Archives for 2017

Good morning,

Consider the plight of man today. Man, wants a religion that puffs them up, feels good, and promises worldly prosperity.

Today’s devotional will challenge us to think about what is most needed. Most people in today’s churches won’t like it.

If revival begins in the house of God, then the following must be preached, understood, and obeyed. The lost must see something different in those who name the name of Christ.

What is most needed today!

(Arthur Pink)

It is my deepening conviction that what is most needed today is a wide proclamation of those Scripture truths which are the least acceptable to the flesh.

What is needed today, is a scriptural setting forth of the character of God:
His absolute sovereignty,
His ineffable holiness,
His inflexible justice,
His unchanging veracity.

What is needed today, is a scriptural setting forth of the condition of the natural man:
his total depravity,
his spiritual insensibility,
his inveterate hostility to God,
the fact that he is “condemned already,” and
that the wrath of a sin-hating God is even now abiding upon him!

What is needed today, is a scriptural setting forth of the alarming danger which sinners are in–the indescribably awful doom which awaits them; and the fact that if they follow their present course only a little further, they shall most certainly suffer the due penalty of their iniquities!

What is needed today, is a scriptural setting forth of the nature of that dreadful punishment which awaits the lost:
the dreadfulness of it,
the hopelessness of it,
the unendurableness of it,
and the endlessness of it!

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Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

Good morning,

Today’s lesson is part of our series on 1 Timothy. Paul is instructing Timothy on false doctrines and how to be a good minister for Jesus.

1 TIMOTHY 4

Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. (12)

INTRODUCTION False doctrine and instruction for Timothy

FALSE DOCTRINE IN THE END TIMES (1-5)

A warning from the Holy Spirit. (1)

Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;

The nature of their departure from the faith and embrace of the doctrines of devils. (2-3)

² Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; ³ Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.

A refutation of the legalism that marks those who have departed from the faith. (4-5)

⁴ For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving:⁵ For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.

INSTRUCTION IN MINISTRY FOR TIMOTHY. (6-16)

How to tell you are fulfilling your call. (6)

⁶ If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained.

Keeping your priorities straight. (7-10)

⁷ But refuse profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness.⁸ For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.⁹ This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation. ¹⁰ For therefore we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, specially of those that believe.

Personal instructions. (11-16)

¹¹ These things command and teach.¹² Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.¹³ Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.¹⁴ Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery. ¹⁵ Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all.¹⁶ Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.

CONCLUSION

Beware of false doctrines

Keep your priorities straight

Teach God’s word

Be a good example of a believer in Christ

Read and study God’s word

Meditate on these things

 

Good morning,

Why are those blessed, who hear and obey the Word of God?

(Francis Bourdillon, “Short Sermons for Family Reading” 1881)

“Blessed rather are those who hear the Word of God and obey it.” Luke 11:28

The Word must be obeyed–as well as heard. We must not hear it carelessly. Nor must we be hearers only, forgetting it as soon as heard. We are to guard it and keep it–to treasure it in our hearts as a precious possession. We are to believe it and to follow it–then the full blessing will be ours.

Why are those blessed, who hear and obey the Word of God?

1. Because the Word of God tells us of the Savior, speaks pardon and peace, and opens to us God’s wondrous way of saving sinners. This can be said of no other book, and no other thing. The works of God in nature tell us much–but they do not tell us this. Many books of man are written on these subjects–but they are but man’s books after all.

2. They are blessed also, because the Word of God is a sure guide. It is a difficult path through the wilderness of this world. Many hindrances and perplexities meet us–and many different rules are offered for our guidance: fashion, custom, prudence, man’s opinion, etc. But the Word of God is the only sure guide. A simple, humble, earnest following of this guide–is the wisest, happiest, safest course! The poorest and most unlearned who through grace take this course–have more security for going right than the greatest and wisest who follow any other path. Therefore they are blessed who hear and keep the word of God–because they have a sure guide through life.

3. The word of God also comforts in trouble, and therefore they are blessed who hear it and keep it. This world has its sorrows as well as its difficulties–sorrows many and great; but the word of God has comfort for all of life’s sorrows. It is full of comfort. It has promises and declarations of God’s love. It contains examples of mourners whom He has comforted–and these in great number and variety. There is no kind of trouble for which some suitable comfort may not be found in the Bible. In time of deep sorrow–a comfort and consolation are found in the Word of God which are sought in vain in other books. It is the best of all books for those in trouble.

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Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

Good morning,

Did it ever occur to you that you may be the only Bible the lost see? Do our lives identify us as believers in Christ or imposters? Do we have something the lost world wants? Do they see it in us?

