Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-January 26, 2021-

Good morning, happy Wednesday,

-Spiritual Warfare: The Real Enemy We Fight Against And How To Fight Him-

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all to stand.”

(Ephesians 6:12-13).

Ephesians 6:10-18 is the fullest teaching on spiritual warfare in all the Bible. The title of this section is: the Whole Armor of God. It tells us who we fight, how we fight, and how to prepare ourselves with the armor of God. Of all the armor of God, all parts are defensive with the exception of the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. Paul also mentions prayer for our fellow believers and prayer for him. Prayer is the key to our victory.

The first thing to remember is who the real enemy is, the devil and all his demons. Though we cannot see them, they are real, they are powerful, and they are against us. They want to destroy us and the church as a whole. The devil is a defeated foe, but he and his evil forces keep fighting on. Jesus defeated the devil on the cross. He is greatly limited what he can do to us. Still we must protect ourselves and fight him in the Lord’s power not in our own power.

We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, that is the people we see around us. There are evil hosts, demons, who behind the governments of this world. Paul calls them principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this age, and spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. They are unseen armies that fight against Michael the archangel and the angelic forces of God. This why prayer is so important to defeat them.

Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 10:3-6, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.”

Spiritual battles against evil and wicked spiritual forces must be fought with spiritual weapons. We are assured of the victory in Christ. The devil and his demons will be cast into the lake of fire after the Millennium. He knows his fate. His mission is to stop people from getting saved and to destroy the church.

Paul tells us in verse 13, “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand in the evil day, and having done all to stand.” the apostle uses the world stand twice in this verse. We are living in the last days, evil days. Things are going from worse to worse. Evil is prevailing around us, we must stand firm for Christ more than ever before.

In verses 14-18, Paul lists the armor of God piece by piece: waist girded with truth, breastplate of righteousness, feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit. The Christian soldier must put on the whole armor, not just a part of it, as we go to battle each day. We must stand and withstand. It depends on us for both offense and defense.

Let us fight the good fight of faith, knowing who are real enemies are, putting on the whole armor of God, so that we can stand and withstand against the devil and his demons. The hymn writer Charles Wesley wrote, “And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us, we will not fear, for God hath willed His truth to triumph through us. The prince of darkness grim, we tremble not for him— his rage we can endure, for lo, his doom is sure: one little word shall fell him.”

Have a blessed and victorious day in our spiritual warfare. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-January 26, 2022-

Good morning, happy Tuesday,

-Humbling Ourselves In The Sight Of The Lord-

“Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.”

(James 4:10).

Jesus taught and practiced humility. He came down as the Son of God from the glory of heaven to be born in Bethlehem’s manger. He served the Father and died on the cross for our sins, and rose for our justification. While in Upper Room before His arrest and betrayal, He took the servant’s place and washed the feet of His disciples.

James, the writer of this epistle and half brother of Jesus, saw and heard what Jesus did and the life He lived. At first his brothers did not believe in Him, but then later turned to Him and became great servants of the Lord. His brother Jude did also and wrote the short epistle of Jude.

Here in our text, James clearly writes, “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord…” It is not easy to humble ourselves, but it is absolutely essential in the Christian life. We are saved by grace through faith, we are unworthy sinners, and everything we have belongs to God and we are stewards of the manifold glory of God. We are all brothers and sisters in Christ and are one and equal before God.

James wrote in James 4:6, “But He gives more grace. Therefore He says, ‘God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’” None of us as believers want God to resist Him. Pride was the original sin of Lucifer, the prominent angel, who became the devil and took with him one third of the angels when he was banished from heaven. He exalted himself to the place of God. When the devil, as the serpent, tempted Eve he attracted her with the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life.

The decision is ours, we must choose to humble ourselves or God will humble us. James adds, “…and He will lift you up.” God promises great blessings on the humble in our verse and throughout the Scriptures. Jesus said in Matthew 23:11-12, “But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” In this context Jesus is speaking of the pride of the Pharisees and how they exalted themselves. He wanted His disciples to be the opposite of the Pharisees.

The principle of Scripture is clear: God humbles the proud but exalts the humble. Let us then humble ourselves in the sight of the Lord every day of our lives. God will bless us and lift us up. He will give success and victory. We must thank Him and give Him all the glory. A humble saint seeks no credit and is happy when others do well.

Have a blessed day walking and serving in humility in the sight of the Lord. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-January 25, 2021-

Good morning, happy Monday,

-Meditate On Christ And His Word-

“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy— meditate on these things.”

(Philippians 4:8).

Meditation is so important in the Christian life. Other religions also have meditation but the big difference is that we meditate on our Lord and the Word of God not just humanistic thoughts. Paul wrote to Timothy, “Meditate on these things; give yourselves entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all” (1 Timothy 4:15).

In Joshua 1:8, the Lord said, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it.” The Bible is not just for leaders, pastors, preachers, teachers, and missionaries, it is for all of us. Meditation goes beyond just reading it and even studying it; it involves thinking about it and applying it to our lives. Meditation takes time and produces great results in our lives with Christ.

