Monthly Archives: June 2016

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – The Truth about Trials

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Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. Instead, be very glad–for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world.—1 Peter 4:12–13

It has been said that Christians are a lot like teabags; you don’t know what they’re made of until you put them into hot water. Maybe you’re in hot water right now. Maybe you’re going through what we might describe as a fiery trial. The good news is you are not the first person to go through it, nor will you be the last. You are not alone in your trial.

And here is something else to consider: going through a trial or a temptation is a confirmation that you are on the right track as a Christian. If you were to say, “You know, Greg, as a Christian I can’t remember the last time I was tempted,” my question would be, “What is wrong with you?” The devil sets his sights on those who are a threat to the kingdom of God.

You shouldn’t be surprised or shocked if you are tempted or tested. In 1 Peter 4:12–13 we’re told, “Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world.”

Hardship, temptation, tragedy, and the loss of a loved one will come into our lives one day. Trials and temptations will come too. Take steps now to be prepared for that. Don’t say, “That will never happen to me.”

News flash: It will happen to you. Life is filled with pain. Granted, some have more than others, but every life will have some. We should gather this truth into our hearts so we are prepared when trials and temptations come our way.

Harvest.org | Greg Laurie

Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – God the Son Is Better

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“God, who…spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds….Being made so much better than the angels.” (Hebrews 1:1-2, 4a)

When I was in school I had a friend who was really smart. Every time we finished taking a test, I asked him how he did. I remember the extremely rare times when I did better than he did. I was so happy! I think all of us have a desire to be better than someone else.

Did you know that the Bible tells us that Jesus is better than anyone else who has lived? The first chapter of Hebrews tells us that He is better than prophets and angels.

First, Jesus is better than the prophets. God used men called prophets to tell the world what He wanted them to know (vv.1-3). These prophets were important people who did amazing things. For example, Elijah asked God for fire to come down from heaven, and God sent it. And Daniel was thrown into a den of lions, but God didn’t let the lions hurt him. A third prophet, Elisha, made a river split into two so he could walk across on dry land.

But the only way these prophets could do these things was because God worked through them. The first part of Hebrews 1 teaches us that Jesus is better than the prophets. Why? First, because Jesus is the Creator of everything, including those prophets! Second, because He upholds everything, He is the one who made it possible for the prophets to do their work. Third, the prophets were sinners, so they could not save anyone from his sins. But Jesus never sinned. In fact, He cleansed our sins (v. 3).

Not only is Jesus better than the prophets, but second, He is better than the angels. We know that God uses angels for special jobs. An angel warned Lot and his family that judgment was coming to their city. It was an angel who told Mary that she would give birth to Jesus. It was an angel who told Jesus’ disciples that He had risen from the dead.

But for all of the supernatural power that angels have, Jesus is still better than they are. God hasn’t called any of the angels His Son – only Jesus has that honor (v. 5). In fact, God told the angels to worship Jesus when Jesus came to earth to be born as a baby (v. 6). Angels have their place, but they are under Jesus the King (vv. 7-9). Angels are to care for those who will be saved, but Jesus is the one who provides the salvation (v. 14).

If a prophet or even an angel were to die for you, it would do nothing to save you from your sins. But since Jesus is God, His death provides a way for you to be saved from your sins. That power makes Him far better than prophets and angels.

Jesus is better than anyone else, including prophets and angels.

My Response:

» Do I recognize Jesus for all He is worth?

 

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Jerry Bridges – Holiness Day by Day Devotional – One Choice at a Time

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Today’s Scripture: Deuteronomy 30:19

“I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life.”

The practice of putting off sinful attitudes and actions and putting on Christ-like character involves a constant series of choices. We choose in every situation which direction we’ll go. Through these choices we develop Christ-like habits of living. Habits are developed by repetition, and it’s in the arena of moral choices that we develop spiritual habit patterns.

We see this in Romans 6:19: “Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness” (NIV). The more the Roman believers sinned, the more they were inclined to sin. They were continually deepening their habit patterns of sin simply through their practice of making sinful choices.

What was true of them can be just as true of us today. Sin tends to cloud our reason, dull our consciences, stimulate our sinful desires, and weaken our wills. Because of this, each sin we commit reinforces the habit of sinning and makes it easier to give in to that temptation the next time.