The worldling’s Bible!

(Charles Spurgeon)

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in Heaven.” Matthew 5:16

The worldling’s Bible is the Christian. He never reads the Book–but he reads the disciple of Christ, and he judges the Christian religion by the lives of its professors!

The world does not read the Bible–the world reads Christians!

“For it is God’s will that by doing good, you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men!” 1 Peter 2:15

“As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Ephesians 4:1-2

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How are we doing?

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain. 907 715-4001

 

Good morning,

We all will live an eternal life. It is our choice where we will spend it. There are only two choices, heaven and hell.

Heaven should be our choice. Here’s why.

Endless, sinless, sorrowless immortality!

(John MacDuff, a prayer)

“Weeping may endure for a night–but joy comes in the morning!” Psalm 30:5

Here, Lord, I have “no continuing city.” I would not desire to live here always.

Change is the portion of my earthly pilgrimage. Lord, wean me from this uncertain world! 

Bring me to live under the influence of eternal realities. I rejoice to think of the happy myriads already in glory–safe in the presence of the Master they love, with every tear drop wiped away. May the thought of that endless, sinless, sorrowless immortality reconcile me to all of earth’s severest discipline.

Let me not murmur under the heaviest cross—in the prospect of such a crown. Let me not refuse to pass cheerfully through the hottest furnace which is to refine and purify me for this exceeding and eternal weight of glory!  Allow me to bear with calm serenity, whatever cross You see fit to lay upon me.

“They will be His people–and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain–for the old order of things has passed away.” Revelation 21:3-4

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Choose heaven now.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

 

Good morning,

Psalm 107 speaks about God’s goodness.

“O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.” (1)

Verses 4-32 give four stories about God’s goodness. The people were in trouble and God helped them. The stories are made up of four components.

First, it describes the problem. A lack of a home, rebellion, fools, and ships being wind tossed.

Second, they cried out to the Lord. Each story has this exact phrase in it. “Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses.” (6,13, 19, 28) God corrects the problem with specific help.

Third, they praised the Lord for God’s goodness. “Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!” (8, 15, 21, 31) When God helps us, we should give thanks and praise Him.

Fourth, God does something or instructs the people. He filled the hungry, broke the gates of brass, allowed them to sacrifice, and let the people praise Him.

These should be the steps we take when we have a problem. Determine the problem, present it to the Lord and expect that will fix it, then praise Him when He does, and continue to serve.

God is good and we need to acknowledge that.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

Good morning,

How well do we listen to the Lord? One of the saddest chapters in the Bible is Jeremiah 6. God warns Benjamin and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to return to God. God tells them of their imminent destruction. He pleads with them to repent. Here is the response of the people.

Jeremiah 6:15-17 states, “Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore they shall fall among them that fall: at the time that I visit them they shall be cast down, saith the Lord.¹⁶ Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.¹⁷ Also I set watchmen over you, saying, Hearken to the sound of the trumpet. But they said, We will not hearken.”

God responds to the people’s decision. Jeremiah 6:18-19 states,

^“18 Therefore hear, ye nations, and know, O congregation, what is among them.¹⁹ Hear, O earth: behold, I will bring evil upon this people, even the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not hearkened unto my words, nor to my law, but rejected it.”

Some of you might be thinking, the Jews were wicked and deserved what they got. They were always rebelling against God, his servants, prophets, and priests.

Although that is true, each of us must look in the mirror of Scripture and determine are we any better? Unfortunately, we are not. Our sins are just as wicked and grieves God just as much as His chosen people.

The question then is will we be obedient to the Scriptures or will we reject them. Will we hearken to the warnings God is giving us? If the revival we so desperately desire is to come, it will begin in the hearts and minds of God’s people.

We must affirm, obey, and live out Bible precepts. There must be a reason for the unsaved to come to Christ. We are God’s ambassadors here on earth. What kind of a job are we doing?

Let us be a generation that says we will follow God at all costs. Never, ever, reject Jesus, His word, or His commands to us.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

 

Good morning,

When things go wrong in our lives, does God really care? God sent His only son, Jesus, to answer that question.

The Sympathy of Christ!

(Francis Bourdillon)

“We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are” Hebrews 4:15

In all our infirmities and troubles of every kind–in pain and sickness, in poverty and need, in anxiety and grief–Jesus has a sympathetic heart for us. Is not this comforting? Does it not cheer us in a time of suffering, when some kind friend comes in and sits down beside us and shows most plainly that though he is unable to help us, he does sincerely feel for us? How much more cheering it is to know that Jesus in Heaven sympathizes with us in all our troubles here below! Does not this thought, this blessed truth–take the edge off the sharpest suffering, and lift us for the time above our sorrows?

