LifeLink Devotions

Friday, September 22, 2023

One day years ago I had a ministry appointment out in the country. On the way I would pass the farm of an elderly gentleman that I had not yet met, but who might be willing to let me bow hunt for deer on his property – at least that’s what another new acquaintance of mine told me. So, I stopped in to his house. He wasn’t home. On my way home from my appointment, I dropped by again, and he still wasn’t home. I was disappointed. In one month, the season opens, and it sure would be nice to have some land to hunt that was closer to my home. I regretted not having a business card in my pocket so I could leave a note for him in the door.

In the fiftieth chapter of Isaiah, God is having the same kind of a day with the nation of Israel.

Isaiah 50:2  “When I came, why was there no one? When I called, why was there no one to answer? Was my arm too short to ransom you? Do I lack the strength to rescue you?”

He came to visit them, and they weren’t home. He called them and there was no answer. Then the Lord gives them the reason for His visit – He was there to rescue them from the trouble they were in. Unfortunately, they weren’t available.

As God gives the people the reasons for His visit, He also reveals the reason for the trouble they were in – they didn’t think God really cared or that God could really do anything about it. God says, “do you really think I don’t care or that I lack the ability and resources to help you?

I wonder how many times I have missed a visit from God in my life because I was off trying to fix things in my own wisdom and strength. As I reflect on my natural tendencies, I jump rather quickly into fix-it mode. Then, when my strength and resources are exhausted, I turn to God for help. How sad!

How great is the denial in which we live when we think that what we are doing is just our natural tendency, almost as if we are trying to justify our behavior. We need to fall on our knees before the Father and admit that we just don’t trust Him or think He really cares. We prefer our own control rather than surrender to His control. As a result, we wander off to do things our way, and we miss His visit.

But God is so gracious. He reaches into His bottomless pocket and pulls out His business card and a pen. Then, with ink that strangely resembles blood He writes these words – “Sorry I missed you” – and places it in the door of our heart where we are sure to see it whenever we choose to open it again.

Quick. Go check the door. Maybe God’s been at your place recently. He’s still available.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Thursday, September 21, 2023

The context of the first seven verses of Isaiah 49 is prophetic. Jesus the Messiah is being foreseen, and He is the one spoken of.

Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity, who is fully and eternally God, was called by the Father to accomplish His will – to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel that had been kept by God. But before He clarifies the call God confirms the commitment. Was Jesus, the Son of God, in all His eternal glory, willing to humble Himself and become a man, taking on the form of a servant, if that’s what it took to accomplish God’s glory? Or would He consider that calling too small a thing for someone so qualified? So the Father makes an addition to the call. The Messiah would be a light for the Gentiles – you and me – and bring salvation to the ends of the earth.

Isaiah 49:6   “And now the Lord says, ‘It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.’”

When I first started out in ministry, I served two small churches in rural South Dakota. To provide for my family, I needed full-time employment. I spent almost eight years in bi-vocational ministry.

Years ago, as the church I pastored was growing, we had a need for a part-time associate pastor. We searched for a long time. We were discouraged by the unwillingness of those called to ministry to serve the Lord in bi-vocational ministry. The call seemed too small for them.

We have created a culture in our modern church era that places ministry on the same level as professional employment. Granted, the Bible teaches that the workman is worthy of his hire, but the same Apostle who wrote that first taught by example how to be bi-vocational to ease the burden on the local church so ministry to people could flourish. Time and time again while contacting potential applicants the same response was given – “I have my degree, I’m a professional, and I have certain pay requirements, and I can’t do part-time.”  In some cases, the hearts of the applicant were right based on the needs of their family, and I respect that. But there were far too many people that made it clear that our position was too small a thing for them.

I believe that we are in denial about how serious this issue is in our own lives. We don’t want to take the time to reflect on how much the materialistic society in which we live has impacted our willingness to serve Jesus sacrificially. I truly believe that there are things God has called us to do that we have determined are beneath us and don’t meet our needs. We are blinded by the immediate and therefore miss the glory that could be seen. We have climbed to the mountain top of our pride and forgotten that the only view of God’s glory is from the lowest place.

