Tag Archives: holy spirit

Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – Worldliness

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Read: 1 John 2:15-17

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of  the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father. (vv. 15-16)

Is it a bad thing to love the world? Doesn’t God love the world so much that he gave his only Son to save us from our sins? These are a couple of questions that may come to mind when we read today’s Bible verses.

To answer the second question first, yes, God does love the world. Sending his Son Jesus to pay the price of our sins is certainly proof of that. And also yes, we should love the world as our Savior does. Indeed, our desire, like God’s, should be that none should perish, but that “all should reach repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).

But there is another meaning of the “world” here in these verses to which John is referring. His reference in these verses is to the world as a place where sin has domain. John describes this as an anti-God place, where sinful cravings of people dominate and things like lust and boasting hold sway. No, John says, these things are not of God. They are what we often used to hear described as “worldly.” And these things, although they may seem very attractive, do not last.

Prayer:

Lord, help us to “set our minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth” (Col. 3:2). Amen.

Author: John Koedyker

 

https://woh.org/

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – No Space Available

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For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.—2 Corinthians 10:4–5

I’ve been known to fill up the storage space on my hard drive. I take lots of pictures, and I keep them all on my computer. I’ve been advised to put them on a separate hard drive, but I prefer to keep them on my computer. A lot of them, if not most of them, are of my family, and I enjoy looking at them. But just the other day I was trying to save a document, and my hard drive was full.

Wouldn’t it be great if, when the devil comes knocking at the door of our minds with an illicit thought, a message pops up that reads, This hard drive is full with the Word of God. There’s no room for your stuff. Don’t even bother? Far too often we have a lot of storage available, and we’re willing to entertain those thoughts.

Temptation, in most cases, comes through the doorway of our minds. Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, “But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3).

When our guard is down and those flaming arrows of ungodly thoughts come our way, we are to “[cast] down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).

Paul also said, “Whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things” (Philippians 4:8).

Let’s think about things that will build us up—not things that will tear us down.

 

Harvest.org | Greg Laurie

Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – God Is Not the Kind of God Who Leaves

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“Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” (Hebrews 13:5)

Have you ever missed the school bus or a ride to an activity that was important to you? Being left is a terrible feeling! It is embarrassing and frustrating, and it can also be really sad – especially if you miss out on something you were really hoping to see or do. Sometimes it can even be dangerous to be left behind. What if you accidentally got left in a football stadium? What if you were on a hiking trail and got separated from your friends? It could be scary, and lonely, and maybe even harmful to be left like that.

Sometimes we rely on people too much. It is okay to count on your friends and family to keep an eye out for you and to remember your needs and hopes. But friends and family are human, and sometimes they forget or make mistakes. Some people might take off on you because they want to do something selfish for themselves, or some might turn their back on you when you have done something wrong. People are human. They might let you down. They might give up on you. They might leave you.

The writer of Hebrews 13:5 was reminding readers of what Jesus said to His disciples – that He would never leave them. He would never forsake them. Jesus is God; He is greater than our human friends and family. He is better than anything we might try to be or to get on our own. In this verse, the Bible shows us the kind of God Who promises to be faithful. That means He is not the kind of God Who lets His people down. He is not the kind of God Who leaves His people alone. He keeps His promises.

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – God Is Not the Kind of God Who Leaves →

The Navigators

The Navigators – Jerry Bridges – Holiness Day by Day Devotional – We Really Are His Children

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Today’s Scripture: 1 John 3:1, NKJV

“Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!”

When used as an imperative verb, behold carries the strong idea of imploring someone’s attention. This is how John used it in 1 John 3:1. He was saying, “Stop! Think of this! Consider this astonishing fact: God loves us so much that we’re called His children!”

Think of it: If you’ve trusted in Christ as savior, you’re God’s child, a son or daughter of the Creator, sustainer, and ruler of the universe—though our circumstances, or even our behavior, can often obscure that fact.

After John’s exclamation about this, he added, “and so we are” (3:1). It’s as if he was saying, “It’s really true! We really are his children!” Why does John get so excited about a truth we often take for granted?

