Category: Devotional

And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah. And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? And he cried unto the Lord; and the Lord shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them, Exodus 15:23-25

Marah means “bitter.” While the wilderness may and will make manifest the weakness of God’s Saints and as well, our failures, this is only to magnify the Power and Mercy of Him Who brought us into the place of testing. Further we must understand, God always has in view our ultimate good. The bitter waters of Marah typify life and its disappointment.

We find here that God tests faith in order to strengthen and enrich it. The test can come at anytime, either before a great victory or after a great victory. Israel journeyed three days in the wilderness and found no water. When water was found, there was an added trial – the water was bitter.

The “bitterness” typified life’s journey. At times, it’s not a pleasant journey. There is only one answer to the episodes of bitterness that comes to every Believer; it is the Cross of Christ. As “bitterness” represented the pitfalls of life, which cannot be escaped, likewise, the “Tree” represents the Cross.

Facing the “bitter waters,” Moses “cried unto the LORD.” That is what every Believer should do. An answer is guaranteed. It is found here in God’s Word.

The Lord told Moses to cut down a “Tree” which was growing nearby. It was to be “cast into the waters.” That being done, “the waters were made sweet”

In this episode, the Lord is telling us that the Cross is the answer to every problem. If the “Tree” would be placed into the vicissitudes of life, we will find that the Lord will turn the bitterness into sweetness. As here enjoined, the answer is the Cross, always the Cross! “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.” 1 Peter 2:24-25

LET’S PRAY
Heavenly Father, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour connect my heart to Your Word for inspiration and revelation to trust You more in every situation in Jesus Name.

BENEDICTION
Now the Peace of God, the Sanctifying Peace which passes all understanding beyond the pale of human comprehension, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus our Lord and Saviour always. Fountain 😇

Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. The Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him. The Lord is a man of war: the Lord is his name. Exodus 15:1-3

There was no singing in Egypt; there was groaning; singing only follows Redemption; Moses began and ended his wilderness life with a song. That of Deuteronomy 32:1-43 is the one referred to “And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.” Revelation 15:3. Christ is our King by virtue of what He did at the Cross and our Faith in that Finished Work.

The Red Sea and the Jordan River typify the death and Resurrection of Christ. The Red Sea pictures death to sin; the Jordan River, death to self. The one separates from Egypt; the other, from the wilderness.

This, the song of Exodus 15, is the oldest song of praise in existence. The greatest poets unite in admiration of its surpassing beauty and sublimity. It is a song of praise; it’s theme is Jehovah-Jesus; it praises Him for His destruction of the enemy. It begins with Redemption and ends with Glory. In fact, this is the first of ten songs of praise recorded in the Bible; the last is “And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.” Revelation 14:3. They were Redeemed by trusting Christ and what He did at the Cross, which is the only way anyone can be Redeemed.

LET’S PRAY
Ancient of Days, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open my heart to Your Word for revelation to appreciate Your Wonders. Lace my lips with new songs in praise and thanksgiving for all You continue doing in my life in Jesus Name.

BENEDICTION
Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, surround you with His peace ALWAYS by ALL means. Fountain 😇

And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever. Exodus 12:13-14

Salvation from the “plague” of Judgement is afforded only by the shed Blood of the Lamb, and Faith in that shed Blood.

All sinners are justly doomed by God to death. But He loves them as He loved the firstborn; therefore, the Lamb of God has suffered that death. His Precious Blood, that is, His Priceless Life poured out, attest the fact.

The Word of God promises eternal safety to anyone who will seek Salvation in that Atoning Saviour. The Believer in Christ knows, therefore, that he shall never perish; and this knowledge is based on two facts outside of himself, which are:
1. The preciousness of Christ’s Blood to God.
2. The Faithfulness of God to His Own Promise.

Israel was to keep the Passover “for a memorial,” and was to do so “forever.” This referred to the fact that their Salvation, prosperity, freedom, and strength all were derived from “the Blood of the Lamb.” It has not changed for the modern Believer. Everything we are, and l speak of Righteousness, can only be credited to the Shed Blood of the Lamb.

All of this represented the Cross, which means that it must ever be the anchor and the Object of our Faith.

Ephesians 2:13-18 The Sacrificial Atoning Death of Jesus Christ transformed the relations of God with mankind. In Christ, God reconciled not a nation, but “a world” to Himself.

LET’S PRAY
Ever Faithful God, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open my heart to Your Word for inspiration and revelation concerning my now and future in Jesus Name.

BENEDICTION
Now the Lord of peace HIMSELF give you peace ALWAYS by ALL means. The Lord is Faithful and is with you. Fountain!😇

For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. Genesis 12:12-13

The words “pass through” could be translated “go through,” since the word used is entirely unconnected with the “Passover.” The Lord did not personally go through the land of Egypt that particular night, but rather that He used an Angel.

He said, “When I see the blood,” not “When I see your particular Church,” or “your good works,” or “your particular Denomination,” or whatever. It’s “When I see the blood, l will pass over you.”

The worthiness of the person is not taken into question, simply because, in the eyes of God, there is no worthiness. The goodness of the person is also not taken into question, simply because, in the eyes of God, no one can really be called “good.”

That which characterizes acceptance by God is that the Blood of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, which refers to what He did for us at the Cross of Calvary, be applied to our hearts and lives, which is done by Faith. “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:” Romans 5:1 and Ephesians 2:8-9.

This simply means that both the believing sinner and the believing Christian are to place their Faith exclusively in Christ and what Christ did for us at the Cross. Romans 6:1-14

The Holy Spirit states “Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:” 1 Cor. 5:7 that the Passover pictured Christ’s Sacrifice of Himself in order to save sinners sentenced to die.

Two great facts appear in the first Passover: the certain doom of the firstborn and his certain Salvation. He was doomed to death by God, not because of his conduct, but because of his birth. This latter fact, he could not alter; and he was therefore, hopelessly lost. He was absolutely saved, because of the value of the life sacrifice for him.

He knew he was saved because God had pledged Himself to most certainly save all who sprinkled the shed blood upon the door posts, all a Type of the price Jesus would pay on Calvary’s Cross in order that we might be saved. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16

LET’S PRAY
O Lord, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open the ears of my heart to Your Word with clear understanding concerning my situation to do Your Will in Jesus Name.

BENEDICTION
And the very God of peace SANCTIFY you (me ….) WHOLLY; and I pray God your WHOLE spirit and soul and body be preserved BLAMELESS unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that calleth you (me …), who also will DO it.

Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house: And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats: Exodus 12:3-5

The whole system, spiritual, political and ecclesiastical was received by Divine Revelation, commanded by God, and merely established by the agency of Moses and Aaron. This proclaims the fact that Salvation is all of God and none of man.

In Genesis 4, it is a lamb for each person. Now it is a lamb for each house. Upon the giving of the Law, it would be a lamb for the entirety of the nation. But when Jesus came, He would be the lamb for the entirety of the world. John 1:29

The lamb, and all that pertained to it, symbolised Jesus in His Atoning Work.

1. “Your lamb shall be without blemish:” Jesus was without blemish.
2. “A male of the first year”: Jesus was the Second Man, the Last Adam. 1 Cor. 15:45, 47

3. “And you shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month”: This was for further inspection in order that no blemish be found. For 33 1/2 years no fault was found with Christ. Satan had no part in Him.

4. “The congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening”: Jesus would die at the time of the evening Sacrifice, 3 p.m.

5. “And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door posts of the houses”: As the blood of the lamb was shed, Christ shed His Life’s Blood. As the blood of the lamb was to be applied to the houses, likewise, and by faith, it is to be applied to our hearts and lives. Ephesians 2.

6. “And they shall eat the flesh, and let nothing of it remain”: One must partake of all of Christ, which refers to believing all He did for us at the Cross.
7. “The lamb was to be eaten with unleavened bread”: This typified the perfection of Christ. There was no evil, i.e., “leaven” in Him.

8. “And you shall eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hands”: As Israel was leaving Egypt, (and they were to be prepared to leave at a moment’s time), likewise, the believing sinner, upon accepting Christ, is to leave the world and its system behind, and do so forever.

LET’S PRAY
Ever Living Father, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open my heart to Your Word for inspiration and revelation to do Your Will daily and not my will.

BENEDICTION
The peace of God, that’s the Sanctifying Peace, which transcends all understanding that’s beyond the pale of human comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds through what Christ did at the Cross. Fountain 😇

And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God’s host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim. …….. Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed: and he divided the people that was with him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two bands; …… And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. Genesis 32:1-2, 7, 24-26

Obeying the Lord, the has the assurance of protection of Angels. The Lord pull back the cover of the spirit world and allows Jacob to see the Angelic Host which will accompany him.

In verse 7, Jacob did not remember the host of Angels around him? Before we criticize Jacob, we must as well, look at ourselves.

God had a controversy with Jacob because of his faulty life. When as a consequence, he found himself in deadly peril and realised that God Himself was behind that peril, and that it really was not with his brother Esau that he had to contend, but rather with the Angel of Jehovah Himself, he then learned a valuable lesson.

When sore broken by that Mighty Hand, when he ceased to wrestle and clung instead with weeping and supplication to the very God Who wounded him, it was then he got the victory and the glorious name of “Israel”

The great principle that God cannot give victory “to the flesh” appears in this scene. It is the broken heart that begins to experience what Divine Power means. Better for the sun to rise upon a limping Israel than to set upon a lying Jacob.

Jacob, for his misconduct, was exiled from the Promised Land, having nothing but his staff. He returns a wealthy prince, but lamed. So Israel, cast out of Jehovah’s land because of her sin, also will return with abundance, but broken and contrite in spirit, all typified by Jacob.

God had to cripple the “flesh” in Jacob, as He has to cripple the flesh in us. It can only be done one way: Beloved, it is the Holy Spirit Alone Who can subdue the flesh. He demands only one thing of us, and that is that our Faith be anchored squarely in Christ and the Cross, never wavering.
Apostle Paul said “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.”

LET’S PRAY
Holy Spirit, by Divine Mercy and Favour, subdue my flesh in total obedience of Your Word and Will. Holy Spirit, anchor my faith squarely in the Finished Work of Jesus Christ at the Cross.

BENEDICTION
Now the God of peace HIMSELF give you peace ALWAYS by ALL means. The Lord be with you as He has been with Jacob and bless him Israel. Fountain 😇

Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you. …. And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together…. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah Jireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen. Genesis 22:4-5,8,13-14

The name, “Jehovah-Jireh,” means “the LORD will see” or “provide.” Provide what?
He will provide a Redeemer, which all of this, as it regards the proposed offering of Isaac, represented.

The great test of Faith which the Lord required of Abraham, as it regards the proposed offering of his son Isaac, was for the purpose of telling the great Patriarch how mankind would be delivered. It would be by and through the death of God’s Only Son, of which Isaac was a Type.

However, as the Lord told Abraham of the MANNER of Redemption, which would be by death, He did not tell him HOW this death would be brought about, which would be by the Cross.

That information would be given to Moses some 400 years later “And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.” Numbers 21:8-9

LET’S PRAY
Almighty God, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open my heart to Your Word for revelation concerning my purpose in life. O Lord, connect my heart to Your Heart in Your Word by Divine Mercy and Favour to see life clearly as You see it. Open my spiritual ears to hear when You speak and follow Your leading in all l do to glorify You in Jesus’ Name.

BENEDICTION
Now, the Lord of peace HIMSELF give you peace ALWAYS by all MEANS. May the Ever Faithful God be with you ALWAYS to walk in power and perpetual Victory due to the Finished Work of Christ on the Cross in the matchless name of Jesus Christ. Fountain 😇

“And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking. Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac. And the thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight because of his son.” Genesis 21:9-11

The effect of the birth of Isaac was to make manifest the character of Ishmael. Ishmael hated Isaac and so did his mother, Hagar. Prompted by her, Ishmael sought to murder Isaac, “But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now.” Galatians 4:29 and, with his mother, was justly expelled.

Both merited the severer sentence of death. Thus, the birth of Isaac, which filled Sarah’s heart with joy, filled Hagar’s with murder.

Isaac and Ishmael symbolise the new and the old natures in the Believer. Hagar and Sarah typify the two covenant of works and Grace, of bondage and liberty.

