June 30, 2025

June 30, 2025 -- Philippians 4:13 -- Strengthened in Christ

June 30, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

I can do all things through him, who strengthens me.
Philippians 4:13 ESV

Last week an out-of-town friend called me. He casually asked me how I was doing. Before I even had a second to filter my thoughts I blurted out, “I’m feeling hopeless.” His response was a blessing to me. “Richard, that is precisely the place where Christ can help you the most.”

When I am out of solutions, fresh out of ideas, I am humble and ready for His radical salvation to pour into the most wounded and desperate places in my life. No wonder Paul, writing from prison, reliant on fickle people, could write I can do all things through him who strengthens me. He calls upon the greatest resource in the universe. He finds strength in Christ. So also do we find strength in Christ.

The greatest evidence of God’s love is proved to you in Christ (Ephesians 3:14-19). You are strengthened by the Spirit of God so that Christ can live in you and you are filled with the fullness of God’s love.
God has given you His Spirit (I Corinthians 12:3). What you can’t comprehend by your own powers of intellect or reasoning, you can grasp by the powerful Spirit Who lives in you.
God’s Spirit in you roots you in Christ and grounds you in Him (Ephesians 3:17) and as the roots of a plant nourish the whole plant so Christ nourishes you. As the foundation of a building grounds the whole in stability and gives direction to how the whole structure will be built, so Christ is your foundation.

As my friend blessed me by his words, I urge you, be confident in Jesus. Your King, Jesus, will at the precise moment of His choosing, provide what He knows is necessary so that you will be drawn as close to Him as you can be. It is not the greatness nor the weakness of your faith which holds you to Christ, it is the greatness of Christ that holds you to Him by faith.

FATHER OF MERCIES,
Hear me for Jesus’ sake.
I am sinful even in my closest walk with thee;
it is of thy mercy I died long ago;
Thy grace has given me faith in the cross
   by which thou hast reconciled thyself to me
   and me to thee,
   drawing me by thy great love,
   reckoning me as innocent in Christ though
   guilty in myself.
Giver of all graces,
I look to thee for strength to maintain them in me,
   for it is hard to practise what I believe.
Strengthen me against temptations.
My heart is an unexhausted fountain of sin,
   a river of corruption since childhood days,
   flowing on in every pattern of behaviour;
Thou hast disarmed me of the means
   in which I trusted,
   and I have no strength but in thee.
Thou alone canst hold back my evil ways,
   but without thy grace to sustain me I fall.
Satan’s darts quickly inflame me,
   and the shield that should quench them
   easily drops from my hand:
Empower me against his wiles and assaults.
Keep me sensible of my weakness,
   and of my dependence upon thy strength.
Let every trial teach me more of thy peace,
   more of thy love.
Thy Holy Spirit is given to increase thy graces,
   and I cannot preserve or improve them
   unless he works continually in me.
May he confirm my trust in thy promised help,
   and let me walk humbly in dependence
   upon thee,
   for Jesus’ sake. Amen,
“Grace in Trials” Valley of Vision: Puritan Prayers and Devotions

https://youtu.be/oxpPIa-BskY?si=BMT6c_6Mo-ONJ3yo All I Once Held Dear

June 28, 2025

June 28, 2025 -- Proverbs 28:1 -- Are you running when no one is chasing you?

June 28, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

The wicked flee when no one pursues,
but the righteous are bold as a lion.
Proverbs 28:1 ESV

This is one of my absolute favorite Proverbs. Whenever I am driving and I have a passenger with me, and I see a jogger, I quote this proverb. Well, at least the first line of it: “the wicked run when no one is chasing him.” It is good for a laugh. Mind you, since I’ve taken up jogging, I realize I am also making fun of myself.

Much of my work is taken up with men inside prison and those released, who have severe addictions. The sad reality is such men do run when no one is chasing. Their drugs induce hallucinations, fears and anxieties which are not grounded in reality. But it is not only addicts to are runners. Those who are liars will also spend much time on edge, ready to bolt at the first sign their lies are about to be exposed. Wickedness produces instability. The wickedness that abounds in our cultural context means that people who are applauded one day will be reviled and abandoned the next. The evil ones flee from one thing to the next.

The righteous are those who remember their days of running and hiding and paranoia. The righteous are those who, captivated by the love of the Father, shown in Jesus Christ, are grounded. They are prepared to stand with those who know their sinfulness, recognizing if a wicked man is drawn to him, he has been prompted by the mercy of God. The Spirit created in him a desire to seek Jesus, Who has long been seeking him.

The people around you are partakers in a twisted and crooked generation. The people of this world are folded pretzel-like into mental contortions to suit the craziness of this age. The righteous are not bent, but are straight, arrows in service to the LORD. They can be bold as lions because they have the clarity of God’s truth, which is unchanging. What is right today, is what was right yesterday and will still be sane and right tomorrow.

Not all that long ago a family member asked me, “Aren’t you worried that the Bible is not keeping up with all the changes in the world?” It was a sincere question. The context of that conversation included gender issues and climate alarmism. Ecclesiastes is quite right; there is nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Cross-dressing and gender confusion were already addressed in Deuteronomy 22:5. I also noted that when I was in elementary school, a climate activist came with plastic bags, telling us students that this would save the world. Paper bags cost us our precious forests, but plastic would save the trees. We can see how that’s turning out! What seems new is the same old regurgitated wickedness of past ages. A righteous man or woman knows the Word of God, knows that wickedness is not creative, but a corruption of what is good. Wickedness can not create anything new. It is always a parasite infecting something that is wholesome and good.

Dear fellow believer do not be ashamed of the Gospel, nor afraid of going against the trends of this age. Be as bold as a lion for the righteousness and wisdom and holiness you have comes from Jesus Christ. Take a stand and honour Him in all your ways and many weary people, who’ve run from this and run to that and exhausted themselves, will by your witness be led to Jesus, in Whom they too will find rest and peace. They will be refreshed of mind and soul and join you in holy boldness.

O Lord, Your law is perfect. Your word revives the soul. Your commandments lead us to Yourself, the All-wise Who establishes rules that are true and righteous. By Your Spirit, keep back Your servants from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over us. Give us the clear-sighted discernment we need to live in righteousness, so we shine as lights in this twisted and crooked generation. Oh God, forever blessed, the heavens declare Your glory! O LORD, You are the Rock and Redeemer! Amen.

https://youtu.be/TxC16duiHvQ?si=7C5YrYWOTSNIrKyJ O Lord, My Rock and My Redeemer

June 27, 2025

June 27, 2025 -- Acts 9:9-11 -- Behold, he is praying

June 27, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

9 And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.
10 Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” 11 And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying…
Acts 9:9-11 ESV

For the last couple of days I have been listening to the audiobook recording of E. M. Bounds “Prayer and Praying Men”. (I need to interject, what a blessing it is to live in such an age where we have free access to vast libraries of wonderful books.) Bounds noted that pre-conversion Saul, now called unto Jesus and becoming the great apostle Paul, is described to Ananias with these words “behold, he is praying”. Context is important here. Saul was on his way to Damascus, prepared to persecute Christians. Jesus stopped him. Jesus changed the course of his life. Ananias is a faithful disciple of Jesus, fully aware of Saul’s fearsome reputation.

Bounds made many great points, a few stood out.

Saul was praying. He has been praying and fasting for three days. As a devout Jewish man, Saul would be familiar with urgent, deep prayer.
Saul was praying. His first encounter with Jesus led him to three days solid of prayer.
Saul’s life from that time forward is filled with prayer. You will see many references of it through-out his writings.
Saul’s life shows both a intellectual knowledge of Jesus and a deep relationship of intimacy with Jesus. That is a characteristic of the life of a person of prayer.

I would add,

Saul’s former way of life and his patterns of misapplying the Old Testament needed to be changed. Having met Jesus so dramatically, then placing himself fully, without distraction in His presence over three days, Saul’s understanding of Jesus utterly changed.
Plus, Saul needed to learn the fear of the LORD. He’d been used to making men afraid and wielding fear as a weapon against Christians, now he needed to be in prayer and learn the fear of the LORD so that he himself would not succumb to the fear of men. At the time of his conversion God told him how much he’d have to suffer (Acts 9:16). The fear of men leads to one being ashamed of the Gospel. (Recall Romans 1:16, where he declares he is not ashamed of the Gospel. How mercifully God has answered his prayers.)

What drives you to prayer? Where are you so devoted to Jesus and desirous of His work in your life that you have committed to prayer? Or perhaps prayer and fasting? Are you perhaps feeling lazy in your walk with God and distant, without intimacy? Does reading about the intimacy others experience in prayer stir up within you questions of how is that possible? Or I long for that again? Or what is that? Prayer is both a gift of God and a spiritual discipline. The gift is God our Father has opened the way to Himself in Christ. The Father and the Son have given the Holy Spirit, the Counselor. Here is some advice to lead you into deeper prayer.

Spend time with Christians whose prayer walk you admire and pray together! Prayer shared and prayer modeled will influence your own prayer life.
When your pastor prays the congregational prayer, in your heart, pray the words with him. (If you say, but I don’t have a pastor, I strongly urge you to find a church home and get connected with the body of believers!)
Pray Psalms. For example, take Psalm 139 and read it slowly, as an intentional prayer to God. If the translation you have is too hard to understand, read it over in a few different versions, and then go back to the version used in your church and pray it. So that you both become familiar with the Bible used in your church and you become familiar with the Bible itself and make it your own portal to intimacy with God.
Prayer, like any other discipline, takes time and practice. Expect the beginning to be hard. Expect excuses to rise within, like mosquitoes buzzing in your tent demanding to be swatted, distracting you from your goal of praying.
Prayer, after initial bitterness, and practice, becomes sweet to the heart and a solace for the soul. May it be said of you, “behold, he is praying”.

Blessed Jesus, Your disciples made one request of You. It was not to teach them how to cast out demons, or prophecy, nor how to heal the sick. They received power from You by the Spirit to do such things. What was it that awakened a deep longing in their souls? It was hearing You, blessed Shepherd, speaking to Your Father. Their request was “teach us to pray”. As You richly, beautifully, by example and lessons taught Your disciples to pray, so lead us in the lessons of prayer until prayer is no longer a duty, but sweet, unbroken fellowship with You, leading us to our Father in heaven, through Whom every family in heaven and on earth is named. Blessed Jesus, as You were filled with the Holy Spirit and by the Spirit strengthened in Your humanity for devoted service to the Father, fill us with the Holy Spirit so that we will know the love that surpasses knowledge and be filled with all the fullness of God. Amen.

https://youtu.be/o1FY7I5667Q?si=z2AaWGSWtSIcBXQe Sweet Hour of Prayer

June 26, 2025

June 26, 2025 -- Philippians 2:14-15 -- Living as the righteous, straight in the midst of a crooked generation

June 26, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit’s power: Sh’ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world…
Philippians 2:14-15 ESV

Yesterday as I was driving to one of the prisons where I lead a bible study, I was listening to an older Tim Keller sermon. His comment on grumbling was like a punch to the forehead. He said that grumbling is like questioning God on His throne. As if you know better than He does. As if you know how to run things. You are putting yourself in the place of God as if you have all the perspective, knowledge and wisdom you need to run things. I was cut to the heart by those words. I confess how easy it is to grumble and complain. Instead, we are to be blameless and innocent—that is a description of righteousness. The righteous are straight, not twisted up in themselves with complaints nor crooked with corrupted lies about their circumstances. The righteous shine as lights in the world precisely because they do not grumble or dispute. The righteous put their past, their present, their future, their day and their night, their good times and their trials in the hands of Almighty God, trusting in Jesus Christ, Who has reconciled them to the Father in heaven.

This message was brought home to me especially clearly as that same morning I met with an inmate for a one-on-one visit. He looked at me and said, “Richard, if I ever grumble or complain, call me out on it, right away”. The context was his awareness of his own sinfulness, the justice of the sentence meted out against him, and his willingness to endure so that the Name of Jesus would be honored in his life. I know him well. I know he has experienced some harsh treatment. The place which is supposed to be rehabilitative has in many instances been punitive. (According to Correctional Services Canada (CSC), prison itself is the punishment. Being separated from family and work and community is the punishment and while a person is in the care of CSC their resources are to be directed at rehabilitation.) But there he was, seeking honour God and live out the righteousness that is his in Christ despite another setback.

Interestingly, this same man noted every time he thought he’d been humbled, the Lord brought him to a new low. Before I could even ask him about it, he explained. This had the purpose of exposing places in his life where he still trusted in himself or his abilities, rather than truly trusting in God. Let me be clear. This man is a new Christian. He is finding it hard to be true to God, faithful in the context of a prison where many in authority over him mock his “prison conversion”. Those who are supposed to rehabilitate him snidely say, “He is just clinging to Jesus, no one else will have him.” Or things like “once a monster, always a monster”. It was humbling to be meeting with him, hearing him explain to me, every new, lower plateau of humiliation and scorn served to deepen his trust in Jesus.

Dear prayer warriors, financial backers, volunteers with Redemption Prison Ministry, fellow soldiers in the army of Christ, thank you for the high privilege you give me to serve in this mission field. May God purify me and His Spirit convict me so that I too will repudiate grumbling and seek to be content in Christ, whatever the circumstances.

Father in heaven, with believers near and far, help us to rejoice in Jesus Christ, the highly exalted one, whose Name is above every other name. By Your Spirit living in us, humble us to such an extent that we bend our knees in humble obedience to Jesus so that our lives shine forth the His beauty and glory. Spirit of God, forgive us for the times we grumble and complain, as if we from our perspective know enough to question God. As it is written, let us be found in Jesus having a righteousness which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—that we may know Him and the power of His resurrection, becoming like Him in His death, that by any means possible we may attain the resurrection from the dead. Amen.

Prayer ends with a quotation from Philippians 3:9-11

https://youtu.be/9zGbdg1YCYY?si=TQ-S8BGy8mN2FJG0 Afflicted Saint, to Christ Draw Near

June 24, 2025

June 24, 2025 -- Proverbs 24:10-12 -- If you faint in the day of adversity...

June 24, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small.
Rescue those who are being taken away to death;
hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter.
If you say, “Behold, we did not know this,”
does not he who weighs the heart perceive it?
Does not he who keeps watch over your soul know it,
and will he not repay man according to his work?
Proverbs 24:10-12 ESV

What would make you faint in the day of adversity? It might be your abhorrence of the types and categories of other people’s sins, so repugnant they are you’re losing courage and getting squeamish in the God-ordained task of rescuing sinners from their captivity to hell. You might even justify it, saying to yourself such perverts, sinners, blasphemers and wicked persons ought to die. Imagine for a minute that one week’s worth of your life, your secret thoughts, your private cravings and lusts were publicly exposed. You would, I hope, blush at the very thought of it. Perhaps not. And that is in fact your problem. It explains why Christians do not evangelize with vigor and fervor, because they don’t really think their sins stink to high heaven. If you, dear Christian, would even briefly acknowledge your own unworthiness to receive God’s mercy, and then contemplate the extravagant mercies of God endlessly poured out on you in Christ, then you would, with strength and vigor, run after others who are perishing and declare the banquet table of the LORD’s mercies is spread for them, even as it is for you.

Dear fellow Christian, please be honest. You know who is stumbling to the day of slaughter. You know those who are sinning unto death with no hope of a Savior. You also know how rarely you row out a rescue boat and how infrequently you throw a life-saving ring. It is easy for Christians who are saved to leave their biases unexamined. They pick and choose who is worthy of life and who isn’t. It doesn’t work that way. God will rescue all who are appointed for life, but he weighs the heart and perceives the hard-hearted, who having received mercy himself, refuse to extend the mercy of God to those who are perishing. The LORD is keeping watch over your soul—are you with you all your strength, no matter the adversity, no matter the scorn of others, rescuing those who are being taken away to death?

Precious Jesus, thank You for Your lovingkindness expressed in this wide-reaching invitation: “Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart and your will find rest for your souls.” Spirit of God, teach us to be ambassadors of Christ and in His Name to go, with urgency and strength, after all who need to learn of our Savior’s love. Father in heaven, blessed are You, for You, in love and mercy, have appointed many for salvation and life in Jesus’ Name. Forgive us for fields unwon, forgive us for work undone, forgive us for the times we have decided who we think are sheep and who are goats unworthy of Your love. We thank You, Triune God, that safe within the fold of Jesus, there are ten thousand upon ten thousand reasons for us to admire You and love You more. Amen.
Quotation in the prayer, Matthew 11:28-29 ESV

https://youtu.be/slQ6MTJLU4I?si=agtcsZK2DI41_L9X Come, Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy

June 22, 2025

June 22, 2025 -- Isaiah 26:1-4 -- The Fruit of the Spirit: Peace

June 22, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah:

“We have a strong city;
    he sets up salvation
    as walls and bulwarks.
2 Open the gates,
    that the righteous nation that keeps faith may enter in.
3 You keep him in perfect peace
    whose mind is stayed on you,
    because he trusts in you.
4 Trust in the Lord forever,
    for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.

Isaiah 26:1-4 ESV

Peace means that God’s just, measured, and appropriate wrath against your sin has been ended in Christ. Peace means there is now a ruler Who governs your life. He does not rule like the devil did, with death-decrees. All the ways of the devil leads to death. Always. Certainly. Completely. While drawing others in. The peace of Christ resists the devil’s guerilla warfare and his repeated attempts to storm the gates again.

The peace of Christ is happiness. Let me explain. When a believer struggles with an addiction, like alcoholism, there is always a sense of doom that accompanies every short period of sobriety. Even while he is sober, he is asking himself, “What if this time isn’t my last? What if tomorrow, or the day after, alcoholism will once again rule the day?” By contrast, the peace of Christ is a strong city within a man. Demonic forces will never again rule the city and break down its walls. Will a former alcoholic stumble? Yes. But he will not fall beyond the grip of God’s grace. He will no longer cooperate with the devil as in his former days.

The peace of Christ is a rampart on strong walls. When a woman is determined to sin, she will not care about the consequences. She will be short-sighted and not see the maneuvers of the enemy. However, the peace of Christ mounts the ramparts of your life. The strong walls of Christ’s salvation include walkways on the top of the wall so that by His salvific peace believers can see what the enemy is up to. Walking upon the ramparts, on the strong walls of Christ’s peace and assured of the steadfast peace of Christ, one has the foresight to know if you open the gate of your heart to the enemy, he will storm your life. He will bring destruction. He will undo many of the good works which have begun in your life. If you open the gates to the works of the devil, God will not keep the devil from wreaking havoc in your life, but God will restrain the devil. When you recognize your sin, repent and turn from it, the Spirit of God will cleanse the fortress of your heart, renewing you in the peace of God that can help you face anything the world or the devil throws at you. You are secure in Christ. That is peace. Now, go live boldly for Jesus.

Today’s prayer is a blessing:

24 The Lord bless you and keep you;
25 the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
26 the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.

Numbers 6:24-26 ESV

https://youtu.be/rhaTIu_k4w0?si=DBvNVm2KrxhzBP1w It is Well with My Soul

June 19, 2025

June 19, 2025 -- Acts 16:40 -- The power of the Gospel to bring people together

June 19, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

So they went out of prison and visited Lydia. And when they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them and departed.
Acts 16:40 ESV

Such a simple pair of sentences and what weight they carry and information they convey! Context: Paul and Silas were in prison for casting out a fortune-telling demon from a slave girl. Her owners, realizing their hope of gain based on her demon-gifts of fortune-telling were gone, had them beaten and thrown in jail. While in jail, Paul and Silas were singing to God and other prisoners were listening. The Lord caused all the prisoners’ chains to fall off and the doors to open. The jailer, about to kill himself because he thought he might have lost the prisoners in his care, instead, was converted.

Consider the Philippian church. A rich businesswoman was the first convert, she and her household. Arguably a formerly demon-possessed girl. A jailor and his family. One must wonder how many prisoners were added also, those who heard Paul and Silas singing to God while in prison? What a mix of people.

Beloved, that is the power of the Gospel. In our stratified, segregated age, churches rarely reflect the wide and diverse mix of people represented here in the Philippian church. You can understand why the Euodia and Syntyche argued. It could very well be that they objected to the criminal element in their church. Who knows if perhaps one of them was the former-demon-possessed slave girl and the other a well-off matron offended by her inclusion in church.
What is the point? When the followers of Jesus Christ proclaimed the Gospel Jewish people and non-Jewish people (which was so radical for the Jews to experience) responded. It is the wonderful fulfilment of Jesus’s words “Truly I say to you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes go into the kingdom of God before you” (Matthew 21:31). The call of God cuts through the wickedness of human hearts. The Spirit of God draws men and women who are absolutely unexpected and brings them into community.

No wonder the New Testament churches were so chaotic. When the Spirit of God upends a sinner so that in Christ the old is passed away and the new has come, the most unexpected, the most incongruous people are brought together and made to be one family. It is as Jesus said, those who do the will of God are His mother and brothers and sisters (Matthew 12:50). Do you rejoice at the power of God, the very same power which led you out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of the light, the Kingdom of the Son He loves? Are you prepared for the disruption of your comfortable life?

God our Father, thank You for Your electing love which draws sinners, such as we are, to Yourself through Your beloved Son, Jesus. Thank You for the fact that in Him each one of us is a new creation, the old has passed away and the new has come. Help us, Your people, to walk in a manner worthy of calling to which we have been called, recognizing there is one body and one Spirit. Lead us, King Jesus, as captives in Your train and give us the gifts and the fruit of the Spirit necessary so that we will all attain mature manhood. Amen

June 18, 2025

June 18, 2025 -- I Peter 1:3-7 -- Facing Every Test

June 18, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
I Peter 1:3-7 ESV

Ugh. Tests. Do you remember them? When a teacher, with a sinister smile, announced a pop quiz in the course you found the hardest to keep up in, do you remember how you felt? Stressed? Inadequate? Despairing? Even those of us who are now graduated and done with school, all of us in fact, face tests of various kinds. Peter calls them trials. I really appreciate how Tim Keller explained tests and trials. He noted that some teachers give tests to show you how little you know, and such tests lead you to despair. Like you’ll never master the material. The test is meant to weed students out of the class. However, there are also teachers who, before giving tests, prepare you, help you learn the formulas and the equations which will help you succeed. When you take the test, you realize what you know, and you apply your learning so that you grow. The test shows what you know and aids your learning, so you grow.

That illustration has been such a blessing and an encouragement to me over the last few days. This morning, I met with a man who is incarcerated. He shared that he is learning, reading his bible, and talking about what he believes. He wondered if he is up to the challenge of telling others about Jesus. The more we talked, the more he seemed to relax and even had a small smile play across his lips. I think he realized his Bible reading and his walk with God had prepared him for the test of sharing his faith. As he related this experience to me, he realized he had applied what he knew and applied it appropriately. What a huge blessing.

Another man, out of prison and learning about Jesus, is starting to realize that all his relationships must be informed by his walk with God. People he used to trust, when he walked in the ways of sin, must now be treated with wary suspicion. He has decided Jesus is his moral centre, so all his relationships must be governed by his allegiance to Jesus. What a great lesson. A man who is taking to heart the word of God and is growing in his commitment to Jesus.

Dear fellow believer, make no mistake about it. When we follow Jesus, our every decision about life, work, finances, friendship, how we spend our non-working hours and how we raise our children, every single decision must be yielded to His Lordship in our lives. The choices that confront us will readily reveal our idols. Whatever it is we prioritize above Jesus will be exposed. These are the fiery tests the Spirit uses to refine us like gold. Through successive tests we will find ourselves shiningly brightly for our king. When we fail, and who among us doesn’t fail, we confess our sinful decisions and choices and renew our allegiance to Jesus. The result is what we know we put into practice so that we grow up, maturing in Christ.

Faithful Father thank You for the riches of knowing You and being called Your beloved sons and daughters. Blessed be Your Name now and forever more. Thank You for the glorious reconciliation You have brought about through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus. Holy Jesus blessed be Your Name for the work of salvation. Spirit of God, we confess how we chafe against tests and strive to make decisions in our own strength. Blessed be Your Name for the sanctifying work You are doing in us so that we are renewed in heart and mind. Continue Your purifying work until we are wholly Christ’s. Amen.

https://youtu.be/syCSeMudbO4?si=RR0-DhpchNUK1M0e “Whiter Than Snow”

June 16, 2025

June 16, 2025 -- I Thessalonians 1:4-5a -- With full conviction

June 16, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction.
I Thessalonians 1:4-5a ESV

Perhaps some of you already know this, but I know many who read this devotional blog do not, so I’ll mention it again. Every Sunday my wife and I host a house church, and it is called Conviction Chapel. At its peak there were eight or so who attended. Currently it is down to around 3 each week. No worries. Conviction Chapel is hosted weekly with the expectation that I will soon be able to bring one or two men (who are on day passes from prison as they are close to their release date and the process of reintegration back into society is beginning) to the chapel service. I am hosting the chapel in my home because my local church will not have certain Christians, who have been incarcerated, in their public worship service. To be clear, such men do not have parole restrictions that would forbid them from attending church, it is the local church that forbids their attendance. And this is tacitly accepted by my denomination. This is publicly known but not addressed. It is painful to me, and it is deeply painful for those who are in Christ but not allowed to be in fellowship with other Christians.

The chapel is called “Conviction Chapel” precisely because all those who attend have been convicted by the Holy Spirit of their sin-filled way of life and so are convicted of their dire need for a Savior. It is called Conviction Chapel as well, as a sly reference to the fact that many who have attended in the past, and those who currently attend, or might attend, have been convicted in court and found guilty. They have served their time. It is called Conviction Chapel because the full conviction of the Holy Spirit leads to a changed life for every believer.

Those who are convicted by the Holy Spirit can not continue in their former way of life and in their former, sinful actions. When the Father has declared a man or a woman to be justified by Christ and has imputed to him the righteousness of Christ, the Holy Spirit brings regeneration, new life, into every area of that person’s life. Faith in Jesus Christ is not like a hammock on a warm summer day in which one rests, lazily drifting in and out of sleep, inactive and not growing to maturity in Christ.. Faith in Jesus Christ so unites the believer to Christ that the Spirit of God transforms his life. The evidence of this faith in Jesus Christ is radical.

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God?
Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers,
nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards,
nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some
of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name
of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of God.
I Corinthians 6:9-11 ESV
When a man or a woman is convicted by the Spirit of God, his whole being is changed. The sinful past has been punished; Christ has received the full weight of God’s wrath against their sin. The one who has been washed, was sanctified and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is my ardent prayer that my local church and my denomination should also be convicted by the Holy Spirit the truth of these passages. It is my fervent prayer, dear reader, that you too should examine your heart also and see if you are consciously or unconsciously excluding people based on an inappropriate bias, rather than the evidence of a regenerated life which is wrought in them by the power of the Holy Spirit. Dear reader, are you convinced of the fact that God takes the most wretched of sinners and clothes them in the robes of Christ’s righteousness? Are you aware this is precisely what He has been done for you? Your own sins, if known to the assembly of believers, would be so hateful and heinous that you too would be excluded, and that so fast your head would spin. Yet, brothers and sisters, what a gracious, loving, glorious God we serve. He choses people, the worst of sinners, and brings them the gospel of Jesus, in power and in the Holy Spirit with full conviction. If you really knew the depths of and the malodorous discharges of your own sinfulness, you’d be on your face in rapturous praise to God thanking Him for your glorious salvation in Christ. You’d rapturously welcome other sinners, who like you, have been washed and made clean and therefore know the lovingkindness and mercy of God. For there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Oh, let the Spirit of God convict you of this blessed truth.

Search me, O God, and know my heart!
Try me and know my thoughts!
And see if there be any grievous way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting!
Psalm 139:23-24 ESV

https://youtu.be/px-eU1QjQiU?si=pzyLsH3jIUi_o3yq Psalm 51 (Wisdom in the Secret Heart)

June 15, 2025

June 15, 2025 -- Psalm 68:19 -- God daily bears us up

June 15, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Blessed be the Lord,
who daily bears us up;
God is our salvation. Selah
Psalm 68:19 ESV

If you were to read the whole Psalm, you’d read of the many ways in which the LORD our God blesses His people. Here are some examples from this Psalm: He scatters enemies. He protects the widow and the fatherless. He is glorious in His power and mighty to save. Repeatedly he declares the glorious power of God by which He saves His people, protects them and leads them in victory. No wonder the Psalmist declares the Lord to be blessed. He is the source of blessing. He is worthy of receiving blessing and honour from His people. Selah means pause, reflect. That makes sense. Take a moment and think about the glories of God revealed in your life!

There is another reason for blessing the Lord our God—He daily bears us up. In a single phrase the psalmist is making a sharp contrast between useless idols and the mighty, life-giving power of God. The things or people in which we put our trust can not bear us up. They can not help us. These idols can’t answer your prayers. Ah, dear fellow believer, take a moment and see how God sustains you every single day. Every hour of every day. Through the watches of the night, He keeps you in His care. You would have fallen into such despair and hopelessness, but when you prayed, your eyes were opened, and you knew it was God Who kept you from the pits of despondency. He has made Himself known to you. He has given you the gift of His word. He has put His Holy Spirit in you so that greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. He has reconciled you to Himself through Jesus. He has clothed you in the righteousness of Jesus. He has adopted you as beloved sons and daughters. Even now there are those who can kill the body, but they don’t have the power to determine if you go to heaven or hell. Your life now and your eternal future are secure in the hands of your God. Blessed be the Lord.

God is our salvation. Right now, you are secure in Him. Everything has changed in your life because God the Father has set His love on you. It will never be withdrawn. Previously, as I was studying for a sermon, I learned that the expression “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” has the imagery of a garrison of soldiers guarding and protecting a fortress. That seemed so applicable here. When God guards His people, He is stronger than battle-harden, elite soldiers. The people He guards will be protected and kept for His eternal purposes. What a glorious salvation is ours in Christ.

Blessed be Your Name, Father in heaven, robed in splendor.
Blessed be Your Name, Jesus, the Captain of Salvation.
Blessed be Your Name, Spirit of the Living God.
Triune God, forgive us for the ways in which we have taken Your vigilant, hourly care for granted. Open the eyes of faith so that we will see Your tender mercies and lovingkindness which are new every morning. Great and glorious are You, O God. Amen.

https://youtu.be/dHLikbLXQ8E?si=ZoZs-u6K_RGLFrO9 Not What My Hands Have Done

June 14, 2025

June 14, 2025 -- Proverbs 14:12 -- Discerning what is right from what seems right

June 14, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

There is a way that seems right to a man,
but its ends is the way of death.
Proverbs 14:12 ESV

The same wisdom is expressed earlier in Proverbs, “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice” (12:15). What you realize as you read and re-read the Proverbs is that a person’s internal, moral compass is always off. If you are into the sport of orienteering, that is navigating through woods or over great distances using a map and a compass, you know the vital importance of both an accurate map and trustworthy compass. If your compass does not give you true north, then you will not be able to navigate the course.

Whatever may seem right to you will always be off course because your heart is misaligned. It is not true to the Word of God. Consider what the word teaches you about yourself and your ability to discern right from wrong on your own.

Lack of awareness of the depravity of the heart. Christians neglect this doctrine. So many Christians gauge their spiritual health by their feelings. The very same feelings which are obviously deceptive and wrong. Consider how easily you are tempted to sin and justify your actions in your own mind while the word of God is clearly opposed to what you desire. “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9).

Inability to determine what is right. That same word right found in today’s text is used of God. “Good and upright [right] is the LORD; therefore, he instructs sinners in the way” (Psalm 25:8). One’s source of what is spiritually, ethically and morally right is found outside of oneself. A person’s moral compass is off, unless one is completely reoriented toward God. He alone can lead repentant sinners in the right way.

Following the LORD is described as “the way”. If you have been reading Scripture, and praying for direction and following what you believe is the right course of action, a key question to ask is this: are you humble enough to admit when you are off-course? Just like someone engaged in orienteering can misread a map or hold the compass near his belt buckle which can have metals that can interfere with its accuracy, so the Christian can go for a while down a wrong path. When his way has proven to be wrong one of two things can happen. Through Scripture reading, prayer, the counsel of wise Christians he can discern his errors which threw him off course and then return to the way through confession, repentance and humble obedience to God. Or the one who had been playing the Christian when confronted with the fact he is off-course, will double-down and continue in what he thinks is right. It will lead to death. Emotional death. Death in relationship with other Christians. Eventually that person will be deemed a fool—one who by word and actions, denies God.

The Bible is filled with warnings precisely because it is so easy to go off-course. God in His great mercy gives the written word and gives His Holy Spirit so that believers can hear and obey. God the Father reconciles wayward Christians through the blood of His Son, Jesus. Believers will not leave the pathways of sin and destruction unless they have been taught right from wrong. Believers will not grow in holiness if they continually return to the mud pits of their own sinful ways. The grace of God is such that He warns His people. He provides Christian friends and counselors who lead others back to the pathway of holiness. The uprightness of God is experienced in the life of Christians who, having experienced the wrong pathway, can with urgent gentleness help others who are going down the wrong way return to Jesus. Doing so, confirms the experienced Christian in the goodness of God. God reminds him of his own past. God’s restoration means he has journeyed a long way in new obedience. God brings the fruit of joy. The fruit of joy fills him because God is using him to help others on the path of life. It is a confirmation of the healing and restoration of God.

Blessed Savior, Jesus, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Truly You are the radiance of the Father’s glory. You are the Captain of Salvation, leading soldiers who are disoriented by their old allegiances, pressured by the treachery of the world and lured off-course by the wiles of the devil, You lead them away from all that is death. Those captivated by Your goodness, You lead to the Father in heaven, where they are adopted as beloved sons and daughters. Spirit of God, let the glory of this adoption fill our senses so that we hate all that is wrong and sinful and rejoice in the truth. Spirit of God, lead us in humility, contriteness of heart so that as soon as our sinful ways are revealed to us, we confess them, hate them, and turn to Jesus. By the fruit of righteousness, let Your people approve what is excellent and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ. Amen.

https://youtu.be/rpYM6Et_hVY?si=l3n4C_du6l84_F8a He Leadeth Me

June 13, 2025

June 13, 2025 -- Jude 17-21 -- Facing persecution as one loved by God

June 13, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

But you must remember, beloved, that predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. They said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers following their own ungodly passions.” It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit. But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.
Jude 17-21 ESV

Where will the scoffers come from? Well, obviously there will be scoffers, people who mock you for your faith in Jesus Christ, at your workplace and school, in the courtroom and in your neighbourhood. But Jude is writing to believers, and I wonder, as he wrote, if he was remembering the fact that he grew up as a half-brother of Jesus and he rejected his brother. It was not until after Jesus’s death and resurrection that Jude became a believer. That is an important lesson for us. Even in the household of faith, among people who should know better, you’ll encounter ridicule.

Why? People are following their own ungodly passions. You see it in marriages. A couple who has been instructed in the Lord to forgive 70 x 7 times, are rude, mean, vindictive. Their pride and hurt feelings take precedence over their obedience to Jesus. Churches have leaders who don’t do everything in their power to live at peace with all who are in Christ. Calling out sin. Encouraging righteousness. Teaching there will be Christians who are following ungodly passions who need to be discipled back to holiness or disciplined harshly for the purity of the church. There are people who are Christians, who grieve the Holy Spirit, ignoring for a time, the obedience that is required of all those who are in Christ. But there are also those who masquerade as Christians, perhaps not even realizing their own hypocrisy. They are not bearing the fruit of righteousness but are causing divisions.

Do not give up, dear fellow believers. God knows those who are His. God commands you, in so far as it depends on you, to live sharing the love of Jesus Christ until such divisive people either expose their godlessness, repent and turn again to Jesus or eventually are removed from the fellowship because of their opposition to Jesus. How can you endure hard times when the scoffers seem to win, and faith seems so hard?

Build yourself up in your holy faith. Spend time with believers whose faith has been tested and tried and who are great encouragers. Read the Bible. It is always true. Always used by the Spirit to direct you. Attend Bible preaching, Bible believing churches.

Praying in the Holy Spirit is not limited to, but includes, praying the Psalms. Praying aware that the Holy Spirit will bring to mind people, situations, needs and over all of this, will lead you to praise God. When you praise God, you realize He is greater than all your worst situations. He is mighty to save. He is using you, and your hardships, for His glory and for the purposes of convicting others of their sins, leading others to Christ, and conforming you more and more to the pattern of Jesus, His Son.

Keep yourselves in the love of God—did you catch it, the word beloved. Twice in our short reading, Jude called the recipients of this letter “beloved”. Loved of God. Let that sink in. The hardships, the hurts, the vindictive actions of others are actually not aimed at your but are aimed at God. People see your faith and howl in protest. People see your desire to honour God, and their own sins rise before them as a stench so they push back against you. God has not forgotten you. He loves you. He is teaching you to stand strong in Him. To keep yourself in the love of God means you regularly review the fact you have been brought from death to life in Jesus Christ. Read Ephesians 3:14-19. (I know less than 10% of you will read this, so the summary is Paul prays that you’ll be strengthened by the Spirit in your inner being so that you’ll know how wide and high and long and broad is the love of God which is yours in Christ Jesus.) Even though I’ve summarized it, seriously, look it up. Read it! Spend time reflecting on it. Memorize it. It is a verse that helps keep you in the love of God which is so richly poured out on you.

Belonging to God and being loved by God does not mean that your life will be easy. Jesus was hated. He told His followers if the Master is hated, how much more will the servants of the Master be hated (John 15:18-25). Whenever you encounter reviling, hatred, scoffing, mocking and push-back because you are a Christian ask yourself these questions. Am I suffering because of my own wrongdoing? If so, correct it. If, after you have corrected your behaviour, you strive to walk in step with the Spirit and people (Christian or not) revile and hate and mock you, know that you are confirmed as a servant of the Master. You bear evidence of the fact that you are a follower of Jesus. Do not despair. Do not give up. The disciples rejoiced when they suffered for Jesus, because they realized they’d been counted worthy of the Gospel (Acts 5:40-41).

What great love, You Father, have given to us, that we should be called the sons and daughters of God. It is a great privilege to be Your children, both now, and perfectly so in eternity. Spirit of God, wean us from sin so that we get a distaste for it and ultimately hate it. Nourish us in the Truth of Scripture and wrap us securely in the love of God which is so richly ours in Jesus Christ. Propel us into the world, to the people who so desperately need to know the love of God. Keep us steady in affliction. Patient with those who oppose us. Joyful in gathering with Your people. Lead us in such fellowship to grow in love for and in faithful devotion to Jesus. Amen.

https://youtu.be/4-GM9w6IA2M?si=EE2QvFDhXhPA9Hyo How Deep the Father’s Love

June 11, 2025

June 11, 2025 -- Proverbs 11:1 -- Why is God concerned about weights and balances?

June 11, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

A false balance is an abomination to the LORD,
but a just weight is his delight.
Proverbs 11:1 ESV

Why on earth would a proverb like this be in the Bible? Great question. In fact, many times our questions lead us to seek answers and in the searching out answers, we learn more about our Great and Gracious God. In ancient times a false balance was something used to calculate the weight of a product to be sold. A false balance would be one that is tipped in favor of the merchant to increase his profits at the expense of the consumer. Weights were used for counterbalance and a false weight would be one that was less than true. Again, this is to the merchant’s benefit. Today, a false balance has an application in journalism. When a reporter gives two sides to a story, but the obvious bias shows one side gets the real weight and the other side is truncated, you have a false balance.

Where do we see a false balance today in journalism? LGBTG? stories are always weighted in favour of queer rights. Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) is emphasized as a good whereas Christians who believe life, from conception to natural death, is valuable as a gift from God is not given any weight.

In another arena of life, a false balance is starkly presented where Christianity is mocked while science is held up as the great revealer of truth. That is a false balance. How can science answer basic questions of life: How did we get here? What is wrong with the world? How can what is wrong be made right? What is the purpose of life? When science strays into those realms, it has moved from measurements and balance to philosophy and theology. It is usurping its proper function and is a false balance.

The fact that God is concerned for life in the marketplace, in the newsroom and in power structures is evidence He who created us has the right to tell us how to live.

The fact that people need rules and regulations in every area of life proves that the human heart is not basically good, but it is a restless, seething pit hosting evil.

The fact is God keeps account; He knows every deed of every person. No one will escape His justice.

The fact is, only God the Father has weighted the balance in our favour. We have violated His laws. Sin is the inclination of every heart. Sin commands obedience of everyone who is its slave. God in His great mercy, knowing people are helpless under the weight of their own sin and do in fact add to their debt-load to Him even when they utilize their best efforts to do good, acted to rescue those unable to help themselves. Jesus, the sinless one, at the cross was punished for every sin, every violation of God’s law, every wrong done.

Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. All who believe in Him have a balance that satisfied God’s righteous law. The just weight of God’s anger against sin is satisfied. The love of God is set on a proper balance so that the weight of our sin was put on Christ and the weight of His purity and righteousness was credited to all who believe. So, the justice of God touches the life of the believer in every single part and every level of his life. Public and private, business and pleasure, work and recreation, school and recess, no part of day or night is free from His sacredness.

To be righteous is to follow Jesus, keeping straight obedience to Him. The world is described as twisted and crooked. People who live according to the standards of the world do what is expedient. They do what suits the current narrative no matter how perverse. The believer does not twist himself into a pretzel to suit the world. The believer keeps his eye on Jesus and follows, knowing that in Jesus there is both justice and love. The Spirit of the Living God resides in all who call on the Name of Jesus, He is the powerhouse through whom believers can stay true when all around them it is chaotic. It is the Spirit of the Living God who teaches you that in Christ you are the Father’s delight, deeply loved.

Father in heaven who is like You? You are great in mercy and perfect in justice. You are honest in all Your ways. Thank You for reaching down and rescuing those ensnared by their own sin and guilt, helpless under their weight of sin. Jesus, our Rescue, the Captain of Salvation, let Your Name be blessed in our minds, in our words, and in all our living. Spirit of God lead us in the way of holiness, to be straight as arrows in our obedience, no matter the consequences nor the reactions of others. Keep our eyes fixed on the Jesus, the goal, the prize for all who respond to the upward call of God. Spirit of God, teach us to know Jesus, both intellectually but far more importantly, to know Him relationally, intimately. So that in Him we may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation among whom we shine as lights in the world. Amen

https://youtu.be/HudtQINJ81A?si=dZmdQcvNvIofcWFx ‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus’

June 09, 2025

June 9, 2025 -- Proverbs 9:1-6, 13-18 -- Where you at? The house of folly or the house of wisdom?

June 09, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Wisdom has built her house;
    she has hewn her seven pillars.
2 She has slaughtered her beasts; she has mixed her wine;
    she has also set her table.
3 She has sent out her young women to call
    from the highest places in the town,
4 “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”
    To him who lacks sense she says,
5 “Come, eat of my bread
    and drink of the wine I have mixed.
6 Leave your simple ways, and live,
    and walk in the way of insight.”

13 The woman Folly is loud;
    she is seductive and knows nothing.
14 She sits at the door of her house;
    she takes a seat on the highest places of the town,
15 calling to those who pass by,
    who are going straight on their way,
16 “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”
    And to him who lacks sense she says,
17 “Stolen water is sweet,
    and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”
18 But he does not know that the dead are there,
    that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.
Proverbs 9:1-6; 13-18 ESV

Notice that wisdom and folly both call out to the simple. The verses, which were not quoted today, but you should read (I’ll wait, seriously, look them up) note that a scoffer refuses to be corrected or instructed. A wise man who is instructed will be wiser still. What is the point?
The women wisdom and folly have both set a table. There are appealing delicacies on each table. The house of wisdom and the house of folly seem to be at the highest places in town. They are the places that are attractive, well-lit and beautiful. How can you tell the different between the two when both appear desirable?

Without the instruction of the LORD a man, or a woman, will not have the sense to choose right from wrong. Without the constant mentoring of faithful Christians, immature believers lacking discernment will think they are smart enough and strong enough to make decisions which affect their faith, their future, their very foundations. Without faithful, biblical preaching Sunday after Sunday, Christians will wither and die, and all discernment will leak out of them.

Common sense is not enough to distinguish right from wrong. A man who claims to be a Christian is dating a non-Christian. She is beautiful. She is willing to go to church, though she says she is open, her heart is more interested in gaining a moral man than she is interested in knowing Jesus. It is a trap for a foolish man.
A woman has a Christian boyfriend. She goes to church twice a Sunday; he once. She reads her Bible regularly and prays; he is a gamer and often misses his times with God. A wise woman needs to discern the fact she is more mature than he is. Worse yet, he might be a total poser, not even a Christian, but is a moral man masquerading as Christian. The mask will, one day, fall off. Especially if he is not willing to be corrected, for then she’ll know he is a fool, and not a Christian at all. And she is a fool for chasing him. She’ll regret her disobedience to Jesus.

When Jesus’ disciple John was an elderly man, he wrote to various Christian congregations and warned them. “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world “I John 4:1 ESV). There are so many things which on the surface appear to be safe, or neutral, or harmless, but they are the bait on the hook of the devil. When faced with a choice, apply the words of John. Examine your motives. Examine closely what is before you, is it from wisdom or is it good in appearance but the fruit of folly? Pray for the spiritual discernment you need. Let the Holy Spirit lead you, rather than allowing yourself to be led by your vices and wayward desires. False prophets sound so good—but ask yourself is everything they say in-line with the word of God? Are they humble? Can they be corrected when it is pointed out to them what they say was out of step with the word of God? Do their teachings come true? What is the fruit of their life? Can you see evidence of the fruit of the spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23 ESV)? If you’ve answered “no” to any or all the above discernment tools, be careful. Run. Such men or women are actually ministers of folly and join the wicked woman in wooing others to death.

Those who are wise unto salvation seek out Christian friendships. Those who are wise seek Christian mentors. Those who are wise for Jesus, love His word, the Bible. It is important to note that all the Bible is supposed to be in red letters. Why? It is inspired by the Spirit of God. Jesus quoted the Old Testament quite often so that believers should realize if they want to know Jesus, they must know all the Bible. He is the central figure, the cornerstone on which the whole Bible is built. Through Jesus ones comes to the Father. Those who are wise unto salvation attend church, regularly. Ask yourself right now, are you in the house of folly or in the house of wisdom?

Faithful Father, thank You for Jesus Christ, who has overcome the world. Jesus, who while walked this earth always choose wisdom, fully committed to walking in wisdom’s ways. Thank You for the gift of the Holy Spirit, the very same Spirit who filled Jesus to fullness beyond measure. By the powerful presence of Your Spirit in me, lead me in wisdom. Humble me in the areas of my life where I’ve been too proud or too blind to see that the way I’ve chosen is destructive. I hold to Your promise that everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. Everyone who has been born of God loves You, Father, and obeys Your commandments. Such obedience is not burdensome, but it is the response of love directed to You, Who rescued us in Jesus from the clutches of folly and eternal hell. What great love You have given to me, dearest Father, that I should be called Your child! Amen.

https://youtu.be/oxpPIa-BskY?si=1CbUbsMLBEO2b5N8 All I Once Held Dear

June 08, 2025

June 8, 2025 -- Isaiah 1:2-3 -- Heed the holy warning

June 08, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth;
for the LORD has spoken:
“Children I have brought up,
but they have rebelled against me.
The ox knows its owner, and the donkey its master’s crib,
but Israel does not know, my people do not understand.”
Isaiah 1:2-3 ESV

Isaiah the prophet ministered during the reigns of four kings. The first king, Uzziah, was a strong king but towards the end of his reign he faltered in his obedience to the LORD. His son Jotham became co-king. Jotham was faithful to God, but it is noted “The people still sacrificed and made offerings in the high places” (II Kings 15:35). Hezekiah, the last one of the four, was rich and dedicated to God; again, at the end of his reign he faltered in his obedience to the very God who’d proved so faithful to him through-out his reign. Why mention this? It is a warning for us, who live in the time of the reign of Jesus.

The people of God who lived in Judah, the two remaining tribes of what once was a nation of twelve tribes, had kings who followed the LORD, while they strayed. Isaiah, inspired by the faithful, Covenant-Keeping God, declares this people were not even as smart as dumb oxen or braying donkeys. The people, who should have known better, kept wandering from the LORD their God. It is so shocking.

Jeremiah picks up this same theme asking “Has a nation changed its gods, even though they are no gods? But my people have changed their glory for that which does not profit. Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the LORD” (Jeremiah 2:11-12 ESV). Imagine the nation of China one day saying, we are wrong. We should stop following Buddhism and Taoism and take up the cross of Jesus Christ. Yet Christians, who have the greatest King in Jesus, Who have the flawless writings of Scripture and the powerful presence of the Holy Spirit are dumber than oxen and exchange the glory of Jesus for paganism. Look how empty churches are on Sundays. Consider how many young people wander away, flirting with the wickedness of the world. Men and women who should know better, book up their Sundays so that going to church is crowded out with shopping, with visiting, with sports and all things which cause them to change their God for those things which are no gods.

