Our Divine Advocate

 

In Isaiah 59, the prophet speaks of sin.

He also states that all sin is known to God.

Isaiah 59:12-13 (NRSVue) - For our transgressions before you are many, and our sins testify against us. Our transgressions indeed are with us, and we know our iniquities: transgressing and denying the Lord and turning away from following our God, talking oppression and revolt, conceiving lying words and uttering them from the heart.

The author of 1 John also speaks of sin.

He also reminds us that we have an advocate.

He reminds us that we should not commit sin.

But when we do, Christ intercedes on our behalf.

1 John 2:1 (NRSVue) - My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous,

In legal terms, an advocate is someone who pleads the cause of another.

Christ pleads our cause.

That is one reason confession is so important.

When we confess, God already knows our transgression.

We are not telling God what He does not know.

In confessing, we admit to ourselves that we were wrong.

God heals and forgives through Christ because of His great and abiding love for us.

When Christ was crucified, he was mocked by those in attendance.

Christ was their advocate when He asked The Father to forgive them.

If Christ was able to forgive so much, why are we hesitant in forgiving so little of others?

After all, Christ is their advocate too.

 

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com on Friday, August 4, 2025.

I will be back here on Friday, August 11, 2025

Use What You Have Been Given

 

In Daniel 2, God revealed the meaning of Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream.

In the words of Daniel:

Daniel 2:22 (NRSVue) - He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what is in the darkness, and light dwells with him.

None of Nebuchadnezzar’s advisors could explain the dreams that troubled him.

But Daniel knew that God could reveal the meaning behind the dreams.

In John 17, Jesus prayed for His disciples.

In His prayer, Jesus stated that the world did not know the Father.

But Jesus knew the Father,

And through Jesus, the disciples understood He was sent by the Father.

John 17:25 (NRSVue) - “Righteous Father, the world does not know you, but I know you, and these know that you have sent me.

God gave Daniel the ability to tune into His revelation and interpret dreams.

God gives us abilities as well.

Some call these talents or gifts.

And there are still those who live in the world who do not know God.

But those who know Jesus also know God.

As we encounter those who are still of the world, may we use what God has given us to reach them.

On our best day, we cannot save anyone.

But even on our worst day, we can still make the introduction to the One who can save them.

 

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com on Friday, July 18, 2025.

I will be back here on Friday, July 25, 2025

Where to Turn?

 

Psalm 25 is about delivery and guidance.

In verse 16, the desire for delivery is obvious.

Psalm 25:16 (NRSVue) - Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted.

In Mark 10, we read of a man named Bartimeus.

This blind man begged by the roadside.

When he heard Jesus was passing by, he did more than pray.

Bartimeus shouted.

Mark 10:47 (NRSVue) - When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Although others told him to keep silent, Bartimeus shouted even more.

Jesus had the blind beggar brought to Him.

When he arrived, Jesus asked what the man wanted.

Bartimeus asked for His sight.

Jesus said that his faith made him well and Bartimeus began to see once more.

Jesus did not need to ask Bartimeus what he desired.

Jesus asked this for the benefit of the crowd.

As we encounter the pains and problems in our lives, may we call upon Jesus.

Jesus knows our problems before we even think to ask Him for deliverance.

May we recall the psalmist and Bartimeus who knew where to turn for healing and comfort.

 

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com on Friday, July 4, 2025.

I will be back here on Friday, July 11, 2025

But Deliver Us from the Evil One

 

Psalm 125 is about security for God’s people.

The psalmist compares God’s protection to a wall of mountains.

Psalm 125:2 (NRSVue) - As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people from this time on and forevermore.

In John 17, Jesus prays for His disciples.

He prays for their security as well.

Jesus knows that the world hates them.

But Jesus does not pray for them to be removed from the world.

Instead, Jesus prays for God to make them secure from “the evil one.”

John 17:15 (NRSVue) - I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one.

Like a wall of mountains, God’s love surrounds us.

And, like the disciples of old, we too must remain in the world for a time.

During our time, we are also protected from “the evil one.”

