Daily Inspirations

  Good morning. Continuing with the thought of a light: nor do men light a lamp, and put it under a basket, but on the lamp stand; and it gives light to all who are in the house. God did not “light” us, and then hide us. We are not secret agents. We are to – let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. We are to lead people to Christ by our actions. The people of the world are watching us. A part of each person in the world wants us to succeed. They want to believe that Christianity really works – and will work for them. A part also wants us to fail. They want to say “see it doesn't work” so that they won't feel badly about the way they act. Our light reveals the darkness that is in them, and they try to hide from it. Jesus did not come to abolish the Law or the prophets – He came to fulfill them. Until heaven and earth pass away, not even the smallest part shall pass away from the Law until all is ac...

  Good morning. You are the salt of the earth! If the salt has become tasteless, how will it be made salty again? That is so true with Christians today. They are supposed to add flavor to the world around them; but they need to have flavor added to them. They could just not show up, and the world would be no different. That kind of salt is good for nothing anymore, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. That's a very bad destiny for someone who is a Christian. Not only are you salt: you are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. The world is very dark and needs our light. Remember: it is better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness. There are a lot of Christians though who do just the opposite. They decry all of the bad things that they see in the world; but they don't let their light shine before men. We are a city set on a hill. We are not supposed to be hidden; we are supposed to infiltrate the world and show them what t...

  Good morning. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (contrary to the logic that some preachers use on other scriptures, that does not mean that if you have not been persecuted for the sake of righteousness that the kingdom of heaven is not yours. That is called the inverse and is not equivalent to the original statement.) That does not mean that if you have been persecuted for political reasons or other things that the kingdom of heaven is yours. Blessed are you when men cast insults at you, and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, on account of Me. All of those things usually go along with being persecuted for the sake of righteousness. And what are we supposed to do? Rejoice and be glad – are you nuts? The reason we should rejoice – Your reward in heaven is great, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. In other words, you are in good company. There are some people...

  Good morning. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. I'm sure you have experienced people who are not merciful to others – they don't cut them any slack. I see it with professors concerning their students. They of course give perfect assignments and grade them perfectly; so 69.9999999 is a D. I sometimes wonder how they feel when some entity judges them that way. Do they accept that without complaint, or do they beg for mercy? Of course this is talking about much more serious things. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. In John it says that no man has seen God. The only begotten God has explained Him. There are two main words in Greek that mean clean/pure. This is the stronger of the two. In the other you could have two pure things mixed together, and it would still be considered pure. Sometimes it is translated holy. In this one you can have only one pure item. You have heard of being single minded; this would mean being single “hearted”. B...

  Good morning. John the Baptist has been taken into custody, and now Jesus comes preaching the same thing that he did “repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” He then calls Peter and Andrew his bro telling them to “follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” He then gets James and John. He preaches and heals, and multitudes follow. He then gives the beatitudes. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Of course, poor in spirit does not mean “oh woe is me”. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Our strength and power is in Christ, not in ourselves. We cannot do it on our own – we need His help. There are too many Christians who think that it is up to them to live the Christian life. But if it were, then they could brag about it. It is all His doing. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Think of a time when you most des...

  Good morning. Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. You must be careful about taking translations literally; but the way it reads the whole purpose was to be tempted by the devil. After He had fasted 40 days and nights, then He became hungry. I don't know if the 40 nights was included to show that He did not break the fast with an evening meal like the Muslims during Ramadan. Then the tempter came to Him and said “ if You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” (Lust of the flesh) 40 days prior a voice from heaven said that He was God's beloved Son. Did the devil visually appear to Jesus or was it just a voice in His head? In all three cases that occurred, Jesus answered with the word. Man does not live on just bread but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. Then the devil takes Him into Jerusalem and has Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple. Again the questioning of who He is, only this time the dev...

