Daily Devotion

Boanerges · 12-16-2007, 12:55 PM

I would like to share brother Bob Hoekstra's daily devotional with you. It is very Spirit filled and insporational. It is free to all and has no copyright restrictions other than free distribution, so enjoy.

December 16

Relating Rightly to the God of All Grace
The God of all grace . . . to the praise of the glory of His grace . . . the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ . . . the Spirit of grace. (1Pe_5:10; Eph_1:6 and Heb_10:29)
Our Lord God is "the God of all grace." God's comprehensive and infinite grace is characteristic of all the Godhead (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). The Father will be honored forever for His grace, so we read: "to the praise of the glory of His grace." The Son makes that grace available to all who believe, so it is called "the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ." The Spirit applies that grace in the hearts of those who follow Jesus Christ, so He is called "the Spirit of grace." Grace is found in God alone. Therefore, one must relate rightly to the God of all grace in order to receive all that He desires to give us in fulfilling His purposes and glorifying His name.
The fundamental manner for relating to the God of grace is the developing of a personal relationship. Getting to know God is what life with the Lord is all about. "And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent" (Joh_17:3). In fact, knowing the Lord is man's ultimate treasure in all of creation. Everything else that competes is to be considered as loss. "But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ" (Phi_3:7-8). It is not surprising then that getting increasingly acquainted with the Lord is the way that His grace impacts our lives. "Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord" (2Pe_1:2).
As we are getting to know the God of all grace more and more, He is developing in our lives two strategic relational realities: humility and faith. We have looked at these two spiritual qualities many times throughout our meditations. Repeated reflection on these two realities is appropriate, since they unfold the practical heart of living daily by God's grace. "Be clothed with humility, for 'God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble' " (1Pe_5:5). God's grace is given to those who "walk humbly with [their] God" (Micah 6:8). Likewise, faith accesses grace. "We have access by faith into this grace in which we stand" (Rom_5:2). Walking in humble dependence is the way to relate rightly to the God of all grace.
Dear God of all grace, I want to relate to You rightly that I might live daily by Your grace. Help me to know You more and more that humility and faith might develop in my life. I long to walk before You in humble dependence, in Jesus name, Amen.

Dusty · 12-16-2007, 02:07 PM

Boanerges · 12-18-2007, 11:52 PM

December 18

Even More on Relating Rightly to the God of All Grace
The God of all grace . . . Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God . . . He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises. (1Pe_5:10; 2Co_3:5; and Heb_8:6)
If we are going to live by grace as God intends, we must get to know "the God of all grace." As we get to know Him, humility and faith develop in our lives. They are relational realities. They become real in our lives as a result of getting to know the Lord better and better. As we walk with the Lord in humble dependence, we are living by the grace of God. The Lord gives grace to the humble (1Pe_5:5 and Jam_4:6), and faith accesses grace (Rom_5:2; Rom_4:16). The scriptures indicate that there are many ways to relate rightly to the Lord in humility and faith. In our previous meditation, we saw that living by the Spirit and living by resurrection power are two examples of this truth. Now, we will consider two more examples.
Living by the sufficiency of God is a profound opportunity to relate to the Lord in humility and faith. This heavenly perspective begins with a declaration of our own inadequacy. "Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves." It is true that we disciples of Jesus Christ are so inadequate that we are unable to produce any of the Christian life ourselves. Jesus Himself taught this radical fact. "Without Me you can do nothing" (Joh_15:5). If we embrace this humbling truth, we are walking in humility before the Lord. The corresponding declaration points us to the source that we need. "But our sufficiency is from God." Only God's resources are sufficient to produce the kind of fruitful spiritual life that God calls us to live. Jesus taught this great truth as well. "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit" (Joh_15:5). If we accept this encouraging truth, we are walking in faith toward the Lord.
Living by the promises of God offers another significant opportunity to relate to the Lord in humility and faith. "He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises." The promises of the old covenant of law (which are basically, "Do these commands, and you shall live" — see Lev_18:5) depend on man's ability and faithfulness. The better promises of the new covenant of grace depend upon God's ability and faithfulness. Abraham was "fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform" (Rom_4:21). Sarah "judged Him faithful who had promised" (Heb_11:11). It is humbling to know that we can't perform well enough to enjoy the promises of the law. Contrariwise, it is faith building to know we can trust in the Lord to fulfill all His promises of grace.
Dear Lord of all grace, I humbly admit that I can only live by Your sufficiency and your promises. By faith, I look to You to do for me and in me what You alone can do, Amen.
Bob Hoekstra

Dusty · 12-19-2007, 01:35 AM

Yes Lord .... I am willing to walk in humility and serving You with a greatful heart.

