Little Compromises

Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards, for our vineyards are in blossom.”

Song 2:15 (ESV)

    How numerous the little foxes are! Little compromises with the world; disobedience to the still, small voice in little things; little indulgences of the flesh to the neglect of duty; little strokes of policy; doing evil in little things that good may come; and the beauty, and the fruitfulness of the vine are sacrificed!—J. Hudson Taylor

Sin, Confession and the Christian

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1 John 1:9 (KJV)

   The same moment which brings the consciousness of sin ought to bring also the confession of it and the consciousness of forgiveness.—Smith

Treasures of wickedness profit nothing

Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but righteousness delivereth from death.

Prov 10:2 (KJV)

 

    The wicked may amass treasures, but ultimately they profit nothing. Gaining the whole world but losing your own soul leaves you with nothing in eternity. But if the wicked come to Christ and repent and they will be justified and imputed the righteousness of Christ which will deliver them from death. O seek Christ—cast yourself at His feet and cry out for His mercy and cast your wicked treasures which profit nothing aside!

Addictions

Addictions are not just a result of chemical imbalance or physiological factors. Addictions are a choice and psychology is a pseudo-science that attempts to understand the humanity apart from sin and the Word of God. Moderation in all things, as the Word teaches (Phil 4:5, 1 Cor 9:25, Prov 25:28), is the solution to addictions and a guard against developing them. Sin is sin, not a psychological problem. We all have a choice; we can cry out for help: either to God or an idol, but we all have made choices with our will whether or not to develop addictions.

 

Thought 338: What is joking? . . . Crude, Rude, or just plain 'Snude' from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 338

What is joking? . . . Crude, Rude, or just plain ‘Snude’

Like a madman who throws firebrands, arrows, and death,  Is the man who deceives his neighbor, And says, “I was only joking!”

Proverbs 26:18-19 NKJV

    This passage is another passage which proclaims errors that we make daily in our conversations. Have you “made fun” of others, ridiculed outcasts, and giggled at the perverted jokes of your friends? Cry out to the Lord to help you stop. These “jokes” are revealed to be deadly firebrands, flaming arrows leading to death!

 

Thought 320: Rome didn't fall in a day. It was a process with a beginning and an end. -- so are our lives . . . from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 320

Rome didn’t fall in a day. It was a process with a beginning and an end. – so are our lives . . .

  In life we will have many battles and temptations ahead of us. We will face “stuff.” And if the “stuff” isn’t dealt with according to the Lord’s prescription, it can grow into something very ugly. Hopefully following poem will hit home the concept for you:

Little heart, what was that?

O! You have a secret.

Well, little heart take this advice:

You cannot hide vice or dice for long, one day the truth will be told.

Then your secret will shame you, that is, your hidden sins

Will be laid forth before all later on.

Yonder, over there the secret is crawling out.

 

O little heart, you have hidden your sin for two months, a year    

And ten days, but I see your hidden package drawing near.

The package is being opened!

Yuck! EEU! What a disgusting thing!

Little heart, the only thing you should have buried within

Thee, is the Word of our Lord.

But alas, you have had a hard time, your sin was not buried there in

The purity of the Cross.

May God bless and cleanse and heal and rapture,

You, your poor little heart as you repent of your sin.

Fare the well, and may ye learn from this little heart tale.

 

What we go  through in life an tear us down or be a victory as we submit it to Christ.

 

Thought 295: Take Every Thought Captive from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 295

Take Every Thought Captive

This is the only way to win the battles that lust faces us with, men, and the mental struggles that plague us all.

³ For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: ⁴ (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) ⁵ Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; ⁶ And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.

⁷ Do ye look on things after the outward appearance? if any man trust to himself that he is Christ's, let him of himself think this again, that, as he is Christ's, even so are we Christ's. ⁸ For though I should boast somewhat more of our authority, which the Lord hath given us for edification, and not for your destruction, I should not be ashamed: ⁹ That I may not seem as if I would terrify you by letters. ¹⁰ For his letters, say they, are weighty and powerful; but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible.

