The Devotional

Papa “J” says

The economy of the soul is more important than the economy of a nation! The stable soul will mend our nation, one soul at a time! Nothing is impossible with God! – Isaiah 55:1-3

I observed on the news this morning that women will be reporting for duty on submarines very soon in Groton, CT. These women will be officers, thus no physical change will be necessary to the design of the submarine to accommodate this change in Naval policy. For me I find this a bit humorous since officers in the Navy have always been separated from the men who actually run the ship. Ships and submarines have come a long way. Thirty years ago, it was impossible for women to serve on board fighting ships, but today; technology has changed the conditions of living on board these vessels of war. Creature comforts are built in to these vehicles much like the creature comforts you find in other ocean going vessels. When I served on subs the boat could make up to 10,000 gallons of fresh water per day, enough said. As for controlling the air one breaths, regulations already exists to limit powders and aerosol sprays. For example; the sailor must use the shaving brush and soap to shave and use deodorant that is a roll on or stick. Of course there is one method of operation that will need changing. No longer will the sub sailor be able to use the “kiss” method to get things done. You know - “Keep It Simple Stupid!”

The Gospel of John

John 3:9-14 We want to jump on board the cart of criticism here when we read these words that Jesus spoke to Nicodemus. “What! Are you a teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?” Italic word added for emphasis. Yet, if you have read the biographies of others, like John Bunyan who struggled for over twenty years with understanding the gospel and was a bible teacher during that time. Or the pastors of a churches who can lead a congregation of saved people, yet are themselves unsaved. Thus we should not be critical, but prayerful!

Jesus really speaks to the misunderstanding in His earlier words to Nicodemus. He states that; We know and testify what we have seen. He is speaking from the Godhead, The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit. Jesus states that when confronted with truth we do not receive this Witness. First the physical then the spiritual. So, if God speaks (And He does) in terms of earthly reasoning and we do not believe, how will we believe the things pertaining to absolutes of heaven.

God, then has to come down a give us pictures. The greatest; “picture – illustrator” is Jesus. The picture of a physical birth and a spiritual birth in John 3:6 and the picture of the serpent in the wilderness and the Son of Man being lifted up in John 3:14 are illustrations of the physical and spiritual truths found throughout the Old and New Testaments. If we do not believe it is because we have rejected the ILLUSTRATOR!

The Devotional

Papa “J” says

There is little soundness in a sick body! The doctor can tell much just by listening! If God listens to your heart today, what will He hear? The sounds of the heart are – Galatians 5:19-26

When a person enters the military their very first experience is an indoctrination period of ten or twelve weeks, called boot camp. Many subjects are taught in this setting, but all of the lessons taught achieve the intended results through discipline. Discipline today is a lost word. Commercials drive us to the edge of – “if it feels good, do it!” Internet sites allow us to make comments about anything on our mind – “share your ignorance!” I am certain that if we thought about this longer we could add a few more syllogistic remarks about the lack of discipline in our society. But is this necessary? One, could be very disciplined and still fail to react properly to the moment at hand. One of the best examples of living a disciplined life that we can be familiar with is the individual who has served in the Marine Corps. Semper Fi or Semper Fidelis means, “always faithful” in the training of discipline, he or she is always faithful to the Marine Corps. The men and women of the Body of Christ have the same mandate, to always be disciplined by faith. “All for Christ” Philippians 3:7-11

The Gospel of John

John 3:4-8 These moments with Jesus, reading words that He spoke to men and women regarding the Kingdom of God are as important and precious as words can be for us. Yet, many of us are hurried or distracted when we read and then we miss the intended blessing. Here is something I notice about the Word of God. It never gets stale. Read it over and over again and God will have a new or extended message for us each time.

Nicodemus asks Jesus to answer two literal questions. Some say he is sarcastic. I do not believe this, but I do believe that Nicodemus expected Jesus to give the answer of “No”. Instead; Jesus makes a clear explanation of what the Kingdom of God is. Those who are born in the natural birth (nine months in the womb surrounded by water) must also be born of the Spirit of God to enter the kingdom of Heaven, both births are necessary!

The flesh is restricted by death, to the things of the Spirit because of the fall of Adam and Eve. Genesis 3. Procreation – that which is flesh is flesh. John 3. Recreation – that which is Spirit is spirit. Or we could say that we are baptized into the world in the water of the womb and we are baptized in the Spirit by Jesus as Matthew 3:11 explains. A small foretaste of Glory!

The Devotional

Papa “J” says

One day; everyone will stand before the LORD to give an account of our personal actions. This might be hard for those people who always see the fault in others but not in themselves! Hebrews 9:27

In the days when I rode the ballistic missile submarines there were two crews. One, the blue crew and two, the gold. Two crews were necessary since these ships were on alert for the cold war and the vessels were always at sea. So the two crews would rotate this duty at sea and time away from homeport would be about 108 days, time at sea about 90 days. When things would go wrong because of overlooked maintenance or procedure, the ship had another crew called the “other crew”. The other crew was responsible for poor maintenance and faulty procedures simply because the blue and the gold crews were perfect in all things. For example; when the ship was limited to a depth of 700 feet because the “other crew” bounced the submarine off the bottom of the ocean, both the blue and gold crews claimed it was the “other crew's” fault. Someone from the other crew did not update the navigational charts. You see, it was the blue crew that bounce the submarine off the bottom. But it was the “other crew's” fault who failed to keep accurate charts for navigating in waters unfamiliar to the perfectly good; “blue crew”. And of course the “gold crew” now being limited to 700 feet. Knew it was the “other crews” fault too! Got it?

