Beloved, it is easy to repay evil with evil, however, that is not what Christ tells us to do. He tells us to repay evil with good. So when I had been done evil to, I decided to repay it with good:

After I had been labeled a non-Christian by my political enemies, I doubled down on my tithes and Church Service and volunteering.

Since 2010:

- I have contributed over $220,000 to various Churches around the country and put in thousands of hours of volunteer hours at various Churches, even helping plant some Churches, lead Bible Studies and help steer many non-Christians to faith in Christ. 

- After I had been labeled an illegal alien and criminal by my political enemies, I joined various law enforcement related agencies and causes and spent the next 11 years working for and volunteering for them. Now my enemies run when they hear my name. 

- I also doubled down on my political involvement, mostly Republican but some independent, investing over $100,000 of my own money into political causes I am passionate about and over $10,000 to other charitable causes. 

Beloved, it is easy to repay evil with evil. That is what a non-believer does. God calls us to love our enemies and to humbly serve those who persecute us:

"Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets." Luke 6:22-23

"But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." Luke 6:27-36

Folks, it is easy to hate our enemies and do wrong to those who have wronged us, but difficult to turn around and do good to them, but good to them we must do because our Lord and Savior Jesus asks us to do this. Beloved, spare not your affection for only those who love you, but try to be forgiving and generous in loving those who have persecuted you and been cruel to you, for this is the will of God for us in Christ Jesus. 

It has been my experience that the stronger one gets in Christ Jesus, the bigger and fiercer the attacks from the evil one get. Since 2005 my political enemies have tried everything in their power they can to try to get rid of me. They have used every possible tool at their disposal, including gaslighting, political manipulation, trying to force me to declare bankruptcy, trying to induce me to anger or jealousy, feeding falsehood to and causing breakups with every lady I tried to date between 2010 and 2019, spreading false rumors that I once dated my cousin who now lives in Australia, trying to somehow make me look like I was gay, trying to somehow declare me an illegal alien when I have been a US Citizen all along, trying to force me to look like I follow some religion other than Christianity, trying to make it look like my brother Gary and I are at odds when our relationship couldn't be any closer, trying to make it look as though I had a falling out with one of my Pastor friends, trying to take the repayment of a business loan I took out over fifteen years ago and stringing it around my neck like a noose, when the business closed shop and died in 2007, and physical attacks like plugged up toilets, leaking water pipes, drained car batteries, nails in car tires, false car sensor indicators, creative accounting to try to drain my bank accounts, stolen Fedex and UPS packages, closed and rerouted roadways, strange cars and trucks leading and following me on roadways, illegally wiretapped phonelines, illegally wiretapped data lines, irrelevant and illogical correlation between actions and people, places, institutions, credit cards and loans somehow having an underlying meaning and purpose, and much, much more. Beloved, the evil one is strong, and his power comes from the deep state and evil within the very organizations we trust the most. Is this a surprise to folks? The Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians: 

"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can make your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this world’s darkness, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
Therefore take up the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you will be able to stand your ground, and having done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness arrayed, and with your feet fitted with the readiness of the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Pray in the Spirit at all times, with every kind of prayer and petition. To this end, stay alert with all perseverance in your prayers for all the saints. Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will boldly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it fearlessly, as I should." Ephesians 6:10-20

​Evil has been carried out against devout Christians since the days of Christ, so it should come as no surprise to anyone. In the days of the Apostle Paul the Saints of the Church dealt with the very evil we are talking about and so did the other Saints of the Church. Steven was stoned to death for his faith. Peter and Paul were both martyred in Rome about 66 AD, during the persecution under Emperor Nero. Paul was beheaded. Peter was crucified, upside down. Andrew was crucified in Greece, Thomas went to India as a missionary and was pierced to death by four soldiers. Philip went to Asia as a missionary where he was put to death by the Roman Pro-counsel. Matthew was stabbed to death in Ethiopia, Bartholomew was martyred for his preaching in Saudi Arabia, James travelled to Syria where he was stoned and then clubbed to death, Simon the zealot went to Persia where he was stoned, then clubbed to death, Matthias was burned to death in Syria, and John was the only apostle who died of natural causes in his old age. 

