Hello!

Welcome to this week's devotional message!  I pray you had a great weekend.

My debate with Doug Krueger went very well.  We actually debated for 3 hours!  However, only 2+ hours of it were successfully recorded.  Many people have already heard it and been encouraged.  If you haven't, you can find it at http://www.sermonaudio.com/jcsm.

Would you like to hear and download the New Testament?  It is available FREE on the web!  Just go to http://www.audiotreasure.com.

If you need a great, Bible dictionary, you'll want to see this one.  It's online and FREE!  Link: http://www.searchgodsword.org/dic/sbd/.

Billy Graham will be coming to San Diego and doing crusades from May 8-11 at Qualcomm Stadium!  If you are interested in attending or helping, please visit http://www.missionsd.com.  My wife and I are excited to see this great minister and hear him preach.  Plus, we will be attending a training session on Tuesday.

Do you want your faith to grow?  Would you like to see how Jesus is the promised Messiah from the Old Testament?  I've compiled 60 Messianic prophecies on one web site and you can read them here: http://www.jcsm.org/biblelessons/FMP.htm.

Possibly the best, free, download on the web - E-Sword's study Bibles!  You can freely download these to your computer and do Bible research and study.  Link: http://www.e-sword.net.

Have you read any of the Jewish Talmud?  Lately, I've wanted to study it.  I'm considering buying the Talmud on 25 cds.  If you have any information or insight into these works, please let me know.

The Mormons who visited me last week returned this week!  Please pray for them.  I have a feeling that I may see them, again.

My Rock Church football team won our first game, 13-0!  Please pray that we don't suffer any injuries and continue to improve and grow in Christ.

My wife and I are attending a training class at The Rock Church.  These devotions will reflect some things we are learning (mainly in the devotions and quotes, but also in minister endeavors).  I encourage you to attend Bible study or a related class, so you can grow spiritually, too.

Have you been baptized with water?  Did you know that this is a commandment for all new believers?  Please see our devotion below and email me if you'd like more details or encouragement.

God bless you as you look toward Christ - the author and finisher of our faith!  Put your trust in the One who will never let you down.

This Sunday, Rock N Roll Worship Circus will be playing at Greg Laurie's Day 7 in Riverside!  They are an incredible Christian band and you can hear their music on their web site: http://www.worshipcircus.com.

Please pray for the potential war against Iraq.  The U.S. is sending more troops to that region, now.  If you'd like to see a map of the tanks, troops, planes and other war vehicles that are amassed in the different areas of that region, please check out this map: http://www.time.com/time/2002/iraq_ready/.

This is your ministry, so please feel free to link to JCSM and forward these devotions to your friends and family. On the JCSM website, there are over 5000 links (pictures, forums, midis, Bible lessons, humor, proverbial stories, links, devotions, poetry, prayer journals and much more!) and it has registered over 99,000 visits!

JCSM has encouraging sermons and debates online that you can freely stream and download!  Come and hear them on SermonAudio.com!  Here is our site: http://www.sermonaudio.com/jcsm.

Welcome to the new readers of this message! Here are the devotions, challenge, moment of introspection, the Bible word of the week and the quotations for the week. Have a fantastic week and God bless you!

Love in Christ,

Jason J. Gastrich

The Weekly Devotional Message

Day 1: "See Sin Like God Does"

Amos 5:15a  "Hate evil."

Proverb 8:7  "For my mouth will speak truth; Wickedness is an abomination to my lips."

Proverb 14:7  "Go from the presence of a foolish man, When you do not perceive in him the lips of knowledge."

Proverb 11:20  "Those who are of a perverse heart are an abomination to the LORD, But the blameless in their ways are His delight."

Psalm 1:1-3  "Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night.  He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper."

Insight: Do you see sin like God does?  I'm convinced that one of the biggest problems in the world today is that people don't realize how evil and wicked sin is.  If people acknowledged that sin was rebellion against God and separation from Him, they surely would be trying to avoid it more sincerely.