The Gospel of John

John 3:1-3 Three of the finest verses in the gospel of John. A question and an answer. The one who asks the question is sincere, the man Nicodemus is an educated man. It is significant that he goes to speak with Jesus at night, but the night time visit is not the subject. The statement of Nicodemus is not the the subject either.

We might see this better if we look at the statement of Nicodemus as he begins to speak to Jesus and the reply that Jesus gave. Jesus did not say something like; “Well you hit the nail on the head there Nick! Yes, me and a few of my friends belong to this new signs and wonders group. We do a lot of this on the Sabbath, so come on back then and we'll show you around!

The subject on the minds of both Jesus and Nicodemus is the soul. Jesus is God, lets not forget that He knows the people who come to Him. Jesus answered with these words: “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” If we do not speak to the subject of the soul sent to us, by God. People will fail to get saved! Some of us are the blue crew and some are the gold, but for the soul that belongs to God. Don't leave it to the “other crew”!

The Devotional

Papa “J” says

The outworking of the soul can be tears of joy, or tears of grief. Both emotions involve the statues of the LORD! His law is Perfect, converting the soul. Psalm 19:7-14

Submarines have the unique ability to travel deep in the waters of the world, much like an airplane that travels within the airspace of the world. Much human technology goes into the design, development and mechanical delivery of these vehicles. Words like; depth, angle and speed control. Sea pressure, water temperature and other factors related to the natural environment engulfing the submerged vehicle are common language among submariners. Airmen have a similar jargon. Altitude, speed, angle, air pressure and temperature. All these elements are vital to the normal operation of both vehicles. But these things are also factors in the individual life too. Like one, who with a team of others sky dives and faces the same elements of an airplane, or the person who goes scuba diving in the ocean, even to you and me who go for a walk, ride a bike or drive a car. Equipment can only operate by obedience to the laws of creation. Go outside of those laws and the ship, the plane and the individual are in deadly trouble. Knowing your limits is knowing safety. When God says that we have lost our way, He is looking at the whole picture, and sometimes at you and me. Proverbs 22:2-3

The Gospel of John

John 2:23-25 A small portion of scripture but it has broad implication or application. The commercial says; “Whats in your wallet?” but God says; “Whats in your heart?” The truth is that God not only knows the things in your wallet, He also knows what is in your heart as well. In most cases He is not pleased with the wallet or the heart of mankind.

I don't know about you, but I think that as the LORD approached Jerusalem and seen the city streets during Passover that His vision was similar to looking down Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana during the festivities of Mardi-Gras. Like many wandering the streets, they are God conscious people, but their heart is not at peace with Him.

So the discernment here is not that Jesus is unwilling to commit Himself to people, but more that people are committed to the desires of what is in their heart. Jesus wants to be in our heart looking out, not outside of our heart looking in. On the inside, He's committed to us. On the outside, He does not need our testimony. One can tell if He is in your heart simply by reading – 1 John 4:6-11.

The Devotional

Papa “J” says

Pictures from volcanic eruptions in Iceland show lightning coming up from the ground as the hot gas hits the cold air! Awesome, God points out Deuteronomy 28:20-25

Every year during Spring break the volunteer fire departments near the University of Connecticut are put on alert. The reason is that these young adults as they prefer to call themselves act like juvenile delinquents. Oh! What an outdated use of words; “juvenile delinquents” are you showing your age, Jess? Okay, I can handle that! But, I thought I might be mild in expressing the actions of these “young adults”! Some, after turning over cars, breaking windows and littering streets, all in the name of spring break fun are bewildered when the police show up to put a stop to their actions. Some get hurt so an ambulance will be called out to take the wounded to the nearest medical facility. During the trip to the hospital the medic will hear things like. “We were attacked by the police, we were just having a good time. Or, no one got hurt until the police showed up! And, well yea, we turned over a couple of cars but no one got hurt until the police hit me with a rubber bullet, can you move that ice pack a little closer to the pain?” When foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child, it will not go away when the child becomes a young adult, but will flourish or blossom into a way of life. Proverbs 22:15. If the parent would use the rod, the police would not need to inflect the wrath of the township, or community.

The Gospel of John

John 2:13-22 As the ministry of Jesus increases His Authority is being established. I wonder what He would do today with churches that have these social gatherings to raise money? I suspect that since He is the same, yesterday, today and forever that we would find Him making a whip and driving the people out of the courtyards, too.

A house of merchandise in not where the Body of Christ is. It is nothing more than a business ran by men and women who use God for personal gain or gratification. When Jesus threw over the tables and drove out the animals, the disciples were immediately reminded of Psalm 69:9. In the context of this Psalm, we too have a responsibility to keep the Body of Christ a holy place of worship and not a hangout for corruption.

The sign of His Resurrection should be the only sign visible in and around the church. Every member of the church has that responsibility. When a congregation seeks to profit from the sources of the unbelieving world it is sending a confusing message. Prosperity in the Body of Christ is not by works of human righteousness, but by the outworking of the grace of God. Ephesians 4:7-16.