Tag Archives: jesus christ

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Tear Bottle       

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He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. —Revelation 21:4

Jesus is God, with all the attributes of Deity. But He is also the Son of Man, who feels our pains and our sorrows. Isaiah 53 reminds us, “He was despised and rejected . . . a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief” (verse 3). The passage goes on to say, “Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down” (verse 4, NLT).

He not only carried your sin, He carried your sorrow. We’re told in Psalm 56:8, “You have seen me tossing and turning through the night. You have collected all my tears and preserved them in your bottle! You have recorded every one in your book” (TLB).

On a tour of Israel a number of years ago, I was exploring the old city of Jerusalem with my sons, Christopher and Jonathan. At one point in our ramblings, we stopped at an antiquities store, and I noticed a number of little bottles in various sizes and shapes. I asked the shopkeeper, “Sir, what are these bottles for?”

“Oh,” he said, “those are Roman tear bottles.”

“What were they used for?” I asked.

“Well, the Romans believed that when a loved one dies, you need to keep your tears in a bottle. So they would store the tears in these little containers.”

I have a tear bottle now. But it isn’t on earth; it’s in heaven. And I’m not the one who has to collect my own tears because God has already said He would do that.

So why does God keep our tears in a bottle? Because He sees and cares about every one of them. He takes note of our every tear. He hears our every sigh. And the Bible says that a day is coming when God will wipe away all of the tears from all of our years.

Today’s devotional is an excerpt from Every Day with Jesus by Greg Laurie, 2013

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Great Opportunities

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Max Lucado

There’s only so much sand in the hourglass. Who gets it? You know what I’m talking about, don’t you? Each June I put my calendar together for the coming year. Decisions to be made. You may not stockpile your requests until June, but your situation is every bit as real. It’s tug-of-war, and you’re the rope. On one side are the requests for your time and energy. They call. They compliment. They’re valid and good. Great opportunities to do good things. If they were evil, it’d be easy to say no. But they aren’t, so it’s easy to rationalize.

On the other side are the loved ones in your world. They don’t ask you to consult your calendar. They don’t use terms like “appointment” and “engagement” or “do lunch.”They don’t want you for what you can do for them; they want you for who you are. Are you making time for them?

From In the Eye of the Storm

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Do I have a role to play in communicating God’s truth to others?

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Charles Stanley

Matthew 28:19-20

God never wants us to keep what He teaches us to ourselves. Whether it is money, insight, or truth, He wants us to share it with others. There is a tremendous blessing to be gained by opening our hearts and lives to those who need to know about the unconditional love and forgiveness of Jesus Christ.

The truth is Jesus commands us to “make disciples of all the nations . . . teaching them to observe all that I commanded you” (Matt. 28:19-20). Just before He ascended to heaven, He told His disciples, “You shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth” (Acts 1:8). He never intended for the disciples to keep the truth of His Word stored away in personal reservoirs of knowledge. Instead, He instructed them to give away all they received from Him. He commands us to do the same.

Paul also admonished Timothy, his young protégé, to communicate the truth he had learned to others who would, in turn, pass it along (2 Tim. 2:2). Elsewhere he noted, “We are ambassadors for Christ” (2 Cor. 5:20). The sole purpose of an ambassador is to relay the policies and decisions of their superiors to the people of the countries where they serve. Likewise, we have an obligation to declare the divine plan and scriptural policies of our Master.

Each one of us communicates something by what we say and don’t say, by what we do and fail to do. A father who never reads the Bible is essentially telling his family that he does not care enough about the Lord to study His Word. His lack of desire in this area sends the message that he believes he is smart enough to make his own decisions apart from God’s input. The child who never sees her parents praying mistakenly learns that trials and tribulations can be handled without any direction from the Lord. This assumption is totally wrong.

On the other hand, a father who tells his family, “We are going to trust the Lord to provide us with what we need,” declares that God can be trusted in every facet of life. When children hear their parents praying, they quickly learn to trust God for every detail. They grow up viewing Him as very loving—the God who has the very best in mind for their lives.