Prayer: "Thank you for wanting us to hate sin and avoid it at all costs.  Forgive us for taking a different viewpoint on this subject.  Lift us up and let us see it like You do.  Thank you for loving us, despite our sins and failures.  Purify us and make us like You.  Thank you for giving us your Word, so we can see what is true and right and what is evil and wrong.  Thank you that there is absolute truth!  You are our God and You are a good God.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 2: "Have A Teachable Spirit"

Psalm 25:4, 5  "Show me Your ways, O LORD; Teach me Your paths.  Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation; On You I wait all the day."

Proverbs 1:8, 9  "My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother: For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck."

Proverbs 3:11, 12  "My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction: For whom the LORD loves he corrects; even as a father the son in whom he delights."

Proverbs 9:9  "Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; Teach a just man, and he will increase in learning."

John 14:26  "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you."

Acts 17:10,11  "And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews. These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so."

2 Timothy 4:24-26  "And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will."

Insight: Wise people are continually learning.  Sometimes learning means repenting.  Be bold and courageous when it comes to learning and becoming like Christ.  Be a student of the Word.

Prayer: "Thank you for teaching us!  Thank you for wanting us to learn from our circumstances.  Let us be continually learning and becoming like You.  Give us the strength and courage to repent when we learn that we've sinned against You.  Thank you for the people who are gentle and teachable.  Bless the ones that seek You and want You more than anything.  Thank you for satisfying the hungry.  We love You, Lord.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 3: "The Need For Post-Salvation Baptism"

Matthew 28:19, 20  "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.  Amen."

Mark 16:16  "He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned."

Acts 2:41  "Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them."

Galatians 3:27  "For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ."

Insight: In the New Testament, the most important thing to do after trusting, believing and accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior is to get baptized (immersed in water).  If you've done this before you were saved (like infant baptism), seek to fulfill the scriptural command to do it afterwards, too.

Prayer: "Thank you for baptism and how it is an outward sign of an inward change.  Thank you for the way people used to get baptized in rivers to show the world, at a prime gathering place, that they belonged to Christ, now.  Let us obey You in this matter and show the world that we belong to You.  Thank you for buying us with a price.  We love You, Lord.  Convict the ones that have been saved, but have neglected to obey You in this matter.  We simply want to please You, Lord.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 4: "The One Way"

John 14:6  "Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.'"

Acts 4:12  "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."

1 Timothy 2:5  "For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus."

Insight: Jesus never said he was "a way" to Heaven.  He said he was "the one way" to Heaven.  Remember that you serve and love a God who has plainly given us the one way to be forgiven and redeemed.  Jesus is the one way to have eternal life!

Prayer: "Thank you for giving us Jesus, Lord.  Thank you for sending Christ to Earth to show us the way and save us from our sins.  Thank you for loving us enough to have Him suffer.  Let us understand what He has done.  Thank you for loving us before we loved You.  Lift our heads and let us see this great God that we trust.  Thank you for giving us the scriptures that testify of our Lord and Savior so clearly.  Help more people to understand the wonderful gift of salvation through Jesus Christ.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 5: "Amazing Love"

John 3:16  "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

John 15:13  "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends."

Romans 5:8  "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

1 John 3:1-3  "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!  Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.  Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.  And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.

Insight: Jesus is the greatest love that we could ever have.  His Word is simply a love story.  Embrace and emulate Jesus' amazing love.

Prayer: "Thank you for loving us so much, Lord.  Thank you for teaching us about love by your perfect example.  Help us to love others like You do.  Increase our faith and our love.  Thank you for working in us with your Holy Spirit.  Thank you for taking our selfish, loveless lives and making us like You - full in character and caring about others.  Remind us how important it is that we love others with all of our heart.  Forgive us for not caring or being too busy to love people.  Remind us of your examples.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 6: "Unclean, Unclean!"

Leviticus 13:1-5  "And the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 'When a man has on the skin of his body a swelling, a scab, or a bright spot, and it becomes on the skin of his body like a leprous sore, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests.  The priest shall examine the sore on the skin of the body; and if the hair on the sore has turned white, and the sore appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is a leprous sore.  Then the priest shall examine him, and pronounce him unclean.  But if the bright spot is white on the skin of his body, and does not appear to be deeper than the skin, and its hair has not turned white, then the priest shall isolate the one who has the sore seven days.  And the priest shall examine him on the seventh day; and indeed if the sore appears to be as it was, and the sore has not spread on the skin, then the priest shall isolate him another seven days.'"

Leviticus 13:45, 46  "Now the leper on whom the sore is, his clothes shall be torn and his head bare; and he shall cover his mustache, and cry, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’  He shall be unclean.  All the days he has the sore he shall be unclean.  He is unclean, and he shall dwell alone; his dwelling shall be outside the camp."

Mark 1:40-42  "Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, 'If You are willing, You can make me clean.'  Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, 'I am willing; be cleansed.'  As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed."

Luke 17:11-19  "Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee.  Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off.  And they lifted up their voices and said, 'Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!'  So when He saw them, He said to them, 'Go, show yourselves to the priests.'  And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed.
And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks.  And he was a Samaritan.  So Jesus answered and said, 'Were there not ten cleansed?  But where are the nine?  Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?'  And He said to him, 'Arise, go your way.  Your faith has made you well."

Insight: Jesus knew how hard lepers had life.  He also knew the laws about them.  Nonetheless, Jesus was unafraid of them and wanted to heal them.  He even touched them!  No matter how unclean a person is, Jesus still wants to touch them and heal them from their afflictions and sins.

Prayer: "Thank you for knowing our pains and problems and helping us through them.  Thank you for touching us and making us forever changed!  Help us to realize our desperate need for You.  Thank you for being so pure and holy that even the most defiled people cannot defile You!  Let us understand your light and holiness.  There is no other God like You.  Thank you for wanting to purify us and have us in your presence.  Sanctify us, Lord.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 7: "Name It, Claim It OR Not My Will, But Yours?"

Luke 22:42  "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done."

Mark 1:40-42  "Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, 'If You are willing, You can make me clean.'  Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, 'I am willing; be cleansed.'  As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed."

2 Corinthians 12:7-9  "And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure.  Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me.  And He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.'  Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me."

Romans 15:30, 32  "Now I beg you, brethren, through the Lord Jesus Christ, and through the love of the Spirit, that you strive together with me in prayers to God for me . . . that I may come to you with joy by the will of God, and may be refreshed together with you."

Daniel 3:16-18  "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, 'O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter.  If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king.  But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.'"

Insight: All throughout the Bible, we see people trusting God's sovereignty - not naming things and claiming things.  Trust God to do what is best for you.  Don't worry about the details or the outcome.  God will do what is right and if you love and trust Him, you will be blessed.

Prayer: "Thank you for your awesome will and sovereignty!  You are a faithful God.  Thank you for the ways that You have blessed us.  Help us to understand why You move.  Thank you for the times when you don't do what we want.  Let us understand the lessons we are learning.  Thank you for being a God with an awesome plan.  Thank you for showing a lot of it to us.  Help us to have more faith in You and not worry about our lives or the details that we do not see, yet.  Praise You for being a good God!  Praise You for being worthy of our trust, our time and devotion and our love.  To You be all the glory, honor and praise, forever and ever.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Make a promise to give some things to God for 50 days!

I've done this before and it was a wonderful experience.  You can tailor your covenant with God to fit your specific needs.  Right now, I'm doing a simpler covenant with God: not eating chocolate or candy, writing a poem a day, stretching for 15 minutes a day and reading a chapter of Genesis each day.

If you'd like to read about my first "Pentecost Covenant", please go here: http://pc.jcsm.org.  It was a little more difficult than this one.  If you'd like encouragement or any more information on taking this step of faith, please let me know.

God bless you as you meet this week's challenge!

dunamis (pronounced "doo - nam - is"): force, miraculous power

These quotes came from God, me, John Hilton and John Leeder.

These quotes can be used for sanctification and fun. Most of them are directly based on scripture and scriptural principles. Some of my quotes are humorous or rhetorical. Some are written from sermons and Bible studies. Others are lyrics from songs. If you’d like me to go into more detail on any of them, please email me.

Like most verses in the Bible, they can be debated. To use what I’ve written in the most beneficial way, try and trace them back to the scriptures and apply the true principles to your life in a meaningful way! Please don’t sell my quotes or publish them for profit. If English is not your first language, you may not understand some of the quotes. I'm sorry, but some of them are English metaphors and deal with multiple word meanings. God bless you all!

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John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever should believe in Him should have everlasting life."