Are You Ready, Willing, And Able?

Are You Ready, Willing, And Able?

I'm sure the phrase "ready, willing, and able" is one you have heard countless times. By it we mean we are prepared to face anything we have to face, willing to do anything we need to do, and are equipped to perform any task. Noble goals. Are we in fact ready, willing, and able as Christians?

Are you ready?

The most important thing to be ready for in our service to the King of Kings is in the area of salvation. If the Lord Jesus Christ came back today, would you be ready to go to Heaven with Him? Are your garments spotless, are they white as snow, are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?

John the Baptist's mission was to prepare the way of the Lord, to preach repentance and faith, to preach the Gospel that saves. Luke 1:17 And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

The ten virgins were waiting for the Lord's return, but some of them weren't ready. Some of them did not place personal faith in the Saviour, believing in Jesus Christ's death for their sins, His burial, and His physical resurrection. When Jesus comes again, will you be ready? Matthew 25:10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.

I have found six ways that the child of God can be ready to serve the Lord Jesus Christ:

1) Ready to live for Christ:

a) By resisting temptation:

Matthew 24:44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

Mark 14:38 Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.

b) By dealing with disobedience in our own lives:

2 Corinthians 10:6 And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.

2) Ready to search the Scriptures daily, and to study it diligently (2 Timothy 2:15):

Acts 17:11 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.

Ezra 7:6 This Ezra went up from Babylon; and he was a ready scribe in the law of Moses, which the LORD God of Israel had given: and the king granted him all his request, according to the hand of the LORD his God upon him.

3) Ready to do good works and contribute to the needs of the saints:

2 Corinthians 8:11 Now therefore perform the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to will, so there may be a performance also out of that which ye have.

2 Corinthians 9:5 Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before, that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness.

1 Timothy 6:18 That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate.

Titus 3:1 Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work.

4) Ready to fight (as Christians, our fight is spiritual, against spiritual forces of wickedness and darkness):

1 Chronicles 12:24 The children of Judah that bare shield and spear were six thousand and eight hundred, ready armed to the war.

5) Ready to be a witness and share the Gospel:

1 Peter 3:15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.

Romans 1:15 So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also.

Psalm 45:1 My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the king: my tongue is the pen of a ready writer.

6) Ready to die for the Lord:

2 Timothy 4:6 For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.

Luke 22:33 And he said unto him, Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to death.

I fully believe that if we intend to be faithful to the Lord and perhaps die for Him someday, then we will need to be faithful and live for Him right now, day by day. If you won't live for Jesus Christ, I guarantee you will never die for Him! You may be killed by someone, but it won't be as a martyr, unless you are killed for your testimony of Jesus.

Are you ready, my friend?

Are you willing?

This one is simple: are you willing to serve the Lord? Do you have a desire to please Him in all you do? Or are you doing the things you want to do in your own life, regardless of whether that is God's will for you or not? While there is much in the Word of God regarding His will for our lives, I will focus only on the passages that deal with our will in serving Him.

Again, the first requirement is salvation. John 1:12-13 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. It isn't your will-power that gets you into Heaven, but your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and the way of salvation He offers.

After you receive Jesus as your Saviour, you need to choose to give Him yourself, your life, your all, if you ever hope to be used by Him, to bear fruit for His kingdom. Romans 12:1-2 is an excellent passage stating that in light of all that Christ has done to save us, it is only our reasonable service to give our lives back to Him; and as we do so, we are able to discern the Lord's perfect will for our lives. It all comes down to first giving ourselves to the Lord to do His will. See also 2 Corinthians 8:1-5.

There are so many things to learn in our walk as Christians. Where do we start? So many of God's children get discouraged by the myriad opinions of others (on various subjects such as Bible Versions, which church is right, what type of music to listen to, what type of clothing to wear, etc.) that they decide they can't determine God's will or leading in these areas. But the Word of God gives us a sure promise in John 7:17 If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself. If we choose to do God's will, He will reveal it to us! (See also James 1:5) This will involve Bible study and prayer, as well as an obedient heart that puts into practice all that it learns. If you won't obey what you already know, don't expect the Lord to give you more guidance.

The Bible teaches that Jesus is our example. When He was going through the darkest time of His ministry on earth, what did He do? He prayed in the garden of Gethsemane, and truly submitted to His Heavenly Father ' will, even though it meant His own cruel death on the cross to pay for our sins.

Luke 22:42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.

John 4:34 Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.

John 5:30 I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.

John 6:38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.

Hebrews 10:7 Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.

Matthew 12:50 For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.

Mark 8:34-35 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after Mm, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.

Matthew 20:26-27 But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant.

It is not enough merely to be ready, we must be willing from the heart.

Ephesians 6:6-7 Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men.

 A true willingness is followed by action.

2 Corinthians 8:11-12 Now therefore perform the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to will, so there may be a performance also out of that which ye have. For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not.

Let's live our lives in such a way that we please the Lord. May the Lord look at us the way He looked at King David. Acts 13:22  I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will.