I have written about this many times:
https://www.paulsgospel.org/motd/a-wicked-and-perverse-generation-is-this
https://www.paulsgospel.org/motd/the-armor-of-god
https://www.paulsgospel.org/motd/dont-look-back

and more. Remember then, to put on your armor, and be strong in the Lord. 

Yesterday was a good day for me. I prayed as I usually do in the mornings, then showered and headed to work in my living room. I worked from home yesterday....no aggravation during the commute to work, no strangers sitting next to me, a peaceful day at work via zoom, a calm and peaceful day at home. etc. etc. My sweetheart even brought home my favorite candy from her workout and cooked a great dinner for me. In short, it was a good day that I cannot complain about. So what do we do about the good days, well just as God permits bad days to happen, he permits Good Days to also happen. So what do we do when we encounter good days? We Thank Him:

"A Psalm for giving thanks. Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations." Psalm 100:5

"Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!" Psalm 107:1

"A Psalm. A Song for the Sabbath. It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High" Psalm 92:1

"Praise the Lord! Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!" Psalm 106:1

"I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving." Psalm 69:30

"That my glory may sing your praise and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever!" Psalm 30:12

"And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." Colossians 3:17

"Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." 1 Thessalonians 5:18

"Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name." Hebrews 13:15

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." Philippians 4:6

"Giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ" Ephesians 5:20

"Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe" Hebrews 12:28

"Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!" 2 Corinthians 9:15

"First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people" 1 Timothy 2:1

"But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Corinthians 15:57

"Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!" 1 Chronicles 15:34

"Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples!" 1 Chronicles 16:8

"We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers" 1 Thessalonians 1:2

"And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful." Colossians 3:15

"For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God." 2 Corinthians 4:15

"When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously." Daniel 6:10

"For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving," 1 Timothy 4:4

"Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving." Colossians 4:2

"We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you," Colossians 1:3

"Saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.” Revelation 7:12

Prayer for today:

"Lord we come before you today, humbled and in awe and Thanksgiving for what you have done for us. Lord, we pray that our words and our actions be pleasing in your sight. We pray that you forgive our sins and heal our land. Lord give us eyes to see and ears to hear your Word which has so enriched our lives. Bring us closer to you every day so we may know fully, even as we are fully known. May we be forever Thankful to you, in praise and Glorify you forever. In Jesus' mighty name we pray, Amen. 

Beloved, yesterday was a horrible day for me --- I began my day with prayer as I always do, then got into my car and seeing a false sensor indicator light up on my dashboard days before a planned road trip, enraged me...my trip on the commuter train did not get any better....some strange guy decided to sit right next to me when there were plenty of other open seats in the carriage. So my day began badly, then the workday was absolutely terrible, and the commute home did not provide much comfort either. When I got home my sweetheart spent a few minutes with me then left to visit her friends, so I watched a TV show I liked, and ate dinner alone. Beloved, there are good days and then there are bad days, and we all have bad days. There are days which are worse than others and these can be described as days when we receive bad news....there have been layoffs at work, and you have been "chosen" to be laid off, or there is a bad medical report from your doctor, or your spouse or kids are sick, etc. Days which we consider "bad" or when bad news permeates our lives, it is easy to get discouraged and cry out to God...."God where are you...?" Why are you missing? The fact is that while God permits bad days to happen, he promises us that he will never leave us or forsake us. His word says that and His word is forever true:

"Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6

"Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10

"It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” Deuteronomy 31:8

"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." Lamentations 3:22-23

"No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you." Joshua 1:5

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

"Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:20

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."  Philippians 6:7

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28

In closing, let me say that bad -- no, even horrible days and horrible things happen to believers, but our hope and our help comes not from this world, but from God alone. 
 

Prayer for today:
"Lord, yesterday was a really bad day, but I know that today will be better. Your word says that "All things work together for good for those who love the Lord and I know that today will be a better day. Bless and Protect us, and remain with us, wherever we go. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen" 

The following is an excerpt from the book Longman, T., III. (1988). How to Read the Psalms (pp. 143–149). IVP Academic; Inter-Varsity Press. and unlike most of the messages on this website, is not my original work but a reference to his work:
​ 
Psalm 30: Thank You, Lord, for Healing Me!

