Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-October 21, 2024-

Good morning beloved, happy Monday,

“For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”

(Romans 10:4).

When a movie is over you see the words, “The End.” It means it is done. God gave the law as a way of showing His perfect standards that no sinner could attain on his own. It was a tudor to point us to Christ. He alone as the God-Man, kept the law perfectly.

Jesus came to fulfill the law. He said in Matthew 5:17, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.” Our Savior died in our place bearing our sins and the curse of the law to make us right with God through faith in Him alone.

Anything less than perfection subjects a person to the condemnation of God. James wrote, “For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumbles in one point is guilty of all” (James 2:10). It is like having a beautiful bracelet where one link is broken, breaking and ruining it the who chain.

Only Christ could fulfill the law of God’s demands through His perfect sacrifice on the cross; we are made righteous through Him. Christ is thus the end of the law and the Author of salvation by grace through faith.

Someone once said, “The law is like a loaded gun pointed at the head of those who break it.” Christ took the bullet for us and emptied the chamber so we could never be hurt by it. We are now clothed in the righteousness of Christ.

Those who try to keep the law as a means of salvation will be frustrated and condemned. We are set free from the penalty of sin and have liberty in Christ. Our liberty is not a license to sin, but a freedom to live in accordance with God’s will. Now by the power of the Holy Spirit, we keep God’s laws. We are still sinners, but sinners saved by grace.

The hymn writer Augustus M. Toplady wrote, “A debtor to mercy alone, of covenant mercy I sing, nor fear with God’s righteousness on, my person and offerings to bring. The terrors of law and of God with me have nothing to do; my Savior’s obedience and blood hide all my transgressions from view.”

Have blessed day walking in Christ’s righteousness to the end, until we reach heaven’s shore. Stay safe and healthy.

Those in Christ no longer have a hopeless end, but an endless hope.

Dean

-October 20, 2024-

Good morning beloved, happy Lord’s Day,

“For now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord.”

(1 Thessalonians 3:8).

It was Paul’s desire for the saints in Thessalonica to stand fast in the Lord. This is also what the Lord wants from us on a daily basis. To stand fast is to cling to the Lord in the midst of trials, troubles, and testings.

Jesus said in John 16:33, “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

The early church faced many perils, such as hardships, persecutions, false teachers, and fears of many kinds. We experience much the same today along with other new things as well, such as what we see on TV, in movies, and on the internet.

As believers in an unbelieving world, we face pressure on a daily basis to compromise our beliefs, to be silent when we need to speak up, to give in when we should stand firm.

Standing fast in the Lord is like a ship held by an anchor—Jesus is our anchor. He holds us fast so that we can stand fast in Him. Six times Paul uses this expression, “stand fast” in the epistles: He says in 1 Corinthians 16:13, “Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave strong.” He also wrote in Philippians 1:27, “Only let your conduct be worthy of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel.”

The other references for further study are found in Galatians 5:1; Philippians 4:1; and 2 Thessalonians 2:15. Paul also uses the expression, “stand firm in the faith” which is another way on stating this same truth.

May the Lord help us to stand fast in the Lord against all the attacks of the evil one and all the pressures of life. The saints, the angels, and the Lord Jesus Himself are cheering us on to victory.

Have a blessed day standing fast. It is not easy; Let us therefore pray for each other. Stay safe and healthy.

Standing firm and standing fast, from the first until the last.

Dean

-October 19, 2024-

Good morning beloved, happy Saturday,

“But I want you to know, brethren, that the things that happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel.”

(Philippians 1:12).

We often hear the expression, “bittersweet.” It is defined as pleasant but including or marked by elements of suffering or regret.” There are many examples in life where something is difficult or sad, yet good comes from it.

This what I face tomorrow afternoon when we have a memorial service for our precious mother, friend, and servant of the Lord, Sylvia. The bitter part is she is no longer with us in this world; the sweet part is all the lives she touched and that we will see her again in heaven.

