Tag Archives: rescue

Leap to Your Feet and Get Started, January 20, 2020

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Thanks for joining me today for “A Little Walk with God.” I’m your host Richard Agee.

Growing up in middle Tennessee, I had the opportunity to go spelunking in high school and college relatively often. I enjoyed the experience of exploring deep into the earth and seeing some of the beautiful formations most people never get to see. I sometimes wonder why God would create such beauty in places so inaccessible that only he could enjoy it.

Every once in a while, we would get into places we probably should have avoided. I remember going through a few spaces, cracks, chimneys, and holes I wasn’t sure I would get through or back through on the return trip. The squeeze was pretty tight, even with my much thinner frame. We would wiggle and squirm for what seemed like hours to get through some of those tiny spots to get to a few of those caverns that revealed their unbelievable beauty when we finally shed light in those darkened vaults. I will never forget some of those incredible experiences.

I will also never forget a few of those close calls. The scary times. The times when we tried to climb out of those underground streams when we forgot to anchor ropes at the top of the slope and suddenly found ourselves at the bottom of a 15 or 20-foot slick stone wall ankle-deep in thousands of years of accumulated muck.

I remember one of those mistakes that took us several hours of work to get out of that predicament, four of us finally standing on each others’ shoulders until the top one could reach a spot dry enough to get a handhold and pull himself up. Then we waited for another hour or so for him to find a place with rock instead of clay firm enough to hold a pivot to anchor ropes we could climb to get out of our predicament. In the meantime, the three of us tried to wait patiently.

I lost my backpack in the stream that flowed fast enough that it pulled it through an opening in the small chamber before I could catch it. The second in our threesome forgot to bring extra batteries, and of course, his lamp went out before our rescuer could return. My extra batteries were in that lost backpack. The third turned his light off while we waited since he was now the only one with extra batteries and a chance to keep us from being in utter darkness. We were not a cheerful group that day.

I wasn’t a big fan of the Psalms in my youth, but this one could have calmed my heart had I learned it early and put it in my bank of scriptures for memory and meditation. David wrote it millennia before my time, but that psalm sure fit our predicament that day. Psalm 40:

I waited a long time for the Eternal;

He finally knelt down to hear me.

He listened to my weak and whispered cry.

He reached down and drew me from the deep, dark hole where I was stranded, mired in the muck and clay.

With a gentle hand, He pulled me out

To set me down safely on a warm rock;

He held me until I was steady enough to continue the journey again.

As if that were not enough,

because of Him, my mind is clearing up.

Now I have a new song to sing—

a song of praise to the One who saved me.

Because of what He’s done, many people will see

and come to trust in the Eternal.

Surely those who trust the Eternal—

who don’t trust in proud, powerful people

Or in people who care little for reality, chasing false gods—

surely they are happy, as I have become.

You have done so many wonderful things,

had so many tender thoughts toward us, Eternal my God,

that go on and on, ever increasing.

Who can compare with You?

Sacrifices and offerings are not what You want,

but You’ve opened my ears, and now I understand.

Burnt offerings and sin offerings

are not what please You.

So I said, “See, I have come to do Your will,

as it is inscribed of me in the scroll.

I am pleased to live how You want, my God.

Your law is etched into my heart and my soul.” (Psalms 40:1-8 The Voice)

I read those words and think about the agonizing hours my friends and I spent standing in the muck by that stream in that cave and understand what it’s like to be stranded in a deep, dark hole, mired in the muck and clay. If there had only been three of us instead of four, I’m not sure anyone could have found us or if we could have found a way out.

That’s not the only time in my life I’ve been one person or a few minutes from disaster. As I think back through life, I realize the fractions of a second before or after a crazy driver ran a red light and would have collided with me at high speed. Or the day I left before some disaster happened in the city I just left. I remember the just in time events where moments could have meant the difference between life and death. But here I am recording a podcast to share the promise that God cares about us and knows our needs. Does he always give us what we want? No. Does he always stop the disasters in our life? No. But he cares and sees us through even the worst times of life.

