August 2  2008

The Dedication of Christ

By: Timothy E. Davis

 “The child’s mother and father marveled at what was said about him.  The Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother,” this child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel , and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed.  And a sword will pierce your own soul, too.’ Luke 2:33-36 (TLB)

  Mary and Joseph have gone to the temple to dedicate Jesus to the lord.  It was required by the law of moses that every firstborn son be dedicated to Jehovah.  Even though they knew of the future of their son, and who he was going to grow up to be, they still followed the Jewish laws on circumcision and female purity after the birth of a child.

 Surely their hearts would have been brimming with pride; hearing such glorious things being said by the prophets and their little baby, just eight days old.  The tiny Redeemer, messiah, King of kings, and the son of almighty god.

 But Mary also received the news that she would lose her first born son in a terrible and painful way. (A sword shall pierce your own soul, too. Luke 2:35 (TLB)    This foreshadowed the agony of Christ on the cross, as mary stood there and watched the life slowly fade from her tortured and abused son's Murder.  even as she wept, she took comfort in knowing his kingdom was not ending, but would extend for eternity.
 

Jesus bought your freedom at a great price.  Your forgiveness and right standing with God was paid for with his lifeblood.  It soaked into the arrid ground of Mount Calvary almost 2008 years ago, and has been cleansing the hearts of believers ever since.  There is one who stands between us and Paradise.  He is the Son of Almighty God, Jesus Christ.  Won't you ask Him to forgive your sins today?  You have no promise of tommorow.
 

 Daily Manna July 9

 

Walking Deep In The Shadows

By: Timothy E. Davis

 

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."   Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)

 

  Our lives are not guaranteed to be trouble free. You did not sign a contract with God in which He promised to only send you wine and chocolates.  To borrow from an old seventies song, Jehovah never promised you a rose garden. We will all  have seasons when we must walk in the dark and deep shadows.

We will feel abandoned by our King, alone, and uncertain.

 

But He has given us a promise for all eternity.  A promise that never expires, a covenant never to be altered.  In  Deuteronomy 31:8,  we are told "The LORD is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed."   No, the Master has not promised we will never have to walk in the long, dark, shadows, but He has given His inalterable Word we will not be walking through them alone

    

 

   Jesus: The Key to Eternal Life

By: Timothy E. Davis

                                            
"I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am
alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death
and Hades."  Revelation 1:18 (NIV)

I think everyone has shared the experience of standing
in the rain, at night, going through the keys,
desperately trying to find one that fits the door.
You may have a lot of keys that look like the door
key, but they do not fit.  There is only one key that
is the right key, and, once you find it, you do not
have to look anymore.

Christ is the key to the gates of Heaven.  We are
issued this key after we do two things.  First,
accepting Messiah's death on the cross as the free
gift that reconciles us with the Father, and washes
away all our sins, with the blood of Jesus.  Secondly,
we must accept the Master's broken and beaten body, as
the clothes that cover our sinfulness.  Once these two
things are done, our standing with the Father is
reconciled, our sins are remembered no more. 

God scatters them as far away as the east is from the
west, and no longer sees us as sinners who anger him,
but as children that love him. Then we know that we
hold the key to the riches and glories of Heaven, and
we can stop wasting time with all the keys that don't
fit.

                                   


     
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                            

   

 

 

 

 


 


 

                                                                                                                         

 

        

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                         

 

 Prelude to an Execution Part II

                                 By: Timothy E. Davis

 

“Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God commanded you, so that your days may be long and that it may go well with you in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.” 

(Deuteronomy 5:16 NRSV)

 

I had never denied my guilt.  Yes, my lawyer pled me not guilty, but it was all for show. She was a media and publicity hound, working on a book about the death penalty.   I didn’t even care about being executed.  I had died myself.  Every night, in my dreams, I died.  He shot me, instead of me shooting him.  It was like being in a drive in theatre sitting right in front of the two-story screen, and watching the same scene over and over and over.  I had the same dream, each night, for 17 years.  I had died 6,205 times.

 

 Now, as they led me to the end of the road, the dream was soon to be realized. I thought of my mother.  How she tried to get me to read the Bible.  How she tried to get me to stop drinking.  How she warned me to stay away from that bar.  The way I treated her, the language I used, all the disrespect   I showed her.  But the worst, the worst I had ever hurt was not after the shooting.  It was not after I realized I had taken a life, for absolutely no reason.

 

 It was after my guilt, shame, and self hatred peaked, when my mother took the stand during the punishment phase of the trial and broke down calling me “a good boy” who “didn’t mean to hurt anyone.”  “It was all the drugs, and all the liquor.”  I watched her beg a judge and 12 strangers not to run a lethal amount of voltage through her son.  She suffered an emotional breakdown on the stand, and left the courthouse in the back of an ambulance.   I tried to think of what she did to make me treat her so bad.  All she ever did was love me.

 

This is part two of a seven part series Prelude to an Execution.  This is different from my usual postings, but the message is the same, just more nuanced.  Hang on for just a few more days with me and you will be glad you did.

Copyright 2007 Spotless Lamb Ministries, Inc.

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