  Good Sunday morning. So Joseph awakens and does what the angel told him to do. Jesus is born in Bethlehem and the magi come looking for him. Herod tries to trick them into finding out where the baby is and telling him. The star that they had seen in the east shows them the way. They come into the house and see the baby with His mother. (I'm sure you've heard this before – they did not come to the manger.) They give Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. You may or may not know that myrrh is part of the holy anointing oil. Frankincense is part of the holy incense burned to the Lord. God warned them in a dream to go home a different way. Joseph has another dream with an angel telling him to take Jesus and His mother and go to Egypt. He does so immediately. Herod kills the babies. Joseph has another dream and the angel tells him to go home. Joseph hears that Herod’s son is ruling in Judea and is afraid. God warns him in a dream – and he goes to Nazareth. John the Baptist co...

  Good morning. Last time we finished the New Testament. I am going back to the book of Matthew. Now I'm sure you remember that Matthew starts with the genealogy of Jesus. That can be kind of boring, so most people skip it. There are a couple of interesting things, one of which is that Boaz’s (The dude that married Ruth) mother was Rahab. She was from Jericho not Israel, so it is not surprising that he married a foreigner also. It also shows that Jesus’ ancestors included people who were not descendants of Abraham - they were Gentiles. It then talks about Mary being with child by the Holy Spirit and Joseph wanting to put her away secretly. He was told by an angel to not do that, and that the child's name should be Jesus - for it is He who will save His people from their sins. Names of people were very important in those days. They revealed something about the person. For example Abraham's name was changed from Abram, when he was about to become the father of a multitude. Ja...

  Good morning. Let the one who hears say, “Come“. And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost. I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book; if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book. That’s pretty scary; but if one is not a Christian, he or she would not believe that was going to happen to them anyway. He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming quickly“. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen. That is the end of the book of Revelation, and the end of the New Testament. Father thank You for giving us the words of the New Testament. They are words of life that will minister to us and guide us forever and ever. Amen! AND THAT IS THE END OF THE N...

  Good morning. The Spirit and the bride say, “Come". The first question – do you hear the Spirit saying “Come“ in your church or other meetings? At the time this is written, I do not hear anything about “Jesus, Come” from the Holy Spirit in church or elsewhere. That may change by the time you read this. The second question – do you hear the bride, the church, saying “Come“, Jesus? While that is happening now in some countries where there is oppression of believers, it is not happening in those countries where Christians are “comfortable”. Oh they will say they want Jesus to come; but do they really? The natural tendency is to want to see what happens to your children and grandchildren as they grow up, and even what happens in your own life. If Jesus comes now, you won’t see that. Also, if you have any friends or relatives that are nonbelievers and Jesus comes now, they are not going with Him. Could you endure that? There is no guarantee that they would believe before they die. Wo...

  Good morning. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. Jesus said the same words at the beginning of the book of revelation. Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs and the sorcerers and the immoral persons and the murderers and the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices lying. That sounds like a motley crew. I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and descendent of David, the bright morning star. Revelation starts out saying “He sent and communicated it by His angel to His bond servant John“. Father thank You for Jesus, the bright morning star!

  Good morning. Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near (of course if He said 2000 years from now, nobody would shape up). John WAS told in an earlier chapter to seal up what was spoken by the seven peals of thunder. Let the one who does wrong, still do wrong; and the one who is filthy, still be filthy; and let the one who is righteous, still practice righteousness; and the one who is holy, still keep himself holy. I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done. We might can hide what we have done from those around us; but we cannot hide what we have done from God. As someone once said, “God will get you in the end – I’m not saying which end”. Father help us to always live our lives as if Jesus could appear any moment and see what we are doing.

  Good morning. “Behold, I am coming quickly. Blessed is he who heeds the words of the prophecy of this book”. The word translated quickly means swift, fleet, quick. It has been 2000 years since this has been written, so it probably means the manner in which He comes not the time length. I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed me these things. “Do not do that. I am a fellow servant of yours and of your brethren the prophets and of those who heed the words of this book. Worship God“. Whether Jesus comes in a short time or a long time, help us to be ready to go when He comes.

