Tag Archives: theology

Moody Global Ministries

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – REDEFINING SHAME

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Read 2 Timothy 1:8-2:15

What would you think of a man dressed in an orange jumpsuit with cuffs on his wrists and ankles? If flanked by uniformed police officers, we might see him as a dangerous criminal. But if held between black-hooded ISIS militants, we might think he was a martyr.

The same situation can be a cause for shame or honor, depending on whose interpretation we accept. This is the essence of Paul’s message to Timothy. Paul was wrestling against the shame of his incarcerated status. Both Roman and Jewish officials had treated him as though he were dangerous. Many of his fellow Christians, influenced by public perception, had subsequently turned away from him (1:15).

But when Paul raised his eyes above the world’s view of his life, he saw God smiling on his chains. In God’s economy, these were chains of honor, proving his love for Christ and commitment to His gospel. As long as he held on to a heavenly perspective, Paul could resist the world’s shame.

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Denison Forum

Denison Forum – GROUP IS ‘MUCH MORE DANGEROUS’ THAN ISIS

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A terrorist group you’ve probably never heard of may be the greatest threat America faces.

A new report on threats to America has been issued by the American Enterprise Institute and the Institute for the Study of War. It claims that Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian branch of al Qaeda, is “much more dangerous to the U.S. than the ISIS model in the long run.” Why?

ISIS is alienating Muslims worldwide with its horrific executions, rapes, and forced allegiance to its ideology. Al-Nusra is following a more gradual strategy. It provides services to Syrians, builds strong relationships with local communities, and focuses primarily on fighting the al-Assad government.

According to Middle East expert Fred Kagan, the group is “quietly intertwining itself with the Syrian population and Syrian opposition. . . . They are waiting in the wings to pick up the mantle of global jihad once ISIS falls.”

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Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – The Landmine of Insecurity

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Psalms 40:1-5

Insecurity may not sound as explosive as landmines like pride or jealousy, but it, too, is a very dangerous pitfall. A great deal of damage can result in the life of a person who habitually feels insecure. Such feelings can develop from many different kinds of situations. We may experience tragedy, like the loss of a parent in our early life, or we may grow up in an environment that throws us off balance. Sometimes we feel insecure because of major failures we’ve experienced.

Whatever the root cause, the effects are often similar. We may be indecisive because our fear of making the wrong choice leads to avoid decisions altogether. Sometimes we have a difficult time establishing lasting relationships because we are afraid we won’t be a good friend. Or we might keep our distance from fear of rejection—people frequently perceive this as pride or snobbery.

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — When Questions Remain

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Read: Job 23:1-12

Bible in a Year: Exodus 14-15; Matthew 17

He knows the way that I take. —Job 23:10

On October 31, 2014, an experimental spacecraft broke apart during a test flight and crashed into the Mojave Desert. The copilot died while the pilot miraculously survived. Investigators soon determined what had happened, but not why. The title of a newspaper article about the crash began with the words “Questions remain.”

Throughout life we may experience sorrows for which there are no adequate explanations. Some are catastrophic events with far-reaching effects while others are personal, private tragedies that alter our individual lives and families. We want to know why, but we seem to find more questions than answers. Yet even as we struggle with “Why?” God extends His unfailing love to us.

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Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Living Risk

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Actuarial science is the discipline that applies statistical methods to assess risk of disability, morbidity, mortality, fertility, and other life-contingencies. Generally, actuaries are employed by insurance companies or risk management firms to calculate the ‘risks’ associated with insuring individuals against life’s catastrophes. Actuarial science offers accurate and razor-sharp predictive power in order to prevent capital loss for those very companies.

There are always exceptions, of course, that confound even actuaries. These ‘outlier’ events come unannounced. So rare are these exceptions that a theory was developed to explain their occurrence. The Black Swan Theory developed by Nassim Nicolas Taleb suggests that surprise events have major and long-lasting impact.(1) The 2001 terrorist attacks; the Pacific tsunami in 2004; the stock-market crash of 1987; not even a seasoned actuary could have predicted these events with any level of confidence.