Beloved people of God today is Sunday. Stir up your heart. Confess your sins. Leave the sinful ways that you’ve been traveling down and return to the Father who has called you His children through the work of Jesus. Take the warning from the word of God and renew your vows by going to the house of the LORD.

Why?

Because God is your Father.
Because Jesus is the prize of your life greater than any other.
Because the Spirit of God unites you to God so that you can read Scripture, understand the circumstances of your life from the perspective of heaven.
Because anything less than whole-hearted devotion to God proves you are rebellious against the God who created you, who by His mighty power gives you breath in your lungs and stimulates your heart to beat.
Because we know enough not to put any confidence in our own flesh or mind, for we are the people who worship by the Spirit of God, and glory in Christ Jesus.

If these words are offensive to you, ask yourself whether you are really a Christian at all. Have you drifted so far from the glory of God that you are exchanging the glory of God for things that do not profit you. If you take the warning, and feel conviction then God is at work in you. The Father is repairing the damage of your rebelliousness by drawing you close to Himself through the reconciling work of Jesus, where the Spirit bring to you deep healing of mind, refreshment of heart, and a soul zealous for Jesus.

Father of all glory and splendour, cause me to be humble enough to hear Your words of warning You put into the mouth of your prophet, Isaiah. By Your Spirit smarten-me-up to see the rebelliousness that still lingers in my soul. Faithful Father, thank You for the work of Christ Jesus, through whom I am reconciled to you, and by whose rule I am led in the paths of righteousness for Your Name’s sake. Spirit of God, renew in me a zeal to meet with the people of God and worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus, until that day of wondrous rapture and blessedness when I see Him face to face. Amen.

https://youtu.be/slQ6MTJLU4I?si=dVSA5Xw75yldou-w Come, Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy

June 06, 2025

June 6, 2025 -- Ephesians 5:1-2 -- Fragrance

June 06, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
Ephesians 5:1-2 ESV

Jesus, in giving Himself up for us, is described by Paul as a fragrant offering. The fragrance of Jesus’ life was released as He suffered. Look at these examples.

Mark 6:30 ff. Jesus had just been informed His cousin, John the Baptist, had been put to death by Herod. His disciples had just returned from going to various cities where He’d sent them to prepare the way. He wanted to take them to a desolate place, but crowds followed them. Jesus did not get annoyed. He had compassion on them and taught them. And then fed them.
John 18:15ff. After Jesus was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane, all his disciples fled. As He stood before the religious leaders, facing His death, Peter was outside, in the courtyard, denying he was ever a follower of Jesus. Though Jesus was being crushed for the sake of our sins, He endured to the end.

What is the hardest thing you have to face? Take a moment and think about it. As you face this living as a Christian, no doubt you will be crushed. Some of you may know that I like cooking. When you season your food with dried herbs, like parsley, what you need to do is rub it between your fingers as you’re adding it to your food, so that the taste and the fragrance of the herb is released. The fact that you are crushed means that the fragrance of following Jesus will be released. In a real sense, people will see what you’re made of. It is easy to follow Jesus when all things are well; but when you are tested to the core of who you are, and you remain faithful, that is witness. By the power of the Holy Spirit, enduring suffering for Jesus, that is love reflected back to Jesus, who first loved you.

Teach us, good Lord, to serve You as You deserve; to give and not count the cost; to fight and not to heed the wounds; to toil and not to seek for rest; to labour and not to ask for any reward, except the reward of knowing that we do Your will; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

For Courage. Divine Service Book for the Armed Forces, 1950. page 34

https://youtu.be/FAK2SaKQ1NQ?si=U7uhUmnuCCENNcg- A Christian’s Daily Prayer

June 05, 2025

June 5, 2025 -- Romans 1:1a -- Devotion to Jesus

June 05, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus…
Romans 1:1a

In New Testament times a letter writer identified himself first and then gave greetings to the person or people on the receiving end of the letter. Kind of like what we do with email today. The advantage is the read immediately knows who wrote the letter. Paul is writing a congregation that knows of him but doesn’t know him personally. His self-introduction is awesome and the importance of it is easy to miss.

First, he is a servant of Christ Jesus. In Greek it means both slave and servant. A slave can’t leave the service of his master. An Israelite who fell into debt could sell himself into slavery to a fellow Israelite so that his debt could be covered. If that slave loved his master, the law (Exodus 21:6) provided the opportunity for that man to declare his love for his master and his intention to remain his master’s slave for life. He’d then continue in service to his master instead of being released in the seventh year. There might well be the sense that Paul knew all his debts were atoned for in Christ Jesus and he openly declares he loves this master so deeply he chooses to give his life to Jesus forever.

Dr. M. Kruger, in his excellent video commentary on Romans, noted that the construction of our text today is identical to how Old Testament men of God were identified. For example, Moses the servant of the LORD is the expression used in Deuteronomy 34:5. Paul is identifying himself with Old Testament prophets and showing the continuity of the work of God. Like the Old Testament servants, Paul is a servant of God. That also means the Old Testament God, the LORD, is at work now through His Son, Jesus. The meaning is clear Jesus is God. The Father, who revealed Himself the Old Testament, continues His work through His divine (truly God) Son. There is continuity between the Old Testament and the New Testament.

When you meet someone, what is it you tell them? “Hi, I work at the corner store.” Or “I’m married to Carolyn, and we have this many children.” Or you meet someone at a sporting event and you both realize your shared enjoyment of that sport, which clearly tells the other person something about your life and interests. From the very start, Paul wants his audience to know he is all-in for Jesus. His most important identifying trait is he belongs to Jesus, and he loves to declare Jesus. Do the people in your life know you love Jesus? Is it obvious to everyone you meet You love Him? Do your words and actions reveal your dedication to Jesus shining out with fervor that shows the most important thing about you is your identity in Christ?

Father in heaven thank You for revealing Yourself in creation, and in the Bible, and then most perfectly revealing Yourself in Jesus Christ. Spirit of the Living God, let my life, work and play, day and night, ever more fully reflect the truth that Jesus has made me His own. In view of that beautiful fact, Spirit of God teach me to forget what lies in my past, so that I don’t park there. Empower me to strain forward to the prize of ever more fully, in every area of my life, making Jesus mine. Jesus as my prise. Jesus as my life’s reward. Jesus my joy and salvation. Amen.

https://youtu.be/8wfhhFHMgxY?si=8uTKP3SP0WKdKt5N Jesus is Mine

June 02, 2025

June 2, 2025 -- I Peter 2:1-3 -- Do you KNOW that the Lord is good?

June 02, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. 2 Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— 3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.
I Peter 2:1-3 ESV

Long for pure spiritual milk. Peter is making the contrast between longing for the former sins of malice and deceit and hypocrisy versus the longing passion for pure spiritual milk. Verse three is almost casual, but it is the key. Anyone who has tasted that the Lord is good will crave more and more of His goodness.

Earlier in this letter, Peter noted that the elect people of God have a living hope (1:3)—this world is not all there is. They crave pure spiritual milk because they know there will be a day when sin is no more, and the sweetness of Jesus will fill all their senses.

Peter notes that believers by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation to be revealed at the last time (1:5). The struggle is real. There are tearing hurts and slashing hardships which wound you now. Despite these believers like ravenously hungry little infants near the mother’s full breast turn this way and that seeking to nurse. As urgently, hungrily, as infants believers knowing the Lord is good, turn from past sins and nuzzle for pure spiritual milk.

Believers know all the various trials test the genuineness of their faith (1:6-7a). So, believers know by the presence of the Holy Spirit within them, that Jesus is better than all the things they used to use to sooth their greedy longings. Pure spiritual milk: bible reading, prayer, listening to sermons, the sweet Christian counsel of friends, these are all better than your best day when you were gorging on sin.

Fellow believer, have you tasted that the Lord is good? Do you know the sweetness of singing hymns and psalms and spiritual songs to God knowing that He alone is worthy of your praise?
Do you know the sweetness of spending time going to church, not because you must do so, but because you long to do so. I fear this is evidence of the fact that many believers have not tasted that the Lord is good. They drag themselves to church, maybe once on a Sunday, and think the Lord should be satisfied with that. It is the other way around. If you know Jesus, then your souls long to meet with Jesus surrounded by the people of God. The Holy Spirit within you stirs a craving to be with the people of God, receiving the word of God as a means of grace.

