Words to Live By

“Praise be to you, Lord; teach me your decrees…. I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches.” – Psalm 119:12-14

My parents bought me my first study Bible about 35 years ago. I still use it to this day when I’m preparing sermons. And as I turned to Psalm 119 this past week, I saw a lot of notes in the margins from at least 10, possibly 20 years ago. Next to verses 12 -14, I wrote this question: “Do I ask God to teach me His laws, and do I rejoice and delight in following them?”

 

Good question. I wish I could tell you that in the years since I wrote this question in the margin, I have done this without fail. But I haven’t. Like you, I have read God’s Word many times without first praying, “God, please teach me what You want to teach me.” And so many times after I’ve finished reading from the Bible, listening to a sermon or attending a Bible study, I have forgotten to rejoice in what God has taught me, and I haven’t delighted in doing what He has taught me to do.

 

I don’t know about you, but I want that to change this year. And I invite you to join me. Late January may seem a little late for resolutions … but it’s NOT too late to begin making God’s teaching a priority in our lives.

 

The Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2:9-10, “As it is written: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him’—but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit.” So, how does the Holy Spirit reveal to us what God has prepared for those who love Him? He reveals it in His Word. If you prayerfully seek God with your whole heart and walk in His ways this year, I promise you: You will see what most people can’t see; you will hear what most people can’t hear; and you will understand what most people can’t understand.

 

I’d like to share with you 3 important steps for keeping God’s Word a top priority in 2025:

 

Step #1: Prayerfully read God’s Word every day. Many Christians across our nation are reading the whole Bible in 2025. If you’d like to set this as a goal for yourself or, better yet, your family, I highly recommend it! If you’re short on time for reading, the YouVersion Bible app offers audio versions of the whole Bible in multiple translations.

 

Step #2: Prayerfully memorize one Bible verse every week. If you go online, you can find several lists of the best 52 Bible verses to memorize in a year. Although we’re halfway through January, I encourage you to begin doing this today. Fifty verses are far better than zero!

 

Step #3: Prayerfully study God’s Word with your church family every week. In Acts 2:42, we’re told what the top four priorities were for the first Christian Church in Jerusalem. Guess what was at the top of the list? “Teaching.” At Impact, we keep it at the top of our list as well. I encourage you to study God’s Word with your church family every Sunday this year.

 

Would you join me in prayerfully reading God’s Word every day, prayerfully memorizing God’s Word every week, and prayerfully studying God’s Word with your church family every week? I hope and pray that you will.

Dane Davis is the pastor of Impact Christian Church in Victorville. Join us at Impact for Sunday services: in person at 9 a.m., or online at 10 a.m. on YouTube or Facebook. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.

Pray Like Jesus

“When you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private.” – Matthew 6:6 

When you were a child, you may have been taught a short prayer.  It might have been this one: “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. And if I die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.” That’s a pretty scary prayer, for kids, don’t you think? It made kids want to sleep with one eye open: “Oh, no! If I fall asleep I’m gonna die!” Here’s another familiar one: “God is great. God is good. Let us thank Him for our food. Amen.” But that 10-second prayer was evidently too long for some kids, so they shortened it to: “Rub a dub dub, thanks for the grub. Yay, God!”

For a 3-year-old, memorizing a simple prayer is a good way to learn to pray. But if you’re 15, 25 or 65 years old, and you’re still praying canned prayers that sound like a broken record, then you haven’t really started to pray. This is nothing new; it was going on in Jesus’ time as well. That’s why, in His great Sermon on the Mount, He set out to teach us the RIGHT way and the WRONG way to pray.

In Matthew 6:5, Jesus begins telling us the wrong way to pray: “Do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others.” In those days, when Jewish men prayed in the synagogue, they would often pray standing with their arms lifted in the air. That was a common prayer position in a worship service and in private prayer as well. But on a public street corner, it stood out like a sore thumb. It was a position that screamed out, “Look at me! If you want to hear a prayer that will knock your socks off, listen to me pray!” And Jesus says plainly, “I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.”

In other words, the “attaboys” that flashy pray-ers get from other people are all the reward they’ll ever get. They won’t receive any reward from God. The wrong way to pray is to pray in a way that makes YOU the center of attention.

In verse 6, Jesus explains the RIGHT way to pray. As the New Living Translation puts it: “But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.” Simply put, the right way to pray is to pray discreetly and privately—motivated by a heartfelt desire to spend quality time with your Father in heaven. In other words … pray like Jesus. 

In Matthew 7, Jesus continues: “When you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.” In those days, pagan worshipers would string together long, unintelligible phrases and repeat them over and over as a mantra. Jesus says, “Many hypocrites’ prayers are like that! Their prayers are full of words, and some of those words sound really impressive. But their prayers are meaningless. They claim to be talking to God, but they’re actually just putting on a dog and pony show for people. They’re just … babbling.”

Now, you and I can babble almost as badly as the pagans. Before lunch on Sunday: “Dear God, bless this food that we are about to receive to the nourishment of our bodies. In Jesus’ name, Amen.” And the same thing before lunch on Monday. Then, before bed on Sunday: “Dear God, thank You for this day. Help us to get a good night’s sleep and wake up refreshed in the morning. Forgive us for our sins. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”  And the same thing before bed on Monday. It becomes meaningless babbling!

Why on earth do we pray the same tired old prayers? We could never get away with saying the same tired old lines to people we're in a deep relationship with. If you spoke to your spouse every day with the same tired old language that you speak to God every day, would they think your words had any meaning whatsoever? Parents, if you spoke to your kids every day with the same tired old language that you speak to God, do you think your kids would feel loved?  

