Daily Archives: January 31, 2017

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley –A Living Hope

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1 Peter 1:3-5

Believers are born into a living hope, whereas people without Christ have no foundation for their expectations and desires. Many non-Christians live with a false sense of security. They assume that what is important in this life is the physical and material. But there is no safety in things (1 Tim. 6:9). Those who pursue wealth and health rather than God find that their dreams either go unfulfilled or fail to satisfy.

Christians anchor their hope in the solid rock of Jesus Christ. His words are always true and His promises are never broken. I’ll sometimes hear a person project his or her unfulfilled desires on God and then argue that He came up short. But believers who make a request and submit to God’s will always get an answer: yes, no, or wait.

The Lord does not disappoint those who seek His will. Don’t misunderstand that statement. We might feel temporarily let down when something we hope for is not in God’s plan. But He doesn’t go back on the biblical promise to give His children what’s best (Isa. 48:17; Isa. 64:4). When one door closes, there is another about to open with something better behind it. And remember, the Lord cannot be outdone. We can’t even wish ourselves as much good as God has in store.

The best choice a Christian can make is to fix his or her hope on the Lord Jesus Christ. Welcome whatever fits His will for your life, and turn away from all that does not. Circumstances may shift and change, but Jesus never does. He is a living hope who never disappoints.

Bible in One Year: Leviticus 5-7

 

http://www.intouch.org/

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — The Talking Tree

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Read: Colossians 1:15–20

Bible in a Year: Exodus 25–26; Matthew 20:17–34

“He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross.—1 Peter 2:24

One of the earliest Christian poems in English literature is “The Dream of the Rood.” The word rood comes from the Old English word rod or pole and refers to the cross on which Christ was crucified. In this ancient poem the crucifixion story is retold from the perspective of the cross. When the tree learns that it is to be used to kill the Son of God, it rejects the idea of being used in this way. But Christ enlists the help of the tree to provide redemption for all who will believe.

In the garden of Eden, a tree was the source of the forbidden fruit that our spiritual parents tasted, causing sin to enter the human race. And when the Son of God shed His blood as the ultimate sacrifice for all of humanity’s sin, He was nailed to a tree on our behalf. Christ “bore our sins in his body on the cross” (1 Peter 2:24).

The cross is the turning point for all who trust Christ for salvation. And ever since the crucifixion, it has become a remarkable symbol that represents the sacrificial death of the Son of God for our deliverance from sin and death. The cross is the inexpressibly wonderful evidence of God’s love for us. —Dennis Fisher

Lord, may my heart give You praise whenever I see a cross, for You gave Yourself for me in love.

Christ gave His life on the tree for our salvation.

INSIGHT: Some experts in New Testament studies suspect that the poetic structure and inspiring thoughts of Colossians 1:15-20 reflect the lyrics of a first-century song of worship. Paul must have often sung about Jesus, the Peacemaker who changed his life by returning good for evil when He bore the sins of the world. Do you have anyone you would consider an enemy? If so, you probably know why Jesus’s example stands in such contrast to our normal human inclinations. The God who created and sustains the cosmos is the same God who chose to reconcile Himself to His enemies. Rather than turning on those who had done such evil to Him, our resurrected Creator reached out to say, I still love you. Come to me. Trust me, and I will forgive you and adopt you into my eternal family. Mart DeHaan

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – The Space to Fall

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Amusement parks had always been destinations of choice for my family while I was growing up. It didn’t matter the vacation spot, we would, if there was an amusement park nearby, make it a priority visit. The reason for this priority was that we loved roller-coasters. The Matterhorn Bobsleds at Disney Land, Space Mountain at Disney World, and all the various roller-coasters at Six Flags theme parks called to us to ride them over and over again to our sheer delight.

There was one exception: The free fall ride. I do not know if it is still in existence, but when I knew it at my local Six Flags it was a ride like an elevator without a door. Only a seatbelt harness held us in. Up six stories it climbed while our stomachs fell. Climbing higher and higher, the expanse of the park and the surrounding communities became like miniature-versions of themselves. It seemed the ride would climb as high as the heights of heaven. Then suddenly, the ascent ended. The car would tilt forward ever so slightly, so that all you could see below was the drop back to earth. For maximum thrill or terror, the car wouldn’t plunge down immediately. Riders sat for what seemed to be an eternity of waiting; suddenly, the mechanical support drew back and the elevator-like car would make its free fall back down to the ground at speeds as high as 90 mph. I only ever went on the free fall once. I hated that ride.

“Sometimes suffering feels like a free fall,” writes J. Todd Billings in his book Rejoicing in Lament.(1) It is a free fall away from all that was normal and routine in one’s life down into what seems to be a spiraling abyss of chaos and despair. After receiving the phone call in the early morning hours that my husband had suffered sudden cardiac arrest, I fell into my own free fall. While sitting in the airport waiting for my flight home, I remember saying to my mother “My life will never be the same again.” I would free fall into another world never to return to the world I had inhabited for seventeen years with my husband. There would be no return to what was ‘normal.’ There would only be a steadying of my legs, like I had to do after the free fall ride at the amusement park, landing in the strange new world of grief and loss that was mine.

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – The Space to Fall →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Take Your Thoughts Captive

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[Inasmuch as we] refute arguments and theories and reasonings and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up against the [true] knowledge of God; and we lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One). . . . —2 Corinthians 10:5

Take captive every thought coming into your mind that does not agree with the Word of God. Lead those thoughts away, and let them be replaced with ones that are obedient to Jesus Christ. In other words, change your mind!

This is something we have to be persistent in doing; and if you feel weary in the beginning of this new endeavor, I understand because I felt the same way. Instead of fighting with negative thoughts, simply replace them with positive ones. If you choose to think something good, then the bad thing cannot occupy that space in your mind anymore. We always overcome evil with good (see Romans 12:21).

