A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope,
encouragement and exhortation.
Daily
Encouragement on
Thursday, June
20, 2019
The Rock
Hall Clam House has some creative building art!
(The
windows are real)
"Profiting
From Darkness"
Message
summary:
All are not joyful
when the Lord of the
universe comes in
and cleans house!
There are those who
profit from
darkness.
Listen to our message on your audio player.
"When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man—and told about the pigs as well. Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region" (Mark 5:15-17). "This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil" (John 3:19).
Evidence of the spreading spiritual darkness and rebellion abounds. God's instruction manual for life, the Bible, continues to be ignored, mocked, violated and tampered with and this is leading to inevitable chaos and destruction. It will certainly get worse unless we have a revival. Sometimes it seems I can practically hear Satan's hideous laughter since he delights in destruction (John 10:10).
Listen to our message on your audio player.
"When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man—and told about the pigs as well. Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region" (Mark 5:15-17). "This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil" (John 3:19).
Evidence of the spreading spiritual darkness and rebellion abounds. God's instruction manual for life, the Bible, continues to be ignored, mocked, violated and tampered with and this is leading to inevitable chaos and destruction. It will certainly get worse unless we have a revival. Sometimes it seems I can practically hear Satan's hideous laughter since he delights in destruction (John 10:10).
When
writing a satire
piece related to
yesterday's message
I considered how
many profit from
darkness. Some work
for a "business"
that is primarily
evil and sinister
such as Planned
Parenthood. Others
have work that is
not necessarily evil
but is a necessary
consequence of
rebellion and
disobedience, such
as social workers,
who would be much
less needed if
marriages and
families worked the
way God intends.
So today
let us consider a
Bible portion that
teaches about those
who get upset when
their dark
enterprise was
disrupted by the
redeeming power of
Jesus.
The daily
verse ends a section
that deals with one
of the most
remarkable and
dramatic
deliverances
recorded in
Scripture; that of
the Gerasene
demoniac. More
detail is given to
this deliverance
than any other, with
each of the synoptic
Gospels recording
it. You can read the
full account in Mark
5:1-20 (the
entire chapter) and
I would encourage
you to do so. In
a nutshell Jesus
frees a man who
was horrifically
bound by demons.
What a
horrible condition
the man was in, "This
man lived in the
tombs, and no one
could bind him
anymore, not even
with a chain. For
he had often been
chained, hand and
foot, but he tore
the chains apart
and broke the
irons on his feet.
No one was strong
enough to subdue
him. Night and day
among the tombs
and in the hills
he would cry out
and cut himself
with stones" (Mark
5:3-5).
But Jesus
changed everything!
(Mark
5:4-14)
Brooksyne suggest
this song for the
man. "I Got
Saved" (Video
link below)
What joy
such a deliverance
should bring to see
a fellow human being
delivered from such
affliction.
But all
are not joyful when
the Lord of the
universe comes in
and cleans house!
The pig owners lost
a great source of
wealth, the
chain-maker a steady
repeat customer
since he kept
breaking the chains
used to bind him,
and the village
novelty was now
dressed and in his
right mind. Those
who had benefited
from this man's
demonic possession
were afraid (v.
15). Life had
been interrupted and
it seemed little
regard was given for
the man who had been
delivered from years
of demon possession.
The daily verse is
so indicative of the
reaction of those
lost in darkness.
Notice the phrase, "and
told about the
pigs as well". It
seems the focus
was on the loss of
the pigs rather
than the
redemption of the
human. Our
selection ends
with these words,
"Then the people
began to plead
with Jesus to
leave their
region."
This happens today as well. Many would prefer to have a world void of the influence of Jesus and His followers. For most the miracle of salvation is not as outwardly dramatic as that of the Gerasene demoniac's deliverance; but inwardly, genuine regeneration is every bit as miraculous. Genuine conversion has many consequences; restored marriages, fathers assuming their God called duty, a high value of life, Smokey's Bar loses a steady customer; the gambling casino has one less patron to be entertained and swindled, the vile pornographic industry loses a source of profit. And the list goes on and on because so many profit from darkness.