Even when we remain silent, we subtly state something. Although the apostle Peter recognized the Gentiles as rightful recipients of God’s grace, he developed the bad habit of withdrawing from them during meals. His fellow Jews soon picked up on his prideful practice, with the result “that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy” (Gal. 2:13). Without a word, Peter had effectively sent a message that the Gentiles were inferior.

We must honestly evaluate our responses to the Lord’s commands. Are we deliberately and daily applying what He has taught us over the years? When we comprehend the truth, are we conforming ourselves to the image of Christ? Are we then communicating this truth to others?

Adapted from “The Charles F. Stanley’s Life Principles Bible,” 2008.

 

Resources About Opportunities

Related Video

Opportunities Before Us

Sometimes we fail to discern God-given chances to serve because we see them as obstacles or interruptions to our lives. In this message, Dr. Stanley explains how we reveal our spiritual condition by the way we respond to the opportunities He sends. (Watch Opportunities Before Us.)

 

 

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Holy, Holy, Holy

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Our Daily Bread

Revelation 4

They do not rest day or night, saying: “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” —Revelation 4:8

“Time flies when you’re having fun.” This cliché has no basis in fact, but experience makes it seem true.

When life is pleasant, time passes all too quickly. Give me a task that I enjoy, or a person whose company I love, and time seems irrelevant.

My experience of this “reality” has given me a new understanding of the scene described in Revelation 4. In the past, when I considered the four living creatures seated around God’s throne who keep repeating the same few words, I thought, What a boring existence!

I don’t think that anymore. I think about the scenes they have witnessed with their many eyes (v.8). I consider the view they have from their position around God’s throne (v.6). I think of how amazed they are at God’s wise and loving involvement with wayward earthlings. Then I think, What better response could there be? What else is there to say but, “Holy, holy, holy”?

Is it boring to say the same words over and over? Not when you’re in the presence of the one you love. Not when you’re doing exactly what you were designed to do.

Like the four creatures, we were designed to glorify God. Our lives will never be boring if we’re focusing our attention on Him and fulfilling that purpose. —Julie Ackerman Link

Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty!

Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee;

Holy, holy, holy! Merciful and mighty!

God in three Persons, blessed Trinity! —Heber

A heart in tune with God can’t help but sing His praise.

Bible in a year: Psalms 79-80; Romans 11:1-18

 

Alistair Begg

Alistair Begg – The Authority of Christ

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Alistair Begg

The Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.   Matthew 9:6

Consider here the Great Physician’s mighty power: the power to forgive sin! While He lived here below, before the ransom had been paid, before the blood had been literally sprinkled on the mercy-seat, He had power to forgive sin. Has He no power to do it now that He has died? What power must dwell in Him who to the utmost penny has faithfully discharged the debts of His people! He has unlimited power now that He has finished transgression and made an end of sin. If you doubt it, see Him rising from the dead! Behold Him in ascending splendor, raised to the right hand of God! Hear Him pleading before the eternal Father, pointing to His wounds, declaring the merit of His sacred passion!

What power to forgive is here! He ascended on high, and He gave gifts to men. He is exalted on high to give repentance and forgiveness of sins. The most crimson sins are removed by the crimson of His blood. At this moment, dear reader, whatever your sinfulness, Christ has power to pardon, power to pardon you, and millions just like you. A word will speak it. He has nothing more to do to win your pardon; all the atoning work is done.

He can, in answer to your tears, forgive your sins today and make you know it. He can breathe into your soul at this very moment a peace with God that passes all understanding, which shall spring from perfect remission of your many iniquities. Do you believe that? I trust you believe it. May you even now experience the power of Jesus to forgive sin! Waste no time in applying to the Physician of souls; hasten to Him with words like these:

Jesus! Master! hear my cry;

Save me, heal me with a word

Fainting at Thy feet I lie,

Thou my whisper’d plea has heard.

