Be Thankful for Mercy!

Jeremiah 25

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Wednesday, April 17.

There can be no good news without first hearing the bad news. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the good news of the kingdom of God because there is a domain of darkness from which we must be saved (Colossians 1:13). There can’t be a chalice of grace for the forgiveness of sin if there isn’t first the cup of wrath that must be satisfied. This important prophetic image was described by the prophet in Jeremiah 25:27-29:

You shall say to them, “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Drink, be drunk, vomit, fall and rise no more because of the sword which I will send among you.’” And it will be, if they refuse to take the cup from your hand to drink, then you will say to them, “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘You shall surely drink! For behold, I am beginning to work calamity in this city which is called by My name, and shall you be completely free from punishment? You will not be free from punishment; for I am summoning a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth,’ declares the Lord of hosts.”

God’s righteous judgment for sin is not only against His chosen people, but against all people, as Paul made clear in Romans 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (cf. Ephesians 2:1-3). The cup of wrath is what we all deserve to drink from for our sin, but God, rich in mercy, extended the chalice of grace to us through faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 6:23). As you read Jeremiah, and learn about God’s wrath for sin, may you find yourself in awe of what Jesus Christ has done for you on the Cross, where He drank the cup of wrath down to its dregs!

Seize the moment and be thankful for God’s mercy (Ephesians 2:4-10)!

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

Bear Good Fruit!

Jeremiah 24

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Tuesday, April 16.

What happens when you are confused about right and wrong, unable to discern what is good and what is bad? You can sincerely strive to do the right thing, only to find out that you were misled in the goals you were pursuing. That is the situation in Jerusalem as the Babylonians brought the king and his entourage out of Jerusalem (2 Kings 24:10-20). Shouldn’t the people resist the occupying force and fight against Babylon, defending their city unto death? As contrary to common sense as it sounds, God’s will for them was to surrender to the enemy and be taken into Babylonian captivity. The prophet illustrated God’s plan for His people with a prophetic sign in Jeremiah 24:1-2, 5, and 8:

The Lord showed me: behold, two baskets of figs set before the temple of the Lord! One basket had very good figs, like first-ripe figs, and the other basket had very bad figs which could not be eaten due to rottenness. … “Thus says the Lord God of Israel, ‘Like these good figs, so I will regard as good the captives of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans.’ … ‘But like the bad figs which cannot be eaten due to rottenness – indeed, thus says the Lord – so I will abandon Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem who remain in this land and the ones who dwell in the land of Egypt.’”

It can be difficult to discern right from wrong, good from evil in today’s world. Ultimately, you must act upon what you believe to be true, as Jesus said, “You will know them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:15-20).

Seize the moment and bear good fruit by abiding in Jesus (John 15:1-16). Surrender to God first in every circumstance, and He will help you know the right next step (Romans 12:1-2).

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

When all is Forlorn!

Jeremiah 23

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Monday, April 15.

In The Return of the King, J.R.R. Tolkien wrote, “Oft hope is born when all is forlorn.” What happens to people when despair sets in? After the oracles of judgment against the final kings of Judah, the hope of the Davidic lineage was seemingly lost. The kings had forsaken God, yet, during the devastating consequences of their failures, God renewed the people’s hope, reminding them to trust in Him alone. In Jeremiah 23:5-8, God gave His people an oracle of restoration, promising the Coming Messiah:

“Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; and He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely; and this is His name by which He will be called, ‘The Lord our righteousness.’ Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when they will no longer say, ‘As the Lord lives, who brought up the sons of Israel from the land of Egypt,’ but, ‘as the Lord lives, who brought up and led back the descendants of the household of Israel from the north land and from all the countries where I had driven them.’ Then they will live on their own soil.”

Hope is a necessary ingredient to life. Without hope, it’s easy to become sad and lonely, with no positive expectation for the future. It’s nearly impossible to be resilient apart from hope; we need a little light to take the right next step. While it is common to derive hope from your personal well-being and healthy relationships, what happens if you don’t have those things?

Seize the moment and hope in the Lord when all is forlorn, anchor your life in Jesus, the Messiah who has come and will return soon (Hebrews 6:19-20).

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

Today’s worship song focus :

Speak to the Mountains

I John 4:4 (NASB95)          

Why would I worry when giants come calling my name?
My God is so much bigger than troubles I face

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Ken reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

If you would like to listen to this song, click on this link:

Speak to the Mountains

The Heart of Leadership!

