Devotionals
A daily word of encouragement, exhortation and edification, drawn from the Scriptures.
A pastor looks at the 23rd Psalm
One of the most beloved Psalms in the Bible is the 23rd Psalm. This morning beloved, I urge you to get alone with Jesus and read this breakdown of this Psalm and what it means for those who turn to Jesus as Savior and Lord. The Lord is my Shepherd - That's...
The fullness of God for the glory of God
The Spirit-inspired prayer of Paul in Ephesians 3.14-21 is breathtaking, beloved. There is no way that I could even scratch the surface of the weightiness and vastness of what is being taught here. Human language falls so far short of this revelation of God towards...
God's Lovingkindness
Psalms 143:8 "Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee." May this verse be a part of your morning prayers, beloved. Lord, cause me to hear your...
His Name is as ointment poured forth
Song of Songs 1:3 "Because of the savour of thy good ointments thy name [is as] ointment poured forth, therefore do the virgins love thee." God's Name is likened to both a sweet fragrance and ointment. Have you ever walked into a room that was filled with the sweet...
Watch and Pray
In answer to the disciples' question about signs of the destruction of the Temple (which was fulfilled in 70 AD), and the end of the world, we have what is known as a near and far prophecy. My meditation today is not in particular about those prophecies per se, as...
Witnesses for Jesus
The book of Acts records these parting words of Jesus Christ to His disciples; "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part...
Six ingredients of effective prayer
We have scheduled three weeks of concerted prayer for the year 2014 in addition to the many prayer meetings we already have here at Koinonia each week. Why have done so? We are living in perilous times, and there is need for desperate prayers to express those...
Fearing God, the key for strong confidence
The book of Proverbs tells us that "In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence: and His children shall have a place of refuge." Beloved, do you want to have strong confidence today? Fear God. The Hebrew word for confidence also speaks of assurance; but it is an...
Remembering God (Part 2)
Paul tells us that there are lessons that the church can learn from the history of the nation of Israel. One of those important lessons is seeing how quickly they forgot what God had done for them. Psalm 106 records Israel's "spiritual amnesia", "they remembered not...
The importance of remembering God
The Psalmist wrote, "some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God." Why is it that we tend to forget what we should remember? How important it is for the people of God to remember The Name of The Lord our God? Of course...
The gods of men and The Living God
In Isaiah chapter 46, The Spirit of God says, "Bel boweth down, Nebo stoopeth, their idols were upon the beasts, and upon the cattle: your carriages were heavy laden; they are a burden to the weary beast. They stoop, they bow down together; they could not deliver the...
The Pleasures of God
Psalm 111.2 says, "the works of the LORD [are] great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein." Dear ones, are we among those who seek out the pleasures of God? There are pleasures in God that cannot be found in the world. Proverbs 21:17 says that "he that...
The war on sin
1Pe 2:11 "Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts (sensual urges; the evil desires, the passions of the flesh, your lower nature), which war against the soul; 12 Having your conversation (a man's whole conduct) honest...
The beauty of humility
1Pe 5:5 "Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble (Prov 3.34). 6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of...
The love of Christ
The Shulamite woman, speaking of her husband, declared in Song of Songs 2:4 "He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love." This is nothing less than a picture of the love of Jesus Christ for His bride, the church. The apostle Paul couples...
Jesus, our portion
The Psalmist wrote, Psalms 142:5 "I cried unto thee, O LORD: I said, Thou [art] my refuge [and] my portion in the land of the living." How wonderful it is to have Jesus Christ for our portion today, dear ones. This declaration of God being the believer's portion is a...
God's Benefits
The Psalmist declared in 68:19, "Blessed [be] the Lord, [who] daily loadeth us [with benefits, even] the God of our salvation. Selah." As the dawning of a new day is upon us beloved, may the precious truth that God has loaded our life today with benefits grip our...
The mystery and certainty of election
We read in Romans 11.5 that our salvation is all of grace, and not of ourselves. It is simply called the election of grace. Because of the tragic results of the fall of man, it is only by the divine power of God that we are drawn to the saving knowledge of Jesus...
A teachable heart
Have you ever heard it said about someone, "He or she always has to learn the hard way?". Truth be told, I heard that said about me when I was a young boy. That "know it all" attitude still dwells in my flesh. Thus, my prayer (you can pray this as well), is that God...
Glorious in Holiness
When Isaiah was brought before the very throne of God, he heard those remarkable words, "Holy, holy, holy, [is] the LORD of hosts: the whole earth [is] full of his glory" (Isa 6.3). After the miraculous deliverance of the nation of Israel out of bondage in Egypt, the...
Divine providence and the pits of life
One of the most well known figures in the bible is Joseph. He was favored by his father Jacob because he was the son of his old age. The Scriptures clearly tell us that the favoritism of their father bred rivalry and jealousy from Joseph's brothers. When Jacob sent...
Extravagant Grace and Mercy
Hebrews 10:19-22 Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; And having an high priest over the house of God; Let us draw...
That Faithful Word
Scriptures are nourishment for the believer. It is of utmost importance that we embrace the truth that the Bible is the inspired word of God. It’s also important to understand that Scripture is the “telescope” that points to Jesus, as well as the basis of sound...
Servanthood – Your Claim To Greatness
Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ; James, a servant of God; Simon Peter, a servant of Jesus Christ; Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ. In each instance, these “heavyweights” of the church prefaced their calling in the Body of Christ with their title – a bondslave of...
Trusting in God
Psalm 2.12 Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him. There is a serious lack of trust in our world today. Every area of our lives, be it political, financial or even spiritual is suffering from an absence of absolute trust. Because of the uncertainty of...
Thinking God's thoughts
Psalm 1.2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. I don't know about you, but my mind can be an endless stream of busyness and flat out wrong thinking about things. That in and of itself is one reason why I need to...
Blessed!
Psalm 119.1,2 Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord. Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart. The blessed person is the person who chooses to walk in the ways of The Lord. They seek Him with...
My, oh my!
Psalm 18.2 The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. Note all of the usages of the personal pronoun "my" in this one verse. This is David's testimony....
What’s in your heart?
2 Kings 2.9 And it came to pass, when they had gone over, that Elijah said to Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I am taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. Acts 8.18-23 And when Simon saw that...
The Right Perspective
“And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many water and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, ‘Allelujah! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns!’ ” The young body of saints in Thessalonica had endured severe persecution because of...
A God-Ordered Life
Psalm 37.23,24 The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand. We see in our passages this morning one of the undeniable mysteries of...