Your Narrow Road - Unto the Chief Musician Music Song Devotional

 

YOUR NARROW ROAD

SONG DEVOTIONAL

Beloved, Jesus our Faithful Shepherd lovingly calls His flock to walk with Him and to be led by Him on the narrow road of this pilgrim life. Though this road is often marked by trials, discipline, sacrifice, and sorrow, it is also the only path that leads to true EVERLASTING freedom, lasting joy, and Heaven's ETERNAL home. The broad demonic road of this fallen world excludes Almighty God and His ETERNAL RIGHTEOUSNESS and deceptively promises temporary pleasures, fulfillment, and false contentment, but ends in ETERNAL ruin, judgment, and destruction. Our precious Jesus' narrow road is founded upon the unchanging realities of Almighty God's ETERNAL RIGHTEOUS character and His ETERNAL truth (Matthew 7:13–14). To follow our precious Shepherd and His narrow road throughout this pilgrim life is indeed to find true liberation in His RIGHTEOUSNESS!

As our Good Shepherd, Jesus never asks us to walk alone. He goes before us, calling us by name, leading us with His voice, sustaining us by His grace, and keeping us in His ETERNAL agape love (John 10:3–4, 27–28). Every step He ordains is for our good, conforming us more and more into His image (Romans 8:28–29). Even through valleys of sorrow, seasons of testing, and burdens too heavy for our own strength, our precious Shepherd remains always faithful. His rod and His staff always comfort us, His promises always will sustain and uphold us, and His Spirit continually empowers and encourages us to continue walking by faith, fighting the good fight and seeking to manifest Him wherever we are led.

One day our narrow road journey will be completed, our faith will become a wondrous sight, every tear will be ETERNALLY wiped away, and we will dwell FOREVER with our Redeeming Shepherd in perfect righteousness. O beloved, how glorious is that wondrous reality! However, until that ETERNAL glorious day, we joyfully and willingly follow our precious Jesus, knowing that He Himself is our ETERNAL hope, joy, agape love, and our very life!

"For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their Shepherd, and He will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes." Revelation 7:17 (ESV)

KEY SCRIPTURES

• Matthew 7:13–14
• John 10:27–30
• John 15:1–11
• Romans 8:28–29
• Philippians 2:13
• Hebrews 12:5–11
• Psalm 23
• Proverbs 3:5–6
• Revelation 7:17
• Revelation 21:3–4

REFLECTION QUESTIONS

1. Am I listening daily for the voice of my Good Shepherd through His Word or to the world and its media?

2. Are there areas in my walk where I am tempted to leave Jesus' narrow path for the world's easier roads?

3. How have God's trials and discipline strengthened my faith and produced greater Christlikeness on Jesus' narrow road?

4. In what practical ways can I encourage someone else to remain faithful on the narrow road this week?

PRAYER

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for sending Your beloved Son, the Good Shepherd, to lovingly lead me on the narrow road that leads to life. Thank You that Your ways are always righteous, true, and perfect, even when the path is difficult to understand. Teach me to trust You more deeply and to gladly follow wherever You lead.

Unto the Chief Musician Music Song Devotional for All for Thee, Thy Will be Done CD!

What Is Sin? The Testimony of the Egg

Today there are many different views and thoughts about just what the term “Sin” means. Just the word alone gives people the Hee-bee-Gee-bees. People do not like to think of themselves as “Sinners.” They say or think, “Well, I’m not that bad. I’ve never killed anyone. If you only knew the good I do...(and so on and so forth).” These statements and sentiments are expressed in attempting to justify themselves in light of the realities of their "sinful" condition. (John 3:19-21, Hebrews 6:1; 9:14).

Sin, as defined in Almighty God’s Word, the Bible, is the transgression and violation of the RIGHTEOUSNESS and PERFECT ABSOLUTES of Almighty God. Sin is also the transgression and violation of the ETERNAL/ Spiritual and Temporal (Time-bound)/ Natural laws and absolutes of Almighty God the Creator, which were established from the foundation of the world and His ETERNAL Person in RIGHTEOUSNESS have ALWAYS been (Acts 15:18; 1 John 3:4)!