Jeremiah 22

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, April 12.

To be a good leader, you first need to be a great follower. Any person who is incapable of being submissive to authority should never be put into a position of leadership. Jesus modeled servant leadership for His disciples, commanding them to follow His example in Matthew 20:25-28:

You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them. It is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave; just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.

In Jeremiah 22:13-16, six hundred years prior to Jesus saying this to His disciples, God rebuked the final kings of Judah for their failure of leadership:

“Woe to him who builds his house without righteousness and his upper rooms without justice, who uses his neighbor’s services without pay and does not give him his wages, who says, ‘I will build myself a roomy house with spacious upper rooms, and cut out its windows, paneling it with cedar and painting it bright red.’ Do you become a king because you are competing in cedar? Did not your father eat and drink and do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him. He pled the cause of the afflicted and needy; then it was well. Is not that what it means to know Me?” Declares the Lord.

Jerusalem could not be saved simply by having a king of David’s lineage on the throne; God desired, and still desires today, to work through people who have David’s heart –  “who will do all My will” (Acts 13:22).

Seize the moment and seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matthew 6:33).

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

Day 1486

Surrender or Die!

Jeremiah 21

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Thursday, April 11.

There are two things a military commander never wants to do – retreat or surrender. Strategically, both can be the right decision when it is the only way to save your people, so that you can fight another day. That was the exact situation facing the people of Jerusalem, as declared by the prophet in Jeremiah 21:8-10:

“You shall also say to this people, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death. He who dwells in this city will die by the sword and by famine and by pestilence; but he who goes out and falls away to the Chaldeans who are besieging you will live, and he will have his own life as booty. For I have set My face against this city for harm and not for good,” declares the Lord. “It will be given into the hand of the king of Babylon and he will burn it with fire.” ’ ”

Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, was sieging Jerusalem, and Zedekiah, the king of Judah, was hoping God would rescue them. That was why he sent messengers to Jeremiah, just like King Hezekiah sent messengers to Isaiah when the Assyrians were besieging Jerusalem, over a century prior in Isaiah 36-37. Unfortunately, the destruction of Jerusalem was imminent as a righteous judgment against them for not seizing the moment of God’s former clemency to repent and walk in His ancient paths (Jeremiah 6:16). God’s direct response to Zedekiah, in Jeremiah 21:5, was clear, “I Myself will war against you with an outstretched hand and a mighty arm, even in anger and wrath and great indignation.” There is only one right response to God’s wrath against sin, “I surrender all.”

Seize the moment and repent by walking in the ancient paths of God by taking on the easy yoke of Jesus (Matthew 11:28-30).

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

Count the Cost!

Jeremiah 20

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Wednesday, April 10.

Jesus was crucified for being faithful to God. Do you believe there will be no hardship when you take up your cross and follow Jesus? Paul, who suffered greatly as an apostle (2 Corinthians 11:23-28), explained the grave danger that comes with being God’s chosen vessel, from 2 Corinthians 4:7-10:

But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.

The messengers of God have always suffered greatly for their faithfulness, often at the hands of the people they were sent to deliver their message. Jeremiah’s suffering was introduced in Jeremiah 20:1-2, “When Pashhur the priest, the son of Immer, who was chief officer in the house of the Lord, heard Jeremiah prophesying these things, Pashhur had Jeremiah the prophet beaten and put him in the stocks that were at the upper Benjamin Gate, which was by the house of the Lord.” Jeremiah’s suffering was real, and it was at every level of his being. In Jeremiah 20:7-18, the prophet lamented his life, wishing he had never been born. As hard as it may be to accept, we are forewarned to expect such suffering ourselves. Peter, martyred for his faithfulness to Jesus, explained in 1 Peter 2:20b-21, “But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God. For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps.”

Seize the moment and count the cost of obedience to following Jesus (Luke 14:27-30).

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

Be a Vessel for God’s Glory!

Jeremiah 19

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Tuesday, April 9.

Considering Jeremiah’s recent visit to the potter’s house, he was instructed next to build upon the same illustration with a new symbolic act. In Jeremiah 19:1-2, the Sovereign Lord commanded the prophet, “Go and buy a potter’s earthenware jar, and take some of the elders of the people and some of the senior priests. Then go out to the valley of Ben-hinnom [aka Gehenna], which is by the entrance of the potsherd gate, and proclaim there the words that I tell you.” God declared His righteous judgment upon a people who had stiffened their necks and hardened their hearts against Him to worship idols and walk in rebellion. Then, like a master teacher, God emphasized His teachings in Jeremiah 19:10-15:

Then you are to break the jar in the sight of the men who accompany you and say to them, “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Just so will I break this people and this city, even as one breaks a potter’s vessel, which cannot again be repaired; and they will bury in Topheth [the valley of Ben-hinnom] because there is no other place for burial. This is how I will treat this place and its inhabitants,’ declares the Lord, ‘so as to make this city like Topheth. … because they have stiffened their necks so as not to heed My words.’”

As long as the clay remains soft and moldable in the Potter’s hands, He would not waste the precious resource by destroying it. Unless the hardened jar has been approved by the Potter for His intended purposes, His only recourse is to shatter the useless vessel so that it will not discredit His name.

Seize the moment and be a chosen vessel for God’s glory by allowing Him to shape you into a useable jar of clay, one which contains the treasure of His name (2 Corinthians 4:7; 2 Timothy 2:20-21; Ephesians 2:10).

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

Remain Workable in the Potter’s Hands!

Jeremiah 18

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Monday, April 8.

When I was in high school, I took a potter’s wheel class, and I loved it. It never occurred to me that the clay would not become what I fashioned it to be. For the clay to become what I envisioned it to be, it had to be workable in my hands; it had to remain soft and moldable. This is the imagery invoked by the prophet in Jeremiah 18:2-6:

Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something on the wheel. But the vessel that he was making of clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter; so he remade it into another vessel, as it pleased the potter to make. Then the word of the Lord came to me saying, “Can I not, O house of Israel, deal with you as this potter does?” declares the Lord. “Behold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel.”

As I worked the clay on the potter’s wheel, I constantly wet it so that it would spin in my hands, minimizing the friction between my hands and the clay. I had to keep my eyes on the clay and use both hands to form it; it was amazing how subtle and gentle I had to be to form the clay into a usable vessel, with the pressure often coming from the inside of the forming vessel, even though I kept a supportive hand on the outside. As long as the clay remained soft and workable, I could start again with the same clay. Isn’t that what God is saying to each of us in our own lives, “Remain workable in My hands!”

Seize the moment and remain workable in the Potter’s hands! Trust the Sovereign God to work something beautiful out of your life.

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

Today’s worship song focus :  

God of Wonders

Psalm 148:13 (NASB95)          

glory is above earth and heaven.”

God of wonders beyond our galaxy, You are holy, holy                                          

The universe declares Your majesty, You are holy, holy                                           

Lord of heaven and earth, Lord of heaven and earth.

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Ken reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

If you would like to listen to this song, click on this link:

God of Wonders

Know my Heart!

Jeremiah 17

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, April 5.

Did you know that when you point your finger at someone else, three fingers are pointing back at the heart of the problem? We love to project blame onto others, to emotionally insulate ourselves from having to take responsibility for a situation. We do this as children by blaming our siblings or classmates. We do this as adults with even more elaborate schemes, but as we mature, we come to realize that the real problem is found within us. In Mark 7:20-23, Jesus made it very clear that it is not something outside of you that makes you unholy, but a condition of your heart:

That which proceeds out of the man, that is what defiles the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man.

Jesus taught that the heart of the problem is found in the control center of your life, where your emotions and thoughts are derived. He was echoing an ancient truth, made visible through the first couple’s blame game, and clearly proclaimed by God through the prophet in Jeremiah 17:9-10, “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give to each man according to his ways, according to the results of his deeds.”

Seize the moment and invite God to cleanse you from the inside out. Holiness is Christ in you, ruling from the throne of your heart, so invite the Holy Spirit every morning, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts; and see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way” (Psalm 139:23-24).

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

Embody the Message!

Jeremiah 16

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Thursday, April 4.

Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection clearly proclaim God’s love to the world (John 3:16). If it weren’t for Jesus’ crucifixion, humanity could never understand the fulness of the gospel, as explained in Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Jesus, as the Suffering Servant of Israel, was not the first messenger to Israel whose life embodied the message. Just like God used the intimate details of Jesus’ life to portray the message, God revealed Himself in the personal details of His prophets’ lives. Like Hosea’s broken marriage and Ezekiel’s loss of his wife, Jeremiah’s call to celibacy had symbolic meaning. In Jeremiah 16:2, God commanded Jeremiah, “You shall not take a wife for yourself nor have sons or daughters in this place.” He obeyed God and trusted Him for the future.

I can only imagine how costly such a command was to Jeremiah, but he was a man called to embody the judgments of God, demonstrating the prophetic message of God’s wrath for sin. No wonder he was called the weeping prophet. Even though he had been called to celibacy, later, in Jeremiah 29:5-7, God commanded him to encourage the people to marry and have families while in exile, which was a prophetic sign through the people’s lives. Jeremiah’s symbolic action of not having a family represented the coming destruction of Jerusalem, just like the people’s actions of having families while in exile was symbolic of God’s promise to restore them. We must do the same by discerning how we are to live our lives, “so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body” (2 Corinthians 4:7-11).

Seize the moment and obey God’s Word in the intimate places of your life. Tell a better story with your life by embodying God’s message in the personal choices you make.

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

Fresh Bread!

Jeremiah 15

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Wednesday, April 3.

Do you like fresh bread? There is a significant difference between eating bread, baked fresh from the oven, versus bread that has been left out for days, which has become hard and stale. I compare my morning devotion time to that of a baker making fresh bread each morning.

In Jeremiah 15:16, the prophet describes the privilege of receiving God’s Word, “Your words were found and I ate them, and Your words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart; for I have been called by Your name, O Lord God of hosts.” Another prophet made a similar statement in Ezekiel 3:1-3, “Then He said to me, ‘Son of man, eat what you find; eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.’ So I opened my mouth, and He fed me this scroll. He said to me, ‘Son of man, feed your stomach and fill your body with this scroll which I am giving you.’ Then I ate it, and it was sweet as honey in my mouth.”

What a privilege to be given God’s Word; to be chosen as a spokesperson of God to the nations. In 2 Corinthians 5:19-20, Paul speaks to all who have been reconciled to God through His Son Jesus Christ, “He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us.” Just like the prophets of old, you have been called to consume God’s Word so that you can give it to those in desperate need of their daily bread. What do you have to share with others?

Seize the moment and enjoy some fresh bread today by reading your Bible – “taste and see that the LORD is good” (Psalm 34:8). Don’t give people something dry and hard; give them something baked in your morning devotion time. That’s what I’m doing for you!

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

Hope in Dark Days!

Jeremiah 14

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Tuesday, April 2.

A severe drought had come upon Jerusalem and the surrounding region of Judah. What were the people to do, knowing the drought was a righteous judgment for their rebellion? In Jeremiah 14:7-9, on behalf of the people, the prophet cried out to God for mercy:

Although our iniquities testify against us, O Lord, act for Your name’s sake! Truly our apostasies have been many, we have sinned against You. O Hope of Israel, its Savior in time of distress, why are You like a stranger in the land or like a traveler who has pitched his tent for the night? Why are You like a man dismayed, like a mighty man who cannot save? Yet You are in our midst, O Lord, and we are called by Your name; do not forsake us!

During dark days, Jeremiah boldly cried out for God’s mercy, concluding his plea in verse 21, “Do not despise us, for Your own name’s sake; do not disgrace the throne of Your glory; remember and do not annul Your covenant with us.” The prophet knew that the only hope for rescue and redemption was by invoking God and His ancient covenant.

When a nation is under judgment it may feel like God has forsaken His people, plunging them into darkness with no light to guide them. But God! He has a plan for even the darkest of days. In Romans 1:18-32, we learn how God gives people over to their own rebellion for the purpose of showing them the consequences of their choices; it’s God inviting His people, “Hope in Me! I am your way of escape. Repent and follow Me!”

Seize the moment and cry out to Jesus, “the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27), who promised in John 8:12, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

Show Me, Don’t Tell Me!

Jeremiah 13

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Monday, April 1.

Have you ever tried to teach someone, but words were not getting through to the person? When words are not enough, showing is more powerful than telling. God knows His people better than any teacher knows her students, and He loves to use word pictures to get across complicated concepts. You may remember that Isaiah was tasked by God with walking around naked in Isaiah 20. That got everyone’s attention!

In the prophetic work of Jeremiah there are at least nine times that the prophet is commanded to show them through a symbolic action. In Jeremiah 13:1-7, he is tasked to buy fine linen, the cloth of a priest, and wrap it around his waist. Then he was told to hide it in the crevice of a rock where it was destroyed, rendering it useless for the purpose it has been purchased. God explained the living parable in Jeremiah 13:9-11:

Thus says the Lord, “Just so will I destroy the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. This wicked people, who refuse to listen to My words, who walk in the stubbornness of their hearts and have gone after other gods to serve them and to bow down to them, let them be just like this waistband which is totally worthless. For as the waistband clings to the waist of a man, so I made the whole household of Israel and the whole household of Judah cling to Me,” declares the Lord, “that they might be for Me a people, for renown, for praise and for glory; but they did not listen.”

Seize the moment and abide in God, like a branch to a vine, so that He may bear fruit on your branch, demonstrating to the world that you are His disciple (John 15:1-8). God is still using word pictures today through our prophetic activity to the nations, so as you go, show them Jesus!

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

Seize the Moment – Day 1474

Today’s worship song focus :

House of the Lord

Psalm 122:1 (NASB95)     

“ I was glad when they said to me,

Written in 2020, in the middle of the pandemic, Phil Wickham created this powerful song of worship as an anthem for all believers. Wanting to connect the church to the heart of God with the invitation to experience his love and grace, Phil composed the beautiful lyrics, moving melody and powerful instrumentals to remind the church that it is more than just a physical building. It is to be a place where we gather to worship, be encouraged, and experience the presence of God.

There’s joy in the house of the Lord,

There’s joy in the house of the Lord today       

And we won’t be quiet, We shout out Your praise.                                               

There’s joy in the house of the Lord,

Our God is surely in this place                

And we won’t be quiet,

We shout out Your praise.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Ken reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

If you would like to listen to this song, click on this link:

House of the Lord

That’s God’s Job!

Jeremiah 12

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, March 29.

The prophet cried out to God for justice against the evil nations, asking God why their wicked neighbors were prospering and living at ease. Jeremiah acknowledged that it was God who planted them and allowed them to bear fruit, but wanted to know how long He was going to allow them to remain. After lamenting the current crisis, God responded with an oracle of salvation in Jeremiah 12:14-17, referencing the agricultural imagery of Jeremiah’s observation that it was He who planted them:

Thus says the Lord concerning all My wicked neighbors who strike at the inheritance with which I have endowed My people Israel, “Behold I am about to uproot them from their land and will uproot the house of Judah from among them. And it will come about that after I have uprooted them, I will again have compassion on them; and I will bring them back, each one to his inheritance and each one to his land. Then if they will really learn the ways of My people, to swear by My name, ‘As the Lord lives,’ even as they taught My people to swear by Baal, they will be built up in the midst of My people. But if they will not listen, then I will uproot that nation, uproot and destroy it,” declares the Lord.

This oracle of salvation reminds me of Jesus’ Parable of the Wheat and Tares in Matthew 13:24-30. While God promised to uproot evil from our midst one day, He was also very clear that we should trust Him for His ultimate justice in how we live our lives today. The only way of lasting peace with God is to swear by His name (Acts 4:12), so walk in the way of God’s justice by loving your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:37-40).

Seize the moment and trust God for justice; it’s His job to uproot, not yours!

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

Rejected and Despised!

Jeremiah 11

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Thursday, March 28.

Jesus was rejected and despised by the people of Nazareth, the hometown in which He grew up. In Matthew 13:57, Jesus said to those who took offense at His ministry, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his own household.” They could not believe that the man who had grown up amongst them was called to be a prophet, nevertheless, was the Son of God. Because of their unbelief, His hometown missed the blessing of God’s visitation (58).

Jesus’ response to Nazareth harkened back to the ancient prophets, illustrated by Jeremiah’s experience with his hometown of Anathoth, described in Jeremiah 11:20-23:

But, O Lord of hosts, who judges righteously, Who tries the feelings and the heart, let me see Your vengeance on them, for to You have I committed my cause. Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the men of Anathoth, who seek your life, saying, “Do not prophesy in the name of the Lord, so that you will not die at our hand”; therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, “Behold, I am about to punish them! The young men will die by the sword, their sons and daughters will die by famine; and a remnant will not be left to them, for I will bring disaster on the men of Anathoth – the year of their punishment.”

