Tag Archives: faith

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Charles Stanley – The Alternatives to Patience

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Galatians 6:7-9

Have you ever felt the Lord calling you to something really big—maybe some task that seemed impossible or a goal that would no doubt take years to achieve? Most likely, some aspiration or God-given promise just came to mind. As you think about it, let’s consider three common courses of action.

First, we can take a shortcut. After all, if the Lord makes a promise or gives us a goal, wouldn’t He want us to attain it as quickly as possible? The answer is, Not necessarily. God often gives a pledge years before He brings it to pass. When we try to manipulate circumstances and “help” the Lord fulfill His promise, we’ll surely get in the way of the good things He has in mind for us. We should remember that part of the blessing will be the trust and wisdom that we gain while we are waiting.

Second, we can simply quit. We might tell ourselves, Who wants to wait ten years for anything? That is simply too long. I’d rather move on to something else. So we just walk away, forget that the opportunity ever came up, and try not to think about it anymore. But what a tragedy it is to say no to a promise of God and to miss out on the blessing He has planned for us.

Third, we can wait patiently and trust the Lord to bless us. This is clearly the best option, but sadly the one too many of us tend to avoid.

If someone were to say to you, “Ten years from today, I’m going to give you ten million dollars,” what would you say? Most likely, you would not respond, “No, thanks. I want it now or not at all.” Why then, do so many Christians say that to God? He has tremendous blessings in store for you—if you’re willing to wait.

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Our Daily Bread — Songs Born Out Of Struggle

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Psalm 31:9-20

Have mercy on me, O LORD . . . ; my eye wastes away with grief, yes, my soul and my body! —Psalm 31:9

In a documentary film about three legendary guitarists, Jack White described the first essential for writing a song: “If you don’t have a struggle already inside of you or around you, you have to make one up.”

The songs that mean the most to us give expression to our deepest feelings. Many of the Psalms, often called “the Bible’s songbook,” were born out of struggle. They capture our disappointments and fears, yet they always point us toward the faithful love of God.

In Psalm 31, David wrote: “Have mercy on me, O LORD, for I am in trouble; my eye wastes away with grief, yes, my soul and my body!” (v.9). He speaks of a trap set for him (v.4), his own sin (v.10), abandonment by friends (vv.11-12), and plots against his life (v.13).

Yet, David’s hope was not in his own strength, but in God. “I trust in You, O LORD; I say, ‘You are my God.’ My times are in Your hand; deliver me from the hand of my enemies, and from those who persecute me” (vv.14-15).

The Psalms invite us to pour out our hearts to God, because He has stored up His goodness for those who trust in Him (v.19). —David McCasland

God gives to His servants this promise:

You’ll not have to face life alone;

For when you grow weak in your struggle,

His strength will prevail—not your own. —Hess

When in your deepest need, find God’s comfort in the Psalms.

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Alistair Begg – Tempted by Idols?

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Can man make for himself gods? Such are not gods!  Jeremiah 16:20

One great besetting sin of ancient Israel was idolatry, and the church is vexed with a tendency to the same folly. The ancient gods of man’s invention have mostly disappeared, but the shrines of pride are not forsaken, and the golden calf still stands. Self makes an empty display, and the flesh sets up its altars wherever it can find space for them. Favorite children are often the cause of much sin in believers; the Lord is grieved when He sees us doting upon them beyond measure; they will live to be as great a curse to us as Absalom was to David, or they will be taken from us to leave our homes desolate. If Christians desire to grow thorns with which to stuff their sleepless pillows, let them dote on their children.

It is accurate to say that “such are not gods,” for the objects of our foolish love are very doubtful blessings, the solace that they yield us now is dangerous, and the help that they can give us in the hour of trouble is small indeed. Why, then, are we so bewitched with vanities? We pity the poor heathen who worships a god of stone, and yet we worship a god of gold. Where is the vast superiority between a god of flesh and one of wood? The principle, the sin, the folly is the same in either case; the only difference is that our crime is more aggravated because we have more light, and sin in the face of it. The heathen bows to a false deity, but the true God he has never known; we commit two evils, inasmuch as we forsake the living God and turn to idols. May the Lord purge us all from this grievous iniquity!