As we read the Word, we can take a verse or part of a verse or thought from verse or subject from a passage to muse over. Here in our text today, Paul mentions eight qualities that we can think about and apply to our lives. These represent the life of Christ and how He wants us to live. Christ is true, noble, just, pure, lovely, of good report, virtuous, and praiseworthy.

We need to make these qualities prevalent in our lives: true – tell the truth and stand for the truth; noble – be dignified and respectful of all people; just – be fair and righteous, treating people equally; pure – be holy in our thoughts and actions; lovely – having a beautiful spirit and a smile on our faces; good report – be positive and look for good things in every situation; virtue – having spiritual and moral excellence and high standards in all areas of life; praiseworthy – praise God daily and thank Him for what He has done for us.

To be like Jesus, to speak like Jesus, and to live like Jesus should be our continual goal. As we read about Him and meditate on Him and His Word, we will grow spiritually and be more pleasing to Him. In writing about verse 8, Bill MacDonald said, “A person cannot entertain evil thoughts and thoughts about the Lord Jesus at the same time. If, then, an evil thought should come to him, he should immediately get rid of it by meditating on the Person and work of Christ.”

Have a blessed day meditating on Christ and His Word and being positive in our thoughts. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-January 24, 2021-

Good morning happy Lord’s Day,

-The Goal Is Restoration Not Condemnation-

“Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.”

(Galatians 6:1).

Today’s verse reminds me to of two questions, one asked by Cain and the other asked by a lawyer. Cain got angry and blamed his brother for his own sin. When the Lord asked him where his brother Abel was, whom he had murdered, he responded, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper” Genesis 4:9)? When the lawyer asked Jesus, which commandment was the greatest, Jesus told to love God with all ones heart, soul, and mind, and the second is like it to love one’s neighbor as oneself. He asked Jesus, “who is my neighbor?” Jesus then told him the parable of the Good Samaritan.

Man by nature is very selfish. We only care about ourselves, our families, and our own personal interests. When we get saved, the Lord changes our hearts and we begin to think of others, pray for others, and help others. This is what we have before us today. Paul wrote in Philippians 2:4, “Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”

In our text, Paul tells the Galatians, “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness…” The first thing to note is he is speaking to Christians. It is a sad thing when a Christian sins, but it does happen. To be overtaken in any trespass means, any sin, large or small. There is shame in the one who sins, and those who are spiritual, that are walking with God, should restore the erring one in a spirit of gentleness. The Lord is gentle with us and we should be gentle with others.

It is not a time for harshness, condemnation, or punitive measures, it is a time for restoration. God has forgiven and restored us and we should do the same with others. Let us remember how merciful God was with David who committed adultery and murder; Jonah who ran away from his gospel mission to Nineveh; and Peter who denied the Lord three times. In each case the sin is dealt first, then comes forgiveness and restoration. We cannot sweep sin under the carpet.

We must also remember Paul’s words, “…considering yourself lest you also be tempted.” We must be prayerful for the sinning one and careful for ourselves not to fall into the same sin. Who is my brother’s keeper? I am. Who is my neighbor? Anyone in need. It is so important to restore others.

Have a blessed day working for the Lord to help others. It takes a lot of compassion and care. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-January 23, 2021-

Good morning, happy Saturday,

-Praying For Wisdom From God-

“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”

(James 1:5).

Today’s verse is so encouraging. In James 1:1-8, James writes about the way to profit from our trials by counting them all joy and recognizing the benefit we gain in patience. It is within this context that James urges those who lack wisdom to ask it from God. This is exactly what King Solomon did when God invited him to ask whatever he wanted. He chose wisdom and understanding to govern God’s people Israel. Wisdom is more valuable than gold, rubies, or any other precious commodity.

When James writes, “If any of you lacks wisdom,” it does not mean that there are some who do not need God’s wisdom, we all need it every day. There are certain times when we need it more than others. God’s wisdom is the opposite of man’s wisdom and is so much greater. Later in the epistle, James defines God’s wisdom as, “But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partially and without hypocrisy” (James 3:17). Oh how wonderful is His wisdom! It is personal, practical, and precious!

If we are honest with God, ourselves, and others, we greatly need God’s wisdom. The two main things we pray for ourselves is strength and wisdom. The former helps us physically with our daily tasks and the latter helps us spiritually to apply God’s Word to every situation of life. Knowledge is acquainting ourselves with God’s truth, understanding is knowing what it means, especially to us, and wisdom is applying that knowledge and understanding to our daily lives.

Let us then pray for wisdom every morning for the day to come. Only our Lord knows what lies ahead today. We want to know and do God’s will in wisdom. James 3:18 says, “Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.” We who have peace with God and experience the peace of God that passes all understanding must be peacemakers. This is so needed in our world today.

God promises to give us wisdom when we ask Him. He gives it to us liberally and without reproach to those who ask in faith without any doubting.

Have a blessed day asking for and walking in God’s wisdom. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean