i’m right; you must be wrong
May 22, 2009 READ: Luke 6:37-42 Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. —Luke 6:37 My friend Ria admires the great blue heron’s amazing 6-foot spread of wings and marvels at his majestic appearance. She welcomes the sight of him gliding in for a landing on [...]
the good news
I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins. He was buried, and He was raised from the dead on the third day (vv.3-4).
READ: 1 Corinthians 15:1-4
I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins. . . . He was buried, and He was raised from the dead on the third day (vv.3-4).
A close friend of yours is seriously ill. One day you receive a call from her doctor—an urgent message to come to the hospital. When you arrive, the doctor tells you that your friend has another 10 minutes to live.
In a soft, weak voice, your dying friend says to you, “All these years you haven’t told me about Jesus. Can you tell me about His Good News?” Your friend wants to hear the gospel before she leaves this life. What would you tell her in those 10 short minutes? Here are some starters:
Christ died for our sins (1 Corinthians 15:3). Often, we tell others about the love of God. Rightly so. But we leave out the whole wrath of God reality. While God loves every sinner, He is also angry at sin. Jesus didn’t die for a political cause or to make us healthy and wealthy. He suffered a criminal’s death to appease God’s anger at our sin. He died for us.
He was buried (v.4). This was Paul’s way of saying that Jesus was truly lifeless. You don’t bury someone until you’re sure that he’s dead. Because Jesus was buried, it paved the way for His resurrection. And the tomb is empty because Jesus rose from the dead.
Jesus was raised from the dead on the third day (v.4). Christianity is the religion of the resurrection. Without the resurrection, it’s much like any other human philosophy or religion. A dead savior can’t save anybody, for he couldn’t even save himself. The Romans crucified more than 30,000 people, but only one died for the sins of the world.
He alone conquered sin and death and rose again to life. Spend a few minutes telling someone about Jesus today. —K.T. Sim
When was the last time you shared the Good News with a friend? How does your personal experience in receiving salvation inspire you to reach others?
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Loading ...HOPE (1)
By Sophie Otiende, Kenya We have become a generation of lifeless people because we have lost hope. We have lost the ability to believe that we can become better; that it’s ok to dream. We have allowed the enemy to make us believe that dreams no longer come true. Hence we scale down our lofty [...]
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...HOPE (2)
This song by Third Day says it better. Cry out to Jesus Written by Mac Powell Performed by Third Day Cry out to Jesus To everyone who’s lost someone they love long before it was their time You feel like the days you had were not enough when you said goodbye And to all of [...]
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...is He enough?
May 21, 2009
READ: Acts 3:1-10
Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. —Acts 3:6
Is Jesus enough? That’s a question many Christians need to ask themselves. They have abundant material possessions. But do these believers depend on Jesus? Or on their stuff?
While having wealth is not condemned in Scripture as long as priorities are in order and the needs of others are addressed, those of us with relative wealth must remind ourselves that Jesus—not riches—sustains us.
The apostle Peter helps us with this in the story of the lame man begging at the temple gate in Jerusalem. This man asked Peter for money, but Peter replied, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk” (Acts 3:6).
The man lying at the gate thought the answer to his problems that day was money, but Peter showed him that the answer was Jesus. And He still is.
I read about a group of Chinese Christians who have much to teach us as they seek to spread the gospel in their homeland and beyond. These believers say, “We can’t afford any big programs or fancy gospel presentations. All we have to give people is Jesus.”
Jesus is enough for our brothers and sisters in China. He is enough for the poor. Is He enough for you? — Dave Branon
Our greatest riches are the riches we have in Christ.
Source: Our Daily Bread
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...above the mud
Let all who seek God’s help be encouraged (v.32).
READ: Psalm 69:1-33
Bog snorkeling is a popular sport in Wales. Competitors wear flippers and diving masks with snorkels attached and try to squirm through trenches cut through peat bogs without using their arms! While I have no idea how bog snorkeling got started, I know that getting “stuck in the mud” is nothing new.
David was in that spot—emotionally speaking—when he wrote, “Rescue me from the mud; don’t let me sink any deeper” (Psalm 69:14). If you’ve ever been depressed, you know what he was talking about. That struggle to stay above the mud can be overwhelming, frightening, and tiring.