Jesus Christ Himself was afflicted when He was on earth. He is called a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief. No sorrows were ever equal to His. We know that He was tired and hungry and sad. He was besides, the poorest of the poor–He had nowhere to lay His head. He led what would be called a very hard life.

Our greatest sufferings are light when compared with His. He had some afflictions which we cannot fully understand, as when He prayed in the garden, “If it is possible, let this cup pass from Me!” And as when He cried upon the cross, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me!”

He can sympathize with the poor–because He was poor Himself.
He can sympathize with the sad–because He was a man of sorrows.
He can sympathize with all who suffer–because His own sufferings were so many and so great.

He was tempted; He was tried; He was afflicted; He went through what we have to go through–and much more. In this very world in which we live now–He lived and suffered; and therefore He can and does sympathize with His suffering people.

“He was despised and rejected by men–a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces–He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows–yet we considered Him stricken by God, smitten by Him, and afflicted. But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace, was upon Him–and by His wounds we are healed.” Isaiah 53:3-5

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The answer to my question is a resounding YES. When we are being tried by the devil, we must allow Jesus to comfort us. He will.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

 

Good morning,

This devotional  helps us to see Christ in a new light. We know all these Scriptures. It is when they are brought together that we see the totality of what Christ did for us.

He became poor!

(William Dyer)

“For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ: although He was rich, for your sake He became poor–so that by His poverty you might become rich!” 2 Corinthians 8:9

He who was so rich–became so poor!

He who was Lord of all–had nothing at all!

He who made Heaven and earth–had no home of His own!
As He was born in another man’s house–so He was buried in another man’s tomb!

He who gives crowns of glory to others–had only a crown of thorns for Himself!

The foxes and the fowls had more than Jesus! “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but I, the Son of Man, have no home of My own, not even a place to lay My head!” Matthew 8:20. The foxes had holes to lay their heads in–but Christ had not a place to lay His head on.

“He became poor!” Yes, poor indeed, and so poor that He had not a penny! You will say, that a man is very poor–who has not a penny! Truly such a one was Christ–he had not a penny to pay the tax until He got it out of the fish’s mouth!

Oh! admire and wonder at this! Is not Jesus . . .
the brightness of God,
the paradise of angels,
the beauty of Heaven,
the Redeemer of man,
the destroyer of death,
the King of saints!
And that He should become so poor for us–oh! this is astonishing to angels and men!

~  ~  ~  ~

I will not think about being poor in the same way ever again. He became poor so we could become rich.

What a blessing God has showered upon us.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

Good morning,

Christ knows His people by certain distinguishing marks

(J.R. Miller)

“I am the Good Shepherd. I know My own sheep–and they know Me!” John 10:14

The Jewish shepherds had certain marks by which they knew their own sheep. Even in this country, the farmers put “brands” on their sheep–their own initial, or an “ear-mark,” or some other particular sign by which they will know them anywhere. Christ knows His people by certain distinguishing marks.

He knows them by their faces. There is something in every true child of God, which shows to whom he belongs–some family likeness, some feature of the Divine image shining out. The prodigal’s father knew his son when he saw him a long way off. In his rags, in his beggary–the eye of love recognized the child. Just so, Christ knows His own people, however dim the likeness–by their faces. The crowds do not recognize heaven’s princes, in the humble Christians they meet; but Jesus does!

Not only does Christ know His own by their faces–but also by their voice. The mother knows her child’s voice anywhere, even in the darkness, and can distinguish it among a thousand voices. Christ knows the voices of His own people, wherever He hears them speak or cry.

He knows them also by their character. Even if the outside is rough and uncouth, it does not hide from His eye, the inner life–the spirit, the heart. He saw the future Peter with all his grandeur of character–in the crude Simon who was brought to Him.

He knows His friends by their obedience. He knows His disciples–by their following where He leads.

He also knows the white garments of righteousness which His redeemed one’s wear.

He knows the penitent heart–by the fragrance it puts forth. It is an altar of incense. It is a box of ointment broken open. Just as we find out the hiding-places of flowers by their fragrances–so God knows the home of the penitent heart by the sweetness that wafts up from it.

“I am the Good Shepherd. I know My own sheep–and they know Me!”

~  ~  ~  ~

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001