The people of Jeremiah’s hometown sought to kill him. It is one thing to be attacked by outsiders; it’s a completely different experience to be rejected and despised by the very people you were called to rescue from the coming wrath. His response to such betrayal foreshadowed that of Jesus Christ: Jeremiah committed Himself and the cause to which He was called to God, the righteous Judge of humanity.

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

Relent of Anger!

Jeremiah 10

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Wednesday, March 27.

How do you respond to people when you are upset? Are you unjust and ungraceful in how you express your feelings? In marital counseling, I’ve heard people say vicious things to their spouse, far exceeding what needed to be said. Why do we character assassinate the people we love when we are upset? When people are hijacked by their anger, they more easily make bad decisions without regard for the long-term consequences of their words or actions. We must relent of our anger, inviting the Holy Spirit to govern our hearts and minds so that we do not sin in it and give the devil an opportunity (Ephesians 4:26-27).

In Jeremiah 10:24, the prophet offered a profound prayer, in solidarity with the nation, petitioning God for their impending judgment, “Correct me, O Lord, but with justice; not with Your anger, or You will bring me to nothing.” David had made a similar petition to God in Psalm 6:1-4, “O Lord, do not rebuke me in Your anger, nor chasten me in Your wrath. Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am pining away; heal me, O Lord, for my bones are dismayed. And my soul is greatly dismayed; but You, O Lord – how long? Return, O Lord, rescue my soul; save me because of Your lovingkindness.”

Loving parents discipline their children in love, refraining from doing it while they are still angry. Anger perverts justice and distorts love! Righteous justice is sober-minded, unintoxicated by anger, seeking the good for all while accurately disciplining the one in need of correction. As Hebrews 12:11 promises, “All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.” It was for this result Jeremiah petitioned God.

Seize the moment and relent of your anger before you discipline someone you love.

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

The Weeping Prophet!

Jeremiah 9

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Tuesday, March 26.

Have you ever sat under a pastor who cried when proclaiming the goodness of God? I am profoundly touched by such a display of emotion when I discern it to be real, but I cringe if I believe it to be showmanship. Truly, only the Lord knows a person’s heart! Jeremiah was the real deal, giving him the reputation as the “weeping prophet.” We catch a glimpse of this in Jeremiah 9:1, “Oh that my head were waters and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!” His depth of concern for the well-being of God’s people reminds me of the Apostle Paul’s compassionate concern for the Jewish people, from whom he experienced rejection and ridicule. He said in Romans 9:1-3, “I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren.” Wow: that’s love!

The heartache of Jeremiah and Paul has another similarity, their proclamation of what it means to be Israel. Paul says in Romans 9:6, “For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel.” The prophet explained that being a child of Israel was not about a nationality; it’s a condition of one’s heart, foreshadowing the necessity of the New Covenant in Jeremiah 9:25-26, “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “that I will punish all who are circumcised and yet uncircumcised – … for all the nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised of heart.”

Seize the moment and ask the Lord to reveal the truth of your heart (Romans 2:28-29; Colossians 2:11). Does your heart break for the things that break God’s heart?

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

Sorrow for Sin!

Jeremiah 8

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Monday, March 25.

Sin destroys relationships and brings pain into your life, and into the lives of those you love. Jeremiah 8 is a heartbreaking chapter from a devastating time in Israel’s history. Honestly, it’s a tough chapter to meditate upon as it demonstrates to us the sorrow of sin. In Jeremiah 8:18, the prophet expresses his heartache over Judah’s sin, “My sorrow is beyond healing, my heart is faint within me!” A century prior, in Isaiah 22:4, the prophet expressed the same kind of godly sorrow over the impending judgment of Israel, “Turn your eyes away from me, let me weep bitterly, do not try to comfort me concerning the destruction of the daughter of my people.”

Lament is the right response to the pain and suffering caused by sin. We cannot whitewash the damaging effects sin has on our lives. Furthermore, we should not avoid lamenting over it, because godly sorrow leads to repentance. We even see Jesus, in Luke 19:41-44, respond with the same sorrow for sin as that of the prophets who came before Him:

When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you when your enemies will throw up a barricade against you, and surround you and hem you in on every side, and they will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.”

While there is forgiveness for sin through the victory of Jesus Christ, there are still consequences for sin in our everyday lives. Have you experienced godly sorrow for your sin?

God bless you!

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.