In Adam’s fall we sinneth all! (Romans 5:12, 19) We all are imperfect; we all have sinned! That is the bottom line. God’s Holy (perfect) Word states:

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23). (The word glory refers to the supreme stature of God, His surpassing “weight, worth and wealth,” and His righteous perfection and holy character.)

As it is written, There is none righteous (perfect), no, not one (Rom 3:10).

Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one (Job 14:4).

What is man, that he should be clean (pure), and he which is born of a woman, that he should be righteous? (Job 15:14)

David said, "Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin (imperfection) did my mother conceive me" (Psalm 51:5).

My friend, it isn’t hard to see. No one in his right mind would ever make such a declaration that he is absolutely perfect and righteous in and by themselves to stand before Almighty God on the Day of Judgment (Rev. 20:11-15). Almighty God’s Word states:

For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all (James 2:10).

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us (1 John 1:8).
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Natural laws and absolutes of Almighty God the Creator, which were established from the foundation of the world and His ETERNAL Person in RIGHTEOUSNESS, have ALWAYS been! 

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We Are a Broken Egg

My friend, we are like a broken egg. When an egg is smashed and broken, who can put it perfectly back together again? In the beginning, God created us perfect (like a whole, unbroken egg) in Adam, but the transgression of Adam against the eternal spiritual laws (absolutes) and temporal natural laws of Almighty God caused him to die – both spiritually and physically. Thus, because of Adam’s transgression, all who were born in Adam (i.e., the entire human race) were made “broken” sinners (Gen. 3; 2:16-17; Rom. 5:12-19).

It is utterly impossible to perfectly and totally obey the spiritual absolutes and natural laws ordained by Almighty God in our fallen, “broken egg” nature (Rom. 7:15-24; 8:5-8). The best a man (person) can do is to contain the vices and passions of his own heart (conservatism). That in itself certainly does not make one righteous enough to fulfill (satisfy) God’s laws.

What Hope Is There For a Broken Egg?
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Almighty God, our RIGHTEOUS Creator, did not forsake His lost creation. He sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to redeem man and to deliver them from their bondage and judgment of sin (their broken eggness/ trespasses).

The Bible states: For God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosever (anyone and every one) believeth in him should not perish (will not die) but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved (John 3:16-17).

For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh (a broken egg), and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh (Rom 8:3).

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners (broken eggs), Christ died for us (Rom. 5:8).

Who (Christ) was delivered for our offences (broken actions), and was raised again for our justification (Rom. 5:25).

But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:5).

There is great hope to all who look to Almighty God and His Son for deliverance!

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Almighty God’s our RIGHTEOUS Creator's great desire is to redeem men and deliver us from the devastating consequences of sin. For all who put their trust in Him through Christ, He will exchange these “broken egg” natures and bodies of ours for new ones that will be completely perfect (1 John 3:1-2). These new, ETERNAL bodies will be capable of enjoying Almighty God as He is in perfect HOLINESS and RIGHTEOUSNESS! (1 Cor. 15:42-57)

Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption (broken egg-ness) into the glorious liberty (a perfectly complete egg) of the children of God (Romans 8:21).

So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption (broken egg-ness); it is raised in incorruption (a perfectly complete egg) (1 Cor. 15:42).

And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away (Rev. 21:1).

Almighty God, our RIGHTEOUS Creator has given to all of Adam’s fallen race a wonderful future and deliverance from our “broken egg” humanity. We must choose by our own free will to receive Almighty God’s pardon and the gift of ETERNAL life (Eph. 2:8-9). Do you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour? He alone can change your “broken egg” life to a perfect one. Trust Him today! You will never be the same!

And he (Jesus) said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God (Luke 18:27).

The Kingdom of heaven is at hand!

DJP I.F.


Are you Good Enough for God's Heaven? Take the Test and See!

Available in tract form!

Is Almighty God Our Enemy?

Beloved, passing through trials and adversities, it might seem to some that Almighty God is our enemy and that He doesn't care. Oh Beloved, this could not be further from the truth! Satan the slanderer loves it when we are deceived into thinking and believing this. But by faith in Almighty God and His Word, we can defeat this strategy of the enemy of our souls (John 17:17, Eph. 6:10-20! The Bible states: "For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?" (1 John 5:4,5).

