The Road To Heaven

The Road to Heaven “We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, ‘I know him, but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” 1st John 2:3-4 My friends, this is probably the most serious and critical devotional I have ever written, but it is so important for you to hear it's message. It is not going to be as easy as you think to get to heaven, "But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." Matthew 7:14. The Bible is very clear when it talks about the importance of obeying God and His commands. The Ten Commandments were not just something that God told you about as an afterthought, and you have the liberty of obeying them or not obeying them. If you are going to find this narrow road to heaven you must begin to obey God’s commands, and not take them lightly. When you say you know God, as in the scripture above, you must do what he commands, and if not He calls you a liar. There is no room for anything else, and you must not go on fooling yourself and making excuses for not following the commands of God. Just look at God's greatest commandments and see how you are obeying these. He tells you to love Him with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. How must time do you spend each day in prayer and reading His word. This is how you show God you love Him. When you love someone you make them number one in your life. You don't give them the crumbs from your table after you spend all your time on other things. His second greatest command is to love others as you love yourself. Is your life all about yourself or is it about others. The little white lies, the cheating, the lust, the pride, the hording of your wealth, the non use of your talents, not obeying the Sabbath, are all things that must cease if you really know Jesus as your savior. There is no room for them anymore in your daily life, if you really have accepted Jesus into your heart. There are even more drastic warnings from God that tells you how perfect your lives must be to reach heaven. Matthew 19:24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." There would be very few American's who are not considered to be rich in the sight of God, so this scripture would apply to you. 1st John 3-9 "No-one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God." My friends, this is God's words not mine, and there are dozens of other scriptures, just as powerful that say the same thing. Our world needs to wake up and realize that the feel good preaching that we are hearing today, does not tell us this message. Don't be led astray by these false teachings that are leading you to Hell. There is only one way to heaven and that is to first ask Jesus to come into your heart, forgive you of your sins and then obey His commands. You must realize that Satan is alive and well and is roaming our world, and will entice and tempt you to compromise the word of God. There is no compromise allowed, however, as when Jesus died to save you he made the ultimate sacrifice for you. The Book of Hebrews has the most compelling scripture in the Bible that tells us the importance of living a Godly life and obeying God's commands, after you have been saved. "It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace." Hebrews 6:4-6. These are frightening words, my friends, and these cannot be discounted as being taken out of context or not applying to you. The Bible is filled with many scriptures such as these that warn you that you cannot take your salvation lightly. When God's Word tells you over and over that you cannot sin anymore after you have been saved, you had better believe it. You can't continue to make excuses for your sins, as God is not going to listen to you and is warning you over and over. You are just not hearing this in your churches today, because "For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear." 2nd Timothy 4:3. There is too much at stake in your life not to heed God's warning, as heaven is the reward, but hell is the punishment if you don't begin to obey God’s commands. Don't take my word for it, but read the Bible yourself and see what it says about living a sin free life. Find all the scriptures for yourself that talk about the penalties of sin. 1st John 3-6 " No-one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him." My friends, there is no other way to interpret a scripture such as this one or the one below, and I challenge you to interpret it any other way. John 9:41 "Jesus said, If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains." If God is really in your heart, you are not going to continue sinning as you are going to live the kind of life that Jesus led, as He tells you that you need to be an imitator of Him in everything you do. Take the time today to apply this devotional to your own life. Are you confident that you are living the life God wants you to live? If you aren't sure that God will be pleased with you, it is not too late to ask Him for forgiveness, and begin to obey His commandments. To begin your journey to Heaven, you can ask Jesus to come into your heart today, right now ask Him to be your savior, and then let the Holy Spirit lead and guide you daily to be free of sin, and lead you on the path to your eternal future in Heaven. October 7 Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Six

