Bragging On Jesus

For more go to braggingonjesus.com Short People (Being Snappy & Angry) R Aylor Randy Newman's 1977 album included a song entitled “Short People”. It was a song about prejudiced from an extreme biased lunatics viewpoint… and it was actually about people who are short in stature. But today I’d like to think about “Short People” a little differently. This month, we are to include a pun within our brag on Jesus talk and basically the whole subject and message of the sermon is the Pun. The world has way too many short people. By “short” I'm not talking about Brad Chase or Joe Espinosa... No, its not about being short in stature... these men may be some of the tallest, biggest men around these parts within the kingdom of God. I am referring to a culture of people who are short tempered... not patient with others... always in a hurry to do their well intentioned plans... One person I am talking about is myself because I fall into that “short” category quite often. I want us to look at James 1:19… and James says to

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 19:5 A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who breathes out lies will not escape. Yarn Spinner R Aylor Of course this text points us to the 9th commandment in Exodus 20:16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor." One might think this is referring to our life on earth and that a liar will be punished in being brought before the magistrate and sentenced… Or maybe someone who lies on the witness stand? Is the verse referring to either of these situations? Maybe Solomon, when he heard of it… punished those who breathed out lies in his kingdom. But, I suppose in every society there are liars who never stand before a court for all their false witnesses. Even in a general sense every person I suppose breathes out deception to others. We lie with our body language and the inflections of our voice every day. We deceive at work and home and to our spouse. When we allow false impressions to continue… We become experts at

Proverbs in 365 Devotions Proverbs 19:4 Wealth brings many new friends, but a poor man is deserted by his friend. ​ A Plethora Of Friends R Aylor Here is another common sense proverb. We know this truth… We see it in everyday life and in the News. When a person becomes homeless they don’t make a whole lot of new friends… they may begin to build trust among others that are in the trenches with them… but even then, not all of them… Some who are desperate even those who they may have thought were their friend steal and take advantage of them. And what about those who have recently acquired much wealth… maybe they won a sweepstakes or the lottery or received an inheritance. Yes of course… friends seem to pop out of the woodwork. Of course, these are the ways of the broken world we live in. But remember, the kingdom of God operates much differently than the world. I like the movie genre of Sci-fi and some Fantasy shows. And so I have this kind of personal analogy of the kingdom of God. I’m sure its not perfe

Taste And Tell R Aylor In want to read some and narrate some in 1st Peter chapter 1, then let verse 9 be our focus. (Note: This is not a full transcript of the audio) 1 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. Notice it says how we should long to drink spiritual things if we have tasted that the Lord is good. I will probably never know if I like certain things in the food chain. I don’t recall tasting cottage cheese, cauliflower or buttermilk… maybe I did as a child but don’t remember. Oysters, snake, rat, armadillo… My brother Jon is braver than anyone I know in this category and will try just about anything. If you have tasted the goodness of God in Jesus… If he has shown you what it means that he is good news for your sin… If he has opened your eyes to see him as beautiful and the greatest treasure in the Universe a

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggiingonjesus.com Proverbs 19:2 Desire without knowledge is not good, and whoever makes haste with his feet misses his way. 3 When a man’s folly brings his way to ruin, his heart rages against the Lord. ​ Suppressing The Knowledge R Aylor 2 Desire without knowledge is not good, and whoever makes haste with his feet misses his way. Verse 2 makes me think of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the Garden Of Eden… the one tree God said not to eat of… It sounds funny to say it but Adam and Eve did have the knowledge of what was good to eat and what was evil to eat without having to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil… God had given them this knowledge… however they refused to believe God and set that knowledge aside. Once we do that we are prone to make haste… We run to the sin that so easily besets us and tripping on our passionate desire we miss our way. It’s the same for us in hundreds of life examples… The desire of our eyes causes us to

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 19:1 Better is a poor person who walks in his integrity than one who is crooked in speech and is a fool. ​ Integrity Vs. Crooked R Aylor As some today believe in a type of gospel that says the good will always be rich in money on this earth… so it was in Solomon's day and he says… No! Today Solomon tells us how there is something better than a foolish person with bent, twisted, crafty, dishonest, untrustworthy speech… and that is… a man who walks in integrity; in truth and with honor… Even a man who is dirt poor?… Yes… So I infer from Solomons words that someone who is homeless on the street without a penny to their name but who walks with honor is better than a liar. And yet, we are all tempted to rationalize crooked speech for various reasons… It may be that we believe that we deserve to manipulate others for our own good because we have been deceived ourselves and taken advantage of. We rationalize and our speech becomes twis