Paul wanted the Roman believers, and us today, to turn in the other direction and develop habits of godly living: “so now offer [the parts of your body] in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness” (Romans 6:19, NIV). Righteousness in this passage refers to the ethical righteousness —the right conduct—we’re to practice every day. Whereas righteousness in this verse refers to our conduct, holiness refers to our character. So it’s through righteous actions that we develop holy character. Holiness of character is developed one choice at a time as we choose to act righteously in each and every situation and circumstance we encounter during the day. (Excerpt taken from The Discipline of Grace)

 

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – The Focus of Life

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Today’s Scripture: Matthew 8-11

So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. – Ephesians 4:17

What do we do when our lives get out of focus and we’re no longer doing what God has called us to do? Too often, nothing! Sometimes the blurring occurs so gradually that we don’t even know we’re out of focus. All the more reason to keep our eyes on Jesus. You see, He was a very focused person, and He stuck with His mission.

Notice Jesus’ words in Matthew 9:12-13: “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick… For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Throughout the Gospels, we see Jesus healing, teaching, and preaching–all part of revealing His kingdom. And everything He did was focused on His goal of calling people to repent and believe.

Can you imagine everything Jesus could have talked to people about? After all, He was the eternal Son of God who knew everything about everything. He could have explained all the scientific wonders of the universe or warned against the various manmade philosophies that would arise over the years–how each of them would lead down a blind alley and leave the followers of those teachings confused and frustrated. But Jesus didn’t deal with any of those things. Instead, He focused on what people need most–the good news of salvation. Why? Because unless people hear and respond to the gospel, they are lost and going to a Christless grave.

There are hundreds of good activities you can be involved in as a Christian, but what is most important? What is worth giving your life to? Jesus’ primary objective was to help people walk in the light of God’s Word and experience the salvation He offered. Shouldn’t that be our focus, too?

Prayer

Lord, You are the way, the truth, and the life. Empower me each day, as I meet and talk with people, to point them in Your direction. Amen.

To Ponder

What goals are most important to you?

 

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BreakPoint

BreakPoint – A Task Unfinished: Why Christians Should Sing More about Evangelism

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As longtime BreakPoint listeners will know, there’s a misattributed adage that really bugs me, and even more so my BreakPoint this Week co-host Ed Stetzer. Saint Francis of Assisi is frequently quoted as saying: “Preach the Gospel at all times, if necessary, use words.”

“…this statement,” observes Stetzer, “is a bit like saying, ‘Feed the hungry at all times, if necessary, use food.” Writing at The Washington Post last month, Ed observed that words aren’t just optional when preaching the Gospel—they’re fundamental. That’s because the Gospel is “good news.” It’s not just a way of life, it’s also a message about the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ on behalf of all who believe. It’s not a list of “dos”—thanks to Jesus, it’s a list of “dones.”

That’s why, if you call yourself a Christian, spreading the word about the cross and empty tomb isn’t optional. Christianity, says Ed, “is a missionary faith,” and our music has long reflected that. I think of classic hymns like “Bringing in the Sheaves,” “Onward, Christian Soldiers,” and “How Beauteous Are Their Feet,” which all celebrate the work of Gospel ministry, and call God’s people to action.

But somewhere along the way, we stopped singing so much about evangelism. Ironically, many of the songs used in evangelical churches today have a therapeutic emphasis, and much of our preaching centers on showing people the Gospel within our own lives.

Now don’t get me wrong: Our relationship with Christ is personal, and one of our most powerful testimonies is a life lived in obedience to Him. But as Ed points out, that’s not the same as preaching the Gospel. Before He ascended to His Father, Jesus commanded us to “Go…and make disciples of all nations.”

Continue reading BreakPoint – A Task Unfinished: Why Christians Should Sing More about Evangelism →

Moody Global Ministries

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – A FATHER’S SINFUL SILENCE

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Read 1 Samuel 2

One of the most popular Christian books on parenting is The Strong-Willed Child by Dr. James Dobson. The title suggests that some children are less responsive to discipline than others. They are like the little boy who told his mother, “You might as well go ahead and spank me now because I am going to cross the street!”

Today we leave the Patriarchs to focus on three other fathers in the Bible, beginning with Eli the priest. He was the mentor of the prophet Samuel, but the first picture we have of Eli in Scripture is not very rosy. He mistook Hannah’s silent prayer for drunkenness and reproved her (1 Sam. 1:12–14).