The dearest idol I have known,

Whate’er that idol be;

Help me to tear it from Thy throne,

And worship only Thee.

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Charles Spurgeon – Divine sovereignty

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“Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own?” Matthew 20:15

Suggested Further Reading: Luke 19:11-27

There is no attribute of God more comforting to his children than the doctrine of divine sovereignty. Under the most adverse circumstances, in the most severe troubles, they believe that sovereignty has ordained their afflictions, that sovereignty overrules them, and that sovereignty will sanctify them all. There is nothing for which the children of God should more earnestly contend than the dominion of their Master over all creation—the Kingship of God over all the works of his own hands—the throne of God, and his right to sit upon that throne. On the other hand, there is no doctrine more hated by unbelievers, no truth which they have kicked about so much, as the great, stupendous, but yet most certain doctrine of the sovereignty of the infinite Jehovah. Men will allow God to be everywhere except on his throne. They will allow him to be in his workshop to fashion worlds and to make stars. They will allow him to be in his treasury to dispense his alms and bestow his bounties. They will allow him to sustain the earth and bear up its pillars, or light the lamps of heaven, or rule the waves of the ever-moving ocean; but when God ascends his throne, his creatures then gnash their teeth; and when we proclaim an enthroned God, and his right to do as he wills with his own, to dispose of his creatures as he thinks well, without consulting them in the matter, then it is that we are ridiculed, and then it is that men turn a deaf ear to us, for God on his throne is not the God they love. They love him anywhere better than they do when he sits with his sceptre in his hand and his crown upon his head.

For meditation: Do you have to think twice before addressing Jesus as Lord? Judas Iscariot could never bring himself to do it—the other disciples could say “Lord” (Matthew 26:22); Judas could only say “Rabbi/Master/Teacher” (Matthew 26:25,49).

Sermon no. 77

4 May (1856)

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John MacArthur – Chosen to be Sent

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“Having summoned His twelve disciples, [Jesus] gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. Now the names of the twelve apostles were these” (Matt. 10:1-2).

Have you ever met someone who constantly absorbs what the church has to offer, yet never seems to plug into a ministry where he can give to others? I’ve met many people like that. Some have attended church for many years, and have even taken evangelism and other special training classes. But they never quite feel qualified to minister to others or even to share their testimony. Eventually that has a crippling effect on their spiritual lives and on the life of the church in general.

When Jesus called the disciples to Himself, He did so to train them for ministry. We see that in Matthew 10:1-2. The Greek word translated “disciples” means “learners.” “Apostles” translates a Greek word meaning “to dispatch away from” or “send.” In classical Greek it refers to a naval expedition dispatched to serve a foreign city or country. Disciples are learners; apostles are emissaries. Jesus called untrained disciples, but dispatched trained apostles. That’s the normal training process.

In Matthew 28:18-20 Jesus says, “Go . . . and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you.” Paul said to Timothy, “The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also” (2 Tim. 2:2).

As wonderful and important as it is to learn of Christ, you must never be content to be a disciple only. You must also be a discipler!

Suggestions for Prayer:

Memorize Matthew 28:18-20. If you aren’t currently discipling someone, ask the Lord for an opportunity to do so.

For Further Study:

An important part of discipleship is spending time with Christ. One way to do that is to read through the gospels on a regular basis. You might want to obtain a harmony of the gospels to help in your study. Tell a friend of your plan so he or she can encourage you and hold you accountable.

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Joyce Meyer – Love Aggressively

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This is My commandment: that you love one another [just] as I have loved you. No one has greater love [no one has shown stronger affection] than to lay down (give up) his own life for his friends. —John 15:12-13

As the children of God, we must love others as God loves us. And that means aggressively—and sacrificially.