This truth is amazing, first of all, because of who we once were. Consider the fact that every sin you’ve committed was an act of rebellion against the sovereign authority of God, or, as someone has said, an act of cosmic treason. But instead of the death we deserve as punishment for such treason, we’re made sons and daughters of the very king we’ve rebelled against! Instead of death, we get eternal life. Instead of wrath, we receive favor. Instead of eternal ruin, we’re made heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ. And all of this becomes ours without our doing a single thing to earn the king’s favor or any attempt on our part to make restitution! His Son has done it all for us.

Do you believe that? Do you each day realize that you’re a child of the heavenly king? (Excerpt taken from The Gospel for Real Life)

 

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – Kingdom Without End

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Today’s Scripture: Matthew 26-28

“And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” -Matthew 24:14

In the sixteenth century, a man named Suleiman ruled the Ottoman Empire in Eastern Europe. To the world, he was known simply as “the magnificent.” His goal was to set up a worldwide kingdom that would be known for its justice and humanity. But then Suleiman died, his son who ruled after him was a drunken and immoral man, and the kingdom that Suleiman had worked so hard to build began to collapse.

How different it is with Jesus Christ and the kingdom of God. When Jesus was crucified, it appeared that all hope for the coming kingdom of God had been destroyed. The faith of the disciples burned at a low ebb. They had followed Jesus and believed Him, but had seen Him die on the cross.

And then with heart-stopping joy, Jesus came to them, alive forevermore, with these words: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” He had defeated even death itself. And while the disciples looked at Him in awe and wonder, He gave them a command that would change the course of their lives, and of the world. “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20).

These are the words of a king who has given a royal commission. It begins with a royal claim, proceeds to a royal command, and ends with a royal covenant to His followers.

Prayer

Lord, by Your power and presence I want to help fulfill the Great Commission. Amen.

To Ponder

We have been commissioned by a King whose kingdom will come, and it will have no end.

 

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BreakPoint

BreakPoint –  Gospel of Jesus’ Wife Found to be Fake

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Back in 2012 and in 2014 I told you about a papyrus fragment in which Jesus purportedly refers to His “wife.”

On both occasions, I said there were many reasons to be skeptical about the fragment, both about what it said and about the authenticity of the fragment itself.

Well, a recent story in the Atlantic Monthly has so thoroughly debunked the so-called “Gospel of Jesus’ Wife” that even the Harvard historian who has championed its authenticity admits that it’s probably a fake.

And that leaves us with the question: Why were some people so eager to believe in it in the first place?

The fragment was first said to date from the fourth century A.D., which would make it roughly contemporary with the oldest complete manuscripts of the Gospels. The prospect of an “alternative Christianity” was exciting to people who question the veracity of biblical accounts (including the resurrection) and whose definition of Christianity includes everything but the real thing.

Well, further testing concluded that the fragment dated from the sixth to ninth century A.D. long after the biblical canon and the great creeds of the faith had been decided upon. Undaunted, the fragment’s promoters held out the possibility that it could shed light on what Harvard’s Karen King called “questions about family and marriage and sexuality and Jesus.”

Continue reading BreakPoint –  Gospel of Jesus’ Wife Found to be Fake →

Moody Global Ministries

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – FAITH VERSUS SIGHT

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Read GENESIS 13

“This town ain’t big enough for the both of us,” a line made popular by early Western films, is now a stock phrase used to convey the idea that two people cannot share the same space. It could also describe Abram and Lot in today’s reading.

After returning from Egypt, Abram and Lot had grown so rich in livestock that the land could no longer support them both. As they went their separate ways, Scripture portrays a clear contrast between them. Despite God’s blessings, Lot demonstrated no relationship with the Lord. He chose what appeared to be the best of the land—the well- watered and fertile plain of the Jordan. But there was a problem. The area was inhabited by wicked people who “were sinning greatly against the LORD” (v. 13). This apparently presented no hesitation for Lot who quickly “pitched his tents near Sodom” (v. 12).