When I recently travelled to the Philippines and to India, I met men and women who understand the call of God to serve Him. They know there is no call too small. They know there is no need to put conditions on God’s call. Obedience to God’s call will always be accompanied by God’s provision to accomplish it. We tend to put the provision ahead of the call, and that is not how God works. There’s a reason for that…because that puts us in a position to receive glory to ourselves. If we focus on the provisions as a condition, then when the task is complete, we will believe we had some part in making it happen. God has stated clearly that He will not share His glory. (Isaiah 48:11) If we are seeking to provide for ourselves, then God will not honor the work we are about to do, for it is not 100% being done for Him.

What a blessing it was to meet pastors who sacrifice their personal ambitions out of love and reverence for the One who saved them. As for me and you, let’s be ready to consider any place He takes us for any reason, and not consider any call too small.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Wednesday, September 20, 2023

Isaiah 48:18-19   “If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your righteousness like the waves of the sea. Your descendants would have been like the sand, your children like its numberless grains; their name would never be cut off nor destroyed from before me.”

“If only…” 

Those are powerful words. They conjure conviction. They remind of regrets. They are saturated with shame.

“If only…” We can all finish that sentence, and when we do, it becomes a sentence. It locks us in the prison of what could have been.

The Enemy of our souls mocks Almighty God with the lives of the redeemed who are locked in the bondage of regret. As pride combines with the pursuit of self-worth, the past becomes a prison.  The remembrance of failure fuels our fear. Our view of our value is no longer vertical. We have lost hope for the future. We live only in the dream of reliving the past. It is exactly where Satan wants us – convinced that we cannot be forgiven. Life lived under the control of “If only…” is obnoxiously opposed to the grace of God.

The Lord only reminds us of the past to magnify His grace that has set us free. The past is a building block upon which our lives stand to gain a higher view of God, rather than a block that forms a wall that limits our view of God. When God reminded the Israelites of what could have been, it was to set them free from the bondage of those memories. God longs with an eternal longing to shower His grace and restore His embrace.

That freedom comes at a price – our obedience. The Lord reminds us of the past so that we might learn to obey Him. Satan reminds us of the past to convince us that we are no longer able to obey. Memories of the consequences of our sin are the fertile soil in which God plants the seeds of righteousness. Confession of our sin fertilizes the seeds with the grace of forgiveness and the seeds grow to produce fruit for the glory of God.

Satan attempts to steal the seeds. In their place he plants seeds of doubt, fear, and worthlessness. They do not grow to bear fruit but serve only to make the soil hard. The water of the Word of God begins to run off rather than soak in, and we are left dry and weary. But in the words of the Vernon Charlesworth hymn, “Jesus is the Rock in a weary land.”

When the people of Israel were in such a dry and weary land as they escaped from the bondage of Egypt, they did not thirst as water came flowing from the rock. Even though they thought it was hopeless and they complained, God was there to show grace. Hundreds of years later God reminds them of that fact through Isaiah’s words in verse 21. Read it and be refreshed.

“They did not thirst when he led them through the deserts; he made water flow for them from the rock; he split the rock and the water gushed out.”

God’s grace gushes out.

The prison walls of “If only…” are not able to stand against the gushing of grace. God has declared you are free. He says to us in verse 20 to leave the place of bondage for the Lord has redeemed you. Shout it with joy to the ends of the earth. We are free. All memories of the past are washed in the blood of the Lamb and are now only reminders to obey and experience the fullness of God’s blessing from this day forward.

Look up. You are about to be gushed upon.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Tuesday, September 19, 2023

Isaiah 48:5   “Therefore I told you these things long ago; before they happened I announced them to you so that you could not say, ‘My idols did them; my wooden image and metal god ordained them.’”

To get a full understanding of the context and content of God’s message to us today, I suggest you read Isaiah 48:1-11 first. Then do not be discouraged and stop reading after the next paragraph. Think hard about its truth, but do not be discouraged. There is hope.

