Do We Know Jesus?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Knowing Jesus

We claim to know Jesus, but does He know us? His name is spoken around the world, yet few have really come to know Him. His us a name that’s dropped when we find it suits us, but will He claim to know us? We’ve read His gospel inside out, and can quote some favorite verses, yet when we describe His nail scared hands, do they really cause us to feel pain? Many will say they’ve know him, and some will come to claim Him, but few will ever obey His voice… fewer yet will walk with Him on the water. So, who are we when we say His name, and will He claim that He has known us as we stand before his Father in judgement? Do we worship Him in spirit and truth, and do we love Him like we should? Or will His life be just another name we drop in church circles while saying we known Him very well, and quoting scripture that has never been revealed to us. Will Jesus know us on judgement day? That depends on this… do we know Him now?

Our Promise of Good, and a New Beginning, in Christ

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , New Beginnings

Today is the beginning of a new year, and like so many new undertakings it offers us a chance for a fresh start, and a new beginning. All those disappointments, and challenges, that nagged at us, or nipped at our heels last year can be left behind if we will only realize two things. The first is that God never withholds good things from us if we will lovingly obey Him, and walk righteously. The second is that in Jesus we are transformed, made new, and leave the old behind, therefore in Christ we have entered into a new year, and the old should be forgotten.

Glorifying God in our New Year’s Celebrations

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Celebration

Tomorrow is New Year’s Eve, and the new year will be welcomed around the world by many as they party, and celebrate, in drunkenness, lewd acts, and other rowdy and worldly activities, but as Christians we “ring in the new year” in a much different way. The festivities for us begin as we welcome the coming year filled with the Holy Spirit, and by thanking God for what He has blessed us with during the past year. We lift up our Heavenly Father, and Jesus Christ, in hymns, spiritual songs, singing, music, merrymaking, and by experiencing the intense joy of the Lord as we look forward to what the New Year will bring. This is how we should anticipate the coming year, by being thankful for what has been, and hopeful in what lies ahead, doing all of this as the church bells ring in joy, and celebration.

Seeing the Unseen, and Living-Out the Humility of Christ

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Jesus the Servant

We sit before Jesus listening as He teaches, and we speak of being humble, but when He kneels before us, do we let Him wash our feet? Do we share in this moment of His humility, service, and love? Can we even allow Him to kneel before us? Can we begin to feel what He is feeling at that moment, when one at a time He takes each of our feet into His hand and ladles water over it with His other? Do we feel ashamed as He rubs the filth from us, and is that shame because we are allowing Him to serve us in a manner that we feel is demeaning to Him, or because we have looked upon so many others as being less when they were serving us? This one act of foot washing teaches us truths at so many levels.

Our Living God is Active in our Lives Today

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Our Living Active God

Do you want a close, loving, and meaningful, relationship with God? If so, then seek Him, and make Him the focus of your life. As we draw nearer to God, He will also draw nearer to us. Just as we can’t see unless our eyes are open, so too we can’t love, and be loved, unless our hearts have been softened. In this way… even as we abide in Him, He will abide in us. How are our hearts, eyes, and relationships with the Lord today?

Christ, the Servant, and Witness to the Truth, is born

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Jesus the Servant

Yesterday we celebrated the birthday of Jesus Christ, and now today we should no longer anticipate the future coming of the Messiah, but behave as believers, in the full knowledge that He has now arrived. In doing this we must realize that He humbled Himself, not by His birth as king, but by being born a servant. He served not only God the Almighty Father, but all of mankind… even the absolute least of us. So today we compare ourselves to the living Christ, but are we satisfied with what we see in our spiritual mirror, or do we still see arrogance, ambition, selfishness, and the other attributes that Jesus was born to shun?

Christmas - Rest, Peace, or Hustle, and Bustle

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Birth of Jesus

This is the Christmas season and it is well known to be one of hustle, and bustle, as people work hard to fit parties, gift buying, decorating their homes, traveling to be with family, candle light services, choir concerts, and additional worship services into their already busy schedules; not to mention preparing enormous meals for family feasts. In the midst of all this, where has the time been set aside to sit quietly by the manger and look upon the sleeping Christ Child? Where is our solemn time when we contemplate the life of Jesus, and all that lies ahead for this tiny infant as He suckles at His mother’s breast? Where is the hushed time when we listen for the flutter of angel wings as they hover over this Son of God? Where is the holy time at the heart of this divine birth? Where is the peace of Christ, and the rest He gives us, as we worship Him?

Living One Life for all to see

Richard Forbes
Living a Righteous Life

We praise, and worship the Lord in church, and pray in our secret places, but what do we do with the remainder of our lives? Do we lead two separate existences? Do we have a spiritual life on the one hand, and a carnal one on the other? Do we walk out of the sanctuary, close the door, and then without another thought, begin to live like citizens of the world? In the life of the apostle Paul we are given a glimpse of how we should live one spiritual life at all times. He offers his life as an example for us. It was a life modeled after Jesus… holy, righteous, and blameless for all to see.

Hearing the Voice of God

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , God’s Voice

A common question concerning faith today is this: “Does God still speak to us?” It is asked by believers and non-believers alike, and although it sounds innocent enough, it can carry with it dark undertones. This question sows the seeds of doubt. For the believer it is a confession that they are unable to hear God’s voice, and if we are not careful, can justify an unwillingness to seek God’s voice. For the unbeliever It is either a sign they are seeking Him, or a means of undermining those who say they have heard God’s voice… as an argument meant to cast doubt, and a way of leading into a debate over whether God might have separated himself from us… or never existed at all. However, God does speak to us, and He does so in many ways such as in an audible voice, whispers, signs, dreams, visions, miracles, by leading us into improbable circumstances, and through His Holy Word.

Receiving Blessings Great and Small

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Receiving Blessings

When we follow the Lord with all our heart He blesses us. When we obey Him, and remain in His will, He rewards us. Let’s think back on those times when it would have been easier to go along with the crowd, turn a blind eye to something we knew was wrong, or not to give of ourselves because it would hurt us to do so; yet, we remained true to the Lord in these things. Did we not receive a blessing from being faithful? Our obedience never goes without notice, or reward, and the more difficult, or painful the effort, the greater we are blessed… sometimes with riches or earthly things, but always with spiritual wealth.

What is the Condition of My Faith?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , True Faith

As we approach Christmas morning and our celebration of the birth of Christ, let’s take this opportunity to do some soul searching, and begin by asking ourselves the straightforward question… “What is the condition of my faith?” Given the difficulties of the past two years with the COVID virus our relationships with the Lord, and each other, may have become strained. Perhaps we have walked away, or simply slipped into a sense of malaise concerning church. These have been years like none other in modern times. Satan has successfully renewed man’s age old fear of death, and used it to separate us from God who is life.

The Plague of Humanism, and Our Hope for the Church

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Humanism vs Faith

As faith fades from a people, and a nation, so do the blessings that God wants to bestow on them. When a people or nation rejects, or refuses to acknowledge that God is Lord, and does not serve Him, they lose their heritage in Him. Whether a country is one that was once faithful but has turned away, or one that is hearing the gospel and Word of God for the first time but refuses to accept it, the result is the same; God withdraws His hand from them, and His blessings are lost. Their heritage becomes a worldly one because they have chosen themselves, and this world, to be their gods…

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