Archive for the ‘Devotionals’ Category

I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth. 1 John 2:21

The religion of Islam has a concept called taqiyya. According to taqiyya, a Moslem is allowed to say something that is not true about Islam in order to advance the cause of Islam. This is why Moslems are allowed by their religion to say that Islam is a religion of peace even though it clearly – according to their so-called holy writings – is not. Lying about this is justified by taqiyya because it helps break down resistance toward Islam and make Islam appear to be benign. But taqiyya is just one of several Islamic justifications for lying. Another is muruna, which allows Muslims to break some Islamic laws in order to advance other Islamic purposes. Under muruna, the terrorists involved in the 9-11 attacks were justified in going to bars and drinking, which is prohibited by Islam, so that people would not suspect them of being Muslim terrorists. The concept of tawyira allows a Moslem to lie in order to create a false impression. Some people who claim that former US President Barack Obama is a Moslem say he invokes tawyira when he claims to be a ‘Christian’. Now, I’m not saying that Obama is a Moslem, but I am saying that if he is and says he is not, that is just fine by Islam’s tawyira. So, with a good many verses in the Islamic book Quran justifying lying in order to deceive an enemy, when can you trust the word of a Moslem? Good  question. Ok, then when can you trust the word of a Christian? The answer to that question should be always.

Unlike the Quran, the Bible makes no provision for liars or deceivers. In fact, the Bible declares that all liars shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone (Revelation 21:8). Christians are not to lie to each other, according to Colossians 3:9: ‘Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds’. The lying that was so easily a part of us in our unsaved days should disappear. Deceiving people in order to present the Gospel to them is also wrong, because the ends do not justify the means if the means involves anything that is false or deceptive. Deception is the way of the cults, but should never be the way of the child of God.

Why is honesty so critical to true Christianity? Our text answers that question: no lie is of the truth. Do we have the truth? The Lord Jesus declared Himself to be the truth (John 14:6). He did not, cannot, and will not lie. The Bible contains no lies because it is the Word of God, unless it has been tampered with. So as Bible believing followers of Jesus Christ, we must not lie but always tell the truth.

If you think you need to lie about something, think again. Jesus would never tell you to lie. But the devil would. – Jim MacIntosh

Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. 1 John 2:18

Most if not all Christians are aware of the antichrist, that Satan-controlled man of sin, the ultimate in evil, the great ruler who will rise as the world’s leader during the days leading up to and during the Great Tribulation. Identified by his number 666, the number of a man (Revelation 13:18), the antichrist will be the greatest deceiver this world has ever seen. In our text, John is reminding his readers (including us) about the antichrist that they were taught would come. But then, he points out that even before that great antichrist would come, there would be many antichrists. And that they are already among us. Who are they?

The term antichrist simply means opposed to Christ. Of the New Testament writers, only John uses this specific term, although others, including Paul spoke of the same using slightly different terms. We know that the ultimate antichrist will be the pinnacle of opposition to Christ in his attacks on Christians, on the Word of God, and on Christ Himself. Are the antichrists who are among us today as bad as that. No, they will not have the great power of Mr. 666, but they will be of the same spirit. They will deny the Scriptures, oppose the Christians and all that they stand for, and some will even claim to be some form of messiah.They will have the same primary intent of the antichrist, that God would be robbed of the glory that is His due. We have no problem identifying the antichrists around us today.

One of the biggest antichrists today actually calls himself the vicar of Christ. Many Bible students will tell us that the great antichrist will be the pope, if not the current Leo XIV, then surely one of his successors. I doubt that, but I can understand their argument. Surely few in history have deceived so many with their lies or shed the blood of so many Christians as the popes of Rome. And Leo is just as evil and as dangerous as those who came before him. So are most of the leaders of the world’s religions today, men who use their positions to deceive, defraud, and destroy. On the opposite side are the outright opponents of God, those who deny His existence and power, those who reject the Scriptures and seek to destroy them. These liars have convinced most of the world of the fallacy of evolution, which is a curse to the souls of billions and a threat to the faith of the Christians. Our world is awash in the spirit of antichrist. If you doubt it, listen to the conversation of the people around you and you will soon hear blasphemy from the lips of those who use the Name of Christ as a swear word. And if all of these are antichrist, they are also opposed to those who take the Name of Christ, the Christians. That great enemy of our souls is telling the world today that the Christians are the enemy.