The victory is gained when a person puts his or her faith and trust in the  UNCHANGEABLE RIGHTEOUS Person of Almighty God! As believers in Christ, we can by faith get through the adversity and calamity that comes our way, knowing that God indeed loves us and has a plan to make us winners, not losers. Listen to this promise: "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:26). God has a wonderful plan for you!

In these last days, may we be strong and of good courage and have faith in Almighty God. May we see - with the eyes of faith - past this physical world into the very throne room of Heaven, and be more than a Conqueror in Christ.

'Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place" (2 Cor. 2:14).

Remember, Beloved: "Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you [i.e., Christ], than he that is in the world" [i.e., Satan and his minions] (1 John 4:4).

As we wait for His soon coming, looking into God’s Holy Word, the Bible repeatedly speaks of His great love for us. God's love, as defined therein, wants only the highest and best for the object of His love. The highest and best is the person of God and His will and way for each individual. God, who is infinite, gives all of His ETERNAL Person to finite man.

David stated: "What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour" (Psalm 8:4,5),

"Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered" (Psalm 40:5).

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:35-39),

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

Now... God speed unto VICTORY!

The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!

DJP I.F.

Is There Life on Other Planets?

1.)  The Bible does not specifically address the question of life on other planets.  But the Scriptures do tell us enough for us to come up with a solid and sound answer.
 
2.)  It is an indisputable Biblical fact that out of all the planets in the universe, the earth is given preeminence and priority.   The earth was created first (on Day 1 of the Creation week, Genesis 1:1-2), and contrary to evolutionary theory, the earth existed before the sun, moon and stars, which were all created on Day 4 of the Creation week (Genesis 1:14-19).   To the unbiased reader, this indicates that there was something very special about the earth.

3.)  God tells us why He formed the earth.  He formed it for a purpose:  "For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God Himself that formed the earth and made it; He hath established it, He created it not in vain,   He formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD, and there is none else" (Isaiah 45:18).  "The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD's: but the earth hath He given to the children of men" (Psalm 115:16). The Bible clearly teaches that the earth was formed to be inhabited by people and other living creatures.  The earth, sea and skies are teeming with life!

4.)  The only life recognized in the Scriptures is human life, plant life, animal life and angelic life (which would include the holy angels and the fallen angels or demons).  There is no mention of extraterrestrial life beyond these categories. 

There has been a debate as to whether plants are technically alive in the full Biblical sense. Consider the following from an article on the Creation Ministries International website:  We have long pointed out that biblical ‘death’ can only apply to those things that were alive in the first place! As far as the Bible is concerned, plants are not ‘alive.’ In the Old Testament, vertebrate animals are described by the Hebrew phrase nephesh chayyāh (נפשׁ חיה), translated as “living creature”, or in the case of man, “living soul” (2:7). But it’s notable that plants are never described this way. And they don’t die but “wither” (Psalm37:2). Instead, plants are God’s self-replicating solar-powered food factories, which also act as solar energy concentrators.   See http://creation.com/r-c-sproul-jr-plant-death

 5.)   God tells us why He made the heavenly bodies:  "Let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so" (Genesis 1:14-15).   All of this is for the advantage of those dwelling on the earth.  Nowhere in these verses does it state that the purpose of the heavenly bodies was to provide a home for extraterrestrial life.  Instead, the heavenly bodies were created to serve useful functions for those living on earth.

6.)  Why do so many people believe in life on other planets?   It is mainly because they have been heavily influenced by evolutionary theory.  Evolution suggests that if life evolved on our planet, then life certainly could evolve elsewhere in our universe.  There must be an innumerable number of planets in the universe, and among these there must be many that have conditions favorable to life, conditions similar to what is found on planet Earth.   According to evolutionary theory, if conditions are favorable for life, then life will spring forth (almost of necessity!).  Life will evolve from non-life.  Life will spontaneously generate from lifeless chemicals by chance.   And even though the odds against it happening are great, it will happen anyway, just like it happened on Earth.  According to evolutionary thinking, even though it is very unlikely and nearly impossible that life can come from non-life, yet if you have enough time (billions of years), then anything is possible. Blind chance + time + favorable conditions = LIFE.   According to evolutionary theory, a creation is not needed.  All you need is time and unguided natural processes and favorable conditions, and life will automatically evolve from non-life.  It will just happen!   With enough time and with enough luck, anything can happen!
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According to evolutionary theory, if conditions are favorable for life, then life will spring forth (almost of necessity!).  Life will evolve from non-life.  Life will spontaneously generate from lifeless chemicals by chance.

