Three Angels Broadcasting Network Devotional.
A Word Fitly Spoken

By Shelley Quinn

August 27th, 2026

“A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.” Proverbs 25:11

God has given me a consistently positive attitude—a heart that overflows with thanksgiving. He taught me the power of life and death is in the tongue. I confess His Word over my life and speak it into the lives of others. I know His Word is living and powerful and will not return to Him void but will accomplish the purpose for which He sent it. I’m telling you this to establish that faith is an essential aspect of my being.

A false teaching on faith caused me to walk away from God for a time in my twenties. My non-denominational church taught me to have faith “in faith.” In other words, if I could ratchet up enough faith, God was obliged to act. Hoping my mother would be healed of her bi-polar condition, I was convinced my faith would bring her healing. It didn’t. Disillusioned, I turned my back on God until He chased me down with His love.

God must be the object of our faith. Trusting His unfailing love and His faithfulness is true biblical faith. Faith is not a denial of facts—it’s reliance upon God in the midst of troubling circumstances.

Which brings me to my point. A “positivity” wave has rolled over some Christian circles. Their insistent demand on avoiding all negativity deeply troubles me because it is a toxic additive to biblical faith. Authentic expression of emotion is rejected, labeled as lack of faith, and met with positive platitudes. Personal feelings are invalidated with quick responses like, “It could be worse” or “Count your blessings,” bringing shame on those who are gripped by pain.

Are we guilty of using God’s Word to silence others? Rather than intentional listening, do we gush out positivity with the pressure of a firehose? Like the calloused “comforters” of the patriarch Job, do our words hurt—rather than heal? Emotional distress is our shared human experience. It will not be denied! Try suppressing it, and it will rear its ugly head in sleeplessness, crying jags, anxiety, panic attacks, prolonged stress, and spiritual paralysis.

Oh, may we be authentic communicators like Jesus! He wept with Martha over Lazarus’ death. He wept over Jerusalem. He told of His impending death and warned His followers of tribulations. May we freely express our laments as the saints of old recorded in Scripture. Granting ourselves permission to speak our discomfort can provide release and open the way for God’s healing. Just read the Psalms to see how honest laments led to an acknowledgment of our all-loving God and hope in His rescue.

Scripture advises we “weep with those who weep” and be “swift to hear, slow to speak.” We owe it to others to listen with the intention of understanding their pain and offering compassion. Only then can we speak a word in due season—the right word at the right time. A word fitly spoken can shine God’s light into the darkness of the soul and restore hope.

Daily Bible Lesson.
IF THE DEAD ARE ALREADY IN HEAVEN OR HELL… WHY IS THE RESURRECTION SO IMPORTANT?

1 Corinthians 15 is one of the clearest chapters in the Bible about the resurrection of the dead.
Paul repeatedly points to a future resurrection when Jesus Christ returns. This raises an important question:
If the dead are already consciously enjoying heaven—or suffering in hell—immediately after death, why does the Bible place such enormous emphasis on a future resurrection?
Let’s examine the biblical picture.

1. THE RESURRECTION IS CONNECTED TO CHRIST'S SECOND COMING
“Afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.” — 1 Corinthians 15:23
Paul gives a clear sequence:
Christ was raised first.
Christ's people are raised at His coming.
The resurrection is therefore connected with the Second Coming.
“The trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” — 1 Corinthians 15:52
This points to a great future resurrection event—not something that happens individually every time a believer dies.

2. THE RESURRECTION IS CENTRAL TO THE CHRISTIAN FAITH
Paul does not treat the resurrection as a minor detail.
“If Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.” — 1 Corinthians 15:14
“If Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.” — 1 Corinthians 15:17
Paul's message follows this powerful sequence:
Christ died

Christ was raised

Believers will be raised

Death will ultimately be destroyed
“The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.” — 1 Corinthians 15:26

3. WHEN DO WE RECEIVE IMMORTALITY?
Paul says:
“This mortal must put on immortality.” — 1 Corinthians 15:53
Notice the context: immortality is associated with the resurrection.
The Bible's emphasis is not simply that a person dies and immediately receives the final reward. Paul directs our attention toward the resurrection, when God's people are changed and receive immortality.
The resurrection is not an afterthought—it is central to the Christian hope.

4. THE BIBLE DESCRIBES DEATH AS SLEEP
The Bible repeatedly uses sleep as a description of death.
Jesus and Lazarus
“Our friend Lazarus sleepeth.” — John 11:11
Jesus then made it unmistakably clear:
“Lazarus is dead.” — John 11:14
Daniel 12:2
“Many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake.”
1 Thessalonians 4:13–16
Paul speaks of those who are asleep and then describes their resurrection when Christ returns.
Ecclesiastes 9:5
“The dead know not any thing.”
Psalm 146:4
When a person dies, “his thoughts perish.”
Together, these passages provide a biblical basis for understanding death as an unconscious state awaiting the resurrection.

5. THE BIBLICAL SEQUENCE BECOMES VERY CLEAR
DEATH
The person rests in the grave.

CHRIST RETURNS
The trumpet sounds.