Love is an effort. We will never love anybody if we are not willing to pay the price. One time I gave a woman a nice pair of earrings. My flesh wanted to keep them for myself, but my spirit said to be obedient to the Lord and give them away.

Later that woman stood up in a meeting and told how she had been given the earrings she was wearing as “a free gift.”

The Lord spoke to me and said, “Yes, it was a free gift to her, but it cost you, just as salvation is a free gift to you but it cost Jesus His life.”

Love is the greatest gift of all. When you show forth the love of God, do it freely, sacrificially—and aggressively!

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Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Ways That Are Right and Best

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“He will teach the ways that are right and best to those who humbly turn to Him” (Psalm 25:9).

A guide, taking some tourists through Mammoth Cave, reached a place called “The Cathedral.”

Mounting a rock called “The Pulpit,” he said he wanted to preach a sermon, and it would be short.

“Keep close to your guide,” he said.

The tourists soon found it was a good sermon. If they did not keep close to the guide, they would be lost in the midst of pits, precipices and caverns.

It is hard to find one’s way through Mammoth Cave without a guide. It is harder to find one’s way through the world without the lamp of God’s Word.

“Keep your eye on the Light of the World (Jesus) and use the Lamp of God’s Word” is a good motto for the Christian to follow.

Humbly turning to God is one of the most meaningful exercises a person can take. We come in touch with divine sovereignty, and we become instant candidates to discern God’s will for our lives.

Humbling ourselves is clearly in line with God’s formula for revival:

“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14, KJV).

Bible Reading: Psalm 25:1-8

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: With the enabling of the Holy Spirit, I will fix my heart and mind on Jesus first and others second, which is true humility.

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Greg Laurie –Not All There Is

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God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. —James 1:12

Not long ago, I had a conversation with two people after church.

One was in a wheelchair with a severe disability, and the other was speaking at length. I listened to her for a while, and then I turned to the woman in the wheelchair and said, “Well, how are you doing?”

“I am doing fine,” she told me.

But then her friend said that she actually had just had two brain surgeries to remove cancer, and they were successful.

I looked at this young woman with her disability, someone who had just come through such a difficult time, and I thought, “And where is she now?” She is at church.

I think of all of the excuses people come up with as to why they can’t make it to church. They have a cold, or it takes too long to get into the parking lot, and so forth. Yet here was this young woman who, despite her severe disability and recent surgeries, was at church, praising God and saying she is doing fine. I was touched by her example.

So I said to her, “You know, the Bible promises a special blessing and crown to those who have suffered in this life. I admire your faith. You are an inspiration to me.”

James 1:12 says, “God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him” (NLT). It all will be made up to us in the life to come. Have you lost something to follow Jesus? Whatever losses you may have incurred for following Christ will be more than made up to you.

Make no mistake about it: Our life on earth isn’t all there is. There will be rewards for our faithfulness to God.

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Charles Spurgeon – Regeneration

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“Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3

Suggested Further Reading: Luke 13:22-30

“Angels, principalities, and powers, would you be willing that men who love not God, who believe not in Christ, who have not been born again, should dwell here?” I see them, as they look down upon us, and hear them answering, “No! Once we fought the dragon, and expelled him, because he tempted us to sin! We must not, and we will not, have the wicked here. These alabaster walls must not be soiled with black and lustful fingers; the white pavement of heaven must not be stained and rendered filthy by the unholy feet of ungodly men. No!” I see a thousand spears bristling, and the fiery faces of a myriad seraphs thrust over the walls of paradise. “No, while these arms have strength, and these wings have power, no sin shall ever enter here.” I address myself moreover to the saints of heaven, redeemed by sovereign grace: “Children of God, are you willing that the wicked should enter heaven as they are, without being born again? You say you love men, but are you willing that they should be admitted as they are?” I see Lot rise up, and he cries, “Admit them into heaven! No! What! Must I be vexed by the conversation of Sodomites again, as once I was!” I see Abraham; and he comes forward, and he says, “No; I cannot have them here. I had enough of them whilst I was with them on earth—their jests and jeers, their silly talkings, their vain conversation, vexed and grieved us. We want them not here.” And, heavenly though they be, and loving as their spirits are, yet there is not a saint in heaven who would not resent, with the utmost indignation, the approach of any one of you to the gates of paradise, if you are still unholy, and have not been born again.

