Devotions for Dieters

Hebrews 10:39
But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

Darren felt bad withdrawing from the group, but he had to. The other three men kept cheating on their diets, and that was no help at all. Each time they gave in to temptation, Darren asked himself why he tried so hard when everyone else quit. Darren needed strength and support, not more temptation. At least on his own he stood a fighting chance. Darren prayed for guidance. Dieting was hard enough without other people making it harder. We need to attach ourselves to those who are serious and committed to losing weight. God will help us have all the strength we need to keep on our diets.

Today's thought: The weight that I've lost, was of minimal cost!

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Tarnished Medals

Jeremiah 15-17, 2 Timothy 2
Key Verse: 2 Timothy 2:5

Every two years, the interest of the world is drawn to the Olympics, alternating between the winter and the summer games. Sporting venues around the world are used, allowing opportunity for a particular country to showcase itself. As much as the host cities would like to be the focus of attention, the real center of attention is the athletes. Stories abound of dedication, determination and years of discipline as these individuals "go for the gold."

Yet every year the news that comes from the games includes stories of tarnished medals, as individuals are disqualified for one reason or another. Performance-enhancing drugs, unapproved or altered equipment, and various rule infractions are some of the reasons that athletes are disqualified. The bottom line is that they broke the rules.

Athletic competition, rules and disqualifications are not new. When Paul wrote 2 Timothy, he used that familiar scenario to encourage Timothy to compete according to the rules. Realize, though, that Paul was not writing as a coach to his young competitor but more as a mentor to his disciple. Using the examples of a soldier, an athlete and a farmer, Paul was setting before Timothy valuable instruction. Included in that was the statement that "if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the rules" (2:5).

God has given us the Bible to teach us how to live and how to serve Him. To receive the reward that He has for us, our service must be "by the rules."

Ask yourself if you are following God's rules in your life. Just as an athlete can lose a medal, so you can miss out on the reward God has for His faithful servants.

Genesis 22:9-10

Then they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there and placed the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, upon the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.

Making Sense

Pablo Picasso was the most famous painter of the 20th century. His paintings often broke with the traditional notion of beauty and harmony. When questioned about his unusual artistic style, the distinguished painter replied, "The world today doesn't make sense, so why should I paint pictures that do?" Many people would probably agree with his observation. Often the world doesn’t seem to make sense.

Surely this thought must have passed through Abraham's mind when God commanded him to sacrifice his son. After all, Abraham had waited 100 years for the birth of this child. But there was more involved here than paternal love. God had made significant promises with worldwide implications based on Abraham's descendants. It simply didn't make sense for Abraham now to take this essential link to the future welfare of the world and offer him as a sacrifice.

Fortunately, if this thought did pass through Abraham's mind, it didn't stay. He bound his son on the altar and lifted the sacrificial knife. He had learned from his past mistakes never to question God and never to delay obeying Him. With a faith that took captive his feelings, he prepared to do exactly as God commanded.

The lesson of Abraham is clear. It is not necessary to understand; it is only necessary to obey. The prophet Samuel reminds us, "To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams" (1 Sam. 15:22). Jesus said, "If you love Me, keep My commandments" (John 14:15).

If God is calling you to take a step of faith that defies earthly wisdom, put obedience first and let logic catch up.

If you can't understand the why, trust the Who.

True Riches

"The law of Your mouth is better to me than thousands of coins of gold and silver" (v. 72). Can we honestly say that we would rather have God's Word than money?

Many people in the Bible had that testimony. For example, Abraham led his army to a great victory. He brought back all of the captives and all the spoil. The King of Sodom showed up and said, "Abraham, you can have all this spoil. Just give me the people." But Abraham said, "Before this battle started, I lifted my hand to the Lord and said, 'When I win this battle, I'm not taking one thing from these people.' I would rather have the Word of God than have thousands of shekels of gold and silver" (see Gen. 14). Abraham kept his testimony clean.

But I also think of Achan in Joshua 7. God had commanded that no spoil be taken from Jericho. But Achan stole some silver and gold and clothing and buried them under his tent. He thought no one knew, but God knew. Achan wanted riches rather than God. Judas made the same mistake. He sold Jesus Christ, the greatest Treasure in the universe, for 30 pieces of silver.

If we love the Word of God, we'll read it, meditate on it and seek to obey it. If the Bible does not change our values, it will not change our lives. Jesus was the poorest of the poor. He made Himself poor to make us rich. We, in turn, should make ourselves poor to make other people rich, for we have the riches of the Word of God.

