to consider the closeness of His appearing? Do I live each day as I did the last or as the last day?

At His first appearing, it was “God with us.” At His next appearing it will be us with God. Forever. Look up – it may be today.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Friday, December 20, 2019

A fast food chain that had previously been relatively unknown became nationally popular by choosing a slogan that caught on quickly – “Have it your way!” To appear helpful and serving, they capitalized on the self-centered nature of the customer. We believe we have the “right” to please ourselves by either having it or doing it our way.

In stark contrast to that philosophy stands the statement of Mary in response to the angel’s announcement of God’s purpose for her life. After asking how this miraculous event would happen to her, she fully surrenders self and accepts the nature of a servant.

Luke 1:38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

With an attitude of total humility Mary says, “May it be to me as you have said.” No debate. No suggested changes or adaptations to the plan. No looking around to see who’s watching this great example of humility. Just quiet and complete surrender to what God said. “Have it your way, God!”

We may think that her surrender was easy because she was being asked to do something so wonderful. She got to be pregnant with a son, which was the fulfillment of her cultural responsibility as a wife. She got to participate in the eternal purpose of Jehovah to save the world from its sin. That choice seems like a no-brainer, right? But what about all the problems she would encounter by making that choice to surrender? There would be the possibility of losing her fiancé. She would be considered an adulteress by her society. Her son would have to grow up as an illegitimate child, scorned by his youthful friends. She had to know all those things, and yet she considered the call of God to be more significant than the opinion of people.

The same call of God goes out to us today. He has called us to be a part of His incredible plan to bring His grace to a lost world? He has sent His Holy Spirit upon us to overshadow self and the flesh and empower us to accomplish God’s eternal purpose. We have the choice of two responses: we can look up to God in anticipation that the King will tell us “Have it your way,” or we can look up to the King and tell Him, “Have it your way.”

The first response appears safe because we believe we can control the social fallout of our choice. But in the second response there is incomparable fulfillment, knowing that we are participating with Almighty God in His glorious plan of salvation. Response #1 elevates self and society over God: response #2 recognizes the need of self and society that only God can meet. Response #1 leaves us at the mercy of man and destined to the world’s destruction. Response #2 puts us in the merciful hand of God and guarantees us eternal life.

Seems like a no-brainer to me!

“Have it your way, God!”

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Thursday, December 19, 2019

Luke 1:37  For nothing is impossible with God.

What an incredible statement! What an opportunity for participation in the miraculous! There is not one thing that God has promised to do for us that is outside of His ability to fulfill. Whatever it is that He is asking you to do may stretch you to your limits and deplete you of your strength, but not His. Whatever miracle you need today so that hope is restored and survival assured is totally within the realm of possibilities with God. While there are timing issues and purpose issues to be resolved, there is no issue with the power needed to do it. Anything God wills is able to be done!

There is an old praise chorus that expresses the heart of this verse very well. It goes like this:

            Got any rivers you think are uncrossable?

            Got any mountains you can’t tunnel through?

            God specializes in things thought impossible;

            He’ll do the thing others cannot do.

So before you build your life raft and try to sail across the flooded river of frustrations, ask God to remove the river.

Before you set your next stick of dynamite at the base of the mountain of madness hoping to tunnel through, ask God to move the mountain.

Before you take matters into your own hands, trust the hand of God. His hand is strong and safe.

Show the wonder of your great love, you who save by your right hand, those who take refuge in you from their foes. (Psalm 17:7)

His hand provides us with strength and endurance.

You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great. (Psalm 18:35)

His hand protects us.

Though he stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with his hand.

(Psalm 37:24)

His hand is secure.

Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. (Psalm 73:23)

His hand controls all things.

In his hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to him.

(Psalm 95:4)

 Nothing is impossible with God!

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

When I travel through North Dakota and other western states, I am struck with the immensity of God. After traveling from the beauty of the forests and hills of northern Wisconsin and Minnesota, the topography changes radically to flat and almost treeless plains where one can see for miles. The next farm is barely visible and the horizon seems unattainable. I imagine what is beyond, and my mind swirls as it swims in the depths of infinity. My limitations overwhelm me in the attempt to visualize the limitlessness of God.

That is the way my mind is responding to the incredible grace of God depicted in today’s conversation between the angel Gabriel and the soon-to-be mother named Mary.