  Good morning. He said to me, “these words are faithful and true“; and the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent His angel to show to His bond servants the things which must soon take place. The Greek word translated “take place“ is a different form of the Greek word in Luke chapter 1, when the angel told the father to be of John the Baptist that he would not be able to speak “until these things he had said about John take place”. There it should have been translated “begin to take place“, because most of the things did not happen until 30 years later. So this probably should be translated “the things which must soon begin to take place“, since most of the things still have not happened almost 2000 years later. Father thank You that You have warned Your people of the things that will happen at the end.

  Good morning. There will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will the illumine them (also mentioned a few verses before); and they will reign forever and ever. In Daniel chapter 7, it says that the saints of the Highest One will receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, for all ages to come. Father help us to always walk in Your light so that we may one day reign with You forever.

  Good morning. ... in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing 12 kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing (mentioned in Ezekiel 47) of the nations. There will no longer be any curse (mentioned in Zechariah 14); and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond servants will serve Him. They will see His face (in John chapter 1 it says that no one has seen God at any time. God would not even let Moses see His face), and His name will be on their foreheads. Father multiply Your blessings upon the reader and his/her family.

  Good morning. Nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life (we have seen this phrase several times. The book of life was first mentioned in the book of Exodus.). Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb. Flowing water in the old testament was known as “living“ water. This isn’t just a little brook; it is a full flowing river from the throne of God. In Ezekiel 47 it talks about water flowing from under the threshold of the house (temple) toward the east, from south of the altar. We will continue this tomorrow. Father thank You that the river of the Holy Spirit flows in our hearts continuously!

  Good morning. I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun or the moon to shine on it (Isaiah 24 says that the moon will be abashed and the sun will be ashamed), for the glory of God has illuminated it (this will be mentioned again in a few verses - Isaiah 60 says you will have the Lord for an everlasting light), and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. In the daytime (for there will be no night there), its gates will never be closed; and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it. We will continue this tomorrow. Father thank You for Your healing power upon the reader and his/her family.

  Good morning. The material of the wall was jasper (A mixture containing quartz that can be used as ornamentation); and the city was pure (nothing was mixed with it like jasper was) gold like clear glass. The foundation stones (they were perfectly square to make sure that the building was properly set up) of the city wall were adorned with every kind of precious stone. There were 12 of them, each of a different mineral. We won’t list them. And the 12 gates were 12 pearls; each one of the gates was a single pearl (imagine the size of the oyster that would have a pearl big enough to be a gate). And the street (not plural)   of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. We will continue tomorrow. Father continue blessing and taking care of the reader and his/her family.

  Good morning. The one who spoke with me had a gold measuring rod to measure the city, and its gates and its wall. The city is laid out as a square, and its length is as great as its width; and he measured the city with the rod 1500 miles (of course John didn’t know anything about miles or kilometers); its length and width and height are equal. A city 1500 miles x 1500 miles would be huge; but this one is also 1500 miles high. That third dimension makes it unbelievably large. Can you think of a city that is somewhere around that far from you? Then imagine it having a width the same. Now think of it being that high. Maybe you better make sure someone is there to pick you up off the floor after you faint, before you do that. And he measured its wall, 72 yards (again John did not know anything about yards or meters), according to human measurements, which are also angelic measurements (that is an interesting statement). We will continue with the description of the city tomorrow. Fath...

  Good morning. John then goes into great detail describing the new Jerusalem.… Having the glory of God. Her brilliance was like a very costly stone, as a stone of crystal clear Jasper. It had a great and high wall, with 12 gates, and at the gates 12 angels; and names were written on them (the gates, not the angels 😊 ), which are the names of the 12 tribes of the sons of Israel. There were three gates in each of the four directions. And the wall of the city had 12 foundation stones, and on them were the 12 names of the 12 apostles of the Lamb (remember that Judas was replaced with Matthias by drawing lots after praying). We will continue this description next time. Father help the reader to understand all that You have written about the last days.

  Good morning. But for the unbelieving…, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, “come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb”. Who are you expecting the angel to show John? A little earlier one of the angels said that the believers were the bride of Christ. He carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. But wait! He said he was going to show John the bride, and he showed him Jerusalem. A few verses earlier it did say that John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. Sometimes people come up with some strange “doctrines” based on a verse or two they don’t fully understand. Father thank You that we are the bri...

 Good morning. He who sits on the throne said, “behold, I am making all things new. Write, for these words are faithful and true“. It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end (Jesus also said this to John at the beginning of the book). I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. Nothing we get from God costs us anything – He paid for it all. He who overcomes (The same phrase was used in the letters to the seven churches at the beginning of the book) will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son. Father thank You that we will overcome, and we will inherit these things and be Your children!

  Good morning. Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “behold, the tabernacle of God is among men (Way back in chapter 7, it talked about those who came out of the great tribulation, and said that God would spread His tabernacle over them), and He will dwell among them; and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes (also mentioned in chapter 7); and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away”. Father thank You that even now You wipe away the tears from our eyes.

  Good morning. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, everyone of them according to their deeds. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. In I Corinthians chapter 15, it says that the last enemy that will be abolished is death. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. First it was the antichrist and the false prophet; then the devil; and now all of the unbelievers are thrown into the lake of fire. Father thank You that our names are written in the book of life, and we will not be thrown into the lake of fire.

  Good morning. Now we come to what is known as the great white throne judgment: then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. The order is interesting. When we say it, we would normally say heaven first and earth second. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life (mentioned several times before); and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. In John chapter 5, Jesus said, “an hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment“. Are these dead, ones that we have not talked about previously (possibly those who lived before Jesus); or are they ones we have already mentioned wh...

  Good morning. And they (this great multitude) came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and devoured them (another quick end of a battle). Think about the setting for a moment. They are surrounding not only the camp of the saints, but also an entire city. Just how many people would that take? And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. Isaiah 27:1 says “in that day the Lord will punish Leviathan, the fleeing serpent, with His fierce and great and mighty sword, even Leviathan the twisted serpent”. Father continue to bless and take care of the reader and his/her family meeting all of their needs.

  Good morning. Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years. When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison, and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth. Who are these people that he will deceive? Remember that we have already had the beast and false prophet thrown into the lake of fire, and those that were with them were killed with the sword from the mouth of Jesus. Also in chapter 7 there was a great multitude who were the ones that had come out of the great tribulation. So who are these that the devil will deceive? Are they the nonbelievers that were alive when the armies assembled to make war with Jesus, but did not participate, or are they people who were born during 1000 years but have not made Jesus, Lord? Gog and Magog (these are mentioned in the ...

  Good morning. Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. Who are “they“? Are “they“ the ones following Jesus on white horses, or are they the ones mentioned next? And (“I saw” - these words are not in the Greek) the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshipped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for 1000 years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. This is the first resurrection. Whoever these souls are, they did not worship the beast and had not received the mark; so they must have been alive during the tribulation and not part of the raptured church. If this is the first resurrection, were not those who were raptured resurrected already? ‘tis a puzzlement. Father thank You that no matter who these souls are, we w...

  Good morning. Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. In II Thessalonians 2:7 it says: “he who now restrains (the man of lawlessness) will do so until he is taken out of the way”. There are those who say that the “he“ is the Holy Spirit, and thus believers are no longer on the earth (raptured) since the Holy Spirit is no longer on the earth. But here it is a “mere” angel who has bound Satan; so the one in Thessalonians does not have to be the Holy Spirit. There were other things that we said about that verse in Thessalonians. And he threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time. Father thank You that the enemy will not be able to deceive u...

  Good morning. And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshipped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone. [My Bible says: although the designation Gehenna is not used here, this is what John refers to. Originally the site of a cultic shrine where human sacrifices were offered, it came to be equated with the “hell“ of final judgment in apocalyptic literature.] And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh. Ta-da! That’s it; the whole battle. Boring! Father thank You that we don’t have to worry about being the main course in the supper for the birds!