Tag Archives: human-rights

The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – The Work of Our Hands

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Today’s Scripture: Exodus 28-31

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. – 2 Corinthians 9:8

Today’s passage shows Moses demonstrating humility in what could have been a very sticky situation. His brother, Aaron, is appointed high priest, and his descendants after him will fill that role. At the same time, the descendants of Moses are assigned the menial work of the Levite. They carried the Tabernacle about from place to place. They became janitors. They put up the tent. They assisted the priests in their various responsibilities, yet Moses didn’t balk at this arrangement. It is clear evidence of his humble spirit and sincere commitment to the glory of God.

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BreakPoint

BreakPoint – How Can You Maintain a Christian Worldview in a Post-Modern Culture?

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I meet folks all the time who sense that things have changed. What Francis Schaeffer and Chuck Colson once called “a post-Christian” culture has become a “post-Christian-and-darn-proud-of-it” culture. Living out your faith is, well, difficult these days. And it’s frustrating.

Yet here we are. We, like every other generation of Christ followers, are still called to share our faith in this cultural moment. We’re still called to live our faith out in our communities, places of work, neighborhoods, etc. But how do we do this?

The most important thing, Chuck Colson believed, was to be equipped in Christian worldview, with the ability to communicate it in what he sometimes called “prudential language.” Here’s Chuck describing what that means.

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Moody Global Ministries

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – ANSWERED PROMISES

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Read 2 Corinthians 1:12-22

Sophia Kichou was a homeless teenager who turned to Centrepoint, a London organization that supports young people with housing and health care. Prince William is a patron of Centrepoint; when she was 18 years old Sophia met him and shared her dream of becoming a journalist. The prince said he would give her an interview when she reached her goals. Last December, he fulfilled that six-year-old promise, inviting Sophia to Kensington Palace and giving her an exclusive interview.

Promises reveal our character. Do we make them quickly and forget to follow through? Or do we refuse to promise anything, unwilling to be bound by any commitments? As our text today tells us, God has made us many incredibly wonderful promises—and He fulfills them all in Christ.

The apostle Paul was facing charges from some in the church in Corinth that he was fickle, untrustworthy, and unreliable. Part of their accusation seems to be that Paul had intended to visit the church on a trip to Macedonia, but he was unable to see them as he had planned (vv. 15–17). Paul appeals to the perfect plan of God as part of his defense. Even when our human plans are derailed, God’s plan and promise for us remain secure.

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Denison Forum

Denison Forum – WHY ARE SATANIC TEMPLE AND QUEEN ELIZABETH IN THE NEWS?

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I cannot imagine writing on two more dissimilar stories in today’s news.

The Satanic Temple (TST) is a movement that began in 2013. The group now has seventeen chapters in the U.S. and Europe and claims an estimated 100,000 members. Its members have created satanic coloring books for distribution in Florida and Colorado schools, offered prayers to Satan at a Seattle high school football game, and demanded that a satanic statue be erected next to a monument to the Ten Commandments at the Oklahoma State Capitol.

TST has been in the news lately due to its efforts to inspire a “satanic revolution.” The group has been holding rallies—the most recent was in Austin, Texas—to further its cause.

Meanwhile, Queen Elizabeth turned ninety last week. She is the longest reigning monarch in England’s long history. She had a conference with President Obama the day after her birthday and has met twelve American presidents. The queen has watched her country change in dramatic ways. Yet she remains an amazing force for good in the U.K. and beyond.

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Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Praying the Promises of God

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Isaiah 40:8

Jesus made it clear that we would endure many hardships in this life. But God provided amazing tools to keep trials from overwhelming us. For instance, He placed His Spirit inside each believer to guide and empower. In addition, He gave us prayer so we could not only communicate and stay connected with our Father but also bring Him our requests.