THE DEAD IN CHRIST RISE
1 Thessalonians 4:16

THEY ARE CHANGED
1 Corinthians 15:51–53

THEY RECEIVE IMMORTALITY
1 Corinthians 15:53–54

DEATH IS DEFEATED
1 Corinthians 15:54–55
This makes Paul's argument especially powerful:
The Christian hope is not merely, “When I die, I go to heaven.”
The great biblical hope is:
JESUS IS COMING AGAIN!
THE DEAD IN CHRIST WILL RISE!

6. WHAT ABOUT PASSAGES THAT SEEM TO TEACH IMMEDIATE LIFE AFTER DEATH?
There are passages that Christians interpret differently, including:
Luke 23:43 — “Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.”
Philippians 1:23 — Paul speaks of departing and being with Christ.
2 Corinthians 5:8 — “Absent from the body… present with the Lord.”
These passages should not be ignored.
However, Christians who believe in the sleep of death understand these verses alongside the many passages that explicitly describe death as sleep and emphasize the future resurrection.
Questions involving punctuation, translation, context, and the meaning of being “with Christ” have contributed to different interpretations.
The safest approach is to study the whole Bible rather than build a doctrine on one verse.

7. WHY DOES THE TEACHING OF DEATH AS SLEEP MATTER?
It keeps the resurrection central.
Paul makes the resurrection absolutely essential to Christian faith.
It teaches that immortality is God's gift.
“This mortal must put on immortality.” — 1 Corinthians 15:53
It gives greater meaning to the Second Coming.
“The dead in Christ shall rise first.” — 1 Thessalonians 4:16
It warns against attempts to communicate with the dead.
Deuteronomy 18:10–12; Isaiah 8:19
If the dead are unconscious, claims that deceased relatives are communicating with the living cannot automatically be accepted as genuine communication with the dead.
It gives comfort through the resurrection hope.
“Sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.” — 1 Thessalonians 4:13
Why?
Because those who have died in Christ will rise again when Jesus returns!

THE GREAT BIBLICAL HOPE
The ultimate hope of Scripture is not death.
It is not the grave.
It is not merely an immortal soul escaping the body.
The great hope is:
JESUS CHRIST'S RETURN

THE RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD

THE GIFT OF IMMORTALITY

THE DESTRUCTION OF DEATH

ETERNAL LIFE WITH CHRIST
“This mortal shall have put on immortality… then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.” — 1 Corinthians 15:54

IN SHORT
If the dead are already enjoying the complete reward of heaven immediately after death, the resurrection remains important—but it raises a significant question:

Why does Paul place such extraordinary emphasis on the future resurrection as the moment when the dead are raised, changed, receive immortality, and experience final victory over death?

Understanding the biblical teaching of death as sleep makes Paul's argument in 1 Corinthians 15 especially straightforward:
The dead are resting.
They are awaiting the voice of Christ.
Jesus will return.
The dead in Christ will awake.
They will be changed.
Death will be swallowed up in victory.
“For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout… and the dead in Christ shall rise first.” — 1 Thessalonians 4:16

THAT IS THE CHRISTIAN HOPE!
Not merely that we die and go somewhere…
But that JESUS IS COMING—AND THE DEAD WILL RISE!

Life has a way of teaching you that maturity is not measured by how much you know, but by how well you respond to what you now know.

You learn to choose peace over unnecessary battles, purpose over popularity, consistency over excitement, and character over applause.

At some point, you stop trying to prove yourself to everyone and simply focus on becoming all that God has called you to be.

There is beauty in that journey.

One day at a time. One lesson at a time. One step at a time. 🏽
#Perspective #Purpose #Maturity #Grace

WHAT IS SIN?

1 JOHN 3:4 KJV 4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.

Sin is breaking the Law, missing the mark set by God.

The word "sin" is a translation of the Greek word "hamartia" which means to miss the mark.

ROMANS 3:23 NLT 23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard.

Religious tradition labels many things as sin which the Bible does not. People make up all kinds of rules based on what they think is right. But God is the judge and only God can decree what sin is.

MARK 7:9 KJV 9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.

God has not left us to wonder what sin is. The Bible reveals it to us. We don't have to guess, or make it up as we go.

Just because you do something someone else thinks is wrong does not mean it is a sin. So don't let people condemn you over things the Bible does not clearly say are wrong. God is the judge.

COLOSSIANS 2:8 NKJ 8 Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.

Another error is to think being tempted is a sin. Temptation itself is not sin. You cannot help being tempted. Even Jesus was tempted -- but He never yielded.

HEBREWS 4:15 NKJ 15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.

A common mistake is believing that having bad thoughts is a sin. It is not a sin to be tempted with bad thoughts. It only becomes a sin when we embrace those thoughts as our own and decide to act on them.

JAMES 1:15 NLT 15 These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.

God is against sin because it is deadly. Sin brings forth death, not life and blessing. God loves people, so He is against everything that harms people.

All sin harms people. (Just because you don't see how a sin would harm anyone, does not mean you know more than God.)