Two other passages that you may want to read are: Matthew 21:28-32 and Luke 7:41-43.

Are you willing, my friend?

Are you able?

This last section sums up this study: Are you able to serve the Lord and to do His will in your life? (Our main problem is not so much that we aren't able, but for the most part aren't willing.) Where do you get the ability and strength to perform all that He wants you to do?

The answer is simple, yet profound: our sufficiency is in Christ. The Bible teaches that we are complete in Christ, and without Him we can do nothing. (Colossians 2:10 and John 15:4-5)

2 Corinthians 2:15-16 says, For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?

The answer is clearly found in the next chapter (3:5-6): Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God; Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament.

Jesus is the source of our strength (2 Corinthians 12:9), our source for boundless grace (1 Corinthians 15:10), our source for victory (Romans 8:37 and 1 Corinthians 15:57), and, in fact, we find in Him all we need for our Christian lives and service.

Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Let the Lord have His perfect way in your life, and then you will be ready, willing, and able. He will make you what He will have you to be.

Philippians 2:13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

Are you able, my friend?

No  but Jesus Christ is!

Study written May 12th, 2002
By Jerry Bouey

Is There A New Song In Your Heart?

Is There A New Song In Your Heart?

Was just reading this passage this morning:

2 Chronicles 29:27-28 And Hezekiah commanded to offer the burnt offering upon the altar. And when the burnt offering began, the song of the LORD began also with the trumpets, and with the instruments ordained by David king of Israel. And all the congregation worshipped, and the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded: and all this continued until the burnt offering was finished.

A looong time ago (in 2004), I wrote a devotional on this passage (which I encourage you to take the time to read):

The Song Of The Altar

In the years since then I have come to see the opposite of this principle become a reality in the lives of many Christians - they have stopped dying to themselves daily, stopped being living sacrifices to the Lord because they got comfortable in their compromise and lack of separation (from sin, from the world, from worldy or ungodly “christians” or teachers) - and they have lost that song in their hearts. For some it has never returned.

Oh sure, they may have worldly happiness - but no ongoing spiritual joy. No new songs bubbling up in their souls. It is interesting to note that the phrase “new song” is used seven times in the Old Testament, and twice in the New Testament. (See Psalm 33:3; 40:3; 96:1; 98:1; 144:9; 149:1; Isaiah 42:10; Rvelation 5:9; 14:3.) 9 is symbolic of fruitfulness. If you have lost your song, your joy, have you also lost your fruitfulness because you are no longer walking humbly in God’s grace and are no longer thankful or grateful?

Titus 2:11-13 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

Grace is defined by Strong's as, “graciousness (as gratifying), of manner or act (abstract or concrete; literal, figurative or spiritual; especially the divine influence upon the heart, and its reflection in the life; including gratitude).” Grace is charis, and comes from the root word meaning joy.

Ouch! No grace, no joy - and therefore, no song in the soul - no new songs of praise and worship. No melody in our hearts unto the Lord because we have stopped letting His Holy Spirit and His Word be the guide in our day to day lives.

Ephesians 5:18-20 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;

Colossians 3:16-17 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

Have you lost your joy, your song? Be honest with yourself and with the Lord. Have you continually been giving in to the world, the flesh, and the Devil? Maybe it’s time to take stock, wash your life and heart with the water of the Word and confess those sins to God, be washed and cleansed in the blood of the Lamb, pull up the slack in those areas you have compromised and disobeyed the Lord in, and PUT YOUR ALL BACK ON THE ALTAR!

Leviticus 1:9 But his inwards and his legs shall he wash in water: and the priest shall burn all on the altar, to be a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.

Only then will the song rise again - and only then will your life be a sweet savour to the Lord, as He wants it to be.

I have heard this quote many years ago, and it is still true:

“The problem with a living sacrifice is it keeps crawling off the altar!”

Get back on the altar, take up your cross, and die to yourself daily. Then that new song will be filling your heart and drowning out the sounds of the world once again.

November 30th, 2025
Jerry Bouey

The Disobedience Of King Saul

The Disobedience Of Saul

Have you ever thought what happens when we don’t obey the Lord? Sometimes the consequences are much greater than we might have originally thought.

All of the Bible is given for us to learn from - from its good examples and bad, its promises and warnings.

Romans 15:4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

1 Corinthians 10:11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

 I love how one preacher broke down the following passage:

2 Timothy 3:16-17 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

Doctrine - what is right.

Reproof - what is not right (or, showing what is wrong).

Correction - how to make it right.

Instruction in righteousness - how to keep it right.

The negative example I want to look at today is that of Haman in the book of Esther. In the Old Testament, during the time of Queen Esther, he became one of Israel’s most notorious enemies. He rose up in prominence and was given power to do great harm to the exiled Jews by the Persian King Ahasuerus. (Note: This study will only be looking at highlights from that book of the Bible. Please take the time to reread this book if it is unfamiliar to you or you have forgotten its main themes.)