Hannah had a heart of worship in response to Eli’s reproof, but his own sons ignored his rebukes about their sins (vv. 22–25). Hophni and Phineas were priests of the tabernacle like their father, but they seduced the women who assisted them in worship (see Ex. 38:8). They also took uncooked meat brought for offering by worshipers without allowing them to burn the fat as the Lord’s portion. If anyone raised an objection to their behavior, Eli’s sons threatened to take the meat by force (v. 16).

Eli’s sin was that he turned a blind eye to his son’s behavior. He reproved them, but only after public complaint made it impossible to ignore. Even worse, it seems that Eli ate the food along with them (v. 29). This was like chastising his sons for stealing and then helping them spend the money. No wonder Hophni and Phineas failed to take their father’s reproof seriously. But there was also a spiritual reason for their hardness of heart. They were being judged by God for their sacrilege (v. 17).

APPLY THE WORD

Keeping silent when we should offer reproof is not grace; it is complicity in sin. Genuine love confronts transgression with the hope of restoration. The entire church shares responsibility (1 Cor. 5:9–13). Ignoring this task hurts the one who is caught in sin and places the rest of the community at risk. Do you care enough to say the hard thing?

 

http://www.todayintheword.org

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – ‘STAR TREK’ ACTOR DIES IN FREAK ACCIDENT

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Anton Yelchin played Pavel Chekhov in the rebooted “Star Trek” film series. He and his family emigrated from Russia seeking political asylum when he was just six months old. Anton began acting at the age of nine. With critical acclaim for his work in the “Star Wars” series, his future was bright.

Yesterday morning, friends became concerned when he did not show up for a band performance. They found Yelchin dead at his home. His car pinned him against a brick mailbox pillar and a security fence. According to the LAPD, “It appears he had exited his car and was behind it when the vehicle rolled down a steep driveway.” He was twenty-seven years old.

The future is promised to no one. And yet it is human nature to focus on tomorrow’s challenges when today is the only day that exists. If we are faithful to the opportunities of this day, our future legacy will take care of itself.

Last night, the Cleveland Cavaliers won their first NBA title. They made history as the first team to come back from a 3-1 deficit to win the championship. Their secret: they focused on each game as it came. By ignoring their legacy, they created it.

Meanwhile, Dustin Johnson won golf’s U.S. Open Championship. It was his first major title. He won it by focusing on each shot as it came. By ignoring his legacy, he created it. That’s how legacies are made.

There’s another reason to focus on the present: the law of unintended consequences shows that we cannot predict the future.

Continue reading Denison Forum – ‘STAR TREK’ ACTOR DIES IN FREAK ACCIDENT →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Investments Worth Making

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Psalms 78:1-8

Leaving a monetary inheritance for our children isn’t nearly as important as preparing a spiritual legacy that is invested over the course of their lives. But how much we choose to devote to the formation of our heirs’ faith is up to us.

In truth, everything a parent does and says—along with everything left undone and unsaid—contributes to the legacy. A child’s understanding of the world and of God develops as he or she takes note of Mom and Dad’s pattern of life, the principles that govern their actions, and the power of their words. Kids observe whether parents value obedience to God and notice what happens when they do (or don’t) follow His Word. Their first lessons in forgiveness, generosity, and service to others are learned at home, whether taught intentionally or not. What’s more, your child will notice if your principles and words fail to line up.

Investing in a spiritual legacy does not end when a child reaches adulthood. As our sons and daughters head out into the world, we continue to have responsibility to pass on the lessons we’ve learned as God’s children. Every day of her life, my own mother taught me about unwavering faith and absolute obedience to the Lord. Her lessons have continued beyond her lifetime, as they have been passed down to new generations.

If asked about a legacy, my mother would have said, “I don’t have anything to leave to Charles.” But that isn’t true. She poured her life into mine, ensuring that I knew what it was to be loved, to know God, and to live wisely in His will. That is my treasured spiritual inheritance.

Bible in a Year: Psalms 44-49

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread – Abba, Father

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Abba, Father

Read: Romans 8:12–17 | Bible in a Year: Nehemiah 12–13; Acts 4:23–37

A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. Psalm 68:5

The scene belonged on a funny Father’s Day card. As a dad muscled a lawn mower ahead of him with one hand, he expertly towed a child’s wagon behind him with the other. In the wagon sat his three-year-old daughter, delighted at the noisy tour of their yard. This might not be the safest choice, but who says men can’t multitask?

If you had a good dad, a scene like that can invoke fantastic memories. But for many, “Dad” is an incomplete concept. Where are we to turn if our fathers are gone, or if they fail us, or even if they wound us?

Help me live a life that pleases You.

King David certainly had his shortcomings as a father, but he understood the paternal nature of God. “A father to the fatherless,” he wrote, “a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families” (Ps. 68:5–6). The apostle Paul expanded on that idea: “The Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.” Then, using the Aramaic word for father—a term young children would use for their dad—Paul added, “By him we cry, ‘Abba, Father’ ” (Rom. 8:15). This is the same word Jesus used when He prayed in anguish to His Father the night He was betrayed (Mark 14:36).

Continue reading Our Daily Bread – Abba, Father →

Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – Affectionate Father 

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For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.  1 Thessalonians 2:11-12

Am I an affectionate father? Like the geyser “Old Faithful,” do I spontaneously spew out love and affection on my children? Am I faithful to fill my daughter or son’s emotional tank with a warm embrace or a kiss on the head? Or am I so caught up in my own career and needs that I have no emotional capacity to give affection? Affection must be displayed.

A father with affection reflects his heavenly Father’s affection for him. It is out of an overflow of being comforted and loved by Christ that redeemed fathers show affection to their children. When the Holy Spirit gives us a warm and secure hug, we can’t help but hug our children and grandchildren. Eternal affection translates into earthly affection.

“Yet the LORD set his affection on your forefathers and loved them, and he chose you, their descendants, above all the nations—as it is today” (Deuteronomy 10:15).

Perhaps you have a routine of kissing and hugging your children each time you leave home and when you arrive home. There is no rushing out the door until you have made emotional deposits in your most valued relational account. Your child is your lockbox of love, waiting with a tender heart to be touched by their daddy. Initiate hugs and kisses.

When a child’s heart hurts from fear, rejection, or physical harm, move closer with care and compassion. Listen with empathetic ears and outstretched arms. Affectionate fathers are up close and personal, distant fathers are unsympathetic and impersonal. Your seeds of affection reap a harvest of healthy adult children who want to come back home.

Continue reading Wisdom Hunters – Affectionate Father  →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Choose to Surrender

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For those whom He foreknew . . . He also destined from the beginning [foreordaining them] to be molded into the image of his Son . . . —Romans 8:29

According to the verse for today, one of God’s goals in our lives is to make us become like Jesus. He wants us to continue to become more like Jesus in our thoughts, in our words, in the way we treat other people, in our personal lives, and in our actions. Becoming like Jesus does not happen overnight; it’s a process we have to choose to embrace.

Romans 12:1 says I appeal to you therefore, brethren, and beg of you in view of [all] the mercies of God, to make a decisive dedication… This means we have to make a deliberate decision to give ourselves to God. God has given us a free will, and the only way we will ever belong to Him completely is to give ourselves freely to Him. He will never force us to love Him or serve Him. He will speak to us, lead us, guide us, and prompt us, but He will always leave the decision to surrender up to us.

God created human beings, not robots, and He will not try to program us to behave a certain way because He has given us the freedom to make our own choices—and He wants us to choose Him. He wants us to willingly put our lives before Him every day and say, “God, Your will be done, not mine.” That short, simple prayer is extremely powerful when we really mean it, and it represents the kind of full surrender God requires.

If God has been speaking to you or dealing with you about anything, I encourage you not to put off surrendering it any longer. Choose to obey His voice and surrender today. Ask Him to be your Strength and remember that through Him you can do all things.

From the book Hearing from God Each Morning: 365 Daily Devotions by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Ray Stedman

Ray Stedman -Helplessness in Prayer

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Read: Genesis 32:9-32

So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. Gen 32:24

This is one of those mysterious, intriguing incidents found very frequently in the Old Testament, where some element of mystery is introduced without much explanation. Everyone who reads this asks, Who is this masked man? Where did he come from? What is he doing? I am sure Jacob must have felt that way too. He thought he was all alone, having sent everyone and everything across the river, when suddenly out of the shadows steps a man, who to Jacob’s amazement begins to wrestle with him. As you read further, there is, no doubt as to who the man is. In fact, at the end of the story, Jacob names the place of this encounter, Peniel, which means, the face of God, because he said, I have met God face to face and still survived. Here is a man who, in some strange way, in one of those Old Testament theophanies, is God himself appearing in visible form, and he wrestles with Jacob.