Not too many centuries ago people believed in spontaneous generation.   Typically, the idea was that certain life forms such as fleas could arise from inanimate matter such as dust, or that maggots could arise from dead flesh. This erroneous notion was put to rest by the experiments of Louis Pasteur in 1862.  However, evolutionists still teach that life originally came from non-life.  How life could originate from non-life is one of the biggest problems facing the evolutionists because there is no evidence that this has ever happened or that it could happen.  Some evolutionists, including Richard Dawkins (as documented in the film Expelled) have even suggested that life may have been seeded on Earth by aliens. In similar fashion, in 1973 the late Nobel prize-winning British molecular biologist, physicist and neuroscientist Professor Francis Crick, along with British chemist Leslie Orgel, proposed the theory of directed panspermia [the intentional spreading of the seeds of life to other planets by an advanced extraterrestrial civilization].   But what Dawkins and Crick never answer is where these aliens originated from.   They just push the problem further back.
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The Creation model recognizes that life can only come from life, and that the origin of life cannot be explained by natural processes, but can only be explained by Creation.  In other words, there is life on planet Earth only because the first life forms were created by an Almighty Creator.  According to the Creation model, favorable conditions on a distant planet are not enough.  In order to have life on any planet, that life must be created.   Life doesn't just happen and life does not come from nonlife.   Only God can create life.   Life does not arise from nonliving material.  Cellular life can only originate by way of creation.
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 The Creation model recognizes that life can only come from life, and that the origin of life cannot be explained by natural processes, but can only be explained by Creation.

John G. Hartnett explains the problem facing evolutionists:  "The probability of life arising by chance from a pile of chemicals has been calculated by various people as an impossibility even given all the atoms in the known universe representing experiments over the alleged 13.8 billion years since the supposed big bang. Even if you shuffled all those atoms, or even started with them in the form of the required biomolecules and randomly shuffled them, you would not get life. Many researchers have admitted the problem. Life could only arise through a super-intelligence creating it; it would not ‘evolve’ anywhere" [Life on Earth 2.0—Really?, article found on creation.com website]

If there is life on other planets, then that life is there only because of creation, not evolution. However, there is no indication from the Scriptures or from empirical observation that such life exists elsewhere in our universe.  The search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) is the collective name for scientific activities undertaken to search for intelligent extraterrestrial life. For example, electromagnetic radiation is monitored for signs of transmissions from civilizations living on other worlds.  Scientific investigation of this potential phenomenon began shortly after the advent of radio in the early 1900s. Focused international efforts to answer a variety of scientific questions have been going on since the 1980s. More recently, Stephen Hawking, a British physicist, and Yuri Milner, a Russian billionaire, along with the SETI Institute, announced a well-funded effort, called the Breakthrough Initiatives, to expand efforts to search for extraterrestrial life.  All of these efforts have been in vain.  No evidence of extraterrestrial life has been found.

7.)  People also believe in life on other planets because the media has predisposed America and the world to this belief.  For more than seventy years, we have been saturated with movies and television programs which feature aliens.  These have been a major part of America's entertainment diet.  Here are just some of the movies and television shows which feature extraterrestrial life:  2001: A Space Odyssey, The Abyss, Alien Abduction, The Andromeda Strain, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Cowboys & Aliens, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Independence Day, Lost in Space,  all the Superman movies and TV shows, Men in Black, all the Star Trek movies and TV shows, all the Star Wars movies,  The War of the Worlds, The X Files, etc.   For a more complete listing, see;

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_featuring_extraterrestrials

 
The viewing audience would recognize any of these movies as fictional. However, most would say that these movies are based on reality, and that reality is that somewhere out there are intelligent life forms on other planets.  And even though we have never encountered such creatures, most believe that they are there and that it's only a matter of time before we meet them, and hopefully they will be friendly!

