Finding our Pearl of Great Value, and Securing it for Eternity

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Self, Salvation

We want to experience the glory of God, Jesus abiding in us, the Holy Spirit filling us, and eternity in a loving relationship with God. In other words we want to be in possession of the pearl that is mentioned by Jesus in the ‘Parable of the Pearl’, but are we bargaining with God over its price? Are we willing to sell all we have to own this treasure, and are we prepared to do so without a second thought, or are we trying to obtain the pearl from Him at a bargain price? How much of ourselves do we give, and what do we hold back in seeking our salvation?

Grace, the Purest Essence of God’s Mercy

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Grace

The greatest example of God’s mercy comes in the form of Jesus Christ, who became the incarnation of God in the body of man. By Him we are saved, and through Him, we receive God’s grace. Jesus didn’t come to us so that He could experience what it meant to be a man, no, He came so that we, who were sinful and fallen, could be redeemed, and experience righteous life, and the fullness of God. Through Christ we were given grace, and it continues to flow through Him to this day; unmerited, unwarranted, and the purest essence of God’s mercy.

Are we really Good?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , God is Good

As Christians we are told, and like, to do good things for those around us. In obeying God by doing good, we often mistake one another as being good, and we say such things as “He is a good man”, or “She is such a good person.”, but if Jesus would not let the rich young man call him good, then how can we possibly refer to one another in this way? Jesus was making a distinction between the act of doing good, and actually being good. We, like Jesus, are doers of good; not actually the embodiment of good, which is limited to God alone.

Praying Rightly in the Will of God

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Praying God’s Will

When we pray and do not receive it can be because we are meant to wait, but many times it is because our motives are not right, and we are not praying for those things that are in accordance with the will of God. When we are preparing to ask Him for something have we examined our own desires, and insured that we are not asking out of our selfish earthly vanities, or wants? Are we asking as we should for something meant to glorify God? Are we praying rightly?

How Far are we Drawn towards Jesus?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Called to Jesus

God draws us to Jesus Christ, but not all of us answer that call as we should. Some hear His voice and come to believe in Jesus completely, others begin to move in the right direction but give up before they reach the point of fully believing, a few look up from what they are doing but with little interest and without moving an inch, and then there are those who never give any indication that they have even heard God’s call at all. The question for us today is this… which of these are we?

To Whom do we turn when we are Hurt, or Afraid?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Turning to the Lord

In this life we take upon ourselves the responsibility for many of the troubles, and things that challenge us. When a father dies a child steps forward and takes control of the family farm, or when cancer attacks there is always one soul who, more than all the others, becomes the caregiver, and goes with the sick one to the doctor, and holds their hand while they suffer. As men and women of faith we will always be joined by God, and Jesus Christ, in such times as these, yet so often we don’t accept Their care like we should. When we are sick we keep looking towards our human caregivers for comfort, and when we are holding the hand of someone who is struggling, we never want to let it go, or put it in the hand of Jesus. We are reluctant to take His yoke upon us, and experience His rest.

Patience and Endurance in the Hour of Trial

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Patience and Perseverance

Are we capable of waiting on God without it harming our faith? Is our patience short lived, and our perseverance nearly nonexistent? In this modern era of instant gratification in which everything is about ourselves, and what we want, patience and perseverance are very rare commodities it seems. There is no place that this is any more evident, nor damaging, than in our spirituality, and faith. Yet despite this, God continues to ask us to be patient as we wait on Him, and to persevere in our belief by loving, remaining faithful, and trusting in Him. But are we so conditioned to expect everything we want right now that our faith fades when we go through periods of quiet? Are we able to love, and worship our God, when what we ask of Him is a long time in coming?

From where does my help come?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Trusting God

As Christians we need to behave different from the worldly, and in times of joy, or trouble, we should always trust in the Lord our God, and rejoice in the company of fellow Saints who follow Jesus. Those in the world will turn to other men when they are in trouble, and look to their kings and governments to provide for them, and feed them, when they are hungry, but ungodly men who hold out one hand with food or help, will extend the other for payment, and those who celebrate in the world, do so with the unbelieving who drink to excess, revel in sexual sin, and sing songs espousing lies against God, Jesus, and Their commandments.

The Inspired way to our Belief, and our very Personal walk of Faith

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Faith , Belief

What is it about Jesus that has given us faith in Him, and in which we have come to believe that He is not only the Son of God, but that God dwells in Him? Do we believe because He has told us who He is? Do we believe because of the stories and prophesies written in the Bible regarding Him, and His birth? Is it simply because of the miracles He performed during His lifetime, and in ours, or does our belief in Him require some of all these things before it can became real to us? Each of us is different in how we come to believe, some of us are led to believe like Peter the rock, some are like Paul who was blinded, then saw, and others are more like Thomas who doubted until he experienced the miracle of the resurrection with his own fingers and hand.

Our Hope in Scripture, and the Breath of Life to us

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , The Word

You may not be one who likes to read, and because of this you find yourself straying away from scripture, but in fact, scripture is meant to be spoken, recited, and repeated over and over again within our lives. This is especially true of what we find in the gospels as we study the life of Jesus. So we should speak the Word to one another, and live it out during every day of our life. The realization of our hope in God’s Word, and the gospel, is not in its reading, but in our hearing, understanding, and speaking it… in living it out perfectly in our lives.

Saving Souls, That none might Perish

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Saving the Lost

In Luke 9 we read that the apostles wanted to destroy a Samaritan village and its inhabitants for denying entry to Jesus, a Jew, but He told them otherwise. Yet, don’t we do a similar thing by judging as damned those who don’t readily follow Christ today? What is in our heart at a moment such as this? How can we call ourselves Christian, and do something so contrary to Christ? We too are meant to bring a message of salvation, and save the lost… not destroy them.

How am I called to witness?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Witnessing

Whether in the Old Testament or the New, we are told to go out into the world and declare the glory of God, and of Jesus Christ. We are sent to the Gentiles, the heathens, and to every soul that walks the earth but doesn’t yet know Them. Are we doing this today? Are we speaking of faith to our families, searching our communities for the lost, our country for the wayward, and the world for those who have never heard of God, Jesus Christ, and their glory that is contained in the Bible, and the gospel story of Jesus? Are we walking in our homes, and abroad, exercising the power of the Holy Spirit in us to do as we have been commanded?

No sin too small for our tears of contrition

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Tiny Sins

We call Jesus our Savior, but do we realize how much we actually need His salvation? It is so easy to look at thieves and murderers, and think of them as truly needing to be saved by the Cross. When we look at them we think that Jesus would needed to give His life for men and women such as these, but what about me? I am a moral person who might tell a tiny lie now and then, wouldn’t a simple prayer from Heaven have saved me? Well scripture tells us that all manner of sin separates us from God, so the answer is “No” we need His blood to cleanse our lie just as much as the thief, and murderer do their vile sins.

Remembering our Death, Rebirth, and all the Next Days

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Baptism

We have experienced the excitement, and anticipation that leads up to baptism, but once we have been buried with Christ, and raised to put on warm dry clothes, what comes next? What do we feel and do the day after our baptism? Some feel a bit of a let down as the excitement ebbs, others feel like they are charged with electricity, but many have a sense that something big is about to happen, yet they just don’t know what. This is what every pilgrim feels once they reach the starting point of their pilgrimage, and so it is with every Christian as they begin their journey of faith, walking with Jesus in the newness of life.

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