Proverbs 18:24 A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. Most often we human beings favor friendship over enemy-ship whenever possible. We are creatures who want to be liked. We typically feel better about ourselves when many people like a post we put on social media… And if we happen to have a lot of followers on twitter or friends on facebook and instagram then that gives us a sense of clout and makes us look and feel important and loved. And in the real world where thumbs up and thumbs down are actually messy relationships where we see one another flaws close up... we still long to be loved. I think social media platforms have cultivated this defensive way of communicating… a false sense of cheap friendship and accountability and a need to have an abundance of so called friends. Our brokenness drives us to make everything we type about us… Whether wanting sympathy for ourselves for our hardships or making ourselves look good with doctored photo’s

Proverbs 18:23 The poor use entreaties, but the rich answer roughly. What is an entreaty? An entreaty is a plea or request… It can be a solicitation like begging or pleading… these are all entreaties. So why might the poor use this kind of appeal towards others? The reason I think is because they have little or no leverage, or sway; people don’t jump when they speak… their opinions and counsel carry little weight with those in a higher financial class. It is the rich who predominantly control politics and the rules of the world. Even in America where we live in a type of representative democracy the wealthy have influence in law making and the overall order of things from small town politics all the way up to state and national. So yes, the poor use entreaties… They do not command others… they ask and beseech… No one backs them up… they have no big stick that can overcome the club of money and wealth. Today Im not addressing the reason someone is poor in money or who’s fault it is that someone is imp

Please don’t ever think that marriage is not a gift from God. It is wonderful! Look, I know that there may be a lot of guys saying… surly there must be a translation issue with the original text… I mean… Was Jezebel good for King Ahab? What about Job’s wife? Didn’t she counsel him to curse God and die? Was Delilah good for Samson? Or you might be thinking “You haven’t met so-n-so”. Well, I think one of the best examples of a good wife might be found in Proverbs chapter 31 which starts out in verse 10: “An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels”. Still, marriages are between two broken people… With that being said lets think about how God may have meant for husbands and wives to be good for one another mutually. Here’s the deal… We are all damaged people… And if you want to grow closer to and emulate your Creator, then marriage is a true gift! This institution might just be the best theological seminary in learning about God and how he loves us and how we are to love him and o

Proverbs In 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 18:13 If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame. Today’s proverb reminds me of watching Jeopardy on tv. You know, the game show… Of course Alex Trebek always gives the answer before the contestants guess the question… Let me read our text again: Proverbs 18:13 If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame. They buzz in with what they think the question is before he finishes giving the answer… So in their case the answer is really the question… Confusing right? Well Solomon is not confusing at all compared to Jeopardy and especially myself. He simply tells us how it is a shame to answer before you hear someone… The positive of what Solomons focus on is on hearing. We need to be better listeners. Oh how many a time has another person interrupted me and tried to comment on what I was saying as if they knew exactly what it was. I might say something like “You know, just the other day I was

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 18:15 An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge. Earquest R Aylor Can the ear seek out that it might find Like the doe seeks out the light of day Like a man pursues true love divine Or a mountain lion seeks its prey Check out any gossiper, you can almost watch their ears grow Like a magic bean stalk or Pinocchio’s nose Yes, the tongue is a fire, but it still takes the ear To help spread its flames, of scandal and fear So then what’s in our heart depends how we listen The ear of the wise also thrives in their mission Knowledge for good in our charge for God’s glory Quest to proclaim the good news of His story So may we all listen with the greatest of pleasure To the beautiful sounds that proclaim Jesus Christ As the supreme, unsurpassed, incomparable treasure Who’s glory transforms us and gives us life

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Approaching Disagreements Proverbs 18:18 The lot puts an end to quarrels and decides between powerful contenders. 19 A brother offended is more unyielding than a strong city, and quarreling is like the bars of a castle. To cast lots is not the same as gambling. However it was a bit like rolling dice. From what I gathered, one way lots were cast was that markings were put on sticks or stones and cast on the ground. They were then interpreted depending on how they fell and for what kind of decision was being made. Casting lots has been used throughout history to make decisions when people are so distraught that they do not have an inkling of what to choose. It has also been used to settle severe disputes when two parties agree to the outcome beforehand. Gods sovereignty is also related to casting lots and we may look more at that at another time. I suspect that of all the almost 8 billion people in the world no two agree about every single issue.

