Tag Archives: christianity

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – God’s Goal in Communicating

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1 Corinthians 2:9-14

Whenever the Lord speaks to us, He gets straight to the point. He doesn’t dance around the issue, engage in idle chitchat, or talk just for the sake of talking. God always has something specific to say to us—and it is for our benefit. He says it precisely, and His message invariably speaks directly to our needs.

Therefore, if the Lord has something important to say, and if it is vital to a deep need in our life, then we must be clear in asking, What is God’s primary purpose in speaking to me? What does He want me to do as a result of what He has said?

First, God speaks so that we are able to comprehend the truth. That is, He wants us to fully understand His message and absorb it into our heart and mind.

Second, God speaks so that we may be conformed to the truth. Just knowing biblical principles is not enough; we must apply those guidelines to our circumstances and live out the life of faith.

Third, God speaks so that we can then communicate the truth. It is not enough simply to hear scriptural principles and then apply them to our own situation. Our Father wants us to share that life-changing information with others.

How can you better understand biblical truth? How can you more effectively apply God’s principles in your life? How can you best share them with others? The Lord holds us accountable for our answers. Open yourself to His message today, and then submit to whatever the Holy Spirit tells you.

Bible in a Year: Ecclesiastes 1-4

 

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — An Open Hand

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Read: Acts 20:22–35 | Bible in a Year: Psalms 18–19; Acts 20:17–38

It is more blessed to give than to receive. Acts 20:35

In 1891, Biddy Mason was laid to rest in an unmarked grave in Los Angeles. That wasn’t unusual for a woman born into slavery, but it was remarkable for someone as accomplished as Biddy. After winning her freedom in a court battle in 1856, she combined her nursing skills with wise business decisions to make a small fortune. As she observed the plight of immigrants and prisoners, she reached out to them, investing in charity so frequently that people began lining up at her house for help. In 1872, just sixteen years out of slavery, she and her son-in-law financed the founding of the First African Methodist Episcopal Church in Los Angeles.

Biddy embodied the apostle Paul’s words: “I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’” (Acts 20:35). Paul came from privilege, not slavery, yet he chose a life that would lead to his imprisonment and martyrdom so that he could serve Christ and others.

The open hand is blessed, for it gives in abundance even as it receives. -Biddy Mason

In 1988, benefactors unveiled a tombstone for Biddy Mason. In attendance were the mayor of Los Angeles and nearly 3,000 members of the little church that had begun in her home over a century earlier. Biddy once said, “The open hand is blessed, for it gives in abundance even as it receives.” The hand that gave so generously received a rich legacy.

Who in your life is struggling and could use a little help from you? How can you reach out to that person or family today?

The open hand is blessed, for it gives in abundance even as it receives. Biddy Mason

INSIGHT:

One of Paul’s longest recorded messages from his preaching ministry is found in Acts 20:17–35. His purpose was to share with the Ephesian church leadership what serving God from the heart involves. Paul’s message includes his example of service among them and his concern that false teachers might lead them astray.

 

http://www.odb.org

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Strength for Today – Answered Prayer

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“And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight” (1 John 3:22).

The answers to believers’ prayers bring assurance of salvation.

Another reliable way to know if you are a Christian is if God answers your prayers. The apostle John gives us the infallible reasoning for this statement. First, you can know your prayers will be answered if you keep His commandments (1 John 3:22). And second, John says the only way you can obey God’s commandments is if you belong to Him (v. 24). Therefore, an obedient believer proves He is abiding in Christ and receives further assurance when his prayers are answered.

However, the only prayers God answers are the ones prayed according to His will. If you are an obedient believer, you will fashion your prayers in line with what Scripture says about His will. The answered prayer that follows will bring you confidence and assurance (see 1 John 5:13-15).

Some believers miss out on that assurance because of their skimpy prayer life, which obviously results in few answered prayers. How sad for them, and how disappointing for God, because He would do so much more for those Christians if they would only ask Him.

What about you? Has it been a pattern of your life to experience answered prayer? Ask yourself questions like the following: Have you prayed for someone’s difficult situation and seen God turn it around to one of joy and blessing? Have you seen an unsaved person for whom you prayed come to Christ? Has God filled a void in your life after you prayed that He would? Have you ever prayed that God would help you in teaching His Word and then experienced much grace in presenting it with clarity? Have you prayed for boldness and power to proclaim the gospel and seen God work through you? Have you asked for contentment during a trial and received God’s peace? Have you known forgiveness and a clear conscience after you prayed to that end?

If you can answer yes to those questions or ones like them, you have good reason to believe that you belong to the Lord and He belongs to you.

Suggestions for Prayer

Thank the Lord for His power through prayer and for the answers He’s granted you.

For Further Study

Read 1 Kings 17:1; 18:41-46.

  • What does the second passage reveal about Elijah’s prayer life?
  • How does that support James 5:16b-18?

 

http://www.gty.org

Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – Resting Place 

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God will speak to this people, to whom he said, “This is the resting place, let the weary rest”; and, “This is the place of repose”—but they would not listen. Isaiah 28:11b-12

Everyone needs a place to rest, a time to rejuvenate and restore your soul. A soul without rest is vulnerable to doubt, disease, and dread. Without soul care, you risk being ineffective for the long term. So, allow your soul to catch up with your activity through rest. A restless soul loses hope and perspective. Stop right now and take an audit of your soul. Is it strung out and anxious?

If so, rearrange your schedule for rest before it rearranges you. A non-restful pace is unsustainable, and a restful place is necessary to persevere. Do not fall for the false feeling that activity somehow equals progress or success. Without rest, you are going nowhere fast. If you intensify the pace, you are going nowhere, faster.

Rest allows you to recalibrate your priorities and replenish your cistern of creativity. Your work rhythms may require a day with no scheduled appointments. Indeed, each resting place looks different, depending on your need. For example, your resting place may be the quiet screened porch, where you relax with a cup of coffee and a good book. For someone else, a resting place may be a comfortable couch, where they nap to the steady beat of raindrops pelting the rooftop.

It can be the park where you walk with your best friend, a secluded drive in the countryside, or an adventurous exploration of the great Pacific Northwest. Whether your resting place is the beach, the mountains, or in front of a good movie, make time to engage with it. God speaks to you in your place of rest. This is one of His favorite spots to shape your soul.

Continue reading Wisdom Hunters – Resting Place  →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Go With the Flow

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Brethren, for this reason, in [spite of all] our stress and crushing difficulties we have been filled with comfort and cheer about you [because of] your faith (the leaning of your whole personality on God in complete trust and confidence).—1 Thessalonians 3:7

Go with the flow, and stop being anxious about things that may never happen. If you really trust God, you don’t need a backup plan. Faith means that you have peace even when you 12 don’t have all the answers.

Life will always be stressful if you constantly try to rearrange it. For example, getting upset in a traffic jam doesn’t get you out of it any sooner. But planning for obstacles will inspire you to leave a little earlier for your appointments and keep you from hurrying. Grow in wisdom, and place high priority on keeping your peace in spite of any jams you get into today.

From the book Starting Your Day Right by Joyce Meyer

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Glory Will Be Ours

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“Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will give us later” (Romans 8:18).

In Sydney, Australia, a taxi driver to whom I witnessed became very angry.

“I was in World War II,” he exploded, “and I saw thousands of people die. I don’t want to have anything to do with a God who allows war.”

“Don’t blame God for war and the slaughter of millions of people,” I explained. “War is the result of man’s sin. Man does what he does because of his selfishness and pride. God does not desire that man should destroy men. God is not in favor of war. But sickness, death, earthquakes, tornadoes, floods are all a part of God’s judgement because of man’s sin, because of man’s disobedience to His commands.

The problem of suffering is a mysterious one, but for the Christian there is a good, logical answer. All creation waits patiently and hopefully for that future day when God will resurrect His children. On that day, thorns and thistles, sin and death and decay – the things that overcome the world will disappear at God’s command.

The world around us then will share in the glorious freedom from sin which God’s children enjoy. Even the things of nature, animals and plants which now suffer deterioration and death, await the coming of the time of this great glory.

We Christians – though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory – also groan to be released from pain, heartache, sorrow and suffering. We too wait anxiously for that day when God will give us full rights as His children, including the new bodies He has promised us – bodies that will never suffer again, and that will never die.

Bible Reading: Romans 8:24-27

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: I will rejoice in the certainty that glory is ahead for me as a believer, and as a result I am willing to joyfully endure whatever suffering comes my way. I will also encourage others in their times of sorrow to consider God’s love and plan for them, and will help them to understand the scriptural reason for man’s suffering.

 

http://www.cru.org

Ray Stedman

Ray Stedman – The Main Thing

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Read: Acts 20:13-38

Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. Acts 20:28

The primary responsibility of an elder or pastor is to teach the Scriptures, to feed the flock. If he is not doing that, he is failing in his job, miserably. It is the truth that changes people. If the Scriptures are not being taught then people are not being changed. They are struggling in their own futile ways and nothing is being accomplished. So the primary job of elders and pastors is to set the whole counsel of God before the people.

They are to begin with themselves, says the apostle, i.e., they are to obey the truth which they themselves learn. This is where their authority comes from. It is only as they are obedient to the truth which they teach that they have any right to say anything to anyone else. Even the Lord Jesus operated on that basis. He said to his disciples on one occasion, If I do not do the works of my Father, do not believe me… (John 10:37). That is, if what I am doing is not in exact accord with what I am saying, then don’t believe me!

Would you dare say that to your children? Or to your Sunday school class? Or to others who observe you as a Christian? If what I am doing is not in line with what I teach, then don’t believe me. I have no authority over you; I have no power over you. But if your actions are in accord with your teaching then power is inherent in that obedience.

So these pastors and elders are to begin with themselves, and to teach the Word. Their responsibility is to the Holy Spirit, not to the denomination, nor to the congregation. It is the Spirit who has set them in that office and has equipped them with gifts. He who reads the heart is judging their lives, so it does not make any difference what anybody else thinks. They are responsible to follow the Holy Spirit in what he has given them to do.

Continue reading Ray Stedman – The Main Thing →

Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – God Is the Giver of Wisdom

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“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” (James 1:5)

Evan and Patience were best friends, oddly enough. They had only two things in common: They both loved being outdoors, and their moms were in the same women’s Bible study group. The other three ladies in the group did not have kids, so Evan and Patience had the church playground to themselves two Saturday mornings a month.

They were actually far too adventurous to stick just to the playground, and they were allowed to go anywhere, as long as they could still hear their moms call. So one morning, they started exploring the church graveyard. They knew that it was rude to walk right over the graves, so they walked through the aisles instead, squatting down every once in a while to read the name and dates on a tombstone.

And they walked along the fence, where there were some small trees. Evan was climbing one of these trees when he discovered a robin’s nest with three blue eggs in it! He looked around for the robin-eggs’ mom, but he didn’t see any birds at all.

“Look! There’s more!” cried Patience, pointing at a nearby tree.

“You thinking what I’m thinking?”

“We could collect some and take care of them until they hatch!”

Evan bunched up his jacket on the ground and they used that to hold their treasure. They climbed all the trees they could and plucked eggs from every nest they found. Altogether, there were 21.

When it was time to go home, they decided that Patience should keep the eggs because Evan’s family cat might want to eat the baby birds once they hatched.

“I just thought of something,” said Evan suddenly. “How will we keep them warm while we’re in school?”

Patience thought about it. “Maybe we should ask my mom to take care of them?”

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – God Is the Giver of Wisdom →

The Navigators

The Navigators – Jerry Bridges – Holiness Day by Day Devotional – Controllers

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Today’s Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 5:21

“Test everything; hold fast what is good.”

“Controllers” are people who aren’t willing to let you live your life before God as you believe he’s leading you. They have all the issues buttoned down and have cast-iron opinions about all of them. These people only know black and white. There are no gray areas to them.

They insist you live your Christian life according to their rules and their opinions. If you insist on being free to live as God wants you to live, they will try to intimidate you and manipulate you one way or another. Their primary weapons are guilt trips, rejection, or gossip.

These people must be resisted. We must not allow them to subvert the freedom we have in Christ. Paul treated the legalism in the Galatian church as heresy, and he called down a curse on its perpetrators. I’m not prepared to go that far with our present-day legalists/controllers, but I want to tell you their actions are no incidental matter. Their presence in our evangelical ranks is much more than a minor irritant, like a fly buzzing around our heads. There are spiritual casualties all over our nation today because of the effects of legalistic controllers in their lives.

Controllers have been around a long time. More than three hundred years ago, the Puritan Samuel Bolton wrote these instructive words: “let us never surrender our judgments or our consciences to be at the disposal and opinions of others, and to be subjected to the sentences and determinations of men. It is my exhortation therefore to all Christians to maintain their Christian freedom by constant watchfulness. You must not be tempted or threatened out of it; you must not be bribed or frightened from it; you must not let either force or fraud rob you of it.”

 

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – Leading by Objective

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Today’s Scripture: 1 Timothy 1-3

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. – Philippians 3:12

Mention the great leaders of this century and Winston Churchill immediately comes to mind. During World War II, the people of England were blasted night after night by Nazi bomber planes. Yet Churchill was able to rally them to the cause of winning the war in spite of overwhelming odds.

You see, one thing a good leader does is help his people stay on target, so they give their lives for what really matters. That’s what the apostle Paul did in his relationship with churches, and with many individuals, especially Timothy, his son in the faith. Paul trained Timothy for a significant leadership role in the first-century church. In Paul’s first letter to Timothy, he gave him a clear picture of the goal: “The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith” (1 Timothy 1:5).

Paul reminded Timothy that when teachers wander from this central issue of love, their ministry soon degenerates into vain arguments and meaningless talk. His advice was to give no importance to those people who occupy themselves with useless speculations that promote controversies.

Paul’s instruction and modeling clearly has given all of us God’s standard for evaluating the direction and effectiveness of our lives. Christian, are you on target today? Are you growing in love, as Christ commanded?

Let’s make sure our lives are on target for Christ and that we love and lead others along the right way.

Prayer

Lord, help me to keep my focus on You and Your objectives detailed in the Word. Amen.

To Ponder

We can only help others hit the mark when we have taken correct aim ourselves.

 

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C.S. Lewis

C.S. Lewis Daily – Today’s Reading

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We begin to notice, besides our particular sinful acts, our sinfulness; begin to be alarmed not only about what we do, but about what we are. This may sound rather difficult, so I will try to make it clear from my own case. When I come to my evening prayers and try to reckon up the sins of the day, nine times out of ten the most obvious one is some sin against charity; I have sulked or snapped or sneered or snubbed or stormed. And the excuse that immediately springs to my mind is that the provocation was so sudden and unexpected; I was caught off my guard, I had not time to collect myself. Now that may be an extenuating circumstance as regards those particular acts: they would obviously be worse if they had been deliberate and premeditated. On the other hand, surely what a man does when he is taken off his guard is the best evidence for what sort of a man he is? Surely what pops out before the man has time to put on a disguise is the truth? If there are rats in a cellar you are most likely to see them if you go in very suddenly. But the suddenness does not create the rats: it only prevents them from hiding. In the same way the suddenness of the provocation does not make me an ill-tempered man; it only shows me what an ill-tempered man I am. The rats are always there in the cellar, but if you go in shouting and noisily they will have taken cover before you switch on the light.

From Mere Christianity

Compiled in A Year with C.S. Lewis

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – How to Bear One Another’s Burdens

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Galatians 6:2-5

Our quiet presence during someone else’s time of pain says more than any words of advice ever can. A grieving widow, for example, doesn’t need to hear our own tale of loss; she needs an arm around her shoulder so she realizes that she is not alone.

Think about the times that we bring our burdens before the Lord in prayer. Simply experiencing His presence lightens the weight we have been carrying. God’s response to our pain is a clear demonstration of how important it is to make ourselves available and listen to our neighbors. No matter how inadequate we might feel, we all can share a burden by spending time with a friend who is enduring hardship.

The Holy Spirit will let us know when words are not necessary and when it’s the right moment to speak. That oftentimes becomes our opportunity to share how the Lord has worked in our life during a painful period. When we give the Holy Spirit total control, He will bring to mind situations, emotions, and the ways God helped us. We can use those things to minister to others: Hurting people grab onto kindred stories as if to a lifeline. It gives them hope to reason that since the Lord shepherded one person through a valley of darkness, He will surely be faithful to do the same for another.

Our Spirit-developed compassion may require us to give our burdened neighbor other types of help—even material aid. It’s easy to pray for a f 0riend or share our story with a church member, but we cannot limit ourselves to those things. If we are willing to be used by our heavenly Father, we must be open to His leading about how to offer assistance.