The four years that I went on short term mission trips taught me so much about humility as I saw the missionary live in his megar existance in order to humble himself and serve the people.Anything that we had brought him for himself... he gave away to the poor people in his village. He taught me so much about what it is to serve and love and walk in humility. I can still hear his words..... " Working for Jesus " as at the end of a long day we would be so tired. PLus the heat was unbearable.

Boanerges · 12-19-2007, 12:16 PM

December 19

Following Jesus as a Disciple
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations . . . Follow Me . . . If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. (Mat_28:19; Joh_1:43; and Luk_9:23)
Living daily by God's grace depends upon getting to know Him and then walking in the humility and grace that are consequences of growing in fellowship with Him. We have reflected upon four ways to relate rightly to the Lord in humility and faith: living by the Spirit, living by resurrection power, living by the sufficiency of God, and living by the promises of God. Another example is following Jesus as a disciple.
When our Lord was about to leave His disciples, He gave them the marching orders that were to guide the lives of His people until He would return. "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations." Jesus had been calling out people to follow Him as disciples. Now, they were to continue doing the same. A disciple is a follower of a master, who guides and shapes the lives of his followers. Jesus is the ultimate Master, who gives us a new life in him — life eternal. Jesus' invitation to discipleship was "Follow Me." Along with this invitation, Jesus often explained the terms of discipleship: "If anyone desires to come after Me." This would inform the willing and interested about how to respond. These terms dramatically depict the necessity of relating to the Lord in humility and faith.
The first aspect of being a disciple of Jesus is renouncing the self-life. "Let him deny himself." This amounts to a refusal to attempt to develop a life that can be produced by natural human resources (which everyone inherits from Adam through physical birth). This is a repudiation of self-righteousness, self-sufficiency, self-help, self-exaltation, and the like. Our willingness to embrace this term of discipleship will be seen by a humble agreement with similar biblical pronouncements. "Make no provision for the flesh" (Rom_13:14). Those denying self are not wanting the flesh to have opportunities to indulge itself. "The flesh profits nothing" (Joh_6:63). Those who renounce self confess its total spiritual bankruptcy. We "have no confidence in the flesh" (Phi_3:3). Those who repudiate the self-life do not want to place any hope in the spiritual resources of the flesh. "That no flesh should glory in His presence" (1Co_1:29). Those denying the self-life agree that nothing of the flesh can ever boast in itself before the Lord God almighty.
Dear Lord Jesus, I want to relate rightly to You by following You as a disciple. I do not want my flesh to have any opportunity to indulge itself. I confess total spiritual bankruptcy in my flesh. I want to place no hope in my flesh. I agree that my flesh can never boast before You. I humbly renounce the self-life!
Bob Hoekstra

