Love and Honor the Elderly

Verse of the day: Leviticus 19:32 “You shall rise before the gray headed and honor the presence of an old man, and fear your God: I am the LORD.”

Growing old…we are all going to get there, if the Lord does not come back soon or He allows us to live a long life. The longer we live, the more difficult life becomes, as old age brings many challenges we do not face in our youth, for the most part. However, it is not just the physical challenges that we face as elders, but also how society now views older folks. Far too much of society sees the elderly as a burden, and the younger generation, for the most part, does not have the same respect for their elders. There was a time when we, as children, and young adults, would not dare be disrespectful, in our words, or attitude, toward our elders. It did not matter if it was a relative, a neighbor, a friend of the family, or just an older stranger we encountered; it did not matter if we thought they were right in their opinion or if we did not agree with their view of life, we always showed respect. Although this world may be drastically changing, and the attitude towards our elders may be changing, let us not forget, that we, as born again believers, are not of this world. Therefore, we do not have to follow the patterns or standard of this world. On the contrary, even in this, we should stand apart in the way we treat our elders. In many cultures around the world, the elders are still treated with much respect. Sadly, we miss out on great wisdom, in many of our circles, because we have abandoned our elders, even within the church. Some of the most interesting conversations I have had are those I have had with older men and women, who shared their life stories, and shared some of the lessons they have learned in life; especially those that have been walking with the Lord for many years. The Bible says of these dear saints, in Proverbs 16:31, “The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness.” Many of us are still far from learning some of life’s most important lessons. Some of our older saints have lived those lessons. Job 12:12 tells us, “Wisdom is with aged men, And with length of days, understanding.” One of the greatest lessons we will learn, as we grow older, is that we will need to lean on the Lord more and more, as our strength diminishes, and for some of us, as our health begins to wither away. There are many of our dear older saints, who have wonderful testimonies of how God has met their needs. He has given them strength to live from day to day, when they had no strength to take one more step, or deal with life for one more minute. Their prayer, and desire, as ours will be some day, is that God not forsake them, and that they would have the opportunity to declare God’s power to the next generation (Psalm 71:18). 1 Timothy 5 encourages us to exhort the elder men as fathers, the younger men as brothers, the older women as mothers, and the younger women as sisters. The widows should be the responsibility of the church, and if they have family members who are alive, it becomes their responsibility to take care of them. To honor our father and mother, as we become adults, and they become older, means to take care of them when they no longer can for themselves. 1 Timothy 5:8 clearly tells us, “But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” It is very sad to see many older men and women being abandoned, and even discarded, because they are a financial and emotional burden on their families. It is even sadder when we see this take place within the Christian community. One of my favorite things to do in ministry has always been to visit our elderly members who are unable to come out to worship with the church family. The appreciation they expressed in having someone come and check on them, sit with them, talk with them, pray with them, and read God’s Word with them. It always amazed me that these dear saints were always more concerned with praying for me, and my needs, than having me pray for them and their needs. We can learn much from our dear, usually forgotten, older saints, who are also God’s children. Let us take the time to honor them and appreciate them. Let us glean the nuggets of wisdom they have gathered from years of knowing and serving the Lord, before He takes them home to be with Him in glory.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).

Daily Devotional Audio Track: Trusting God or Satan

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Trusting God or Satan

Verse of the day: Leviticus 19:26, 31 “You shall not eat anything with the blood, nor shall you practice divination or soothsaying. 31 “Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after them, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God.”

