Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-April 24, 2021-

Good morning, happy Saturday,

-Redeemed By The Blood Of The Lamb-

“Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver and gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”

(1 Peter 1:18-19).

The Apostle Peter was a former fisherman turned disciple. He loved the Lord so much but early on said and did things that did not always make sense. But after Jesus forgave him for denying Him three times, the Lord used him as a great preacher and elder, pastor and teacher. He took Jesus’ words to heart, “Feed My lambs, tend My sheep, feed my sheep.” (See John 21:15-19). Peter was, along with John, the two greatest disciples, yet Peter was so humble and served the Lord faithfully all the rest of his life. When it came time to die for His Lord, he requested to be crucified upside down since he felt unworthy to die as his Savior died.

Peter is a wonderful example of restoration. The end of his life was better than his beginning. There are many such examples in Scripture, such as Moses, David, Jonah, and John Mark, just to name a few. He is very clear in his writings in First and Second Peter as well as in his sermons in the book of Acts. He also aided Mark with the writing of his gospel. He knew that Jesus was the Lamb of God who died on the cross to redeem us to God with His precious blood. The word knowing is such a word of confidence and assurance.

Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:1-2, “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ. Grace to you and peace be multiplied.”

He writes, “Knowing that you were nor redeemed with corruptible things, like silver and gold…” Gold and silver were highly precious in his day, as they are today. As precious as they are, they are corruptible and will not last forever. Instead, we have been redeemed by the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. Only Jesus was and is perfect, sinless, blameless, holy, innocent, and undefiled. He gave us life and shed His blood to redeem us to God. There is nothing more precious and efficacious than His blood. The word efficacious means effective. Nowadays it has come up in medical terms for the COVID-19 vaccines and their rate of effectiveness. I am getting my second shot this morning in just over 2 hours, and I am so thankful! As great as they are, none is 100% effective, but the blood of Jesus is! His blood washes away all our sins and prevents God’s judgment on us.

In the OT, the priests offered sacrifices of lambs to the Lord over and over again. None of them could perfect anyone, but pointed people forward to the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, whose one sacrifice for sins was perfect and never needs to be repeated. The hymn writer Robert Lowry said it so well, “What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus; What can make me Whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.” The chorus says, “O precious is the flow, that makes me white as snow; No other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus.” Hallelujah what a Savior!

Have a blessed day thanking God for our salvation. We are redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-April 23, 2021-

Good morning, happy Friday,

-Every Knee Shall Bow And Tongue Confess Jesus As Lord-

“For it is written, ‘As live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall confess to God.’”

(Romans 14:11).

There is a coming a day when every person will bow down before Christ and every tongue will confess Him as Lord. Those who are unsaved will do it under compulsion. They will be will be judged at the Great White Throne. Even those who mocked and crucified Him will bow before Him. He is King of kings and Lord of lords. They will regret their decision to reject Him as Lord and Savior.

Today’s verse is a quote from Isaiah 45:23. Of all the writers in the NT, Paul uses more quotes from the OT than anyone else. In Philippians 2:9-11, Paul wrote of this same subject, “Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and those on earth, and those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

We as believers in Jesus have willingly bowed the knee to Him and confessed that He is Lord. God did not have to force us to bow and confess. Those in heaven, speak of believers and angels; those on earth are those alive on earth during the Tribulation and the Millennium; and those under the earth as those in hell. No one is excepted.

There is no higher honor on earth than for someone to bow before a ruler; and confess one allegiance to that person. Only a few countries in the world are still ruled by a monarchy. Even in the United Kingdom, the authority of the Queen is largely ceremonial. It will never be so with the Lord. His rule is absolute, authoritative, and all powerful.

Is Jesus Lord of your life? Is He sitting and ruling from the throne of your heart. I am currently writing a book about this subject. Think how much different life would be if Jesus was Lord of every heart! Heaven will be that way. May the Lord help us to own Jesus as Lord! He is our God, our Master, our King, and our Lord. He is in charge and in full control and authority in every situation. He leads us and guides us in victory.

Have a blessed day and weekend living for Jesus as Lord and serving Him. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-April 22, 2021-

Good morning, happy Thursday,

-Be Insistent, Consistent, And Persistent In Prayer-

“Then He spoke a parable to them, than men always ought to pray and not lose heart…”

(Luke 18:1).

Jesus taught His disciples to pray and to be insistent, consistent, and persistent in prayer, and not to lose heart. We are assured that God hears and answers our prayers according to His will and in His timing. The Apostle Paul wrote in Colossians 4:2, “Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving.” We should pray and keep on praying. It is important to pray for others and for ourselves as well.

Jesus tells this wonderful parable of of a needy widow and an unjust judge. This judge did not regard God nor man. The widow made her request known to him, saying, “Get justice for me from my adversary” (Luke 18:3). At first the judge was unwilling to get involved in her case, but changed his mind after seeing her insistence, consistency and persistence. It seemed she kept knocking at his door until he finally helped her. She was like a leaking roof that kept dripping!

Jesus showed how much God cares for His elect who cry to Him day and night. He desires that we bring our requests to Him and not give up praying. God is so different from the unjust judge, and wants us to keep praying. Oh that we would be insistent, consistent, and persistent in prayer.

