Tag Archives: love

The Savior Who Seeks Sinners | Bible Gleanings | July 6-7, 2024

July 5, 2024 Brandon G. B. Leave a comment

I searched high and low for it, but it was sleeping with the fishes. My iPhone evidently decided to try its hand at scuba diving, as it dove out of my pocket during a recent kayaking excursion. I lost it at the bank and did everything I could to retrieve it, but to no avail (what a “sinking” feeling!). I looked for it in the murky and muddy depths, and called it from my wife’s phone in hopes that its vibrations would cause bubbles to rise to the surface. I even tried submerging my head to see if I could hear it ringing, but my efforts were useless.

Although I never recovered my smartphone, I did learn a lesson: I was willing to go to great lengths (and depths) to recover something that was lost because it was valuable to me. And this is the humbling lesson which the Lord teaches us in the Bible’s great story of redemption. Just as I searched tirelessly for my lost phone, the Lord relentlessly pursues lost sinners because of His love for them. He leaves the ninety-nine sheep to find the one that is lost (Luke 15:4). Like the woman who sought her misplaced coin, the Lord diligently searches the whole world for the wayward (Luke 15:8-10).

As a matter of fact, the Lord runs after those who run away from Him, just as He pursued the first sinners in the Garden of Eden and rebellious Jonah who vainly attempted to escape His presence (Gen. 3:8; Jonah 1:3-4). And there is no greater demonstration of God’s searching and stop-at-nothing love than the cross of Calvary, where the Lord purchased the salvation of sinners with the blood of His beloved Son (1 Peter 1:18-19). Upon the gruesome hill of Golgotha, the Lord sacrificed His Son because of His love for those who hate Him and transgress His law. As Jesus famously said,

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved” (John 3:16-17, KJV).

This is why Christ came into the world: “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10).

Have you experienced the Savior’s steadfast love? Can you sing with the hymn writer John Newton (1725-1807), “I once was lost, but now am found, was blind, but now I see”? If so, are you willing to go to the greatest lengths and depths to deliver the gospel’s soul-saving message to those who are lost? Do you long to see sinners gathered into the flock of God like Jesus does (Matt. 23:37)?

“I will sing the wondrous story

Of the Christ who died for me.

How He left His home in glory

For the cross of Calvary.

I was lost, but Jesus found me,

Found the sheep that went astray,

Threw His loving arms around me,

Drew me back into His way.”

— “I Will Sing the Wondrous Story.” Francis H. Rowley (1854-1952)

Brandon is the pastor of Bandana Baptist Church in Bandana, Kentucky, where he lives with his wife, Dakota, and their three dogs, Susie, Aries, and Dot. Brandon and Dakota are also foster parents through Sunrise Children’s Services of Kentucky. Brandon is also a published author and a religious columnist for the Advance Yeoman newspaper in Ballard County, Kentucky. He is also a devotional contributor for Kentucky Today, a news publication of the Kentucky Baptist Convention. His columns are also featured in the Times-Argus newspaper of Central City, Kentucky, West Kentucky News of western Kentucky, and the online blog, Reforming the Heart.

Pick up a copy of Brandon’s latest book, Fundamentals for the Faithful, which explains the importance of all the basics which every believer should know:

Bible Gleanings, devotions

Lovers of Self | Bible Gleanings | June 22-23, 2024

June 21, 2024 Brandon G. B. Leave a comment

He preserved his smartphone at all costs, even if it meant potentially ending lives. In May of 2023, a distracted Indian official was taking selfies on the job, when he dropped his phone into a water reservoir which held over 2 million liters of water for local residents and farms. According to the Associated Press, he first directed divers to retrieve the phone, but when they came up empty-handed, he gave orders to drain every drop of the desperately-needed water in order to reunite with his darling device. He selfishly sacrificed lifesaving resources to save a waterlogged phone that costs only a few hundred dollars to replace. The selfies on his phone must have been spectacular!