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The family reading plan for August 10, 2014 * Jeremiah 38 * Psalm 11, 12

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Devotional material is taken from “Morning and Evening,” written by C.H. Spurgeon, revised and updated by Alistair Begg.

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – The day of atonement

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“This shall be an everlasting statute unto you, to make an atonement for the children of Israel for all their sins once a year.” Leviticus 16:34

Suggested Further Reading: Hebrews 9:6-14

Jesus Christ “died, the just for the unjust, to bring us to God.” That day of atonement happened only once a year, to teach us that only once should Jesus Christ die; and that though he would come a second time, yet it would be without a sin offering unto salvation. The lambs were perpetually slaughtered; morning and evening they offered sacrifice to God, to remind the people that they always needed a sacrifice; but the day of atonement being the type of the one great propitiation, it was but once a year that the high priest entered within the veil with blood as the atonement for the sins of the people. And this was at a certain set and appointed time; it was not left to the choice of Moses, or to the convenience of Aaron, or to any other circumstance which might affect the date; it was appointed to be on a peculiar set day, as you find at the 29th verse: “In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month;” and at no other time was the day of atonement to be, to show us that God’s great day of atonement was appointed and predestined by himself. Christ’s expiation occurred but once, and then not by any chance; God had settled it from before the foundation of the world; and at that hour when God had predestined, on that very day that God had decreed that Christ should die, he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers, he was dumb. It was but once a year, because the sacrifice should be once; it was at an appointed time in the year, because in the fulness of time Jesus Christ should come into the world to die for us.

For meditation: Daily and annual sacrifices of animals could never bring salvation from sin—that required only the single sacrifice of Christ on a single day (Zechariah 3:9; 12:10; 13:1; Hebrews 9:25,26; 10:11,12).

Sermon no. 95

10 August (1856)

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Benevolence Without Love

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John MacArthur

“If I give all my possessions to feed the poor . . . but do not have love, it profits me nothing” (1 Cor. 13:3).

Love is characterized by self-sacrifice, but not all self-sacrifice is an act of love.

If you’ve ever donated to your church or another charitable organization out of obligation, peer pressure, legalism, guilt, a desire for recognition, or simply a tax deduction, you know what it means to give without love. In our society it’s easy to fall prey to that kind of giving because the needs are so great and fund raisers appeal to every conceivable motive. In addition, many cults and false religions encourage the giving up of possessions and other sacrificial gestures as a supposed means of earning God’s favor. But God is more interested in why you give than what you give.

Paul’s hypothetical illustration in 1 Corinthians 13:3 is of someone who sacrificed everything he had to feed the poor. The Greek word translated “to feed” means “to dole out in small quantities.” Apparently this guy didn’t simply write out a check for a food distribution program; he was personally involved in a long-term, systematic program that would eventually consume every resource he had.

Paul doesn’t mention motives—only that this person lacked love. Consequently, the benefits of his benevolence were limited to the physical realm. Any spiritual benefits were forfeited.

Jesus, making a similar point, said, “Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 6:1). If your motive for giving is to gain the approval of men, their accolades will be your only reward. If you’re motivated by love for God, He will reward you abundantly (vv. 2-4).

When you give to the Lord, what is your motive? Do you want others to think more highly of you? Do you feel obligated? Those are subtle influences, so be sure to guard your motives carefully. Remember, the only acceptable motive is love.

Suggestions for Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to keep you sensitive to the needs of others, enabling you always to give out of genuine love.

For Further Study: Read Luke 18:9-14.

  • How did the Pharisee’s prayer differ from the tax-gatherer’s?
  • How did God respond to each prayer?
Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – The Wounded Healer

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Joyce meyer

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of sympathy (pity and mercy) and the God [Who is the Source] of every comfort (consolation and encouragement), Who comforts (consoles and encourages) us in every trouble (calamity and affliction), so that we may also be able to comfort (console and encourage) those who are in any kind of trouble or distress, with the comfort (consolation and encouragement) with which we ourselves are comforted (consoled and encouraged) by God. —2 Corinthians 1:3,4

The best healer is often the wounded healer, because he knows what he is dealing with since he has suffered it himself. That’s what Paul was saying in this passage from his letter to the church in Corinth. If you have suffered through some hard times in your life, you are going to be even more successful in ministering to those who are going through the same kind of suffering in their lives. That doesn’t mean that those who have never suffered hardship or pain cannot be used by the Lord.

