Brothers In Christ

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Brothers In Christ

This page is dedicated to the Brothers In Christ Ministry. We'll have weekly devotionals from some of their members. So, please enjoy what you read.

Brothers In Christ Weekly Devotional

Faith of a Child

by Kenn Bruner

"If you have the faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you."
Matthew 17:20

The fields were parched and the crops were quickly wilting from the lack of rain. The farmers were becoming increasingly anxious as they faced the loss of their crops. This was a farming community and everyone's livelihood depended on a good harvest.

Days turned into weeks as the hot sun baked what little crops there were. Still, no rain came.
The ministers of the local churches called for an hour of prayer on the town square the following Saturday. They requested that everyone bring an object of faith for inspiration. Farmers and townspeople gathered at noon, bringing with them Bibles, crosses, and rosaries to name a few. The ministers were touched to see the variety of religious objects that were being clutched in prayerful hands.

When the hour had ended, their prayer was answered as a soft rain began to fall. Cheers swept up from the crowd as they held their treasured objects high above their heads in gratitude and praise. But from the middle of the crowd, one symbol of faith seemed to overshadow all the others. A small 9 year-old girl had brought with her.... an umbrella.

I love to read about the men and women of the Bible who displayed a strong faith. Hebrews Chapter 11 tells of the faith of Abraham:

"By faith, Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance, and he set out not knowing where he was going."
"By faith Abraham received the power of procreation, even though he was too old and Sarah herself was barren."
"By faith, Abraham was put to the test when he offered up his son Isaac as a sacrifice."

Brothers, why is it that many of us will readily say that we have faith, but then our actions do not back this up. Just like the little girl who brought an umbrella to the prayer meeting, believing and expecting her prayer to be answered, we too should 'believe and expect' our prayers to be answered.

Jesus says in Mark 11:24 "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you will receive and you will have them." Jesus would not have said this if he didn't mean it.

Another great story of faith can found be found in I Kings 18:41-45. Elijah prayed earnestly for rain to come and sent his servant to go towards the sea and check for any signs of rain. The servant returned and told Elijah that there were no clouds or sign of rain, but Elijah kept praying in faith, believing that God would send the rain. Elijah went on and sent his servant to look for rain seven more times before he came back and reported to Elijah that he saw a small cloud rising up out of the sea. Soon after, there came a rain so heavy that people were not able to stay outside to withstand it.

God is no respecter of persons; and just as God met Elijah's needs; He is faithful to do the same when we stand firm and unmoved. Through our obedience, it is possible to have great faith like Elijah and Abraham, and of course the little child who brought her umbrella to the prayer meeting. So the next time your town is suffering from the effects of a drought, I hope that you all will be outside, eyes lifted skyward searching for that rain cloud, and of course holding an umbrella in your hand.

Have a great week brothers!

Weekly Devotional of: Don Perkins, Brothers in Christ Member

Perkins Ministries: From the desk of Don Perkins, Brothers In Christ Member

More on: Words in Italics!

"And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live." Deuteronomy 8:3

You will note that the word "word" is in italics, meaning of course, that it was not in the Hebrew text. Upon examination of Deuteronomy 8:3 in Hebrew one will find that the word "dabar" which is Hebrew for "word" is not found anywhere in the verse.

Yet in His contest with Satan we find Jesus quoting Deuteronomy 8:3 as follows in Matthew 4:4.

"But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God."

While quoting Deuteronomy 8:3 Jesus quotes the entire verse including the King James italicized word! Even an amateur "scholar" can locate "ramati," a form of "rama," which is Greek for "word," in any Greek New Testament.

So, just as critics of the Bible like to joke & say, "Well, the King James was good enough for the Apostle Paul so it's good enough for me." A true Bible-believer can truly say, "Well, the King James was good enough for the Apostles Peter, Paul & for the Lord Jesus Christ, so it's good enough for me."

So we have three options on what to do with the italicized words in the Bible.

01. Remove all of them.

02. Exalt one of our fundamental Bible critics to the office of "Official Divinely Inspired Bible Corrector" & then give his decrees all the weight & allegiance that we would give to Jesus Christ.

03. Leave all the words in our divinely inspired Bible alone & trust that just maybe Jesus Christ is correct.

Next Time:

Looking for Answers to Words in Italics!

Make your life better with Jesus each & every day!

Until Then,
Love In Christ,
Don