His selfish retrieval happened time zones away in another country, but his selfishness hits home. All of us live in a “selfie culture” in which we are absorbed with ourselves and obsessed with a fervent quest for happiness at any cost. We are innately and instinctively self-centered, self-seeking, and self-serving. That is why the Bible says that as sinners, we are naturally “lovers of self” (2 Tim. 3:2a). Our fallen spiritual genes compel us to put ourselves first and everyone else last (Rom. 2:8; Phil. 2:21; James 3:16).

However, such self-centeredness should be steadily shrinking in the souls of saints who possess a new nature because of the redemptive work of the One who put others before Himself on Calvary’s cross. Thanks to the sanctifying work of Christ in believers, the Lord is replacing our greedy impulse to prioritize ourselves with a holy inclination to serve others and seek their best interests. That is why the Scripture teaches that selfless neighbor-serving is one of the surest evidences of having been saved by grace (1 John 3:14-18). Thus, all who know Christ should exhibit self-denying actions and a self-sacrificial attitude. As Paul the apostle commanded: “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 2:3-5; cf. 1 Cor. 10:24).

Ironically, selfishness always results in great loss. Being self-absorbed will destroy friendships, damage fellowship with other believers, and even dismantle your prayer life (Prov. 18:1; James 3:13-14; 4:3). On the other hand, selflessness always results in great gain. As Jesus promised, “The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted” (Matt. 23:11-12). And after speaking to the self-centered rich young ruler, the Lord Jesus assured: “But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first” (Matt. 19:30, KJV).

Bible Gleanings, devotions, Other

Without Love | Bible Gleanings – July 29-30, 2023

July 28, 2023 Brandon G. B. Leave a comment

The drums were drastically deafening. I felt like I was caught in a cloud, with thunder crashing around me. The band’s percussion was so earsplitting that even the vocalist was entirely drowned out. I was at a Christian contemporary concert with my former youth group, but it felt like I was at the foot of Mount Sinai when the thunder cracked and clapped across the sky (Exodus 19:16). The saddest part is that the vocalist was trying his hardest to sing a song with a significant spiritual message, but it was a futile attempt because all the audience could hear were snares, toms, and cymbals.

And this is precisely what occurs when we attempt to preach the gospel or discuss spiritual matters without love. That is why Paul remarked, “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal” (1 Cor. 13:1). Without love, our words sound like gaudy gongs and crashing cymbals. Even if what we are saying is good, godly, and gospel-saturated, lack of love will always speak louder and drown it out. People simply cannot hear what we are saying when there is no love, affection, or compassion present.

It’s no wonder, then, that the Scripture emphasizes that everything must be done in and through love (1 Cor. 16:14). And this is especially true of the words we speak. Our words must be baptized in love and flow from an abundant spring of love within our hearts. Thus, we are commanded to lovingly warn those who walk in error, as opposed to being harsh with them (1 Tim. 1:3-5). We are likewise admonished to always speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15).

Love opens the door to be heard. As the old idiom goes, “People don’t care about how much you know until they know how much you care.” And unlike an unpleasant cacophony, speaking with love is a sweet song that is pleasant to the ears of the hearer. It is a revitalizing refrain that refreshes the weary soul. Hal H. Hopson, a modern hymn-writer, certainly grasped this when he wrote Though I May Speak with Bravest Fire, which opens like this:

“Though I may speak with bravest fire,

and have the gift of all inspire,

and have not love, my words are vain,

as sounding brass, and hopeless gain.”

Bible Gleanings is a widely-read weekend devotional column, written for the Murray Ledger & Times in Calloway County, Kentucky.

Brandon is the founder and main contributor to Brandon’s Desk, the blog with biblical resources from his ministry. He pastored the family of believers at Locust Grove Baptist Church in Murray, Kentucky for six years. He and his wife Dakota live there with their three dogs, Susie (Jack Russell), Aries (English Shepherd), and Dot (Bluetick Beagle).

