November 1 John 1:1
In the beginning the Word already existed. He was with God, and he was God.
The older I get the more surprised I am at the multitude of problems we can have in our lives. Sometimes my plea is Lord when will I grow up? God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are not surprised by anything. They have been there since before things began before there was anything.
November 2 John 1:2
He was in the beginning with God.
Death and failure are formidable opponents. We are ineffectual in putting off our death, it is appointed unto man once to die and then the judgment. Sometimes it seems to me that failure is an equally unbeatable foe. Jesus has defeated them both. The Word says that God’s plan was in place when time began.
November 3 John 1:3
He created everything there is. Nothing exists that he didn’t make.
We live in a time when the foolishness of man has declared that there are no absolutes. The world that we live in is being slowly destroyed by man’s refusal to recognize God’s absolutes. Abortion, divorce, hate, evil acts, and war are just a few of the evils that mankind has unleashed upon itself by refusing to recognize God’s absolutes. This verse is an absolute. The corollary is that God is in charge.
November 4 John 1:4
Life itself was in him, and this life gives light to everyone.
Man is a sinner, dead in his trespasses and sin. Jesus brings life. The life that Christ gives opens the eyes of the blind and gives them light so that they might see. Thank you Lord for giving me life. Why don’t you pause and give the Lord thanks for your life. It is a blessing.
November 5 John 1:5
The light shines through the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.
When Jesus came into my life, he exposed all of the evil that I had done. I felt remorse, shame, and heartache. He forgave me and pulled me out of the darkness into His eternal light. Praise His name. Jesus is the name above every name.
November 6 John 1:12-13
But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn! This is not a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan – this rebirth comes from God.
I am a child of God. By His own testimony He brought me into His family. I am alive in Christ and appointed to do good works. Help me Lord to be faithful in taking care of your creation.
November 7 John 1:14
So the Word became human and lived here on earth among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father.
Jesus is the Son of God, the promised Messiah, the resurrected Lord, a descendant of King David, who meets all of the criteria for the Savior. We need to be saved. Only the Lord can save us. Jesus is Lord.
November 8 John 1:16
We have all benefited from the rich blessings he brought to us – one gracious blessing after another.
God gives me blessings in bucketfuls, not with an eyedropper. His blessing more than meets every need I have. His blessing is based upon His love and not on my goodness or hard work. God pours out His blessing on me because of His love for me.
November 9 John 1:17
For the law was given through Moses; God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ.
Jesus is God. I want to know Jesus. I want to know Him more. I want to understand what He says and what He did when He walked the earth. I want to do things that way. When I live and act like Jesus I am pleasing the Father.
November 10 John 1:18
No one has ever seen God. But his only Son, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart; he has told us about him.
God came in the flesh. His name is Jesus. The stones condemned me. Jesus forgives me. Praise God from whom all blessings flow. He came so that I might know how I should live.
November 11 John 1:33-34
I didn’t know he was the one, but when God sent me to baptize with water, he told me, ‘When you see the Holy Spirit descending and resting upon someone, he is the one you are looking for. He is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ I saw this happen to Jesus, so I testify that he is the Son of God.”
I know Jesus through His Word. I experience Jesus by His work in me. Second hand faith is not faith. I must know Jesus to have believing faith.
November 12 John 1:36
As Jesus walked by, John looked at him and then declared, “Look! There is the Lamb of God!”
Jesus came to die for me. God was not deceived. God’s plan of salvation was developed for me before time began. The Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, died for me that I might have life. His blood covered my transgressions and set me free. I am a child of God.
November 13 John 1:41
The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother, Simon, and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means the Christ).
When I met Jesus I wanted to tell everybody I knew. The shackles and chains that held me in bondage to sin were broken and I felt joyously free. I wanted to share that joy. I still want to share that joy. In Christ is freedom from everything that condemned me. In Christ I am free.
November 14 John 2:7-8
Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” When the jars had been filled to the brim, he said, “Dip some out and take it to the master of ceremonies.” So they followed his instructions.
Miracles are the work of God. I am always leery of people who have to go through incantations and dramatics to perform their miracles. The Lord speaks and anything He says is reality. When you need a miracle go directly to Jesus and ask Him. He will not disappoint you.
November 15 John 2:16
Then, going over to the people who sold doves, he told them, “Get these things out of here. Don’t turn my Father’s house into a marketplace!”
Jesus was passionate about His commitment to God. He pushed out the things that hurt the worship experience. I must carefully look at the things in my life that take my attention away from God. Anything that keeps me from worship must be removed. Only I can clean the temple that I live in.
November 16 John 2:18-19
“What right do you have to do these things?” the Jewish leaders demanded. “If you have this authority from God, show us a miraculous sign to prove it.” “All right,” Jesus replied. “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”
Jesus lays out the challenge to me. I am the one that cried crucify, crucify. I am the one that nailed the nails. The miracle has been done. The Father raised Him from the grave, and seated Him at His right hand. Believe or crucify? The miracle is done.