This happens today as well. Many would prefer to have a world void of the influence of Jesus and His followers. For most the miracle of salvation is not as outwardly dramatic as that of the Gerasene demoniac's deliverance; but inwardly, genuine regeneration is every bit as miraculous. Genuine conversion has many consequences; restored marriages, fathers assuming their God called duty, a high value of life, Smokey's Bar loses a steady customer; the gambling casino has one less patron to be entertained and swindled, the vile pornographic industry loses a source of profit. And the list goes on and on because so many profit from darkness.
When
marriages and
families are broken
many profit as we
demonstrated in the
satire
article we
shared yesterday.
But when
redemption occurs
this world has one
more little light to
remind them of how
dark the darkness
really is. To those
profiting in
darkness that's
scary. Those
most accustomed to
darkness don't
want light. A
powerful Scripture
that teaches this is
John 3:19: "This
is the verdict:
Light has come
into the world,
but men loved
darkness instead
of light because
their deeds were
evil." Today,
as then, many
unregenerate people
profit from darkness
and continue to
plead with Jesus and
His followers to
leave.
Jesus did move on and the redeemed man wanted to go with Him but Jesus told him to stay and spread the message. And he did so! Today redeemed people all over the world continue to spread the message. And many still don't want to hear it. They'll still plead to those walking in the light, "Leave and take your Jesus with you." But until we are called home let us remain obedient to Christ and keep letting our lights shine in the darkness that surrounds us, lest we too be swept into the darkness!
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Jesus did move on and the redeemed man wanted to go with Him but Jesus told him to stay and spread the message. And he did so! Today redeemed people all over the world continue to spread the message. And many still don't want to hear it. They'll still plead to those walking in the light, "Leave and take your Jesus with you." But until we are called home let us remain obedient to Christ and keep letting our lights shine in the darkness that surrounds us, lest we too be swept into the darkness!
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer:
Father, You
didn't command
us to change
the hearts of
those walking
in darkness,
for only You
can do that.
But You did
command that
we let our
light shine so
that others
will see Your
work in our
lives and
glorify You,
our Father in
heaven. May
the work of
our hands and
the words that
flow from our
lips be
expressions of
Your
indwelling
light that
guides us day
by day. We
desire, along
with
multitudes of
other
believers, to
be a sunbeam
shattering the
spreading
darkness as we
walk
circumspectly
in Your ways.
In Jesus' name
we pray. Amen.Chesapeake
Bay Fishing
Trip
Yesterday
the Old
Windmill Farm
was closed for
a family
fishing trip
on Chesapeake
Bay.
The
fast boat ride
out to the
fishing spot
was half the
fun!
No
fishing trip
is complete
without a
photo like
this. I caught
my limit as
well as
everyone
contributing
to the boat's
limit. This is
a striped bass
or striper. We
are sure the
Lapp family
will have a
big fish fry
this evening!
Following
the fishing
trip we
stopped by a
beach in Rock
Hall,
Maryland.
But
alas, they had
not brought
their swimming
suits.
Where
there's a will
there's a way!
Hint:
We had some
wet clothes in
the van when
we left the
beach.
A
walk through
the Eastern
Neck National
Wildlife
Refuge
gave everyone
a chance to
dry out.
I
got in too
late last
night to have
the fish for
dinner, so we
followed an
idea Jesus
gave us
(see here)
and
had the
striped bass
for breakfast
along with
some rice and
biscuits
topped with
Brooksyne's
cherry jam. We
hope to see
some ripe sour
cherries at
the orchard
stands today
as it's that
time of the
year again.
Today's
Suggested
Music and
Supplemental Resources
"I Got Saved"
Video
Selah This is the song
Brooksyne thinks the
redeemed man in our Bible
story today would sing!
"Is He Worthy?"
Video
Chris Tomlin
"Thanks to
Calvary (I Don't Live Here
Anymore)" Video
Gaither Vocal Band
"The Baptism of Jesse Taylor" Video Gaither Vocal Band
"Chain
Breaker" Video
Zach Williams
Finally today:
The
children observed this
creative location for a bird
nest at a Royal Farms store
just above the entrance. Yes
there is a bird
in there.
I
picked up the Lapp family mid
morning yesterday after making
three chaplain visits
including greeting Dan King, a
young carpenter with Smucker
Home Improvement.
Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne
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Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
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