Category: Uncategorized

The Exchange for a New Life

John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

God’s immeasurable, inexhaustible, divine love was required to save a sin ravished world.  He gave His Son, Jesus, to be the Prophet, the Priest and the King for all mankind.  

In order to avoid eternal damnation for our sins, we must submit to Jesus Christ as our teacher, our ruler and Our Savior.  Our duty is to proclaim His name.  Our benefit is everlasting life in His Kingdom.

Jesus sacrificed His life for us.  He is asking us to sacrifice our old lives in exchange for a new life under His stewardship.  There is really no sacrifice on our parts.  What we receive is eternally greater than what we leave behind.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing a way for us to escape eternal damnation because of our sins. We thank You for providing Your Son as our sacrificial lamb and as our living, ever present Good Shepherd.  We humbly submit to You all that we are and all that we have in the name of Jesus Christ.  May the presence of Your Holy Spirit strengthen us as we walk the pathway of sanctification that You have set aside for us.  We rejoice in knowing that one day we will stand before You in the image of Your Son.

All for the Glory of God

Mark 10:12

Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

The rich young man came to Jesus to inquire how he could inherit eternal life.  The young man proclaimed knowledge of the commandments and his complete compliance to the commandments, assuming this to be enough.  Jesus responded, 
“You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 
 The young man could not part with the things of this world.  He chose the world over the kingdom of God.

Our Heavenly Father has nothing against our possessions or our money.  Abraham, Moses and David all had great wealth.  Yet they all did what God asked them to do.  They placed their relationship with Almighty God above all else.  They used their wealth to help meet the needs of their people so that God would receive the glory.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for all the provision that You have given us.  We pray that You will show us how to exalt You each day above all the things of the world. We ask that You teach us how to use the provision that You have given us to meet the needs of those around us.  May it all be for Your glory and the gain of Your kingdom.

Waiting on Your Vision

Acts 26:19

And so, King Agrippa, I obeyed that vision from heaven.

The apostle Paul was brought before the Judean Monarch, King Agrippa, to defend himself and his gospel.  In his defense, he told the king why he was doing what he was doing, “I obeyed the vision from heaven.”

Paul was not driven by a well thought out plan based on practicality or his own competence.  He went out and proclaimed the gospel against all hindrances imaginable, many of which could not be overcome without the hand of God.  He also went where God told him to go at the time that God told him to go.

Paul is our model for following visions.  We should move forward without regard for our own capabilities for God always provides what is needed to complete His good work.  We should not rush ahead in consideration of our current skills and circumstances.  We should only move when and where He urges us to move.  

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You allowing us to serve You.  We rejoice in knowing that we will serve You for all eternity.  We pray that You will show us Your plans for our lives.  We ask that You teach us how to turn to You alone for our direction.  We ask that You teach us how to wait on You to prepare the way before we move.  

Welcomed Light in a Hardened World

2 Timothy 4:1-2

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word;

Jesus Christ, the Living Word, came to earth to teach us about God and to reveal the salvation plan.  A large portion of His message was presented through the way that He lived and loved among the people.  He used His miracles to exhibit His love and to gain attention for His message – especially for those that would not listen to His message otherwise.

So it is with us.  Because most of the world now has hardened hearts for the spoken Word, we must draw them to the Word by the way that we live our lives.  Once we become a welcomed light in their lives, we can reveal the gospel to them.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the living presence of Your Son in our lives.  We pray that we may become broken vessels, surrendered to You, so that the world may be drawn to us by the Light that lives within us and shines forth from us.  Once they have come to us, we pray that You give us the strength and the boldness to proclaim the gospel.  

Joining Christ on the Cross

Galatians 2:20

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

When we accept our salvation, we join Jesus Christ in crucifixion.  Just as He accepted death on the Cross to wash away our sins, we accept the crucifixion of our own flesh to set aside our old nature and take on the nature of the One who dwells within us.  Our new nature rises through the power of the Holy Spirit to bring us victory over our sin stained flesh.