The result of the unexpected can be a deep and pervading fear. In my own life, for example, I have come to fear airplane travel—particularly, I fear the worst possible scenarios regarding airplane travel—despite the fact that the odds are much higher for my getting in a car accident when I go to the grocery store. When I swim in the ocean, I fear a shark-attack more than I fear the more likely event of drowning. These are the ‘black swan’ events that haunt me. They are rare and infrequent outliers but their impact on me is as significant as the potential sighting of a real black swan in my front yard; an unlikely but extraordinary occurrence, indeed.

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John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Strength for Today – Maintaining a Clear Perspective

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“I pray that . . . you may know . . . what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints” (Eph. 1:18).

How you perceive your spiritual resources dictates how you live.

Throughout Ephesians 1 Paul is clearly struck with the magnificence of our inheritance in Christ. Here he prays that we will know the riches of its glory.

Some commentators see “His inheritance” as a reference to believers, who are God’s inheritance or special possession (v. 14). That view stresses the value God places on us as believers, as demonstrated in Christ’s death, the forgiveness of our sins, and the abundant grace that He lavishes on us (vv. 7-8).

Others see it as referring to the believer’s inheritance, which Paul calls “His inheritance” because God is its source. Just as “His calling” (v. 18) issued from Him and was received by believers, so His inheritance issues from Him.

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Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – Maybe It’s Not a Good Idea to Post that Post

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Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone” Colossians 4:6.

I enjoy social media because it’s a great way for me to keep in touch with family and friends. I like perusing the pictures they post and reading their reflections online. But sometimes social media is also grievous. Because—as perhaps you have also realized—there are few places where the condition of the human heart can be so obviously seen than online. Granted, I am often blown away by the kindness shown from one stranger to another through online platforms, but I am even more blown away by the human tendency to become quickly offended.

It seems that some folks are quick to jump to conclusions, rushing to judgment about a situation they know little of. They jump on the bandwagon of bad-mouthing someone they have never met because it feels safer to say mean things behind a screen than in person. But as Christians we are called to a higher standard. It takes care and wisdom to know when and how to insert one’s beliefs or opinions into an online conversation. We must remember that the most godly and loving thing to do may be to not say anything at all when online conversations get heated, and when we do speak, (or text, message, tweet, or post) to be kind.

2 Timothy 2:14; 23-24 says,

“Warn them [the believers in Ephesus] before God against quarreling about words; it has no value and only ruins those who listen . . . Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not quarrel; instead he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.”

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Turning Point

Today’s Turning Point with David Jeremiah – Hand It Over

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Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.

Isaiah 41:10

Recommended Reading

Psalm 1

The neck of a guitar with steel strings has a natural tendency to bend in on itself because of the strong tension of the strings, stressing the instrument over time. Similarly, our natural tendency when faced with challenges and tension is to fold in on ourselves. Challenging situations often feel as though they are tearing us apart and we find ourselves spiraling into worry and fear.

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Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Be Positive

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. . . But we have the mind of Christ (the Messiah) and do hold the thoughts (feelings and purposes) of His heart.—1 Corinthians 2:16

Ever since I started keeping my mind in a positive pattern, I can’t stand the feeling of being negative. I’ve seen so many good changes in my life since I’ve been delivered from a negative mind that now I’m opposed to anything negative.

Here’s what I suggest if you’ve struggled with staying positive: Ask the Holy Spirit to convict you each time you start to get negative. This is part of His work. John 16:7-8 teaches us that the Holy Spirit will convict us of sin and convince us of righteousness. When the conviction comes, ask God to help you. Don’t think you can handle this yourself. Lean on Him.

Being positive does not mean that we don’t face reality. The Bible says to do all the crisis demands and then stand firmly in your place (see Ephesians 6:13). Our place is “in Christ,” and in Him we can always be hopeful and positive because nothing is too hard for Him. Jesus was always positive and full of faith. We have His mind in us, and with His help, we can do the same things.