When we stop and realize the Old Testament passed down through generations orally, we need to think about what we are doing today. The Hebrew Scriptures Jesus and his disciples knew were written and collected in the fifth century BC, about 1,500 years before they gave their first sermons. And remember they spoke about the events they saw. Scholars believe the earliest New Testament books, Galatians and Mark, found their way to paper around 50 AD, almost 20 years after Jesus’ resurrection and ascension. So for 20 years, all their work, all their witnessing was oral. They told the stories and teachings of Jesus and God’s transforming work in their lives.

The Psalmist convicts us as he continues in his song as he writes:

I have encouraged Your people with the message of righteousness,

in Your great assembly (look and see),

I haven’t kept quiet about these things;

You know this, Eternal One.

I have not kept Your righteousness to myself, sealed up in the secret places of my heart;

instead, I boldly tell others how You save and how loyal You are.

I haven’t been shy to talk about Your love, nor have I been afraid to tell Your truth before the great assembly of Your people. (Psalms 40:9-11a The Voice)

As we continue to move through this leap year, 2020, I invite you to think about these three verses. They convict me. I haven’t been as bold as I should. I leap in my heart over the things God has done for me, but have I exuberantly shared as David did? I must admit I have not. I am not ashamed of my salvation. I am not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Have I enthusiastically shared the good news with the world as did Peter and Paul and those who traveled with them? No.

Perhaps we, including me, can leap into the fray, be bold in our witness, talk about your love, and not keep you in the secret places of our heart. If we share what God has done for us, not parrot what the Bible says, I think we can impact the world for Christ as we failed to do over the last several decades. Let’s leap to our feet and let his spirit help us in this mission.

You can find me at richardagee.com. I also invite you to join us at San Antonio First Church of the Nazarene on West Avenue in San Antonio to hear more Bible-based teaching. You can find out more about my church at SAF.church. Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed it, tell a friend. If you didn’t, send me an email and let me know how better to reach out to those around you. Until next week, may God richly bless you as you venture into His story each day.

Just how much does God love us? (John 3:16-21), January 23, 2017

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Today’s Podcast

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Thanks for joining me today for “A Little Walk with God.” I’m your host Richard Agee.
Just how much does God love us? Sometimes we let familiar verses get too familiar. Listen to one today in a different translation to hear again the depth of God’s love for us.
Scripture
1. John 3:16-21
2. For God expressed His love for the world in this way: He gave His only Son so that whoever believes in Him will not face everlasting destruction, but will have everlasting life. Here’s the point. God didn’t send His Son into the world to judge it; instead, He is here to rescue a world headed toward certain destruction.

No one who believes in Him has to fear condemnation, yet condemnation is already the reality for everyone who refuses to believe because they reject the name of the only Son of God. Why does God allow for judgment and condemnation? Because the Light, sent from God, pierced through the world’s darkness to expose ill motives, hatred, gossip, greed, violence, and the like. Still some people preferred the darkness over the light because their actions were dark. Some of humankind hated the light. They scampered hurriedly back into the darkness where vices thrive and wickedness flourishes. Those who abandon deceit and embrace what is true, they will enter into the light where it will be clear that all their deeds come from God.

Devotional
1. So many see God only as someone who wants to put a damper on life.
  1. A list of don’ts
  2. Take the fun out of any party
  3. Looking over our shoulder looking for our sins to zap us
1. Important verse tells us the nature of God
  1. Loves us so much He became one of us
  2. He came not to judge, but to rescue the world from our own self destruction
  3. He came to offer life
2. Then and now acted as light to expose the hidden things that cause that destruction
  1. Crime show detectives looking for evidence use flashlights even in the daylight
  2. Pinpoint the light
  3. Focus attention
  4. Expose ill motives, hatred, gossip greed, violence, and the like
  5. Many hate Him because they see their real self when He exposes their soul
3. Can you imagine a surgeon trying to operate in the dark?
  1. Only by exposing the diseased parts in bright light can they be removed
  2. Exposing sin makes it possible to get rid of it
  3. The Light came so we can be cleaned up
  4. Jesus came to rescue us from certain destruction
4. God loved us so much, He gave His Son, so that anyone who believes in Him for the forgiveness of their sins and obey Him, will not face that certain destruction, but will instead have everlasting life. What a Savior we have.
If you want to learn more about my church, you can find us at SAF.church. If you like the devotional, share it with someone. If you don’t, tell me. I hope you’ll join me again tomorrow for “A Little Walk with God.”