At times in our lives, we’ve all heard Christians stand up in church and pray beautiful, eloquent prayers. And we’ve thought to ourselves, “Wow! I wish I could pray like that!” But Jesus turns to us and says, “No! I don’t want you to pray like that. You are a unique child of mine, and our relationship is special. So, your prayers to Your Father in Heaven should be special. They shouldn’t sound like anyone else’s. Don’t worry about using the right words. Just talk with God like you’re talking to your Daddy who loves you more than anything in the world.”

Your Father knows what you need, and He is waiting for you to bring that need to Him. He wants to listen to your needs and meet them. He wants to hear you praise Him for who He is to you, and He wants you to thank Him for the unique blessings that He’s sent your way. And He wants to share His heart and thoughts with you as well.

You need to spend quality time with God—every day—just the two of you. He is waiting for you to come to Him. He is waiting for you to pray like Jesus.

Dane Davis is the Pastor of Impact Christian Church. Please join us for our in-person worship service tomorrow at 9 a.m. at 17746 George Blvd. in Victorville. Or, join us online at 10 a.m. on the Impact Christian Church YouTube channel or Facebook page. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.

Can People Count on You?

“All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.”
— Matthew 5:37

Recently I was reminded of the good ol’ days of telling fibs on the grade school playground. My buddy would swear that he was telling me the truth. I didn’t believe him. So, I’d tell him to cross his heart, which he’d do as he repeated the tired line: “Cross my heart and hope to die … stick a needle in my eye!” And it turned out that he was still lying … because his fingers were crossed!

Back in Jesus’ day, the religious leaders had some of their own sneaky ways of getting around having to tell the truth. Those leaders, particularly the Pharisees, had developed a complicated system of oaths and swearing they could use as loopholes when it suited them. So, Jesus had those loopholes in mind when he gave us these verses in his Sermon on the Mount:

“Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.’ But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King….  All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one” (Matthew 5:33-37).

Not sure what he means? Well, let’s look at this familiar teaching in a fresh way. In The Message, Eugene Peterson paraphrases these verses this way: “And don’t say anything you don’t mean. This counsel is embedded deep in our traditions. You only make things worse when you lay down a smoke screen of pious talk…. You don’t make your words true by embellishing them with religious lace. In making your speech sound more religious, it becomes less true. Just say ‘yes’ and ‘no.’ When you manipulate words to get your own way, you go wrong.”

Remember, Phariseeism is all about looking good on the outside to impress people. So, not surprisingly, the Jewish teachers’ oaths were all about impressing people. In Matthew 23, Jesus levels “Seven Woes” on the religious leaders. In verse 5, he says, “Everything they do is done for men to see.” And in verses 16-19, Jesus points out how hypocritical their oaths and swearing were: “Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred? You also say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gift on it, he is bound by his oath.’ You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred?”

Jesus had good reason to be upset by the religious leaders’ oaths and swearing. They had developed a ridiculous list of nauseating rules that spelled out what you could and couldn’t swear by. “If you swear by this, you have to keep your promise, but if you swear by that, you don’t.” These so-called “religious leaders” were like second-grade boys at recess.

In Matthew 5:33-37, Jesus gives his fourth example of the clear difference between the righteousness of Phariseeism and the righteousness that God seeks. To borrow Eugene Peterson’s words, Jesus is condemning the act of “laying down a smoke screen of pious talk.” He is rebuking us for “embellishing our words with religious lace.” And he is scolding us for “manipulating words” to get our own way.

For the follower of Christ, there should be no difference between our truthfulness, from conversation to conversation or from place to place. I should be no less truthful to a stranger on the street than I am to my wife at home. I should be no less truthful to the checkout lady at Target than I am to my kids at school. I should be no less truthful to the cop who pulls me over –Uh-oh! Now it’s getting convicting!—than I am to a friend at lunch.

Jesus Christ is raising the bar, calling us to be honest at all times—saying what we mean and meaning what we say. No embellishing. No half-truths. No white lies. Simple, untainted honesty.

But Jesus is teaching us to be more than just truthful. When he tells us to “Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’,” he is also telling us to be reliable. If you say you’re going to be there at 8 o’clock, be there at 8 o’clock.  If you say you’re going to pay someone back next Saturday, pay him back next Saturday. If you say you’re going to pray for her, pray for her now.

Say what you mean, and mean what you say. Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ be ‘No.’ As Christ’s followers, we are called to a higher standard. Jesus expects us to be honest and dependable. It boils down to this: Jesus Christ calls us to be honest and dependable in all of our relationships—from our spouses to our friends to our co-workers. When we do this faithfully, we bring a much-needed taste of heaven to our little corner of the world.

Dane Davis is the Pastor of Impact Christian Church. Please join us for our in-person worship service Sundays at 9 a.m. at 17746 George Blvd. in Victorville. Or, join us online at 10 a.m. on the Impact Christian Church YouTube channel or Facebook page. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.

Do We Need the Old Testament?

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” — Matthew 5:17

By the time Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount, rumors had already begun to spread that he was starting a religious revolution. Many Jews—especially those in the religious establishment—had come to believe that Jesus wanted to scrap the Jewish religion. After all, Jesus ignored many of their time-honored customs, like ceremonial hand washing and fasting every Friday. Jesus did rebellious things, like healing on the Sabbath Day. Jesus shared meals with tax collectors, prostitutes and other sinners. No self-respecting rabbi would ever do that!  And if that wasn’t bad enough, Jesus didn’t tiptoe around the religious leaders and treat them like royalty. Now, THAT was inexcusable!