Think like God thinks, so you can be the person He wants you to be and have all that He wants you to have.

From the book Closer to God Each Day by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Girlfriends in God

Girlfriends in God – Choose Joy!

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“I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

John 10:10

Friend to Friend

Jesus lived and died so that we can experience abundant life, a life exuding joy, and a life so full that others crave to know the source of that fullness. Jesus did not come so that we can merely survive life. Pagans can survive life. Jesus came to be our joy.

I came across this quote: “Joy is the flag that flies above the castle of our hearts indicating that the King reigns within.” If that is true, then why are so many women living lives with little or no joy? I’m afraid that we have bought the lies of the enemy, allowing him to steal our joy. Discouragement, weariness, disillusionment, shattered dreams, and unrealized goals are some of his favorite weapons, but the truth is that the enemy can only use what we allow him to use.

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Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – The Sound Mind Principle

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“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7, KJV).

Some years ago, a young college graduate came to me for counsel concerning God’s will for his life. “How can I know what God wants me to do?” he asked.

Briefly, I explained a helpful approach to knowing the will of God: following what I call the “sound mind principle” of Scripture.

In less than an hour, by following the suggestions contained in this principle, this young man discovered what he had been seeking for years. He discovered not only the work which God wanted him to do but also the organization and manner in which he was to serve our Lord. Today he is serving Christ as a missionary in Africa, where he and his wife are touching the lives of thousands throughout the entire continent.

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Ray Stedman

Ray Stedman – The Good Shepherd

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Read: John 10:1-21

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep… I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. (John 10:11, 14-15)

The primary characteristic of the good shepherd is that he loves unto death; he is willing to die for the sheep. The disciples never could get over the fact that Jesus loved them so much he was willing to die for them. Many of the epistles of Paul, of John and James and Peter contain awestruck references to this. John writes in Revelation, Unto Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood, (Revelation 1:5). Paul says in Romans, While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us, (Romans 5:8). Peter said, He bore our sins in his own body on the tree, (1 Peter 2:24). The writer of the Hebrews declares, Who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot unto God, (Hebrews 9:14). They are amazed that this Blessed One, this Sinless Lord, this Matchless Christ would consent to die for his own. But that is the mark of the Good Shepherd.

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Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – Jesus Is Lord

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Read: Romans 10:5-13

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (v. 9 NIV)

“Jesus is Lord.” With those three words, the early church changed the world. They were convinced that no one could say them except by the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:3) and that all who said them from the heart would be saved (Rom. 10:9). But as the church was being formed, Jesus uttered a strong warning about merely mouthing those three words. In a world full of false teachers and fair-weather believers, what is the proof that we really know Christ?

In Matthew 6-7 Jesus tells us in no uncertain terms what doesn’t prove it—being religious. Preaching great sermons or casting out demons or doing miracles in Jesus name is no proof that Jesus is really Lord of your life. You can be a successful spiritual leader who preaches Christ-centered sermons, but that’s no proof that you know Christ in a saving way.

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Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; J.R. – Legacy of Lethargy

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Who was America’s laziest president? That’s a judgment call and highly subjective. But among the finalists, you would have to include Calvin Coolidge. His 1924 campaign slogan was “Keep Cool with Coolidge.” He was known as “Silent Cal.”

As a door turns on its hinges, so does a sluggard on his bed.

Proverbs 26:14

If these monikers don’t hint at his lack of activity, perhaps these facts will: Coolidge typically worked four hours a day at the White House, and then went to play golf. He required 11 hours of sleep each night, plus daily naps. The writer H.L. Mencken characterized Coolidge’s work ethic by saying that an ideal day for him “would be one in which nothing happens.” And Gertrude Stein was said to have remarked, upon hearing of the president’s passing, “Coolidge dead? How can you tell?”

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Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – When Things Look Bleak

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Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church. —Acts 12:5

Acts 12 opens with a bleak scenario. James has been executed, and Peter has been arrested by King Herod. He was going to be killed next. But then we read that “constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church” (verse 5). The church took this seriously and began to pray. So God sent an angel to deliver Peter from prison, and the story has a happy ending.