There will be a veil of tears, yet much praise to God for all her years of servicing the Lord. She taught the Women’s Bible Studies, headed up the Women’s Ministry, oversaw the Sunday School, taught Revelation seminars, led the Choir, counseled, and so much more. We miss her terribly.

To me the sweet will overshadow the bitter. It reminds of dark chocolate, which can be bitter, but when you add caramel, it tastes so good. We can leave a legacy for Christ as Sylvia did. I am assured that the Lord said to her, “Well done, you good and faithful servant, you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord” (Matthew 25:23).

Paul tells of his own bittersweet time in a Roman prison. While there he preached the gospel and some of the Praetorian or palace guards were saved and many of the saints became more confident to share their faith with boldness.

I am sure you have had your share of bittersweet moments that the Lord brought good from. I know I have them many times. Paul wrote in Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” Joseph, in speaking to his brothers, said, “But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive” (Genesis 50:20).

Have a blessed day. God will give sweetness, comfort, encouragement, and joy in the midst of your sorrow or pain. Stay safe and healthy.

The rainbow appears after the rain and the sun begins to break through.

Dean

-October 18, 2024-

Good morning beloved, happy Friday,

“Can anyone hide himself in secret places, so I shall not see him?” says the Lord; Do I not fill the earth?” says the Lord.”

(Jeremiah 23:24).

Mankind has been hiding from God since the Garden of Eden. When Adam and Eve sinned by eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they felt shame, guilt, and fear. They hid from God among the trees from God’s presence.

God sought them out. He knew where they were, but asked, “Adam, where are you?” (Genesis 3:9). God’s plan of salvation was set in motion until Christ came into the world to fulfill it. He died for our sins to save us, forgive us, and free us from guilt, shame, and fear that one plagued us.

In today’s text God reminds Israel and the whole world: you can’t hide from God. He sees when no one else sees; He hears what no one else hears. David wrote in Psalm 139:12, “Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, but the night shines as the day; the darkness and the light are both alike to you.” God is omnipresent—no one can hide from Him.

As believers were are comforted that God sees and hears all things. Jesus made the distinction between those who are saved and those who are unsaved in John 3:19-21, “And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their days are evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his heeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”

When we sin we must confess it, forsake it, and repent of it. Then the sweet fellowship with the Lord is restored. It is only when we try to hide it and fail to confess it, that we suffer in countless ways. There are no secret places to hide from God.

Let us keep no secrets but walk in the light of God’s Word. His Word is a two-edged sword that cuts deep into the soul and discerns the thoughts and intents of the heart (See Hebrews 4:12).

Have a blessed day in God’s presence. Stay safe and healthy.

Hiding from God is futile; being transparent with God is fruitful.

Dean

-October 17, 2024-

Good morning beloved, happy Thursday,

“Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”

(James 4:7).

Today’s verse teaches us two keys to victory over the devil. The devil is a defeated foe who refuses to cease the war against the people of God. When Christ died and rose again, He crushed his head; still he fights on.

The first key is to submit to God. The word submit is defined as, “accept or yield to a superior force or to the authority or will of another person.” Submitting to God is not confining or restrictive, for God is good and loves us so much.

Growing up whenever two kids were wresting, the one in control would ask the other, “Do you give in?” “Say uncle.” Of course it reminds me of Jacob wrestling with God. Jacob should have submitted much sooner. As it was God put his hip out of joint and he walked with a limp for the rest of his life.

Not only must we submit to God, we must resist the devil. Paul tells us to put the whole armor of God. The shield of faith protects us from Satan’s fiery darts. When we resist, the devil must desist. Let us claim the blood of Christ to the evil one. The devil has no chance, he must flee.

May the Lord help us to submit to God and His will for us and to resist the devil and his attacks. Have a blessed day. Stay safe and healthy.

It’s legit to submit and to resist making the devil desist.

Dean