Today I want to focus on yet another one of His marvelous gifts: the Bible. Scripture is the actual Word of God Almighty. It is truth. It never changes. It enables us in all circumstances, so we have a sure foundation on which to base our lives and decisions.

There are thousands of promises in the Bible—countless assurances that we can rely on with perfect confidence. God wants us to learn them so we won’t miss out on blessings He wants to give. And wise believers will turn His promises into prayers, which they express as the cry of their heart.

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Relief for the Troubled

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Read: 2 Thessalonians 1:3-12

Bible in a Year: 2 Samuel 19-20; Luke 18:1-23

[God will] give relief to you who are troubled. —2 Thessalonians 1:7

One of my favorite scenes in literature occurs when a feisty aunt confronts an evil stepfather over the abuse of her nephew, David Copperfield. This scene takes place in Charles Dickens’ novel named after the main character.

When David Copperfield shows up at his aunt’s house, his stepfather is not far behind. Aunt Betsy Trotwood is not pleased to see the malicious Mr. Murdstone. She recounts a list of offenses and does not let him slither out of his responsibility for each act of cruelty. Her charges are so forceful and truthful that Mr. Murdstone—a normally aggressive person—finally leaves without a word. Through the strength and goodness of Aunt Betsy’s character, David finally receives justice.

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John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Strength for Today – The Resurrection: A Belief That Matters

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“How do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?” (1 Corinthians 15:12).

Without the truth of bodily resurrection, the Christian faith would not make sense.

Even though Paul and the other apostles made the resurrection of Christ and His followers from the dead a central part of the gospel message, some new Gentile converts (the Corinthians especially) had difficulty accepting the idea of bodily resurrection. That struggle resulted mainly from the effects of Greek dualism, which viewed the spiritual as inherently good and the physical as inherently bad. Under that belief, a physical resurrection was considered quite repulsive.

The only way for the doubting Gentiles to accommodate their dualism was to say that Jesus was divine but not truly human. Therefore, He only appeared to die, and His appearances between the crucifixion and ascension were manifestations that merely seemed to be bodily. But Paul knew that was bad doctrine. He wrote to the Romans, “Concerning His Son . . . born of the seed of David according to the flesh . . . declared with power to be the Son of God by the resurrection from the dead” (Rom. 1:3-4).

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Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – Spiritually Mixed Marriage 

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They have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, and have mingled the holy race with the peoples around them. And the leaders and officials have led the way in this unfaithfulness.   Ezra 9:2

Marriage is between a man and a woman, and Christian marriage is between two Christians. This is God’s plan, and attempts to circumvent His plan can lead to watered down faith and a lifestyle lived contrary to Christian principles. This is the risk you take if you marry someone who is not a committed follower of Jesus Christ. Christian marriage already has plenty of challenges without the added confusion brought on by mixed belief systems and values. Two contrasting faiths are like blending oil and water. It doesn’t work, and it creates a mess.

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Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Spiritually Mixed Marriage 

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They have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, and have mingled the holy race with the peoples around them. And the leaders and officials have led the way in this unfaithfulness.   Ezra 9:2

Marriage is between a man and a woman, and Christian marriage is between two Christians. This is God’s plan, and attempts to circumvent His plan can lead to watered down faith and a lifestyle lived contrary to Christian principles. This is the risk you take if you marry someone who is not a committed follower of Jesus Christ. Christian marriage already has plenty of challenges without the added confusion brought on by mixed belief systems and values. Two contrasting faiths are like blending oil and water. It doesn’t work, and it creates a mess.