We have moved from the height of joy (Ps 98) down to the pits of grief (Ps 69). Now we are going to ascend again from the abyss with Psalm 30. Psalm 30 is a prayer thanking God for answering a previous prayer.
As we have observed, thanksgivings are closely related to hymns. As a matter of fact, the Hebrew word for “thanksgiving” (tôdāh) is formed from a verb which means “to praise” (yādāh).

Thanksgivings are further related to laments, since the former is seen as an answer to the latter. Walter Brueggemann has helpfully divided the Psalms into three categories.1 First are psalms of orientation (hymns) which praise God for being God. The psalmist’s world is in order. The laments are psalms of disorientation. The psalmist has lost his way. He experiences fear and grief. Finally, there are psalms of reorientation, which experience renewed hope in God. The thanksgivings in general, and Psalm 30 in particular, are in this category.

As we turn to this thanksgiving psalm, we need to realize that we are at the heart of what it means to be a Christian. It surprises us to realize this. We sometimes think that what makes Christians different from non-Christians is that we know that God exists. Certainly, that’s crucial, but Romans 1:21 teaches us that everyone knows God. Strikingly, Paul here tells us that the real difference between a Christian and a non-Christian is that the former gives thanks to God. Remember the story of Jesus and the ten men whom he healed from leprosy (Lk 17:11–19). Of the ten, only one returned to thank him.

​With that in mind, read this thanksgiving psalm of David:

A psalm. A song. For the dedication of the temple. Of David.

    1 I will exalt you, O LORD,
      for you lifted me out of the depths
      and did not let my enemies gloat over me.
    2 O LORD my God, I called to you for help
      and you healed me.
    3 O LORD, you brought me up from the grave;
      you spared me from going down into the pit.
    4 Sing to the LORD, you saints of his;
      praise his holy name.
    5 For his anger lasts only a moment,
      but his favor lasts a lifetime;
    weeping may remain for a night,
      but rejoicing comes in the morning.
    6 When I felt secure, I said,
      “I will never be shaken.”
    7 O LORD, when you favored me,
      you made my mountain stand firm;
    but when you hid your face,
      I was dismayed.
    8 To you, O LORD, I called;
      to the Lord I cried for mercy:
    9 “What gain is there in my destruction,
      in my going down into the pit?
    Will the dust praise you?
      Will it proclaim your faithfulness?
    10 Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me;
      O LORD, be my help.”
    11 You turned my wailing into dancing;
      you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
    12  that my heart may sing to you and not be silent.
      O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever.


Title

The title first informs us of this psalm’s genre. Unfortunately, we cannot be sure what the difference was between a “psalm” and a “song.” The Hebrew word “psalm” (mizmôr) is a noun based on a verb “to sing” (zāmar). Both words indicate a musical setting for the psalm.
​
The difficulty continues with what appears to be a functional title, though it might be interpreted as a title telling how the psalm was used: “for the dedication of the temple.” It is not immediately obvious how this title relates to the psalm’s content, so we will not force our interpretation of the psalm to artificially conform with it (see chapter two).

David is cited as the author. Once again, there is no reason to doubt that David wrote it, but we will not allow our historical curiosity to distract us into a fruitless debate concerning the event in David’s life which motivated the composition of Psalm 30.


The Psalm

Since thanksgivings are so similar to hymns, it is not surprising that Psalm 30 begins with a strong statement of praise. The psalmist makes clear his intention from the very start when he says, “I will exalt you, O Lord.”
His declaration of praise leads him to cite reasons. He first states it figuratively, though English translations usually don’t make the metaphor obvious. David praises God because God lifted him out of the depths. The verb (dālāh) elsewhere literally means to lift a bucket up from a well. The verb evokes an image in our minds. The psalmist had fallen into a well and the Lord helped him up.

This saving act of God silenced the psalmist’s enemies (v. 1). The “enemies” play as prominent a role in the thanksgivings as in the laments. Here they rejoice over the psalmist’s suffering. Verses 2 and 3 make clear how God saved the psalmist. He had been ill, so ill that he almost died. God had healed him from his physical distress.