Abram’s action, on the other hand, demonstrated his faith. Blessed also by God with abundance, Abram returned to one of his original altars near Bethel and “called on the name of the LORD” (v. 4). Although promised the whole land of Canaan, Abram was not anxious to grasp it all for himself; rather he allowed Lot first choice, in order to avoid strife.

In response, God spoke to Abram again, reaffirming His promises, this time with more details. The promise of land is reiterated, described as all that Abram can see in every direction. God even encouraged Abram to walk throughout the land itself. Second, the promise of descendants was reaffirmed, so numerous that they could be likened to the “dust of the earth” (v. 16). Abram’s response to God’s word was yet another act of worship. Lot chose and lived by sight; Abram by faith.

APPLY THE WORD

What might God be calling you to do in faith this week? Give more generously, even when finances seem tight? Speak Christ’s love to a neighbor even when they seem uninterested? Confess a previous sin even when it seems scary to do so? Ask God for the eyes of faith today, then act in response, trusting God’s promises to provide for all your needs.

 

http://www.todayintheword.org

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – DALLAS SNIPER ATTACK: ‘OUR WORST NIGHTMARE HAPPENED’

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Dallas residents are waking up this morning to the deadliest day for police officers since September 11, 2001.

At 7:00 last night, protesters gathered in a Dallas park and began marching through the streets of downtown. They were responding to officer-involved shootings in Louisiana and Minnesota. The rally was peaceful; police officers were present and were conversing with the crowd.

Just before 9 PM, as Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings said, “Our worst nightmare happened.” Shots rang out. Ten police officers were shot, along with one bystander. An eleventh officer was later shot during an exchange of gunfire with a suspect. Five of the officers died. Some of the six who were wounded are undergoing surgery.

According to Police Chief David Brown, four people coordinated the attack with rifles, positioning themselves in triangulated locations near the end of the route protesters planned to take. The chief noted that snipers fired “ambush-style” from an “elevated position.” Some of the officers were shot in the back.

At 3:06 AM, authorities announced that a suspect had died after a standoff with police in a garage at El Centro college. Three people are now in custody. K-9 units are sweeping the area for possible bombs; large sections of downtown remain closed this morning.

Continue reading Denison Forum – DALLAS SNIPER ATTACK: ‘OUR WORST NIGHTMARE HAPPENED’ →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – What Is Temptation?

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Matthew 26:41

Everybody experiences temptation. No matter how spiritual you are or how long you’ve followed Christ, you have been tempted. Sometimes this experience seems like a faint whisper, and other times it’s an unbearable shout in your mind. Regardless of how it sounds, you know just what temptation feels like. But if someone asked, could you define the term?

Temptation is simply an enticement to take a God-given desire beyond God-given boundaries. Many people reject this idea, refusing to believe that guilt-instilling allurements could be even remotely related to the Lord. But think about it: In what ways are you most often tempted? In the area of material possessions? Intimacy? Companionship? Food? These are all things that God not only created but also uses to bless His people. The problem comes when we—who still carry around the old “programming” of our flesh nature—take those drives beyond the healthy limits that God has set for our lives.

For example, He created sex for enjoyment within a marriage relationship. However, when this divinely approved desire is corrupted by physical intimacy outside of marriage, then what the Creator designed for His purposes becomes a source of guilt and shame. That is not what God intended.

One of the enemy’s top strategies is to distort a God-given drive for his own vile purposes. You can short-circuit such an attack: Remind yourself where this urge came from in the first place, and then ask God for the strength to use such drives for His glory, as He intended.

Bible in a Year: Psalms 145-150

 

 

http://www.intouch.org/

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Important Reminders

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Read: Deuteronomy 6:1–12 | Bible in a Year: Job 34–35; Acts 15:1–21

These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Deuteronomy 6:6

Anthropologist Anthony Graesch says that the outside of a refrigerator reveals what’s important to people. During a research study of families in Los Angeles, Graesch and his colleagues noted an average of 52 items posted on the fridge—including school schedules, family photos, children’s drawings, and magnets. Graesch calls the refrigerator “a repository of family memory.”

The Lord may use a tangible item like a photo, keepsake, or Scripture verse to remind us of His faithfulness and the call to obey His Word. When Moses addressed the Israelites just before they entered the land of Canaan, he urged them to keep all the commands God had given them. “Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road . . . . Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates”  (Deut. 6:7, 9).

Daily blessings are reminders of God’s faithfulness.

Giving God’s Word a visible place of honor in their homes and lives was a powerful daily reminder to “be careful that you do not forget the Lord, who brought you . . . out of the land of slavery” (v. 12).

Today the Lord encourages us to remember that as we obey His Word, we can depend on His faithful care for all that lies ahead.

Father, we are grateful for every reminder of Your faithfulness and loving care. May we honor You by obeying Your Word.

How do you nurture your relationship with the Lord? Share with us at Facebook.com/ourdailybread

Daily blessings are reminders of God’s faithfulness.

INSIGHT:

Today’s reading contains the centerpiece of Israel’s doctrinal beliefs. It is called the Shema, based upon the Hebrew word for hear: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.  Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength” (Deut. 6:4–5).

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – One Less God

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Among atheist advocates, it has become fashionable to dismiss theism with the mantra that unbelievers, like theists, are atheist with regard to a host of entities considered to be divine at sundry times throughout history. Atheists, we are told, merely acknowledge one less God than theists. If believers understood why they reject Zeus, the argument goes, they would understand why atheists reject their God.

Unfortunately, dismissing theism on such grounds betrays a paltry acquaintance with the very idea of God, let alone the God revealed in the Bible. It is true that many concepts of God present us with entities that are nothing more than glorified human beings. But anyone who is familiar with the relevant religious and philosophical literature on the subject does not need to be told that such untutored notions of God are just pointless red herrings. Popular level atheism may be fodder for invigorating debates on the Internet, but it has little, if anything at all, to do with God.

Take, for instance, the idea of God defended by such a prominent ancient philosopher as Aristotle. Whereas Zeus and his associates held sway at the popular level, David Conway notes that Aristotle defended a God who was unchanging, immaterial, all-powerful, omniscient and indivisible; a God who possessed “perfect goodness and necessary existence.”(1) That is a striking parallel to the God worshipped in the major monotheistic religions of the world. Even among the so-called animistic religions, it is a mistake to think that the concept of God is limited to spirits in natural objects and events, even in cases where the latter are venerated. As Timothy Tennent notes, adherents of these religions acknowledge a being who is the ground of all being.(2)

God is not one being among other beings; God is being itself. In philosophical parlance, God exists necessarily—God cannot not exist! Every other entity finds the reason for its existence in God. Spaghetti monsters and teapots in orbit are material objects that would stand in need of explanation, even if they really did exist, since they do not exist necessarily. But we can also dismiss such examples precisely because we know enough about spaghetti and teapots to know what it would take to get them to play the roles detractors of faith in God assign to them. To say they are infinitely under qualified is a gross understatement.

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – One Less God →

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Strength for Today – Certainty of Deliverance

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“Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life” (Romans 5:9-10).

Jesus Christ delivers His brethren not only from sin and its judgment, but also from uncertainty and doubt about that deliverance.

God is a God of wrath. But the wrath due to be poured out on all mankind, Christ took on Himself. That’s what the apostle Paul meant when he said that those who put their faith in Him have been “justified by His blood” and are assured of being “saved from the wrath of God through [Christ]” (Rom. 5:9). As a result of Christ’s atoning work, all Christians are identified with Christ, are adopted as God’s children through Him, and are no longer “children of wrath” (Eph. 2:3).

But Paul doesn’t stop there because the ongoing intercessory work of Christ has great significance for every believer and the security of his salvation. In Romans 5:10 Paul argues from the greater to the lesser to show that it was a much greater work of God to bring sinners to grace than to bring them to glory. Since God brought us to Himself when we were enemies, we will be reconciled continually now that we are His friends. When God first reconciled us, we were wretched, vile, and godless sinners. Since that was not a barrier to His reconciling us then, there is nothing that can prevent the living Christ from keeping us reconciled.