For more devotional entries like this, check out Brandon’s latest book, Bible Gleanings Volume II, which features 100 daily devotionals gleaned from God’s word:

Bible Gleanings, devotions

The Compassionate Lord | Bible Gleanings – April 15-16, 2023

April 14, 2023 Brandon G. B. Leave a comment

The sight was spectacular, the splendor was unfathomable, and the brilliance was blinding. No one had ever witnessed such a stunning spectacle—until John came along. This disciple “whom Jesus loved” (John 13:23) beheld the Lord Jesus in all His majesty and magnificence, and described the unforgettable scene like this:

“[I saw] someone like a son of man, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance” (Rev. 1:13b-16).

John naturally fainted because of the overwhelming vision and then something fascinating happened. The exalted Lord of glory gently placed His nail-pierced hand on John’s shoulder to comfort him: “Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last”” (Rev. 1:17). The holy touched the unholy. The lofty touched the lowly. A sinner felt the Savior’s touch.

This is because Jesus is both holy and humble. He possesses transcendent glory, but He reaches down to touch fallen humanity, such as when He “dwelt among us” (John 1:14). The Lord Jesus is highly exalted in the heavens, but He loves lowly sinners on the earth (Rev. 7:17). He sustains the universe “by the word of His power,” but He cares about sustaining your soul, too (Heb. 1:3; 1 Cor. 1:8). His eyes are “too pure to look on evil” (Hab. 1:13), but His eyes are upon you (Psalm 34:15; cf. Rev. 2:2, 19; 3:8). He is the holy God, but He can be touched by sinful hands that reach out to Him in faith (Isa. 43:3; Mark 5:28).

Jesus abounds with such gracious compassion for man. Jesus has compassion for those who are hungry like the crowds (Mark 8:2), unclean like the leper (Mark 1:41), lost like Israel (Mark 6:34), sick like the frail (Matt. 14:14), and grieving like the widow (Luke 7:13). Indeed He is, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness” (Ex. 34:6). He can no more cease having compassion for you than a mother can cease having compassion for her children. As the Lord promised in Isaiah, “Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you” (Isaiah 49:15).

Do you know the compassionate Lord? Do you bring Him your burdens? Do you come to Him confidently expecting compassion and mercy (Heb. 4:14-16)? Do you run to Him when you are tempted, lean on Him when you are ailed, and seek His guidance when you are lost? O, believer: sing the words of Love Divine, All Loves Excelling in thanksgiving to the Lord of compassion:

“Love divine, all loves excelling,

joy of heav’n, to earth come down,

fix in us thy humble dwelling,

all thy faithful mercies crown.

Jesus, thou art all compassion,

pure, unbounded love thou art.

Visit us with thy salvation;

enter ev’ry trembling heart.” — Charles Wesley (1707-1788)

Bible Gleanings is a widely-read weekend devotional column, written for the Murray Ledger & Times in Calloway County, Kentucky.

For more devotional entries like this, check out Brandon’s latest book, Bible Gleanings Volume II, which features 100 daily devotionals gleaned from God’s word:

Bible Gleanings, christmas, devotions

Better Than Santa | Bible Gleanings [Advent Edition] – December 4-5, 2021

December 3, 2021 Brandon G. B. Leave a comment

Santa Claus is slightly judgmental. He only brings presents to good boys and girls. Those who misbehave are on the naughty list and will receive only coal in their stockings. As J. Frederick Coots and Haven Gillespie wrote in Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town, “He’s making a list, he’s checking it twice, he’s gonna find out who’s naughty or nice.” Only youngsters most deserving of gifts can expect to find presents underneath the tree.

Jesus is the polar opposite of Santa: He gives the greatest gift to those who are the least deserving. He came to grant salvation and eternal life to evil people, not good people. As He Himself said, “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:32). Furthermore, He came to erase your name from the “naughty list” and write it in His book, the “Lamb’s book of life” (Revelation 21:27).