So, many Jews in Israel were confused about what Jesus thought about the Old Testament. Some were convinced that he wanted to abolish it altogether. And honestly, in our day, many Christians believe much the same thing. Many Christians believe that the Old Testament, especially the Old Testament Law, belongs on the ash heap of no-longer-relevant history. But to that, Jesus says in Matthew 5:17: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” I really like the way The Living Bible paraphrases this verse: “Don’t misunderstand why I have come—it isn’t to cancel the laws of Moses and the warnings of the prophets. No, I came to fulfill them and to make them all come true.” 

One reason we can be certain that Jesus was the promised Christ was because he is the only person in the history of the world who fulfilled hundreds of Old Testament prophecies: He was born in Bethlehem of a virgin in the family line of King David (prophesied in Micah 5:2, Isaiah 7:14 and Jer. 23:5-6). He came out of Egypt, grew up in Nazareth and proclaimed good news to the poor and freedom for the captives. (Hosea 11:1; Isaiah 61:1). Jesus was led like a lamb to the slaughter. He was pierced. Men cast lots for his clothing. And he was raised to life. (Those are fulfillments of the very detailed prophecies in Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22.) And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Directly or indirectly, Jesus fulfilled hundreds of Old Testament prophecies.

So, Jesus has no desire or intention of eliminating the Old Testament’s prophetic books, because they all serve as a huge neon arrow pointing right to Jesus. If you read the New Testament and aren’t convinced that Jesus is the Christ and the Son of the living God, then go back and read the Old Testament prophets. Read ALL of Isaiah 53. Read ALL of Psalm 22, and you’ll become convinced. Because, once again, the Old Testament prophets are a neon arrow pointing straight to Jesus. 

But what about the Old Testament law, the Torah? In the first five books of the Old Testament —especially Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy—the ancient Jewish scribes counted 613 Laws of Moses. Didn’t Jesus come to scrap those laws? Obviously, we don’t slaughter sheep and goats anymore. We don’t wring off the heads of sacrificial doves. We don’t burn incense in temples, prosecute people who get tattoos, or stone to death children who rebel against their parents.

Well, keep this in mind. Those 613 laws fall into three categories: The Moral Law, The Civil Law, and the Ceremonial Law. The Moral Law contains laws like the Ten Commandments, which are timeless. They are to be obeyed by every follower of God in ALL times and places. The Civil Law contained specific laws for the nation of Israel to help maintain law and order. The Ceremonial Law contained the laws dealing with worship at the tabernacle and temple, including animal sacrifice.

Jesus came to reinforce the Old Testament Moral Law, and he came to FULFILL the intention of the Civil and Ceremonial Law. What does that mean? Theologian Warren Wiersbe explains it very well: “Jesus did not destroy the law by fighting it; He destroyed it by fulfilling it! Perhaps an illustration will make this clear. If I have an acorn, I can destroy it in one of two ways. I can put it on a rock and smash it to bits with a hammer. Or, I can plant it in the ground and let it fulfill itself by becoming an oak tree.”

So, did Jesus come to take a hammer and beat the Old Testament Law to a bloody pulp? Never! The Jewish people didn’t realize that for the past 1,500 years God had been planting those 613 Old Testament laws as seeds in the ground. If people were to step back and open their eyes, they would see that those 613 laws blossomed into a living, breathing neon arrow that pointed straight to Jesus.

We don’t need to slaughter sheep and birds anymore, not because those laws have been abolished, but because Jesus’ sacrifice has made them obsolete. We don’t have Aaron’s priesthood anymore that leads us in temple rituals, not because Jesus scrapped Aaron’s priesthood or the temple rituals, but because Jesus’ greater priesthood and superior ministry have made them obsolete. So, Jesus says in Matthew 5:18: “I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.”

So, what are you and I supposed to do with the Old Testament Law? Should we take out a hammer and beat it to a bloody pulp? Never! It is God’s word. So, we read it. We study it. And we step back and marvel at the way it points straight to Jesus.

Dane Davis is the Pastor of Impact Christian Church. Please join us for our in-person worship service Sundays at 9 a.m. at 17746 George Blvd. in Victorville. Or, join us online at 10 a.m. on the Impact Christian Church YouTube channel or Facebook page. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.

Don't Play Favorites

“If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself,’  you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law.”

- James 2:8-9

I was blessed to attend high school before the days of Columbine and Sandy Hook. It was, in many ways, a much more innocent time. As a teenager I attended youth group just about every week. And at one of those events, the speaker shared a story about an armed man who barged into a church service one Sunday morning. He stood in the middle of the sanctuary with rifle in hand and yelled, “I’m giving you all ONE chance to get out here. If you don’t really believe this foolishness about Jesus Christ, I’ll let you leave right now.” Ninety percent of the congregation left the building. The gunman turned to the pastor and said, “All right, preacher. I got rid of all the hypocrites. You can continue the service now.”

As a teenager, I remember thinking about that story and wondering: “Am I a hypocrite? I’ve heard the Bible verses that say I’m supposed to stand up for my faith in Christ, and I believe those verses. But do I believe them enough to actually die for my faith?” As the book of James reminds us, following Jesus has never been a matter of simply listening to God’s word. It’s about doing God’s word, obeying God’s word, living God’s word.