Then as Acts 12 closes, King Herod, who orchestrated these events, was giving a great speech, and the people began to cry out, “The voice of a god and not of a man!” (verse 22). God judged Herod and killed him on the spot.

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Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – God’s Spirit Helps Us Know God

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“Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:12)

Gordon’s best friend sometimes keeps secrets that he doesn’t want him to know. Gordon can’t read his mind, so he will never know those secrets. Nobody can know his friend’s mind except the friend himself (and God). Nobody knows God’s mind except for God.

So how are we ever supposed to know what God wants?

God has not given us the spirit of the world. If He gave us the spirit of the world we would never know what we need to know. God has given us the Spirit of God so we can know the mind of God. We will never know everything God knows, but we can know the things that are “given to us” from God. We can know everything we need to know.

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Jerry Bridges – Holiness Day by Day Devotional – Giving You Wings

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Today’s Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 4:9

“You yourselves have been taught by God.”

God administers his discipline in the realm of grace. What does that mean? It means that all his teaching, training, and discipline are administered in love and for our spiritual welfare. It means God is never angry with us, though he’s often grieved at our sins. It means he doesn’t condemn us or count our sins against us. All that he does in us and to us is done on the basis of unmerited favor. To use the words of William Hendricksen, “God’s grace is his active favor bestowing the greatest gift upon those who have deserved the greatest punishment.”

Where the law condemns, grace forgives through the Lord Jesus Christ. Where the law commands but gives no power, grace commands but does give power through the Holy Spirit who lives and works within us.

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – The Marks of a New Life

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Today’s Scripture: Genesis 32-36

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. – 1 Peter 4:12-13

You know, a lot of strange and sometimes exciting things can happen to you when you’re traveling. In Genesis 32, we find Jacob traveling back home, and he has an experience that is more than just exciting. Jacob is met by a host of angels. Then he receives word that his brother, Esau, is heading his way with four hundred men, and he assumes he’s in for a battle, which causes him great fear and distress. But the most amazing thing of all happened while he was alone at night. He had a wrestling match with an angel, in which he prevailed, his life was preserved, and God blessed him.

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BreakPoint

BreakPoint –  Finding the Pool of Siloam: Another Testament to the Bible’s Accuracy

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The Gospel of John chapter nine tells the story of Jesus’ healing of a man born blind. After telling his disciples that the man’s blindness had nothing to do with either the man’s sins or those of his parents, Jesus applied mud to the man’s eyes and told him to wash it off at the Pool of Siloam.

Since at least the fifth century, Christians had identified a spot in Jerusalem as the Pool of Siloam and the site of the miracle. But it was not until a decade ago that archaeologists found what they are certain is the ancient pool of Siloam.

Like so many such finds, it was almost by accident. During construction work to repair a water pipe near the Temple Mount, Israeli archaeologists Ronny Reich and Eli Shukron found “two ancient stone steps.”

According to Biblical Archaeology Review, “Further excavation revealed that they were part of a monumental pool from the Second Temple period, the period in which Jesus lived.” The pool was trapezoidal in shape and 225 feet long.

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Moody Global Ministries

Moody Global Ministries – FIGHTING SHAME

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Today in the Word – Read Psalm 35

Bullies target colleagues and classmates in an endless need to prove their own superiority. As long as they get away with it, bullies will not stop the relentless pursuit to break their victim’s spirit. In light of Jesus’ call to turn the other cheek, what godly recourse is available for a victim of targeted, shaming attacks?

At first glance, Psalm 35 might seem to violate New Testament teachings about revenge. Shouldn’t David simply be content to take refuge in God and wait out the storm? But his enemies were persistent. They would attack him from every angle until they succeeded in completely destroying him.

Their attacks had already successfully caused him to second-guess himself. Was he somehow to blame for the way he was being treated? After reexamining the past, he verified he had loved these people wholeheartedly. His openness toward them made their malicious betrayal more devastating and broke his spirit further.

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