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved. In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Who will you rescue? (Luke 14:3-5) November 29, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Nehemiah 1-4

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Luke 14:3-5
Jesus: Is it permitted by traditions and the Hebrew Scriptures to heal people on the Sabbath, or is it forbidden?
They didn’t reply. Then Jesus healed the man and sent him on his way.
Jesus: Would any single one of you leave his son or even his ox in a well on the Sabbath if he had fallen into it, or would you pull him out immediately?

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Put together this time of year and Jesus words and it reminds me of a series of commercial spots I really don’t like. It’s not that they’re bad commercials and it’s not that I don’t like what they’re doing. But it’s the whole premise that comes across when you watch these commercials and especially when you talk with some of the real die-hards of the organization that promotes the commercials.

You’ve seen them. You can’t help but see them. They spend a lot of money getting them into prime time. There it is, that sad looking puppy locked in a cage begging for a home. The ASPCA and it’s sister organizations use Christmas carols and old hymns playing in the background to capture the Christian community and play on emotions as if dogs and cats were people. They are not. They are sometimes lovable companions, but they are still animals, not people. God gave us dominion over all the animals of the earth. They are not our equals as many in some of those organizations would have us believe.

I think Jesus would probably point to those commercials and ask, “Where are the commercials about rescuing the hungry and the enslaved? Where are the commercials about helping the orphans and widows? Where are the commercials about just showing kindness to your neighbors?”

It’s not that adopting an abused animal is bad, it’s not. But when we put more emphasis on abused animals that we do abused children, something is wrong. When we get more irritated an animals that have been killed than policemen that have been killed, our society is out of wack. When murder no longer shocks us, we have fallen far from where God wants us to be.

If you haven’t seen one of the ASPCA commercials today, you will before the week is out. They come up too frequently for you to miss them. I hope it will shock you into thinking not about animals that need a home, but about people that need a home. People that need a friendly face. People that need a warm meal and a blanket. People that need a loving hand to reach out to them and tell them they matter.

We have opportunities every day to reach out and show God’s love to others. You don’t have to adopt someone or take someone on as a full time project to show God’s love, but He might ask you to. All of us can smile and give a warm touch. All of us can be kind instead of rude. All of us can share the fruit of the spirit where we go. Whether at home, in the office, or on the freeway, there are opportunities to let God’s love shine through you today. Don’t miss those opportunities. You never know when that special moment is the one that God uses to touch the heart of one of His children and transforms them by the power of His spirit.

What a marvelous gift that would be if you could be part of rescuing a lost soul instead of a lost pet. Helping a wayward soul find their way into the kingdom instead of helping a dog find its way into a house. What a difference it would make if instead of spending all that time and energy and effort saving animals, we would spend that same time and energy and effort introducing people to the One who can save their soul.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not against helping animals. I have two dogs myself, one of which is a rescued dog. But lets make sure we keep people and animals in the right perspective this Christmas season. Let those ASPCA commercials tug at your heart strings, but let them remind you of the many people who need rescuing at this time of year.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

He gave Himself (Matthew 26:52-56) June 28, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – 1 Kings 19-22

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 26:52-56
Jesus: Put your sword back. People who live by the sword die by the sword. Surely you realize that if I called on My Father, He would send legions of messengers to rescue Me. But if I were to do that, I would be thwarting the scriptural story, wouldn’t I? And we must allow the story of God’s kingdom to unfold. (to the crowds) Why did you bring these weapons, these clubs and bats? Did you think I would fight you? That I would try to dodge and escape like a common criminal? You could have arrested Me any day when I was teaching in the temple, but you didn’t.
This scene has come together just so, so that the prophecies in the sacred Scripture could be fulfilled.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Did you ever stop to think about the resources Jesus had at his disposal to protect Him from those who would try to harm Him? If you look back through His ministry, you’ll find plenty of opportunities for His enemies to destroy Him but they didn’t. His home town elders wanted to push Him off a cliff, but He slipped through them. The chief priests went after Him several times, but failed in their attempts. Even Satan tried to get Jesus to fall, but he too failed in his schemes against the Son of God.