At the beginning of chapter 2, James gives his Christian readers a very important command: In order to be doers of God’s word, we cannot discriminate. We cannot play favorites. He writes in verse 1: “My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t show favoritism.” Notice that before James gives this command, “Don’t show favoritism,” he reminds us who we are: “believers in our glorious Lord Jesus,” the Savior of the world who saved us from our sins.  James is essentially saying: “As I give you this command, remember that it is the Savior of the world’s command.” And this is his clear command: “Don’t show favoritism.”

The word translated as “favoritism” in the NIV is the Greek word prosopolepsia, which literally means “receiving the face.” Favoritism involves looking at someone’s face and identifying characteristics of their physical appearance or status or race—and based on the characteristics we see, choosing whether to receive them or reject them. When I show favoritism, I accept some faces and reject others based entirely on what features I like and which ones I don’t like.

I hope that most of us don’t cut people out of our lives based on their appearance. But if we’re honest with ourselves, we’ve all struggled with favoritism at some level or another. The CEV translates Jesus’ command in verse 1, “Don’t treat some people better than others.” And the Good News version paraphrases the command, “Don’t treat people in different ways according to their outward appearance.” The truth is, in this day and age people talk a lot about equality and tolerance, but most people—even most Christians—show some favoritism. We don’t practice what we preach. We receive the faces of some, but we don’t receive the faces of others.

Now, let’s play devil’s advocate for a minute. We may say, “So, I’m more likely to talk to a guy in a suit than to a homeless guy who smells like last week’s garbage. And I’m more likely to be nice to a lady who looks like Barbie than a girl who’s tatted up and looks like a gang banger. I’m only human, right? What’s the big deal?” Well, it’s a big deal … because we are God’s representatives here on earth, and when we play favorites, we imply that GOD plays favorites. We imply that some people are less important to God and less loved by God than others. And that implication leads people to doubt that God and His word are true.

Years ago an older and wiser Christian taught me that when we are doing ministry, more is “caught” than what is “taught.” In other words, people will be more influenced by our actions than our words. It doesn’t matter how much we say, “I love you” if we treat people like trash.  And it doesn’t matter how much we quote John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” If we treat someone like a reject, he or she will likely come to the conclusion that God has rejected him: “John 3:16 is for everyone else—except for me.” When we show favoritism we completely misrepresent God to our lost and dying world. And that, my friends, is a sin.

In order to be doers of the word, we cannot discriminate. We cannot play favorites. We must treat all people with kindness and love. Whether you are at home or at church or at work or walking down the sidewalk, don’t show favoritism. Show kindness and compassion to everyone equally. Show mercy to everyone equally. And no matter what someone looks like or talks like or even smells like, love your neighbor as you love yourself. James calls this second-greatest command “the royal command,” reminding us to treat every person we meet like “royalty.”

Warren Wiersbe says it well: “We only believe as much of the Bible as we practice. One of the tests of the reality of our faith is how we treat other people. Can we pass the test?” Good question! Can you pass the test?

Dane Davis is the Pastor of Impact Christian Church. Join us for our worship service Sundays at 10 a.m. at the new Dr. Ralph Baker School in Victorville. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.

Are You Shining Like Jimmy?

“No one lights a lamp and hides it in a clay jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, they put it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light.” – Luke  8:16

Hubert Humphrey, who served as Vice President under President Lyndon Johnson, was narrowly defeated by Richard Nixon in the 1968 presidential election. Ten years later, Humphrey died of cancer. Dignitaries from around the world gathered at his funeral to say “good-bye” to their old friend and colleague. But one attender was shunned and ignored. That person was former president Richard Nixon, who had gone through the shame of Watergate just four years earlier. He was back in Washington for the first time since his resignation from the presidency. Nobody at Humphrey’s funeral would look at him, much less speak to him.

Then a very special thing happened. President Jimmy Carter, who was in the White House at the time, came in and saw Nixon standing all by himself. President Carter went to him, stuck out his hand and smiled as though he were greeting a family member. To everyone’s surprise, the two men embraced, and Carter said, “Welcome home, Mr. President! Welcome home!” Newsweek magazine later wrote, “If there was a turning point in Nixon’s long ordeal in the wilderness, it was that moment and that gesture of love and compassion.”

Why on earth would President Carter do such a thing? Well, because that’s what Jesus would have done. Jimmy Carter may not have been our greatest president, but as a committed follower of Jesus Christ, he believed he was called to shine the light of Christ. And twice a month in Plains, Georgia, Carter still teaches a Sunday School class at Maranatha Baptist Church. At 94 years old, he’s still shining the light of Christ.

Jesus tells us in the book of Luke, verse 8:16, “No one lights a lamp and hides it in a jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, he puts it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light.” In the Bible, “light” is often used as a symbol for God’s Word. But in Scripture light is also a symbol for the truth. So, what is Jesus saying in verse 16 of Luke 8? He is saying, “Just as no one lights a lamp during a power outage and hides it in the closet, no Christian who understands God’s word should hide it.” Followers of Christ, who know the truth about salvation, forgiveness and heaven and hell, should never keep that truth to themselves. William Barclay says it so well: “Verse 16 stresses the essential conspicuousness of the Christian life. Christianity is in its very nature something which must be seen.” 

Think about those words. The Christian life should be conspicuous. Our Christianity “must be seen.” You and I are to proclaim God’s word openly to all who are willing to listen. We must proclaim the truth both with our words and our actions. Our faith is to be lived out in plain view. And in verse 17, Jesus stresses the fact that if we DO try to keep our faith hidden, it will eventually be revealed anyway: “For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open.”

