Are You Living For Jesus

Are You Living For Jesus "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kind of evil against you because of me." Matthew 5:11 Let me ask you a serious question today, "are you making God first in your life?' There are so many that are Sunday morning Christians and only make Him first one day a week. For those of us who have lived our lives in the United States, we have enjoyed tremendous freedoms to live and share our faith in virtual peace. However, we cannot comprehend and understand what many of our brothers and sisters in Christ, in other parts of the world, have to endure to simply be a follower of Jesus. In a way, all of this freedom has made us, "soft Christians." When we can't pray in public schools, we feel persecuted. When our city does not allow us to put up a manger scene at Christmas, we feel persecuted. When Wal Mart won't say, "Merry Christmas" to us, we feel persecuted. However, there is coming a time when this kind of persecution will seem tame, compared to what we think we are going through now. It is easy to say I would die for Jesus, but would you really? Let me challenge you today, that if you would die for Jesus, will you live for Jesus? If we really love the Lord as we claim, then He should be the top priority in our life. When you accepted Jesus into your heart and live by faith, you gave Him your life, not just for an hour on Sunday morning, but "all your life". You must live your life like it is no longer your own, but is His. You need to be totally and completely surrendered to Christ at all times. It cannot be about your desires any longer, it must be about His desires and the desires of others. Our purpose in this life is to serve and glorify God at all times, and that should be the only goal of those who follow Jesus. I ask each of you, are you really living your life for God? Robert William Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven October 9

It's Not Too Late

It's Not Too Late "For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened." Romans 1:21 There is coming a time in all our lives were there will not be a tomorrow, and I encourage all of you to be ready. As I think about the condition of our world today, and the depravity and lack of morality that is rampant in our society, I wonder just how long God is going to wait to come again. I know that there is much debate about the events of the end times, as to what prophesies must still be fulfilled, before God returns, but as I read the Bible I believe the end times are drawing near. The Bible clearly tells us that no man, only God knows the hour of Christ's return, but the things described in our Bible, clearly indicate that the events leading up to His return are being fulfilled as we speak. It tells us that nations will rise against nations, there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. Many will turn away from the faith, and will betray and hate each other. There will be many false prophets that will appear and deceive many people. There will be an increase of wickedness and violence. These are just some of the indications of the events that will appear in the end days. All of these things are happening in our world today, which indicate that we are truly in the last days. The message I want you to get today, is that you need to be ready yourself for Christ's return. Although we don't know when He is returning, you need to be ready. The Bible tells us that it is only God's mercy that is delaying this final event from happening, because it is His desire that none should perish and that all come to repentance. For those of you who have never made a commitment of your heart and life to Jesus Christ by faith, the Bible says that today is the day of salvation, as tomorrow may be too late. Robert William Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven October 8

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. Robert William Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Six October 7

Serve Others

Serve Others “Just as the Son of man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Matthew 20:28 Jesus fully lived up to the scripture above. Jesus humbly ministered to the needs of those He taught, readily expending himself in their behalf. He crisscrossed the Promised Land on foot, walking hundreds of miles on preaching tours in an effort to reach as many people as possible. Unlike the proud Pharisees and scribes, He remained humble and approachable. All manner of people—dignitaries, soldiers, lawyers, women, children, the poor, the sick, even society’s outcasts—approached him eagerly, unafraid. Though perfect, Jesus was human, subject to fatigue and hunger. Even when He was tired or was in need of rest or a quiet time to pray, however, He put the needs of others ahead of His own. Jesus was equally willing to serve His own disciples. He did so by teaching them kindly and patiently. When they were slow to grasp some vital lessons, He did not give up, lose His temper, or berate them. He continued to find new ways to get His point across. For example, just think of how often the disciples bickered over who was the greatest among them. Again and again, right up to the night before His execution, Jesus found new ways to teach them to deal humbly with one another. Notice that Jesus did not merely tell the disciples what the example was; He taught them by example. He did not speak down to them from a lofty height, as if considering himself above carrying out the things He was telling them to do. That was the way of the Pharisees. “They say but do not perform,” Jesus said of them. Are you willing to serve others, are you willing to sacrifice your time to help someone in need. Your rest and leisure should be within balance and should not cause us to neglect the whole reason for our existence. We are here to serve, not to be served. Robert William Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven October 4