This truth has great ramifications for our assurance. If God already secured our deliverance from sin, death, and future judgment, how could our present spiritual life possibly be in jeopardy? How can a Christian, whose past and future salvation are guaranteed by God, be insecure in the intervening time? If sin in the greatest degree could not prevent our becoming reconciled, how can sin in lesser degree prevent our staying reconciled? Our salvation can’t be any more secure than that.

Suggestions for Prayer

Ask God to reveal to you how you might even now be insecure about your salvation. Then ask Him to make the intercessory work of Christ more real to you each day.

For Further Study

Read John 5:26; 10:28-29; 14:19; Romans 8:34-39; Colossians 3:3-4; Hebrews 7:25; and Revelation 1:18.

  • List all the securities you can find.
  • How does Christ save you by His life?

 

http://www.gty.org

Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – Too Much Stuff! 

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And Jesus said to them, “Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” Luke 12:15

I don’t particularly enjoy going to the mall. It’s a place that I typically avoid if possible, yet this week I had to return an item at a store that was located inside our local mall. Interestingly, less than 24 hours later, I came across Jesus’s words in Luke 12. With this experience fresh in my mind, I had one clear thought as I read this passage: as a culture we have let our guard down when it comes to possessions!

We scurry from store to store, busily looking for the latest fashion or the next unbeatable sale, and we do so at such breakneck speed that we rarely reflect upon how this lifestyle is shaping our hearts, lives, and desires. Without realizing it, we can create habits of consumption and acquisition that ultimately make us slaves to our possessions.

Simply put, you and I have too much stuff, and Jesus wants us to see how our stuff has too much of us!

In a culture that is driven by the accumulation of wealth and possessions, it’s incredibly easy to fall prey to thinking that our worth and value is tied up in the things we own. If we have lots of stuff, we have worth. If we have limited finances and resources, our value in society and as human beings must be limited as well. While this may be a common way of thinking in our culture, it goes directly against the values of God’s kingdom!

Continue reading Wisdom Hunters – Too Much Stuff!  →

Turning Point

Today’s Turning Point with David Jeremiah – Willing to Wound

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Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.

Proverbs 27:6

Recommended Reading

2 Timothy 3:1-5

The modern religions of tolerance and pop culture have created a dangerous crossroads: Almost anything is considered to be acceptable behavior. From dress to language to moral boundaries, few people are willing to hold up a hand and say, “Wait! Are you sure that is a choice you should make? Have you considered carefully the implications?” Those who advise restraint are considered old fashioned or intolerant. The danger is this: If we refuse to say “Stop!” we run the risk of going along ourselves.

We need friends—and need to be a friend—like the one described in Proverbs 27:6. We need to be a friend who will run the risk of wounding another for the sake of their temporal and eternal well-being. We need to be a source of salt and light, illuminating the path of righteousness and preserving a friend’s safety. Our biblically-based counsel may not be heeded or appreciated, but we would be wrong not to offer it.

Which would be better when Jesus Christ appears: to be loved by our friends because we approved their choices or to be commended by our Lord? If separating ourselves from impurity is the only way to maintain our own purity, then so be it.

For the Christian, to do wrong, is to wound his Friend.

William Temple

Read-Thru-the-Bible

Proverbs 24 – 26

 

http://www.davidjeremiah.org/

Girlfriends in God

Girlfriends in God – How Hiding Keeps You From Seeking

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Today’s Truth

God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in sprit and truth.

John 4:24

Friend to Friend

In John 4, we see a tired Jesus who stopped to rest at Jacob’s well where He begins a conversation with a Samaritan woman, ignoring the cultural, racial, and social norms of that day. (Jews did not associate with Samaritans and often tried to avoid Samaria all together on their journeys. In addition to that, respectable Jewish men did not talk women whom they didn’t know.) But Jesus was not concerned with public opinion. He was on a mission of mercy.