Luke 1:26 – 28  ²⁶In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee,  ²⁷to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.  ²⁸The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

The great and overarching theme of Christmas is the grace of God. There is nothing that overwhelms our finite thoughts more than an attempt to comprehend the wonder of God’s grace. Our minds are befuddled when we try to qualify that which qualifies us. We who measure others and ourselves by human qualifications cannot fully comprehend the unconditional qualification of imperfect people by a perfect God. Yet that is what God does by grace.

Have there ever been sweeter words to the ears of any person than to be told that they have found favor with God? Mary was puzzled by this greeting, as are all of us when we are told that we are fully and unconditionally accepted into relationship with God. Yet those are the words that we long to hear. It is the deepest desire of our hearts to be accepted and to know that our lives have purpose and meaning. Yet we doubt the authenticity of the message. We are troubled by the thought that God can draw that close to us because we know the depths of our sin and unworthiness. But can you think of anything you would rather hear than the voice of God calling you His child, His heir, and His friend?

The message to Mary is also God’s message to us. When God directed Gabriel to tell Mary that she was highly favored, He chose a word that in the Greek language is used only one other time in all of Scripture, and its use is very significant for all of us. It is found in Ephesians 1:6, and literally translated says, “To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.” We have found, in Christ Jesus, the same favor of God that was proclaimed to Mary. We have been accepted into the beloved.

Hallelujah! What a great message of encouragement for us and for all the millions of people still seeking acceptance. We have the Gospel of Grace. We have experienced God’s unconditional forgiveness and acceptance. Let’s go tell the world that they too can be forgiven and accepted – and it’s FREE!

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Luke 1:34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be…?”

The older I get the busier I feel. I have figured out the reason: it’s because my human capabilities are diminished due to the physical limitations of age.

When busyness hits, my spirit is susceptible to faithless thinking. Projects and problems loom larger than they should when viewed through the lens of human capability.

One morning, on the way to the office, I was challenged by the words of Ron Hutchcraft.

Is there something big in your life right now? You say, “Man, this one is so tough, so big, so beyond me, I just honestly can’t see any way by any human plan or any human ability that this could ever happen. This mountain cannot move.” Well, Mary was there.

God’s answer to impossible situations is the same 2,000 years later. Mary’s question may be your question, “How will…” God’s answer, “He will.” “How will it be?” “The Holy Spirit will” is His answer. You don’t have to be the answer. You don’t have to create the answer. You don’t have to think up the answer.

The solution is God’s intervention, not man’s invention. As long as you try to face this challenge with human calculation you’re going to be overwhelmed. But Mary found something better than being overwhelmed; it’s overshadowed. The passage says, “You’ll be overshadowed by the power of the Holy Spirit.” You want to be overwhelmed? Well, you will be if you focus on your ability. Or you can be overshadowed by God’s power.

Understanding and accepting this gives you confidence. I can row into this storm right now because God’s power will be the difference, not mine. So, relax. Even if you’re in the middle of mission impossible right now, God is getting the solution ready.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Monday, December 16, 2019

In my possession are multiple articles of clothing that represent the football team I support. Now for those of you with humorous minds, I know what you are thinking. “Please don’t wear them!” But I don’t have them to hide them. I do wear them. In fact, it is so well known that I am a fan of this team that even when I wear that color of clothing without any reference to the team on it, people make comments about my team. It happens at church all the time when I wear anything purple.

In the past, when another team that is popular in this area has played in the playoffs, I have supported my friends by wearing the colors of their team. One year I even wore an official team jersey of that color to a church event. The people who saw me when I came in with that jersey on were shocked. They were confused. They knew that I was taking a stand for something that I had never supported before. I felt out of place. It was awkward. They had no reason to believe that I was being sincere, for there had been no previous experience upon which they could base their trust.

Soon and very soon the Salvation of the Lord will be upon the earth. Soon God’s righteousness will be revealed by the Righteous One appearing on the earth to establish His kingdom.

Isaiah 56:1 “This is what the LORD says: “Maintain justice and do what is right, for my salvation is close at hand and my righteousness will soon be revealed.”

It will be a kingdom ruled with justice and perfect righteousness. The weak will be made strong. The poor will have all their needs met. Victims will cease to be victimized and every act of sin will be exposed. Hate will disappear in the presence of perfect Love.

When all this happens, what will the people of the world say about you and me?

• Will they know that we have been consistent supporters of God’s kingdom?
• Will they recognize the banners now flying over the earth because they have seen us wearing the same colors proudly every day?
• Will they be thankful for the foundation that we laid in their lives and in our culture that prepared the way for the King to take His throne?
• Or will they wonder, with good reason, why at the last minute it appears we are switching teams?

