Tag: Jesus

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Fence Post Devotional “The Gospel of John Cowboy Style”

Painting by Jeff Segler

An Appointment to Keep

“Jesus figured it was gettin’ ‘bout time to move on to Galilee. So He cleared on out of Judea for the time bein’. He was of a mind to follow the trail through Samaria, so they lit out” John 4:3-4 (“The Gospel of John Cowboy Style”).

When Jesus and His disciples left Judea to travel to Galilee, John made this interesting note of His traveling plans: “He was of a mind to follow the trail through Samaria.” The KJV has it, “He must needs go through Samaria.”

There were other routes to Galilee other than through Samaria, But Jesus determined, “He must needs go through Samaria.” Some orthodox Jews determined not to go through Samaria. But Jesus, Himself being a Jew had no such reservations. He said, “I must needs go through Samaria.”

But why go through Samaria? Well, the simple answer is, Jesus had an appointment to keep; an appointment that was made in eternity past, even before the foundations of the world were laid. She didn’t know it, but Jesus did. He must go through Samaria,  meet with a woman at an ancient well and offer her the gift of a lifetime, “Living Water” so she would never thirst again.

Did you know that Jesus has made an appointment with you? And like with the woman of Samaria, He offers you the most wonderful gift of all, “A well of water springing up to eternal life” (John 4:10).

And here is the amazing thing. He makes the appointment. He must needs find you. The woman of Samaria was at a well. I was in my backyard. It really doesn’t matter where you are. With overwhelming love He searches for you and finds you. And like with the “Woman of Samaria,” He offers to you the gift of eternal life.

Yam Sing, when presenting himself for membership in a Bible believing Church was asked by the Pastor, “How did you find Jesus?” Answered in his broken English, “I no find Jesus at all, He find Me.”

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Fence Post Devotional “The Gospel of John Cowboy Style”

The Lamb of God

“He looked up, ya see, and there was Jesus walkin’ past at that very minute. ‘Look yonder!’ said John. ‘The very Lamb of God Himself!’ John’s men (called dee-sie-puls); well they knew exactly what John was a sayin’. They lit out after Jesus” John 1:36-37 (“The Gospel of John Cowboy Style”).

When John called Jesus the “Lamb of God,” well he plumb said a mouthful. You see, there were some fellows years before in the Old Testament, like the prophet Isaiah who referred to Jesus as the “Lamb of God.” In fact, something like 700-years before Jesus was born in Bethlehem, Isaiah had this to say about Jesus . . .

“He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth” (Isaiah 53:7).

And generations before that, when Issac was climbing Mt. Moriah,carrying with him all the necessary ingredients for a sacrifice; everything except the sacrificial animal, he asked his father, Abraham, “Where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” And Abraham said, “God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering.” (Genesis 22:7-8). And sure enough God did provide the sacrificial animal (a ram caught in a thicket) in place of Issac.

But the ultimate answer to Issac’s question happened on another mountain years later when God provided the Lamb, His very own dear Son to die on an old rugged cross as the perfect sacrifice for the redemption of all mankind.

You see, John was absolutely right that day, when standing with his disciples, he pointed to Jesus and proclaimed for folks of all generations, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29).

And because of the sacrifice of that one true Lamb of God, we will join the chorus of saints as we gather around the throne some future day in heaven and with loud voice proclaim . . . 

“Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing” (Revelation 5:12).

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To Walk With Jesus

Pat Erickson “Long Time Partners”

Buck Brannaman is one of the original “horse whisperers.” For years he was a student of Ray Hunt and also of Tom and Bill Dorrance, all followers of a horse-training movement called. “natural horsemanship.” We know it by its more common name, ‘Horse Whisperer.’

A movie was made of Buck Brannaman, simply entitled “Buck”.  The movie follows Buck from one horse ranch to another where he holds horsemanship and cattle-roping clinics.

Buck said that he has been training horses since he was 12-years-old. He said that he has been bitten, kicked, buckled-off and run over. In the movie, Buck confessed, “I’ve tried every physical means to contain my horse in an effort to keep from getting myself killed. I started to realize that things Continue reading “To Walk With Jesus”

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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”

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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?”