The woman’s name is never mentioned, but He knew it.

He knew not only her name, but also her insecurities, her reputation, her fears, her failures, and her needs.

Jesus asked this unnamed woman for a drink, then engaged her in a meaningful and purposed conversation. They talked of practical thirst, and then Jesus spoke of living water that satisfies eternally.

Not realizing who in the world she was talking to or what He was really chatting about, this woman asked for a full-to-the-tippy-top jar of living water so she would never be thirsty again. “Show me the money, Jewish man. I want some of that water because I am SO over making these constant trips to the well.” (Bless her! I mean, who wouldn’t want that? I get this woman. If I never had to buy groceries again I would be one happy girl!)

Then, in order to lovingly introduce this thirsty girl to the Living Water she longed for, Jesus redirected the conversation and asked her to go call her husband and come back (v. 16). Why? Because she didn’t have a husband and He knew it. She’d had lover after lover.

“I have no husband,” she replied.

Continue reading Girlfriends in God – How Hiding Keeps You From Seeking →

Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – Remembering Who We Are

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Read: 1 John 2:12-14

I write to you, children . . . fathers . . . [and] young men. (vv. 13-14)

Have you ever stopped to think about who you are? We mostly take it for granted that we have a name, address, phone number, an email account. I was looking over an old resume of mine and discovered that it was quite a complete description of me—my schooling, work experiences, my

family—it was all there.

In this part of his letter, John is attempting to help his readers remember who they are. First of all, they were the church. But from there John divides them into three groups: children, fathers (those who are mature), and young people. We might depict the divisions as youth, middle age, and the elderly.

John’s point is that God is concerned about us in all those stages of life. And even more than that, whatever age group we fall in, we all have something to contribute to the body of Christ. Children, with all their eagerness and enthusiasm; young people with not only their physical strength and prowess in the prime of life, but as John reminds us, true spiritual strength to “overcome the evil one” (v. 13); and the more mature patriarchs and matriarchs, with their lifetime of wisdom acquired in the service of the Lord—all are important to the church.

No matter what age group you fit into, God cares about you and has a purpose for you!

Prayer:

Thank you, Lord, for watching over us through the various stages of life and using us for your glory and kingdom. Amen.

Author: John Koedyker

 

https://woh.org/

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Waiting for a Vulnerability

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Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.—1 Peter 5:8

When Hitler invaded the European nations during the early years of World War II, he attacked on a weekend in almost every situation. Hitler knew the various parliaments would not be in session, making it more difficult for a nation’s leaders to react swiftly to an invasion.

The same thing happened to Israel in 1973 on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, which is the holiest day of the year on the Jewish calendar. Backed by the Soviet Union, Egypt and Syria attacked Israel. But because God had grace on the Israelis, they were able to turn back their enemies. And not only that, they even gained ground.

That is what the devil does in the lives of Christians. He waits for a vulnerability. He waits for a time when our guard is down, when we think it isn’t going to happen, and then he will hit us with everything he has.

Temptation will come at inopportune times, often after times of great blessing. After Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River, God’s Spirit came upon Him in the form of a dove. It was a glorious moment. But then came the attack as Jesus was tempted by the devil in the wilderness.

Don’t be surprised when, after you have spent time in church studying the Bible and worshiping, you get hit with heavy-duty temptation. That is the way it works. Or sometimes you might lower your guard and think, I wouldn’t give in to any temptation now after spending time in God’s Word.

Yes, you could. You could be very vulnerable. Often temptations and attacks come after mountaintop experiences. Whenever God speaks, the devil will be there to oppose.

Be careful. Even if you have reached great heights in your spiritual life, know this: you’ll never outgrow being tempted.

 

Harvest.org | Greg Laurie

Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – God Owns Me

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“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1)

Virtually anyone who has any Christian upbringing at all has heard the very first verse of the Bible. And anyone who claims to be a Christian accepts the truth it teaches, that God created us! But how many of you have ever sat down to think just how that fact affects how you live and act every day?