That’s a bit scary when you think about it. Many Christians are secretly addicted to porn, and they’re convinced that “Nobody will ever know.”  Yeah, they will. Sooner or later….they’ll know. Many Christians never crack open their Bibles outside of church, and they don’t think that anyone will ever find out. Yeah, they will. Sooner or later…it’ll be revealed. We try hard to hide our faults and our skeletons in the closet from other people. We hope they’ll never find out. Sometimes I’ve shuddered as I’ve considered what it would be like to have my most inappropriate thoughts and my most sinful actions projected on a big screen for all to see. That’d be a nightmare!

But in the context of what Jesus says in verse 17, I don’t think he plans to project our sins on a big screen. What Jesus most likely is referring to is the reality that if you as a follower of Christ hide your Christianity and God’s truth from your friends and family, they’ll discover your secret sooner or later. Imagine how terrible it would be if your family and friends discover that you’re a Christian after they’ve died. “What? You mean you knew all these years where I was going after I died, and you didn’t warn me? You knew how to make it to heaven, and you didn’t tell me? I didn’t think I knew any Christians, and you were one all this time! Why on earth didn’t you tell me?”

You may be one of those Christians who has said for years, “There are two things I never discuss: politics and religion.” Well, la-dee-da! It’s time to change your policy and start talking more openly about Jesus. One of these days your friends and family will find out that you’re serious about your faith. I hope and pray that when they do, it’s not too late.

If you as a Christian are learning God’s truth, but you’re not sharing God’s truth, God will see to it that your growth is stunted, and you’ll start losing much of the knowledge you learned. Just like most things in life, if you don’t use it, you lose it. We must receive God’s Word with open ears, open minds and open hearts. And then we must share God’s word with open eyes, open mouths and open hands. So, do what Jimmy Carter does: Get yourself off the couch and shine your light in this dark world.

Dane Davis is the Lead Pastor of First Christian Church in Victorville. For more information, visit www.YourVictorvilleChurch.com  and join us for worship Sundays at 10 a.m.

Why Was Jesus Tempted?

Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’”

- Luke 4:8

In June 2011, a man found a bag of money with a Chase Bank logo on it at a Walgreen’s drugstore in Chicago. When he peeked inside, he discovered the bag contained $17,000 in cash and checks. What would you have done? Well, this man gave in to temptation and took the bag. But it was a 45-minute drive back to his suburban home, and in that time, he became convicted that he was doing the wrong thing. The fact that he might get caught probably also weighed into his decision. At any rate, he turned the money in.

But when he turned it in at a Chase Bank, he was a little concerned about how he’d explain those 45 minutes. So, he lied and said he found it at the local mall. The story made the news, and he was hailed around the world as a hero. But the authorities weren’t so sure. The police and FBI investigated the incident and discovered the truth. As a result, the man was fined $500 for filing a false police report, and he went from hero to zero in one news cycle.

Well, Jesus was tempted too. And before we assume that any temptation would be a slam-dunk for the Son of God, the Book of Luke reminds us that Jesus was also the son of Adam. Luke spends the last half of chapter 3 tracing Jesus’ family tree to the first man ever created: Adam. He wanted us to know that as the Son of God, Jesus was 100 percent God. But as the son of Adam, Jesus was also 100 percent man. Jesus could get hungry like Adam got hungry. He could get tired and discouraged, just as Adam could get tired and discouraged. And Jesus could be tempted, just as Adam was tempted.

In Luke 4:1, we’re told that after his baptism Jesus was “full of the Holy Spirit,” and that he was “led by the Holy Spirit into the desert.” He fasted in the Judean desert for 40 days and 40 nights. At the end of 40 days, Satan knew full well that Jesus was hungry—REALLY hungry. So he tried to persuade Jesus to turn one of the limestone rocks around him into a loaf of bread. But the Father had something much more important than bread for Jesus to feast on, and Jesus knew that. So in response, Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 8:3: “It is written, man does not live on bread alone.” One temptation down, two to go.

In the following verses Satan tempted Jesus two more times, and each temptation was strategically chosen by Satan to capitalize on one of Jesus’ weaknesses (as if he had any). The second temptation—offering Jesus authority over all the kingdoms of the world—was intended to get Jesus to compromise his integrity in order to avoid the pain and suffering of the cross. And Satan’s third temptation—for Jesus to throw himself from the temple to be rescued by angels—was designed to get Jesus to upstage God, making himself the center of attention instead of God the Father. In both cases, Jesus overcame the temptation by unleashing the sword of the Spirit: the word of God.

Over the years many Christians have wondered why Jesus was tempted. Perhaps it was because Jesus wanted a showdown or because Satan thought that he could best Jesus. Maybe. But I tend to think Jesus suffered through that temptation for you and me. He allowed himself to be tempted because he knew that you and I would be tempted. And his victory over his three temptations provides a picture-perfect “how-to” guide for how we can do the same.

The truth is, as long as you and I are still living here on earth, we’re going to be tempted. Sometimes the devil is the one tempting us. Sometimes people around us are tempting us. Sometimes our old sinful nature tempts us. We have these three great enemies that constantly fight against our souls. And we are told in God’s word to resist temptation. It’s not a sin to be tempted. It’s only a sin to give in to that temptation. So, how do we resist temptation? We do it the same way Jesus did. First of all, we pray. Second, we lean on the Holy Spirit.

Third—and this one is a biggy—we stand firm on God’s word. Did you notice Jesus’ response to Satan? They’re the first words quoted from Jesus in the Bible after his baptism: “It is written.” These words mark the beginning of his ministry on earth. Do you think, perhaps, there’s a message for us in there? I think so. As long as we are living here on earth, Satan will nip at our heels just as he nipped at Jesus’ heels. But just like Jesus, in the power of the Holy Spirit, we can prayerfully use the word of God to crush Satan’s head.