The fact that shepherds were the first to hear the good news of Jesus’ birth embodies Christ’s mission to save the undeserving. The glad tidings were announced by the exalted angels of heaven, not to kings or emperors, but to some of the most insignificant people in Judean society. Luke wrote, “And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them” (Luke 2:8-9a). Shepherds were thought to be insignificant and contemptible. Jews considered them to be unclean, deceitful, and uneducated. Nonetheless, they were the first to hear the wonderful news that the Savior had been born.

The Gospels reinforce the idea that Jesus came for the low-ranking people of the world. The first disciples were fishermen. Jesus healed social outcasts: lepers, paralytics, and the demon-possessed. He ate with tax collectors and sinners. He cared for widows and the sexually immoral. There’s no question about it—Jesus came to save the least qualified.

You don’t have to be outstandingly competent to receive His gift of eternal life. The Lord Jesus will grant salvation to you, no matter who you are or what you have done. Eternal life can be yours even if you are sexually immoral, idolatrous, adulterous, greedy, or addicted (1 Cor. 6:9-11). Jesus is the significant Savior who came for insignificant people. That is why Jesus is better than Santa. If you want to learn more about the significance of Jesus’ coming to earth, check out my new Christmas devotional on Amazon: “Let Earth Receive Her King: 25 Daily Advent Devotions.”

Bible Gleanings is a widely-read weekend devotional column, written for the Murray Ledger & Times in Calloway County, Kentucky.

Bible Gleanings, devotions

Buddy Tape | Bible Gleanings – May 8-9, 2021

May 6, 2021 Brandon G. B. Leave a comment

Buddy Tape

“The doctor said this ‘Buddy Tape’ will help my fingers heal,” my mother told me recently. She fell on the squeaky back deck of my parents’ house, and her ring and pinky fingers took a hit. Both were broken beyond healing. The doctor gave her two options for healing: surgery, or Buddy Tape, which is a stretchy Velcro wrap that promotes healing by keeping her fingers together.

She chose the latter, and her broken fingers were bound together in this miniature cast. The catch is, without surgery, they will never be completely healed—but they are better off joined together. Left to themselves, both fingers would suffer more, and neither could be useful to the hand any longer. But yoked together, they could help each other straighten out. In other words, mutual support would do the job.

This reminded me of what King Solomon wrote: “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!” (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10). You and I are broken people, also because of a fall—a fall from grace into sin, which happened when our first parents sinned in the Garden (Genesis 3). And although will never be completely healed of our spiritual brokenness in this life, we are better off joined together with other believers who can help straighten us out. Without mutual love, prayers, and support for each other, we all suffer—both we and our fellow brethren are left to face our brokenness alone.

God’s desire is that we stick close together as a spiritual family in the local church so we can lift each other up. As Paul put it, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2). The Lord also wants you to administer grace and support to fellow believers when they’ve had a hard fall. In fact, you have an obligation to do so: “We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up” (Romans 15:1-2).

You also have an obligation to seek support and love from other believers to help you in your own weaknesses. Isolation from other followers of Jesus is dangerous: “Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire; he breaks out against all sound judgment” (Proverbs 18:1). It is not good for man to be alone (Genesis 2:18).

Who are you joined together with in the Christian life?

Brandon is the founder and main contributor to Brandon’s Desk, the blog with biblical resources from his ministry. He is proud to be the pastor of the family of believers at Locust Grove Baptist Church in Murray, Kentucky. He and his wife Dakota live there with their three dogs, Susie (Jack Russell), Aries (Aussiedor), and Dot (beagle).

Sermons

The Loveless Church (Rev. 2:1-7)

November 15, 2018 Brandon G. B. 1 Comment

The following sermon was delivered at Locust Grove Baptist Church in Murray, Kentucky, on the 29th day of April 2018, during the morning service:

Brandon is the founder and main contributor to Brandon’s Desk, the blog with biblical resources from his ministry. He is proud to be the pastor of the family of believers at Locust Grove Baptist Church in Murray, Kentucky. He and his wife Dakota live there with their two dogs, Susie and Aries.