Some of the greatest and most powerful ministers I know have lived almost perfect lives. But just because you and I have suffered does not keep us from ministering successfully also. Even though you may have had a rough time in your life, God can use what you have been through for His glory—if you will allow Him to do so! If I were still back where I started out, feeling sorry for myself, I would be no good to myself or anyone else.

In fact, I would probably be on the devil’s lunch plate! He would be chewing me up and spitting me out. But because the Lord gave me the grace to lay down my self-pity and take up the challenge of living for Him, now I am able to help hundreds of thousands of people all over the nation and beyond.

To me the greatest testimony in the world is to be able to say, “God took what Satan tried to use to destroy me, and He turned it around for His glory and used it for the betterment of other people in the kingdom.” It takes God to do that! No matter where you may be today or what you may be going through, God can turn your situation around and use it to further His kingdom and bring blessings to you and to many others.

 

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Perfect Peace

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“He will keep in perfect peace all those who trust in Him, whose thoughts turn often to the Lord” (Isaiah 26:3).

John shared how, during the serious illness and death of his beloved Agnes, God had enveloped him with His perfect peace. Tom spoke with moistened eyes, of how God filled his heart with peace when he lost his job of more than 25 years. Roger and Kim shared how they experienced perfect peace in the loss of their darling two-year-old who had just died of leukemia. Peter had just received the solemn word from his doctor that he had no more than six months to live. What joy, soon he would see his Lord and witness perfect peace!

How can these things be?

Because the Prince of Peace dwells within the heart of every believer and He promised, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (John 14:27 KJV). God is waiting to pour out His supernatural peace upon all who will trust and obey Him.

In my experience with thousands of businessmen, laymen and students, I have discovered an interesting fact. In a time of crisis when one’s world is crumbling, wealth, fame, power, position, glory, are not important any more. It is inner peace that every man longs for and for which he would gladly give his fortune. But remember that perfect peace comes only to those who walk in faith and obedience. Such peace is not the experience of those who live self-centered lives, violating the laws of God.

Bible Reading: John 14:27-31

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: As a candidate for God’s perfect peace, I will meditate upon His laws and through the enabling of His Holy Spirit, seek to obey His commands.

Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; C.P. – An Act of Kindness

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Moses’ passion for his suffering people moved him to kill an Egyptian who had been beating an Israelite. Yet Moses had a lot to learn before he could act on behalf of God’s people. He fled to Midian. There he met Jethro’s daughters, fought off their attackers and drew water for their flocks.

And Moses was content to dwell with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah.

Exodus 2:21

When Jethro heard what had happened, he took Moses in and gave him his daughter Zipporah as a wife, who, in some of the most unusual verses in the Bible (Exodus 4:24-26), returned his kindness by saving him. She interceded, saying, “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,” and God spared Moses. The Lord had a more complicated plan to save His people than Moses had. Because of Zipporah’s act of compassion, He was able to implement it.

God often uses little acts of kindness in our lives to bring about His plan. Do something nice for someone today, entrusting outcomes to the Lord…and intercede for this nation’s leaders, praying that they will not follow their own passion or reasoning, but instead be submissive to God’s will.

Recommended Reading: Ephesians 4:25-32

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Faith Without Love

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John MacArthur

“If I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing” (1 Cor. 13:2).

Loveless faith is useless faith.

In Matthew 17:19 the disciples came to Jesus wanting to know why they couldn’t cast a demonic spirit from a child. Jesus responded, “Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you shall say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it shall move; and nothing shall be impossible to you” (v. 20). He repeated the same principle in Matthew 21:21: “Truly I say to you, if you have faith, and do not doubt, you shall . . . say to this mountain [the Mount of Olives], ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ [and] it shall happen.”