We are stubborn people. We don’t have to try to want our own way; it is the natural expression of our sinful nature.  It culminates in us giving credit to gods of our own creation for what happens in our lives. That way our pride can be fully self-sustaining with no need for outside interference. It is the circle of bondage that pleases the Enemy of our souls. We are obnoxious to Almighty God when we live according to the flesh.

God is full of grace and mercy. For his own sake – for the sake of His Name and fame – He delays His wrath. He has chosen to reveal Himself and His plan to us so that He may be honored and glorified in our lives. Our troubles are His testing ground to prove His faithfulness and build our faith. He does not permit His people to remain in a place of pride. In His love for us as His children He draws us back to His heart so that in us and to all who know us He is shown to be the only true God.

One way that God destroys our pride and restores our souls is through prophecy. In Isaiah 48 God reveals to us the importance of prophecy. It has to do with our stubbornness. First, He reminds us that the prophecies of old that have come true give us a foundation of faith upon which we can look to the future. If God had not revealed specific details of His plan to His people, their pride would have allowed them to give credit to gods of their own choosing – gods they created to allow the co-existence of faith and flesh in their lives. But because God told them what would happen eons before it did, they had to give credit to Him.

That’s why the study of Old Testament prophecy is important – we see the workings of Almighty God and build an understanding of His sovereignty. Without that foundation of faith, we would quickly give credit for what happens in our world to gods of our own creation; gods like government or economics or the worst one of all, personal knowledge and power. But when we study the Old Testament and see the prophecies of God proclaimed hundreds of years before the event took place, and the perfection of every prophetic detail, we can give glory to only One – Jehovah God.

Second, God has revealed new things that have not yet been fulfilled, and our study of them will bring the blessings of faith, patience, and perseverance to our lives. We will understand current events in light of God’s purpose. For the nation of Israel God revealed His plan for their restoration as a nation, and that is the theme of the rest of Isaiah. It is the plan for the restoration of His glory to His chosen people the nation of Israel. For us, the prophecies extend into the New Testament and reveal the glory of God in His church and into eternity. His wrath will be revealed as He strikes down all sin and all sinners. His glory will be revealed as the church fulfills its calling as the Bride of Christ. Those who study these prophecies will be constantly refined and revived and will be able to keep their eyes fixed on Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith, despite the circumstances of life.

But we are a stubborn people. We still turn our attention to man’s solutions for the problems of the world, rather than seeing the problems through God’s perspective. Four times in verses nine through eleven God says that what He does is for His sake – for His glory. He will not share His glory. If in any way we have created gods that get glory for what happens in our lives, we will be tested and afflicted. It is God’s expression of love to His children so that we turn back to Him. We are to be the proof of God’s glory to the sinful world around us. Unfortunately, many so-called Christians are becoming proof of humanism and man’s glory rather than God’s. Let that not be said of us! Let us return to the study of prophecy and listen to the words of Scripture. May our discussions of current events always be in the context of God’s plan revealed in Scripture, not man’s plan devised in stubbornness and rebellion against God.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Monday, September 18, 2023

Isaiah 48:1   “Listen to this, O house of Jacob, you who are called by the name of Israel and come from the line of Judah, you who take oaths in the name of the Lord and invoke the God of Israel – but not in truth or righteousness.”

I’m stuck. It’s a dilemma. I cannot get past the last six words of this verse. No matter what I try the Holy Spirit keeps bringing me back to them. I believe God wants me to learn a lesson about who I am. Maybe this is for you too.

The people of Israel were God’s chosen people. Nothing could ever change that. They had a rich and meaningful spiritual heritage. They were called by the name God had chosen for them. But their spiritual activity was a sham – a ritual that had no righteousness – a task that wasn’t the expression of truth.

Religion can become just that – truthless tasks and righteousless rituals. (Don’t try to correct my spelling – that word isn’t in the dictionary, but is descriptively powerful.) We have become people who have a form of godliness but deny the power of it in our everyday activity. (2 Timothy 3:5) We make great promises to God about our plans to change, but those plans are quickly absorbed into our secular and worldly lifestyles. We turn to God in our dark times of deep need, but we only want rescue rather than repentance.