8.)  Another major influence in the development of an extraterrestrial mindset is the numerous accounts of UFO sightings and even UFO abductions.  Yet to date there has never been any sighting or abduction which has been so well documented (by photos, eyewitnesses, physical evidence, etc.) as to convince everyone.  No one doubts that the Titanic sank in the Atlantic or that the terrorist attack on 9/11 took place because the evidence is indisputable.   UFO believers have never been able to produce this kind of indisputable evidence.
Creation Ministries International has a wealth of material answering almost every question about UFOs. The following link is a good place to start:

http://creation.com/alien-life-ufo-questions-and-answers
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 9.)  After this age has run its course, the next age, the Kingdom Age, will be ushered in. Scores of Bible passages make it very clear that the Messiah, Jesus Christ the Son of God, will be the exalted King during that time, and will reign from His Davidic throne in Jerusalem (Isaiah 2:1-4; Isaiah 9:6-7; Jeremiah 2:15-16; Luke 1:31-33).  His reign will be on this earth, and not on any other planet.  During the Kingdom Age, the earth is given preeminence and priority, and there is not the slightest hint that any other planet or any other intelligent life forms are involved.

10.)  The total destruction of the earth and the universe is predicted in the Scriptures in such passages as 2 Peter chapter 3, Matthew 24:35 and Revelation 20:11.  In these end-of-the-world prophesies, the earth is given preeminence and priority.  It is the earth that "shall be burned up" (2 Peter 3:10) in a cataclysmic destruction by fire.  The universe also will be destroyed (2 Peter 3:10-12; Matthew 24:35; Revelation 20:11), but no other planets are mentioned or singled out by name, just the earth.  This destruction will be followed by the creation of the new heavens and the new earth, a new universe uniquely prepared for eternity (Revelation 21:1; 2 Peter 3:13).  Again, the earth plays a major role in God's prophetic drama, and no other planets are mentioned.

Dear Friend, The Creator of this universe, the Almighty One, paid a visit to this planet two thousand years ago.  "But when the fullness of time was come, God sent forth His Son" (Galatians 4:4).  "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us" (John 1:14).  "And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world" (1 John 4:14).  "This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners" (1 Timothy 1:15).   This is the visit from outer space that we need to concern ourselves with.

The tragedy is that so many people believe in aliens, but they don't believe in the Son of God who came to bring them salvation and ETERNAL life!

Jesus Christ died on the cross and paid the penalty for our sins.  "For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the Just for the unjust (the Righteous One for the unrighteous ones), that He might bring us to God" (1 Peter 3:18).   And after His victorious and finished work on the cross He rose again from the dead and "passed into the heavens" (Hebrews 4:14).   The tragedy is that so many people believe in aliens but they don't believe in the Son of God who came to bring them salvation and eternal life:  "And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He that hath the Son hath life, and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life" (1 John 5:11-12).   Choose life today!   "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved" (Acts 16:31).

The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!

 GWZ I.F.

Master of Puppets Pulling the Strings

Lucifer, the "Master Politician" and "Original Fascist", knows all too well how the "game" is to be played. He has been practicing his demonic tactics and observing humanity for 6000 years (John 8:44). He has been patiently waiting for the precise moment to bring forth his master plan and global godless unity. Lucifer's evil genius and perverted perception give him the tactical insight to pull the strings of humanity and to move them along to serve his godless purpose and eventually achieve his master design. That plan is the global worship of himself (2 Thess. 2:3-4; Rev. 13:4, 8, 12) and a delusional final angelic and human global war and victory against Almighty God (Dan. 7:25; Rev. 13:7; 16:13-16; 17:14a).

As the world at this time is in fatalistic panic and dire need, Lucifer will provide them with his man of lawlessness, i.e., the Antichrist.