We are in the last days, the last time, as our text puts it. Do not be surprised if we encounter hatred from the world. The spirit of antichrist wants to destroy us. Don’t give it an opportunity. – Jim MacIntosh

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 1 John 2:15

Most companies discourage their full-time employees from having part-time jobs or from operating their own businesses on the side. That’s because most employers know that those extra-curricular jobs often take energy and devotion away from their full-time employment. They also know that many good employees often leave their employment to pursue those extra-curricular jobs. The Lord Jesus said as much when He declared, ‘No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon’ (Matthew 6:24). That is the principle that is addressed in today’s text.

Picture if you can the first man born into this world, Cain, as he prepares his little altar of sacrifice, and loads it with the finest fruit and vegetables that his fields and orchards and gardens can produce. As he completes his preparation, Cain looks upon it with pride. There is little doubt that the offering was impressive, and Cain’s pride might well be understandable from an earthly viewpoint. It represented much toil and sweat and skill. To Cain, it was wonderful. But to God, it was unacceptable. The produce had come from a cursed ground, the preparation effort had come from guilty hands, and the presentation had come from a prideful heart. The offering was contrary to God’s requirement for a sinless substitute. Cain’s love for the world and the things of the world was wrongly placed. In contrast, his brother Abel’s offering was made in humble submission to God’s requirements and with a love for God’s presence. The difference between these two men still marks all of humanity today.

While we are living in this world, we must make use of this world’s resources for our daily needs. We must provide for our families and fulfil our obligations. So we apply ourselves to accomplish this. This is not loving the world and its things. Not unless we make our pursuit of money, education, power, and possessions the primary goal and purpose of our lives. If we do that, there is no room in our hearts for God. There will be no time to appreciate Him as we ought. There will be no desire to serve the Lord’s people as we are taught or to spread His Gospel as we are commissioned.

What is the primary reason you got out of bed this morning? To pursue your love of the world and its things, or to pursue your love of your Father in Heaven? -Jim MacIntosh

I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for His Name’s sake. 1 John 2:12

What does it take for someone to become a Christian? If you ask people that question, you will get an amazing array of answers. Some will even say we are all Christians because we live in a Christian country. Others insist that by joining their particular church, you would become a Christian, and some others would say that being born into a Christian family or a family that belonged to a particular church, you would become a Christian. And there are those who point to a rite or ceremony, such as a baptism, christening, or confirmation and declare that that made them a Christian. Similarly, some people insist they became a Christian when they signed a pledge card or made a ‘commitment to Christ’. You could even get an atheist who would insist that becoming a Christian is irrelevant because ‘there is no God’. So a person who truly wanted to know would get pretty confused if all they did was ask people how to become a Christian. That’s why God gave us His Word, the Bible, which declares that we are Christians because He has forgiven our sins for Jesus’ sake.

Our sins are forgiven! That is the most important thing for us to know as Christians. Hopefully we will grow and learn more than that, but it is that one fact that makes all the difference. It was our sins that separated us from a relationship with God. It was our sins that were destroying our life here on earth and that were dragging us downward toward eternal perdition. God’s holiness prevented Him from accepting us with our sins, but God’s grace extended to us forgiveness of those sins. Our acceptance of that forgiveness brought us into the good of God’s grace, and we became a Christian. Recall the paralytic man in Matthew 9, Mark 2, and Luke 5 who was let down through the roof into the house where Jesus was preaching, how His first words to the sick man were that his sins were forgiven. Jesus dealt with the man’s most important need before He addressed his physical condition.