When we lift God’s word in prayer, it is our strongest weapon against temptation. Jesus responded to every one of Satan’s temptation with the powerful, unchanging word of God. Back in 2011, if the man at Walgreen’s had followed these three steps—if he had prayed, leaned on the Holy Spirit and stood firm on God’s word—it would have saved him a lot of embarrassment and heartache. It also would have saved him 500 bucks. I can’t guarantee you that following these three steps will save you money, but following them will save you a lot of heartache, and God will be very, very pleased with you.

Dane Davis is the Lead Pastor of First Christian Church in Victorville. For more information,

visit www.YourVictorvilleChurch.com  and join us for church Sundays at 10 a.m.

A Child of God

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” - John 1:1

There’s a story about a little boy who was wakened during the night by a thunderstorm. He called down the hall to his mother because he was scared. Well, now and then we all have less-than-perfect parenting moments, and in the wee hours, Mom was hoping to avoid getting out of bed. So she called back, “Don't worry, sweetheart. God loves you, and He’ll take care of you.” But after a moment the little boy answered, “Mom, I know God loves me. But right now, I need someone with skin on."

In the last few weeks I’ve been looking at the Christmas story through the eyes of the gospel writers. In the final gospel, the apostle John gives us his take on the birth of Jesus, and here’s what he tells us: Jesus Christ came to earth as God with skin on.

The book of John opens, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” From that opening verse, John wants us to wrestle with the earth-shattering truth that Jesus is God. And so, when Jesus was born on that first Christmas, God had come down. Jesus was God in the flesh, and this world would never be the same.

Warren Wiersbe says it well: “Much as our words reveal to others our hearts and minds, so Jesus Christ is God’s ‘Word’ to reveal His heart and mind to us. Jesus said, ‘He who has seen me has seen the Father’” (John 14:9). Isn’t that awesome? For centuries people wondered what God would look like and talk like and act like in the real world. Well, Jesus showed us once and for all, didn’t he? Jesus is God’s heart and mind with skin on.

John 1 makes it clear that Jesus created the world. So creation—including humankind—was rightfully his. But when Jesus came into the world, most people did not recognize him as the Word of God (John 1:10-11). Most people didn’t recognize him as the Creator. So, when given the choice of whether to receive him or reject him, most people opted for rejecting him. But for the few who did receive him, for the few who did place their trust in him, “he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12b).

This is an important distinction. You see, many people say, “After all, we’re all children of God.” No, we’re not. Biblically, that’s just not true. We are all CREATIONS of God. But unless we become believers and followers of Jesus Christ, we will never become CHILDREN of God. Spiritual adoption into God’s eternal family can only come through Jesus Christ: the eternal Word of God.

And in verses 14 and 17, John gives us two words that seem to hop off the pages of our Bibles: grace and truth. Let’s look at that first word, one of the most wonderful words in the English language: Grace. It means “undeserved favor.” It’s one thing for God to show us mercy—withholding the punishment from us that we rightly deserve for our sins. But it’s quite another thing for God to show us grace—blessing and favor that are completely unmerited. It’s one thing for Jesus to rescue us from Hell. But to give us the gift of heaven, after all we’ve done to rebel against God—that’s grace!

And Jesus is not only our grace. He is also our truth. If you want to know the truth about why you’re here on earth, the answers you seek are in the Word of God. They are found in Jesus. If you want to know the truth about where you stand with God right now, the truth is found in the Word of God. It is found in Jesus. If you want to know the truth about how your broken relationship with God can be patched up, the truth is found in Jesus. And if you want to know how you can be sure that when you die you will go to heaven, the certainty that you seek is found in Jesus.

Once you know who Jesus is and why he came, what are you going to do with him? You can choose to reject him. That’s an option. Or, you can choose to receive him. That’s a much better option. As we look at Christmas of 2017 in our rear-view mirror, it’s my prayer that you’ll recognize Jesus for who he is, and receive the great blessing of becoming a child of God.

Dane Davis is the Pastor of First Christian Church in Victorville. For more information, visit www.fccvv.com  and join us for worship Sundays at 10 a.m.

Don’t Kick the Tires!

“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” – Matthew 19:4b

Marriage has never been easy. But explaining it used to be pretty simple. Not anymore! I think we all know what marriage “used to” be: the lifelong legal union between one man and one woman. But in recent years our culture has wrestled with the questions: Can we broaden the definition of marriage? Are there alternatives to traditional marriage that could be just as fulfilling, or even more so? Should we give marriage a 21^st century update?

There are a number of alternatives to traditional marriage that have begun to grow in popularity. And since God is the creator of marriage, I think it’s only right that we look at the way these alternatives stack up against God’s word. For the sake of time and column space, this week I’m going to focus on just one of them: cohabitation.

First, to make sure we’re on the same page, here’s a quick definition of cohabitation: two unmarried people of the opposite sex living together with long-term or permanent intentions. These days, even within the church, you’ll find a lot of folks who think cohabitation is a good idea. Here are three of the most common reasons people give:

#1: The financial reason. “It’s cheaper!” Most couples who make this argument haven’t really crunched the numbers. Research demonstrates that while couples may move in together with the theory of sharing the bills 50-50, it tends to be more like 60-40—usually with the ladies picking up the heavier end of the tab.

