Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-March 13, 2022-

Good morning, happy Lord’s Day,

“Then he said to Jesus, ‘Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.‘ And Jesus said to him, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.’”

(Luke 23:42-43).

Jesus was crucified with two thieves. At first, both criminals blasphemed Him, telling Him if He was the Son of God to save Himself and them. But something happened to the second criminal, after hearing Jesus’ words and how He suffered; he turned to Him in saving faith. He turned to our Savior and said, “Lord, remember me when you come into Your kingdom.” He knew he was a sinner and needed a Savior. Jesus spoke those beautiful and assuring words, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”

We can all relate to this thief on the cross. We came to Jesus as sinners, guilty, lost, hopeless, and separated from God, to repent of our sins and believe in Him and His finished work on the cross. The hymn writer Charlotte Elliott wrote, Just as I am, without one plea, but that Thy blood was shed for me, and that Thou biddst come to Thee — O Lamb of God, I come, I come!” This hymn is so appropriate for the saved thief and for everyone who comes in faith to Christ for salvation.

The word Paradise is another word for heaven. It is found three times in the NT: here in Luke, in 2 Corinthians 12:4, where Paul was transported to Paradise and saw and heard wonderful things before returning to earth, and in Revelation 2:7, where Jesus promised that we will eat from the tree of life which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.

When God created Adam and Eve and placed them in the Garden of Eden, they sinned by eating from the forbidden fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. As a result God banished them from the garden. For them, and thus for us their descendants, it was Paradise Lost; but now through Christ it is Paradise gained. We will be with Lord and all believers forever. We will one day meet the thief of the cross too. We are all bought with the blood of Jesus.

This thief on the cross never got to join a church, be baptized, take communion, serve the Lord, or tithe, but he was saved right then and there, and went to be with the Lord in Paradise. The most important thing, and the only thing that really matters is our soul’s destiny and being saved.

Have a blessed day thanking God for our salvation. It is all of Him and through His grace and mercy. Paradise is our final destination. Stay safe and healthy.

In His eternal grace,

Dean

-March 12, 2022-

Good morning, happy Saturday,

“Then He said to His disciples, ‘The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.’”

(Matthew 9:37-38).

Salvation is of Lord. It takes the Holy Spirit to work in the hearts of the unsaved to convict them of their sin and their need of the Savior. Our part is to share the gospel with the lost and let God germinate the seed and bring about salvation. Laborers are sorely needed in the Lord’s harvest field for there are many sinners needing to be saved, for as Jesus said, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.”

There are two ways we can help: pray for God to burden the hearts of the laborers, and that God will send out more laborers. We can also become and more involved in the harvest ourselves. Paul wrote in Romans 10:14–15, “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!’”

All of us should be involved in sharing the good news and praying for souls to be saved. It is a burden on the heart of our Savior and should be a burden on our’s as well. We are in the last days and many are still unsaved! There is a big need! Jesus has compassion on people and sees them as sheep without a shepherd. He is the Good Shepherd, the Great Shepherd, and the Chief Shepherd. He uses us to be part of His harvest.

The hymn writer Kittie Louise Suffield wrote, “In the harvest field now ripened, there’s a work for all to do; Hark, the voice of God is calling, to the harvest calling you. Little is much when God is in it, labor not for wealth or fame; there’s a crown and you can win it, if you go in Jesus’ name.” May the Lord help us to sow and reap, and be workers together with Him and one another!

Have a blessed day in the harvest field. Stay safe and healthy.

In The Master’s work,

Dean

-March 11, 2022-

Good morning, happy Friday,

“Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.”

(Matthew 7:24).

Jesus just completed His Sermon on the Mount in Matthew chapters 5-7. His message was fresh, exciting, challenging, and encouraging. The people who heard it were amazed. Matthew 7:28 says, “And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished by His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.”

Prior to concluding His address, Jesus gives his listeners and us as well, a choice to obey His words and build on Him, the solid Rock, or to disobey Him and build on the sinking sand of this world. What would they choose? What do we choose? Christ is the solid Rock, the best foundation anyone can build upon. Building one’s life on the sinking sand of this world will only lead to a great and destructive fall.

When we get saved we choose to believe in Jesus as our Lord and Savior. For the Christian, there will be trials. Jesus said, “The rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house.” The person who builds his life on Christ can withstand whatever comes in life. His life, like a house, is build on Christ the Rock and will not fall but stand firm. Adversity will come, trouble will come, hardship will come, loss will come, and sorrow will come like a torrent. We must face it, but we face it with the Lord.

