Daily Archives: May 26, 2017

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – The Exalted Lord

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Revelation 1:9-17

Revelation may be the most ignored book of the New Testament simply because it can be difficult to understand. But to avoid the treasures found in its pages is to miss some of the richest descriptions of our Lord that Scripture offers. We love seeing Him as the baby in the manger, and we recognize the importance of His death and resurrection, but the story doesn’t end there.

John was given a dramatic vision of the exalted Lord as He is now in heaven. Even though the apostle had shared an intimate friendship with Christ on earth, the sight of His Lord in this glorified state caused him to pass out in fear (Revelation 1:17).

In the heavenly scene, Jesus is portrayed as the Lord of His church, which is represented by the seven lampstands surrounding Him. He watches over them, preserving, protecting, and admonishing when necessary.

A few chapters later, Jesus is shown to be the Lamb of God, who, as our High Priest, sacrificed Himself on our behalf (Revelation 5:1-14). His blood purchased redemption for people from every place and time, so that they could become citizens of His kingdom. All heaven erupts into praise and worship when Christ is found to be the only one worthy to end this age and set up His righteous kingdom (v. 13).

If you believe in Christ, these chapters are about your future. Picture yourself in both scenes, seeing Jesus as the exalted Lord and Lamb of God. The praises described in Revelation 5:9-14 are coming from your mouth! Let this glimpse of the future shape your worship and focus this weekend.

Bible in One Year: Nehemiah 1-3

 

http://www.intouch.org/

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Navigating Rough Waters

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Read: 1 Chronicles 28:9–20

Bible in a Year: 1 Chronicles 28–29; John 9:24–41

Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you.—1 Chronicles 28:20

I was enjoying the start of my first whitewater rafting experience—until I heard the roar of the rapids up ahead. My emotions were flooded with feelings of uncertainty, fear, and insecurity at the same time. Riding through the whitewater was a first-rate, white-knuckle experience! And then, suddenly, it was over. The guide in the back of the raft had navigated us through. I was safe—at least until the next set of rapids.

Transitions in our lives can be like whitewater experiences. The inevitable leaps from one season of life to the next—college to career, changing jobs, living with parents to living alone or with a spouse, career to retirement, youth to old age—are all marked by uncertainty and insecurity.

In one of the most significant transitions recorded in Old Testament history, Solomon assumed the throne from his father David. I’m sure he was filled with uncertainty about the future. His father’s advice? “Be strong and courageous, and do the work. . . . For the Lord God, my God, is with you” (1 Chron. 28:20).

We’ll have our fair share of tough transitions in life. But with God in our raft we’re not alone. Keeping our eyes on the One who is navigating the rapids brings joy and security. He’s taken lots of others through before. —Joe Stowell

God guides us through the rapids of change.

INSIGHT: King David had desired to build God’s temple (1 Chron. 17:1), but God told him he could not because of the blood he had shed as a warrior (28:3). Instead, the privilege and responsibility for this project would fall upon the shoulders of David’s son Solomon. It is understandable that Solomon would be apprehensive about assuming this role. But his father admonished him to trust in God and do the work. Indeed, God was faithful as Solomon built the temple and took his father’s place as king.

Are you facing a transition? Reflect on God’s faithfulness and ask Him for strength to carry you through.  Dennis Fisher

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Sigh of Relief

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Most of us likely missed it. Couched between Wednesday’s building crescendo of assignments and Friday’s promise of their demise, Thursday hardly seems more than a means to an end. Though the day is every bit as holy as Easter Sunday, most of the world moves through it unsuspectingly—even those who have confessed the momentous lines of the Apostles’ Creed: “On the third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty.”

Yesterday was Ascension Day, the day that marks the ascension of Jesus Christ. Forty days after the celebration of Easter and the resurrection of Jesus, the church around the world holds in remembrance this eventful day. The gospel writer records: “Then [Jesus] said to his disciples…. ‘See, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.’ Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and, lifting up his hands, he blessed them. While he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy; and they were continually in the temple blessing God.”(1)

The ascension of Christ may not seem as momentous to the Christian story as the resurrection or as rousing as the image of Jesus on the cross. After the death and resurrection, in fact, the ascension might even seem somewhat anti-climatic. The resurrection and ascension statements of the Apostles’ Creed are essentially treated as one in the same: On the third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty. One might even think that the one miraculous act flowed immediately into the other: as if the death of the body of Jesus was answered in the resurrection, a presence who then floated onto heaven. Unfortunately, the result of this impression is that many think of the ascension as somehow casting off of Christ’s human nature, as if Jesus is a presence that only used to be human. Hence, Jesus seems one more fit to memorialize than one we might expect to actually see face-to-face one day.

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Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Be a Believing Believer

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Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts, as [happened] in the rebellion [of Israel] and their provocation and embitterment [of Me] in the day of testing in the wilderness. —Hebrews 3:7-8

In Hebrews 3 we see two wrong conditions of the heart—a hard heart and an unbelieving heart. In the wilderness, a hard heart caused the Israelites to rebel. A person with a hard heart cannot believe God easily, which is a major problem because everything we receive from God comes through believing. To receive from Him, all we have to do is come to Him in simple, childlike faith and just believe.

We call ourselves believers, but the truth is, there are a lot of “unbelieving believers.” For a long time, I was one of them. I had been hurt so much during my childhood, I developed a hardness of heart that God had to break through in my life.

Even Moses got to the place in the wilderness where he was slow of heart to believe God. That’s why it’s important for us to stay sharp spiritually so we can be quick to believe and to walk in faith day by day. We can choose to be careful to go from faith to faith and not begin to mix in any doubt and unbelief. A believing heart is essential if we want to live in close relationship with God.

Jesus wants to restore your soul, including your emotions. Let Jesus into those areas of your life that no one else could ever reach. Ask Him to change you into a person who has the same kind of heart that He has.

From the book Closer to God Each Day by Joyce Meyer.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Wisdom Brings Peace

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“Wisdom gives a good, long life, riches, honor, pleasure, peace” (Proverbs 3:16,17).

High up in the Andes Mountains stands a bronze statue of Christ – the base of granite, the figure fashioned from old cannons – marking the boundary between Argentina and Chile.

“Sooner shall these mountains crumble into dust,” reads the Spanish engraving, “than Argentines and Chileans break the peace sworn at the feet of Christ the Redeemer.”

Peoples of these two countries had been quarreling about their boundaries for many years, and suffering from the resultant mistrust.

In 1900, with the conflict at its highest, citizens begged King Edward VII of Great Britain to mediate the dispute. On May 28, 1903, the two governments signed a treaty ending the conflict.

During the celebration that followed, Senora de Costa, a noble lady of Argentina who had done much to bring about the peace, conceived the idea of a monument. She had the statue of Christ shaped from the cannons that had been used to strike terror into Chilean hearts.

At the dedication ceremony, the statue was presented to the world as a sign of the victory of good will. “Protect, Oh Lord, our native land,” prayed Senora de Costa. “Ever give us faith and hope. May fruitful peace be our first patrimony and good example its greatest glory.”

The monument stands today as a reminder that only Christ – the Prince of Peace – can bring real peace to the world. And that refers as much to individual peace as it does to national and international peace.

Bible Reading: Proverbs 3:18-23

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Like Solomon of old, I shall seek the wisdom that brings a good, long life, riches, honor, pleasure and the lasting peace that comes from God’s indwelling Holy Spirit.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Real Love Changes People

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Paul writes, “Rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep” (Romans 12:15 NASB). Do you want to plumb the depths of your love for someone? How do you feel when that person succeeds? Do you rejoice or are you jealous? And when he or she stumbles or falls into misfortune? Are you really sorry? Or are you secretly pleased?

Love never celebrates misfortune. Never! Real love changes people. Didn’t God’s love change you? You know your love is real when you weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice. Do you want to know what love is? “This is what real love is– It is not our love for God; it is God’s love for us. He sent his Son to die in our place to take away our sins” (1 John 4:10).

God passes the test! And well he should —he drafted it! He rejoices with you; may you rejoice with others.

From A Love Worth Giving

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

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Denison Forum

Denison Forum – Why did picture of Trump and the pope go viral?

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It is the picture seen ’round the world.

Last Wednesday, President Trump, along with members of his family and political inner circle, shared a private audience in the Vatican with Pope Francis. A picture taken during their time together shows a smiling president next to a somber-faced pope.

The photo quickly went viral. When I did a Google search yesterday on “trump frowning pope photo,” 26,600,000 results came up.

Vox‘s response was typical: “It almost looks like a farce: Trump cheerily oblivious, Pope Francis looking for all the world like he’d rather be literally anywhere else but in that room with that man.” New York Times columnist Gail Collins linked to the Vox story and added that Pope Francis “looked as cheerful as if he was watching his car being towed away.” Late-night talk show hosts mocked the president as an avalanche of memes and caustic reports on the picture flooded the Internet.

However, the photographer who took the picture told Time magazine a different story.
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