How could God so freely forgive us? Our text declares that it is for His Name’s sake. Whose name? The Name of Jesus Christ. The Name Jesus means Saviour. The title Christ means Messiah or Sent One of God. In this great Name, we see God’s great provision as recorded in John 3:16: For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. In these words we see God’s great plan of salvation, in the sending of His Son to be our Saviour, to die for our sins on Calvary’s cross. That vicarious death provided the full payment for our sins. God holy justice is satisfied, so that, our sins having been paid for, God can extend forgiveness to us. And this He does, by His Word.

Our sins are forgiven! Not only is that wonderful, but it is also only the beginning of what God has for us in His Word! – Jim MacIntosh

He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother is in darkness even until now. 1 John 2:9

Do you, as a Christian, hate homosexuals? Of course not! We certainly don’t agree with their sinful lifestyle or condone what God has declared to be an abomination. But we don’t hate them; as with all other sinners, including saved sinners, we show them the love of Christ as much as possible. And yet, those who promote and endorse that lifestyle insist that everybody who does not openly accept them and agree with them is hateful and is spreading hate against them. That of course is utter nonsense. They are actually the ones showing hatefulness against Christians. When it comes to people like that, there is a very narrow band of activity in which we can display the love of Christ, because we have so little in common. Actually, that goes for other Christians who are living in a backslidden condition, or Christians who affiliate themselves with organizations that are following doctrines that are contrary to the plain teaching of the Bible. And yet, there is room for us to have a measure of fellowship with them. Because walking in the light means that we not only don’t hate our brother, but that we show love in every way that is scripturally possible.

How do we know that we are to love one another? The Lord Jesus said so! ‘A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another’ (John 13:34). And there are plenty other Scriptures that support His words. We are never to count a Christian as an enemy, however disobedient he might be: ‘And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed. Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother’ (2 Thessalonians 3:14,15). Our attitude toward such a brother should always be with a view to restoration: ‘Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted’ (Galatians 6:1). And that restoration should always be sought with wisdom and meekness: ‘Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations’ (Romans 14:1). With every Christian, we ought to make sure that our attitude is right: ‘With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love’ (Ephesians 4:2).

The world is in darkness, and unless you and I avoid any hate or hateful behaviour toward our brothers and sisters in the Lord, we will be in darkness too, even with all of the light that we have. – Jim MacIntosh

But whoso keepeth His Word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in Him. 1 John 2:5

How do you identify Christians in the people you find yourself among during your day? As Christians, it is within us to seek out other believers and enjoy fellowship with them wherever we are. Whether it is in a store or shopping mall, or at a community event, or while visiting a park or a public attraction, we look around to see if we can recognize any Christians. But how can you tell who they are? Do you listen to their speech, monitor their behaviour, or check out how they are dressed? And what do you think other Christians might be looking at you to see, to determine if you are a fellow believer? Actually, it’s really hard to tell for sure. But our text tells us of one certain way to identify a true Christian.

The proof that we are in Christ, says our text, is the love of God that is displayed in our lives. And that happens, says our text, when we keep His Word. A disobedient Christian is difficult to tell from an unbeliever. A person who lies, steals, and uses the common potty talk of everybody else would never cause you to wonder if they might be a believer. Neither would somebody who was wearing body-revealing indecent clothing or listening to music heavily laced with profanities and sexual references. Such people are clearly disobeying the Word of God in its instruction that we keep ourselves untainted from the world’s filth. A mark of a believe is the desire to be obedient to their Lord. If there is no such desire, that person is unlikely to be a true possesser of divine life.

An obedient Christian does what our Lord desires of us. And what does our Lord desire? He gave us a commandment, that we love one another (John 13:34). So if we are obedient to the Word of God, we will love our fellow believers, and display that love in deeds of kindness, in kindly consideration, in tender compassion, and in generous giving. Remember that love that is not shared is love that is denied. But obedience to the Word also requires that we love those around us who need the Gospel. By displaying the love of Christ, we witness for our Lord.