Time after time, Jesus slipped out through the crowd, confounded the leaders in front of crowds so they couldn’t take Him in front of them. Disappeared in the night as He walked across the water or to another town in the middle of the night. Jesus was elusive to the and just couldn’t be caught.

In fact, John describes this scene a little differently than the other gospels. He records that as the guards came forward to take Jesus, they fell back and fell to the ground. Only after Jesus asked as second time who they were looking for and Judas betrayed Him with a kiss did the soldiers come forward and take Him. The power and protection surrounding Jesus made it impossible for those Roman soldiers to arrest Him until He allowed them to come near and grab hold of Him.

Jesus knew no one could assault Him until He allowed the events to unfold. But He had already talked to His Father about the matter. He was ready to sacrifice Himself for our sins. He was ready to do the Father’s bidding and become the atonement for us. So Jesus gave Himself up to that crowd of soldiers and priests and the betrayer.

The spiritual battle ended in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus already prayed through on the matter. He settled everything with His Father and His Father’s will trumped His own. He would be the sacrifice for us. I think He could still call on the angels of heaven to rescue Him if He chose, but He willingly gave Himself us for us. The soldiers who took Him were helpless against Him as John records, and it was Jesus’ willingness to give Himself over to them that led to the brutality they inflicted against Him.

But we must remember Jesus could have called for relief at any time during that whole ordeal. At the first strike of the whip, He could have broken His chains and turned on the Roman guard with immediate justice at the hands of an avenging angel. When the crown of thorns was being woven by the soldiers, He could have escaped the pain inflicted on His brow by calling on His heavenly attendants to deliver Him and they would. Before He carried the beam for the cross to Golgatha, Jesus could have called for the army of heavenly hosts to come and destroy those who wanted to crucify Him and they would have done just that.

But instead, Jesus endured the pain, the humiliation, the agony of the cross to pay the death penalty required by our sins. He didn’t ask for relief, but instead sacrificed Himself for us. He didn’t have to, but He did. He could have escaped it all, but He remained for each of us.

Where is the so what in there for us today, though? First, we recognize His indescribable love for us. The fact that He would allow all of these things to happen to Him when He could easily escape them and get full retribution against those who tried to harm Him demonstrates just how much He cares for us. Second, We owe Him a great deal, more than we can every repay. He gave His life that we might live. Paul tells us our reasonable worship is to give ourselves as living sacrifices for Him. Anything less than that is unacceptable. It is out reasonable sacrifice for Him.

Third, when we walk with Him and He adopts us into His family, those legions of angels are also at our disposal. We need not fear circumstance around us. We need not feaar the things going on in the world or the politics and trends that seem so evil. God is still in charge. He will take care of His children. We can call on Him and He will be there. Will He immediately transport us from the problem and let us escape the pain and ridicule and persecution we might be under? Maybe not. But He will be right there with us to the end.

Finally, Jesus went through more than most of us will ever endure in our lifetime. He voluntarily gave Himself to the agony for us. When we suffer the slings and arrows society throws at us because we follow Him, it’s nothing compared to what Jesus went through. So when you think you’re under pressure, stress and strain for you faith, think about the cross. If Jesus could endure the cross, surely we can endure the little suffering the world gives us for His sake.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