But no human can be right with God by never sinning. We have all fallen short and need a Savior. It is only by God's grace and His forgiveness that we can be right with God.

ROMANS 3:20 NLT 20 For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.

We can be glad because Jesus came to save sinners, and He paid the price for the forgiveness of all sins by shedding His blood.

EPHESIANS 1:7 NKJ 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace

SAY THIS: Only God has the authority to decide what sin is.

God bless you!

Greetings People of God, here is the continuation of Sunday (8/23/26) Sermon Excerpt, "The Power of Wordless Evangelism: Let Your Life Speak" - 'The Limitations of Wordless Evangelism' and 'Cultivating A Life That Preaches'

The PET Scan "lit up" in the words of my urologist. So now I have to have a prostate biopsy. I request prayer that there is no malignancies, nor any further irregularities. The Lord has called me to start a Christian school, so I am asking for prayer that I will be granted grace to complete this assignment.

As we begin The Bible Marathon, there's a general introduction, giving three reasons as to why I am "running" this marathon (the first fifteen minutes).

After that, we consider Genesis 1:1 and four Bible passages that give us the reasons why God created the heavens and the earth.

https://youtu.be/isYZ9jvmy08

Since The Bible Marathon is also "run" in order to distribute 100,000 Bibles to the persecuted church, your purchase of the entire online bookstore for only $5.00 is greatly appreciated. For all the info, go to www.TheBibleMarathon.com

#thebiblemarathon #thecauseofchrist #christcenteredbooks #toeverychristian #christian #bible #faith #christianliving #jesus

POLICE WERE SENT FOR SMITH WIGGLESWORTH.
When I was in Switzerland the Lord was graciously working and healing many of the people. I was staying with Brother Reuss of Goldiwil and two policemen were sent to arrest me. The charge was that I was healing the people without a license. Mr. Reuss said to them, "I am sorry that he is not here just now. He is holding a meeting about two miles away, but before you arrest him let me show you something."
Brother Reuss took these two policemen down to one of the lower parts of that district, to a house with which they were familiar, for they had often gone to that place to arrest a certain woman, who was repeatedly put in prison because of continually being engaged in drunken brawls. He took them to this woman and said to them, "This is one of the many cases of blessing that have come through the ministry of the man you have come to arrest. This woman came to our meeting in a drunken condition. Her body was broken, for she was ruptured in two places. While she was drunk, the evangelist laid his hands on her and asked God to heal her and deliver her." The woman joined in, "Yes, and God saved me, and I have not tasted a drop of liquor since." The policemen had a warrant for my arrest, but they said with disgust, "Let the doctors do this kind of thing." They turned and went away and that was the last we heard of them.
We have a Jesus that heals the broken-hearted, who lets the captives go free, who saves the very worst. Dare you, dare _you, spurn this glorious Gospel of God for spirit, soul and body? Dare you spurn this grace? I realize that this full Gospel has in great measure been hid, this Gospel that brings liberty, this Gospel that brings souls out of bondage, this Gospel that brings perfect health to the body, this Gospel of entire salvation. Listen again to this word of Him who left the glory to bring us this great salvation, "Verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, ... he shall have whatsoever he saith.
- Smith Wigglesworth - Ever Increasing Faith

CHRISTIANITY IS A LIFELONG JOURNEY

How long does it take a Christian to reach completeness, to become spiritually mature; to display all God intends him to be? The simple answer: a lifetime. Christianity is a lifelong journey, an adventure. It's not an event or a temporary project.

In Phillipians 3, Paul had just written about his goals to gain Christ, and be found in Him with the righteousness that comes only through faith in the sinless Son of God. He wanted to know Christ and the power of His resurrection, even through fellowship with His suffering. (Phil. 3, 8-11)

Paul had come far in his spiritual growth, he had completely surrendered all his former status for the cause of the gospel of Christ. He had progressed from persecuting followers of Jesus to teaching believers how to live the christian life. (Phil. 3, 17)

Throughout the epistles, christians are instructed and encouraged to "grow in grace and knowledge of the Lord". We are to "press on ... that we may "lay hold of that which Christ Jesus" has obtained for us. (Phil. 3, 12)

"Press on" suggests pursuing the goal with all deliberate speed and intentionality. It is a continual action and each new day presents another opportunity to become more of what God has designed us to be.

In this powerful teaching from 1 Samuel 4:12–22, we examine the tragedy of Ichabod and the danger of losing our hunger for God’s presence.

The message challenges us to move beyond religious routine into genuine relationship, obedience, reverence, and fellowship with God.

Don’t just seek His hand. Seek His face.

Watch, be blessed, and share this message with someone who needs to be reminded of the importance of God’s presence.

1 Samuel 4:21
“The glory is departed from Israel.”

Elect Global Family
Winning Souls • Raising Disciples • Transforming Lives

#Ichabod #GodsPresence #BibleStudy #FirstSamuel #ElectGlobalFamily #ChristianTeaching #TheGloryOfGod #Faith #jesuschrist
https://youtu.be/UFLAe56B_Ms?si=SvRq6EuWY5UlgCTJ