David expressed feelings of hopelessness, but he also tried to encourage himself despite his despair. For example, he believed that he would eventually get out of the bog. He envisioned the end of his suffering as he wrote: “Then I will praise God’s name with singing, and I will honor Him with thanksgiving” (v.30). David believed God would set him free.
And check this out—David went on to say, “Let all who seek God’s help be encouraged” (v.32). The key phrase here is “seek God’s help.” Sometimes I think we’re too quick to outsource assistance to alcohol, advice from friends, or self-help books. Why are we so reluctant to beg for God’s help when we know He’s the only one who can truly rescue us?
After all, God “hears the cries of the needy” (v.33). He’s not going to dismiss our struggles and tell us to snap out of it. He’s “the God of compassion and mercy” (Exodus 34:6). He’s the One who is always available, always listening.
Do you know someone who’s sinking in the bog? Perhaps you’re that person. If so, remember that God can and will help you to stay above the mud. Seek Him today—no snorkel needed. —Jennifer Benson Schuldt
How can asking for God’s help revive a soul in despair? How does David’s example give you encouragement?
(Check out Our Daily Journey website!)
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You’ve (Youth) Got Talent!
You must have heard about Susan Boyle by now . . . the overnight youtube sensation with that angelic voice as dubbed by the media. Susan Boyle’s performance on Britain’s Got Talent was breathtaking! Well, I’m sure somewhere out there is a youth songwriter or singer waiting to be discovered too. So, if you’ve written [...]
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...restoring spiritual sight
May 20, 2009
READ: John 9:1-11
The entrance of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple. —Psalm 119:130
Sanduk Ruit is a Nepalese doctor who has used his scalpel, microscope, and simplified cataract surgery technique to give sight to almost 70,000 people over the past 23 years. The poorest patients who visit his nonprofit eye center in Katmandu pay with just their gratitude.
Our Lord Jesus Christ healed many of physical blindness during His time on earth. But of greater concern to Him were the spiritually blind. Many of the religious authorities who investigated the healing of the blind man refused to believe that Jesus was not a sinner (John 9:13-34). This caused Jesus to say, “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind” (v.39).
The apostle Paul wrote of this spiritual blindness when he said, “If our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them” (2 Cor. 4:3-4).
The psalmist said, “The entrance of Your words gives light” (Ps. 119:130). God’s Word is what will open our eyes and cure spiritual blindness. — C. P. Hia
A world in darkness needs the light of Jesus.
Source: Our Daily Bread
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...painfully perfect
You are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—justice, mercy, and faith (v.23).
READ: Matthew 23:1-24
He had a warm, wide smile that belied the anger that would flare up at a moment’s notice. My friend’s dad was a complex man—a loving, thoughtful neighbor—but a perfectionistic, controlling father.
He’s gone from this life now, but his children still bear the wounds of never measuring up, never being able to do things perfectly, never being able to truly please their tightly wound dad. His house was spotless, but his ways at home were merciless. He strove for perfection, but it led to his children’s destruction.
Jesus had strong words for the Pharisees, a group of religious leaders who were good at heaping guilt on people through a perfectionistic view of following the Law. He said, “They crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden” (Matthew 23:4).
In other words, people who fell beneath the weight of trying to follow the Old Testament Law—as well as a slew of man-made ones—were neither helped nor supported by the Pharisees. They would “tithe even the tiniest income,” while ignoring “the more important aspects of the Law” (v.23). These included important matters like mercy.
Jesus is merciful. In contrast to the Pharisees’ ways, He will “give you rest” and stated that “the burden I give you is light” (11:28,30).
Are you, or is someone close to you, painfully perfect? Is your constant striving for perfection destroying others?
If so, it’s time to remove the shackles of perfectionism and replace them with Jesus’ light, loving burden. We glorify God as we do our best for Him. But that doesn’t mean we will be perfect in all our ways.
Only Jesus was perfect (Hebrews 9:14). Our human efforts won’t get us there (Galatians 3:3). Instead, let’s reflect Jesus’ example of grace and mercy to others—especially those closest to us. —Tom Felten
What is the difference between being “made perfect” (Hebrews 10:14) by Jesus’ sacrifice and human perfectionism? How can you show to others the mercy God has shown to you?
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