Think on these things.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Friday, December 13, 2019

Years ago this devotional blog was called Connecting Points. I had chosen that name because the Mission Statement of our church is Connecting People to God, and I wanted my blog to enhance that mission. My desire was, and still is, to provide connecting points to deep relationships with Jesus Christ.

My connecting points are only possible because God established a connecting point with us. Since the Garden of Eden there had not been one. Oh, there were numerous events where God allowed sinful mankind to approach Him, hear Him, and obey Him, but He had not yet established a point in time where people could be reconciled to Him and connected to Him permanently. Man was separated from God by his sin, and could do nothing about it. All human history prior to this one event was preparation time for our connection problem to be fixed. It had been proclaimed prophetically for thousands of years. Now it was here.

Seven hundred years before it happened, the Prophet Isaiah declared that it was close at hand and ready to be revealed. Salvation was near. God would soon be with us, making it possible for Him to be in us. God established a connecting point.

Isaiah 56:1 “This is what the LORD says: “Maintain justice and do what is right, for my salvation is close at hand and my righteousness will soon be revealed.”

It was a two-part plan. First, God would connect with us. God would become one of us. The angel announced it to shepherds on the hillsides of Bethlehem.

“Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.” God connected with us.

The second part of the plan was to establish a place where we could connect with God. That place is called Calvary. Not a church, but the place where Jesus died on the cross as one of us. He was undeserving of death because He was sinless God. He became our sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21). Jesus paid the price of death so that we, through repentance from our sin and belief in Jesus as our Savior, could be saved from our sin and given the gift of eternal life. To confirm the gift and its payment, God resurrected Jesus from the dead. God established a place where you and I can make a permanent connection to Him.

That’s what Christmas is all about. ALL about! Everything we do at this season – the gifts, the family, the friends, the food, the football – is ALL about God establishing a connecting point with us.

Take all the fluff away, and I will still joyously proclaim “He’s Here!”

I need nothing else to be able to say it is the best Christmas ever!

Thanks for the Connecting Point, God!

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Thursday, December 12, 2019

Isaiah 28:16  So this is what the Sovereign LORD says:  “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts will never be dismayed.

Foundations are cracking, leading to crumbling. Principles upon which this country of ours was established are eroding away every day. If it continues, we will be swept away like a house built on sand rather than rock.

Every day it becomes more blatantly obvious that our culture rejects the Rock. And yet, there are glimmers of hope all around us if we take the time to praise what is being done right rather than criticize what we think is wrong. In fact, as we praise rather than criticize, we become one of those points of light that bring hope to others.

One such point of light is the music program at a local school system where I have grandchildren attending. Every choir and band concert we have been to last year and this year has been predominantly composed of Biblical music proclaiming faith in Christ. Right in the public school. I praise God for the directors of the music department for boldly proclaiming foundational truth and building it into the lives of the future generation of citizens that will need such a foundation.

It’s easy to get frustrated and attempt to change the system that rejects such foundational truth, but that would be a mistake. That would take us all further away from change, not closer to it. Change will come to our culture only as the love of Jesus and the truth of salvation are presented constantly and unashamedly before the lost people of the world. When the followers of Jesus switch from telling the Good News to trying to change the policies of society, then society becomes more firmly entrenched in their error.

So today, while cultural foundations are crumbling, I will choose to focus on THE Foundation of all life – the Cornerstone named Jesus Christ. He has been tested. He successfully passed every test. He can be trusted to get us through any and every test of our lives. He will never fail us. He will never forsake us. He will never leave us. When we trust Him alone, we will never be dismayed.

All around us every day are individual people who are searching for something upon which to build their lives. But what are we saying to them about the foundation of our life when what they see in us is dismay over the condition of the world? The things that cause discouragement and anger in our lives may be different than theirs, but the reality of such attitudes makes them suspicious that our Foundation is no more trustworthy than theirs. Think about it.

Now, with more conviction than ever, I will choose to focus on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that Christmas is about Jesus coming to earth as the complete and eternal revelation of God in human form. I know that He came to save us from our sin. I know that He died on the cross to pay the penalty of death that I deserved. I know that He rose from the dead to offer and guarantee eternal life to anyone comes to Him humbly and asks. But the world does not know this stuff, and if they do, they seem to be choosing to reject it. It does not accomplish God’s purpose for us to get angry and complain about what the world doesn’t believe. We are to simply and joyfully proclaim Jesus as Savior. We are not responsible for their response to us. We are responsible for our response to them.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men…

The angels declared to the shepherds that God’s gift of THE Savior would bring peace on earth. But if our only understanding of peace is that it means the absence of war or political conflict, then we would have to conclude that God lied to us.