For meditation: Matthew 13:41-43; Luke 16:23-26 — at best the unsaved will have a distant view of heaven which will only add to their torment.

Sermon no. 130

3 May (1857)

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Joyce Meyer – Getting What We Want

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Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths.—Proverbs 3:5–6

I usually know what I want, and I like to get it. I’m exactly like most people. When we don’t get what we want, our negative feelings flare up. (And remember those feelings began with thoughts.)

“I drove across town to buy that dress, and you’re out of my size?”

“What do you mean there are no HDTVs left? You advertised it in the paper.”

Most of us are like that—and when we don’t get what we want, we make people around us miserable. It’s not something we learn in school—it may be inborn. As I wrote the above quotations, I thought of a scene in the grocery store.

A young mother was pushing her cart along and stopped at the cereal. Her child—less than two years old—reached out for a box. “Want! Want!”

“No,” the mother said. “We have plenty at home.” She put a different box of cereal in the cart.

“Want! Want!” the child said. Getting no response, she began to kick and scream. To the mother’s credit, she did not give in but pushed the cart to another aisle and distracted her child.

As I watched that behavior, I thought, That’s the way we all are most of the time. We decide what we want, and when we don’t get it, we’re angry.

“Jack and I were both up for the same promotion. I’ve been with the company longer, and my sales figures are stronger,” Donna said. “I deserved it, but he got the job.”

“I had a grade of 98 going into my final essay test,” Angie said. “If I had made another 100, it would have given me a 4.0 average, and I would have become the top student in my graduating class. But I made only 83 on the test, and dropped down to fifth in my class. I deserved a grade of 100, but my teacher doesn’t like me.”

Let’s look at this problem more closely. The individuals mentioned above, who didn’t get what they wanted, made one common statement: “I deserved it, but I didn’t get it.”

Too often, we Christians expect life to be perfect and for everything to go smoothly for us. We expect success, happiness, joy, peace, and everything else. When we’re thwarted, we pout or complain.

Although God does want us to have a good life, there will be times when we must be patient and endure not getting our way. These disappointments test our character and level of spiritual maturity. They actually show whether or not we truly are ready for promotion.

Why do we think we should always be first while others have to endure a lesser position? Why do we think we are entitled to the perfect life? Perhaps sometimes we think more highly of ourselves than we ought to. A humble mind enables us to take a back seat and wait for God to move us to the front. God’s Word says that we inherit the promises through faith and patience. Believing God is good, but can we continue to believe God and trust Him when we don’t feel that life is fair?

Satan plays with our minds. Most of the time, the evil one says negative things to us: “You don’t deserve it; you are worthless; you’re stupid.” Once in a while, however, he tries a different trick: He tells us how hard we work or how much we’re entitled to. If we listen and believe, we may begin to feel cheated or believe that someone has taken advantage of us.

When we don’t get what we want, we fall apart, saying, “I deserved it!” We not only get angry with the boss, the teacher, or anyone else, but we sometimes get angry with God for not giving us what we felt we deserved.

The big mistake was to say we deserved it, because then self-pity creeps in when we don’t get what we want. We can take that attitude, or we can recognize that we have a choice. I can choose to accept life the way it is and make the best out of it, or I can complain because it isn’t perfect.

I think of the story of Jonah—not the whale story—but what happened afterward. He had announced that in forty days, God would destroy the city of Nineveh, but the people repented. Because God listened to their cries, Jonah was angry. “Therefore now, O Lord, I beseech You, take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live” (Jonah 4:3).

Sad, isn’t it? Jonah would rather have been right than to see 120,000 people saved. Our situations aren’t usually that dramatic, but so many people would rather sit and feel sorry for themselves, listen to the whispers of Satan, and miss out with God than to simply trust God in every situation.

