Weekly Devotional

October 26, 2025

WELCOME Subscriber First Name,
to our Finishing Well devotionals!

Welcome my friend, Phil LaMaster...

Phil and I go way back to when I first met him when I began ministry in his hometown and church in Scottsburg in 1976. It has been a delight to see how God has used him in powerful ways in every church he has served at.

Phil began in youth ministry in Louisville and went on to to preaching in Liberty, IN, as well as Paoli and Scottsburg. He and Rhonda began a ministry about 20 years ago called, "Living Hope", which encouraged hundreds of preachers, staff and church leaders, not only in the southern Indiana area, but in multiple regions throughout the country.

Phil was part of Bob Russell's sermon study group for years and Bob has equally been a main staple as a guest speaker for Phil's ministry for the past 20 years. It's that type of constant nurturing and follow up that Phil has maintained as he stepped aside from local church ministry. It actually has given him more opportunity to pour it to the hunters of pastors that know they're only a phone call away from encouragement, exhortation, or a truthful conversation with loving warning from a trusted friend.

Phil is the first to do this type of devotional for us, writing out a sermon that would be what in his heart is the most important thing he'd want to tell people if it was his last sermon.

We'll be having more of those when we get in the new year hearing from some other pastor friends.

The truth is, we never know when our last opportunity to give spiritual encouragement might be, so we hope to hold precious every conversation this side of heaven.

Thanks Phil for your encouraging words to each of us today… let 'er rip, my brother!

And here’s another song we’ll be singing on November 18th: The Solid Rock

“If I Only Had One Sermon To Preach”

Psalm 90:12 – “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain the heart of wisdom.”

Psalm 139:15-16 – “…All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be…”

Ephesians 5:15 – “Be very careful, then, how you live-not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil,”

Story: I have often wondered what my last sermon would be like and when would it come; somehow, I didn’t think it would be this hard to put on paper. 

The gamete of emotions, ideas, verses and illustrations make this a very hard decision.

And then there it was, “Decide, make a choice, choose by listening to what the Holy Spirit would place on my heart and mind so I might preach this “Last Sermon,” to the Glory of Almighty God, Lifting up Jesus Christ our only Savior and Lord, in the glorious power of the Divine Holy Spirit!”

“We are here to decide whose side we are on!”

“Following the Only Living God is about making right decisions!”

1. Moses had to decide if he would stop making excuses and follow God. He spent 40 years shepherding his father-in-law’s sheep so he would be prepared, with God’s guidance to shepherd Israel from Egypt to the Promised Land.

2. Pharaoh has to decide how much disobedience was enough –before he let God’s Chosen People go free. Note: He also had to decide if he could swim in the Red Sea; he made a bad choice! Psalm 136:14-15

3. The Israelites had to decide which side of the line they would stand on, Moses’ or Korah’s.

4. The 12 spies had to decide if they would allow God to take them into the Promised Land, 10 were bad, 2 were good.

5. When Joshua preached his last sermon to the people of Israel, he made it very clear a decision had to be made, then and there.

Joshua 24:14-15 – “Now fear the Lord and serve Him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshipped beyond the River and in Egypt, and worship the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

6. Jonah had to decide if he was going to obey God or run away again.

7. Jesus asked His 12 disciples if they were going to leave to when all the people deserted Him, they had to decide.

8. Thomas said he couldn’t believe unless, “he saw the nail prints and put his finger in Jesus side.”

9. The religious leaders couldn’t believe that, “unschooled and ordinary men, from Galilee would stand for Jesus and oppose them. But they did take note, “That these men had been with Jesus.”

10. So, they ordered them to stop preaching and teaching in Jesus’ name.

11. Acts 4:19-20 – “But Peter and John replied, ‘Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to obey you rather than God. Foe we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.’”

12. They had decided to follow Jesus and there was no turning back. They had surrendered all, just as Jesus had done. He is Alive and they knew it!

“We have to decide whose side we are on right now, for tomorrow may be too late.”

We make all kinds of excuses for not making this decision.

A. There is no good excuse for not deciding to follow Jesus.

1. But Phil, I am so young and there is so much to live for, “Not if you die tonight!” Hebrews 9 – “It is appointed to man, once to die and then the judgment.”

2. But you have no idea how bad I have been, how can Jesus ever accept me and allow me to follow Him?

a. Well, I know about Abraham and he lied on more than one occasion. He also ran ahead of God’s plan and slept with another woman.

b. I know about Moses; he jumped ahead of God and killed an Egyptian taskmaster.

c. I know about King David and so do you.

d. I know about Peter and his denial.

e. I know about Saul of Tarsus.

