Our Daily Walk with Christ – Sabbath Devotional – August 24, 2024
If your life is difficult, study the lives of Joseph, Abraham, Naomi, Ruth, and Job. The Bible gives us true knowledge of people who struggle with the same issues we face. King Solomon said, “There is nothing new under the sun.” Until we accept our God-given purpose, our lives will never reflect spiritual growth and transformation nor will our earthly accomplishments produce the faith and works that indicate we are preparing for eternal life.
“I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.” —Psalm 32:8
Resistance to letting God lead us results in practicing Compromised Christianity—attending church but never changing and growing spiritually. Deciding to commit and consecrate oneself to follow Jesus Christ gives us true peace and victory despite our trials and hardships. Throughout the Scriptures, we find righteous men and women who dedicated themselves to surrender and faithfully obey God. Yes, they had the assurance of receiving the Crown of Life.
“I know that my redeemer lives and that in the end, he will stand on the earth… And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!” —Job 19:25-27
Job suffered greatly but still proclaimed victory because he truly believed in Jesus’ promise that He would come again to take the righteous to heaven. Where do we stand? Live for Christ. True victory can only be obtained through the Righteousness of Christ. Heaven is real. We cannot afford to choose the temporary things of this earth and forfeit the reward that Jesus died on Calvary’s cross to give us.
Declaration of True Surrender: “I have decided to follow Jesus and whether I lose family, friends, or wealth, I am going to heaven to receive my reward, Revelation 22:12.” Amen.
Our Daily Walk with Christ Sabbath Devotional – August 17, 2024
“It shall come to pass That before they call, I will answer; And while they are still speaking, I will hear.” —Isaiah 65:24
We serve a God who is the Sovereign Ruler of this universe. He is Omniscient [All-Knowing] and Omnipotent [Majestic Power]. “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?” (Jeremiah 32:27). We have a Father who is interested in our well-being and commands angels to protect and comfort us.
Pray and Wait and be patient! God’s timing will never coincide with our expectations. Still, we can remain courageous because God always intervenes when the righteous pray in faith. Through Christ, our Heavenly Intercessor, we receive victorious outcomes. Every good gift is from the Father above. Amen.
Lord God, we pray for a Divine blessing on our lives and the willingness to patiently wait because You always know what is best in every aspect of our lives. Thank You for the Sabbath rest that draws us closer to You and refreshes us spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically. We ask this prayer in Jesus’ Holy Name, Amen.
“Wait patiently for the LORD. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the LORD.” —Psalm 27:14
Our Daily Walk with Christ Devotional – August 8, 2024
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.” — 1 Peter 5:7
This is one of God’s most wonderful promises encouraging believers to cast their worries, fears, stress, and anxiety on God. In Matthew chapter 6, Jesus promises to provide for the righteous. Every promise of God is conditional, He requires the human efforts of faith, obedience, and patience before He will intervene.
“But I, the LORD, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.” —Jeremiah 17:10
Refusing to humble oneself and obey God is a major roadblock to receiving God’s greatest blessings. We proclaim God’s greatness with spoken words, but deep within, we do not trust God. God is Omniscience—All-Knowing, we cannot hide our unbelief nor our deepest desires to provide for ourselves. Faith proclaims, “God loves me, He has promised to take care of me, therefore, I will pray in faith for His Divine help and patiently wait for Him to intervene.”
God is faithful. In studying the book of Ruth, God shows His faithful love and invincible power. Ruth and Naomi, her aging mother-in-law were widows which was significant in ancient times because women could not work or sustain their lives. Social Services, Social Security, and widow’s pensions were non-existent, and women depended on their husbands or sons to provide for them. Yet, God provided for them by working miracles that no human could ever perform.
Reflection: Is your faith steadfast in the power of God? Or are you still attempting to develop plans that are destined to fail?
“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” —Matthew 6:25-26
Study the life of Christ in the Four Gospels [Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John]. You will learn that Jesus is Love, Jesus is Faithful, and His power and majesty are unlimited. Jesus, God, the Son who created us in His image has promised to provide for us. Our God is faithful! Trust Him with all of your heart.
Lord God, we pray for the courage to use our measure of faith to trust in You instead of ourselves. We pray for strength, wisdom, and guidance from the Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Our Daily Walk with Christ Devotional – August 3, 2024
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose.” — Romans 8:28, NIV
Through Jesus Christ, we always have hope. Whatever you are worrying about or stressing over, remember Jesus already knows your circumstances. Use your Mustard Seed faith, pray, and thank him in Advance for His Divine Intervention in resolving whatever you feel is out of control. We were intentionally created with limitations which leads us to depend on God.
It takes courage to be a follower of Jesus Christ. Never forget that humanity was created in the image of God and Christ breathed His Ruah breath into Adam and Eve’s bodies to make them into living beings. God is Love. God loves us. And God promised to provide for us. He asks you and I to place our faith in his Sovereign Love and Power.
We would never drive our car down the middle of the road, yet we waver between faith and faithlessness with God. Like Job in his hardships, we often forget who God is. Study Job chapters 38-42 when you cannot remember God’s Omnipotence. Our Heavenly Father reminds us that He knows the end from the beginning, including every aspect of our lives.
Peace is knowing that we are loved and God’s promises are Yes to which we proclaim, Amen [It is so!] Place your life in his hands. Trust God. He is faithful, and forgiving, always desiring that we exercise the faith to totally depend on Him.
Lord God, we are stumbling with our steps to walk on the Path of Faith and desperately need Your help. Thank You for hearing and answering our prayer in Jesus’ Holy and Righteous Name. Amen.
“Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.” —Genesis 2:1-3
Our Daily Walk with Christ – Sabbath Devotional – August 2, 2024
“Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” —Revelation 22:7
“And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.” —Revelation 22:12-13
“He who testifies to these things says, ‘Surely I am coming quickly.’ “—Revelation 22:20
Three times Jesus forewarns us that He is coming quickly. The scoffers, naysayers, and Christian believers who fail to cooperate with the Holy Spirit for Spiritual transformation of their minds, characters, and personalities are not preparing daily for Jesus’ Second Coming. What proof do we have that we are not preparing for eternal life? The failure to surrender is evidenced by a lifestyle of self-reliance that overrides our desire to faithfully obey God.
“If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15). In the Old Testament, Jesus is referred to by the title, Lord God. Jesus wrote the Bible, therefore, He says, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.” (Matthew 5:17-18).
“Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.” —Revelation 22:14
For most believers, their contention and inner battle involves the Creation Seventh-Day Sabbath which Jesus tells us, “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath” (Mark 2:27). These words of the Savior remind us that the Sabbath day was meant to be a spiritual blessing rather than a burden to those who observe it.
“Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.” —Revelation 14:12
Satan has introduced many false doctrines to prevent us from receiving our reward of eternal life. Not only has he attacked the Fourth Commandment [the Seventh Day Sabbath], but we struggle with trusting the written Word of God by embracing human interpretation of the Law of God. Jesus’ death replaced the Ceremonial Law of animal sacrifice.
In the book of Revelation, Jesus specifically gives us the characteristics of the righteous who will enter the gates of New Jerusalem: Patient, Obedient, Commandment-keepers, Faithful, and Courageous. To be told and accept that only Nine of the Ten Commandments are still valid is jeopardizing our reward of eternal life. Pray and fast, asking the Holy Spirit-The Spirit of Truth for spiritual clarity regarding the Fourth Commandment.
“Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.” —Luke 6:12
My beautiful mother is 90. Recently we reminisced on the all-night prayer meetings conducted decades ago which she attended and I accompanied her as a young girl. Not only did the saints of God have steadfast faith, but when faced with tribulation, prayer was always their first response, and God showed up with Sovereign power that most of today’s believers can never imagine.
Every Christian’s Responsibility: “…work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” —Philippians 2:12-13
We have a lifetime responsibility regarding our salvation. Think about your current lifestyle, full of busyness and distractions without sufficient time to deeply commune with God. Christ who was divine and human in His earthly life focused on spending much time in prayer with God, the Father. Considering our spiritual struggle, we desperately need to maintain a heart-to-heart relationship with Christ reinforced by intentional prayer, fasting, and diligent study of the Bible under the teaching of the Holy Spirit.
Reflect on your status with God. If Jesus came today, would you receive eternal life? Matthew 25:1-13 is the parable that describes two types of believers, those who have enough “Oil” in their lamps which represents the Holy Spirit, and those who failed to have a steadfast relationship with Christ and ran out of oil. How is it possible to run out of oil?
“God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” —John 4:24
The use of our time either strengthens or weakens our relationship with Christ. With the gift of 24 hours per day, we reveal gratitude to God by spending time on activities that promote our spiritual growth and maturity bringing us closer to Christ, or we waste our precious gift by using our time to pursue frivolous things. To live a sanctified life requires obedience, perseverance, and continuous anointing and guidance from the Holy Spirit.
To abide in Christ requires time spent in solitude every day in prayer and spiritual quietness meditating on the love of God and the Holy Scriptures. When our hearts are consecrated and filled with love and loyalty to God, we seek the will of God with the desire to reverence and glorify Him through surrender and faithful obedience. With gratitude for Redemption, we dedicate our lives wholly to God.
“Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” —Matthew 16:24-26
Eternal life is a reward. Faith produces spiritual works. God expects us to have a dual spiritual focus. Not only are we responsible for working out our salvation, but we must also witness God’s Truth to others. Recognition of our spiritual plight is the catalyst to abide in Christ through discipleship. We use our spiritual gifts to glorify God, spread the Good News of the Gospel, and help those in need.
“You are the branches. Whoever abides in Me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit. For without Me, you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Our journey is a personal one-to-one relationship with Jesus who promises to complete the Spiritual Process of Sanctification [Philippians 1:6] when we fully surrender ourselves and commit to serve Him with loyalty and obedience.
Every second of the day, we face Satan who is striving for our souls, but we must fight back in the strength of our Warrior King. To serve God is not for the weak-hearted, to give up our beliefs, desires, and free will requires courage and steadfast faith. Yes, brothers and sisters, it is a daily fight and a tough spiritual journey to live holy, but in the strength of the Almighty God and the heavenly angels who fight our unseen battles, we can live as victorious overcomers!
From our dedication to resisting the snare of today’s prevailing “form of godliness,” in the power of His Might, we march forward as soldiers in the Army of God. Yes, the righteous who struggle and suffer to live as Christ-focused, Commandment-keeping, obedient, disciples, one day soon, we will hear from our Lord and Savior, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”
Prayer: Jesus, we love You and desire to live with You forever. We ask You to search our hearts and reveal our sins, habits, and behaviors that separate us from You. Lord, we pray for guidance from the Holy Spirit on living holy so we may receive our Crown of Life. In Jesus’ Holy and Righteous Name, Amen.
“But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” —2 Peter 3:8-9
Steps 2 Success with Spiritual Solutions 
You must be logged in to post a comment.