What are you able to recognize?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God,
(1 John 4:2 (NIV))

Each and every one of us has the proverbial gut feeling at times. You know the one where without any details or reason, you get a feeling about something or someone that you just can’t seem to shake. How many of you have had that gut feeling confirmed as time passed and the details came into focus? Some people refer to it as a discerning spirit. If you are someone who has professed a faith in Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, then your discerning spirit is the Holy Spirit giving you insight.

Think about that last statement.

We all know people who are not believers and many are nice people, even friends and family, but there are those who just seem to exude evil even though they may put up a pleasing facade until the topic turns to Jesus. You know the type. Angry and lashing out at anything and anyone who disagrees with them about God. Not only do they just ignore Jesus, they vehemently deny that He is from God.

but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.
(1 John 4:3 (NIV))

As members of the Body of Christ, we have professed a faith that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh and that He was sent by God the Father. We will encounter the spirit of the antichrist in this world. With all of the events transpiring in the world today, we are seeing that more and more. Some even say that we may be seeing the real antichrist soon appearing on the world stage. As believers, we have been told by Jesus that we would still have troubles in this world.

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
(John 16:33 (NIV))

No matter what the world may send our way, we must stand firm in our faith in Jesus. We must rely on the discerning spirit that we have been given. We must be able to recognize evil when the world is calling it good. We must stay strong in His Word and put on the full armor of God so that we can discern evil and stand fully with God. We must be able to recognize the enemy.

What are you able to recognize?

Copyright 1998 – 2022 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Is your spirit able to make that claim?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.
(1 John 4:2-3 (NIV))

Too many people simply cannot believe that the Gospel is so simple. They feel that they must do something in order to receive anything from God, let alone salvation. They feel that unless they do something great for God, then they are not worthy to receive anything from God. Because of this misconception, many people find it impossible to believe that God would reach out to save them. They feel that God could not love them because of all the bad things that they have done, and that there is nothing great enough that they could do to reach God on their own!

Thankfully, this is not how this works!

It does require that we take a serious look at ourselves. In that introspective, we must recognize our need for salvation.

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
(Romans 3:23 (NIV))

Even though we are all sinners, God has a plan to redeem us.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
(John 3:16 (NIV))

Do you believe?

Can you believe that God would devise a plan so simple and all that we have to do is acknowledge that Jesus has come in the flesh from God as your personal Lord and Savior?

Is your spirit able to make that claim?

Copyright 1998 – 2019 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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It is time to stand firm in your faith!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

I tell you, whoever acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man will also acknowledge him before the angels of God. But he who disowns me before men will be disowned before the angels of God. And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.
(Luke 12:8-10 (NIV))

We have come to a point in history where it is not politically correct to acknowledge Jesus as who He really is.

It is deemed socially ok to pray to just about anyone or anything that you may want to pray to, yet, mention the name of Jesus and you soon face multiple possible scenarios depending on where you were when you claimed the name of Jesus. It is all right for school children to study homosexuality in school, but they cannot mention Jesus. They can publicly proclaim that they worship Satan, yet they cannot even mention the name of Jesus. It is considered correct to proclaim that it is ok to do what you want to do, but, if you mention the Ten Commandments you are labeled a bigot and a narrow minded person.

To be honest with you, I hate the term “politically correct.” This implies that people have the power to decide what is right and wrong. What happens when the people in power change? Are we supposed to learn a whole new set of “truths” and learn what names we can publicly proclaim? Human political leaders as well as human standards change. We cannot be part of the crowd that follows human frailty. We must focus our eyes upon Jesus, for only His name can save us. We cannot call upon the name of political correctness to save us from eternal separation from God. Only Jesus can offer us this salvation.

Take a serious look at your actions. Have you ever deliberately changed your “personality” because you were afraid to be the believer you need to be? What do you think that Jesus will do when you stand before Him if you have denied Him before men? It is not a pretty image.

Don’t let men sway you from your true beliefs. There will be ridicule and persecution for these beliefs, but rest assured that the rewards will be far greater than anything this world can offer.

It is time to stand firm in your faith!

Copyright 1998 – 2019 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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What is your definition of wisdom?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
(Proverbs 9:10 (NIV))

What is wisdom?

The world thinks of wisdom as a cunning or shrewdness in a particular area such as business. What passes as wisdom in this world is of no consequence in the eyes of God. The wisdom of the world is fleeting and foolish, for it passes in the blink of an eye. Even intellectual wisdom is fleeting. The “smartest” person in the world can lose it all in the blink of an eye if they are in an accident that causes brain damage.

Just what is wisdom?

True wisdom comes only from acknowledging that we are not “gods” of our own destiny and circumstances. We do not control our lives the way worldly wisdom claims that we do. What happens to worldly wisdom once that person dies without Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior? It may be remembered for a short time, but, it too will die and the person who was considered wise will spend eternity apart from God.

True wisdom acknowledges God and His mastery over all things. It not only says that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, it accepts Jesus’ authority as Lord and Master as well as Savior. With this acknowledgement and acceptance comes true wisdom, for the Holy Spirit will fill you with what is of God. The Holy Spirit proceeds with teaching and guiding you in all things that matter for eternity and not for the next few days, weeks, months, or years.

True wisdom focuses on the eternal Kingdom of God and not on the temporary personal kingdoms that we all try to establish for ourselves.

What is your definition of wisdom?

Copyright 1998 – 2018 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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What do you have?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.
(1 John 2:23 (NIV))

What do you do when you hear people say that they don’t need Jesus to be close to God? Do you agree with them or does your heart break over their reluctance to accept the truth?

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
(John 14:6 (NIV))

Why do people still reject Jesus? Honestly, I believe that this is the same mentality that makes people reach out and touch the wall when they see a “Wet Paint” sign. They simply cannot accept things at face value. They believe that God would not limit how someone can come to Him. They don’t want to accept the simplicity of God’s plan. You can show them the truth but they refuse to believe. They refuse to accept what is right in front of them. They refuse to recognize the fallacy in their thinking. I started to use the word reasoning instead of the word thinking, but if you truly reason, if you truly apply all aspects of your intellect, then your conclusions would be completely different.

“Come now, and let us reason together,”
Says the Lord,
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
They shall be as white as snow;
Though they are red like crimson,
They shall be as wool.
(Isaiah 1:18 (NKJV))

Perhaps you are on the fence about accepting or denying Jesus.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.
(John 3:16-21 (NIV))

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,
(Romans 8:1 (NIV))

Accepting Jesus means that there is no condemnation!

What do you have?

Copyright 1998 – 2018 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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