Come and Die to See How God Works – Purity 1801
Purity 1801 10/30/2025 Purity 1801 Audio Podcast
Purity 1801 on YouTube:
Good morning,
Today’s photo of a patched asphalt pathway running down through the countryside adorned with the colors of Autumn comes to us from yours truly as I captured this simple scene of beauty while walking along Route 40 on Easton on Friday, October 24th.
Well, It’s Thursday and I share today’s pathway photo as a visual encouragement or reminder to get on or to stay on the path of Christian Discipleship where we may not always be clear of life’s troubles but we are always assured of God’s ever present goodness and faithfulness.
But sad as it is, this path of freedom, peace, and joy isn’t for everybody. Bonhoeffer famously said that “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.” but unfortunately many a “sinner saved by grace” will choose to live in sin rather than answer Christ’s call to die. In Christ we have a new life, but God gives us free will and our decisions can keep us from experiencing it.
Just yesterday I had a “friend” in recovery basically tell me that this path isn’t for him. He assured me that he was going to continue church but he was essentially done with “Christian recovery”.
Believe me when I say that “I get it”. I can understand that coming into an environment where people are quoting scripture and are taling about having a personal relationship with God be scary. When you see people talking about faith and choosing to live according to what the Bible says in this secular world, you get nervous. May be these people are a cult? May be these people are trying to brainwash me? Trust me, as someone who came to faith in Jesus after years of being completely separated from Hiim and anything to do with Christianity, I understand. I was the biggest skeptic about my new life in Christ and even though I may have put my trust in Jesus, I didn’t trust “church people”.
But when you get that call from Jesus, to believe, and to come and die, your heart compels you to be bold and courageous and to see where He is calling you. If the word or sign from the Lord to bring you into His kingdom is from Him, your spirit is able to see that Jesus is the way and that the only way to find meaning and purpose in life is to follow Him… but even if you see that you still have to get past your fear and choose to go and see for yourself how God works.
Speaking of how God works, the In Touch with Dr. Charles Stanley devotion for today is entitled that and I am sharing it on the blog to encourage us all to get past our fears and to boldly go where God leads us, even if its scary. Dr. Charles Stanley writes:
“How God Works
Ask God to help you see the ways He is at work in your life.
Genesis 45:3-8
Transforming believers into reflections of Jesus can be a long process of small changes, which means God’s work may seem slow to us. For example, Abraham was assured he would be the father of nations (Genesis 15:1-5). Nonetheless, he had to wait decades for his son Isaac to be born. Even though God was at work the entire time, Abraham must have wondered if the pledge had been forgotten.
Believers like to share stories about the Lord’s dramatic intervention in their life. Knowing that He provides, rescues, or heals is both exciting and reassuring. But He also works in ways that may seem inconsequential. For example, Joseph was just a servant in Potiphar’s household—yet this was his first step toward becoming the country’s second-in-command (Genesis 39:1-4; Genesis 41:41). It’s a good reminder that God has a purpose for everything that comes into our life.
If you want to experience God in action, you don’t have to wait for Him to do something big. Be attentive, because every day is an opportunity to see Him at work. Get into His Word so you can understand how He has acted in the lives of others. Then watch for His involvement in your own.” – Charles Stanley
Amen. At the end of nearly every episode of my podcast, I encourage those who don’t know the Lord to seek Him and to pray. Sometimes I’ve said “Say a prayer to the Lord to reveal Himself to you” because I know that no matter where we are in terms of our faith, the Lord is faithful to meet us where we are at and He will show Himself to us, some way and somehow, perhaps in small ways.
How does God work? That’s the question isn’t it?
Well, I can’t say I know everything there is to know about that, but I can tell you that the Bible is the best place to go to learn more about Him. The Bible is God’s word, and it tells the story of God and man and how the Lord developed a way for sinful men to be forgiven and to be given the power to overcome sin and death.
Spoiler alert: it’s through faith in Jesus Christ – that’s how God works – through grace and faith in Jesus.
So, God did the heavy lifting for us. Jesus lived a sinless life and died for us so we can be forgiven. But we have to put our faith in Him to receive our forgiveness and to have the righteousness of Christ imputed into us by the power of the Holy Spirit.
The new life comes to us the moment we believe but in order to see God’s power work in our lives, we have to walk with Him. We have to turn from our old broken ways and choose to live as His word and Spirit directs us.
Before coming to faith in Jesus, it’s really hard to see God in this world, but after we believe, the Lord opens our eyes to His presence – in His creation, in other people, and in the slow changes He makes in us.
So, keep your eyes open and keep seeking the Lord because even though we have found Him, there is more to see.
He directs us to the life we always wanted to have but didn’t believe it was possible. If you follow Him, He will show you how it is.
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For those who want more evidence for Christianity than my simple encouragements provide, I offer apologist, Frank Turek’s website, https://crossexamined.org/.
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Today’s Bible verse comes to us from “The Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling” By John G. Kruis.
(While Bible verses on various topics of Counseling can be found with a quick Google search, we encourage you to purchase this resource to support the late author’s work. (The Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling By John G. Kruis on Amazon )
This morning’s meditation verses come from the section on Persecution.
Matthew 5:38–42 (ESV) You have heard that it was said, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” But I say to you, do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.
Today’s verses are the first of three passages of scripture that falls under the third point of our counseling reference guide resource section on Persecution.
3. Do good to and pray for those who persecute you. Love your enemies.
Today’s Bible verses are Jesus’ counterintuitive commands that direct us to suffer and to give of ourselves in ways that seemingly would go against God’s word, but its Jesus talking here so we know it doesn’t. An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth was the Old Covenant way for the Lord to attempt to teach us about justice and the consequences of our wrong actions, a lesson that wasn’t really learned as man twisted the words that were supposed to deter violence against one another into “just cause” for exacting personal revenge. Logically played out, sinful men would blind the world before they learned that it was better to NOT do that.
Thus Jesus comes on the scene to direct us to suffer injustice rather than perpetuate a system that degenerated into revenge. Jesus call us to resist evil by not resisting evil. Jesus calls us our enemies with service and to give all that we can to those in need to reflect the love that God has for man.
So don’t seek to pay back those who persecute you with revenge. Instead consider the ways of Jesus and do what He commands to bring the peace and love of God to a world that so desperately needs it.
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As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.com where I always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.
Today we continue sharing from “Day by Day Along the Way” By Jay E. Adams.
As always, I share this information for educational purposes and encourage you all to purchase Adams’ books for your own private study and to support the late author’s work. This resource is available online for less than $20 at many sites.
Day 300
Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? – Acts 9:4
The voice from heaven (which all heard but only Paul understood), the blinding light, the fear, and the realization of what it all meant lent drama to Paul’s conversion! Not all conversions are so dramatic; but, then again, not all converts become such power forces for Jesus Christ. Saul, heading for Damascus to persecute Christians, became one! It was an event that Paul would need to tell to various persons again and again in the years to come. And, of course, he did. Note, also, whenever anyone persecutes a believer, it is really Jesus whom he is persecuting. Jesus takes it personally as an attack on Himself. Since Jesus is no longer available to be maimed and killed, wicked men and women alike take vengeance upon believers instead. It is important for a believer who must persevere under persecution to recognize that it is for Jesus’ sake that he is suffering. Then, he can know that the Lord is with him, as He was with Stephen, sustaining him during it.[1]
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[1] Jay E. Adams, Day by Day along the Way (Cordova, TN: Institute for Nouthetic Studies, 2020), 308.
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