Week Four, 2025
When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus come forth.”
–John 11:43
Fresh out of law school, I landed my first job as a lawyer with a local law firm. On the first day a senior partner handed me a file and told me to go to court that afternoon. It was a petition for habeas corpus. Ironically, the person in custody was named George Washington, so I can say that my first court appearance was to get George Washington out of jail.
The “Great Writ” of habeas corpus is a fundamental right in the Constitution that protects against unlawful and indefinite imprisonment. Translated from Latin it means “show me the body.” Habeas corpus has historically been an important instrument to safeguard individual freedom against arbitrary executive power.
Well, I won and George was released. It was so far, the highlight of my legal career, as I was batting 100%!
There’s a parallel in the Bible, found in John 11:43 when in a loud voice, Jesus said “Lazarus come forth.” I read that and realized the true meaning. Most think the issue and the command was restoring life to a three day dead body.
But there’s more. It was a real-life exercise to draw a spiritual parallel for all people. Jesus calls all to emerge from spiritual darkness and come into the light of Christ found out of the darkness of a sinful life and into the light of salvation.
Jesus was saying to produce the body wrapped in the clothes of our naturally sinful life and into the light of a life with Him.
Have you walked forth from the darkness of sin and into the light of Christ? The entrapment in the cave of sin is a dark life and Jesus calls us to emerge into a brand-new life. Today is not too late, but tomorrow may be.
Sometimes True Stories
He who would love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. 1 Peter 3:10-11
According to Peter, if you want the good life, here are the rules:
Rule number one: keep your tongue from evil. Gossip is pure evil. There is nothing loving or productive about gossip. It brings only harm.
Rule number two: keep your lips from speaking guile. In other words, don’t be deceitful in your speech. Deceitful speech twists or omits the truth. It is speech which exploits terminology. Those who are deceitful in their speech soon lose credibility and trust. Obey God and He will shower you with joy, happiness, peace, and prosperity.
Rule number three: flee that which is evil. Not only must we avoid evil, we need to seek that which is good. As Paul wrote to the Ephesians, “Put off… the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts… put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4: 22, 24). Paul then gave specific examples. They weren’t just to stop lying, they were to start telling the truth. They weren’t just to stop stealing, they were to get jobs so they could help those in need. They weren’t just to stop slandering; they were to edify one another with their words. Avoiding evil means choosing what is good.
And what is the result of following these rules? Only blessing.
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Fear can be debilitating. It can tear us down and steal our confidence. It can bring great anxiety that has us feeling as if we are boxed in and the walls are moving closer.
Fear can cause us to freeze up, to not move or do. It can cause us to just lock up, to “choke” ~ being unable to act, unable to help, unable to think clearly. Fear can cause us to run, to flee, to panic, to take flight. It can cause us to fight, to become angry, to defend.
Fear keeps men from rising up to greatness. Fear keeps men cowering in a boat, while the Savior beckons us to step out and walk on water. Fear causes us to thrash about in the water, even after we’ve taken a few steps on that very same water.
Fear can also be healthy as it causes us to prepare, to strengthen, to fortify. Fear can cause us to plan and strategize. It can be the catalyst to help us think outside the box, help us become creative, help see things we may never have seen otherwise.
As we face the fears of today and tomorrow, whether large or small or somewhere in between, let us not be afraid. For we know that He will never leave us nor forsake us. We know that we are never alone. We know that God is bigger, and God is in control.
Though I may fear… I will not be afraid, for I know from where my help comes. I will have faith over fear. Marty Stubblefield
Quotes You Can Use
Walk with Him today. Renounce sin’s darkness; choose the Light. Light and darkness are mutually exclusive.
Decades ago, when the Bible and prayer were banned from schools, we wondered what would become of our society. Now we know.
I often hear that we ought not bring religion into politics. This where it ought to be brought.
Prayer is not a back-up plan. Prayer is the battle plan.
Heaven has strict immigration laws. Hell has open borders.
Three enemies of the soul: The world, the flesh and the devil.
A nation that kills its children in the womb has lost its soul. Mother Teresa
Gossip dies when it hits a wise person’s ears. Rumors are started by haters, carried by fools and believed by idiots.
No one is harder to reach than a false Christian.
A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor.
Never make the person who made the problem in charge of the solution.
We are living in a time when Satan doesn’t hide anymore and still people cannot see him.
It takes two years to learn how to speak and sixty years to know when to be quiet. Ernest Hemingway
Ships don’t sink because of the water around them. They sink because of the water inside them. Don’t let what is happening around you get within you and weight you down.
To live without hope is to cease to live.
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