Bible in a Year: Proverbs 29-31

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — The Gift and the Giver

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Read: Luke 1:67–79 | Bible in a Year: Psalms 16–17; Acts 20:1–16

Because of God’s tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us. Luke 1:78 nlt

It’s only a keychain. Five little blocks held together by a shoelace. My daughter gave it to me years ago when she was seven. Today the lace is frayed and the blocks are chipped, but they spell a message that never grows old: “I ♥ DAD.”

The most precious gifts are determined not by what went into them, but by who they are from. Ask any parent who ever received a bouquet of dandelions from a chubby hand. The best gifts are valued not in money but in love.

Jesus, thank You for Your gift of forgiveness and life through You.

Zechariah understood that. We hear it in his prophetic song as he praised God for giving him and his wife Elizabeth their son John when they were well past their childbearing years (Luke 1:67–79). Zechariah rejoiced because John was to be a prophet who would proclaim God’s greatest gift to all people—the coming Messiah: “Because of God’s tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us” (Luke 1:78 nlt). Those words point to a gift given with so much love that it will even “shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death” (1:79).

The sweetest gift we can receive is God’s tender mercy—the forgiveness of our sins through Jesus. That gift cost Him dearly at the cross, but He offers it freely out of His deep love for us.

Jesus, thank You for Your gift of forgiveness and life through You. I receive Your gift with joy.

Jesus is both the Gift and the Giver.

INSIGHT:

Luke 1:67–79 is a great example of the complex literary structure of the Bible where poetry intertwines with prose. Luke is telling a story—actually two stories that overlap and interconnect: the angelic announcement and subsequent birth of John the Baptist and the angelic announcement of Jesus’s birth and Mary’s subsequent pregnancy. Each story includes a song (Mary’s—Luke 1:46–55; Zechariah’s—Luke 1:67–79). It is in response to the birth of his son and the coming arrival of the Messiah that Zechariah cries out, “The God of Israel . . . has come to his people and redeemed them” (Luke 1:68).

 

http://www.odb.org

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Strength for Today – Love For Other Christians

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“The one who loves his brother abides in the light and there is no cause for stumbling in him” (1 John 2:10).

Loving other Christians gives assurance to your own faith.

Loving fellow Christians is instinctive for genuine believers. Paul told the Thessalonians, “Now as to the love of the brethren . . . you yourselves are taught by God to love one another” (1 Thess. 4:9). He further encouraged them to “excel still more” in love (v. 10) because there is always room for believers to love one another more completely. Nevertheless, if we are truly saved we will show love, since love is inherent in our new nature (see Rom. 5:5).

Jesus said this about love among believers: “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). If we are truly Christians, we will “fervently love one another from the heart” (1 Peter 1:22). Love is a test of our divine life and signifies that we have crossed over from darkness to light (1 John 3:14-15).

The apostle John goes on to define love as being sacrificial and practical: “We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has the world’s goods, and beholds his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth” (vv. 16-18).

Therefore, you should ask yourself some basic questions: Do you care about other believers, or are you cold and indifferent? How do you respond to opportunities to give of yourself in various ministries? Do you look forward to having fellowship with other Christians—talking with them, discussing the things of God, studying the Word together, and praying with them? When you encounter a friend at church who has a need, are you willing to provide money, time, prayer, resources, service, or even a sympathetic ear?

If you can answer yes to those questions, you have great reason to be assured of your salvation. Like Peter, you can appeal to the love God sees in your heart (John 21:17). That love won’t be perfect, but it’s there and will manifest itself to others.

Suggestions for Prayer

Pray that your love will grow stronger and be more consistent.

For Further Study

Read John 21:15-17.

  • What should Peter’s love result in?
  • How does Galatians 6:10 support that?

 

http://www.gty.org

Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – Responsive Heart 

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Because your heart was responsive and you humbled yourself before the LORD when you heard what I have spoken against this place and its people, that they would become accursed and laid waste, and because you tore your robes and wept in my presence, I have heard you, declares the LORD.   2 Kings 22:19

God responds well to a responsive and humble heart. It is guaranteed an audience with the Almighty. His heart is drawn to humility and commitment to obedience. He knows a responsive heart can be trusted with His truth. So when He finds someone responsive to righteousness, He has found someone who can be entrusted with His blessing. A responsive heart is teachable, tender to truth, and quick to obey. It is the opposite of a hard heart.