Although today we have many liberties in Christ, we, as born again believers, and ambassadors for Christ, must be very careful about how we exercise our liberties. The Apostle Paul put it this way in 1 Corinthians 6:12, “All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.” In 1 Corinthians 10:23 he again wrote, “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all things are lawful for me, but not all things edify.” In considering this, there are things we are to avoid because they are just demonic in nature, and other things because they may give the wrong impression of who we are as Christians. My wife, who is from India, and I, enjoy many of the Asian statues and artifacts, from an artistic point of view. However, we avoid buying them and displaying them in our home because many are used in the worship of pagan gods. This is not to say that we cannot have them and display them, for it would not be sin to us if we are not using them for worship, but we choose not to, because in certain Asian cultures they mix Christianity with their other religions, and include Jesus in their worship of many gods. In an effort to not cause confusion, and communicate clearly that we only worship the one true God, we choose to stay away from displaying them and simply enjoy them when we see them in the store or visit the museum. In this passage, God clearly tells Israel that they are to stay away from practicing those things that were part of pagan worship, and demonic in nature. Today, there are things that we do, that we may be able to get away with doing because we are not using them as a method of worship, and we are not worshiping pagan gods; however, there are other things that we, as born again believers should steer clear of. Turning to fortunetellers, psychics, horoscopes, tarot cards, and palm readers, are all evil practices that communicate a lack of faith in God. Why? In seeking answers by these means is to say that God is not able to answer that which He clearly told us He would answer in His time. In Leviticus 20:27, God ordered that every man or woman who was a medium or psychic be put to death. In verse 6 of this very chapter, God said that He would condemn those who turn to mediums and psychics. In Deuteronomy 18:10-12, the Lord said, “There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, 11 or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. 12 For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD, and because of these abominations the LORD your God drives them out from before you.” If this was an Old Testament command, why would we as Christians avoid it today, even though we have many liberties in Christ? The bottom-line answer is that these practices involve demonic activity. In Acts 16:16-18, we have an account of the Apostle Paul exorcising a demon from a slave girl who was possessed with a spirit of divination. The account reads as follows, “Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling. 17 This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” 18 And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, ‘I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.’ And he came out that very hour.” One of the reasons that King Saul died, was that he consulted a medium for advice, and did not seek counsel from the Lord (1 Chronicles 10:13-14). As God’s children, we are to seek God’s guidance, and trust Him alone. Isaiah 8:19 tells us, “And when they say to you, ‘Seek those who are mediums and wizards, who whisper and mutter,’ should not a people seek their God? Should they seek the dead on behalf of the living?” James 1:5 also tells us, “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.” God has all the answers we need about life and the future. He will answer prayers and guide us by His Spirit, using His Word, in His time and in His way. We need not show a lack of faith, and trust, in God, by turning to Satan and his demons for those answers.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).

Daily Devotional Audio Track: At the Cross We Are All Equal

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At the Cross We Are All Equal

Verse of the day: Leviticus 19:15, “You shall do no injustice in judgment. You shall not be partial to the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty. In righteousness you shall judge your neighbor.”

One of the most infuriating things we can witness, or be on the receiving end of, is injustice done on the basis of social status. I am sure that many of us have seen this happen on both sides of the spectrum, where the rich have gotten away with being cruel, dishonest, and committing crimes, just because they are rich and can bribe someone. Proverbs 18:5 tells us, “It is not good to show partiality to the wicked, or to overthrow the righteous in judgment.” There are others who treat the wealthy as if they are more important, simply because they have earthly riches that they (the people showing partiality) hope to benefit from. By the same token, there have been those who are poor who have used their poverty to get sympathy in order to escape punishment for wrong done. In Exodus 23:3, God clearly told Israel that they were not to show partiality to the poor in their dispute, when it comes to judging wrongdoing. The poor sometimes blame society for their poverty; therefore, they proclaim that it is society’s fault that they turned to a life of crime. They use their poverty as a “pass” to feel justified about their attitude of entitlement, and promote a philosophy, now, that if you are wealthy, it must mean that you are one of those corrupt “rich” people who oppress the poor. Well, not everyone who is wealthy is corrupt, and not everyone who is poor is lazy and promoting an attitude of entitlement. God makes it clear in His Word, that when it comes to justice, He is not a Respecter of persons. Galatians 3:28 tells us, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” Proverbs 22:2 reads, “The rich and the poor have this in common, the LORD is the maker of them all.” We are all God’s creatures. He created us all in His image, and although He has chosen for some to have more than others, we will all stand before Him to give an account for our lives here on earth, some to life eternal and others to eternal condemnation (John 5:28-29); yet, that will not be determined by how much wealth we have or how poor we are. I have not only seen, but I have experienced how society, and even Christians, treat those they perceive to be poor or the less desirable of society, in contrast to those they believe have wealth and status in society. Sadly, I have even seen this in church. James 2:1-6 tells us that we are not to favor the wealthy when they enter our church buildings. God’s salvation is available to both the rich and the poor. When we show partiality, we sin (James 2:9). I still remember the first time I visited the local church I came to know Christ in. I had just finished working, and had gone straight to church, after being invited. Because I was working as an undercover police officer, I showed up wearing a shirt with a big marijuana leaf on the front, and a ball cap, backwards, which also had a marijuana leaf on it, as well as gold chains and rings. There were two women standing at the front door who nearly fell over the rail when they saw me coming, and the expression on their face was priceless. I later learned, after I got to know them, that one was a missionary and the other a missionary-in-training, who was attending the Bible College I would later enroll at. The reason this moment stands out in my mind is that they judged who I was based on who I appeared to be, and neither one took the time to greet me, as I had seen them greet others who did not look like some poor, drug dealing, delinquent. Little did they know that I would come to know Christ on my second visit, and serve Him in that same local church. They judged me based on who they perceived me to be, and they failed to see that I was just another lost sinner, who needed Jesus. When we show partiality toward anyone, based on whatever bias we have, we put ourselves in a position to miss out on an opportunity to share Christ, and lead someone to Jesus. God is the God of the rich, the poor, the tall, the short, the black, the white, the brown, and anyone else who is in need of eternal life. Jesus does not love based on status, culture, background, or what kind of life one has lived. “God so loved the WORLD that He gave His only begotten Son, that WHOEVER believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).