The secret of the Christian life is that we commit ourselves fully to God. If we surrender our wills to God, what happens doesn’t make us angry. If God doesn’t give us what we want and ask for, our faith is strong enough to say, “Not my will, but Yours.”

God, help me. I often have strong desires, and when I don’t get what I want, I get upset. Forgive me. Remind me that Jesus didn’t want to die on the cross, but He lived in total submission to Your will. I ask You, through Jesus Christ, to help me live in total submission and be content with what You give me. Amen.

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Alistair Begg – An Explanation of Trials

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You are my refuge in the day of disaster. Jeremiah 17:17

The path of the Christian is not always bright with sunshine; he has his seasons of darkness and of storm. It is true that God’s Word says, “Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace”; and it is a great truth that faith is calculated to give a man happiness below as well as bliss above. But life confirms that if the experience of the righteous is “like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day,” sometimes that light is eclipsed. At certain periods clouds cover the believer’s sun, and he walks in darkness and sees no light.

There are many who have rejoiced in the presence of God for a season; they have basked in the sunshine in the early stages of their Christian life; they have walked along the “green pastures” by the side of the “still waters.” But suddenly they find that the glorious sky is clouded; instead of the promised land they have to endure the wilderness; in place of sweet waters, they find troubled streams, bitter to their taste, and they say, “Surely, if I were a child of God, this would not happen.” Do not say that if you are walking in darkness. The best of God’s saints must drink the bitter potion; the dearest of His children must bear the cross. No Christian has enjoyed perpetual prosperity; no believer can always keep his heart in constant tune.

Perhaps the Lord gave you in the beginning a smooth and unclouded path because you were weak and timid. He moderated the wind on account of your weakness, but now that you are stronger in the spiritual life, you must enter upon the riper and rougher experience of God’s full-grown children. We need winds and tempests to exercise our faith, to tear off the rotten branches of self-reliance, and to root us more firmly in Christ. The day of evil reveals to us the value of our glorious hope.

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John MacArthur – Are You Avoiding Persecution?

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“Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness” (Matt. 5:10).

I heard of a man who was fearful because he was starting a new job with a group of unbelievers whom he thought might give him a bad time if they found out he was a Christian. After his first day at work his wife asked him how he got along with them. “We got along just fine,” he said. “They never found out I’m a Christian.”

Silence is one way to avoid persecution. Some other ways are to approve of the world’s standards, laugh at its jokes, enjoy its entertainment, and smile when it mocks God. If you never confront sin or tell people Jesus is the only way to heaven, or if your behavior is so worldly no one can distinguish you from unbelievers, you will probably be accepted and won’t feel the heat of persecution. But beware!

Jesus said, “Woe to you when all men speak well of you. . . . Whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His glory” (Luke 6:26; 9:26). The last thing anyone should want is for Christ to pronounce a curse on them or be ashamed of them. That’s an enormous price to pay for popularity!

If you take a stand for Christ and manifest Beatitude attitudes, you will be in direct opposition to Satan and the evil world system. Eventually you will experience some form of persecution. That has been true from the very beginning of human history, when Abel was murdered by his brother Cain because Cain couldn’t tolerate his righteousness.

You should never fear persecution. God will grant you grace and will never test you beyond what He enables you to endure (1 Cor. 10:13). Nor should you ever compromise biblical truth to avoid persecution. In Philippians 1:29 Paul says that persecution is as much a gift of God as salvation itself. Both identify you as a true believer!

Suggestions for Prayer:

Memorize 1 Peter 2:20-21. Ask God to continually grant you the grace to follow Christ’s example when difficulties come your way.

For Further Study:

Read 2 Corinthians 11:23-33, noting the severe persecution Paul endured for Christ’s sake.