A hard heart stews in the juices of sin, while a responsive heart flees from sin’s appearance. A responsive heart is action-oriented and chooses to change for good. You may have an attitude of distrust or anger, but the Lord’s conviction penetrates your spirit. Instead of making excuses for this unacceptable behavior, a responsive heart seeks to become trusting and forgiving.

God and godly influences are constantly suggesting, teaching, convicting, and prodding you to conform to the character of Christ. His Word speaks to your heart and then your life responds to Him with appropriate attitudes and actions. Therefore, living for Jesus is an act of worship. Your responsiveness to truth is a testimony to the living God. As you obey God, others are drawn to Him and you. This is a wise habit to model for your children. If you can impart to them a tender and responsive heart to God at an early age, you have done them a great favor. Start young while the things of God are bigger than life. A youthful and responsive heart toward God has a better chance of becoming a responsive heart toward God during adulthood.

Continue reading Wisdom Hunters – Responsive Heart  →

Turning Point

Today’s Turning Point with David Jeremiah – Summer Getaways—Quiet Retreats

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Peace, be still!

Mark 4:39

Last year, officials of Washington’s Reagan National Airport received more than 8,600 complaints about noise. Imagine their surprise when they discovered 6,500 of them came from the same person! Some unidentified neighbor was incensed enough to call, on average, 18 times every day of the year.

Recommended Reading: Mark 4:35-41

Airports are some of the loudest places on earth, but they don’t have a corner on noise pollution. We live in a loud society and it’s hard to find peace and quiet anywhere. That’s why noise-cancelling headphones are so popular.

We need a quiet retreat—that is, we need to retreat to zones of silence every day. Zephaniah 1:7 says, “Be silent in the presence of the Lord God.” The psalmist said, “My soul, wait silently for God alone” (Psalm 62:5). Habakkuk 2:20 says, “The Lord is in His holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence before Him.”

It takes discipline to find a quiet place, turn off our electronics, and meditate quietly on the Lord. We have to work at quietness, but it makes “quiet” a difference in our lives. Our souls are strengthened by stillness and steadied by solitude.

Be still and know that He is God.

I cannot be the man I should be without times of quietness.

Charles R. Swindoll

Read-Thru-the-Bible: Isaiah 4 – Isaiah 11

http://www.davidjeremiah.org/

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – You Are Everywhere You Go!

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For our sake He made Christ [virtually] to be sin Who knew no sin, so that in and through Him we might become [endued with, viewed as being in, and examples of] the righteousness of God [what we ought to be, approved and acceptable and in right relationship with Him, by His goodness].—Corinthians 5:21

What if everywhere you went, you ran into someone you didn’t like? Wouldn’t that be terrible? Oh no, you’d think, her again. You attend a party, and you have to endure her conversation and views. You go to church, and she’s sitting right beside you. What a bummer to have to spend so much time with this person, you think.

Then it gets worse. There she is at the dinner table with you! She’s lounging by the pool; she’s even in your bed! She’s everywhere! That sounds pretty awful, but it is the exact situation you find yourself in if you don’t like yourself, because you are everywhere you go. You can’t get away from yourself, even for a second, so you are in for a sad life if you dread your own company. That much is pretty obvious.

But believe it or not, even though we can all agree that it makes no sense to live your life this way, I find that most people don’t like themselves. They may not even realize it, but some genuine soul-searching reveals the sad fact that they have rejected themselves and in some cases even hate themselves. I’ve come across a lot of people over the years, through my ministry and in day-to-day life, and I’m amazed at how few are truly at peace with themselves. Instead, they have declared war on themselves.

God wants you to love yourself, not in some wrong selfish or prideful way, but in a healthy way that truly understands how special you are to Him. As you begin to see yourself as God sees you, then not only will you love yourself, but you will have the confidence and faith to be a powerful force for good in the world.

From the book New Day, New You by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – No Hurt in Second Death

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“Let everyone who can hear, listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches; He who is victorious shall not be hurt by the Second Death” (Revelation 2:11).

