Allan Hall Nearer my God to thee

Something Is Not Better Than Nothing!

How many of you would drive a car with three wheels, fly in a plane with only one wing, or be happy to have your mail delivered just two doors down? When we examine life, and everything associated with it, we find that there are very few times we could say, something is better than nothing. Now perhaps to a starving man, a piece of bread is better than nothing at all, but in most cases, almost always, if you remove something that ought to be there, it just doesn’t work. The same is true in one’s relationship with the Lord. Most are under the impression that a little dab will do you, when it comes to Jesus. Many thinks that if I pray every now and then, go to church on occasion, or give when I think about it, all will be fine. So, the question becomes, is that true, or are most “believers” trying to drive a faith with only three wheels? The truth in Scripture is that there is never an occasion where anything but one’s total devotion and consecration to the Lord is acceptable. From the first commandment, to love Him with all our hearts, the stage is set for the rest of Scripture. You see the Scriptures dont say, God is a rewarder of those who put Him first on occasion, but rather it says God rewards, “those who diligently seek Him.” Scripture doesn’t say, blessed is the man that says he believes and ponders God on occasion, but rather, as the psalmist says, “Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart.” Likewise, Jesus did not say come follow me anyway that is convenient for you, but rather, “forsake all that you have, take up your cross daily, or you cannot follow me.” The world we live in is the biproduct of this, something is better than nothing, religion. As each generation drifts further and further from the truth, convinced that a little Jesus will do you, eventually, it will give way to a completely godless society, all because people believed, something was better than nothing. The real tragedy, however, is that this mentality produces nothing in the lives of those who accept it. You see except we abide in Him, we can do nothing, if we harbor sin in our hearts, He will not hear us, and if we do not bear fruit, we are cut down and cast into the fire. Scripture is clear when it comes to Jesus, something is not better than nothing, Jesus is all or nothing!

Rev. Joel M McDuffie Jr.

12/11/2018

White As SNow

White as Snow

“Come now, and let us reason together, says Jehovah; though your sins are as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow” … Isa 1:18 

There is something quite mesmerizing about snow, it is that “white,” a white that can make everything underneath it look beautiful. The color white and snow are both metaphors in Scripture for something quite beautiful as well. White is actually defined as that which is absent of any color, and so it represents the perfect Holy nature of God Himself. In Him, there is no shadow of turning, for He alone is perfect in Holiness. White is a picture for us of the sinless perfect essence of God Himself, in Him, there is no darkness at all. Snow is another interesting metaphor, for it is a picture of the blanket of purity that God lays over His children, much in the same way snow blankets the ground in the winter. Under that snow is all manner of darkness and decay, only now hidden by the beauty of the snow which now covers it. Snow is a picture of the righteousness that covers and blankets our sin, allowing us to appear beautiful as we are clothed in white raiment. However, there is another interesting aspect concerning snow on the ground, and that is, it makes everything not white stand out. Though there be a whole acre covered with snow, something as small as a little branch stands out like a sore thumb. The same is true of us and the sin in our lives. Like that little branch protruding through the snow, sin stands out, and breaks the tranquility of the blanket that surrounds it. Today, as we look outside, if we look with spiritual eyes, we can see the beauty of God’s Holiness, we can also see how we are made white, as He gently lays His righteousness, like a blanket of snow over us, but we can also see, how easy it is to take away from this beautiful image He has painted for us, by allowing sin into our lives. Living Holy as He is Holy, assures that others always see the beauty of the blanket of snow the Lord has laid over us!

Rev. Joel M McDuffie Jr.

12/9/2018