Those passages have puzzled many people because they’ve never seen anyone move a mountain. But Jesus wasn’t speaking literally. Moving mountains would cause all kinds of ecological problems and would be a pointless miracle. The expression “able to move mountains” was a common figure of speech in that day, meaning “to surmount great obstacles.” Jesus was speaking of those who have the gift of faith—who can move the hand of God through unwavering prayer.

The gift of faith is the ability to believe that God will act according to His will, no matter the circumstances. People with that gift are prayer warriors and tend to stand as rocks when others around them are falling apart. They see God’s power and purposes at work and trust Him even when others doubt.

But, says Paul, even if you have such faith, if you don’t have love, you are nothing. That’s a harsh rebuke, but it places the emphasis where it belongs: on our motives. The Corinthians’ motives were evident in their selfish pursuit of the showy gifts.

What motivates you? Remember, without love it doesn’t matter what gifts you have, how eloquent your speech is, what you know, or what you believe. Only love can validate your service to Christ.

Suggestions for Prayer   Ask God for a greater capacity to trust Him, and the motivation to pray more fervently.

For Further Study  Read Hebrews 11, drawing from the examples of the people of great faith mentioned there.

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Satan’s Strongholds

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Joyce meyer

For the weapons of our warfare are not physical [weapons of flesh and blood], but they are mighty before God for the overthrow and destruction of strongholds.—2 Corinthians 10:4

A stronghold is an area in which we are held in bondage—any part of our lives in which Satan imprisons us. He does this by causing us to think a certain way—a way that is based on lies we have been told. As long as we believe things that are not true, we will remain imprisoned by those strongholds. To enjoy freedom, we must learn to use God’s mighty weapons.

In my book Battlefield of the Mind, I referred to Mary, who had been mistreated and brainwashed by her father, and by the time she was a teen, she didn’t trust men. It’s no wonder that she and her husband faced many conflicts in their ¬marriage. For years, Satan had lied to her and she believed the lies.

Mary isn’t one isolated case. I know a man named Daniel, who is quite intelligent. In fact, his family used to tell him he was the smartest man in town. God had given him a good mind, but Satan used that fact to imprison him. Until he met Jesus Christ, Daniel believed he was smarter than and superior to everyone else. Because of his pride, it was easy for him to be deceived and think more highly of himself than he should. He became critical and judgmental of others who he felt were not as brilliant as he believed he was.

Patricia was somewhat like Mary, except that her father constantly told her she was no good; that she was worthless and should marry the first man who would have her. That’s exactly what she did, and she lived a miserable life. She felt she was never good enough for anyone.

Mary, Daniel, and Patricia had been trapped in different prisons, but Satan was the jail keeper. All three lived miserable lives until they leaned what Paul meant by “the weapons of our warfare.” The Word of God is the weapon that set them free. That weapon became effective through preaching, teaching, books, tapes, seminars, small Bible study groups, and their own private studies. They also learned to turn to other spiritual weapons such as praise and prayer. They learned that when we genuinely praise God from our hearts, we defeat the devil quicker than by using any other battle plan.

They didn’t overcome every problem the first day—it was a slow process, but it was worth the wait. Patricia later said, “It took a lot of years for me to become imprisoned through the lies of Satan, so why not give God plenty of time to work His good plan into my life?” Our victory is not a one-time, big event—it is a process.

“The more I realized how badly Satan played with my mind,” Daniel said, “the more I could stand against him. The truth of God’s Word made me free.”

Praise and prayer are great weapons that God’s people should use in overcoming the power of the evil one. Praise helps us keep our minds on God, His power, and the good things that are taking place in our lives. It is proof that we believe He can and will help us.

True prayer reflects a relationship with God and shows that we depend on Him. We are His children, and He is our Father. When we pray, we open the door for God’s help. We ask Him to free our minds and give us victory over Satan’s strongholds. God answers those prayers. In fact, God is more eager to answer our prayers for help than we are to ask. Think of prayer this way: when we pray in faith, tremendous power is made available to us.