The word ‘perfected’ in our text refers to maturity in our display of the love of God. We grow into this maturity by obeying His Word and displaying His love. And we will be identifiable as Christians. – Jim MacIntosh

My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 1 John 2:1

Among the many unusual stories that I encountered during my years of reporting on court cases was that of an employee of an automobile dealership who was charged with embezzling funds from his employer. His lawyer was standing before the judge, urging that the charges be dismissed on a technicality. I could tell that the judge was less than impressed with the lawyer’s abrasive attitude. While the lawyer was speaking to the judge, the court sergeant spoke up and asked the judge for a brief recess. The judge agreed, and a deputy sheriff entered the courtroom and presented the lawyer with a summons to appear in court the next day on a charge of helping his client to embezzle the funds. I glanced at the judge, who was still sitting at his bench, and noticed him trying to stifle a grin of amusement. The man facing the embezzlement charges looked shocked and dismayed. The man who he had looked to as his advocate turned out to have dirty hands and a poor relationship with the judge! How different the Advocate that you and I have when we commit a sin against God.

What a lovely title for our Advocate: Jesus Christ the righteous! This is not the only occasion where He is accorded that title. The centurion in charge of the crucifixion of Christ declared of Him, ‘Certainly this was a righteous Man’ (Luke 23:47). Both Pilate and Herod had also found Him innocent, with Pilate declaring, ‘I find in Him no fault at all’ (John 18:38). God Himself testified concerning Him at His baptism, ‘Thou art My beloved Son, in Thee I am well pleased’ (Luke 3:22). What better advocate could you and I have than Jesus Christ the righteous, with His impeccable character and His perfect relationship with the Father?

And we do need an advocate. Our enemy the devil accuses us every day before God in his vile role of the accuser of the brethren, described in Revelation 12:10. The devil watches us and takes our sins before God to challenge our right to righteousness. That’s where our Advocate comes in. Because He has paid the great price of the punishment that our sins deserve, Jesus Christ can challenge Satan’s accusations with the proof of payment, His own precious blood. The hymn writer Samuel Gandy describes it well by saying, ‘What though the accuser roar, of ills that I have done. I know them well, and thousands more; Jehovah findeth none’. And yes, dear brother, dear sister, we do sin, although we don’t make a practice of it. Our flesh is weak, regardless of how willing our spirits may be. And sinning breaks our close relationship with God. Some say that our text is for the unbeliever being called to repentance. But this is not so, because John addresses his readers as my little children, a term of endearment and close relationship. The same advocate Who pleads our cause with the Father also pleads the case with us, urging His dear children to a restored relationship with His Father.

Our Advocate is Jesus Christ the righteous. How amazing is that? -Jim MacIntosh

And He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. 1 John 2:2

The Calvinists won’t admit it, but they have a difficult time with today’s text. They hate it because it destroys their damnable heresy that Christ died only for the sins of those who God has chosen to be saved (limited atonement). So they twist the text, claiming that what it is really saying is that He is the propitiation for the sins of everybody in the whole world who God has chosen to save. That is not what the text says; that is adding to the Word of God, and there is a terrible judgment for that (Revelation 22:18). The Calvinists do the same with other Scriptures, such as John 3:16, where they claim the reference to God so loving the world refers to God including Gentiles as well as Jews among those whom He has chosen to save. Again, they are adding words that are not in the text, perverting the plain, clear text as inspired by God. The Calvinists reason that if Christ died for all, they all must be saved. But the Bible never says that Christ’s death saves everybody. For example, in John 3:16, it clearly states that Christ’s death saves ‘whosoever believeth’. When the Philippian jailor asked about being saved, Paul and Silas did not tell him that he was already saved, but that he would be if he believed (Acts 16:31). And he did. And he was. We must be careful that we read what the Bible says, if we are to be delivered from such error as Calvinism.

A key word in our text is ‘whole’. The original Greek word is holos, and its meaning is simple: all, or entire, or complete. Nowhere in this word is there any space for an exception or a notwithstanding clause. It is a simple adjective whose simple meaning makes it clear that Christ’s atoning work on the cross was not limited or restricted in any way. God makes no limits on Christ’s atoning work; the only limits are those imposed by those who will not believe. Revelation 20:15 reminds us that nobody will be in the lake of fire because of their sins; they will be there because they are not written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Christ has already borne the judgment for sins by being the infinite propitiation for those sins.

