Daily Archives: December 18, 2017

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – A Saving Faith

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Matthew 7:13-29

The greatest tragedy that can befall someone is to think he’s saved, only to discover after death that he isn’t. We’d all like to believe the claims of those who say they’re Christians, but Jesus gives a harsh warning because He knows many will be deceived. They will sit in churches week after week, professing that Jesus is the Son of God, but won’t ever really enter into a personal relationship with Him.

Intellectual faith isn’t the same as saving faith. It’s not enough to know facts about Jesus or to believe He died and rose again. Even demons believe that (James 2:19). Salvation involves more than mere knowing. It requires trusting that Jesus Christ paid the penalty for your sin, receiving His forgiveness, turning away from old sinful ways, and entering into a relationship with Him. What matters is not what we say with our mouth, but what we believe in our heart.

Although you probably won’t understand all that happens at the moment of salvation, when Christ becomes your Savior, He also becomes your Lord. As the Master of your life, He then has a right to govern what you do. His Holy Spirit takes up residence within you when you are saved, and that means you will change—God’s Spirit continually works to remove sinful attitudes and behaviors, replacing them with His spiritual fruit (Gal. 5:22-23).

We recognize a person’s salvation not by his profession but by fruit. If you are truly saved, your character will become more Christlike over time, and your desire will be to obey the Lord. This does not mean you’ll never sin or stumble, but overall, your life will be characterized by obedience.

Bible in One Year: Hebrews 4-6

 

http://www.intouch.org/

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Everlasting Hope

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Read: Psalm 146

Bible in a Year: Obadiah; Revelation 9

Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD their God.—Psalm 146:5

The week before Christmas, two months after my mom died, holiday shopping and decorating sat at the bottom of my priority list. I resisted my husband’s attempts to comfort me as I grieved the loss of our family’s faith-filled matriarch. I sulked as our son, Xavier, stretched and stapled strands of Christmas lights onto the inside walls of our home. Without a word, he plugged in the cord before he and his dad left for work.

As the colorful bulbs blinked, God gently drew me out of my darkness. No matter how painful the circumstances, my hope remained secure in the light of God’s truth, which always reveals His unchanging character.

Psalm 146 affirms what God reminded me on that difficult morning: My endless “hope is in the LORD,” my helper, my mighty and merciful God (v. 5). As Creator of all, He “remains faithful forever” (v. 6). He “upholds the cause of the oppressed,” protecting us and providing for us (v. 7). “The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down” (v. 8). He “watches over” us, “sustains” us, and will always be King (vv. 9-10).

Sometimes, when Christmas rolls around, our days will overflow with joyful moments. Sometimes, we’ll face loss, experience hurt, or feel alone. But at all times, God promises to be our light in the darkness, offering us tangible help and everlasting hope. —Xochitl Dixon

Father God, thanks for inviting us to know and rely on Your unchanging character as the source of our eternal hope.

God secures our hope in His unchanging character.

INSIGHT: Psalm 146 is a psalm of contrasts. But the opening and closing phrases of the chapter are identical: “Praise the LORD.” This literary technique is called an inclusio. An inclusio sets the framework for understanding the content in between. In the case of Psalm 146, that framework is praising the Lord.

In verses 1-4 the author describes the frailty and ineffectiveness of the strength of humans—they are a breath; they cannot save. Then comes the contrast. In verses 5-9 God is described as the Maker and Ruler of everything. And specifically in verses 7-9 the author says that the Lord watches over and protects those who are in trouble. What greater reason to praise the Lord than that He does for us what we cannot do for ourselves!

In the midst of difficult circumstances the Lord is faithful. How can you remind yourself and others of this today? J.R. Hudberg

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Christmas Has Come

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According to a national organization dedicated to the study and aid of mental health, holiday stress is a widespread occurrence that plagues more of the population every year, for more time each year. “Americans are stressed during the holidays, we’ve long known this,” said David Shern, president of Mental Health America. “However, on January 2, when a person may expect the stress let up, they instead find themselves feeling down, physically ill, or anxious. This is because stress takes a serious toll on a person’s overall health—both physical and mental.”(1) And the phenomenon is hardly unique to America.

If we could somehow miraculously transport someone from the time of the Old Testament into this conversation and he or she listened to us describe the stress we feel as we move closer and closer to Christmas, they would concur. We would of course first have to explain what Christmas is—namely, the remembrance of the birth of the Messiah, the day God came among us. But at this explanation, they would immediately understand. In fact, they would find it completely remarkable if anyone should not face with stress, awe, and trembling the thought that God is coming, that God is here.

Of course, whatever our religion, we are well aware that this is not why we are stressed at Christmastime. According to Shern, we are stressed at the approach of Christmas because of finances, because of family, because of the absence of family, because of over-indulgence, because we have too much to do, or because we have too little to do and feel the pointed edges of loneliness. For so many of us, the thought that Christmas is coming is indeed one that invokes fear, trembling, and attention, though perhaps for unfortunate reasons.

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Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Getting Rid of Unrealistic Expectations

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And Jesus said to him, Why do you call Me [essentially and perfectly morally] good? There is no one [essentially and perfectly morally] good–except God alone.— Mark 10:18

Unrealistic expectations can quickly steal our peace and joy. We usually desire a perfect day, with perfect people, being perfectly happy in our perfect little world, but we all know that isn’t reality. In reality, only God is perfect, and the rest of us are under construction.

The devil knows what steals our peace, and he sets us up to get upset when our unrealistic expectations fall apart.

After years of letting the devil steal my peace, I finally got it: Life is not perfect, and things are going to happen that we did not plan for and would rather not go through. My new attitude has become, Oh well, that’s life! I have discovered that if I don’t let those things impress me, then they can’t depress me.

Everyone has to deal with inconveniences, but we can deal with them and avoid a bad attitude. Remember today that only God is perfect and learn to trust in Him. He can always lead you past disappointing circumstances, strengthening you and helping you hold on to your peace.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – He is Faithful

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“Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for He is faithful that promised)” (Hebrews 10:23, KJV).

When we share our faith with others – hopefully a natural part of our daily walk, though we need not “preach a sermon” to share – we can remain steadfast in that profession of our faith, not wavering as we consider all He has done for us.

Why is that possible?

Simply this: He is faithful that promised.

The writer of Hebrews, presumably the apostle Paul, knew that the believers had been suffering persecution and there might be a tendency or temptation to become weak in their faith. Even serious doubts might have crept in. So Paul is seeking to guard against any kind of apostasy.

He wants to be sure the people are not shaken by their trials or by the arguments of their enemies. So he exhorts them in unmistakable terms.

Paul’s reasoning to the people about faithfulness was this: Since God is so faithful to us, His children, we ought to be faithful to Him. Further, the fact that He is faithful should be an encouragement to us. We are dependant upon Him for grace to hold fast the profession of our faith.

All that God has promised, He will perform. He is faithful.

Bible Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:4-9

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: I will state in positive, confident terms what God has done for me, knowing that He is the faithful One who will do all He has promised. With this assurance, I can draw open His faithfulness to live supernaturally.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – His Love Covers All Things

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Listen to Today’s Devotion

Would you do what Jesus did? He exchanged the worship of angels for the company of killers. If you were God, would you? I wouldn’t, but Christ did! Jesus humbled Himself. He went from commanding angels to sleeping in the straw. Why? Because that is what love does. It puts the loved before itself. Your place in heaven was more important to Him than His place in heaven, so He gave up His so you could have yours.

It’s time to let His love cover all things in your life. Every promise broken, every cross word, and harsh word. His love covers all things. Let it! Do it for His sake. For the peace of your heart. And do it for their sake. For the people in your life. Let His love fall on you so yours can fall on them.

Read more In the Manger

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

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Denison Forum

Denison Forum – You spent $22 million investigating UFOs

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Have you heard of the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program? Neither had I. But the New York Times is reporting that this little-known government agency spent $22 million of our tax dollars between 2007 and 2012 investigating unidentified flying objects.

Even though funding ended five years ago, the program has continued. However, I could find no mention in the Times article that any proof of extraterrestrial life has so far been discovered.

In related news, this headline caught my eye: “Stephen Hawking’s search for extraterrestrial life came up short.” An organization he founded has been studying ‘Oumuamua, a cigar-shaped interstellar asteroid that zipped past Earth recently. (The name means “messenger from afar arriving first” in Hawaiian.) It is the first-ever documented interstellar asteroid to fly by our planet.

The researchers hoped to detect alien spaceship transmissions or signals emanating from the asteroid. However, none were discovered.

One more story from the sky: the Geminid Meteor Shower made another appearance last week. It peaked around 2 a.m. Thursday morning. I walk in our neighborhood early each morning after publishing the Daily Article and had an excellent opportunity to see the meteor shower, but I forgot to look up.

Therein lies my point today.

The reason for democracy’s falling popularity

In his latest New York Times column, David Brooks focuses on an essential truth that is foundational to our democracy. Citing novelist Thomas Mann, Brooks defines the “one great truth” with which democracy begins: “the infinite dignity of individual men and women. Man is made in God’s image. Unlike other animals, humans are morally responsible.”

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