As we truly understand that we are God’s children, we will gain confidence to use the weapons of our warfare. The weapons are there. We just need instruction on how to use them and encouragement not to give up. Jesus has promised to be with us always (see Matthew 28:20). We can win with our weapons because they are spiritual weapons. The devil fights a carnal, fleshly warfare, but we can win because we have the power of God on our side.

Precious Holy Spirit, teach me to understand that the weapons of our warfare are spiritual and that we can win against every attack of the devil. In Christ’s name, I pray. Amen.

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – The Results of Insecurity

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Charles Stanley

Psalm 143:8

We’ve already seen some of the areas where insecurity shows up. Now we need to turn our attention to its effects.

To start, insecure people have difficulty establishing good, lasting relationships. They simply cannot see how they could add value to anyone else’s life. This is a tragic loss, because every one of us needs deep and meaningful friendships to help us grow.

Also, men and women with insecurity are often seen as prideful or snobbish. Lack of confidence may cause them to withdraw from others, which can easily be mistaken for an act of arrogance. They can thereby give the impression that they simply don’t want to be around others.

What’s more, insecurity frequently leads to indecisiveness and fear. People can be so consumed with self-doubt that they can’t make any decision at all. They wonder, What if I make a mistake? Well, so what if they do? Making mistakes is one of the best ways to learn how to do something correctly. Don’t be afraid to try. Even if you don’t succeed, you can at least rest in the fact that you did your best.

After a while, insecure people typically become angry. When they go so long feeling so poorly about themselves, they start to resent the success and happiness of others. Can you see how something as subtle as a lack of confidence can have a debilitating effect on one’s life? Don’t let such devastation affect your relationships. Pray for the ability to recognize areas of self-doubt. And then take a step toward freedom today by asking the Lord to heal your insecurities.

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Finding God’s Pathway

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Our Daily Bread

Psalm 77:10-20

Your way was in the sea, Your path in the great waters. —Psalm 77:19

The Channel Tunnel opened on May 6, 1994, nearly two centuries after it was first proposed in 1802 by Napoleon’s engineer, Albert Mathieu. Today the 31-mile passage beneath the English Channel allows thousands of people, cars, and trucks to travel by train each day between England and France. For centuries, people had sailed across the Channel until this surprising new way to go under it was completed.

God planned an unexpected route for His people too—one we read about in Exodus 14:10-22. Faced with certain death, either from Pharaoh’s army or by drowning, the Israelites were near panic. But God parted the Red Sea and they walked through on dry land. Years later, the psalm writer Asaph used this event as evidence of God’s mighty power, “Your road led through the sea, your pathway through the mighty waters—a pathway no one knew was there! You led Your people along that road like a flock of sheep, with Moses and Aaron as their shepherds” (Ps. 77:19-20 NLT).

God can create roads where we see only obstacles. When the way ahead of us seems uncertain, it’s good to remember what God has done in the past. He specializes in pathways in any circumstance—pathways that point us to His love and power. —David McCasland

Thank You, God, for the miraculous ways

You have worked in the past. Help me to

remember Your power and faithfulness when

I can see only trouble and difficulty.

The God who created a way for our salvation can certainly see us through our daily trials.

Bible in a year: Psalms 77-78; Romans 10

Insight

In this lament psalm, Asaph writes of the sense of abandonment, the sleepless nights, the distress, and the anguish he felt when God did not respond to his cries for deliverance from his trials and suffering (vv.1-10). But then he remembered and recounted the mighty works God did for His people in the past (particularly His mighty deliverance at the exodus). When he reflected and meditated on who God is, he was assured of God’s greatness, goodness, and guidance (vv.11-20). Where God leads, He protects and provides (v.20).