Religion produces self-defined people. Look at the people of Israel. They were chosen by God. They were called by God. They were set apart for God’s purpose. They were given a special name. They inherited a spiritual heritage that is the model for all people. But they quickly turned all of that into a license to satisfy the desires of their own sinful hearts. They translated their past into permissiveness – their perceived security into personal self-fulfillment. No longer did they choose to let God define them, but rather they chose to define themselves.

Now let’s look at ourselves. We are a chosen people (1Peter 2:9). We are called by God (Romans 1:6). We are set apart for God’s purpose (Philippians 2:13). We have been given a special name (Acts 11:26). We have inherited a spiritual heritage (Galatians 4:7). How then do we live? Are we also guilty of turning all of that into a license to satisfy the desires of our sinful nature that was to have been put to death when we came to saving faith in Jesus Christ?

Let us all take some time today and every day to consider this – am I living my life according to God’s eternal definition of me or according to my own definition that is convenient for today? May every activity of our lives be seen by God as the expression of the truth of His definition of a Christ-follower. May our lives be lived in the righteousness of Christ. That is holiness – a life without contradiction.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Friday, September 15, 2023

It was quite a week of testing. Our patience was tested. Our ability to function on less sleep was tested. Our creativity was tested. Our wisdom was tested. I am proud to announce that we not only survived the test but we thoroughly enjoyed it and passed with flying colors. Of course, the flying colors part is just my opinion.

What a joy it was to be surrounded by children for those days. We had five of them for the first three days and then just two of the older ones for the remaining five days. I admit that it felt good to return home alone after dropping them off. But God reminded me of something while they were all here. I thought at first I was teaching this to the kids, but it was me who really needed to learn. That’s God’s plan – to give us the children and grandchildren He knows we need to make us more like Jesus.

When trouble would brew between the kids, or when one would make a decision that turned out poorly, I took the time to try to teach them a lesson in maturity. Every time one of the kids made a bad decision, I would pull them aside and talk to them about what it means to think about the consequences of our choices. Rather than acting impulsively, I would try to lay the foundation for them to consider what might happen if they do it. I knew that they would probably not understand the concept, and that kids that age don’t think that way, but I wanted to start teaching them so that by repetition over the years they will get it and become mature decision-makers. Now, because I have started this, every time I see them I can supplement their parent’s teaching by emphasizing good decision-making skills.

This morning as I was studying Isaiah 47, God highlighted verse 7 for me.

Isaiah 47:7b   …But you did not consider these things or reflect on what might happen.

The Babylonians had been making decisions based solely on their need for immediate gratification. Now God was going to intervene and make some corrections. He starts by telling them that they had been poor decision-makers. I saw myself clearly as I read. When I got to verse seven, I stopped and knew it was for me. The Lord reminded me that I need to consider all the consequences of every choice and reflect on what might happen.

I condensed the principle into three words – consider the consequences. I have renewed my commitment to that principle. Maybe today is the day you do the same.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Thursday, September 14, 2023

I have absolutely no idea who Shelia B. is, but she went public with advice to a friend on Twitter recently. Her friend was obviously dating someone that Shelia did not approve of. She told her friend, “Really? Lauren? Not even in the same class as Jacob. He should’ve been gone.”

This simple exchange between two friends illustrates a problem that exists in our hearts. We have been suckered into a game that we should not be playing. We are like unsuspecting tourists at a county fair who are approached by a barker who wants us to play his carnival game. He stands in the main flow of pedestrian traffic and shouts out to us that we are guaranteed winners if we will just try it once. In our innocence and naiveté we agree, and before long our pockets are empty and our self-esteem is destroyed. We walk away believing we are losers.

Such is the game of comparisons we play every day. In our innocence as children, we were convinced by someone that the best way to discover our true worth was to compare ourselves to others. So began a life of criticism, put downs, insults, and sarcasm designed to somehow make us feel good about who we are. In our hearts we know it doesn’t work, and in most cases it makes us feel worse rather than better about who we are, but we are stuck in the bondage of the behavior. How can we be set free?