The birth of the new nature demands the expulsion of the old. It is impossible, in fact, to improve the old nature. The Holy Spirit says it is “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” Romans 8:7

If, therefore, the old nature cannot be subject to the Law of God, how can it be improved?

How foolish, therefore, appears the doctrine of moral evolution!

The Divine way of holiness is to “put off the old man” just as Abraham “put off” Ishmael. Man’s way of holiness is to improve the “old man” that is, to improve Ishmael. The effort is both foolish and hopeless.

The only way the “old man,” which refers to the old way, the way of the flesh, can be put off is by the Believer evidencing and maintaining Faith in Christ and the Cross. As the Cross is the only answer for “sin,” it also is the only answer for “self” “And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.” Luke 9:23-24

LET’S PRAY
O God Creator of heaven and earth, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open my heart to hear and agree with Your Word for deeper revelation, knowledge and understanding to do Your Will everyday in every circumstances in the glorious name of Jesus Christ.

BENEDICTION
Now, the Lord of peace HIMSELF give you peace ALWAYS by all MEANS. May the Ever Faithful God be with you to walk in power and perpetual Victory always due to the Finished Work of Christ on the Cross in the matchless name of Jesus Christ. Fountain 😇

“After these things the word of the Lord came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward. …. And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness.” Genesis 15:1, 4-6

If one properly understand the verse 6 of today’s Scripture, then one basically understands the entirety of the Bible.

What is this that Abraham believed?

First of all “he believed in the Lord.” And what does that mean?

Regarding the dealings of the Lord with Abraham, this means that Abraham believed that God ultimately would send a Redeemer into the world and would do so through his offspring.

The Apostle Paul in addressing this very thing said “Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.” Galatians 3:16

So the entire nation of Israel, which would come from the loins of Abraham and the womb of Sarah, was but one reason and that was to bring forth “One Seed, which is Christ.” That “Seed” was brought forth for one reason, and one reason only, and that was to go to the Cross which was necessary, that is, if the sin debt was to be paid and man thereby redeemed.

In essence, “Christ and Him Crucified” presents the entirety of the story of the Bible. Consequently, that’s where my Faith and your Faith had better be anchored. “For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.” Romans 4:3

LET’S PRAY
Heavenly Father, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour open my spiritual eyes and ears in Your Word to build my Faith to trust You always. Open my heart for understanding in Your Word for revelation concerning my life, ministry and current situation in the glorious name of Jesus Christ.

BENEDICTION
May the God of HOPE fill you with all JOY and PEACE in believing, so that by the POWER of the Holy Spirit you may abound in HOPE. May you have Faith in Christ and what He did at the Cross be established, well grounded with His peace and tranquility by all means. 😇

“And the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the Lord, who appeared unto him. And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he built an altar unto the Lord, and called upon the name of the Lord.” Genesis 12:7-8

“Beth-el” means “House of God.” “Hai” means “garbage dump”

The Altar alone, typifying the Cross, can keep the Believer to know the difference between the “House of God” and the “garbage dump” other than by the Cross. That’s the reason we have do much false doctrine presently and so many Christians following false doctrine.

For the last several decades, the Church has drifted so far from the Cross that it hardly knows any more where it has been, where it is or where it is going. Because it no longer plants its doctrine on the foundation of the Cross, it has lost completely its moorings.

Without an understanding of the Cross, there is absolutely no discernment regarding false doctrine.

That’s the reason that Paul the apostle said: “Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times (the times in which we are now) some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils” 1 Timothy 4:1

A “departure from the Faith” i.e., Christ and Him Crucified” is the reason!

Never forget: Satan dresses up his: garbage dump” to look like something else altogether. In other words, they look like anything, but garbage dumps; and, without an understanding of the Cross, invariably that’s the way the Believer will go. Galatians 6:14

LET’S PRAY
Heavenly Father, by Your Divine Mercy and Favour, open my eyes to see Your Heart to enable me follow Your leading to see as You see, to desire as You desires and do what You do for Your Glory in the glorious name of Jesus Christ.

BENEDICTION
Now the God of Hope fill you (……….) with all Joy and Peace in believing that you (…….) may abound in Hope, through the Power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will help you (……) have all these things if you (……) place your Faith exclusively in Christ and the Cross. 😇