Hebrews 4:16 says, “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” We pray to the Father, in Jesus’ name, and according to His will. We have so many needs. Are you a prayer warrior? Do you pray daily? Can the Lord count on you to pray and keep on praying?

There is no greater joy than to see God answering our prayers. It encourages to pray more. We should always thank Him for His answers, not only after He answers but also in advance for His answers. God is glorified in both. May the Lord help us to pray and not to lose heart. The hymn writer Joseph M. Scriven wrote, “What a friend in Jesus, all our sins to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer! O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.”

Have a blessed day praying in faith and not giving up. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-April 21, 2021-

Good morning, happy Wednesday,

-Eternally Secure In Christ-

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.”

(John 10-27-30).

It is such a blessing to be saved and have the assurance of eternal security in Christ. Once one is genuinely saved by grace through faith in Christ, nothing and no one can take that away: not the devil, the world, or even ourselves. The Bible is very clear on this. Jesus is our Shepherd and we are His sheep. We have heard His voice and we follow Him. We are safely in His fold.

When God makes a promise, He keeps it, and once He has given it, He never takes it away. The promise is: “they shall never perish.” To perish is to be eternally lost, separated from God in hell for all eternity. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

Our salvation is not based on what we have done, but what Christ has done for us on the cross. He died in our place as our Substitute, bearing our sins, and paying our sin debt in full by His precious blood. Through faith in His finished work on the cross, we are forgiven of every sin, past, present, and future. We will be with Him in heaven forever.

Our eternal security is forever secure in a three-fold way: we are in the hands of Jesus, we are in the hands of the Father, and we are sealed by the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 1:13-14 says, “In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.”

There is very little secure in this world, not our homes, our marriages, our families, our jobs, our incomes, our bank accounts, our stock portfolios, or even life on earth. But what is fully secure is our salvation. We may have insurance to cover losses on earth, but we have assurance in heaven to prevent any losses from happening.

The Apostle John wrote clearly and definitively in 1 John 5:11-13, “And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; He who does not have the Son of God does not have life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.”

Let me be clear: salvation is secure for all who believe. However, there is no security whatsoever for those who do not believe. There are only two choices with two outcomes: believe and be totally secure in Christ or reject, not believe, and be lost forever. This is no in between, no gray area.

Let us rejoice today in our eternal salvation and complete security in Christ. We have peace, assurance, and comfort. There is nothing better! We may lose everything on earth as many do in natural disasters, but we can never lose our salvation. Hallelujah what a Savior!

Have a blessed day in His blessed assurance. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-April 20, 2021-

Good morning, happy Tuesday,

-When Everything Goes Wrong, Trust The Lord-

“Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.”

(1 Samuel 30:6).

What happens when everything goes wrong and everyone is against us? What do we do? Whom do we turn to? David faced this situation in 1 Samuel chapter 30. David and his mighty men returned to Ziklag, the city they were living in, to find it burned to the ground. Their wives and children were gone. 1 Samuel 30:4 records the reaction of David and his men, “Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had had no more power to weep.” Have you ever wept until there were no more tears to shed? I have.

The enemy Amalekites were the perpetrators. Amalek is a type of our sinful flesh that attacks us at the most inopportune times. The saving grace in this story is they did not kill any of the women and children. This did not stop David’s men turning against him, blaming him for what happened. Their grief soon turned to anger and the people spoke of stoning him. Keep in mind that these mighty men were so loyal to David, yet even they under great sorrow and stress, turned against him. They let their circumstances dictate their decisions.

David did not panic, disband his fighters, or flee, instead he sought the Lord and prayed. Our text says, “David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.” David loved the Lord and knew that comfort, encouragement, strength, and help comes from the Lord and from him alone. Psalm 50:15 says, “Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.” This is exactly what happened. It is a wonderful verse to memorize.

When David prayed for the Lord’s guidance, the Lord directed him to pursue the Amalekites and assured him of victory. 1 Samuel 30:8 says, “So David inquired of the Lord, saying, ‘Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?’ And He answered him, ‘Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.’”

Off David and four hundred of his men went and God have them a complete victory. 1 Samuel 30:18 records, “So David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away, and David rescued his two wives. And nothing of theirs was lacking, either small or great, sons or daughters, spoil anything which they had taken from them; David recovered all.” What an answer to prayer! What a complete victory! Not only did they recover every wife and child, they also gained so much spoils that David sent much to his friends in the land of Judah who supported him. God turned their sorrow into joy, defeat into victory, and loss into gain!

David had one more issue to deal with. Some of the four hundred men did not want to share the spoils they gained with the two hundred men who were two exhausted to pursue the Amaelikites. David in his wisdom and tact handled this situation by giving those men the same as the ones that fought. He established it this as a perpetual principle in Israel from this point onward.

This story would make a great movie. It has drama, tragedy, fighting, and victory. God specializes in happy endings too! Now about us? When God turns around our circumstances and gives us the victory, we should thank Him and glorify His name. No one is immune from troubles, trials, and testings. The key is how we handle them: do we fall on our knees and seek the Lord or do we fall apart and try to solve things on our own which never works? Faith is the victory that overcomes the world!

Have a blessed day and when everything and everyone seems against us, let us remember God is for us. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean