Tag Archives: christianity

Ray Stedman

Ray Stedman – Idolatry

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Read: 1 Corinthians 10:14-11:1 Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry. 1 Corinthians 10:14

There were, of course, idol temples in Corinth. On the hill behind the city was the temple of Aphrodite where male and female prostitutes plied their trade in the name of the worship of Venus, the goddess of love. Within the city itself were scattered many temples; their ruins are still visible today. These Christians had once been idol worshipers, bowing down before these images, their lives being controlled by the fear and the philosophy of the Greek and the Roman pantheons of gods.

I do not think that the apostle is concerned that they are going to go back to bowing down to an idol. What he has in mind is not bowing and scraping before an image, but succumbing to the temptation to enjoy again the atmosphere found at the idol temple. There were many fun things going on regarding idolatry that some of the Corinthians were hoping to be able to hang onto. If you had lived in Corinth in that 1st century you would have recognized that everyone regarded the temple as the most exciting place in town. There you could get the best food, served up in the open-air restaurant. There they had the wildest music and all the seductive pleasures of wine, women and song. If you wanted to enjoy yourself in Corinth, you went to the temple.

Paul is concerned lest these Corinthians, in seeking to enjoy what would be normal pleasures of life, would be tempted to go back into it to such a degree that, ultimately, they would find themselves lured back into belief in these idols and their power. Idolatry is not something you do outwardly with your body. Idolatry occurs whenever anyone or anything becomes more important to you than the living God. This is the greatest temptation we all face. When we fall back into the place where something becomes of greater importance to us and more controlling in our life than God himself, we have succumbed again to idolatry.

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Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – The End of a Season

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READ: Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven. (v. 1)

The seasons of nature change from spring to summer to fall to winter. Each season brings its own unique weather patterns, challenges, and opportunities.

We also transition through changing seasons of life and natural life cycles. It’s true for crops in the fields, children as they grow into adulthood, churches that develop from newly planted to established, and businesses that adapt to a changing environment.

The end of a season can be challenging or painful. Some find it difficult to see the leaves fall from trees, the fields emptied of their crops, and the daylight shorten in the fall. There are many challenging transitions in life too: watching your youngest child graduate from school and leave your home, seeing a church decline as it ages, retiring from regular employment, or caring for elderly parents.

Christians can celebrate God’s faithfulness and presence in the midst of changing seasons and life cycles. He promises in Isaiah 41:10: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” How do you need to hear this promise in your life as you face the end of a season?

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, thank you for being with me to the very end of the age. Amen.

 

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Equal in Effort

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Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them. —Romans 12:6

Have you ever looked at someone and thought, “I wish I had their talent. I wish I had their ability”?

The Bible says, “So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them” (Romans 12:5–6).

These verses are saying that if you are a committed Christian who has asked God to fill you with the Holy Spirit, then God has instilled gifts, or a gift, in your life as He has chosen. It’s not for us to pick and choose what gifts we want; it’s for God to decide. There are gifts in your life. There are abilities in your life. There are talents that God has given to you and that He has given to me. We are to take those talents and do something with them.

It is not a person’s talent that matters as much as how he or she uses it. God never demands from a person abilities they do not have. But He does demand that we should use to the full the abilities we do possess. We may not be equal in talent, but we should be equal in effort.

God can do a lot with a little. Jesus can take a little, He can bless it, and He can multiply it. He can use it beyond our wildest dreams.

You may say, “I don’t have a lot to offer.”

That’s all right. God is not looking for ability as much as He is looking for availability. He is looking for someone like you to say, “Lord, here I am. Send me.” Take what God has given to you and do the most that you can with it for His glory.

 

Harvest.org | Greg Laurie

Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – The Lord Is Not Slack Concerning His Promises

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“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to usward.” (2 Peter 3:9a)

Have you ever heard the phrase “You have my word”? or “You have my word on it”? That means that the person speaking is making a promise based on his or her own track record. If a very honest person tells you he will take care of something for you, saying, “you have my word on it,” then that means you can trust him. He is telling the truth. If a very careful person tells you she will be on time for a meeting, saying, “You have my word, I’ll be there,” then she wants you to know you can trust her to be at the meeting on time.

The kind of people whose word you can trust – they are the ones you can count on. They are faithful. They are dependable. Usually, they will not let you down.

Why do we add usually to that sentence? Well, even the most faithful human beings are still only human. They make mistakes. They forget. They get stopped by circumstances that are out of their control. And they sin. If you leave your backpack with an honest person, he still might not be able to stop a robber from stealing it. If you are counting on a reliable friend to be exactly on time for a Saturday morning meeting, she may not be able to come at all. What if her alarm doesn’t go off and she accidentally oversleeps? Or what if her family decides at the last minute to go out of town for the weekend? Even the most faithful people might let you down sometimes. Humans can only be trustworthy to a certain point.

But the Lord is not like us. If He promises something in His Word, we definitely have His Word on it! And nothing can stop God from doing what He plans to do. No traffic jam or robber or change of human plans can mess up God’s plans. God never forgets. He never sins. He never changes His mind about whether He cares about His people enough to keep His Word to them.

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – The Lord Is Not Slack Concerning His Promises →

The Navigators

The Navigators – Jerry Bridges – Holiness Day by Day Devotional – Impossible Debt

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Today’s Scripture: Matthew 18:25

“And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.”

We can’t begin to appreciate the good news of the Gospel until we see our deep need. Most people, even believers, have never given much thought to how desperate our condition is outside of Christ. Few ever think about the dreadful implications of being under the wrath of God. And none of us even begins to realize how truly sinful we are.

Jesus once told a story (Matthew 18:21-35) about a king’s servant who owed his master ten thousand talents. (Just one talent was equal to about twenty years’ wages for a working man.) Why would Jesus use such an unrealistically large amount when he knew that in real life it would have been impossible for any servant to accumulate such a debt?

Jesus was fond of using hyperbole to make his point. That immense sum represents a spiritual debt every one of us owes to God. It’s the debt of our sins. For each of us, it’s a staggering amount.

This is what the Gospel is all about. Jesus paid our debt to the full. And he did far more. He also purchased for us an eternal inheritance of infinite worth. That’s why Paul wrote of the “unsearchable riches of Christ” (Ephesians 3:8). And God wants us to enjoy those unsearchable riches in the here and now, even in the midst of difficult and discouraging circumstances.

Without some heartfelt conviction of our sin, we can have no serious feeling of personal interest in the Gospel. What’s more, this conviction should actually grow throughout our Christian lives. In fact, one sign of spiritual growth is an increased awareness of our sinfulness.

 

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – Lest You Be Deceived

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Today’s Scripture: Deuteronomy 5-7

I have considered my ways and have turned my steps to your statutes. – Psalm 119:59

In today’s passage, we see that once again Moses gathered the people together to hear a second copy of the Ten Commandments read so that they might remember and obey, lest, as James 1:22 tells us, they deceive themselves.

When the people heard the commands of God, they responded in a wonderful way. They said, “It was not with our fathers that the Lord made this covenant, but with us, with all of us who are alive here today” (Deuteronomy 5:3). Don’t you just love to see people take the Word of God seriously?

For years I have approached the Bible, book by book, chapter by chapter, verse by verse. I go into each chapter on four different roads. The more ways you enter, the more you see. Road one: What does the chapter say? Here I stop and write a summary in my own words. Road two: What does it say that I don’t understand? Here I stop and write down the problems and difficulties. Road three: What does it say in other portions of Scripture? Here is where I cross-reference the verses in the chapter. The Bible is its own best commentary, so I want to throw the light of the rest of Scripture on the passage I’m studying. Road four: What does it say to me? Here is where I pray over the passage and write out a personal application God has shown me for my own life. And then I seek to do it.

I encourage you to make the Bible a personal message from the heart of God to you.

Prayer

Lord, as I read Your Word today, I welcome Your personal word to me, and I will obey it. Amen.

To Ponder

It is not enough simply to know what the Word says; we must obey it.

 

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BreakPoint

BreakPoint –’Mama Rwanda’: How Women Entrepreneurs are Restoring Their Country

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Six years ago, Christian filmmaker Laura Waters Hinson made a gripping, groundbreaking documentary called “As We Forgive,” which explored how the African nation of Rwanda dared to seek reconciliation between the perpetrators and victims of genocide.

Now Hinson has gone back to Rwanda to make a new film, one that provides an update on the country’s progress since that terrible time. This film, “Mama Rwanda,” focuses on a specific aspect of that progress: how women, through their entrepreneurial efforts, are bringing healing and restoration to Rwanda.

“Mama Rwanda” concentrates on two women in particular, Drocella and Christine. Both of them are widowed mothers who suffered great losses during the genocide. (Drocella tells us that her first husband was a killer and her second husband was a victim.) Both Drocella and Christine put everything they have into starting businesses to support their children and help their neighbors and their homeland.

As Christine tells us, “A Rwandan woman has a great responsibility to develop our country.” It is simply the way things are: Because of the genocide, the country’s population is now 70 percent female. Hanson has written, “I wanted to make a documentary that would break down stereotypes of these women, to show the complexity of their lives, and to convey their personal struggles to love their children well while also becoming entrepreneurs.”

In the agricultural cooperative that Drocella started, perpetrators and persecuted work side by side. One worker, Ernestine, says, “You develop patience because you cannot keep that anger in your heart, otherwise you would not be able to live next to them.” The very survival of many of these people requires reconciliation and cooperation. Many of them, in the most practical of ways, are living out their faith in the God of healing and forgiveness.

Continue reading BreakPoint –’Mama Rwanda’: How Women Entrepreneurs are Restoring Their Country →

Today in the Word

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – THE PROMISES OF GOD

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Read 2 PETER 1:1–4

Our culture doesn’t value self-restraint. Advertising slogans urge us to buy products from cars to cosmetics “because you’re worth it.” We’re told to “follow your bliss,” “just do it,” “have it your way,” and “you do you.” The limits on our wanting, taking, and having seem to be melting away.

Peter also lived in a culture pervaded by these messages, and this letter was written to warn the church to resist the siren call of false teachers of pleasure. While following the form of letters in his day, Peter modifies the traditional wish for good health into a prayer for a different kind of abundance: “grace and peace be yours in abundance” (v. 2). Throughout this letter Peter will remind his readers that the abundance promised by the world can’t compare to the riches promised to us by God.

The world—particularly our modern consumer culture—constantly says that we need more, more, more. In contrast, Peter affirms that God has already supplied what we need for a godly life. Through Jesus, we have faith in the Lord and His righteousness (v. 1). We are able to know God and be in a relationship with Him! And we have His promises, rooted in His own goodness and His own glory.

Some have misconstrued the phrase at the end of verse 4, “participate in the divine nature,” to mean that we either are or will become god-like humans. But Peter is not suggesting that at all. Rather, he says that we’re declared righteous before God and can live in a way that pleases the Lord. In other words, God has made it possible for us to reorient our desires away from the temptations that would destroy us and instead share in His promises for our future with Him.

APPLY THE WORD

Scripture is not calling us to a life of asceticism in which we renounce all joys and pleasures. God is calling us to recognize—and desire—all His good gifts, which far surpass the temporary pleasure of the stuff we want. To think more about desire and the life of faith, you can read the book Teach Us to Want by Jen Pollock Michel.

 

http://www.todayintheword.org

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – MCDONALD’S GIVES 100-YEAR-OLD WOMAN FREE FOOD FOR LIFE

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Nadine Baum turned one hundred last week and was honored with a surprise party at her local McDonald’s restaurant. Their present to her: free food for life. “I don’t know what I did to deserve all this,” she said. “I count my blessings every day.”

Nadine is on to something.

Every morning brings new reasons to be discouraged by today’s culture. Since our society decided decades ago that truth is subjective and morality is no one’s business but ours, we’ve seen Western culture continue to spiral downward.

Abortion is now celebrated; children and the mentally ill are being euthanized; racial conflict is rising; sexually-transmitted diseases continue to spread. Churches and Christian schools that defend biblical marriage are worried about their tax-exempt status; transgender bathrooms are just the latest battle in the sexual revolution.

It’s tempting to withdraw from our broken culture into a siege mentality that assumes the worst. What do we do when facing enemies who appear stronger and more numerous than we are?

David knew the feeling. King Saul was not only the sovereign ruler of the Jewish nation, he was also “taller than any of the people” (1 Samuel 9:2) and commander of the entire army. When he sought to murder David, the young shepherd’s life was in mortal peril.

Continue reading Denison Forum – MCDONALD’S GIVES 100-YEAR-OLD WOMAN FREE FOOD FOR LIFE →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – The Heart’s Desires

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Psalms 145:17-21

If you could have anything in the world, what would it be? Your answer reveals a lot about you. The psalmist writes, “Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart” (Ps. 37:4). There is nothing wrong with desires—they motivate us to achieve great things. But not all of our yearnings come from God. Consider your aspirations and what they say about who you are:

  • Do you hope for a position of authority in order to be in control? Longing for personal advancement in order to manipulate others reveals a lack of integrity, whereas a godly person craves righteousness.
  • Do you dream about wealth and fame? Perhaps there’s a void in your spirit that you’re trying to fill. But only God can meet the insatiable needs of the human heart.
  • Are you afraid to ask the Lord for what you want? Maybe you think He won’t listen, but God tells us to approach His throne with boldness and confidence (Heb. 4:16).

If the Lord doesn’t respond affirmatively to your prayers, ask Him to make your desires conform to His will. Whatever you do, don’t take matters into your own hands and go after what you want. There is always a high price to pay for rebelling against God.

God cares for us bountifully, but that doesn’t mean we can expect Him to deliver whatever we want, whenever we want it. Only when our dreams align with His plan for our life will He fulfill them. The thoughts that preoccupy us are an accurate barometer of the state of our relationship with Christ.

Bible in One Year: Luke 1

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Your Journey

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Read: John 14:15-21

Bible in a Year: Isaiah 59-61; 2 Thessalonians 3

I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.—John 14:18

I grew up in the rebellious 1960s and turned my back on religion. I had attended church all my life but didn’t come to faith until my early twenties after a terrible accident. Since that time, I have spent my adult years telling others of Jesus’s love for us. It has been a journey.

Certainly “a journey” describes life in this broken world. On the way we encounter mountains and valleys, rivers and plains, crowded highways and lonely roads—highs and lows, joys and sorrows, conflict and loss, heartache and solitude. We can’t see the road ahead, so we must take it as it comes, not as we wish it would be.

The follower of Christ, however, never faces this journey alone. The Scriptures remind us of the constant presence of God. There is nowhere we can go that He is not there (Ps. 139:7-12). He will never leave us or forsake us (Deut. 31:6; Heb. 13:5). Jesus, after promising to send the Holy Spirit, told His disciples, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you” (John 14:18).

The challenges and opportunities we face on our journey can be met confidently, for God has promised us His never-failing presence. —Bill Crowder

Loving Lord, thank You that You not only know the path I take, You walk it with me. Help me to rely on Your presence, help, and wisdom every day of my journey through life.

Faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and knows the One who is leading. Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest.

INSIGHT: Imagine how the disciples must have felt when the Master they had followed for three and a half years said He was going away. How could they cope with the loss of their Teacher, the one from whom flowed the words of life? But Jesus said He would not leave them alone, for He would send them “another Helper” (John 14:16 nkjv) who would be with them forever. The word translated “Helper” is paraclete, which means “encourager, exhorter, comforter, and intercessor.” It denotes someone who is called alongside to help. The Spirit of Christ would now dwell within them and be their helper and comforter. Dennis Fisher

 

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Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Wisdom Embodied

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One of the tragic casualties of our age has been that of the contemplative life—a life that thinks, a life thinks things through, and more particularly, thinks God’s thoughts. A person sitting at his or her desk staring out the window would never be assumed to be working. No! Thinking is not equated with work. Yet, had Newton under his tree, or Archimedes in his bathtub, bought into that prejudice, some natural laws would still be up in the air or buried under an immovable rock. Pascal’s Pensees, or “Thoughts,” a work that has inspired millions, would have never been penned.

What is even more destructive is the assumption that silence is inimical to life. The radio in the car, Muzak in the elevator, and the symphony entertaining callers “on hold” all add up as grave impediments to personal reflection. In effect, the mind is denied the privilege of living with itself even briefly and is crowded with outside impulses to cope with aloneness. Aldous Huxley’s indictment, “Most of one’s life… is one prolonged effort to prevent thinking,” seems frightfully true. Moreover, the price paid for this scenario has been devastating. As T.S. Eliot questioned:

Where is the life we have lost in the living?

Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge?

Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?

The cycles of heaven in twenty centuries

bring us farther from God and nearer to dust.

Is there a remedy? May I make some suggestions? Nothing ranks higher for mental discipline than a planned and systematic study of God’s Word, from whence life’s parameters and values are planted and Christ is made known. Paul, who loved his books and parchments, affirmed the priority of Scripture as the means to encountering Christ. And Psalm 119 promises that the God who speaks to us keeps us from being double-minded.

The average person today actually surrenders the intellect to the world, presuming Christianity to be bereft of intelligence. And many a pulpit has succumbed to the lie that anything intellectual cannot be spiritual or exciting.

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Wisdom Embodied →

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Strength for Today – Serving a New Master

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“I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification” (Romans 6:19).

You must live consistent with your new nature.

It is a truism that in the spiritual realm, no one stands still. Sin leads to more sin, while holy living leads to further righteousness. All unbelievers are slaves of sin and have no choice but to sin; yielding to sin comes naturally to them. They are inwardly full of “impurity” and hence outwardly given to “lawlessness.” They continually spiral downward; sin leads to more sin, which leads in turn to still more sin. Ultimately, sin will drag a person into the depths of Hell.

For Christians, however, the spiral is an upward one. Having become new creatures at salvation (2 Cor. 5:17), believers are no longer servants of sin. The Christian life is the process of bringing one’s lifestyle into line with one’s nature. As believers “present their members as slaves to righteousness,” the inevitable result is further “sanctification.” Decreasing frequency of sin, therefore, is a sure sign of a mature believer.

Paul knew all too well from his own experience that the believer’s body is a battleground. In his spiritual autobiography he wrote, “I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wishes to do good. For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind, and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?” (Rom. 7:21-24).

How are you faring in the daily battle with sin? If victories are few and far between, perhaps you have forgotten Paul’s exhortation to “present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship” (Rom. 12:1).

Suggestions for Prayer

Pray with the psalmist, “Establish my footsteps in Thy word, and do not let any iniquity have dominion over me” (Ps. 119:133).

For Further Study

Identify one area in which you lack self-control. Use a concordance to see what Proverbs teaches about your problem.

 

http://www.gty.org

Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – Be an Imitator 

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Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. 1 Corinthians 11:1

I remember the first time I traveled to Asia and took time to explore one of the many outdoor street markets. Stretching for miles and miles on end, these markets claimed to sell all of the top brands in fashion and accessories at a fraction of the cost. However, upon closer inspection one could quickly tell these were cheap imitations, made to look authentic but lacking all of the traits that made the products worthy of a high sticker price, such as quality of materials or assembly.

When we hear the word “imitation,” we assume it to be of lesser quality than the real thing. While this may be true of knockoff handbags or designer jeans, it isn’t the case with Christian discipleship. Jesus invites you to be an imitator, but never a cheap imitation!

In the Bible, the word “imitator” can also mean “follower,” and to be a follower of Jesus is to faithfully respond to the most basic and foundational call of God upon your life. Scripture reminds us time and time again that to be a disciple of Jesus is to be restored into his very likeness. As Paul says, we are “being renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16), and by the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, this restoration is never a superficial resemblance but is a complete renovation of heart, mind, and body.

When I read Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, I’m struck by the confidence he has in his own life of discipleship that he can encourage someone else to follow his example, and in so doing they will learn what it means to imitate Christ. While this may seem bold on the one hand, on the other it teaches us a profound lesson about the nature of discipleship: many times we need the wisdom and example of other mature Christians who can teach us how to faithfully imitate Christ.

Continue reading Wisdom Hunters – Be an Imitator  →

Turning Point

Today’s Turning Point with David Jeremiah – The Letter J

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But we see Jesus…

Hebrews 2:9

Recommended Reading

Hebrews 2:5-9

Randy Alcorn wrote of the first physician to die of AIDS in the United Kingdom. He was a young Christian who contracted the disease conducting medical research in Zimbabwe. “In the last days of his life he struggled to express himself to his wife. Near the end, he couldn’t talk, and had only enough strength to write the letter J. She ran through her mental dictionary, saying various words beginning with J. None was right. Finally she said, ‘Jesus?’ He nodded. Yes, Jesus. Jesus filled his thoughts. That’s all he wanted to say. That’s all his wife needed to hear.”1

We don’t have all the answers to life, but we have Jesus. Jesus, who existed before the creation of the world. Jesus, who entered human history. Jesus, who died for us. Jesus, who rose from the dead. Jesus, who ever lives to make intercession for us. Jesus, who is coming again in power and glory.

Even when we don’t understand the world around us, we have the letter J.

We have Jesus.

(God) offers us profound, moving, and surprising insights that can feed our minds, warm our hearts, and give us the strength to face a world that is not what it once was, or what it one day will be.

Randy Alcorn

1Randy Alcorn, If God Is Good (Colorado Springs: Multnomah, 2009), 2, 5.

Read-Thru-the-Bible

Mark 15 – 16

 

http://www.davidjeremiah.org/

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Examine Yourself

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Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?- 2 Corinthians 13:5 NKJV

The Bible tells us to examine ourselves, and I wholeheartedly agree that we need to do so. We should examine ourselves to see if we have sin, and if so, we should sincerely repent, then move on to living without that sin in our lives.

There is a great difference between examination and condemnation. Examination helps us prove to ourselves that we are in Christ and He is in us, and that in Him we have been set free from sin. Condemnation keeps us mired in the very sin we feel condemned about. It does not deliver us—it traps us! It weakens us and saps all our spiritual strength. We give our energy to feeling condemned rather than living righteously.

There is such a thing as excessive self-examination, and I personally believe it opens the door for much of the unbalance we see today in this area among God’s children. To be overly introspective and continually examining our every move opens a door to Satan. In the past I experienced multiple problems in this area, and I know for a fact that you and I will never be confident in prayer until the problem is dealt with thoroughly and completely.

Examine, but don’t condemn. God has forgiven confessed sin so you can move forward. He isn’t dwelling on it; why should you?

Lord, I ask You to search my heart and expose any sin in my life. I refuse to get trapped in endless introspection and condemnation. Set me free from all sin. Amen.

From the book The Confident Woman Devotional: 365 Daily Devotions by Joyce Meyer

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Girlfriends in God

Girlfriends in God – Little Can Become Much

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Today’s Truth

‘We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,’ they answered. ‘Bring them here to me,’ He (Jesus) said. And He directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, He gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Matthew 14:17-21

Friend to Friend

The feeding of the 5,000 is one of my favorite Bible stories. Aside from the resurrection, it is the only miracle recorded in all four Gospels … and what a miracle it was!

Jesus borrowed a little boy’s lunch. Feeding 5,000 people with just five loaves and two fish was extraordinary in itself, but the Greek word used in Matthew 14:21 refers to males. The women and children present were not included in that number. Many Bible scholars believe the actual number fed that day could have been between 15,000 and 20,000 people. Absolutely amazing!

The setting for this miracle is important. Jesus and the disciples had been ministering to the crowds all day. It was getting late, and they were in a remote place. Knowing the people needed food and places to stay for the night, the disciples wanted to send them home.

But Jesus had a different plan – a plan that was based on what most people would consider absurd – five loaves of bread and two fish. Can’t you just see the faces of the disciples when Jesus explained His plan to them? Oh, they had seen Jesus perform miracles and work wonders, but feeding thousands of people with five measly loaves of bread and two fish was just … well, unbelievable in human terms. But Jesus was not operating in human terms.

Continue reading Girlfriends in God – Little Can Become Much →

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Life’s Greatest Investment

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“And anyone who gives up his home, brothers, sisters, father, mother, wife, children, or property, to follow Me, shall receive a hundred times as much in return [in this life], and shall have eternal life” (Matthew 19:29).

I can tell you on the authority of God’s Word and from personal experience and observation that this promise is true. From my own commitment – made more than 30 years ago – and after having spoken with hundreds of Christian leaders and humble servants of God around the world, and observed thousands who I have counseled, I do not know of anyone whom God is using in any significant way who would say that this spiritual law has not been true in his life.

The time to invest your time, talent and treasure for Christ and His kingdom is now. The powerful tide of secular humanism, atheism, materialism, communism and other anti-God forces us threatening to engulf the world. From the human perspective, on the basis of what I see and hear, I could be very pessimistic about the future freedom of mankind.

On the contrary, I am very optimistic, not on the basis of what I see and hear, but on the basis of what I believe God is saying to my heart and of what I am observing that He is doing throughout the world. I am constantly reminded and assured, “Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4, KJV). Satan and his demonic forces were defeated 2,000 years ago.

Do you want a safe formula for success? Then recognize and practice the following:

First, remember that everything entrusted to our care actually belongs to God. We are His stewards here on earth.

Second, God does not want us to hoard His blessings.

Third, “As you sow, you reap.”

Fourth, invest generously – above the tithe in time, talent and treasure.

Fifth, invest supernaturally – by faith.

Bible Reading: Matthew 25:35-40

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Recognizing myself as God’s steward, I will prayerfully seek to learn what He would have me to do to maximize my life for His glory through the investment of my time, talent and treasure.

 

http://www.cru.org

Ray Stedman

Ray Stedman – No Temptation

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Read: 1 Corinthians 9:24-10:13

No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. 1 Corinthians 10:13

Oh what an encouragement this is! This is written down that we might understand three specific things about our testings: First, they are common to all. I do not know anything that is harder to believe, when we are under testing, than that. We all think, Why isn’t this happening to others? They deserve it so much more than me. Why is it happening to me? Well, it is just your turn, that is all. Everybody goes through it. You are not permitted to witness their martyrdom, but you will not be allowed to miss yours. You do not see what they go through most of the time, but no one is left out. Trials are common to all. Their time is coming, if it has not already, so do not ever allow yourself to think that what is happening to you is unique. It is not at all. It is very common, and the minute you start inquiring around, you will find a dozen that have gone through it too.

Second, though they are common trials, they are also controlled pressures — God is faithful, he will not allow you to be tempted above your strength. Again, that is hard to believe, is it not? We say, Well, it has already happened. I am already beyond my strength. No, you are not. You just think you are. God knows your strength greater than you do. He knows how much you can handle, and how much you cannot. One of the basic principles of training in an athletic contest is to develop things you do not think you can do right now, to put more pressure on you than you think you can handle, is it not? And you discover you can handle it. This is what God does with us. He puts the pressure on, but it is controlled pressure. It will never be more than you can handle as long as you understand the third thing.

Continue reading Ray Stedman – No Temptation →

Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – The End of an Earthly Relationship

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READ: John 11:32-37

Jesus wept. (v. 35)

We were designed by God to live in community with others. This community reflects the nature of a triune God. God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone” (Gen. 2:18). When God’s Son, the second person of the Trinity, came to earth as a man, Luke 2:52 reveals that “Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” Earthly relationships can bring us love, companionship, support, and friendship. Healthy and God-honoring relationships are blessings from our Creator.

The end of an earthly relationship brings grief and pain. The death of a spouse, parent, or child separates us from someone we dearly love. The end of a dating relationship or a divorce brings a variety of emotions and loss. Sometimes an earthly relationship doesn’t end, but it changes. A move, job termination, change of church family, or the relocation of a kind neighbor can cause us to feel empty and alone.

When he encountered the sting of death, Jesus wept (John 11:35). At the death of his father, Jacob, Joseph wept (Gen. 50:1). When his life was in jeopardy from Saul and required his separation from Jonathan, David wept (1 Sam. 20:41). Likewise, most of us have or will grieve the end of an earthly relationship. In the midst of the grief, we hold on to the words of Jesus to Martha in John 11:25: “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die” (NIV).

PRAYER

Wonderful Counselor, comfort us when we grieve. Amen.