November 17 John 2:23-24
Because of the miraculous signs he did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many people were convinced that he was indeed the Messiah. But Jesus didn’t trust them, because he knew what people were really like.
I am surprised how quickly I can commit a sin. I realize I am fallible but it always stuns me at how fallible I am. One moment I am praising the Lord and the next moment taking a brother to task without all of the information. I cannot tell you how many times I have had to apologize for my desperately wicked heart. Jesus knew those people in Jerusalem and He knows me. That Jesus would save me is an eternal blessing. He knew me and yet He still forgave me. By grace I am saved. What a wonderful thing grace is.
November 18 John 3:3
Jesus replied, “I assure you, unless you are born again, you can never see the Kingdom of God.”
My relationship with the Lord is a first person relationship. I am a sinner. I must recognize my sin and ask the Lord Jesus to forgive me of my sin. His Word declares that when I ask Him to forgive me He will. His forgiveness is total and complete and eternal. Praise God.
November 19 John 3:6
Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives new life from heaven.
When Jesus forgave me of my sin, the Holy Spirit gave me a new heart and spiritual life. The guidance of the Holy Spirit keeps me on track. The Holy Spirit comforts me and resides in my heart. Just like prophets of old the Holy Spirit puts the power of God in my daily life.
November 20 John 3:8
Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.”
There are things that the Lord does that you or I will never understand. When I was born again, I knew that I was different. I was changed. My life has never been the same. Every time I face a crisis the Lord has intervened. The focus of my life changed. People became important. Over a period of years everything I had ever done I put before the Father. The Word began shaping and molding my heart. God was at work on me and I have experienced this first hand. I can’t explain the new birth but I have experienced it.
November 21 John 3:12
But if you don’t even believe me when I tell you about things that happen here on earth, how can you possibly believe if I tell you what is going on in heaven?
Do you have a problem dealing with reality? I do. I always want to do the things I can’t. My mind is often someplace else. Like a little child dissatisfaction with what I am doing now comes easily. A mature child of God disciplines their life to be who they are and function well where they are. O Lord, help me to grow up.
November 22 John 3:16
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
Spiritual superiority is a dangerous state of mind. I am saved by the grace of God. My responsibility is to love God with all my heart and soul and my neighbor as myself. The only one who could claim to be spiritually elite walked to the cross and died for my sin. I am reminded that every lost person that I come into contact with needs Jesus.
November 23 John 3:17
God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.
I have to be careful about the way that I look at others. Condemned criminals need Jesus. Retirees without Jesus are heading towards eternal separation from the Father. Little children need Jesus. Every person I meet needs Jesus. The Father is concerned about every single person that has been born. Can my concern be any less?
November 24 John 3:18
“There is no judgment awaiting those who trust him. But those who do not trust him have already been judged for not believing in the only Son of God.
I am too lenient on myself when I judge the things that I do. I want to make excuses, and alibi and cajole God. The truth is that truth judges us. If I sin, I have sinned. If I am not a child of God, I am not a child of God. Sin is never justifiable. Salvation is something I must accept.
November 25 John 4:4-7
He had to go through Samaria on the way. Eventually he came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there; and Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime. Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.”
Jesus really ministered to the Samaritan woman. I’ve been to that well in Israel. I know it is there. The story of Jesus’ concern speaks to my need time and again. When I feel badly about my situation, or myself I will journey in my mind to the well. I sit down at the well and talk with Jesus.
November 26 Psalm 86:1
Bend down O Lord, and hear my prayer; answer me, for I need your help.
I cannot remember a day when I have not desperately needed the Lord. I am weak but He is strong. Life happens so quickly and bad things happen out of the blue. O Lord I need your help.
November 27 Psalm 91:1
Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
If the Father is going to be my protector I must spend a lot of time with him. Quantity time with the Lord prepares me to face the world daily. Moment by moment I am reminded of His presence and power.
November 28 Psalm 99:1
The Lord is king! Let the nations tremble! He sits on his throne between the cherubim. Let the whole earth quake!
When everything around me seems in trouble, the Lord is there. My life is hidden with Christ in God. I am not alone. The remedies for the impossible situations in my life rest with God. He can fix anything.
November 29 Psalm 100:1-3
Shout with joy to the Lord, O earth! Worship the Lord with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy. Acknowledge that the Lord is God! He made us and we are his. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
God is present. I can sing His praise in any situation. When I sing His praise I release in my heart His power. There is power in praise. There is healing in praise. Praise ye the Lord.
November 30 John 4:42
Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe because we have heard him ourselves, not just because of what you told us. He is indeed the Savior of the world.”
Salvation is first person. It is my opportunity to end the war and be at peace with God. I am the one that chooses to accept His offer of peace. I am the one that chooses day by day to spend time with him. First person, first place, God is my Savior.
