Hi, I'm John McMath, and this is the Morning Meditation!

The miracles of Jesus were marvelous and amazing. So much so that they draw attention even today. Many people are interested in miracles.

However, Jesus’ miracles were not divine publicity stunts. Very often Jesus would tell the recipients of a miracle to tell no one. Jesus neither needs nor wants the kind of devotion that is based on miracles.

The purpose of miracles was to point to Jesus. In John 20:30-31, John writes, “Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.” John’s message is simple: Believe in miracles, but trust in Jesus.

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Hi, I'm John McMath, and this is the Morning Meditation!

James writes, “Therefore to him that knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.” (James 4:17)

Just seeing the word procrastination makes me want to put off saying anything else. Procrastination is a form of disobedience. When God tells us to do something and we don’t do it, we can label our actions with all kinds of fancy words, but the bottom line is that it is sin. The days are passing and time cannot be stopped.

You can’t call a “time out” in life. And time cannot be stored like money in the bank. Really, the only thing you can do with time is use it or lose it. Someone has said, “Lost: One golden hour, studded with sixty diamond minutes. No reward offered, for it is lost forever." We need to redeem the time.

Have you been procrastinating about doing something? Maybe you are putting off obeying Christ or telling someone about Christ. Friend, it’s time.

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Hi, I'm John McMath, and this is the Morning Meditation!

In Matthew 25, we read three parables of Jesus. One of the most well known among them is the parable of the talents. When the master, who had distributed the talents, came to see the stewardship of those talents, one man had taken his talent and hid it in the ground.

You may have a buried talent, but you have been covered up with, as one person called it, “the sinister minister of fear” who keeps you from achieving your dreams. You say, “But what if I fail?” You can be so afraid of making a mistake that your entire life will be a mistake. The fear of failure keeps so many from competing that they never even get in the race. They just lose by default!

Sir Walter Scott was called a “dunce” by his teachers. Napoleon Bonaparte was next to last in his military class. Walt Disney was fired as a cartoonist because the newspaper said he couldn’t draw! It’s not bad to fail. We all fail. But, may God deliver you from the spirit of failure, which is a spirit of fear.

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Hi, I'm John McMath, and this is the Morning Meditation!

A great story about temptation is about a father who leaves his son at home one Saturday afternoon because his son isn't feeling well. The father tells his son, "Don't go swimming with your buddies." And the son says, "Yes sir!" The dad returns by way of the swimming hole and notices his son frolicking with the other boys. He stops the car, calls his son over and says, "I told you not to go swimming." The son responds, "But, I didn't intend to go swimming. I just came down to watch and I fell in." By the time the dad began feeling sorry for his son, he noticed his son had his bathing suit on. And the son said, "I brought my suit along in case I was tempted."

The apostle Paul writes, "But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof." (Romans 13:14).

Friend, don't make any provision for the flesh. Ask God to deliver you from being tempted today. Ask Him to give you the strength to overcome temptation, should He allow it.

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Hi, I'm John McMath, and this is the Morning Meditation!

The apostle Peter exhorts each of us, “all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (1 Peter 5:5) To be “clothed” in this verse means to tie a knot or put on a servant’s apron. Basically, this verse tells us to tie on the apron of a slave and be humble.
Why do you think Peter used that figure of speech? It was because Jesus laid aside His garments, girded Himself with a towel, and washed their feet. But “Peter said to Him, ‘Never shall You wash my feet!’ Jesus answered him, ‘If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.’ (John 13:8). The act was symbolic of the fact that even though we may be Christ, we walk in a dirty world and we need the daily cleansing, restoration, and refreshing He affords.

Realizing our need for Him, we can never look down on others. Besides, you can’t look down on someone when you are washing their feet.

Hi, I'm John McMath and this is the Morning Meditation!

How do you react to suffering? Suffering is a part of all of our lives. All of us have seen it. Many of us have experienced it.

Here are three reactions you need to have when you encounter suffering. First, you are to rejoice (1 Peter 4:13) in what God is allowing to happen. Second, you need to review your life (1 Peter 4:17-18). Am I suffering because of something I have done? If you become convicted that your suffering is a result of your sin, then you need to repent. Third, when you review your life and discover that your suffering is for the cause of Christ, then simply rely on Him That is what Peter tells us in 1 Peter 4:19. “Therefore, those also who suffer according to the will of God shall entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right.” Did you hear the word “entrust?” That is a banking term which means to put something with someone else for safe deposit. He will take care of you; you can bank on it.

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In the third chapter of Romans, the apostle Paul wrote that God had set forth Jesus “to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.” (Romans 3:25)
Propitiation is a big word that means satisfaction. Because God is a holy God, His anger and justice burns against sin. And He has sworn that sin will be punished. There must be a satisfactory payment for sin so God said, “If I punish man for his sin, man will die and go to hell. On the other hand, if I don’t punish man for his sin, My justice will never be satisfied.”
The solution? God said that He would become our substitute. He would take the sin of mankind upon Himself in agony and blood — a righteous judgment and substitute for sin. His wrath burned out on the cross when His only Son died as man’s propitiation for sin. And that is love!

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus began with what we call the Beattitudes. Among them is: “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” (Matthew 5:6)
When Jesus said that, He was not talking about someone who had a mere appetite, He was talking about a starving man.
God made us in such a way that we couldn’t exist long without food. But, what is a starving man most interested in? The latest football scores? The flower arrangement at the pink lemonade society? The number of stars in the universe? No! He’s only interested in one thing – food!
In fact, science tells us that a man can exist about forty days without food, about three days without water, and only eight minutes without air. In the spiritual realm of eternity, man cannot exist one second without Jesus Christ.
Salvation is the greatest need of man. It is the deepest longing of his soul. Only Jesus Christ can meet that need and satisfy that longing.

Do you know how to boil a frog? You do it GRADUALLY.

If you put a frog in water already boiling, it will jump out, but, if you put it in warm water, the frog will stay in. Then increase the temperature gradually. The frog will hardly notice and will get used to the hotter water until he is boiled to death.

I’m afraid America is boiling frogs, and we are the frogs. We are gradually getting used to some really terrible things. Adultery, premarital sex, disrespect for authority, and profanity are some examples. These things were repulsive to past generations, but are now tolerated and accepted by our desensitized culture.

The Bible says that Satan was “the most subtle creature” (Genesis 3:1). He uses schemes (Ephesians 6:11) to trap us and deceive us. He will never come out in the open and be straight forward, but believe me, he is there.

HMMM! WHAT'S THAT I SMELL? SOMETHING BOILING? IT SURE IS GETTING HOT IN HERE. RRRRIBBBIT!

Author John MacArthur writes, “We live in a church culture that downplays sound biblical teaching -- a culture that shies away from preaching doctrine, biblical confrontation, and unashamed gospel proclamation...

Instead of a church that engages the world with God's truth while calling sinners to repentance in Christ, we have a church that seems more concerned with avoiding friction and just blending in. Attention-grabbing skits and media presentations are supplanting sermons. Recovery programs and support groups are replacing Bible study. In short, churches today are abandoning the life-changing Word of God for substitutes that can neither convert unbelief nor feed the flock.”

The apostle Paul writes, "...It pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe" (1 Cor. 1:18). Man cannot know the mind of God without the revelation or word of God (1 Corinthians 2:10-13). We must never lose the centrality of Scripture in changing lives. We deny one of our primary missions in the world when we do not hold up the word of God for everyone to hear.