Tag: Holy Bible

Fence Post Devotionals “The Gospel of John Cowboy Style”

The Narrow Way

“But Thomas said, ‘Boss, we don’t know the trail You’re takin’ and no idea what direction You’re headed; so how can we know the way?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life; there is only one trail to the Father and it’s through Me’” John 14:5-6 (“The Gospel of John Cowboy Style”).

A number of years ago I had the privilege of preaching in an evangelistic crusade in Seoul, South Korea. One day on a tour of the city, my host took me to what he described as one of the most historical places in South Korea, a place that was popularly known as “South Gate.”

South Gate was one of eight gates in an ancient wall that was built to serve as a protective fortress around the city. This one gate was significant in that when Seoul was under siege, it served as the only entrance into the city. I clarified with my Korean Interpreter, “this was the only way into the city?” He said, “It was the one and only way!”

That night I used John 14:6 as my sermon text. When I talked about Jesus being the only way to salvation, I said, “Jesus is South Gate!” Eyes of understanding were opened and many came to respond to Jesus as the one and only way to eternal salvation.

Folks through the centuries have tried to find other ways to heaven other than through the “One Way.” They have tried good works, religious rituals, church alliances; some have even tried to buy their way in. But all to no avail. It is as futile to try to be saved by our own way as it would to have tried to enter the City of Seoul when under attack by any other way than through “South Gate.”

The Bible says that the way to salvation is narrow (Matthew 7:13-14). No one can come to the Father except through the shed blood of Jesus.

“Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation (sacrifice) for our sins” (1 John 4:10).

He’ll Do to Ride the River With

“He’ll Do To Ride The River With” In the days of the old West, that was the highest compliment one cowboy could give another: “Here is a man you can depend on . . . A fellow you can count on . . . A guy you can trust! . . . A man who has your back!

In fact, when that is said about another, nothing else needs to be said. It speaks of his character, his integrity, his honor.

I’m not sure where that saying came from, but I assume it came from the days of the long trail drives when drovers were pushing cattle to railheads in places like Abilene, Dodge City, Wichita and Cheyenne. It was hard and hazardous work with long hours in the saddle. To survive the cowboys had Continue reading “He’ll Do to Ride the River With”

Time Alone with our Heavenly Father

Have you noticed the number of times the Gospel writers mentioned Jesus slipping away so He could be alone with His Father?

• After feeding the 5000— Matthew 14:23.
• Before appointing the twelve apostles— Luke 6:12.
• Jesus’ withdrew “to the mountain by himself alone”— John 6:15.
• The High Priestly Payer of Jesus— John 17.

It strikes me that if Jesus needed those times to be alone with His Father, then it certainly behooves us with our human frailties to daily seek out those times too.

If you don’t already have a scheduled time to be alone with the Father, then Continue reading “Time Alone with our Heavenly Father”

How did the Bible Come Together?

Who decided which 66 books would go into the Bible? Well, the short answer is God did. And, why 66 books? Why not 65 or 67? Again, it was God who determined the number of books that would make up the Bible. You see, the Bible is a Divine Book, not human.

  • It is Divinely Inspired–II Timothy 3:16 “All Scripture is inspired by God.”
  • It is of Divine Origin–II Peter 1:20-21 “No prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.”
  • It Has and Will Stand the Test of Time–Isaiah 40:8 “The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of God stands forever.”

In the same way God inspired men to write His Word, He also chose to use human instrumentality to gather the sixty-six books into one book that we call the Bible. The gathering of the sixty-six books that were considered to be inspired and authoritative did not come all at once. It was a result of Continue reading “How did the Bible Come Together?”

How Did we Get our Bible?

The Bible that you hold in your hand is an amazing book.It is a book that has been preserved and unchanged through the centuries. Forty different authors from different walks of life, different vocations, different social standings and from different geographical areas were the human instruments God used to write the Bible. Their lives covered a span of  over  1400 years and most did not know each other. Yet the stories and prophesies they wrote had one unifying thread running throughout, from the first verse of Genesis to the Amen of Revelation. It is the story of a loving Father who seeks the redemption of a fallen and lost mankind by sending His Son as the one and only way of salvation.

Moses was likely the first human author of the Bible. But the stories he wrote and recorded in the Book of Genesis were events that happened long Continue reading “How Did we Get our Bible?”