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Ray Stedman

Ray Stedman – Enjoying our Priesthood

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Read: Leviticus 22

Keep my commands and follow them. I am the Lord. Do not profane my holy name, for I must be acknowledged as holy by the Israelites. I am the Lord, who made you holy and who brought you out of Egypt to be your God. I am the Lord. Lev 22:31-33

What tenderness and compassion there is in those verses! I am the LORD, he says, who brought you out of bondage, out of slavery. I set you free. And I want to heal your life and bring you into a land of abundance and promise, of excitement and blessing and fruitfulness, with a sense of worth and power, and to be your God, to be available to you to teach you how to live as men were ordained to live in the beginning — in dominion over all the earth, over all the powers and principalities that exist in the universe, and to walk as free people, healed and whole. That is why I speak to you this way, the LORD says. That is why at times I will not allow you to exercise ministry even though you want to, until you deal with the blemishes of your life. When they are healed, then your ministry can begin.

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Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – Careless Words (Part 1)

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Read: James 3:1-8

But no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. (v. 8)

Our words have power. We don’t realize how much power our words have. James did. He warns his readers continuously to guard their tongues; to be mindful of what they say. And in today’s passage, he says that our tongue is “a small member, yet it boasts” (v. 5); it “is a fire, a world of unrighteousness . . . set on fire by hell” (v. 6), and “a restless evil, full of deadly poison” (v. 8). Whoa. That’s serious!

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Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; J.R. – Sow Sorry

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Depending on what you believe, he was shot by a hired killer at a house in Detroit and his remains cremated – or he was dispatched with a hunting knife and then buried in a 55-gallon drum…which was then placed in an old car, crushed in a compactor and sent to Japan as scrap metal. Or he was buried under a residential driveway. Or he was interred in a shallow grave in a field near a restaurant. Or he was entombed in concrete beneath the end zone at the stadium in Meadowlands, New Jersey.

Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.

Galatians 6:7

Whatever you believe, no one has been able to prove what happened to Jimmy Hoffa, the infamous Teamsters boss and mafia figure who disappeared in 1975. What is almost certain is that somebody did to him what he had very likely ordered done to others.

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Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – God Won’t Let Sin Make Us Happy

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“The hope of the righteous shall be gladness: but the expectation of the wicked shall perish.” (Proverbs 10:28)

Jamie and Uncle Mike climbed into the big red Ford F150. The tackleboxes were between them on the seat. As Uncle Mike drove them to the lot on the lake where their favorite fishing alcove was, Jamie opened up one of the tackleboxes to take a look at the lures. There were all kinds, some of them knobby or slimy, some feathery, some glossy. And all of them were colorful! Jamie especially liked the brand new jitterbugs Uncle Mike had bought down in Florida last month. As the truck rumbled to a stop in the gravel by the boat ramp, Jamie had a bright idea. While Uncle Mike got busy cranking down the fishing boat, Jamie got busy picking out the fanciest, smoothest, reddest (because red was his favorite color) jitterbug for himself. Without a sound, Jamie shoved the lure in his jeans pocket and went out to help Uncle Mike put the gear in the boat.

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Jerry Bridges – Holiness Day by Day Devotional – Grounded in Mercy

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Today’s Scripture: Titus 3:5

“He saved us . . . according to his own mercy.”

It was in view of God’s mercy that Paul urged us to commit our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God (Romans 12:1). Undoubtedly Paul had in mind the mercy of God as he had displayed it in the preceding chapters of Romans. He could have been thinking of the righteousness of God that comes to us by faith, of justification freely by his grace through the redemption that’s in Christ Jesus, or of God presenting Jesus as a propitiation for our sins that turns aside God’s just and holy wrath from us.

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – We’re in This Together

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Today’s Scripture: 2 Corinthians 1-5

It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up. – Ephesians 4:11-12

I know some people who feel that Christian ministry is the job of the pastor and the paid church staff. The rest of us are like spectators in the bleachers. We cheer on the team, but we don’t play the game.

How do you think the apostle Paul viewed the Christian ministry? Here are his words from 2 Corinthians 4:1: “Therefore, since through God’s mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart.” Then in verse 7, “But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.”