Ths Sin Of Pride

The Sin Of Pride "To fear the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech." Proverbs 8:9 In today's devotional I want to talk about pride, and how it can affect our daily walk with God. Pride can get in the way of letting God into our life, and letting Him help us face the daily trials and struggles that Satan puts in our paths. I know that I have always struggled with pride, as I have always been confident about my own abilities, thinking that I could handle most situations that have occurred in my life. Many times, however, I have made bad decisions by relying on my own abilities. My pride got in the way of asking God to help me deal with these issues. As I have gotten older God has given me wisdom to know that I do not have all the answers to the problems that I will face in life. I know that I need God in my daily life, to lead me and guide me in the paths that I need to follow. I know that if I become so prideful to think that I have all the answers, I will soon stray off the right path and begin making bad choices. We all need to let God be part of our daily lives, and not depend upon ourselves for all the answers to deal with our situations in life. When our pride keeps God out of our daily life, this is when Satan gets in, and temptations begin to take over and control what we do. Satan only needs a foothold, to begin his attack on our life, which will lead to temptation and ultimate destruction. It is important to keep God in our lives daily, and continually pray and ask Him to give us wisdom and direction to face the trials and struggles that confront us. Don't let your pride, stand in the way of asking God for help. God wants you to depend upon Him for help and guidance. "When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom." Proverbs 11:2.

How To Defeat Your Giants

Good Morning to all my friends. This is another day that God has given us, let us be glad and rejoice in it. My prayer for you is that God will bless each of you today and give you His peace and His comfort in all that you do. Today's Challenge-------------------- How To Defeat Your Giants "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33 Is your life filled with trouble today, and you don't know where to turn? In this world we will face all kinds of obstacles, trials and tribulations, and we should be wary of any doctrines or teachings that say we shouldn’t have to face these things. Why? Because the Lord said we will have trouble, but the important thing to remember is that God is greater than any problem you will face in this world. As problems present themselves, we should face them in the power of God, and overcome them with Him, because every problem is an opportunity to exhibit the love and power of God in our lives. It’s often through these situations, that the world gets our true testimony, as believers in Him. When Saul was king of Israel, there were no giant slayers in their midst, and when Goliath stood against the armies of Israel, the Israelites trembled. There was, however, a young shepherd, whose intimate knowledge of God inspired and empowered him to fight and defeat the evil giant. David’s victory over Goliath, paved the way for those after him to slay the giant’s offspring, who were also giants. So when those new giants arose to fight, the people of Israel already had the knowledge that these giants could be defeated as well. All around us, there are “Goliaths”, or evil giants…but none of them are “undefeatable”. In fact, we have an entire Bible full of examples, of saints who stood their ground and routed their enemies. Let’s follow their example, and set new precedents fighting the giants of our day. We too can leave a legacy of victory, inspiring our children and grandchildren to victory over the “sons of Goliath”. My Daily Devotional Volume Four August 8 Robert William Brock, Jr.

Little White Lies

Little White Lies "A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who pours out lies will not go free." Proverbs 19:5 In our permissive society, which is becoming more and more evil, people do not hesitate to tell lies, to either get out of uncomfortable situations, or simply to keep from hurting the feelings of others. The Bible gives us many scriptures about lying, and warns us that lies can severely hurt and damage the lives of others. Good reputations have been ruined by lies, and even families torn apart and marriages ruined. Lying is a sin, and many people think little about lying. Even the so called "little white lies" are sins. God wants us to be truthful at all times, and tells us that the words that come out of our mouth, is generated from what is in our hearts. I have seen statistics that state that one innocent white lie, may result in as many as 6 other lies to cover up the original lie. This is a slippery slope that so many people get caught up in, as one sin leads to another and then another. As Christians, we are to be the examples for others around us, but if we are caught telling even the little innocent white lies, we are not being the examples of what God wants us to be. We are no different than other people, when we are caught in a lie. We need to be different and tell the truth in all situations. I realize that God may not judge us as harshly as if we committed murder, but lying is still a sin in God's eyes, and if we continue to sin in this way, we are not following His commands. God tells us to remove all sin from our life, and the little white lies are still sins in His eyes. I would encourage each of you to think about what you say, let your words encourage and build up, not discourage and tear down. Let your words be truthful at all times, and be the example to others that God wants you to be. My Daily Devotional October 4 Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Six