To truly understand Psalm 30 we must apply it to our own lives. Do we rejoice when God heals us from sickness and disease? Or do we pray for his help and then conveniently forget him when he answers?
The psalmist doesn’t forget God’s goodness. He not only thanks God, but he directs the people of God to praise him. The “sharing times” that occur in modern church services and fellowship groups are too often an excuse to praise ourselves. The psalmist is a model for “sharing” as he directs the attention of the congregation away from himself and toward God.

Further, the psalmist asks God’s saints to praise him. When we hear the word saints, we tend to think of dead believers. The word here translated “saints” (ḥasidim) is related to a Hebrew word with which we have already become acquainted (ḥesed), which I have suggested translates as “covenant lovingkindness.” Thus, these saints are those who are in a covenant relationship, a personal relationship, with God.
As a result of his personal experience of God’s grace, David expresses a general truth about God in verse 5. It is memorable, at least in part, because of its antithetical structure (see chapter seven). Notice how he contrasts God’s anger and his favor. Remember too that the psalmist has recently felt God’s curse and now enjoys his blessing:

    For his anger lasts only a moment,
      but his favor lasts a lifetime;
    weeping may remain for a night,
      but rejoicing comes in the morning. (v. 5)

As part of his testimony to God, the psalmist recounts the situation which led to his need. He’s not bashful to share his sin. His sin is pride or self-confidence according to verses 6 and 7. He had put his strength in his own power when he said “I will never be shaken.” Then God “hid his face.” After becoming ill, the psalmist knew that it was God who was the cause of both his prosperity and his health.

He became ill, threatened with death. He quotes his complaint to God in verse 9. As Christians we have a hard time relating to the psalmist’s line of argument. He seems to barter with God for his life. “You let me live, and you’ll have one more mouth to praise you.” Why doesn’t he trust in the resurrection?
One matter is clear. The psalmist is again brutally honest with himself and, more importantly, with God. He wants to live, and he is not going to hide behind pious, but empty, phrases.

Further, we must remember that God has revealed more and more truth to his people as time has progressed. Theologians refer to this as progressive revelation. For example, while the truth concerning the triune God is implicitly found in the Old Testament, it isn’t clearly revealed until the New Testament. Similarly, there is not a great deal of clear teaching in the Old Testament about the resurrection of the dead. The clear teaching concerning heaven awaits the New Testament. The Old Testament knows of continued existence after death but in a shadowy place known as Sheol. The psalmist was uncertain whether he could praise God from Sheol.

In any case, God heard the psalmist’s prayer and answered it. As a result grief becomes joy (v. 11). The psalmist expresses his eternal thanks to God (v. 12).

We have already hinted at an appropriate use of this psalm and other thanksgiving psalms among the people of God since Jesus’ coming: to create in us a heart of thanks toward God. We have, after all, much to be thankful for to God. I would be so bold as to say that we have more to be thankful to God for than the ancient Israelites had.

We have, after all, a clear vision of the salvation which God bought for us on the cross. We have been saved from that ultimate evil—death—and can read in the Gospels how God accomplished our deliverance by offering his Son on the cross. Jesus Christ is the one who “has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel” (2 Tim 1:10). How can we neglect to render our thanks to our Lord Jesus Christ?



Longman, T., III. (1988). How to Read the Psalms (pp. 143–149). IVP Academic; Inter-Varsity Press.

Believer, what if I told you that I had the personal phone number to the President of the United States? Would you be impressed? Or the UN Secretary General? Would you be impressed then? What if I told you that I had the phone number for someone even more powerful than both these individuals combined? Or perhaps the phone number for someone even more powerful than all the Presidents and Prime Ministers of all the nations of the world combined? Beloved, the fact is that I do, and if you have believed in the name of Jesus, so do you. We have the direct personal cell phone number of God Himself. Yes, I have written about this before. Christianity is not merely a religion, it is a relationship and it gives us --- bestows upon us --- sonship of God the Father (read LORD. YHWH, Jehovah) and brotherhood with Christ Jesus His Son who becomes our elder brother. Christ Jesus, through what he did for us, has given us direct access to the Throne of God. I wrote about it here last: https://www.paulsgospel.org/motd/adoption-into-gods-family
"So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most." Hebrews 4:14-16