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 18:20-21 From the fruit of a man’s mouth his stomach is satisfied; he is satisfied by the yield of his lips. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits. Tongue Control R Aylor When contrasting guns and tongues there is hardly a comparison… I mean tongues are a lot more deadly… but guess what… I’m gonna give it a try. Sure some measure of gun control is necessary… but what about the tongue. Our text says death and life are in it’s power. If it were not for the part about life it should be against the law to bring them in town. Please put them on safety when you bring your tongue to family reunions and when you get together for Christmas and Thanksgiving. The tongue can bring life, yes but when used by broken people… us criminals if you will… we can do a lot of damage with them. So, as with guns… as stated, keep the safety on in all the situations we looked at. Also when tweeting and faceboo

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 18:16 A man’s gift makes room for him and brings him before the great. The Gift / R Aylor What might you have to present before the king of an empire? A mans gift could be many things, but surly it must be something fantastic. A gift of gold will likely get you into his presence… What can you offer the king that he might like or enjoy? It could be that you are an excellent player of the lute… maybe you can juggle… To learn all these things took work, right?… sweat and practice… even with the gold… you had to mine the ores for years to get that much gold. Or you had to work hard earning that gold for a long time… And what if the lute player was a beginner… or just played so so?… would they be worthy to play for the king? No of course not. However, if you took lessons and practiced until your fingers bled and you finally developed calluses until the day you became an expert. Then you would be worthy to give your gift of performance to the k

Amazing Grace House Of Rising (Son) with Harmonica

Proverbs In 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 18:17 The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him. Most likely we’ve all been falsely accused many times in life… If not it’s probably coming. But at the least there is a silver lining about being accused… You see, the accuser usually states their case first like our text refers to. That means we get to hear the charge and the evidence before we respond… unfortunately many times we hear it from others besides the accuser. Still, if the claim is false then many times we can provide detailed proof against the lies. But there may be times when we do not want or need to respond depending on the circumstances. You see, for a believer who’s character is honest and who has been one who repents and confesses when they have wronged others, accusations are usually not a problem. When your character has been observed by those around you for years… your attributes and sense of honesty will be known by them.

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 18:14 A man’s spirit will endure sickness, but a crushed spirit who can bear? ​ Crushed! R Aylor One of the highest goals of satan I think… is to crush the spirit of believers. This takes my mind back to remembrance of Gods prophecy about his only Son after Adam and Eve failed God. Speaking to the serpent God said this in: Genesis 3:15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” The ESV version uses the word bruise. Others use bruise, strike and crush. So, the offspring of the woman would be struck, crushed and bruised on the Cross as he willingly took the wages of our own sin… Right? And yet Jesus defeated death itself by his awesome perfection and power of God. Look, the truth is that though satan has been overcome on the Cross… though his head is bruised, bloodied and deformed and his power belittled and defeated… he still foo

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 18:5 It is not good to be partial to the wicked or to deprive the righteous of justice. Justice and Impartiality R Aylor This is a great verse. It is straightforward. There is no apparent puzzle to what Solomon says. It probably needs no exposition… But let’s pause briefly on its simplicity… To the best of my knowledge, some sense of justice… some system of justice is built into every Nation… every peoples in the world. But… at the same time… in this broken world, no process for justice is 100% effective. Evil slips through the cracks even in the best judicious structure. I think it’s clear to all that there are times when evil gets rewarded and righteousness is punished,… I suspect much more often than we know. I mean, just think about it when you watch forensic files or cold case documentaries. We live in a culture where many think the definition of justice is to weigh the balance of the wrong committed with the good things that person

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 18:4 The words of a man’s mouth are deep waters; the fountain of wisdom is a bubbling brook. Here Solomon tells us how listening to a mans words can tell us what is down deep his heart. This goes for a wise man as well as a wicked man. Oh, it’s true that hearing one clip or one tweet from a man might not be enough to tell what is down deep… but over a period of time we can recall a lot of hashtags of what that person has said before. We remember how they spoke about others they disagreed with… If they ever wished them well… we can weigh the conflicting hashtags and be wise to the context of their words. The truth is that deep waters of both a wicked person and a wise person are just waiting to come out. Jesus himself said in Matthew 12:34 For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. So, we find that one heart is contaminated with toxins and the other is life giving and pure… and they both always find a way to the surface. I

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 18:10 The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe. 11 A rich man’s wealth is his strong city, and like a high wall in his imagination. 12 Before destruction a man’s heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor. ​ Strong Tower R Aylor Gods name lets us know he is trustworthy… you see throughout the Old Testament his name carries with it all kinds of adjectives that describe his holiness… who He is… We see his attributes over and over which give him praise for his character. So you want to know God better this is a good place to study about why the name of the Lord is a strong tower we can run to to be safe. On the other hand… a man who’s fists are clenched tight around his money… Well, let’s back up… a man can be rich in many ways… it’s whatever he clenches his fists around right?… It might be money for sure… but it might be influence, a big house, beauty… clothes, even health… I suppose we migh