Scripture has three great pillars of salvation, pillars to be found from cover to cover in the book. Calvinism denies the pillar of man’s ruin by denying that all sinners are lost. Calvinism denies the second pillar of God’s remedy by making that remedy less than infinite. Calvinists deny the third pillar of man’s responsibility by insisting that Christ died only for the elect, who have no choice in their salvation. What does the Bible say? – Jim MacIntosh

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 1 John 1:8

A Christian who had become engaged in conversation with D.L. Moody told the preacher that he had reached the point in his Christian experience where he no longer sinned. In his practical way, Moody replied, ‘Well, I would like to ask your wife about that.’ We shake our heads at the folly of anyone claiming to have reached the state of sinless perfection while still living in this world. And yet, there are some people, including some so-called ‘holiness’ groups, who actually make such a claim. You would not need to be around these people very long before you would find out how badly they are deceiving themselves. Our text today condemns such people, and their lives will quickly confirm that our text is right. It is only by admitting our sinfulness that we have any hope of victory in our Christian experience.

If anyone could claim to have reached sinlessness, it must be the great apostle Paul. But Paul denies this when he declares, ‘For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do’ (Romans 7:19). When we preach the Gospel, we recognize that nobody will ever be saved unless they understand how great a sinner they are. Jesus said, ‘I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance (Luke 5:32). It’s just the same for those who are now saved. We can never appreciate the intercession of Christ, the cleansing power of His Word, and the comfort of the Holy Spirit if we think we are sinless and don’t need God’s help anymore. The only thing that will cause us to think that we can remain sinless is pride in our own selves and in our own strength. It is on the basis of our admission of our own weakness that we access the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives. It is on the basis of our acceptance of our own tendency and likelihood to sin that we receive grace from our Lord to trust in His ability to give us power over that sin.

The sin of pride tells us that we are strong enough to have no sin. But the humble acknowledgment that we are all too prone to sin will allow us to accept the grace of God to deliver us from sin’s power over us. – Jim MacIntosh

If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth. 1 John 1:6

Did you ever wonder where the light came from in Genesis 1:3: ‘And God said Let there be light, and there was light’? After all, this declaration and manifestation of light occurred on the very first day of creation, but the sun, moon, and stars were not created until the fourth day of creation. All that existed on that first day was a great ball of slurry hanging in an otherwise empty space. But there was something else. Verse 2 tells us that the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. It was the presence of the Spirit that allowed light to appear. Because, as John 1:5 declares, God is light. Wherever God is, light must be. Wherever God is not, darkness must be. That is why hell is outer and utter darkness. That is why there is no need for the sun in Heaven. And that is why our text today can declare that if we claim to have fellowship with God but walk in darkness, we are lying.

The devil loves the darkness because it suits his godless and evil nature. So do the devil’s children, as we read, ‘And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil’ (John 3:19). Walking in darkness is walking in the devil’s realm, minding the things of this world, deceived by the tempter’s lies and hiding from the presence of God. Darkness is no place for a Christian. Darkness is a trap that the enemy uses to keep us from enjoying fellowship with God. Conversely, fellowship with God keeps us in His light and out of the darkness. So, how do we enjoy this fellowship with God?

Note our text says ‘if we say we have fellowship with God’. Saying we have fellowship with God is not the same as actually having fellowship with God. People involved in all sorts of religious distortions and cults claim such fellowship, and their works show they do not have any fellowship with God. They lie, deceive, extort, and even kill in the name of their religion while claiming fellowship with God. If we want to have fellowship with God, we must obey Him. Adam lost his fellowship with God because of his disobedience. Obedience means studying the Scriptures to learn what God desires of us. Obedience means allowing the Holy Spirit to guide and teach us. Obedience means enjoying time spent in prayer and in the Word, and in the company of the Lord’s people.

May we truthfully be able to say we have fellowship with God instead of walking in darkness. – Jim MacIntosh