We think of Job and what he lost in one day: livestock, which was his business, servants, and worst of all his sons and his daughters. And just imagine, this happened to a godly man who never had trials before. His life was like a house that was severely and heavily hit, but stood firm on the Lord. His reaction is found in Job 1:21, “And he said: ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.’” Then things got worse: he got painful boils all over his body, head to foot.

The end of Job’s life was better than his beginning, for God gave him back more than he had lost. He learned so much about the Lord and himself through these great trials. He got very discouraged but never gave up and his faith held strongly to the Lord. Job 1:22 says, “In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong.” He did not know that the devil was behind all these things and that God allowed them for a purpose. The righteous do suffer; bad things do happen to good people; and life isn’t always fair.

Let us build our lives on Christ the Rock. We can always count on Him no matter what. He is with us through all the storms of life. He is the Captain of our ship and will navigate us through to our heavenly shore. Are you experiencing one or more trials right now? If not, you have in the recent past or will in the near future. May we cling to the Lord, for the Captain is also our anchor.

Have a blessed day and weekend trusting the Lord through whatever we face by His grace. Stay safe and healthy.

In His everlasting care,

Dean

-March 10, 2022-

Good morning, happy Thursday,

“For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways.”

(Psalm 91:11).

There are numerous references to angels in the Bible. God created these celestial beings to worship and serve Him. Only three angels are mentioned by name in the Scriptures: Lucifer, who fell into sin and became the devil, Gabriel, and Michael the archangel. Angels are God’s spirits and ministers. Each angel has great power, way more than a whole army of human beings. Their mission to do God’s will.

God has given His angels charge or responsibility for our protection. They are to keep us in all our ways. They are God’s secret agents for our good. They are invisible, although at times they take on human form. I have no doubt that my angel, who is responsible for me, has protected me on the road from accidents and death over the years. One day we will meet our angels in heaven. Psalm 91:12 says, “In their hands they shall bear (or lift) you up, lest you dash (or strike) your foot against a stone.”

There are as many angels as there are stars. When Lucifer fell into sin, he was banished from heaven and he swept away one third of the angels with him and they became demons. There is constant warfare in the spiritual realms between Michael and his angelic army and the devil and his demonic forces. It is an unseen warfare.

We can have confidence in the angels and know God has given them to us behind the scenes for our well-being. They take a low profile, seeking only to please and serve our Lord Jesus Christ. Not only has God given angels to protect us, He has given us the Holy Spirit, and the Word of God. We are so blessed in every way.

The angels were sent to strengthen Jesus after His temptation by the devil, and they also where there at the empty tomb after His resurrection. One of the most beautiful verses on angels is Psalm 34:7 which says, “The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them.” Two angels were sent by the Lord to deliver Lot and his family from Sodom before God destroyed it. Thank God for His wonderful angels and what they do for us behind the scenes.

Have blessed day in God’s providential care. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace and mercy,

Dean

-March 9, 2022-

Good morning, happy Wednesday,

“But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that the message might be preached fully through me, and that all the Gentiles might hear. Also I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.”

(2 Timothy 4:17).

Paul had been through many difficult experiences in his service for the Lord. In every case, he found the Lord to be faithful. He was persecuted by both the Jews and Gentiles. His main enemy, however, was the devil, a roaring lion. The Lord Jesus who saved him on the road to Damascus told him exactly what he would go through. In Acts 9:15, the Lord said to Ananias, “Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.”

Paul never gave up, in spite of all the opposition he continued to preach and teach the Word, even from prison. He especially appreciated that the Lord stood with him and strengthened him. The Lord protected him until his mission was complete. Like Paul, the Lord is with us and will use us until our mission on earth is complete. Paul spent eighteen months in Corinth serving the Lord. The Lord spoke to him with great words of encouragement. Acts 18:9-10 says, “Now the Lord spoke to Paul in the night by a vision, ‘Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent; for I am with you, and no one will attack you to hurt you; for I have many people in this city.’”

We all need encouragement to keep going for the Lord. When the prophet Elijah got very discouraged, the Lord reminded him he was not alone in 1 Kings 19:18, “Yet I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth who has not kissed him.” When we stand, the Lord stands with us; when we speak, He speaks through us. He gives us the strength to carry on. Paul wrote, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13). Just as the Lord delivered Paul from the mouth of the lion, He will also do the same for us.

May the Lord continue His work in us and through us. The time is short and we must redeem the time for the days are evil. The Lord stands with us and strengthens us for our mission of spreading the gospel and helping others.

Have a blessed day of serving the Lord in and by His strength. Stay safe and healthy.

In His service,

Dean