What does all that mean? Taken in connection with the whole story there is no question that what we have here is God’s attempt to improve Jacob’s prayer life with a crash course on praying. God is attempting to break down Jacob’s stubborn dependence upon himself. Jacob’s problem was that he never really trusted God to do things. He always had that inward feeling that if he did not do it himself, God would probably not come through. Now God is dealing with him in a defining moment. Jacob has to face up to the fact that, though his prayers are eloquent, beautifully phrased, and theologically accurate, they are useless because he does not believe that God is going to do anything. All his trust is in himself. I meet a lot of people like that. They pray and talk wonderful, theologically-correct language but do not really believe God is going to act. This is what Jacob is doing here. There is no expectation, but rather a stubborn refusal on Jacob’s part to give up and expect God to handle the situation.

Continue reading Ray Stedman -Helplessness in Prayer →

Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – Travel Light (Part 1)

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Read: Psalm 5:1-8

Make your way straight before me. (v. 8)

The famous travel host Rick Steves says, “You’ll never meet a traveler who, after five trips, brags: ‘Every year I pack heavier.’ The measure of a good traveler is how light he or she travels.” Ever run a bag race? I remember it from childhood Sunday school picnics. Sometimes you did it with a partner, each of you putting one leg in the same empty burlap sack, competing with others doing the same. Another way was for each contestant to run or hop with both legs in a bag. It was good for lots of laughs, not for impressive racing!

In our Christian race, stumbling doesn’t require gross sins. It’s enough to be unaware, careless, or undisciplined. So Scripture urges, “Let us run with determination the race that lies before us. Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end” (Heb. 12:1-2 GNT). We get just one chance to faithfully serve God in our generation. Travel light. Let’s not use our energy to add more “things that get in the way,” but use our drive to serve God with greater devotion. Brian Diemer, an Olympic steeple chase runner, when he failed to win a gold medal, said, “I gave the best that I had . . . and that’s all that matters. There’s a lot more in my life than running—my family, my Lord and Savior.”

When you stand before Christ will you be able to say of your Christian race, “I gave it the best that I had?”

Prayer:

Lord, empower me.

Author: Chic Broersma

 

https://woh.org/

Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – God Is Best

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Choices: it seems that there’s always another one to make. What to wear for school; what to have for lunch; what seat to sit in at school. Have you ever gone back and forth between two choices? You wanted to make the best decision, but you couldn’t decide which one it was.

We all want the best, whether it is the best decision or the best toy or the best score on a video game. Best is a good word to describe our God, too.

God is the best friend we can have. Do you have a best friend? As a kid, I always wanted a best friend and wanted to be someone’s best friend. Proverbs 18:24 says, “There is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.” God proved that He is that friend when He said, “I am with you always” and “I will never leave you or forsake you.” No matter what is happening in your life, God will always be there for you. You cannot travel to a place on this earth where God will not be. You can’t hide from God. He is always there and will never leave you. He is the best friend you can have.

God is the best God. “Wait a minute!” you might be thinking. “I thought that there is only one God!” There is only one true God, but there are many false gods. That is why one of the Ten Commandments is, “Thou shalt not have any gods before me.” Paul often talked about the false gods that people worshipped in the cities he visited.

The Bible teaches that anything we think is more important than God is a false god to us. It can be anything – TV, school, friends, games, or a musical instrument. If we are so busy with those things that we are not spending time with God, then we are worshipping a false god.

We know that God is the best God, because He is the only true God. The gods many people worship cannot help or even hear their worshippers. But your God hears you and helps you every day, even if you don’t see His help.

God is the best choice. Joshua told his army to choose whom they were going to serve: the false gods of the land or the true God. You have to make that same choice each day. Who are you going to serve? God is the best choice.

God is best.

My Response:

» How can I serve God today?

» How can I serve God with the rest of my life?

» How is God my best friend?