 

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Joyce Meyer – Watch Your Countenance

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And the Lord said to Moses, Say to Aaron and his sons, This is the way you shall bless the Israelites. Say to them, The Lord bless you and watch, guard, and keep you; The Lord make His face to shine upon and enlighten you and be gracious (kind, merciful, and giving favor) to you; The Lord lift up His [approving] countenance upon you and give you peace (tranquility of heart and life continually). —Numbers 6:22-26

Jesus’ countenance was changed on the mountain as He was transfigured. Our countenance is simply the way we look. It refers to our face. In the church today we need to be concerned about our countenance. One of the blessings that was pronounced upon God’s people was that God’s face would shine upon them and that He would lift up His countenance upon them.

When the world looks at us, they need to see something about us that is different from them. They can’t read our minds or see into our hearts, so our countenance is the only way we can show them that we have something they do not have but really want and need. I believe that we look better when we worship God. Worship puts a smile on our face. It is very hard to keep a scowl on our face while we are being thankful, praising and worshipping God.

If we regularly do these things, our countenance will carry His presence, not the expression of inner frustration and turmoil. Christians are supposed to be joyful people who walk in love. We must ask ourselves, “Would people know that I am a Christian by looking at my countenance most of the time?”

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Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Cleansed From Sin

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“But if we are living in the light of God’s presence, just as Christ does, then we have wonderful fellowship and joy with each other, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from every sin” (1 John 1:7).

A pastor I know had once delighted in studying and preaching the Word of God. In his earlier days, he had been a real soul-winner, but the time came when he no longer spent time reading and studying the Scriptures. He became critical, discouraged and pessimistic. Finally, his personal life and his family fell apart.

At one point, he told me, he was thinking about committing suicide. He could have been spared all of this heartache, tragedy and sorrow if only he had continued to study the Word of God, to meditate on its truths and to obey its commands.

As someone wisely said, “Sin will keep you from God’s Word, or God’s Word will keep you from sin.”

Many of the problems we experience in the Christian life are self-imposed. They are the result of carelessness in the way we walk. The promises of God are true; you can stake your life on them. The way to supernatural living is to walk with God in the light of His presence.

“God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. So if we say we are His friends, but go on living in spiritual darkness and sin, we are lying. But if we are living in the light of God’s presence…then we have wonderful fellowship and joy…” (1 John 1:5-7, LB).

Bible Reading: I John 2:1-6

TODAY’S ACTION POINT:  Claiming the power of the Holy Spirit, I will continue to live in the light of God’s presence and explain to those who walk in darkness how they too can walk in the light of God’s presence and in joyful fellowship with our risen Savior.

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Presidential Prayer Team; J.K. – True Experience

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Isaiah’s prophecies for Israel included ones of great judgment by God because of their disobedience and constant rejection of God’s plan for them. Plush lands would become wilderness with no human occupation. Great sorrow would be upon them.

They shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. Isaiah 35:10

What exactly is your attitude in times of difficulty and trial? For you, as for Israel, circumstances are fleeting. Israel would be driven from its land and taken captive, but God would enable their return and deliver them as they trusted in Him.

The Lord is your deliverer, too…from sorrow due to circumstance, as well as from spiritual pain due to the conviction of sin. Sorrow can be beneficial if it produces a change of heart and a fresh sensitivity to God. Joy can be yours. Being committed to Him and enjoying His sweet fellowship will give you hope and strengthen your faith.

Experience the true joy of a saving relationship with God. Ask for deliverance from the sadness of sin. Then intercede for this nation, that it may have a change of heart and an openness for the Lord. After all, joy is not the absence of sorrow – but it is the presence of God!

Recommended Reading: Psalm 16:1-11

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Greg Laurie – Don’t Wait for the Rooster

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Peter’s denial of Jesus did not happen over a period of seconds or minutes, but over a period of hours. An hour passed from the time the first person said, “You were one of those with Jesus the Galilean,” to the time Peter denied his Lord for the second time. He had ample opportunity to hightail it out of there, but for some reason he hung around.

His story reminds me that no person is safe from temptation except the one who flees from it. Peter, having been warned by Jesus Himself, should have avoided any place where he could fall. He definitely should have steered clear of all roosters! The Lord had said that before the rooster crowed, he would deny Jesus three times (see Matthew 26:69-75). I would have asked, “Are there any roosters here? Because if there are, I’m leaving!”