Esther 3:1-2 After these things did king Ahasuerus promote Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him, and set his seat above all the princes that were with him. And all the king's servants, that were in the king's gate, bowed, and reverenced Haman: for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence.

Esther 3:5-6 And when Haman saw that Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence, then was Haman full of wrath. And he thought scorn to lay hands on Mordecai alone; for they had shewed him the people of Mordecai: wherefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews that were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus, even the people of Mordecai.

Esther 3:10-11 And the king took his ring from his hand, and gave it unto Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the Jews' enemy. And the king said unto Haman, The silver is given to thee, the people also, to do with them as it seemeth good to thee.

Haman was the first person in Israel’s history to attempt to wipe out that nation completely. Out of his jealousy and rage towards Mordecai for not exalting and honouring him, he set out to destroy the Israelites, and he in fact got authority from the Persian king to kill all the Jews on a certain date.

Esther 3:13-14 And the letters were sent by posts into all the king's provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to cause to perish, all Jews, both young and old, little children and women, in one day, even upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, and to take the spoil of them for a prey. The copy of the writing for a commandment to be given in every province was published unto all people, that they should be ready against that day.

Haman’s evil plot was now set in motion, but it was also the appointed time for the Lord to bring a deliver forth and to protect His chosen people.

Esther 4:7-8 And Mordecai told him of all that had happened unto him, and of the sum of the money that Haman had promised to pay to the king's treasuries for the Jews, to destroy them. Also he gave him the copy of the writing of the decree that was given at Shushan to destroy them, to shew it unto Esther, and to declare it unto her, and to charge her that she should go in unto the king, to make supplication unto him, and to make request before him for her people.

Mordecai then petitioned Esther to act on behalf of her people, to do what she could to foil this dastardly plot of Haman’s, even if it was at the cost of her own life.

Esther 4:13-14 Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther, Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape in the king's house, more than all the Jews. For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?

The next two verses are very interesting:

Esther 8:3 And Esther spake yet again before the king, and fell down at his feet, and besought him with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite, and his device that he had devised against the Jews.

Esther 9:24 Because Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had devised against the Jews to destroy them, and had cast Pur, that is, the lot, to consume them, and to destroy them;

Haman was an Amalekite; specifically an Agagite. You might be wondering why the name Agagite seems familiar.

This is the entry on Haman from Easton's Bible Dictionary:

“He is called an ‘Agagite,’ which seems to denote that he was descended from the royal family of the Amalekites, the bitterest enemies of the Jews, as Agag was one of the titles of the Amalekite kings.”

During the time of the judges and Israel’s kingdom, the term Agag was the title used for the Amalekite kings - like Pharaoh, Emperor, Caesar, etc. Why is it significant that he was a descendant of Agag? Because the Israelites were at war with the Amalekites since the time of Moses and later king Saul was commanded to wipe them out completely.

Exodus 17:8 Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel in Rephidim.

Exodus 17:14-16 And the LORD said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven. And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovahnissi: For he said, Because the LORD hath sworn that the LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.

1 Samuel 15:1-3 Samuel also said unto Saul, The LORD sent me to anoint thee to be king over his people, over Israel: now therefore hearken thou unto the voice of the words of the LORD. Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt. Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.

1 Samuel 15:7-9 And Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah until thou comest to Shur, that is over against Egypt. And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly.

1 Samuel 15:13-15 And Samuel came to Saul: and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the LORD: I have performed the commandment of the LORD. And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear? And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.

1 Samuel 15:20 And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.

Obviously king Saul did not keep fighting the Amalekites. As the end of the book of 1 Samuel reveals, these people were still a threat to Israel during the final days of Saul’s reign. David and his mighty men were warring against the Amalekites and had to rescue their families from them when the Amalekite army took the city of Ziklag captive. Though Saul and his sons were killed by the Philistines a few days later, it was actually an Amalekite that bragged of killing him (pretty foolish, as his boasting resulted in king David killing him!).

If Saul and the Israelites would have done what he (and they) were originally commanded to do, they would not have had a prominent descendant of the Amalekite kings attempting to wipe out their whole nation approximately 600 or so years later!

God still worked on behalf of His people and did deliver them through the wisdom He gave queen Esther - but how much less grief and sorrow would they have had throughout a significant portion of their history if Saul had originally done what God had commanded him to do!

If there is something the Holy Spirit is prompting and convicting you to deal with in your own life, be submissive to His leading and take the needed steps to deal with that sin or compromise. Don’t deal with the sins in your life in a half-hearted way. Of course, our enemies are spiritual and not physical, but disobedience can affect us more than we might think. From Saul’s negative example, we can see that toying with sins may later take their toll on us. It’s better to deal with our Amalekite kings before they because Hamans that might destroy or devastate us down the road.

Let’s make sure we obey our Lord and defeat the Amalekites (and all the Canaanites) in our lives. (If you want to dig in a bit more into your Bible on this theme, this study might be worthwhile for you to read: Conquering The Canaanites In Your Life.)

September 24, 2023
Jerry Bouey