Alistair Begg

Alistair Begg – Transformed by Grace

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Alistair Begg

He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons.  Mark 16:9

Mary of Magdala was the victim of a fearful evil. She was possessed not just by one demon, but by seven. These dreadful inmates caused much pain and pollution to the poor frame in which they had found a lodging. Hers was a hopeless, horrible case. She could not help herself, and no human power could set her free. But Jesus passed that way, and without being asked and probably while being resisted by the poor demoniac, He uttered the word of power, and Mary of Magdala became a trophy of the healing power of Jesus. All seven demons left her, left her never to return, forcibly ejected by the Lord of all.

What a blessed deliverance! What a happy change! From delirium to delight, from despair to peace, from hell to heaven! Immediately she became a constant follower of Jesus, listening to His every word, following His winding steps, sharing His busy life; and in all this she became His generous helper, first among that band of healed and grateful women who ministered to Him out of their means. When Jesus was lifted up in crucifixion, Mary remained the sharer of His shame: We find her first watching from a distance and then drawing near to the foot of the cross. She could not die on the cross with Jesus, but she stood as near to it as she could, and when His blessed body was taken down, she watched to see how and where it was laid.

She was the faithful and watchful believer, last at the sepulcher where Jesus slept, first at the grave where He arose. Her loyalty and love made her a favored beholder of her beloved Master, who deigned to call her by her name and to make her His messenger of good news to the trembling disciples and Peter. Grace found her useless and made her useful, cast out her demons and gave her to behold angels, delivered her from Satan and united her forever to the Lord Jesus. May we also be such miracles of grace!

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The family reading plan for August 9, 2014 * Jeremiah 37 * Psalm 10

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Devotional material is taken from “Morning and Evening,” written by C.H. Spurgeon, revised and updated by Alistair Begg.

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Love thy neighbour

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CharlesSpurgeon

“Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” Matthew 19:19

Suggested Further Reading: Romans 12:6-13

Remember that man’s good requires that you should be kind to your fellow creatures. The best way for you to make the world better is to be kind yourself. Are you a preacher? Preach in a surly way, and in a surly tone to your church; a pretty church you will make of it before long! Are you a Sunday-school teacher? Teach your children with a frown on your face; a fine lot they will learn! Are you a master? Do you hold family prayer? Get in a passion with your servants, and say, “Let us pray.” A vast amount of devotion you will develop in such a manner as that. Are you a warder of a gaol, and have prisoners under you? Abuse them and ill-treat them, and then send the chaplain to them. A fine preparation for the reception of the word of God! You have poor around you; you wish to see them elevated, you say. You are always grumbling about the poverty of their dwellings, and the meanness of their tastes. Go and make a great stir at them all—a fine way that would be to improve them! Now, just wash your face of that black frown, and buy a little of the essence of summer somewhere, and put it on your face; and have a smile on your lip, and say, “I love you. I am no cant, but I love you, and as far as I can I will prove my love to you. What can I do for you? Can I help you over a stile? Can I give you any assistance, or speak a kind word to you? Perhaps I could look after your little daughter. Can I fetch the doctor to your wife now she is ill?” All these kind things would be making the world a little better.

For meditation: The effectiveness of what we say and do can depend to a large extent on how we say and do it (1 Corinthians 13:1-3). Faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience and godliness are to be supplemented by brotherly kindness and love (2 Peter 1:5-7).

Sermon no. 145

9 August (1857)

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – True Spiritual Life

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“Only the Holy Spirit gives eternal life. Those born only once, with physical birth, will never receive this gift. But now I have told you how to get this true spiritual life” (John 6:63).

A businessman called to ask if he could bring one of his associates to talk to me about receiving Christ. As the three of us talked together, it became apparent that the businessman who arranged the meeting was not a Christian either. So after his friend had received Christ, I asked him if he believed that Jesus Christ was the Son of God.

“Yes,” he said.

“Do you believe that He died for your sins?”

“Of course.”

“Have you ever received Him into you life as your Savior and Lord?”

“No,” he said, “I haven’t.”

“Wouldn’t you like to do so?”

“Yes,” he said, “I would. But I have been waiting for that peculiar time when God would speak to me in a very emotional way.”