So, what does that mean for us? How do we go about dialing God's phone number when we want to communicate with Him? In his book "Why we Pray" by William Philip and Alistair Begg, he writes:

"The story is told that one day President John F. Kennedy was in the Oval Office in a meeting with VIPs and leaders. Strict instructions had been given to White House staff and security that under no circumstances was anybody to come in and disturb this meeting. But at a crucial point in the tense talks and negotiations, suddenly the door flew open. Everybody looked startled; who would dare to defy the presidential decree? In marched a little boy. He walked straight up to the president, jumped up onto his knee, and cuddled in the lap of the most powerful man on earth. It was John F. Kennedy Jr., the son of the president. What no one else could have done, he was able to do without a moment’s hesitation. He had privileged access, and no one could stop him from coming to see his father.

“Well, that’s all very interesting,” you might be saying to yourself, “but I can’t quite understand what all this has got to do with me. What has all this theological talk about Jesus got to do with my prayer life? Tell me something practical.”

In fact, the truth is that all practical help in the Christian life stems from theology, which literally means “words about God,” because all useful learning about ourselves stems from learning about God. You may be thinking, I can’t see the relevance to my life of Jesus’s being the true Son of God with unlimited access to the Father. I’m not Jesus! I can’t pray as Jesus can. How does that help me? Where do I fit into this?

Well, the answer that all this talk about Jesus (this theology) gives is that it’s very relevant. The truth is, you can pray just like Jesus. You have the very same access to the Father that he has—if, that is, you are a Christian believer.

Through the gospel we also are made sons of God through Jesus Christ, which is the second vital thing we need to grasp. It’s fundamental to all our praying. Prayer is the privilege that belongs only to God’s beloved and holy Son. It is an address of intimacy; it is access to the God whose throne really does rule the whole world (not the president of the United States). Ours is a far greater access than that of the son of the president. Equally, if prayer is the privileged access of intimate relationship, then unless there is a real relationship of a son with a father, prayer just can’t happen. Unless the relationship is real, prayer is just pretend."

skipping ahead...


That is exactly what the gospel tells us God has done to those who have become united to Jesus through his great redemption. This is the extraordinary truth the apostle Paul teaches:

In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God. (Gal. 4:3–7)

Adoption is the legal transfer of sonship from one father to another. Once, says the apostle, we were children in slavery to the world, or, as he puts it even more graphically in Ephesians 2:2, “sons of disobedience,” following the prince of the power of the air, that is, the Devil. Strong language, isn’t it? But it is the language Jesus uses; those who do not belong to him are sons of their father the Devil (John 8:44). Once you were that, says Paul, but now you have received “adoption as sons.” Whose sons? God’s sons. God sent his Son, Jesus, that we might receive all the status of Jesus and therefore all the privileges that are his and, above all, that marvelous privilege of intimate access to our heavenly Father in real prayer. Look at Galatians 4:6: “And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’”—the Spirit that guarantees us access, not to the office of the president, but to the office of the creator and ruler and judge of the whole universe.

We are all sons of God through faith (Gal. 3:26)—not just children but sons and full heirs. (Gender is not at issue here, but status; hence the insistence that we are sons, not just children. The point is that we all share in the full inheritance of the firstborn, Jesus himself. All who are baptized into Christ have “put on Christ” (v. 27). They have assumed Christ’s personal clothing, that is, his status of sonship. It doesn’t matter whether we’re male or female; we are united to Jesus, the Son of God, which means everything that is his by right of birth is now ours by right of adoption. That’s why we pray. In Jesus Christ we are all sons of God; we have received adoption, and now we all share the extraordinary, privileged, legal status before God the Father of Jesus himself, his only Son.

Now, this is of vital importance to grasp. Your prayers and mine will not be heard by God because of our sincerity but because of our status. We are sons of God, which means that God cannot not hear us. We are his sons. That’s gospel truth. He can’t not hear your prayers if you are in Christ. If we don’t feel that at times, if it doesn’t feel like it’s true, it’s simply because we are disbelieving the gospel that teaches it plainly to us. We are disbelieving our status as justified before God. We are disbelieving the reality of the legal status of adoption that is ours through faith in Jesus Christ. It really is ours; it has changed everything.