Dusty · 12-19-2007, 01:18 PM

Boanerges · 12-20-2007, 01:37 PM

December 20

More on Following Jesus as a Disciple
If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me . . . But God forbid that I should glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. (Luk_9:23 and Gal_6:14)
Following Jesus as a disciple is one way to relate rightly to the Lord in humility and faith. The first aspect of following Jesus involves renouncing the self-life. "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself." It is certainly humbling to admit that any life we would develop by our own natural resources is unacceptable to the Lord and must be repudiated. The next aspect of being a disciple is also humbling.
This second issue in discipleship is the cross: "and take up his cross." When Jesus spoke of the cross, He was speaking of the ultimate instrument of execution in His day. Consequently, after renunciation of self, we are to confess death for self. The means of this death is the cross of Christ. Those who want to follow Jesus as disciples are to take the cross of Christ as their own personal cross. In doing so, they are admitting to God that they deserved to die upon that cross. "For the wages of sin is death" (Rom_6:23). Furthermore, they are agreeing with the word of God that Jesus died upon that cross on their behalf. "Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures . . . who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree" (1Co_15:3 and 1Pe_2:24). This gospel (which brings forgiveness of sins to all who believe) includes the essential truth of the resurrection. "Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you . . . that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures" (1Co_15:1, 1Co_15:3-4).
Another wondrous benefit of the cross is that we who believe in Jesus also died there with Him. "Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him" (Rom_6:6). The old self-life that we were developing while "in Adam" (1Co_15:22) was executed on the cross with Christ. Yes, the cross is the way out of this world of dead sinners, and we can rightly boast in that truth. "But God forbid that I should glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world." Meanwhile, the attitudes and resources of the old man persist in our flesh (our natural humanity). Thus, we are to renounce self and confess death to self day by day: "let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily."
Lord Jesus, I confess Your cross as my cross. I deserved to die there, but You died in my place. I boast in that cross, where I also died with You. Now, through the cross, I have escaped this dead, condemned world. I praise You that these truths both humble my heart and stir my faith!
Bob Hoekstra

Dusty · 12-20-2007, 01:47 PM

Thank you my son for all the devotionals. Blessings to you.

Boanerges · 12-20-2007, 02:18 PM

Thank Bob Hoekstra Mom, he is very anointed and brings a good word.

Dusty · 12-20-2007, 03:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boanerges

Thank Bob Hoekstra Mom, he is very anointed and brings a good word.

I recognize that but am thanking the thoughtful person who takes his time to submit them so that we can be blessed.

12-16-2007, 12:55 PM	#1 (permalink)
Boanerges Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: St Rose LA Posts: 14,631 Blog Entries: 3 Rep Power: 16	Daily Devotion I would like to share brother Bob Hoekstra's daily devotional with you. It is very Spirit filled and insporational. It is free to all and has no copyright restrictions other than free distribution, so enjoy. December 16 Relating Rightly to the God of All Grace The God* of all grace . . . to the praise of the glory of His grace . . . the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ . . . the Spirit of grace.* (1Pe_5:10; Eph_1:6 and Heb_10:29) Our Lord God is "the God of all grace." God's comprehensive and infinite grace is characteristic of all the Godhead (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). The Father will be honored forever for His grace, so we read: "to the praise of the glory of His grace." The Son makes that grace available to all who believe, so it is called "the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ." The Spirit applies that grace in the hearts of those who follow Jesus Christ, so He is called "the Spirit of grace." Grace is found in God alone. Therefore, one must relate rightly to the God of all grace in order to receive all that He desires to give us in fulfilling His purposes and glorifying His name. The fundamental manner for relating to the God of grace is the developing of a personal relationship. Getting to know God is what life with the Lord is all about. "And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent" (Joh_17:3). In fact, knowing the Lord is man's ultimate treasure in all of creation. Everything else that competes is to be considered as loss. "But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ" (Phi_3:7-8). It is not surprising then that getting increasingly acquainted with the Lord is the way that His grace impacts our lives. "*Grace* and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord" (2Pe_1:2). As we are getting to know the God of all grace more and more, He is developing in our lives two strategic relational realities: humility and faith. We have looked at these two spiritual qualities many times throughout our meditations. Repeated reflection on these two realities is appropriate, since they unfold the practical heart of living daily by God's grace. "Be clothed with humility, for 'God resists the proud, but gives grace* to the humble'* " (1Pe_5:5). God's grace is given to those who "walk humbly* with [their] God" (Micah 6:8). Likewise, faith accesses grace. "We have access by faith into this grace in which we stand" (Rom_5:2). Walking in humble dependence is the way to relate rightly to the God of all grace*. Dear God of all grace, I want to relate to You rightly that I might live daily by Your grace. Help me to know You more and more that humility and faith might develop in my life. I long to walk before You in humble dependence, in Jesus name, Amen.

12-16-2007, 02:07 PM	#2 (permalink)
Dusty Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Toronto Posts: 5,549 Rep Power: 6	__________________ You are the salt and light of the world.