There is no greater way for this Master of puppets to grab power and install radical laws and ruthless policies than when a people and nation are at the very place of lawlessness, poverty, and suffering. In this place, they are the most open to deception. They are consumed by their daily needs, lawless consequences, and are quite willing to even sell their very souls to him for a temporal remedy and a piece of meat or a loaf of bread. As the world - now and in the near future - is in a fatalistic panic and dire need, Lucifer will provide his puppet slaves of unbelief with "serpents and scorpions" and eventually his man of lawlessness, i.e., the Anti – Christ (Rev. 13). Since these have rejected Almighty God's natural laws and the ETERNAL RIGHTEOUS absolutes of Almighty God and His saving grace, the world’s inhabitants will be in a state of spiritual darkness and ripe for making a deal with the Devil himself to their ETERNAL doom and ruin (Matt. 25:4, 2 Thess. 2:9-12, Rev. 13,14:9-11). At this point, man’s casual unbelief will be channeled and focused into a powerful laser beam of violence and absolute defiance against Almighty God and His program (2 Thess. 2:2-12).

The Master puppet master is mightily at work, busily pulling the strings, setting the final stage.

Such events are unfolding right before our very eyes. As we are witnessing today the pending collapse of the Western social order and the global markets, the increasing sounds of the steps of the soon-coming Day of the Lord are ringing louder and louder. The Master puppet master is mightily at work, busily pulling the strings, setting the final stage. That, my friend, is what is behind all of this global movement today. How many people (saved or unsaved) truly comprehend this great biblical truth? Sadly, many do not. For remember, we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against a higher fallen spiritual order that is frantically trying to preserve itself from the Lake of Fire (2 Cor. 4:3-4, Eph. 6:12). Believers in the Lord today need to be extremely rooted in the Word of God and totally governed by the Holy Spirit. The casual, sloppy "believing Christian" will find themselves only being deceived and under the strings of the deception of Satan. We as believers truly need to be fully redeeming the time and seeking what Almighty God's will is for our lives here in time (Eph. 5:16-17), for the days are deadly and evil indeed!
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How Will You Spend Your Penny?
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My friends, this life is but a penny, easily spent and giving very little satisfaction in doing so. We are here for just a brief moment, and then we are gone (Eccl. 1:1-3). To put “all of our eggs” into the temporal and doomed basket of this life is the height of insanity, rebellion, and unbelief. ETERNITY is our future, and we must all be ready for it on God’s terms, which are holiness and perfect righteousness. That righteousness is only found in Jesus Christ (Romans 10:2-4).
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This life is but a penny, easily spent and giving very little satisfaction in doing so.

As these darkening and difficult days come to a close and the morning light is shining on the horizon of the Kingdom of Heaven, may you be sure to know the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior! He is the ONLY One who can deliver you from the Master puppet master's clutches and his prison hold of death (1 Cor. 15, Eph. 2:1-10, Heb. 2:14-15, Rev. 1:18). Your final destiny - and your ultimate destination - depends on YOUR choice. Call out to the Savior, and He will truly set you free! My friend, place your trust in Him today; you will NEVER be the same!

The Kingdom of Heaven is surely at hand! Maranatha!

DJP I.F.
 

THE TREASURE OF THE MAGI - Song Devotional for JESUS OUR VICTORY CD!

THE TREASURE OF THE MAGI

SONG DEVOTIONAL

Beloved, the seeking Magi of the East traveled 800 to 1000 miles seeking the young child Jesus as they followed His star. When they finally arrived in Bethlehem and came before Him, they fell upon their faces in holy reverence and worshipped Him. They then proceeded to present their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh to the very One in whom their hearts desired and greatly longed for. 

Yet the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh paled in comparison to the worship and surrender of their hearts that they presented to Him. What is the greatest gift we can bring to our precious Savior? Almighty God does not need our possessions, talents, abilities, or resources, for everything already belongs to Him. What He desires above all is the gift of a surrendered heart that says, “Lord Jesus, I am Yours. Take my life, work in me, disciple me, and use me for Your ETERNAL glory!” As we present ourselves to Him, He will faithfully work in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure (Gal. 2:20, Eph. 2:10, Phil. 2:13).