I find great comfort in the promises of God’s word, and this is another that makes a positive assurance to use: we shall not be hurt by the Second Death.

But just what is meant by the term Second Death? It would seem to mean that the conqueror shall not have anything to fear in the future world. The punishment of hell is sometimes called death – not in the sense that the soul will cease to exist, but because death is the most fearful thing we know about, and there is a striking similarity in many respects between death and future punishment.

As death cuts us off from life, so the second death cuts one off from eternal life. Death puts an end to all our earthly hopes, and the second death to all hope forever. Death is accompanied by terrors and alarms, which are only faint emblems of the coming terror in the world of woe.

This promise of no harm for us in the second death really is all that is necessary to sustain us in our trials. Nothing else is needed to make the burdens of life tolerable but this assurance that the end of our earthly journey will bring us to the close of suffering. No power can harm us beyond the grave.

We have no promise that we shall not die, but we do have this glorious assurance that nothing beyond that will ever hurt us. Meanwhile, we are expected to listen – and to be faithful.

Bible Reading: John 8:21-25

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Knowing that nothing beyond the grave will ever hurt me, I will make this present life count for Christ and His kingdom.

 

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Ray Stedman

Ray Stedman – Fallen Asleep

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Read: Acts 20:2-12

On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul began talking to them, intending to leave the next day, and he prolonged his message until midnight. There were many lamps in the upper room where we were gathered together. And there was a young man named Eutychus sitting on the window sill, sinking into a deep sleep; and as Paul kept on talking, he was overcome by sleep and fell down from the third floor and was picked up dead. But Paul went down and fell upon him, and after embracing him, he said, Do not be troubled, for his life is in him. Acts 20:7-10

There are several very interesting aspects of this story. This is the first mention we have of the worship of the believers on the first day of the week, i.e., Sunday. This early in the Christian era they had shifted from Saturday to gathering on the first day of the week, the day of our Lord’s resurrection. They evidently had met here for a communion service, and the apostle seized the occasion to teach them from the Scriptures. In his last evening there, before they gathered at the Lord’s table, he took time to teach them further from the Scriptures. He went on at considerable length, prolonging his speech until midnight.

This has always been an encouraging passage to any pastor. It reveals that even the Apostle Paul had people go to sleep on him. Someone has said that the art of preaching is speaking in other people’s sleep. This was certainly the case here. At any rate, Eutychus fought a losing battle against falling asleep. Luke, with his physician’s eye, is easy on him. He tells us that there were many lamps in the upper chamber and each, of course, was burning up the oxygen. So, with the loss of oxygen in the atmosphere, and the late hour, and, perhaps, a long week’s work behind him, and given Paul’s long message, this young man was unable to hold out. He was seated in the window and fell into a deep sleep as Paul droned on, and so he fell from the third floor and was taken up dead.

Continue reading Ray Stedman – Fallen Asleep →

Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – Jonah’s Story

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Read: Matthew 12:38-41

No sign will be given . . . except the sign of the prophet Jonah. (Matt. 12:39)

I visited an old, abandoned church on the Turkish island of Cunda (pronounced JUNE-dah). It was a relic of the tragic aftermath of World War I when Greek Christians were either killed or forced to flee to Greece—while a similar thing was happening to Turkish Muslims in Greece. A man by the church door said I could “see the fresco,” for a small donation. On the church’s wall was a painting depicting Jonah. That story has always captured people’s imaginations, mostly because of that part with the really big fish.

Jonah’s “burial” in the sea and “resurrection” after three days was a sign, said Jesus, pointing to his own resurrection from the dead. And Nineveh’s repentance was important, too. The whole Jonah story, taken together, helps us better understand God and his ways, especially with sinful people. That’s where the Ninevites and their response come in, along with Jonah’s bad attitude.

Over the next couple of weeks, we’ll look at seven sections of Jonah’s story from his point of view, and then from God’s perspective as “conversations” in Jonah’s head and in heaven (italicized), at least as I’ve imagined them. Only they know exactly what they were thinking. However, we can apply what they said and did in ways that will, hopefully, help us be more like God in our attitudes and behaviors, and (sorry to say) less like Jonah.

Prayer:

Lord, help me see my own heart, and make me more like you.

Author: Doug VanBronkhorst

 

https://woh.org/