Peace culminates in social reform. Social reform does not create peace. Peace produces political stability and harmony, not visa-versa. Peace begins in the heart and extends outward into the activities of life. Personal peace will transform the world.

However, man’s pursuit of peace is futile. He has never found it in his own mind nor accomplished it with his own efforts. That’s because no matter what we do or think, we are permanently at war with our creator. Our very nature stands opposed to the Holy One of heaven. So try as we might, every effort to create peace of mind or peace in the world ends in failure because our hearts still ache from sin.

But God so loved us, that He sent His One and Only Son Jesus to solve the sin problem. Jesus paid the price for our sin on the cross, suffering the total wrath of God against everything that stood opposed to His holy nature. Then He rose from the dead and conquered the consequences of sin forever. Anyone – absolutely anyone – who believes in Jesus Christ and repents of their sin is forgiven and the sin nature of man is replaced with the Son nature of God. Hallelujah!

For those who are in Christ Jesus there is peace. Through Jesus Christ we have peace with God and the peace of God that surpasses all understanding, no matter what is going on in the world around us.

The peace of God gives us hope – hope in the promise of peace on earth. And peace is coming. I recommend the eleventh chapter of Isaiah be required reading at Christmas. When Jesus came the first time, He came to provide an entrance for sinful man into a peace relationship with our Creator. We now await His second coming when He will bring peace around us on the earth. If you are looking for peace around you before discovering the peace of God within you then you will be consistently and permanently disappointed. But when we know the peace of God within us, we patiently wait in certain hope of Jesus bring peace on earth.

Read carefully the description of peace on earth in Isaiah 11 –

Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist. The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper’s nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious.

That is the hope of everyone who knows the peace of God in their heart today. Do you? You can. You can stop the frustrating and futile pursuit of peace because it is already available to you through Jesus Christ who will save you from your sin if you ask Him. Won’t you ask Him today? You can experience the peace of God when you have been brought to peace with God through Jesus, the Savior of the world.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

My wife collects nativity sets from all over the world. The latest addition to her collection is one I got delivered from missionaries in Nigeria. It is all hand-made by villagers as a means of raising money for their church.

A few years ago, I was looking for a stable to display one of the nativity sets. It’s a hand-carved one she got when we were in Swaziland, Africa. It is very special and she wanted a stable to display it.

While we were in one particular department store, we didn’t see any nativity sets or stables or mangers. We decided to ask a clerk where they might be. His response shocked us but is truly indicative of the spiritual state of things in America. He said, “We don’t have any. We didn’t even order any this year for our stock.”

Imagine that – Christmas without Christ. What’s left? Mas? What is mas? Well let me tell you what mas is in different languages.

In English, mas is a symbol used in astronomy. So? Well, if we leave Christ out of Christmas we may see and study the stars but miss the Star that leads us to Christ.

In Iceland it means chit chat or small talk, which describes the depth of relationship we experience with people when Christ’s love is left out.

People in Indonesia know mas as gold, which becomes the pursuit of everyone who leaves Christ out of Christmas. We learn to trust human resources rather than God. We become takers not givers.

The Italians use mas as an acronym for a motorized attack ship – a torpedo boat. War will be the result when leaving Christ out of culture.

Finally, in Danish, the word mas means trouble. As a verb it means to crush. When we choose to leave Christ out of Christmas we are inviting the troubles of this world to crush us. Without Christ there is no wisdom or understanding. Without the Messiah there is no direction for life – no counsel. Without the humanly powerless baby in a manger we will never experience the limitless power of His eternal presence. If we reject the Child that was given to us at Christmas we will perish for lack of knowledge.

But add Christ to mas, and in any language it means hope. It means salvation. It means life. Look at what the prophet says about the Messiah Jesus Christ.

 Isaiah 11:1-3  A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD—and he will delight in the fear of the LORD.

In Latin the word mas means man. Christ the man, the Son of God. Without Christ all hope is in man. With Christ man’s hope is in the Savior of the world. Life without Christ leaves us hopeless. Life with Christ gives us everything we need – for today and for eternity. Don’t leave Christ out of Christmas.

Pastor John