 

http://kids4truth.com/home.aspx

The Navigators

The Navigators – Jerry Bridges – Holiness Day by Day Devotional – Our Underlying Hostility

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Today’s Scripture: Romans 3:11

“No one understands.”

It’s difficult for decent, upright Americans to accept that they’re by nature hostile to God, that we cannot please him. This is because they’ve confused general American morality, plus a dose of church attendance, with obedience to God’s law. Most have never been seriously confronted with the exceedingly high standard of God’s eternal law. When they are, they typically reveal their underlying hostility to it.

Paul’s writings are filled with dismal descriptions of our spiritual condition before we became believers. he said, for example, “you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked” (Ephesians 2:1-2). He’s speaking, of course, about spiritual death. We were totally unresponsive to the God of Scripture. We may have been religious, but we were still dead.

Spiritually dead people cannot receive and embrace the Gospel. As Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2:14, “The man without the spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned” (NIV). Does this mean unbelievers cannot understand the facts of the Gospel? No—it means they cannot sense their own need of it and embrace it. As long as we were spiritually dead, we could not just “decide” to believe the Gospel and trust in Jesus Christ.

In our spiritual deadness, we were “following the course of this world” (Ephesians 2:2). World is often used in the Bible for the sum total of human society in opposition to God. The world’s attitude toward God varies from indifference to hostility, but the bottom line is, “no one seeks for God” (Romans 3:11). This is the world we followed. We were spiritually dead, enmeshed in a culture totally opposed to God.

 

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – Spiritual Cruise Control

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Today’s Scripture: Malachi 1-4

We love because he first loved us. – 1 John 4:19

I’ve heard it said that in the Christian life you are either moving forward or going backward. But I know people who seem to be on a kind of spiritual plateau. They aren’t in rebellion against God nor are they living in open or secret sin. But they aren’t making any progress either. They haven’t led anyone to Christ in years, and they aren’t excited about anything related to the kingdom of God. They seem to have leveled out–just cruising on some kind of spiritual automatic pilot.

During the time of the prophet Malachi, God’s people were existing on a plateau of lukewarm mediocrity. The fifty thousand Jews who returned to Jerusalem from their captivity in Babylon had been settled in Judah for over seventy years, but the Messiah spoken of by Haggai and Zechariah had not yet come. All excitement about a genuine and intimate relationship with God seemed to have drained away. Even the worship of God had become an empty chore.

This is the background against which Malachi speaks, calling this lukewarm community of believers to return to a living and vital relationship with God. It’s fascinating to note that in forty-seven of the fifty-five verses in this book, God speaks with first-person directness to His people. The book of Malachi is God’s call to His lukewarm people to be faithful during a time when heaven seemed silent. Notice how God begins in Malachi 1:2: “‘I have loved you,’ says the Lord.”

It is love that binds God to His own. And it is love that God seeks from His own. He wants to walk with you in the devotion and commitment of your first love.

Prayer

Lord, I confess that my spiritual life is often on automatic pilot. Rekindle the fervor of my first love for You and Your purposes in this world. Amen.

To Ponder

If the joy is gone from your walk with God, how hard are you looking for it?

 

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Moody Global Ministries

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – TWO FATHERS AND THE SON

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Read Genesis 32:22–33:4

Boxers train for months leading up to a match. They lift weights and engage in rigorous exercise to build up their stamina and strengthen their core. They do pull-ups, chin-ups, and squats. Before the fight they pose for the media in an effort to show that they are ready to beat their opponent. The goal is to be as strong as possible. Nobody aims to look weak.

But weakness was exactly what Jacob needed in his approaching face-off with Esau. After his encounter with the mysterious being described in today’s reading, he was left physically weaker, not stronger for the possible battle ahead. Who was the “man” who wrestled with Jacob until daybreak but refused to reveal his name (32:24)? According to Hosea 12:4–5, this was the Lord God Almighty! This interaction is an example of what theologians call a theophany, an appearance of God in human form before the Incarnation.

This event is the fulcrum of Jacob’s spiritual pilgrimage. Caught between the anger of his father-in-law and his brother, he encountered a power greater than all of them. According to the prophet Hosea, “He struggled with the angel and overcame him; he wept and begged for his favor” (Hosea 12:4). The favor Jacob received was a wounded hip and a name change. From this point on Jacob would walk with a limp and would be called Israel, which literally means “he struggles with God.”