Power Thought: My thoughts are obedient to Christ.

From the book the book Power Thoughts Devotional by Joyce Meyer.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – God’s Secret Plan for You

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“God has told us His secret reason for sending Christ, a plan He decided on in mercy long ago; and this was His purpose: that when the time is ripe He will gather us together from wherever we are – in heaven or on earth – to be with Him in Christ, forever” (Ephesians 1:9,10).

One day a distinguished scientist questioned Michael Faraday, chemist, electrician and philosopher.

“Have you conceived to yourself what will be your occupation in the next world?” he asked.

Hesitating a moment or two, Faraday replied, “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things that God hath prepared for them that love Him.” And then he added, in his own words, “I shall be with Christ, and that is enough.”

Although nearly two thousand years have passed since He walked this earth, Jesus still stands as the ultimate expression of ethics and morality. Whatever one might think about Christians or the church, he will find no blemishes in the character of Jesus.

Perhaps the greatest testimony that can be given regarding the character of Jesus’ teachings is that they are still changing men and nations throughout the world today. Now, as before, those who listen to Him inevitably say “No man ever spoke like this man!” (John 7:46, RSV).

God’s Word tells us that Jesus had the same temptations we do, though He never once gave way to them and sinned (Hebrews 4:15). Our Lord thus stands out as the supreme example of one who practiced the things that He taught to others and that He expects of His followers.

We still stand today in the shadow of God’s sure promise: “For God has allowed us to know the secret of His plan, and it is this: He purposes in His sovereign will that all human history shall be consummated in Christ, that everything that exists in heaven or earth shall find its perfection and fulfillment in Him. And here is the staggering thing that in all which will belong to Christ we have been promised a share” (Ephesians 1:9-11, Phillips).

Bible Reading: Ephesians 1:11-14

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Today I will meditate upon the fact that I am a child of God, and heir of God and joint-heir with Christ; and upon the startling, incredible fact that I am related to Him and share with Him in all of this indescribable privilege and blessing. As a result I will claim His supernatural love and power and will speak more freely to others of my relationship with Him.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – He Entered Your World

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I once waded into the Jordan River. On a trip to Israel, my family and I stopped to see the traditional spot of Jesus’ baptism. It’s a charming place. Sycamores cast their shadows. Birds chirp. The water invites. So I accepted the invitation and waded in to be baptized.

No one wanted to join me so I immersed myself. I declared my belief in Christ and sank so low in the water I could touch the river bottom. When I did, I felt a stick and pulled it out. Well, what do you know–a baptism memento! Some people get certificates or Bibles; I like my stick. It’s about as thick as your wrist, long as your forearm, and smooth as a baby’s behind. I keep it on my office credenza so I can show it to fear-filled people.

When they chronicle their anxieties about the economy or concern about their kids, I hand them the stick. I tell them how God muddied his feet in our world of diapers, death, digestion, and disease. How John told him to stay on the riverbank, but Jesus wouldn’t listen. How he came to earth for this very purpose, to become one of us. “Why, he might have touched this very stick,” I like to say.

As they smile, I ask, “Since he came this far to reach us, can’t we take our fears to him?”

“For our high priest [Jesus] is able to understand our weaknesses. When he lived on earth he was tempted in every way that we are, but he did not sin. Let us, then, feel very sure that we can come before God’s throne where there is grace. There we can receive mercy and grace to help us when we need it” (Hebrews 4:15-16 NCV).

Does this miracle matter? It does if you are bedridden. It does if you battle disease. It does if chronic pain is a part of your life. The One who hears your prayers understands your pain. He never shrugs or scoffs or dismisses physical struggle. He had a human body.

Does this miracle matter? If you ever wonder if God understands you, it does. If you ever wonder if God listens, it does. If you ever wonder if the Uncreated Creator can, in a million years, comprehend the life of a truck driver, housewife, or immigrant, then ponder long and hard the promise of the incarnation. God say: I understand you and I always will.

Continue reading Max Lucado – He Entered Your World →

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – Trump travel ban: 3 biblical priorities

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Last night, President Trump removed his acting attorney general after she refused to defend his executive order restricting travel from seven Muslim-majority nations. Sally Q. Yates was deputy attorney general under President Obama and was serving until the Senate confirms Trump’s nominee for the post, Sen. Jeff Sessions.

This is just the latest news in the ongoing controversy over the travel ban. Immigrants from Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Yemen, and Somalia are directly affected by the president’s decision.

The administration notes that these nations were listed on the Obama-era Terrorist Travel Prevention Act of 2015. President Trump blames the airport chaos that followed his executive order on computer outages at Delta Air Lines and political protests. He noted in a tweet that only 109 people out of 325,000 were detained and held for questioning. An additional 173 were denied entry on flights to the US from the seven countries listed in the order.

Arguments in favor of the ban:

  •  A four-month restriction on travel from these countries is needed to keep Americans safe.
    •    The chaos that resulted was a temporary consequence of preventing terrorists from traveling into the US.
    •    If advance warning or a grace period had been announced, terrorists could have traveled before the ban took effect.
    •    The order is not against Muslims in general—it does not affect more than forty other Muslim-majority countries.

Democratic leader Chuck Schumer saw the controversy very differently, calling the executive order “mean-spirited and un-American.” The New York Times called the ban “illegal.” Critics note that none of the 9/11 terrorists came from the seven banned countries. Protesters in many other countries are registering their opposition as well.

My purpose this morning is not to argue for one side or the other. Rather, it is to think biblically with you about three issues central to the debate.

One: Scripture encourages security. Continue reading Denison Forum – Trump travel ban: 3 biblical priorities →