It starts with our belief in God. That’s not just a simple Sunday School answer. It’s the eternal truth of the matter. If we have established equals to God in our lives, then we will never be free from the comparison chains in our mind. If we believe that there is anyone or anything that is even in the same class as God and worthy of comparison, we will never be free from the bondage in our brains. Our freedom begins with a proper perspective of Almighty God.

Because we are finite, and therefore think from a finite perspective, it is hard for us to imagine anyone so far above everyone else that they are in a totally separate class. From childhood we have been taught that someday we will meet someone better than us. That fact either drives us to excel or holds us back. Either way, our motivation for action or inactivity is the same – comparison.

If we could catch a glimpse of the infinite, we would see that God is beyond comparison. He has no equal. He is in a class all by Himself. He is the one and only standard of perfection. He has the right, and is the only one who has the right, to declare His own worth, because He is the only one who is unbiased and truthful about His status.

Isaiah 46:5   “To whom will you compare me or count me equal? To whom will you liken me that we may be compared?”

Here is what God says about Himself in just a few verses of Isaiah 46 –

• I am God, and there is no other
• I am God, and there is none like me
• I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come
• I say: My purpose will stand
• I will do all that I please
• What I have said, that will I bring about
• What I have planned, that will I do

After you have allowed those truths to sink in, you may still be asking how that solves the comparison game. Here’s how: The God who is incomparable has lavished His love on us and declared us to be His children (1 John 3:1). We have no need to compare ourselves to anyone to determine our worth because our worth has been eternally established and declared by the One who has no comparison. We have become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21). We are joint heirs with Jesus with all things eternal (Romans 8:17). We have been granted a seat with Christ in heaven (Ephesians 2:6). God declares us to be incomparable.

With all that affirmation from God and His declaration of our worth, we are free from the bondage of comparisons. Now, instead of spending time trying to earn the approval of people, we can grant them the approval that God gives because we are living in it.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Wednesday, September 13, 2023

First things first.

I’m guilty of putting lesser things first.

Today I rejoice that the first things are the first things. They are also the best things. God designed it that way. His first things are always our best things.

As I read through the 45^th chapter of Isaiah again this morning I was reminded of five first things that put every other thing in proper perspective. Here they are:

#1.   God’s salvation is an everlasting salvation. Isaiah 45:17 “But Israel will be saved by the LORD with an everlasting salvation.”

#2.   God does not hide Himself from us, and when we seek Him we will find Him. Isaiah 45:19 “I have not said to Jacob’s descendants, ‘Seek me in vain.’”

#3.   One day everyone will bow before Him and acknowledge that He is LORD. Some will bow in despair as they await their sentence. I will join all others who have been saved and bow before Him in adoration and thanksgiving as we enter His eternal presence. Isaiah 45:23   “Before the LORD every knee will bow.”

#4.   Only in the LORD will I discover and embrace righteousness and strength. All other ground is sinking sand. He alone is my solid rock. Isaiah 45:24  “In the LORD alone are righteousness and strength.”

#5.   In the LORD I will be found righteous and will glory in Him. God declares me righteous because of the righteousness of Christ in me. Not because of what I did to earn it – I can do NOTHING to earn it. It is all because of the love and grace of God manifested in Jesus Christ my LORD! That makes me rejoice! Isaiah 45:25 “In the LORD all the descendants of Israel will be found righteous and will exult.”

First things first.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Tuesday, September 12, 2023

I did a little fishing last weekend. It was fun, but not fulfilling. God has been unrelentingly reminding me that I have been called to fish for men.

The call Jesus issued to His disciples to leave a life of fishing for fish and become fishers of men is monumental. It’s monstrous. It’s motivational.  As these fishermen discover more and more about the Messiah, they are captivated with Him. They are considering investing their lives in His eternal purposes. They have already been called to follow Him, but they had not yet made a permanent commitment. They were balancing their spiritual and their worldly lives, attempting to have both. They would soon learn that the call to follow Jesus isn’t a call that allows us to bring anything with us. It’s a call to complete commitment.

When Jesus issued His call to commitment, He encapsulated in it His purpose for their lives. They would be fishers of men. He did not call them to political or social reform. He called them to one simple objective – spiritual reform. He called them to catch men for the Kingdom of God. He called them to represent the heart of God to people who were lost. He called them to call others to be saved from their sin.