The brother that Esau met shortly after this encounter with God was not the same deceiver he once knew. Jacob’s pilgrimage was not yet over, and neither was the strife between these two rival branches of the family. But the intervention of God made a difference. Instead of a clash of armies, the reunion of Jacob and Esau was marked by a tearful welcome.

APPLY THE WORD

The apostle Paul prayed for God to remove his “thorn in the flesh.” The Lord’s responded, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:6–10). Whatever your source of weakness might be, ask the Lord to reveal His sufficient grace through it. Thank Him that you can rely on His power and not your own.

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Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – By Faith Alone

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Romans 1:16-17

If you are too proud to bend your spirit before God, you’ll never get to heaven. You may be a kind, gentle person; you may even be naturally benevolent and charitable. But if your pride keeps you from admitting your need for Christ, then you will not accept His gift of salvation. Many people have missed out on eternal life because their heart was too hard and they believed they knew better than the God who created them.

There is only one way to reach heaven. Holy God cannot tolerate sin in His presence, and He decreed that the penalty for it is death (Rom. 6:23). And the truth is, all people are sinners (Rom. 3:23). So, to provide a bridge between mankind and Himself, merciful God sent Jesus to die in man’s place. Christ’s sacrifice is all that is necessary for a person to enter into a relationship with God the Father.

The believer does not work or reason his way into heaven. The bridge spanning the gap between each individual and God is crossed only through an act of faith: acknowledging the need for a Savior and accepting Christ’s death on the cross as payment for one’s sins.

Perhaps you’re thinking, I want only what I deserve. But no one deserves grace (Rom. 3:23-24). Maybe you tell yourself, I want only what I have worked for. But nobody can earn salvation (Eph. 2:8-9). And yet the heavenly Father wants to give grace and salvation to you and to me, undeserving though we are. The truly wise people of this world are those who have accepted the truth and bent their spirit—and their knees—before the Lord.

Bible in a Year: Psalms 39-43

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread – Defeat or Victory?

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Read: 1 John 5:1–13 | Bible in a Year: Nehemiah 10–11; Acts 4:1–22

Everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 1 John 5:4

Each year on June 18 the great Battle of Waterloo is recalled in what is now Belgium. On that day in 1815, Napoleon’s French army was defeated by a multinational force commanded by the Duke of Wellington. Since then, the phrase “to meet your Waterloo” has come to mean “to be defeated by someone who is too strong for you or by a problem that is too difficult for you.”

When it comes to our spiritual lives, some people feel that ultimate failure is inevitable and it’s only a matter of time until each of us will “meet our Waterloo.” But John refuted that pessimistic view when he wrote to followers of Jesus: “Everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith” (1 John 5:4).

Enable us to overcome the world through faith and obedience to You.

John weaves this theme of spiritual victory throughout his first letter as he urges us not to love the things this world offers, which will soon fade away (2:15–17). Instead, we are to love and please God, “And this is what he promised us—eternal life” (v. 25).

While we may have ups and downs in life, and even some battles that feel like defeats, the ultimate victory is ours in Christ as we trust in His power.

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Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – A Godly Legacy 

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When Jacob had finished giving instructions to his sons, he drew his feet up into the bed, breathed his last and was gathered to his people. Genesis 49:33

Jacob gave his dying instructions to his sons as they waited at his beside. They lingered there out of love and respect. They had observed his life and though not perfect by far, it was a life of overall faithfulness to God. The sons of the father wanted to receive his blessing and they were proud of the legacy left to them, a legacy of faithfulness to God.

What legacy will you leave? If you died today, how would you be remembered? These are important questions for your children’s sake. Maybe your parents did not leave you a godly heritage. Nevertheless, you have a wonderful opportunity to start a new tradition, one based on the principles of Scripture. Lord willing, your legacy will start a godly lineage that will reach across the future for generations to come. Yes, your name will probably be forgotten, but what you stand for will be held in high esteem for all to remember.

Perhaps you can start by documenting your family vision and mission. Write down outcomes you are praying for related to your family. Pray that your parental example of character compels your children to walk with Christ. Hold the Bible in such high regard that its commands and principles are lived out in love and obedience. Love your children with acceptance, discipline, training, and kindness. Follow the ways of God, and your children will see and secure a clear path of purpose to pursue.

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