* * *

You have a choice to make today: you can seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness, or you can bow down to the kingdom of man and seek riches. Would you rather have the temporal possessions of this world or the spiritual riches of God's Word?

Christ Eternal!

Colossians 1:13-19

Christ existed prior to all creation. He is "the firstborn of every creature" (Col. 1:15). From the original language of the New Testament, this phrase is literally "firstborn of all creation."

The Greek word translated "firstborn" does not mean that He was the first one born; rather, it emphasizes priority and sovereignty. He existed before anything was ever created.

This truth is obvious from verse 16: "For by him were all things created." He had to exist before all created things in order to create them. And because He is the Creator of all things, this implies sovereignty.

John 1:1-3 states, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made."

Notice especially verse 3: "All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made." This directly connects with the truth presented in Colossians 1:15.

The emphasis, then, of "firstborn" is one of rank and is not related to birth as we commonly think of it.

Psalm 89:27 uses the word "firstborn" in referring to David's son, but it looks ahead to Christ: "I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth."

Since Colossians 1:17 indicates that the Lord Jesus Christ existed before all created things, He Himself is uncreated, thus eternal. This verse says, "He is before all things, and by him all things consist." He is the eternal God; therefore, He is the Supreme Being.

"Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day and for ever" (Heb. 13:8).

Commitment

O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? O Judah, what shall I do unto thee? for your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goeth away.

Commitment: an absolute dedication and faithfulness to someone or something. It's something we all claim to have, yet very few demonstrate it. Many people claim to have a strong commitment to the local church, but they rarely attend, even when they have nothing else to do. Others take wedding vows which include promises of commitment. Yet those vows are broken rapidly and all commitment is nullified. Nothing is so distressing to the Lord God as to see a Christian who is only half committed to Him. (See Revelation 3:14-22.)

The greatest example of a lack of commitment in the Old Testament is found in the prophecy of Hosea. Hosea (whose name means "salvation") was a prophet to the northern kingdom and a contemporary of Amos. In fact, Hosea was to the northern kingdom what Jeremiah was to the southern kingdom - a weeping prophet. His prophecy is very tender and his ministry is similar to that of John the Apostle.

The purpose of Hosea's prophecy was to provide Israel with a real-life example of her spiritual idolatry. Hosea transferred his personal tragedy into a figure of the tragedy of Israel as a nation. The lack of commitment to him by his wife and her infidelity was but a minute calamity when compared with the spiritual infidelity of Israel and their lack of commitment to God. Hosea called Israel to national repentance much as he pleaded with his adulterous wife for personal repentance.

To bring Israel to understand how complacent they had become, the prophet observed, "Your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goeth away" (Hosea 6:4). Israel's commitment was shallow at best, and Hosea likened the fleeting goodness of uncommitted men to a morning cloud and the early dew which vanishes with the morning sun. God is never pleased with such a halfhearted commitment and a complacent attitude toward Him. Israel had not yet learned that lesson; apparently twentieth-century Christians haven't either.

There is a tiny harbor town on the ocean shore where many ships have crashed on the rocks in violent weather. This town became well known because of the dedicated rescue team which aided mariners in distress. The rescue team would rally to the sound of the siren and rush to the scene of the accident, risking life and limb to save the sailors from drowning. As time went on, the citizens of that tiny town raised enough money to build a rescue station close to the shore. While this greatly facilitated the operation, it softened the dedicated team as well. As time went by, they added some of the comforts and conveniences that other rescue stations had. Through the years the rescue station became a social club, where the town's people gathered to have fun and relax. Ships would still crash upon the rocks; the alarm would still sound; but eventually no one responded. They were reluctant to leave their comforts, because their commitment to rescue the miserable mariners was no match for their complacency.

We can imagine that Hosea felt much the same way about Israel as we may feel toward this once-dedicated rescue team. Still there are many Christians today who have a halfhearted attitude toward God and, in fact, have committed spiritual adultery with the world just as Hosea's wife did. Much of Christianity today is nothing more than "country-club Christianity," basking in the goodness of God, relying on the riches of this world's goods, and unconcerned about commitment to the Father or the rescue of those who are perishing.

We can almost hear Hosea saying, "Your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goeth away." The fleeting goodness of uncommitted Christians is not goodness at all. It is just a temporary rest stop on the highway to complacency.

MORNING HYMN
A charge to keep I have
A God to glorify
Who gave His Son my soul to save
And fit it for the sky.