3. Somehow, we tend to forget that God’s grace is greater than all of our sin.

4. One man said, “God can’t use us greatly until we have been broken completely.”

5. Jesus came to save us from us.

6. And we can truly do all things through Christ who strengthens us.

7. “Nothing is impossible with our God…” If we decide to follow Him!

8. You see, it isn’t about us! It is about Jesus Christ!

“I didn’t realize today would be the day, ‘I had only one sermon to preach,’ but it is.”

Like Amos I am not a prophet nor am I the son of a prophet.

Like every other person in the Bible, I have let my Lord down on more than one occasion.

Like Thomas, I have had my doubts.

Like Peter, I thought I knew more about life than the Lord does.

Like lots of church going people, I have always wanted to go to heaven, but not if they were getting a bus ready today.

“But you see, today is my last day to preach!”

“What will I say?”

“May I share with you words from the Apostle that fit this last sermon!”

II Timothy 4:6-8 – “For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. I have fought a good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that day – and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.”

I. Paul knew the end was near, and so do we.

A. “For I am already being poured out like a drink offering.”

1. He is in prison is Rome, again.

2. He has experienced every imaginable torment from the people who wanted to stop him from preaching the Gospel. (II Corinthians 11:19-26)

3. Probably one of the hardest circumstances of ministry life is the reality that not everyone who says they love the Lord really do.

4. But the answer for Paul was simple, “For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”

5. When supposed Christian people plot against us, lie about us, oppose our every move and in the end desert us, it is heartbreaking.

6. It drains the very life out of us, because we know it isn’t supposed to be this way, but it is.

7. Have you been to the Garden of Gethsemane? Have you stayed awake to prayer with Jesus? Have you heard Him pray, “Father, not my will, but thine be done?”

8. Paul knew his ministry was not about him, it was about Jesus!

9. Paul’s heart was given to the Lord that is why he could pray, “For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of brothers, those of my race, the people of Israel…”

10. When we seek God with all of our heart we will find Him.

11. Paul had encountered Jesus and he truly was a new creation.

12. Our Lord took the curse to the Cross for us and Paul had the heart of Christ.

13. And it had drained his very life from him, and he knew it.

Illustration: Not so very long ago I had to take a break from all I had been doing, because I was drained and not doing a very good job at anything. I hated to do it, but I asked for help and my friends stepped up to help. When I left the ministry, I had always dreamed of doing, I was a mess. “Where do you go when you go home and fail?” I was told that I was stressed; not really. I don’t have stress; I am more of a stress carrier. I was diagnosed as depressed. Well, I wasn’t that either. But it took me about 7 months to figure out and admit what I really was; I was heartbroken.

14. But for Paul and every other servant of the Lord, it was ok.

15. You see, Jesus didn’t come to bring heaven to us.

16. Jesus came to put heaven in us.

17. “If God be for us…” and He most certainly is, “ Then what can man do to us?” Nothing!

B. “…And the time for my depart has come…”

1. Paul knew he was going to die by Roman hands.

2. Very soon he would face the ax of the executioner and he would be beheaded.

3. But you see, he was good with that, because he had given everything to Christ, he wasn’t his own.

4. Paul knew the price Christ paid for his salvation and Paul was truly a disciple of Christ.

5. When I tell people I can’t wait to die they think I really am crazy!

6. I have a wonderful family, we have a great ministry team, we are allowed by our Lord Jesus Christ to do work I had only dreamed possible, life here is good.

7. But my focus is not “horizontal” it is “vertical!”

8. Please take time to listen to Larnell Harris and Sandi Patti sing, “I’ve Just Seen Jesus,” and you will know that when you see Jesus, you will never be the same.

9. Every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus is the Christ!

10. Because unless Jesus comes to get us while we are living, we are going to die physically.

11. And if we don’t confess Jesus while we are living to the glory of God and to our eternal salvation; we will confess and bow down in Judgment to our damnation.

12. Paul knew his time for departure was close at hand and he was ok with that.

13. Our time is a lot closer than we think it is, are we ok with that?

II. Paul knew the truth about his ministry in Jesus’ name, and we know the truth about our ministry.

A. “I have fought a good fight…”

1. Possibly the greatest missionary worker every, next to Jesus.

2. Certainly, one of the greatest church planters to ever care for the work of our Lord.

3. So surrendered to the Lord and the leading of the Holy Spirit that we have Holy Spirit inspired epistles to teach us the truth of God and to teach us how to live for Jesus!