12-19-2007, 01:35 AM	#4 (permalink)
Dusty Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Toronto Posts: 5,549 Rep Power: 6	Yes Lord .... I am willing to walk in humility and serving You with a greatful heart. The four years that I went on short term mission trips taught me so much about humility as I saw the missionary live in his megar existance in order to humble himself and serve the people.Anything that we had brought him for himself... he gave away to the poor people in his village. He taught me so much about what it is to serve and love and walk in humility. I can still hear his words..... " Working for Jesus " as at the end of a long day we would be so tired. PLus the heat was unbearable. __________________ You are the salt and light of the world.

12-19-2007, 01:18 PM	#6 (permalink)
Dusty Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Toronto Posts: 5,549 Rep Power: 6	__________________ You are the salt and light of the world.

12-20-2007, 01:47 PM	#8 (permalink)
Dusty Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Toronto Posts: 5,549 Rep Power: 6	Thank you my son for all the devotionals. Blessings to you. __________________ You are the salt and light of the world.

12-18-2007, 11:52 PM	#3 (permalink)
Boanerges Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: St Rose LA Posts: 14,631 Blog Entries: 3 Rep Power: 16	December 18 Even More on Relating Rightly to the God of All Grace The God of all grace . . . Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God . . . He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises. (1Pe_5:10; 2Co_3:5; and Heb_8:6) If we are going to live by grace as God intends, we must get to know "the God of all grace." As we get to know Him, humility and faith develop in our lives. They are relational realities. They become real in our lives as a result of getting to know the Lord better and better. As we walk with the Lord in humble dependence, we are living by the grace of God. The Lord gives grace to the humble (1Pe_5:5 and Jam_4:6), and faith accesses grace (Rom_5:2; Rom_4:16). The scriptures indicate that there are many ways to relate rightly to the Lord in humility and faith. In our previous meditation, we saw that living by the Spirit and living by resurrection power are two examples of this truth. Now, we will consider two more examples. Living by the sufficiency of God is a profound opportunity to relate to the Lord in humility and faith. This heavenly perspective begins with a declaration of our own inadequacy. "*Not* that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves." It is true that we disciples of Jesus Christ are so inadequate that we are unable to produce any of the Christian life ourselves. Jesus Himself taught this radical fact. "*Without Me* you can do nothing" (Joh_15:5). If we embrace this humbling truth, we are walking in humility before the Lord. The corresponding declaration points us to the source that we need. "*But* our sufficiency is from God." Only God's resources are sufficient to produce the kind of fruitful spiritual life that God calls us to live. Jesus taught this great truth as well. "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit" (Joh_15:5). If we accept this encouraging truth, we are walking in faith toward the Lord. Living by the promises of God offers another significant opportunity to relate to the Lord in humility and faith. "He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises." The promises of the old covenant of law (which are basically, "Do these commands, and you shall live" — see Lev_18:5) depend on man's ability and faithfulness. The better promises of the new covenant of grace depend upon God's ability and faithfulness. Abraham was "fully convinced that what He had promised* He was also able to perform" (Rom_4:21). Sarah "judged Him faithful* who had promised" (Heb_11:11). It is humbling to know that we can't perform well enough to enjoy the promises of the law. Contrariwise, it is faith building to know we can trust in the Lord to fulfill all His promises of grace. Dear Lord of all grace, I humbly admit that I can only live by Your sufficiency and your promises. By faith, I look to You to do for me and in me what You alone can do, Amen. Bob Hoekstra