If what you’ve been reading doesn’t really describe you, perhaps it is time to evaluate, have you been returning to old sinful ways? Are you harboring malice? Are you allowing deceit to cloud your vision? Are you a hypocrite, stating you love God, but your true longings are oriented towards the old patterns of sinfulness and sating your senses with sensuality? The prayer today is from the Psalms. A beautiful prayer to recall the goodness of the LORD.

Prayer
I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
My soul makes its boast in the LORD;
let the humble hear and be glad.
Oh, magnify the LORD with me,
and let us exalt his Name together!
I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
Those who look to him are radiant,
and their faces shall never be ashamed.
This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him
and saved him out of all his troubles.
The angel of the LORD encamps
around those who fear him,
and delivers them.
Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!
Psalm 34:1-8 ESV

https://youtu.be/DciMh_ciwkk?si=Q4NcO9BglScUTHTk Psalm 34 (Taste and See)

June 01, 2025

June 1, 2025 -- Psalm 136:1 -- The refrain that echoes throughout time

June 01, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
Psalm 136:1 ESV

That refrain, “for his steadfast love endures forever” is repeated 26 times in this Psalm. As a child I thought the repetitiveness of it seemed so pointless. As an adult it took a long time to really begin to grasp what is happening whenever the refrain is repeated. If you’re in a soccer stadium and the fans of the home team begin their chant of support, it usually begins with a few guys until the sound of it increases as more and then even more people join in. Soon the stadium is filled with the roar of fans chanting. That’s what is happening with Psalm 136. It is as if a single person begins the refrain and soon more people join in. Then more take up the chant. Soon all the peoples of the earth join with all the saints above, finally joining in are all the creatures surrounding the throne. What an exuberant shout and song and combination of voices and instruments declaring HIS STEADFAST LOVE ENDURES FOREVER.

This refrain is used in II Chronicles 20:21 as well. A massive army surrounded King Jehoshaphat. He appealed to the LORD for help. Then having shouted encouragement to his people in the Name of the LORD, he appointed and sent out singers at the head of the army, who dressed in their holy attire were praising God saying, “Give thanks to the LORD, for his steadfast love endures forever” (II Chr. 20:21). Each time you read this refrain in the Bible you are reminded that Jesus is the Captain of Salvation. In the strength of Jesus, we face hordes of enemies and strong detractors and mighty and powerful haters of God knowing that for us to live is Christ and to die is gain. The Captain of Salvation may place us where the fighting is fiercest and we may be martyred for his cause, even so, his steadfast love endures forever. God our Father has authority over our lives now and the authority to determine where we will spend eternity. His steadfast love endures forever!

The greatest example of the Father’s steadfast love is Jesus Christ. You know the text so well, “for God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). Love took on flesh. Love is steadfast and everlasting because Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father in power.

Father in heaven great are you and worthy of praise—for your steadfast love endures forever. Mighty God thank you for your steadfast love perfectly demonstrated in Jesus Christ.
Spirit of the Living God help us as the people bathed in the radiant steadfast love of God to reflect our love to you, God, and shine such love to all those who you put into our path.
Triune God, whose steadfast love endures forever, gather us together this Sunday so that we, with all your people across the globe and across the centuries who are now in heaven, may exult you and with increasing fervor and joy declare: your steadfast love endures forever. Amen.

https://youtu.be/oLh0lhqknS4?si=JcOvWvT6r8rhGtLq Psalm 136 Song (great tool for memorization of this Psalm)

May 30, 2025

May 30, 2025 -- Daniel 12:1b-3 -- The glorious, radiant light of Christ

May 30, 2025/ Richard T. Vander Vaart

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book. And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn away to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.
Daniel 12:1b-3 ESV

It is God the Father who breaks down the stubborn resistance of men’s hearts so that they yield to Jesus. Without the intervening mercy of God, we’d live on as children who will experience the out-poured wrath of God. The Puritan Thomas Boston wrote by nature people chose evil and death every time, as consistently as water flows down hill. What follows is his graphic observation of human indifference to their wickedness in the face of God’s holiness.

Consider the utter inconsistency of most men’s lives with the principles of religion
which they profess; you may as soon bring east and west together, as their
principles and practice. Men believe that fire will burn them, and therefore they
will not throw themselves into it, but the truth is, most men live as if they thought
the Gospel a mere fable, and the wrath of God, revealed in His Word against their unrighteousness and ungodliness, a mere scarecrow. If you believe the doctrines
of the Word, how is it that you are so unconcerned about the state of your souls
before the Lord? How is it that you are so little concerned about this weighty point,
whether you be born again or not?
Thomas Boston Human Nature in it fourfold state, page 93

Those who have been captivated by the beauty of Jesus will turn from the wickedness of their sin, as surely as they’d avoid standing in a campfire. It is the fact that the Spirit of God has captured their hearts and torn out its proclivity to sin which makes believers recognize the violence of evil and how hideous an offense it is against the Holy One. It is precisely because God has loved His people with an everlasting love, has provided the full and final sacrifice of Jesus, and guards His people in the Holy Spirit that His wrath is not a mere scarecrow to His people. The Awesome One’s wrath is real. It is terrible. It was poured out on Jesus and He Who stood in our place, taking the punishment of God has become to us altogether precious. Worthy of our life’s devotion.

As the author of Hebrews noted, it is easy to drift away. So, we turn to the Bible. We devour it, are fed by it, are warned by it, are inspired. All who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above. The joy-filled straight-living of the godly are a bright witness to those who are perishing and headed to everlasting contempt. Those who are shining with the radiance of Christ are either blinding light so they will have scorn heaped on them by those who are hell-bound, or the radiance of Christ is so pure, such warm and wonderful light that those appointed for life will be drawn closer into fellowship with Christians until they too captivated by Jesus reflect His splendor in their lives.

Father of all mercy and covenant love, great are You and worthy of praise. Thank You for the radiance of Christ and the light of life that emanates from Him. Thank You for the work of Your Spirit, who captures wayward ones and brings them to the glorious light of Christ. Triune God, polish our lives inside and out so that in every part we who trust in Jesus will reflect His glory. Through our words and actions which are infused with the radiance of Jesus, draw many to Yourself in love. Amen.

https://youtu.be/fE51e2rKpUk?si=VGL1iASf2qk29wfR The Lord is my Light

Richard T. Vander Vaart

Richard T. Vander Vaart

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Richard T. Vander Vaart

June 30, 2025 -- Philippians 4:13 -- Strengthened in Christ

June 28, 2025 -- Proverbs 28:1 -- Are you running when no one is chasing you?

June 27, 2025 -- Acts 9:9-11 -- Behold, he is praying

June 26, 2025 -- Philippians 2:14-15 -- Living as the righteous, straight in the midst of a crooked generation

June 24, 2025 -- Proverbs 24:10-12 -- If you faint in the day of adversity...

June 22, 2025 -- Isaiah 26:1-4 -- The Fruit of the Spirit: Peace

June 19, 2025 -- Acts 16:40 -- The power of the Gospel to bring people together

June 18, 2025 -- I Peter 1:3-7 -- Facing Every Test

June 16, 2025 -- I Thessalonians 1:4-5a -- With full conviction

June 15, 2025 -- Psalm 68:19 -- God daily bears us up

June 14, 2025 -- Proverbs 14:12 -- Discerning what is right from what seems right

June 13, 2025 -- Jude 17-21 -- Facing persecution as one loved by God

June 11, 2025 -- Proverbs 11:1 -- Why is God concerned about weights and balances?

June 9, 2025 -- Proverbs 9:1-6, 13-18 -- Where you at? The house of folly or the house of wisdom?

June 8, 2025 -- Isaiah 1:2-3 -- Heed the holy warning

June 6, 2025 -- Ephesians 5:1-2 -- Fragrance

June 5, 2025 -- Romans 1:1a -- Devotion to Jesus

June 2, 2025 -- I Peter 2:1-3 -- Do you KNOW that the Lord is good?

June 1, 2025 -- Psalm 136:1 -- The refrain that echoes throughout time

May 30, 2025 -- Daniel 12:1b-3 -- The glorious, radiant light of Christ

Richard T. Vander Vaart

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