It Is Not In Vain

It Is Not In Vain "This is what the wicked are like – always carefree, they increase in wealth. Surely in vain I have kept my heart Pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence." Psalm 73:12-13 One of the great spiritual questions many people wrestle with is the issue of why good people sometimes suffer, while so many bad people prosper. It is not a new question. The scripture today is from a man named Asaph. He was one of King David's chief musicians, who wrote this psalm after struggling with this very issue. Earlier in the psalm, Asaph tells us he found himself envying the prosperity of those he identifies as "the wicked." As he looks at what appears to be the lack of fairness in the world, he becomes discouraged about trying to live a righteous life. His conclusion about those who thumb their noses at God is that "the evil conceits of their minds know no limits." And yet, he observes, "always carefree, they always increase in wealth." Consequently, he reaches the conclusion of today's text: "Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure." What does Asaph do to get his head back on straight? He steps back and looks at the "bigger" picture. He goes to "church." There he remembers some of the good things that we can't see in the visible world: God is always with us. God guides us and gives us strength. When our life ends, God takes us into His presence. As a result of getting his perspective straight, Asaph can say to God, "In this life, I don't need anything more than to be with you!" When you try to live in a way that is pleasing to God, it is not in vain. If it seems as though the "bad guys" are always winning, remember that we have a very limited perspective. As did Asaph, we need to get ourselves into a place where we can get some perspective. It can change our discouragement to joy. We can go from victims to victors. Living in a way that pleases God is never in vain, as the wicked will spend their eternity in the fiery darkness of Hell, while the good will spend all their eternity in Heaven. The future benefits of Heaven far outweighs the temporary pleasures of the present. Robert William Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven October 3

Are You Ready

Are You Ready "As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work." John 9:4 If you died today would you be ready? We are not promised tomorrow, and many who are not ready, will face an eternity in Hell that will last for all eternity. The other day while I was doing our daily mail route, a car in front of me had a bumper sticker that said, "Look Busy", but underneath this there was a second line that said, "Jesus is Coming". This sign made me think, do people really think it will make a difference to Jesus if they look busy. Most people are busier than they have ever been, as life today moves at a seemingly insane pace. There is always more to do than most people will ever hope to accomplish, as almost everyone seems to have a "to do" list that they will never get done. Many times I rush to get my yard mowed before it begins to rain, or to get it mowed before it gets dark. Many times we have a limited time to do many of the things we must do, and we work hard to get them done. The question I would like to ask each of you to think about is exactly what you are busy doing, and are these the things that are going to make you ready for the return of Jesus? Have you opened your lives and hearts to Jesus, and recognized that He is the only one that you can look to for your salvation. Have you accepted Jesus as your Savior, or have you been too busy with other priorities on your list of things to do. If this is you, what are you waiting for? You need to ask Jesus into your heart now. There is no guarantee that you will have another day, or another chance to accept Jesus as your Savior. There are many that will wait too long, and do things that means nothing to Jesus. You need to realize that Jesus may be coming soon, so you need to be busy keeping your eyes on Him, and getting ready for His coming. Robert William Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven October 2

A LIfe Of Peace

A Life Of Peace "When a man's ways are pleasing to the Lord, he makes even his enemies live at peace with him." Proverbs 16:7 If you have gotten up this morning and are struggling with a situation that has taken all the peace and joy out of your life, this message is for you. There should not be any situation that you will face, whether it is financial, a relationship, loss of a job, or even a health issue that you should let rob you of your peace and joy. If you know Jesus Christ as your savior, He will provide you peace even in the most difficult situations. When He made the promise to His disciples, just a few hours before His death, "even though we would have trials and tribulations, be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world." This promise is where your peace and joy should come from. From this precious promise, that no matter who or what may be going in your life, because you know Jesus Christ by faith, you not only have the assurance of spending your eternity with Him, but also the promise of His strength and comfort during your struggles. You also need to know that God knows what you are facing today, even the little things that may seem insignificant to you, as He is aware of all things in your life. God is there to comfort you, during your daily struggles, and all He asks in return, is for you to have faith and trust in Him for all things. Satan is the one that is robbing you of your peace and joy, as any distraction he can cause in your daily life, gets your focus off God, and if he can do this, he can take away your peace. Don't let Satan destroy your peace and joy, ask God to give you the strength to withstand. When you asked Jesus into your heart you also got the Holy Spirit which is there to guide you and comfort you through even the darkest storms. So, if you don't have peace and joy each day, it is not God, but Satan that is robbing you. When you put your trust in Jesus, He will give you peace. Robert William Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven October 1