12-19-2007, 12:16 PM	#5 (permalink)
Boanerges Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: St Rose LA Posts: 14,631 Blog Entries: 3 Rep Power: 16	December 19 Following Jesus as a Disciple Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations . . . Follow Me . . . If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. (Mat_28:19; Joh_1:43; and Luk_9:23) Living daily by God's grace depends upon getting to know Him and then walking in the humility and grace that are consequences of growing in fellowship with Him. We have reflected upon four ways to relate rightly to the Lord in humility and faith: living by the Spirit, living by resurrection power, living by the sufficiency of God, and living by the promises of God. Another example is following Jesus as a disciple. When our Lord was about to leave His disciples, He gave them the marching orders that were to guide the lives of His people until He would return. "Go therefore and make disciples* of all the nations." Jesus had been calling out people to follow Him as disciples. Now, they were to continue doing the same. A disciple is a follower of a master, who guides and shapes the lives of his followers. Jesus is the ultimate Master, who gives us a new life in him — life eternal. Jesus' invitation to discipleship was "Follow Me." Along with this invitation, Jesus often explained the terms of discipleship: "If anyone desires* to come after Me." This would inform the willing and interested about how to respond. These terms dramatically depict the necessity of relating to the Lord in humility and faith. The first aspect of being a disciple of Jesus is renouncing the self-life. "Let him deny himself." This amounts to a refusal to attempt to develop a life that can be produced by natural human resources (which everyone inherits from Adam through physical birth). This is a repudiation of self-righteousness, self-sufficiency, self-help, self-exaltation, and the like. Our willingness to embrace this term of discipleship will be seen by a humble agreement with similar biblical pronouncements. "Make no provision for the flesh" (Rom_13:14). Those denying self are not wanting the flesh to have opportunities to indulge itself. "The flesh profits nothing" (Joh_6:63). Those who renounce self confess its total spiritual bankruptcy. We "have no confidence in the flesh" (Phi_3:3). Those who repudiate the self-life do not want to place any hope in the spiritual resources of the flesh. "That no flesh should glory in His presence" (1Co_1:29). Those denying the self-life agree that nothing of the flesh can ever boast in itself before the Lord God almighty. Dear Lord Jesus, I want to relate rightly to You by following You as a disciple. I do not want my flesh to have any opportunity to indulge itself. I confess total spiritual bankruptcy in my flesh. I want to place no hope in my flesh. I agree that my flesh can never boast before You. I humbly renounce the self-life! Bob Hoekstra

12-20-2007, 01:37 PM	#7 (permalink)
Boanerges Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: St Rose LA Posts: 14,631 Blog Entries: 3 Rep Power: 16	December 20 More on Following Jesus as a Disciple If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me . . . But God forbid that I should glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. (Luk_9:23 and Gal_6:14) Following Jesus as a disciple is one way to relate rightly to the Lord in humility and faith. The first aspect of following Jesus involves renouncing the self-life. "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself." It is certainly humbling to admit that any life we would develop by our own natural resources is unacceptable to the Lord and must be repudiated. The next aspect of being a disciple is also humbling. This second issue in discipleship is the cross: "and take up his cross." When Jesus spoke of the cross, He was speaking of the ultimate instrument of execution in His day. Consequently, after renunciation of self, we are to confess death for self. The means of this death is the cross of Christ. Those who want to follow Jesus as disciples are to take the cross of Christ as their own personal cross. In doing so, they are admitting to God that they deserved to die upon that cross. "For the wages of sin is death" (Rom_6:23). Furthermore, they are agreeing with the word of God that Jesus died upon that cross on their behalf. "Christ died for our sins* according to the Scriptures . . . who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree" (1Co_15:3 and 1Pe_2:24). This gospel (which brings forgiveness of sins to all who believe) includes the essential truth of the resurrection. "Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel* which I preached to you . . . that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures" (1Co_15:1, 1Co_15:3-4). Another wondrous benefit of the cross is that we who believe in Jesus also died there with Him. "Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him" (Rom_6:6). The old self-life that we were developing while "in Adam" (1Co_15:22) was executed on the cross with Christ. Yes, the cross is the way out of this world of dead sinners, and we can rightly boast in that truth. "But God forbid that I should glory except in the cross* of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world." Meanwhile, the attitudes and resources of the old man persist in our flesh (our natural humanity). Thus, we are to renounce self and confess death to self day by day: "let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily*." Lord Jesus, I confess Your cross as my cross. I deserved to die there, but You died in my place. I boast in that cross, where I also died with You. Now, through the cross, I have escaped this dead, condemned world. I praise You that these truths both humble my heart and stir my faith! Bob Hoekstra

12-20-2007, 02:18 PM	#9 (permalink)
Boanerges Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: St Rose LA Posts: 14,631 Blog Entries: 3 Rep Power: 16	Thank Bob Hoekstra Mom, he is very anointed and brings a good word.

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