¹¹ Let such an one think this, that, such as we are in word by letters when we are absent, such will we be also in deed when we are present. ¹² For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise. ¹³ But we will not boast of things without our measure, but according to the measure of the rule which God hath distributed to us, a measure to reach even unto you. ¹⁴ For we stretch not ourselves beyond our measure, as though we reached not unto you: for we are come as far as to you also in preaching the gospel of Christ: ¹⁵ Not boasting of things without our measure, that is, of other men's labours; but having hope, when your faith is increased, that we shall be enlarged by you according to our rule abundantly, ¹⁶ To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you, and not to boast in another man's line of things made ready to our hand. ¹⁷ But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. ¹⁸ For not he that commendeth himself is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth.    2 Corinthians 10:3-18 KJV

 

Thought 268: Extreme Delivery from Ryan's devotional book Thoughts

Thought 268

Extreme Delivery

      Do you struggle with the guilt of sins tormenting your mind? (I think we all have at times) If you do remember this: upon salvation Christ has “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us (Psalm 103:12).” We need to do some extreme mailing and cast those condemnations from the devil away from us to the cross and recall that Christ’s blood to covers it all.

Thought 260: Do you love sleep? from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 260

Do you love sleep?

       Do you love sleep so much that it has become a sin because it keeps you from having a quiet time with God and your responsibilities to others. I’ll admit that I enjoy a good night’s rest, but if we love sleep the Bible warns that poverty will come like an armed bandit (Proverbs 24:33-34).

“How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleep? Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man.”  Proverbs 6:9-11 KJV

“He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich. He that gathereth in summer is a wise son: but he that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame.” Proverbs 10:4-5 KJV

Thought 257: Animal rights--Pshaw! from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 257

Animal rights—Pshaw!

         These days animals may have better rights people. Something is wacky here, God gave man dominion over the animals, which means we can eat them and use their “parts” for our clothing, handles, soap, etc… God’s Word tell us to eat mean and to use animals as beasts of burden. Sadly, however,  aborted children have fewer rights than the dog that is put in a sack and thrown into the river—the aborted children that are cut to tiny pieces in the womb or stabbed in the neck or has their brain sucked out or is born and set aside on a table to die of neglect is more important than an animal! Modern laws show the wicked condition of modern man. Only the Gospel can change the heart of the masses that made these laws and transform their conduct.

          May we all stop and petition the Lord about these wicked modern practices. And may we take a stand for children.

Thought 251: Pride from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 251

Pride

  Porn, selfishness, gluttony, moral infidelity, etc…are all tied to pride directly. All sin is tied in some way shape or form to pride. In the very beginning of the Bible, we find Eve partaking of the fruit because she desired to be like God and have more “wisdom.” Satan tempted Eve with the same lie he believed!—that he could be superior to God: that he could be more knowledgeable, wise, or powerful than God. Rebellion is linked to the prideful heart as is every sin. The prideful thoughts of the heart work their way out in a man’s actions and words and earn him the accurate labels of liar, adulterer, murderer, slanderer, fornicator, etc…

If you seem to be constantly battling pride. First, confess your fault to God and perhaps a spiritual friend (it is not required to confess your sin to a friend, but it greatly increases the coming of victory over it [James 5:16]). Second, purpose to remain faithful despite the temptation. Third, memorize Scripture related your specific temptation and quote it when temptation comes. Jesus used this method to send o’ll Satan packing his bags. Fourth, be alert and keep your guard up for fresh or renewed attacks of the battle and repeat the previous steps as needed. Finally, remember to listen for the Holy Spirit to share your victories humbly when appropriate for godly testimony to fellow Christians and unbelievers.

Thought 241: Porn from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 241

Porn

  I have read many articles and testimonies from boys and men that have battled with this ugly monster. But let me assure you, most of the things that I have learned; any wisdom that my soul might now cling to, has come from using the gifts of my ears and eyes to listen and to read and using my mind to muse over something and consider the matter. God is the only way out of an addiction to pornography.

 God accepts me despite my failures and despite all my sins and all my miserable shortcomings. If He can accept me, one of the worst sinners, then He can accept you as well.