A Special Grandson

A Special Grandson "Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or swerve from them." Proverbs 4:5 Today my grandson Brock Elliott Ford got his first full time job, he is going to college and will graduate in a few more months, and will soon be 22 years old. It only seems like moments ago when I held his mother Pamela in my arms for the first time, and now I am blessed to see my first grandson, become a man and have his first job. Brock is such as special young man, and has been such a blessing to me throughout the years. I have watched him grow up to be a loving, caring and gentle young man, with such a kind heart that always thinks about the welfare of others. It only seems like days ago when I watched him leave for his first day at kindergarten. I believe that grandchildren are special, as they are what their parents and grandparents have made them. If God is present in the home, which it was with Brock's parents, the result is a young man that has his life centered around God, and the values that God represents. Brock exemplifies this, as he has grown up in church, and in a family where God's values have been evident on a daily basis. Brock has been taught the words of God from the time he was born through today, and now is a young man, getting ready to begin his own life. The wisdom and values he has been taught from the Word of God will stay with him for the rest of his life. I am confident that he will not forget this wisdom he has learned from his parents and his grandparents. "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it. Proverbs 22:6. As I pray for him each day, I think how blessed I am to have a grandson like him. He will always be my special one, and I pray that God will continue to watch over him, protect him, and keep him safe. My Daily Devotional October 3 Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Six

My Children's Prayer

My Children's Prayer "And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men." Luke 2:52 This devotional is for my children, but I hope anyone that has children, will read this message, and use this as a basis for what you should always pray that your children will become. I have been blessed with three of the most wonderful children any father could ever want to have. As I think about each of them, and the fine young men and women they have become, it makes me proud to be their father. Over the years, I have prayed for all my children as they grew up, that God would watch over them and protect them at all times. I have prayed that God would touch their hearts, and that they would come to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior. I have always prayed that God would give me the wisdom and knowledge, and ability to be the example for them and lead them to God. When I think about what I would wish and want their lives to be like, I think about the scripture above. I believe this scripture so exemplifies what every parent should want for their children. We want them to grow in "wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men." What more could we ever ask for, as we pray for our children. This was just a simple scripture which described the childhood of Jesus, but should be the basis for all our prayers for our children. If our children grew just as Jesus grew, what a wonderful thought this would be, so I pray that my children will grow, just as Jesus grew. I pray that my children will increase in wisdom, especially in the wisdom from God. I pray that my children will grow in stature, and in their physical well-being. I pray that my children will grow in a strong life-sustaining relationship with God, and with all the people God puts in their lives. This is my Prayer for my children. My Daily Devotional October 2 Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Six

Strings That Bind

Strings That Bind "I can do everything through him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:13 Several years ago, a young man in India read some of my devotionals, and accepted Jesus as His savior, and is now a minister, leading many people to Christ through his ministry. During one of our recent conversations, he was telling me how they train young elephants in India. The trainer ties one of their hind legs to a tree with a thick rope. The young elephant naturally tries to break free at first, but after awhile gradually gives up. As the elephant ages, he has become so accustomed to being chained, that he no longer tries to break free. Even a simple string is enough to keep him captive. This reminds me that so often our mistakes, failures, our sins and other issues can hold us captive to the past, much like these simple elephant strings. Scriptures, like the one above, however, tells us that we can break free from our past, as we have the power through Christ to break the chains that binds us. If you find yourself living with past sin, and you feel that you are hopelessly bound, I want you to know that you can break free from this string of habitual sin. "let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles" Hebrews 12:1. Unless you break free, that string of guilt will hold you back from a deeper relationship with God. Each of you has made mistakes in your past, and you need to learn from them, but don't allow these past sins to hold you back, because if you don't break free, you will become so accustomed to them, that you will forever be held captive. Today, is the time to break these strings that bind you, as God tells you that He will give you all the strength you need, to free yourself, and accept His free gift of an eternal life in Heaven. Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Six October 1