But seriously, if someone like Simon Peter could fall, then surely we can, too. First Corinthians 15:33 tells us, “Bad company corrupts good character.” Peter hung around people who were dragging him down spiritually. Are you in a similar situation? Have you entered into relationships where people are dragging you down? Maybe it’s a romance. Maybe it’s a close friendship. Are you finding yourself compromising your principles to fit in, or so that you don’t offend anyone? Perhaps you need to reconsider your friendships. Perhaps you need to make some immediate changes. And even if you have made some mistakes, there is still time to commit yourself to the Lord. That time is now. Don’t wait for the rooster to crow.

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Charles Stanley – Sanctification

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Romans 6:17-22

The Lord has a grand plan for the life of every person, and it can be summed up in a single word: sanctification. If you are scratching your head about what that terms means, you are not alone. Many people—even some longtime Christians—do not know its definition. However, believers should see to it that they acquire that knowledge because it’s an important word, and it defines them.

In its verb form—sanctify—the term means “to make holy” or “to separate.” So when something is sanctified, it is separated from a common use to a sacred one. In the Old Testament, we are told that the Lord sanctified a number of things: He made the seventh day holy, set aside the Levite tribe as priests, and even consecrated places like the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle (Gen. 2:3; Num. 3).

The Lord still sanctifies people today. Before a person receives salvation, he is spiritually dead (Eph. 2:1-3). What’s more, Romans 5:10 tells us that before we come to faith, we’re actually enemies of God. Yet the moment someone trusts in Jesus as his personal Savior, his sins are wiped away, and he is adopted into the Lord’s family. That individual is then set apart as a child of God for a sacred purpose. This means believers are not here simply to chase after personal gain. Rather, they are to serve God and bring Him honor and glory.

As members of God’s family who are called to reflect His glory, believers are referred to as “saints.” This word shares a root with sanctification. We are referred to this way, not because we live sinless lives but because we live a life consistent with the One we represent.

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Our Daily Bread — The Best Season Yet

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Ephesians 5:15-21

See then that you walk circumspectly, . . . redeeming the time, because the days are evil. —Ephesians 5:15-16

Life is a lot like the weather . . . it’s seasonal. It has a way of pushing us into the next season whether we like it or not. And when pushed into the next season, we are often uncertain and even fearful of what it might hold for us.

This is especially true of later seasons of life, when we are haunted by thoughts such as: Will I be left all alone? Will my health hold up? Will my money last? Will my mind stay fresh? As with every season of life, we have to make a choice—to waste the season in fearful thoughts or, as Paul says, make “the best use of the time, because the days are evil” (Eph. 5:16 ESV).

Regardless of your season, you can count on God’s faithfulness. He says, “‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’ So we may boldly say: ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear’” (Heb. 13:5-6).

Because you have God’s presence and provision, you can make the most of your time in every season by following Jesus closely, spending time in His Word and prayer, loving and forgiving more freely than ever before, and serving others with joy and generosity.

God has blessed us with our present season—make the most of it! —Joe Stowell

Lord, give me the grace to accept life right where

it has put me, and help me to overcome the fear

that would waste my days. Give me the wisdom

and desire to make every day count for You.

Life matters—make the most of it!

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Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Unhindered

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My high school band director was adamant about many things, but none so much as what he called the obligatory rule of good musicianship. That is, the two most important notes in any musical composition are the first and the last. “The audience might forgive you for what comes in the middle,” he would say, “but they will forget neither your very first impression nor your final remark.”