In Matthew 6, Jesus taught His followers how they should pray.

This is how we should pray as well.

Matthew 6:13 (NIV) - And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

As we live out lives of service in this world, may we remember God’s love and protection.

May we also remember how we should pray.

 

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com on Friday, June 20, 2025.

I will be back here on Friday, June 27, 2025

His Love Endures

 

Psalm 103 is about gratitude for God’s goodness.

The psalmist also talks about God’s love,

Psalm 103:17-18 (NRSVue) - But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children, to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments.

God’s love for us is ‘steadfast.’

That means God’s love for us never wavers.

It is also ‘from everlasting to everlasting.’

That means God’s love for us is without end.

The author of Revelation had messages for each of the churches.

To the church in Philadelphia, he wrote...

Revelation 3:10 (NRSVue) - Because you have kept my word of endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.

God’s love for us endures.

It will even sustain us through times of trouble.

His love for us will continue even after our mortal lives end.

Thanks to Christ, we know that death is just a transition.

Yes, God is faithful.

Yes, His love for us is without end.

And even when we falter, God does not.

When we stumble, God will forgive us if we but ask for forgiveness.

So, as we go through life, let us always look to God.

May we be certain of His love for us!

And…may we also be just as certain of our love for Him!

 

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com on Friday, June 6, 2025.

I will be back here on Friday, June 13, 2025

First Choice, or Last Resort?

In Job 38, the LORD answers Job out of a whirlwind.

As if this is not unsettling enough, The LORD says something to assert His omnipotence.

Job 38:4 (NRSVue) - “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding.

Today, we have amassed far more scientific information than Job had access to.

But despite our knowledge, if God spoke to us this way we would not know where to begin.

According to Genesis, God spoke the universe into existence.

God spoke, and it was so.

In Matthew 8, the followers of Jesus are in a boat.

A violent storm overtakes them.

Jesus is asleep in the boat, but despite His presence, they fear for their lives.

In desperation, they wake Jesus who calms the storm with a word.

But before He does, he addresses the disciples.

Matthew 8:26-27 (NRSVue) - And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a dead calm. They were amazed, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him?”

What is our response when the storms of life threaten us?

Do we fear?

Do we think about failure?

Perhaps we even think about giving up.

We certainly compound matters by asking an endless stream of “what if?” questions.

That is like the situations Job and the disciples found themselves in.

And how often do we seek the One as our first choice rather than as our last resort?

We can call upon the One who spoke the universe into being.

We can call upon the One who can calm a storm with just a word.

We do not have to be “of little faith.”

We can confidently turn to the One.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com on Friday, May 16, 2025.

I will be back here on Friday, May 23, 2025

A Deeply Personal Matter

 

In Isaiah 61, the prophet speaks good news of deliverance.

Isaiah 61:1-2 (NRSVue) - The spirit of the Lord God is upon me because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and release to the prisoners, 

This was good news for the many who had been oppressed.

As we recall Easter, we are reminded that Jesus is Good News for the many.

But He is also Good News for the individual.

At the time of His crucifixion, two criminals were executed in the same cruel way.

Like the crowd that taunted Jesus, one of the criminals joined in.

The other criminal was different.

In his darkest hour, he looked upon Jesus with a final request,

Luke 23:42 (NRSVue) – Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come in your kingdom.”

Jesus had Good News for this man.

Luke 23:43 (NRSVue) - He replied, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

The Good News is more than Good News for the masses.

The Good News is also Good News for the individual.

And the moment we accept the Good News, it becomes a deeply personal experience,

Some, like the criminal, may wait until the very end.

Others will postpone it assuming they have plenty of time to accept it.

But we do not have to wait until the end.

We do not have to put it off; deluding ourselves that we will get around to it “someday.”

Perhaps we are afraid that the Good News is a personal matter.

In truth, it is deeply personal.

Perhaps we are afraid that accepting it might forever alter our lives as we know it.

In truth, it changes our lives forever.

It also changes our lives for the better.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com on Friday, May 2, 2025.

I will be back here on Friday, May 9, 2025