Isaiah 45:22    “Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other.”

We have digressed from the call. We have become efficient at many commendable spiritual activities but have lost our passion for fishing. The church is missing out on the fullness of God’s blessing because it is minimizing its God-given mission. We as individuals have become adept at balancing our spiritual and worldly lifestyles, but if we would be really honest with God we have tipped the scales in favor of the world. Very little fishing is being done, yet that’s the one thing Jesus called us to do better than anything else.

Fishermen don’t catch fish every day. But they do fish constantly, and when they’re not fishing, they’re thinking about fishing and planning for the next fishing trip. They check their equipment and make every necessary preparation. Even the things they do that are unrelated to fishing are still seen as preparation for fishing. Fishing is their passion. It should be ours. If it’s not, something’s wrong with our connection to the heart of God.

For the last several days God has put a question in my mind. It’s my question for fishing, and not meant to be yours. God will give you your own way of fishing if you really want Him to. But maybe it will stimulate you to think about fishing more often as I am doing. I have been trying to figure out a way to ask someone a question to begin a spiritual discussion with them. The response I got from God is bold, and probably won’t work for many of you. But, as D.L. Moody once said, “My method of doing it is better than your method of not doing it.”

Here’s what God has told me to ask people when I have a chance to talk to them personally – “Has anyone ever taken the time to explain to you why Jesus had to die on the cross?”

I’m going fishing today. I’m looking for someone to ask that to. How will you go fishing?

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Monday, September 11, 2023

I am a fixer. As such I had a tough day several years ago.  I was in the middle of a fix-it project when I got a call from my son who needed help with a fix-it project of his own. I dropped what I was doing and went to his house where he had a washing machine partially disassembled.  It was leaking water from the bottom of the tub. One of the seals was bad, and we needed to see how to replace it.

With laptop computer propped up in the laundry room so we could see the service manual for the machine, we continued to take it apart. After almost two hours of work we had a solution. Unfortunately, we had reached a point where we knew that to go any further would not be cost effective, so we quit and junked the machine.

On the way home my mind was swimming with questions about the design of the machine that made it so labor intensive to reach one seal. My questions were driven by my need for convenience rather than the engineering needed to produce a water-tight seal on the drum. I questioned the motives of the designer.

When I returned home I took up my project, which was frustrating me because all the easy and cheap solutions weren’t working. I had one more option before I would have to spend a few hundred dollars. Like I said – it was a tough day for a fixer.

As I thought about my attitudes towards product designers, I was hit full in the face this morning with the next verses in our study of Isaiah. It’s all about how we question the Designer. 

Isaiah 45:9-10    “Woe to him who quarrels with his Maker, to him who is but a potsherd among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘He has no hands’? Woe to him who says to his father, ‘What have you begotten?’ or to his mother, ‘What have you brought to birth?’”

The arrogance of our attitudes that makes question the Designer overwhelmed me. Yet we do it. We have figured out ways in our finite minds to justify the questioning of the infinite and not feel guilty about it. We have so rationalized our rights that we claim to have authority in our relationship with the One who created us. We are so driven by our need for convenience that we fail to see the long-term consequences of changing the design.

Sometimes we even use Jesus as our excuse for such questions. After all, He did it in the Garden of Gethsemane. Didn’t He ask God to change His design and not make Him go through death on a cross? We know He ended up surrendering to God’s will, but He still questioned it, didn’t He?

We forget four vitally important  words at the beginning of that prayer – “If it is possible…”  One of the Gospel writers puts it this way – “Father, if you are willing…”

That’s a far cry from how most of us address God when things aren’t being fixed. We demand that God change things. We go to Him with arrogant authority. We tell Him what we want done and then expect Him to do it. We question everything, not from a desire to understand the heart of God but to change the mind of God. That is not what Jesus did.

Jesus went to the Father with a heart already surrendered. He simply wanted to make sure there were no other options. But His first words indicate that He was already settled on the current course and trusted the Father’s final decision. Oh, that we would live with that level of faith. Fixers find that hard to do.

Pastor John