He explained that this was the way his mother had become a Christian, and he felt that this was the way he should become a Christian, too.

Once again I reviewed very simply the plan of salvation, explaining that only the Holy Spirit gives eternal life and there may or may not be an emotional experience accompanying the moment of salvation. I explained that salvation is a gift of God, which we receive by faith on the basis of His promise.

So together we prayed, and though I had explained that he should not expect any emotional experience, God graciously touched him in a very dramatic way emotionally, contrary to my own experience and that of the majority of people with whom I counsel and pray.

Bible Reading: John 6:60-65

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Realizing that no one can enter the kingdom of God apart from a spiritual birth, I will today pray for many opportunities to share the good news of God’s love and forgiveness in Christ with others.

Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; J.K. – A Heart for God

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Today’s verse is part of a message that Moses delivered to the people of Israel. They had just forsaken God to worship the golden calf. Chosen by God, their faithlessness was met by His faithfulness. He used His messenger – an ordinary man – to be a channel through which He accomplished so much.

What does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways.

Deuteronomy 10:12

It was by faith that Moses left Egypt only to return under God’s direction to guide Israel out of captivity. It was by faith that he led them to cross the Red Sea. F.B. Meyer, in his book Moses, calls it the marvelous faculty of faith…the capacity of the human heart for God! It is putting self aside so that the Lord can work through you. With no thought about your human qualifications, the attitude of your heart will desire to become an organ through which He can work out His purposes.

Knit your soul to God by sensing your helplessness. Dedicate your whole self to Him. Let Him act through you to accomplish His purposes. Then pray that the leaders of this country would turn to the true God in whom to put their faith.

Recommended Reading: Deuteronomy 10:12-11:2

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Guided from Above   

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We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us. —Romans 5:3–5

The fact that God has chosen us, has forgiven us, and has given us free access into His presence means that our existence isn’t some cosmic accident, and that our lives are guided neither by chance nor luck, neither by fate nor karma. It means we are guided by His providence.

There is, therefore, real meaning and purpose when I go through tribulation. It is not for nothing. Before we met Christ, we might have thought of hardships or difficulties as random effects of nature and something merely to be endured. But now we can know that God is in control of all circumstances that surround our lives as believers.

As Paul said, “We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.” (Romans 5:3 NLT). Paul wasn’t simply gritting his teeth and enduring these experiences; he was glorying in them. This doesn’t mean that Paul was a masochist. He had made a choice. When he was going through hardship, he decided that he wasn’t going to become bitter; he was going to become better.

We have the same choice. When difficult days come, we can get mad at God and turn away from Him, or we can embrace that difficulty and attempt to learn what He seeks to teach us.

Today’s devotional is an excerpt from Every Day with Jesus by Greg Laurie, 2013

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Identifying Insecurity

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Charles Stanley

Psalm 139:13-26

Let me ask you to do what may be an uncomfortable exercise. We’re going to examine statements that insecure people often make about themselves. As you read each one, ask yourself, Do I think similarly?

Insecure people make comments like:

  • Why bother trying? I’ll never get it right.
  • Everyone is looking at me, just waiting for me to make a fool of myself.
  • I’m a failure.
  • I am ugly and awful to look at.
  • I can never win. I’m just a loser.
  • No matter how hard I work, I never get any recognition.
  • I am incompetent at everything.
  • Nobody could ever speak well about me.
  • I have failed before—once a failure, always a failure.
  • I don’t see how anyone could ever like, respect, or accept me.
  • I don’t deserve to be treated well.
  • I don’t fit here or anywhere else.
  • Everyone else looks so put together. I feel quite out of it compared to them.
  • I am an incomplete person, and nothing can change that.
  • Why would anyone care to hear what I have to say?
  • People are nice to me only when they want something from me.

Did any of the above statements ring true for you? Prayerfully consider the ones that got your attention. Then, take those specific insecurities to the Lord, and allow Him to show you His truth in each area. God wants to set you free from anything hindering your spiritual development.