Daily Devotional Audio Track: Helping the Helpless

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Helping the Helpless

Verse of the day: Leviticus 19:14, “You shall not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling block before the blind, but shall fear your God: I am the LORD.

One of the ugliest things we, as born again believers, can do to dishonor the Name of Jesus, is to mistreat the disabled. We are to avoid mistreating them just because they suffer from a physical or mental disability. As ambassadors for Christ, we should view helping those who cannot fend for themselves, as a privilege, and service to the Lord. Matthew 15:29-31 tells us, “Jesus departed from there, skirted the Sea of Galilee, and went up on the mountain and sat down there. 30 Then great multitudes came to Him, having with them the lame, blind, mute, maimed, and many others; and they laid them down at Jesus’ feet, and He healed them. 31 So the multitude marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel.” Not only did Jesus accept them and heal them, but in verses 32-39, He fed the four thousand, which included those with disabilities that He healed. Even before Jesus came and showed such great kindness to the lame, the blind, and all those with infirmities, God made it clear that we are to be kind to those who are unable to fend for themselves. Job said of himself in Job 29:15, “I was eyes to the blind, and I was feet to the lame.” As God’s children, the Holy Spirit is working in us to produce His fruit in our lives. Galatians 5:22-23 tells us, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.” Hence, if we are growing in love, we are also growing in kindness. 1 Corinthians 13:4 clearly states, “Love suffers long and is kind”. This love and kindness is not to be impartial. Sadly, I have seen incidents where Christians have looked down on, and treated people differently, simply because they had some kind of disability. I have seen them look down on parents of disabled children, and I have heard born again believers complain about disabled children and suggest that there was no place for them in a particular local church, especially during those years when there was little understanding about children, and adults, with Autism. That is a crying shame, and should never be. Sin and death has marred God’s perfect creation, and God has allowed a number of people to be born with all sorts of disabilities, and poverty, but He loves the disabled person just as much as he loves a healthy person. Psalm 139:14-16 reads, “I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well. 15 My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.” This also applies to those who have physical and mental disabilities. When Jesus was asked who sinned, in respect to the man who was born blind, He answered, in John 9:3, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.” Even the disabled can be used for God’s glory, even when we do not see it, or understand it, with our limited, carnal, minds. Let us never forget that just because we were not born with a disability, does not mean that we cannot suffer from one. Joni Eareckson Tada is a wonderful example of how God can use the life of someone who was not born disable, but later became disabled as a result of a diving accident. She wrote, in her booklet, “Hope…the Best of Things”, “The weaker I was in that thing [my wheelchair], the harder I leaned on you. And the harder I leaned on you, the stronger I discovered you to be. It never would have happened had you not given me the bruising of the blessing of that wheelchair” (Crossway Books, Wheaton, Illinois, 2008). I have seen God use people with disabilities in some of the most amazing ways. I have known men and women with Cerebral Palsy, whom God used to teach or preach, and others with Down Syndrome who were the greatest example of unconditional love and kindness. I once knew a woman with Autism who could quote some of the most obscure Bible verses, word for word, and know the reference as well. How would we want to be treated, if some day we came face to face with an illness or accident that left us disabled?

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).