The last word of the book of Acts in the Greek New Testament is the word akolutos. The word literally means “unhindered,” though many translations render it with multiple words. Others move the word from its final position for the sake of syntax. In both cases, I think something is lost in translation. Luke was intentionally making a statement with this last word of his two volume testimony to the life of Jesus Christ. I think he intended readers to pause at the conclusion of his words, leaving us with the provocative thought of a gospel that is unhindered. After the stories of Jesus’s ministry were told, after recollections of his death and ruminations of his resurrection, after Jesus’s ascension and the church’s beginnings, after all the resistance, disappointment, and surprises along the way, Luke concludes, “Then Paul dwelt two whole years in his own rented house, and received all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, unhindered” (Acts 28:30-31).

Through prisons and angry crowds, the book of Acts traces the birth and growth of the early church. The book begins with a few hundred believers in Christ and a collective will to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, in Judea and Samaria, and to all the ends of the earth. Opposition to this witness is described at every turn. Persecution, beatings, death, and imprisonment all threatened the voice of the early church and ultimately the spread of the gospel itself. But in spite of all this, Luke epitomizes the history of the early church and the spread of the gospel by boldly describing the progression of God’s kingdom as going forth without so much as the slightest of hindrances. The Good News of God to all the world, he seems to want the world to remember, goes forth in power.

For any man or woman who will hear his testimony, Luke wants to conclude his eyewitness account with the dimension of the gospel that is most striking—namely, that these evidences are far from the end of the story. Luke wants hearers to be well aware that eyewitnesses to the power of the kingdom will go well beyond his own eyes, his stories, his lifetime; your eyes, your stories, your lifetime. Though variant theologies and distorted gospels will abound, though the world will delight in yet another conspiracy theory that promises to be the downfall of Christianity, the great narration of God’s kingdom will go forth unhindered. For the Christian, this means we need not live defeated by every emerging plot to undermine Christ. And for the one who has yet to accept him, it is continually and powerfully an invitation. Won’t you consider living into a victory like his, walking further up and farther into the great unhindered kingdom of God?

Luke begins on a note intent on crescendo: “Many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us” (Luke 1:1). He sets out to sing the beginnings of the early church and the work of God from the very start to the ends of time. He wants to be clear that we are invited to be a part of a story that will not fade away. Despite all appearances, despite dim turns in melody, the gospel was and will continue to be Good News that resounds without hindrance. No person or power can thwart the resonant sounds of the kingdom Jesus proclaimed, for it is moved by a Spirit who presses it ever-onward, ringing invitingly into the unexpected places of the world. The redemptive song of Christ and the Spirit who enables creation to add its praise will continue to move forth, unhindered.

Jill Carattini is managing editor of A Slice of Infinity at Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in Atlanta, Georgia.

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Alistair Begg – Remember Me

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Do this in remembrance of me.  1 Corinthians 11:24

It appears that Christians may forget Christ! There would be no need for this loving exhortation if there were not a fearful possibility that our memories might prove treacherous. Nor is this an empty notion: It is, sadly too well confirmed in our experience, not as a possibility, but as a lamentable fact. It appears almost impossible that those who have been redeemed by the blood of the dying Lamb and loved with an everlasting love by the eternal Son of God could forget that gracious Savior; but if startling to the ear, sadly it is too apparent to the eye to allow us to deny the crime. Forget Him who never forgot us! Forget Him who poured His blood out for our sins! Forget Him who loved us even to death! Can it be possible? Yes, it is not only possible, but conscience confesses that it is too sadly a fault with all of us that we treat Him as a stranger, like an overnight guest. Instead of Him being a permanent resident in our memories, we treat Him as a visitor. The cross where one would expect that memory would linger and disinterest would be an unknown intruder is desecrated by the feet of forgetfulness.

Doesn’t your conscience say that this is true? Don’t you find yourselves forgetful of Jesus? Some other love steals away your heart, and you are unmindful of Him upon whom your affection ought to be set. Some earthly business engrosses your attention when you ought to be fixed steadily upon the cross. It is the incessant turmoil of the world, the constant attraction of earthly things, that takes the soul away from Christ. While memory works to preserve a poisonous weed, it allows the rose of Sharon to wither. Let us charge ourselves to tie a heavenly forget-me-not around our hearts for Jesus our Beloved, and whatever else we let slip, let us hold tight to Him.