#2: The “kick the tires” reason. People say it all the time: “You’d never buy a used car without kicking the tires first. So, you should never marry someone you haven’t lived with first to see if you’re compatible.” Surprise! Couples who live together before marriage have a 33 percent higher divorce rate. Not only that, but infidelity is twice as common in couples living together. There is also a greater likelihood of alcohol abuse, depression and physical abuse among couples living together compared to couples who are married.

#3: The “stronger marriage” reason. Today most adults believe that living together before getting married improves your chances of a successful marriage. Uh, no. See the higher divorce rate mentioned above. Besides that, most cohabiting couples don’t even get there. University of Michigan sociologist Pamela Smock writes, “Only about one-sixth of live-ins last at least three years, and only one-tenth lasts five years or more.”

So if you’re hoping for a marriage that’s strong and healthy and doesn’t end in divorce, the research is pretty clear: living together before your wedding is a terrible idea. Marriage is hard enough when we do it God’s way. You don’t need to increase your likelihood of unhappiness and failure by doing it the world’s way.

Now, let’s look at God’s way. In Genesis 2, God created marriage—the very first human relationship, between the first man and the first woman. This relationship serves as the prototype for every other marriage from that point forward. In Genesis 2:18 God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” That word “helper,” by the way, is translated from a Hebrew word that is used many times to refer to God Himself in the Old Testament. It doesn’t refer to someone who is underneath another. It speaks of being face-to-face and perfectly complimenting each other so that the two together are stronger than the one by himself. God created Eve as a partner to Adam—not a slave.

And Genesis 2:24 makes it clear that the leaving of our pre-marriage home and starting a new home together is not to take place until a man and woman are husband and wife: “That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.” The Bible does not condone cohabitation. It’s a sin. Period.

So, cohabitation may be wildly popular in America, but both the scientific research and God’s word agree: It’s a lousy alternative to marriage. And it’s even a terrible warm-up to marriage. Simply put, God’s answer to cohabitation is, “Stop it!” Save yourself sexually for your wedding night. And wait to live together until you both have rings on your fingers and a marriage certificate signed in the sight of God and human witnesses. God’s order is this: Get married. Move in together and have sex. Have children.

As in so many things, society hasn’t improved on God’s word. The old ways are the right ways when it comes to marriage. And when two people enter their life together according to God’s plan, their union is blessed in a way it never could be otherwise.

Dane Davis is the Lead Pastor of First Christian Church in Victorville. For more information,

visit www.fccvv.com  and join us for worship Sundays at 10 a.m.

Don’t Board the Complain Train!

“Do everything without complaining or arguing.”

– Philippians 2:14

The story is told of a little girl who wanted more than anything to become a great pianist. Unfortunately, no matter how much she practiced, the only tune she could play was “Chopsticks.” Her parents saved their money and arranged to have a great maestro give her lessons. A few days later they arrived at his mansion, and the maestro’s butler escorted them to the parlor where the little girl sat down at the grand piano and started playing her most enthusiastic rendition of “Chopsticks.” Her parents almost died of embarrassment as the maestro walked into the room. But to their surprise, he quietly sat down on the piano bench beside their daughter, placed his hands on the piano keys and began adding chords, runs and arpeggios. In all their lives the parents had never heard such a beautiful duet, and amazingly enough, the central theme of the music was still “Chopsticks.”

The maestro reminds me a lot of Jesus. You see, God created our lives to be harmonious duets. So, unless we allow our heavenly Maestro, Jesus Christ, to place his masterful hands on our lives and shape us, our character will never become more and more like his. He is the only true Virtuoso who can make our lives sing. Without him, our lives will be an embarrassing, monotonous tune of “Chopsticks.”

Speaking of monotony, there are few things in life more monotonous than grumbling and arguing. In Philippians 2:14, God’s Word urges us to “Do everything without complaining or arguing.” Now, that’s a tall order! We live in a culture where, in the view of many, complaining is as American as apple pie. We grumble and complain about our boss. We grumble and complain about our kids. We grumble and complain about our pastor. And we grumble and complain about our President. Whaaa! Whaaa! Whaaa!

We can’t be growing Christians and, at the same time, live lives marked by complaining. The Greek word translated as “complaining” in Philippians 2:14 can also be translated as murmuring or grumbling. Time and again in both the Old and New Testaments we find evidence that God hates complaining. One of the clearest examples of this reality is found in Numbers 14. As God was leading the Israelites to the Promised Land of Canaan, they broke out in a chorus of grumbling: “If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this desert! Why is the LORD bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn’t it be better for us to go back to Egypt? We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt.”

God was infuriated by Israel’s complaining, and His punishment was severe. Except for Joshua and Caleb, not a single adult Israelite who was delivered from Egypt was allowed to enter the Promised Land forty years later. Every single adult died in the desert. Only the younger generation entered “the land flowing with milk and honey.” So, is complaining a big deal to God? You bet it is! Especially when God is the target of our complaints. When we murmur against God, it demonstrates an emotional rejection of His good plan and provision for our lives. That being the case, complaining can be an attack on God’s character. And that’s a serious offense for anyone, especially for a Christian.

Similarly, we can’t be growing Christians and, at the same time, live lives marked by arguing. The Greek word translated as “arguing” in Philippians 2:14 can also be translated as disputing or criticizing. Sadly, many Christians are known for being argumentative and critical. Why is that? If we are commanded to love our neighbors and consider their needs more important than our own, how can we allow ourselves to become our neighbors’ greatest critics? When we criticize our church, don’t we realize that we are indirectly criticizing the Lord who spilled his blood for our church? And when we criticize our spouse and kids, don’t we realize that we are indirectly criticizing the One who gave us our families? Without a doubt, many of us criticize our Good Provider and malign His character without even realizing it. That is unacceptable.