Beloved, the Lord Jesus is both God's greatest Gift to us and our greatest ETERNAL Treasure! The greatest gift we can therefore lay before our King is ourselves, a life fully surrendered to His Person, His Word, and His perfect will. Like the Magi of old, may we fall before our precious Jesus in worship, open the treasures of our hearts, and give ourselves completely to Him for His outworking and ETERNAL glory. For when we possess Christ, we possess a Treasure greater than all the riches of this fallen world. Our greatest gift belongs to our Greatest Gift, our ETERNAL Treasure, Jesus Christ!

KEY SCRIPTURES

Matthew 2:1–11
Isaiah 9:6–7
Matthew 6:19–21
Romans 12:1–2
Philippians 2:13
Colossians 2:2–3
2 Corinthians 9:15

DEVOTIONAL QUESTIONS

1. Is Jesus Christ truly the greatest Treasure of my heart, above everything this fallen world could offer?

2. What areas of my heart and life still need to be fully surrendered and laid before my ETERNAL King?

3. How can I offer myself today for Almighty God to work in me and use me for His ETERNAL glory?

PRAYER

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for Your greatest Gift, my precious Jesus. I surrender my heart and life to You; work in me and use me for Your ETERNAL glory.

We praise You and thank You, and ask these things in Your precious name; even so, come, Lord Jesus. Amen.

Song Devotional Playlist for our CD - JESUS OUR VICTORY!

I WILL NOT GO WITHOUT THEE - Song Devotional for JESUS OUR VICTORY CD!

WILL NOT GO WITHOUT THEE

SONG DEVOTIONAL

Beloved, Moses said unto the LORD, “If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence” (Ex. 33:15). What a beautiful picture of a surrendered and spiritually wise heart! Moses understood that the Promised Land itself was worthless without the presence of Almighty God. Almighty God is our true Promised Land. Likewise, the faithful disciple learns to say, “Lord, if Your presence, grace, mercy, and perfect will are not in this, I will not go without Thee!” Having and possessing God and His perfect will is infinitely greater than reaching any destination without Him. Beloved, what kind of fool would we be if we would go anywhere without Him?

Beloved, there will be times throughout our pilgrim journey when our hearts strongly desire something outside of the will of God: a relationship, opportunity, possession, ministry, achievement, or particular direction for our lives. Yet the surrendered child of God has purposed something deeper within his heart: I want God's will more than I want my own. Like our precious Savior in Gethsemane, we learn to pray, “Nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42). As we abide in Jesus, meditate upon His Word, and yield ourselves to the Holy Spirit, Almighty God faithfully directs our paths and teaches us to recognize that His presence is infinitely more precious than anything our hearts might desire.

Beloved, true surrender in Christ is true liberation and freedom (John 8:32)! Our Heavenly Father knows what is best for us, even when His direction differs from ours. If He says go, we follow. If He says wait, we wait. If He closes a door, we trust Him. And if His perfect will leads through an unexpected valley, we walk confidently with our Faithful Shepherd possessing and knowing He leads the way (Psalm 23). The wise disciple would rather walk the hardest road with Jesus than the easiest road without Him. May this therefore be the settled purpose of our hearts throughout our entire pilgrim journey: “Where You lead, precious Lord Jesus, I will follow, but I will not go without Thee!”

KEY SCRIPTURES

Exodus 33:14–15
Proverbs 3:5–6
Psalm 25:4–5
Luke 22:42
John 15:4–5
Romans 12:1–2
James 4:13–15

DEVOTIONAL QUESTIONS

1. Do I desire Almighty God's presence and perfect will more than the things my own heart desires?

2. Is there an area of my life where I need to sincerely pray, “Not my will, but Thine be done”?

3. Am I willing to follow when the Holy Spirit leads, wait when He says wait, and trust Him when His path differs from mine?

PRAYER

Dear Heavenly Father,

I desire Your presence and perfect will above my own. Give me a surrendered heart that follows wherever You lead and is willing to wait when You say wait.

We praise You and thank You and ask these things in Jesus' precious name; even so, come, Lord Jesus. Amen.

Song Devotional Playlist for our CD - JESUS OUR VICTORY!