Philip, W., & Begg, A. (2015). Why we pray. Crossway.

Satan has many tools in his toolbox. Of all the tools in Satan's toolbox, the biggest tool he uses is jealousy. It's very easy for someone to induce another person to become jealous of them or jealous about someone else's power, position, wealth, relationships, etc. The way Satan goes about doing his ugly work is by making people jealous of others. Indeed it is one of the many sins the Apostle Paul warms us about in the Book of Galatians:

"Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering (patience), gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law." Galatians 5:19-23

There is also a warning about coveting in the Old Testament:

"Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s." (Exodus 20:17, Deuteronomy 5:21) Of course the word neighbor is being used in a general manner, such as what Jesus implied in the parable of the Good Samaritan. If you are not familiar with that parable, go look it up. 

"Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying." Romans 13:13

"But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work." James 3:14-16

James goes on to say that we have not because we do not pray for what we need. If we prayed in all sincerity according to the will of God, he would provide:

"Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not." James 4:2

In all things, asking God for what we need in prayer can do more to bring us what we want than our own effort. This does not mean that we stop making an effort, it just means that God can do more in a second of sincere faith than all we could do in a lifetime:

He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew 17:20

and according to the Apostle Paul, we are called to pray without ceasing, for this is the will of God for us. 

"Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:16

So there are many cautions in the Bible about not envying. In addition the person who deliberately causes conditions or situations to cause another to envy or jealousy is equally as sinful and wrong as the person who harbors envy or jealousy in his or her heart. So I hope you heed this warning today as you go about your day: do not be jealous and do not cause another human being to be jealous, because you are doing the bidding of Satan if you do. 

​‎1. Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation! O my soul, praise him for he is thy health and salvation! All ye who hear, now to his temple draw near, Join me in glad adoration.
‎2. Praise to the Lord, who o'er all things so wondrously reigneth, Shelters thee under his wings, yea, so gently sustaineth! Hast thou not seen how thy desires e'er have been Granted in what he ordaineth?
‎3. Praise to the Lord, who doth prosper thy work and defend thee! Decked thee with health, and with loving hand guided and stayed thee. How oft in grief hath not he brought thee relief, Spreading his wings to o'ershade thee!
‎4. Praise to the Lord! O let all that is in me adore him! All that hath life and breath, come now with praises before him. Let the Amen sound from his people again; Gladly for aye we adore him.

‎1. I hear the Saviour say, "Thy strength indeed is small, Child of weakness, watch and pray, Find in me thine all in all."

‎Chorus. Jesus paid it all, All to him I owe; Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.

​‎2. Lord, now indeed I find Thy power, and thine alone, Can change the leper's spots, And melt the heart of stone.
‎3. For nothing good have I Whereby thy grace to claim- I will wash my garments white In the blood of Calvary's lamb.
‎4. And when, before the throne, I stand in him complete, "Jesus died my soul to save," My lips shall still repeat.

I wake up every morning, pray, then post my message of the day on my website. Once that is done, I log on to some of my favorite social media websites and post my message. In the course of doing so, I see what everyone else is also posting. Ninety seven percent of the time I see happy, encouraging and uplifting messages. This morning when I logged on, I saw messages of doom, gloom and judgement. One extremely judgmental individual even had some sort of ominous message about hanging on by a thread and being gone. I have posted several times in the past about this:
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https://www.paulsgospel.org/motd/quick-to-judge-someones-faith
https://www.paulsgospel.org/motd/if-you-cannot-say-something-nice
https://www.paulsgospel.org/motd/judge-people-by-their-hearts

May I remind people that Jesus came to save the lost and not to condemn them. At this time, let me remind you of a parable of Jesus:

"He entered Jericho and was passing through. And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich. And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature. So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.” So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully. And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Luke 19:1-10

Learn a thing or two from this parable. It is not wise to judge others and criticize them before you know their life's story. Even then, a spirit of love and forgiveness must permeate your demeanor toward others. Pray Blessings over people, not condemnation....!!!