Anytime a person creates something, he has a purpose for that creation. For example, your mom never just goes into the kitchen and starts throwing together some flour, sugar, and milk without having something very specific in mind that she plans to create with those ingredients. A potter never begins spinning her wheel until she knows what she wants to mold that clay into. And a carpenter never begins cutting up a new shipment of lumber into an odd assortment of shapes and sizes until he has some idea of the type of furniture he plans to build. God did not just create you on a whim with no design for you. Instead, when God created you, He had a very specific purpose in mind for you.

Since God created you for a purpose, He has a right to demand that you fulfill that purpose. Back to the illustration of the potter: If you were the one who purchased the clay, took the time and effort to spin the wheel, and used your skill to carefully shape the clay into a ceramic bowl, you would then be the owner of that bowl. You would have every right to decide whether it ought to be used for your morning cereal, or to hold a potted plant! Because God created you, He owns you and has every right to decide your purpose. But you do not have to wonder what that purpose is. Scripture identifies that purpose for you: God called you to salvation even before He created you. Why did He? “That we should be to the praise of His glory.” (Ephesians 1:12)

God owns me and has the right to demand that I act in a way that brings glory to Him.

My Response:

» Have I been acting today in a way that gives God the glory He deserves as my Creator and Owner?

 

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Jerry Bridges – Holiness Day by Day Devotional – Desperately Dependent

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Today’s Scripture: Galatians 5:25

“If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.”

Progressive sanctification is not a partnership with the Spirit in the sense that we each—the believer and the Holy Spirit—do our respective tasks. Rather, we work as he enables us to work. His work lies behind all our work and makes our work possible.

The Holy Spirit can and does work within us apart from any conscious response on our part. We see this in the initial act of sanctification when he creates within us a new heart and a new disposition toward God and his will. He’s not dependent on us to do this.

But we’re dependent on him to do our work; we cannot do anything apart from him. In the process of sanctification there are certain things only the Spirit can do, and certain things he has given us to do. For example, only he can create in our hearts the desire to obey God, but he does not obey for us. We must do that, but we can do so only as he enables us.

So we must depend on the Spirit to do within us what only he can do. And we must equally depend on him to enable us to do what he has given us to do. Whether his work or our work, we’re dependent on him.

We aren’t just dependent on him; we’re desperately dependent. Because we so often equate Christ-like character with ordinary morality, we fail to realize how impossible it is for us to attain any degree of conformity to Christ by ourselves. But if we take seriously the many Christ-like character traits we’re to put on, we see how impossible it is to grow in Christ-likeness apart from the sanctifying influence and power of the Spirit.

 

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Turning Point

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – His Power in Our Weakness

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Today’s Scripture: Amos 6-7

For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory. – Deuteronomy 20:4

What does it take to be used by God in a special way? Read the prophet Amos’s description of his background: “I was neither a prophet nor a prophet’s son, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees. But the Lord took me from tending the flock and said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel’” (7:14-15).

Amos was a plain country boy engaged in country work, gathering figs and following the flocks. In spite of his humble background, God had a job for Amos to do. And when God told Amos what it was, he got right at it. He didn’t waste time complaining about his lack of training in the art of prophesying. He trusted the Lord to give him the ability and wisdom he needed for the task.

Many years ago, I attended a weekend Navigator conference and heard Dawson Trotman speak on vision. He stressed the fact that God could use any Christian to make a serious impact on this world.

Daws had been driving a truck for a lumberyard when God touched his life through some Bible verses he’d memorized. From that point on, Daws obeyed the Lord and moved ahead. He never sat around bemoaning the fact that he’d never attended college or seminary. He studied hard, learned from others, and put into practice what he learned.

What kind of background does it take to serve God effectively? Whatever kind you have. Christian, if God is calling you to serve Him, then say yes, and get started right where you are today.

Prayer

Lord, with the Holy Spirit’s help, may I exercise my gifts and talents for Your glory. Amen.

To Ponder

The Holy Spirit strengthens our weaknesses.

 

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