4. He used every opportunity to witness for Jesus no matter what was going on.

5. He truly fought a good fight.

6. How about you and me, or we fighting a good fight or have we surrendered to the world.

7. If you go to worship and it is impossible to see who is on the Lord’s side and who is on the world’s side, are we fighting a good fight?

8. If we are more concerned about our sexuality than we are our spirituality, are we fighting a good fight?

9. If we do for our kids what we would never do for God, are we fighting a good fight?

10. If we are more concerned about our treasure on earth than we are our treasures in heaven, are we fighting a good fight.

11. I could go on, but hopefully you get the point, and besides, this is my last sermon, so be mad if you want.

12. Paul fought the good fight.

B. “…Paul finished the course…” – please, don’t stop running.

1. He traveled the world teaching, preaching and declaring the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ.

2. When had his finally meeting with the elders at Ephesus he said, “Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.”

3. Paul started the race, he endured unbelievable oppositions, health issues, a thorn in the side and everything else one might imagine, but he finished the course.

4. Christianity is not a sprint; it is a marathon and only those who finish the race earn the prize.

5. We cannot start early and quit and expect the Lord to welcome us into His eternal home.

C. “…Paul kept the faith…” --- know what you believe and stick with it.

1. II Timothy 1:12 – “That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that He is able to guard that which I have entrusted to Him for that day.”

2. Paul knew that grace was not just a word, grace is the very person of Almighty God!

3. Paul knew the love of Jesus was real, for Jesus had rescued him from his life of rebellion.

4. Paul was not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes; first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.”

5. Paul knew the answer that would free every soul from the fear of death and the grave.

6. Paul knew the love of Jesus had made atonement for all of us, while we were still sinners.

7. II Timothy 2:11 – “And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher.”

8. Paul kept the faith!

9. If this is my last sermon, please hear my plea, “Get right with your Lord and know what you believe!”

Story: A man was asked by his church going friend, “What do you believe?” His answer, “I believe what my church believes.” “Well, what does your church believe?” His answer, “They believe what I believe.” “Well, what do you and your church believe?” His answer, “We believe the same things.” You see he had no idea what either one really believed.

10. How about you, what do you believe?

11. The Bible, God’s Holy Spirit inspired Word, profitable for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness.”

12. 31,102 verses, 1187 chapters, all about Jesus so we may learn of our Savior and Lord and live to glorify our heavenly Father.

13. Spiritual illiteracy is not a blessing or a gift, it is the direct result of lazy, worldly believers who declare, “I have been saved, why should I learn God’s will for my life?”

14. How many times I have heard, “The Bible is too complicated, I can’t understand it?”

15. Why would Almighty God give us an infallible, inerrant, inspired book, require us to live by it, and then make it so complicated we can understand it?

16. He wouldn’t!

17. Read 5 chapters a day in the New Testament and in 52 days you will read the entire New Testament, 10 chapters a day and in 26 days you will read the entire New Testament, 14 chapters a day and every 90 days you will have read the entire Bible.

18. But Phil, reading isn’t study. Correct, but until you start reading you will never start studying.

19. Most people don’t read the Bible because they don’t understand it.

20. They don’t read it because they do understand and they don’t want to change.

21. We have to know the faith before we can keep it.

III. Paul knew his final reward – and so can we.

II Timothy 4:8 - “…Now there is in store for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge will award to on that day…” and not to me only, but to all who have longed for his appearing.”

A. They tell me it isn’t bragging if you know it is true!

1. Paul knew it was true.

2. People ask me, “Phil, do you think you are good enough to get to heaven?”

3. Absolutely not, and neither did Paul.

4. But we both know we don’t go to Heaven because of what we have done or who we are!

5. We gain Heaven because of “Whose” we are!

6. If I belong to Jesus, Heaven is my eternal home.

7. As one writer puts it, “We are experiencing the already, in the not yet.”

8. If I had to wait until I died to know heaven is my home, I would be a nervous wreck.

9. But I don’t, our Lord said. “Let not your heart be troubled!”

10. How many can’t wait for the new body, the new home, no more crying, pain, sorrow, heartache, no more death?

11. That is Jesus’ promise to all who, “…deny self, take up their cross and follow Jesus!”

12. I can’t wait to see Jesus!

13. How about you?

Conclusion: If this is my last sermon, I beg you, come to Jesus, you will be glad you did for all eternity!

John 3:16-18 – “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. Vs.17, For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Vs.18, Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”