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Moody Global Ministries

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – SPIRIT LIVING WITHIN

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Read Romans 8:14

The character Superman can fly faster than a speeding bullet and leap tall buildings in a single bound. But Superman uses the alter ego of mild- mannered reporter Clark Kent to veil his true identity. Clark Kent is unobtrusive, wearing inconspicuous clothes—until Superman needs to save the day. Then he hurriedly pulls off his dress shirt to reveal the large “S” emblazoned on Superman’s uniform.

For the rest of our study this month we’ll focus on the ways that we are blessed in Christ. An essential part of our identity is the blessing of the Holy Spirit, who indwells our hearts. Though we might look like everyone else around us, in reality we have the power of God’s Spirit in our lives, shaping our true identity to look more like Jesus. Unlike Superman and Clark Kent, however, we don’t have to keep our true identity a secret.

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Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – God’s Grand Plan

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1 Peter 1:13-16

First Peter 1:16 says, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” What an overwhelming command! But that is exactly what the Lord is committed to do in our lives—make us holy. His grand plan can be summed up in one word: sanctification. This is the three-stage process by which He sets us apart for His purposes.

Stage one occurs at the moment of our salvation. When God declares us righteous, we are positionally holy. The second stage is a progression of growth as we become more and more in practice what we already are in position. This process will continue for as long as we are alive on this earth.

The Father has predestined us to be conformed to the image of His Son (Rom. 8:29), and He is continually working to shape our character, conduct, and conversation. Although God is the one who accomplishes the transformation, we have some responsibility in the process. If we don’t cooperate with Him, the world will squeeze us into its mold, and we will miss the great plans He has for us.

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — God’s Enduring Word

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Read: Psalm 119:89-96

Bible in a Year: 2 Samuel 16-18; Luke 17:20-37

Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. —Matthew 24:35

At the beginning of World War II, aerial bombings flattened much of Warsaw, Poland. Cement blocks, ruptured plumbing, and shards of glass lay strewn across the great city. In the downtown area, however, most of one damaged building still stubbornly stood. It was the Polish headquarters for the British and Foreign Bible Society. Still legible on a surviving wall were these words: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away” (Matt. 24:35).

Jesus made that statement to encourage His disciples when they asked Him about the “end of the age” (v. 3). But His words also give us courage in the midst of our embattled situation today. Standing in the rubble of our shattered dreams, we can still find confidence in God’s indestructible character, sovereignty, and promises.

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John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Strength for Today – A Special Testimony

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“And last of all, as it were to one untimely born, He appeared to me also” (1 Corinthians 15:8).

The resurrection power of Christ transformed Paul into a preacher of the gospel.

Throughout history, reliable eyewitness testimony about a person or event has been one of the most accepted forms of courtroom evidence. The apostle Paul appeals to the eyewitness record as an important confirmation of the Resurrection’s reality. He cites the examples of Peter, the apostles (twice), 500 believers, and James (1 Cor. 15:5-7). And with today’s verse, Paul presents himself as a special eyewitness to the fact of Jesus’ resurrection.

Paul’s case was unique. He was not among the original apostles, nor the 500 other believers, all of whom had opportunities to be with the Lord during His earthly ministry and/or see Him soon after He arose. Paul was not even a Christian during his early life and career but was rather the leader of those who persecuted the early church.

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Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – God’s Love, Compassion, Faithfulness 

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Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.”     Lamentations 3:22-24

The love of God keeps you from being consumed by the fiery flames of grief. Your sorrows can overwhelm you, but He is there as your loving heavenly Father to see you through your sadness. The love of God is a peacemaker when you become consumed with conflict. His love mediates and works out solutions for all willing parties. Conflict melts under the loving influence of God. Worry is all-consuming until it comes under the direct influence of God’s love, for His love exudes peace.

Thus, the peace of God and the worry of the world cannot coexist. Fear can be all-consuming. However, the love of God flushes out fear and replaces it with trust. Fleeting fear must be replaced by faith or it will return to occupy your heart and mind. The love of God floods your soul with faith. Fear vanishes under the influence of faith.

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