It is a sin of the mind and heart to level self-centered criticism against God. When we criticize the Lord, we are implying that He is not good or trustworthy, and we are proclaiming to a listening world that His plans are flawed. Therefore, like complaining and grumbling, it is an attack on God’s character. Once again, the people of Israel serve as an example of what not to do in this regard. They were perpetual God-critics, and they paid dearly for their criticism.

So, if you choose to partner with God to transform your character, that’s fantastic! But don’t sabotage your good efforts by making a habit of complaining against or criticizing God or people. Even when the hands of our Maestro are hard at work in our lives, the music of our lives will be unpleasant if our mouths are seeping verbal sewage. There’s no way around it. We can’t be growing Christians and at the same time be grumblers and critics. Our community is chock-full of men and women who can play “Chopsticks.” What we desperately need are Christians whose lives make beautiful music with the Maestro.

Dane Davis is the Lead Pastor of First Christian Church in Victorville. For more information,

visit www.fccvv.com  and join us for worship Sunday at 10 am.

Yes, You Can Have Joy

“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel.” – Philippians 1:3-5

We have more entertainment at our fingertips than any prior generation, but—by all appearances—unhappiness and depression are at an all-time high. A recent study released late last year revealed this sobering statistic: 12% of Americans—that’s almost 1 out of every 8 adults—have taken antidepressants during the past year. We are spending over ¼ billion dollars on antidepressants every year. Yet suicide claims more American lives than car accidents. Let’s face it: for millions of us happiness and joy are nowhere in sight.

We desperately need a joy remedy, and the Book of Philippians is just what the doctor ordered. The elusive secret to joy is spelled out for all to see in Paul’s little four-chapter “Thank You” letter to the Christians in the town of Philippi. God preserved it in His Word for all of us who wrestle daily with discouragement and unhappiness. Within this letter, Paul reveals the secret to having joy, peace and contentment in every circumstance—even when the doctor says, “It’s cancer”; even when our marriage is falling apart; even when we get laid off or fired. Yes, it is possible to experience joy, peace and contentment in the midst of suffering, and Philippians teaches us how.

In order to understand how to experience lasting joy, we must first understand the difference between happiness and joy. Let’s start with happiness, which can be defined this way: “Happiness is a temporary pleasant feeling that is usually grounded in pleasant happenings.” When you think of the word “happiness,” it’s helpful to remember the word “happenings.” You see, happiness usually works this way: If the happenings in and around my life are positive, I’ll likely be happy. But if the happenings in and around my life are negative, I’ll likely be unhappy. Our happiness comes and goes because the annoyances, problems and hurdles in this life come and go. So, when it comes to happiness, keep these two things in mind: #1: Happiness is temporary. #2: Happiness is highly dependent upon our happenings.

But that’s not the case with joy. “Joy is the settled conviction that God is sovereign. Therefore, He controls the events of life for His followers’ good and His glory. Joy is grounded in our unchanging God and never in our changing circumstances.” Take a moment to allow this definition of joy to sink in. Joy is a settled conviction grounded in our unchanging, great and awesome God. Joy is a settled conviction grounded in the absolute confidence that—despite how bad our circumstances appear to be, no matter how ugly they look, no matter how dire they seem, no matter how painful they feel—God is at work for my good, and God will somehow be glorified. Therefore, I will choose joy.

When it comes to happiness, circumstances are everything. But when it comes to joy, circumstances are irrelevant. Joy is never grounded in changing situations but in the unchanging truth of God’s character and His promises. Therefore, joy need not be temporary. And joy need not be handicapped by life’s fleeting troubles. It boils down to this: Happiness is grounded in momentary stuff, but joy is grounded in our eternal, unchanging God.

Once we come to grips with the reality that true, lasting joy is grounded in God and not in our circumstances, Paul is able to open our eyes to certain joy killers that battle against our joy, peace and contentment. For example, in verse 5 of chapter 1 he reveals that his dynamic ministry partnership with other Christians brings him great joy. In other words, had Paul chosen to isolate himself from other Christians, he would have been stripped of the joy that came through Christian fellowship. The same holds true for you and me. Is it any wonder that Christians who say, “I follow Jesus, but church isn’t for me” tend to have very little joy in their Christianity? God created us for dynamic fellowship with each other, so when we isolate ourselves from other Christians, our joy tanks tend to run dry. Isolation is a joy-killer.

And in verses 9-11 of chapter 1, Paul reveals yet another joy-killer: stagnancy. In these verses, Paul speaks of our love growing in knowledge and depth of insight. He speaks of us growing in discernment and righteousness. And all of this growth is contingent upon our studying God’s Word. Long story short: If our Bibles are gathering dust, our Christian walks will stagnate and our joy will dwindle. You see, like isolation, stagnancy is a joy killer. We must be daily reading God’s Word and growing in our understanding of God’s Word. The living and active Word of God inoculates us against the joy-killer of stagnancy, but it’s an inoculation that must be received daily.

Paul has much more to teach us about the road to abiding joy, but I’ll save those insights for other articles to follow. In the meantime, let’s all begin walking the path of joy by embracing the settled conviction that God is at work for our good and His glory. And with that in mind, let’s prioritize fellowship and reading His Word. If we’re serious about choosing joy, we will do just that.   

Dane Davis is the Lead Pastor of First Christian Church in Victorville. For more information,

visit www.fccvv.com  and join us for worship Sundays at 10 am.