 If you struggle with the sin of pornography, first recognize that you cannot be free in your own strength, but the Lord’s Spirit in you can give you the power to become free. Believe—have faith—that the Lord will free you from this. It is not His will for you to stay in sin and if you are willing He will delight in helping you out.

 Read these Scriptures and stand on their promises—memorize them, know them, quote them when temptation comes: 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5, Ephesians 5:3-4, 1 Thessalonians 4:3, Psalm 24:3-4, James 1:12-16, Psalm 119:9-11, Philippians 4:13, James 4:7-8, Matthew 1:21,   Hebrews 2:17-18, 1 John 2:14, Psalm 101, Job 31:1, 2 Timothy 2:20-21, 1 Cor. 10:13

Thought 212: The Seriousness of Sexual Sin from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 212

The Seriousness of Sexual Sin

Everything is permissible for me”—but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible for me”—but I will not be mastered by anything. “Food for the stomach and the stomach for food”—but God will destroy them both. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.” But he who unites himself with the Lord is one with him in spirit.

Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 (NIV1984)

Thought 194: The past.... from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 194

The past….

I write to you, little children,
Because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake.

1 John 2:12 NKJV

  Your past had a purpose. God allowed you to go through “stuff” for a reason. You are redeemed, forgiven, and a new creation now, but don’t think that your past doesn’t have power when you share it as a testimony. Paul (Saul of Tarsus) shared his testimony many times in his writings. He recounted how Christ had miraculously saved him. The pains of the past are really a blessing. Even though God forgets our sins that we remember many of them, we can remember where we came from and where we are going and can influence others to come with us.

Thought 186: Sensitive Subjects? from Ryan's devotional book series: Thoughts

Thought 186

Sensitive Subjects?

     Modesty? Sex? Taking a stand in direct defiance of the cultural norm? Persecution? Islam? In the modern culture of today many, pastors and Christians will not take an absolute right or wrong standpoint on “sensitive issues”. These “sensitive” subjects include: sin, lust, money, sex, creation vs. evolution, forgiving, marriage, divorce, dating vs. courtship, the inerrancy of the WORD of GOD, deception, lying, drinking, and many, many more.

      The culture basically says that anything that is unfamiliar or countercultural to it is a “sensitive” subject. We are warned by some that they will hurt us if we tell them that they are doing something wrong. But O followers of Christ, we cannot continue to be silent all the time! Some will hate us, yes, that is true. We WILL be persecuted. We will have to face temptations. Jesus promised us that serving Him would bring persecution, but we aren’t to fear the persecutor—we are to the LORD.

     Dear Christian, we are not supposed to be lukewarm. We should not be The Great Compromisers, but rather The Great Followers of God! Whether this means being bold, standing in an enormous gap against “the flow” (like evolution, the deity of Christ, the truth of sin, and the truth of moral absolutes),  praying and fasting and crying out to the Lord to heal your land, etc… We need to be world changers, not culture accepters!

     What way(s) are you accepting non-Biblical “stuff” into your life right now? Ask the Holy Spirit to show you how to make a change in your lifestyle and respond by throwing out any idols that He reveals. Throw out that X-box, get rid of that trash on your computer, get rid of cable, break or burn that music and those DVD’s that are encouraging you NOT to follow the Lord, and rip up or burn those books which are putting lies into your head every time you read them.

   We need to stand up for the Truth God in our personal lives. But only after we deal with our big “plank” we can clearly identify and remove our brothers “specks,” only after we have broken free from our own chains.

Read and meditate on Matthew 7:3-5 and then read 7:1-8

Daily Devotion from Ryan's devotional series, Thoughts

Thought 158

There is Forgiveness—an “Undone” Button

    If you have said something you wish you hadn’t you can never change it, but you can humble yourself and ask forgiveness. Ask the person(s) for forgiveness, and then ask God for forgiveness. If you have asked for forgiveness long ago, but are still struggling with guilt and condemnation, reflect on the cross and the resurrection. Jesus suffered a long time and paid the price and when He rose from the dead He conquered the power of sin in our life. So why not use this moment for God instead of dwelling on guild? Stop and thank Jesus for what He has done for you.