Unfortunately, our flesh does not go without a fight.  It is only by the grace of God that we are able to relinquish our old lives in exchange for our new lives in Christ.  

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the new lives that You have given us through the sacrifice of Your Son on the Cross.  We pray that You will show us the nature of Your grace.  We pray that You will give us the wisdom to toss aside any claim to our own merit and the faith to rely solely on Your grace.  

Following the Way, the Truth and the Life

John 6:67

“You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve.

After teaching a particularly difficult lesson, a number of Jesus’ early disciples turned away from following Him.  At that point Jesus inquired of His apostles, “You do not want to leave too, do you?”

Today there are many churches teaching their own version of Scripture.  They choose not to follow God’s Holy Word as it is written.  In effect, they are walking away from Jesus because the lesson is too hard for them to follow.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You that You have provided Your inerrant Word for us to follow.  We pray that You enlighten us.  Open our minds so that we may understand the exact standard to which You are calling us.  Perfect Your strength in our weakness so that we may be steadfast in following the way, the truth and the life that is Your Son, Jesus.

What Challenges Will Life Bring Today

Romans 8:37

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.  

What challenges will life bring today?  Will they be in the form of tribulation, distress or perhaps persecution?  It matters not for we are more than conquerors through Our Savior, Jesus Christ.  

In the midst of all these things we will rise up and find joy.  The undaunted presence of Jesus Christ makes the world’s challenges impotent.  No thing nor no power can put a wedge between us and the love of God that provides our resilience. 

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for liberating us from our present sufferings by providing the hope that comes from the freedom and glory that has been set aside for us.  We pray for the courage and the strength to face and defeat every trial that the enemy throws our way.  We rejoice in knowing that the victory is ours because it was first won on the Cross by Your Son, Jesus.

Seeking Wisdom

Jeremiah 33:3
Call to me and I’ll answer you, and will tell you about great and hidden things that you don’t know.

The Word of God is very specific.  Wisdom and understanding concerning all matters of life are available to us.  All we have to do is ask.

The trick is being persistent in asking for wisdom.  It is a building process.  The Lord knows that we are not able to digest too much information at one time.  He will feed us slowly as a baby is fed liquids until it is ready to move on to more solid foods.   

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank you for providing the Holy Spirit to teach us all things, including secret things and inaccessible things.  We humbly ask You to provide us the wisdom that we need to get through each day.  We ask that each day You will build our understanding of who You are so that we may have proper reverence for You.  We rejoice in knowing that one day we will stand before You in the image of Your Son and all of Your glory will be revealed to us.

May the World See Our Joy

Psalm 90:14

Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.

There is nothing on this earth that satisfies like the love of Our Heavenly Father.  He created a void in our hearts that can only be filled by the presence of Jesus in our lives.  When we allow Jesus to be our sustenance, there is nothing that the world can offer that measures up.

Unfortunately, men and women of all walks of life chase every type of earthly pleasure in efforts to fill the void in their hearts.  The fullness of joy will never be felt by them until they turn to their Savior for completion.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we rejoice in the joy in our hearts that You have provided by allowing us to receive Your Son, Jesus, as Our Savior.  May our days be filled with His sweet presence.  May the world know Him by our joyful countenance.

What Value Am I?

Acts 20:24

But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus–the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.

The apostle Paul knew exactly what Jesus called him to do.  He wavered not one iota from his calling.  He endured much to give the people of his time the message of salvation in his sermons and his written letters.  His words continue to educate and inspire over 2000 years later.

Like Paul, Jesus has a calling for our lives.  Surely our calling will not measure up to Paul’s calling, at least not in the eyes of man.  Be keenly aware that what may seem small in the eyes of man is glorious in God’s eyes.  The smallest deed done at the request of Our Heavenly Father can move mountains.  

Prayer
Heavenly Father, open our eyes so that we may see the good work that You ask of us.  Teach us how to separate our own inclinations to service from the calling that You have placed on our lives.  Teach us how to measure our usefulness, not by man’s standards, but by Your good and perfect means.  Strengthen us, Oh Lord, that we may not falter when the enemy tries to demean our work.