Tag: Devil

Fence Post Devotional “The Gospel of John Cowboy Style”

No Greater Love

“Ya see, God loves this world so much, that He gave His one and only Son to die, so that every man, woman, boy and girl who believes in Him will not die, but will be a-livin’ forever” John 3:16 (“The Gospel of John Cowboy Style”).

It’s one thing for a man to offer up his life on behalf of others. Some through history have done that. Given the right circumstance, you or I might be willing. In fact, Jesus at one point told His disciples “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).

But, to give up one’s own son? Now that’s an altogether different thing. I might be willing to lay down my life, but to voluntarily lay down the life of my son for the sake of others, even perhaps for my enemies; that would be a difficult, maybe even an impossible choice.

There is one who from ancient Biblical history knew about such a choice. On Mt. Moriah, Abraham placed his son on an altar, his son of promise. And within a millisecond of fatally plunging a knife into Issac, God stayed his hand and offered-up a substitute instead.

Years later, on another mount, outside the city of Jerusalem, A Father stood by as His only Son was nailed to a cross as a sacrifice for all mankind. This time the sacrificial hand was not stayed. But sin, death and Satan were allowed to do their worst to the Son of God so that the best might be done for us.

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

A Cowboy’s Most Distinguishing Mark

Without a doubt, a cowboy’s most distinguishing mark is his hat; the kind of hat, the crease, the color, the way he wears it, and so forth. My mother used to tell stories about the way her father  wore his hat. My grandfather was never a slave to fashion, especially when it came to wearing his hat. My mother said that when he bought a new hat, he never had it creased. And she said that when he picked up his hat to put it on, that he always just grabbed it by the crown and jabbed it on his head, totally unaware if it was frontward or backward or whatever.

Certainly, for my grandfather, his hat was his most physically distinguishing mark. My mother said, she never had a hard time picking him out of a crowd, all she had to do was look for his hat. Continue reading “A Cowboy’s Most Distinguishing Mark”

Does God “Lead” us Into Temptation?

When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, He gave them a model prayer. We often refer to it as the “Lord’s Prayer.” Matthew and Luke both record it: Matthew 6:9-13; Luke 11:2-4. And both record Jesus as teaching them to pray, “And lead us not into temptation.”

Through the years lots of folks, including some in the Roman catholic Church have had a problem with this phrase, “lead us not into temptation.” God wouldn’t lead us into temptation, would He? Pope Francis I went on record to say that the phrase, “lead us not into temptation” is not a good translation. “The one who leads us into temptation,” he says, “is Satan.” So he suggests that it should rather be rendered, “abandon us not when in temptation”.

Continue reading “Does God “Lead” us Into Temptation?”

How Do I know if I Am Saved?

Billy Graham said he believed one of the oldest tricks of the devil is to make Christians doubt their salvation. “When we doubt our salvation,” he writes, “We doubt God’s Word, and when we doubt God’s Word, we are powerless and ineffective tools for Christ?”

So, is it possible to truly and absolutely know that we have been born again, even if the devil tries to make us doubt our salvation? Yes! The Bible gives us many assurances; ways we may know for sure. Here are four . . .

Four Ways I May Know that I am Saved

1. First Assurance – The Absolute Trustworthiness of Scripture

God in His Word promises us that He will save “all” who believe upon His Son. The Bible says, “Whoever will call on the Name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:13.  Have you called upon Jesus to save you? If you have, you can have the absolute assurance that you are saved. This is God’s genuine promise! All who have given their lives to Jesus and believed upon Him may have the firm confidence of salvation based upon the infallibility of God’s Word. Continue reading “How Do I know if I Am Saved?”