God will rescue you. (Isaiah 49:8-26), July 26, 2015

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Isaiah 49:8-26

Set – Isaiah 49; 1 Peter 5

Go! – Isaiah 46-49; 1 Peter 5

Isaiah 49:8-26
⁸ Eternal One: When the time was right, I answered you;
on the day you were delivered, I was your help.
I will watch over you, and give you
as a promise, a binding covenant to the people.
Through you, My gift to the people, the land of promise will recover.
Ancestral ground, once deserted, will be entrusted to them.
⁹ Through you, My gift to the people, I will declare to the prisoners,
“Come out. Now you are free”;
To those who are held in darkness, “Come out into the light.”
They will find sustenance wherever they are—
Along the roads or in the open hills—
with peace of mind, in comfort and security.
¹⁰ Wherever they are, they will be fine, never hungry nor thirsty.
They will be protected from oppressive heat and the burning sun
Because the One who loves them—as a mother loves her child—will be their guide.
God will lead them to restful places, rejuvenating springs of water.
¹¹ I will make their going easy, level the mountain road
and smooth the path that leads them home.
¹² Look! Even now, they are coming from lands far away,
some from the north, others from the west, these from the land of Sinim.
¹³ Oh joy! Be glad—sky! Take joy—earth! Burst into song—mountains!
For the Eternal, moved to compassion, has comforted and consoled His people.
¹⁴ Zion: The Eternal One has abandoned me. God has walked out the door;
my Lord left me alone. He has forgotten all about me.
¹⁵ Eternal One: Is it possible for a mother, however disappointed,
however hurt, to forget her nursing child?
Can she feel nothing for the baby she carried and birthed?
Even if she could, I, God, will never forget you.
¹⁶ Look here. I have made you a part of Me, written you on the palms of My hands.
Your city walls are always on My mind, always My concern.
¹⁷ Now sweet Zion your children are running pell-mell back to you
Just as fast as those who destroyed you are leaving.
¹⁸ Raise your head, lift up your eyes,
and watch your heart’s desire come—
All your children, gathered and returning to you. As I live, so I promise.
You will wear them with pride all like shining ornaments;
you will put them on as a bride on her wedding day.
¹⁹ Because of all of your destroyed land—the barren fields and abandoned farms—
you are now too small, too cramped for all your citizens;
And those who tried to swallow you whole will be far, far away.
²⁰ The children you mourned, those born in exile, will return and say,
“It is too cramped and crowded for us;
We’re going to need more room if we are to live here.”
²¹ You’ll say to yourself, “Where in the world did all these people come from?
Could these really be mine?
I thought I’d been desolated, left empty.
Where have you all been? Where did you come from?”
²² This is what the Lord, the Eternal, has to say:
Eternal One: I will lift My hand and signal every nation that holds your people
And they will bring your children back again:
boys bundled in their arms, girls riding on their shoulders.
²³ Kings will tend the children of Zion, and their queens will nurse and nurture them.
These greats will humble themselves before you.
They will bow and lick the dust off your feet,
and in the course of it all, you will remember that I am the Eternal.
Whoever trusts in Me will never be put to shame.
²⁴ Jerusalem: Can the spoil of war be taken from the mighty?
Can the captives be freed from the hand of a tyrant?
²⁵ Eternal One: Hard to believe, but it shall be so.
The captives will be taken from the hand of the mighty,
And the spoil of war will be rescued from the tyrant.
I will liberate them from their captors and contend with your enemies.
I will save your children.
²⁶ I will turn your enemies’ violence back on themselves,
and they will suffer their own atrocities:
They will feed on their own flesh and drink their own blood like wine.
Then every person on earth will know for certain that I, the Eternal, am your Savior.
I am your hero, the strong One of Jacob from whom you come.
I will rescue you, whatever the price.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

Can a mother forget the child to whom she gave birth? You mothers know it is impossible. Despite the stories of violence and cruelty and selfishness we see against children at their mother’s hand sometimes, I can tell you those women still feel deep in themselves the knowledge of what they have done to the life they gave birth to. I will judge them accordingly someday. Mothers cannot forget their children.

Selfishness drives people to do incredibly horrible things, but mothers still have a place in their heart for their children. I have a special place in My heart for My highest creation also. You. You are unique in all creation. There is no one like you. You are My masterpiece in all the universe. There exists not one more exactly like you. I did that on purpose when I made you. Be sure, I make no mistakes.

So knowing I love you with love greater than a mother has for her children, you can also know I will rescue you from the evils you face when you call on Me. I will make a way of escape for you. Just look for the exit sign. It will always be there for you. Take it! Let Me fight your fights. I will win. You might not. So when the tempter comes, find the exit and run. I will stay and defeat him for you. You concentrate on escaping.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.