Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-March 28, 2021-

Good morning, happy Lord’s Day and happy Palm Sunday,

“For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a random for all, to be testified in due time.”

( 1 Timothy 2:5-6).

As we reflect today on remembering our Lord Jesus Christ who died for us, took our place on the cross, paid our sin debt and bore our sins in His own body, we are so encouraged. He came down from heaven to earth to bring us from earth to heaven. As someone said, “He paid a debt He did not owe, because we owed we could it pay.” Luke 22:19-20 says, “And He took break, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.’ Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.’”

In the Gospel Of Luke, Luke presents Jesus as the Son of Man, who is perfect God and perfect man. Because He is sinless, He is the only one qualified to die for our sins. God accepted His one sacrifice on the cross to make atonement for our sins. God showed His complete satisfaction for His redeeming sacrifice by raising Him from the dead. He died for our sins and was raised for our justification.

The Apostle Paul calls Jesus the One Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus. The definition of mediator is, “A person who attempts to make people involved in a conflict come to an agreement; a go-between.” Our Lord Jesus Christ did not just attempt it, He did it, He fulfilled it on the cross. He fulfilled the old covenant of the law and established the new covenant of grace.

There was not only a conflict, there was a great division between us as sinners and a holy, righteous God. Because we sinned, we were separated from God, under the condemnation of spiritual and physical death, and on our way to hell. There was no hope for us whatsoever. On the other side, God was holy, righteous, just, and perfect. According to His law, the soul that sins must die and be separated from Him forever. Sin must be paid for, and Jesus, the Son of God, our Mediator, paid the price for our sins.

Christ took the hand of God and the hand of man and joined them together in an eternal bond of love and forgiveness. In Hebrews the word Mediator is used four times. Hebrews 8:6 says, “But now He (i.e. Jesus) has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises.”

Under the old covenant of the law, there was no mediator. The law came through Moses from God. One who kept the law perfectly was saved, but not one person other than Jesus Christ could keep it perfectly. Through the law there was condemnation, through Christ there was grace. John 1:17 says, “For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” Jesus was not only the Mediator, He was also our Substitute and our Intercessor.

In the business world, mediators are not always successful in bringing two sides together to a compromise and acceptable conclusion. Jesus fulfilled the role of Mediator perfectly. Through His sacrifice He made it possible for us unholy sinners to enter heaven and be with God forever. God now sees us through Christ, not as sinners but as sons, not as unrighteous but clothed in the righteousness of Christ. Our Savior was not only the just but also the justifier. Oh what Savior we have, what a salvation!

Let us thank God that our Savior became our Mediator. He is not only our Mediator but is our Intercessor. He makes intercession for us as our Great High Priest before the Father on a daily basis.

Have a blessed day rejoicing in our salvation. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-March 27, 2021-

Good morning, happy Saturday,

-What A Great God We Have Who Protects Us-

“In God is my salvation and my glory; The rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.”

(Psalm 62:7).

Today’s verse was written by King David. He found the Lord to be His Protector throughout his whole life. Over and over, the Lord protected him from death. Because David trusted in the Lord and obeyed Him, the Lord gave him the victory in every battle over all his enemies.

• In God is my salvation and my glory – The term salvation in the OT means to be saved from physical harm. David asked the question in Psalm 27:1, “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid.” David recognized that it was God who was the source of his strength not his own strength or ability. The Lord was also his glory and exalted him to being king over Israel. David was Israel’s greatest king.

• The rock of my strength and my refuge – Three times in this rich and beautiful psalm, David uses the word “rock,” to describe the Lord. He was not just referring to a small stone one picks off the ground, but a huge boulder that cannot be moved. Psalm 61:2 says, “From the end of the earth I will cry to You, when my heart is overwhelmed; Lead me to the rock who is higher than I.” As believers in Christ we come to Him who is our rock, the chief cornerstone. We build our lives on obedience to Him and His Word. No storm can collapse our eternal dwelling. He is our refuge. The devil cannot get through to us nor can anything or anyone. Psalm 46:1 says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”

What a great God we have and serve. Twice in our verse David uses the words “in God.“ The song writer wrote, “What a mighty God we serve, what a mighty God we serve. Angels bow before Him, heaven and earth adore Him, what a mighty God we serve.” We should not fear, be troubled, or anxious. He promised to never leave us nor forsake us. We can run to our Lord Jesus Christ for refuge in all the storms of life. He sees us through the storms and calms them as He did for His disciples on the Sea of Galilee. Let us trust Him at all times, pray, and be encouraged in the Word of God.

Have a blessed day of trusting in the Lord who is our salvation, glory, rock, and refuge. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-March 26, 2021-

Good morning, happy Friday,

-Identifying With Christ By Believing And Suffering-

“For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake.”

(Philippians 1:29).

When we receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we identify ourselves with Him. A Christian is a follower of Christ. We identify ourselves first with the death, burial, and resurrection of our Savior. This is shown in symbolic form in baptism. Following that we identify ourselves with Christ in believing in Him and suffering for His sake.

It was true for the OT prophets, for the apostles, and all believers in Jesus, standing for the Lord and His Word is costly. Suffering, especially in persecution, is a part of the Christian faith. Christianity will never be popular. People that hate Christ will also hate us, and people who love Christ will love us.

Jesus said in John 15:18-19, “If the world hates you, you know it hated Me before you it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of this world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” There has always been persecution in one form of another, and it still exists today. In many countries today there is physical persecution, but there is also spiritual persecution everywhere, including in the U.S.A.

The Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 8:17, “For the sufferings for this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” There is a three fold progression: we believe, we suffer, and we reign. The Apostle Peter wrote, “Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, than when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.”

Peter and John were put into jail, threatened, and beaten for their faith in Christ. After their release it says in Acts 5:31, “So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name.” We may not suffer in a physical way, but we are put down, mocked, ridiculed, and rejected by so many today. As soon as we identify with Christ and mention the name Jesus, we are cut off and people don’t want to hear it.

Do you believe in Jesus? Are you suffering in some way because of Him? Let us rejoice and thank the Lord that He suffered for us on the cross and we suffer for Him bearing His cross. Luke 9:23 says, “Then He said to them all, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me.’” Being a Christian is not easy, but it is the greatest blessing in the world and in heaven to come. Let us identify ourselves with Jesus, believing in Him and suffering for sake.

Have a blessed day identifying with Jesus, standing for Him, and suffering for His sake. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-March 25, 2021-

Good morning, happy Thursday,

-When We Confess Our Sins, God Forgives Us-

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. “

Our verse today is such a great blessing. When Jesus died on the cross He bore our sins once for all. Our forgiveness is based on the blood of Christ. He forgave our sins, past, present, and future. This what we call judicial forgiveness; God our Judge pardons us. The second form of forgiveness is parental forgiveness. When we as believers sin, we need to confess our sins to God and be forgiven. By confessing our wrongs, we are restored to fellowship with God.

The word “ if” is conditional word. If we do not confess our sin we remain outside of God’s will and our relationship and fellowship with Him is broken. We do not lose our salvation, but we lose the joy of our salvation. King David went through this and he was greatly affected spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically. He wrote in Psalm 32:3-5, “When I kept silent, my bones grew old through my groaning all the day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was turned into the drought of summer. I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,’ and You forgave the iniquity of my sins.”

David also said in Psalm 51:12, “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit.” We also read in Proverbs 28:13, “He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.” Taking all the Scriptures together, we are to confess our sins, forsake them, repent, and ask God to forgive us.

The Holy Spirit convicts us of our sins. He makes us fell uncomfortable, uneasy, and disturbed. God loves us so much and never stops loving us no matter what we do wrong. He longs to restore us even more than we long to be restored. We have to deal with our sins and agree with God that we have sinned. David said, “Against You, You only have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight — That You be found just when You speak, and blameless when You judge” (Psalm 51:4). David, Jonah, and Peter all confessed their sins and were restored and cleansed before God. When we sin against another person, we must also confess our sins to them and ask for their forgiveness. This keeps bitterness from festering and the relationship with them open.

Have a blessed day confessing your sins and walking close with the Lord. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-March 24, 2021-

Good morning, happy Wednesday,

-The Gift Of God Is Eternal Life Through Jesus Christ-

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

(Romans 6:23).

Today’s verse is so encouraging. It clearly shows us where we were because of sin, and where we are now because of His righteousness. It was part of what is called, “The Roman Road,” which are gospel verses found in the Epistle to the Romans that lead a person like a roadmap to salvation in Christ.

Romans 3:23 – All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; Romans 6:23 – The gift of God is eternal life; Romans 5:8 – God demonstrated His love to us while we were still sinners by Christ’s death on the cross; Romans 10:9-10 – That by confession that Jesus is Lord and faith in Him we have salvation; and Romans 10:13 – That whoever calls on the Lord shall be saved. While the Romans built the best roads in the ancient world, God made the best road to heaven by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, who died for us on the cross and rose again. They used to say, “All roads lead to Rome.” While that may have been true, Jesus Christ is the only way to the Father and to eternal life and salvation.

When we look at where we were, it is not a pretty picture. We were born in sin and conceived in iniquity. We were dead in our trespasses and sins, separated from God because of sin, lost, without God and without hope in the world, in darkness, under the control of sin and the devil, and completely helpless to save ourselves. The Apostle Paul writes, “For the wages of sin is death.” We were doubly dead, spiritually and one day to die physically. The former is much worse, to die spiritually in hell forever is so horrible. Someone once said, “Those who are born once, will die twice; but those who are born twice will die at most once.” The born again believer is free from what the Bible calls the “The Second Death,” being forever away from the presence of the Lord in hell forever.

When we think of wages, we think of compensation for our jobs here on earth. The wages of sin also pays a wage: death. Ezekiel 18:4 says, “Behold all souls are Mine; The soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine; The soul who sins shall die.”

We thank God that we are saved from our sins are forgiven through the sacrifice and shed blood of Jesus Christ. He died for sins, taking our place on the cross, so that God can justly impute the righteousness of Christ to us. He has given us the gift of God which is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. A gift in life is given freely and we do not pay for it. Whether it is for a birthday, anniversary, graduation, retirement, Christmas, or any other occasion. The same is true of God’s gift to us of eternal life — it is free, it costs us nothing, but it cost Christ everything on the cross.

If you have not yet received Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior please do so today. Believe you are a sinner, confess your sins to Him, repent of your sins by turning from them, believing that Jesus died for your sins, receive Him into your heart, and commit your life to Him. God’s great gift of eternal life can never be lost, stolen, or worn out. What a joy, what a Savior!

Have a blessed day rejoicing in your salvation through Christ. Your past is under the blood and your future is in heaven forever. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean