a message to thieves
If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need (v.28). READ: Ephesians 4:17-32 The entire act was caught on surveillance tape: While three friends and I dined at an outdoor café in East Africa, a man wearing a black jacket entered and [...]
one passion
July 15, 2009
READ: Luke 14:25-35
If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. —Luke 14:26
Nechayev, a 19th-century disciple of Karl Marx who had a role in the assassination of Czar Alexander II, wrote: “The revolutionary man . . . has no personal interests, no business affairs, no emotions, no attachments, no property, and no name. Everything in him is wholly absorbed in the single thought and the single passion for revolution.” Although his motives and goals were wrong, Nechayev’s statement shows the singlemindedness of commitment.
Jesus wanted true commitment from His disciples. In Luke 14, we read that large crowds joined Him as He traveled toward Jerusalem (v.25). Perhaps these casual followers considered themselves to be His true disciples, but Jesus taught that following Him was more than just knowing facts about Him. He explained what it really meant to be His disciple when He defined the cost of discipleship: Nothing, not love for father or mother or even one’s own life, was to take precedence over loyalty to Jesus (vv.26-33). His disciples (then and now) must acknowledge that if God is to be primary in their lives, possessions and even social relationships have to be secondary.
Jesus calls His followers to be absorbed in a single, exclusive thought and passion—Him. — Marvin Williams
Our love for Jesus is the key to spiritual passion.
Source: Our Daily Bread
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Loading ...loving enemies
To you who are willing to listen, I say, love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you (Luke 6:27-28).
READ: 2 Kings 5:1-5
Naaman, the powerful general from Aram, was suddenly powerless. Beneath his glamorous and impenetrable armor, a disease was slowly killing him. He had contracted leprosy (2 Kings 5:1), and now his political might and military abilities couldn’t help him. He would soon lose all worldly power and possessions, including even his life. He was helpless and hopeless.
Then a Hebrew slave girl came into the picture. Not much is said about her. In all probability, her home had been destroyed and her parents killed by the Aramean raiders. She had been forcibly taken to a foreign land as a slave (v.2). We don’t even know her name. But without her, Naaman would have been history.
Sure, she could have been bitter and angry with God: How can I continue to believe in a God who is powerless to protect me and everyone I loved? She could have hated the Arameans too. She should have been happy that Naaman was diseased and dying.
But instead, she said to her mistress, “I wish my master would go to see the prophet in Samaria. He would heal him of his leprosy” (v.3). She pointed them to the God of Israel and His prophet Elisha. She still had deep faith in the God of Israel, even though no one had ever been healed of leprosy in those days (Luke 4:27).
Instead of keeping quiet and letting Naaman die, she actually wished for Naaman to get well. Instead of a spirit of bitterness or a desire for revenge, she exhibited a heart full of love and forgiveness for her enemy.
It’s natural to hate those who have harmed us. It would be considered normal not to forgive them or want them to get well. But our Lord calls us to do the unnatural and the supernatural: To pray for, love, and do good to our enemies (Matthew 5:43-44; Luke 6:27-28). —K.T. Sim
Why is it difficult to love those who have harmed you? How does Jesus’ example inspire you to care for your enemies?
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(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...love is for losers?
July 14, 2009
READ: 1 Corinthians 13
Now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love. —1 Corinthians 13:13
You can learn a lot about a person by what his or her T-shirt says. Recently, one of these messages caught my attention as I walked through a local shopping mall. A young woman wore a bright red T-shirt that said, “Love Is for Losers.” Maybe she thought it was clever or provocative, even funny. Or perhaps she had been hurt by a relationship and had pulled away from others rather than risk being hurt again. Either way, the T-shirt got me thinking.
Is love for losers? The fact is, when we love, we take risks. People could very well hurt us, disappoint us, or even leave us. Love can lead to loss.
The Bible, though, challenges us to higher ground in loving others. In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul describes what it means to live out God’s kind of love. The person who exercises godly love doesn’t do so for personal benefit or gain but rather “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (13:7). Why? Because godly love endures beyond life’s hurts by pulling us relentlessly toward the never-diminishing care of the Father.
So, perhaps love is for losers—for it is in times of loss and disappointment that we need God the most. Even in our struggles, we know that “love never fails.” — Bill Crowder
God’s love never fails.
Source: Our Daily Bread
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...our corner of the world
Whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith (v.10).
READ: Galatians 6:7-10
An episode of the TV show M*A*S*H tells the story of a helicopter pilot who operated a side business selling scrap metal on the black market. He paid Korean children next to nothing to collect the metal from battlefields that were littered with land mines. In doing so, many of the children were injured and maimed.
An army surgeon, who treated some of the injured children, learned of the business and was outraged. He grounded the pilot indefinitely for undetermined medical reasons. Frustrated, the greedy pilot asked the surgeon if he was trying to save the world, to which the surgeon smiled and said, “No, just my little corner of it.”
What a great way to look at helping the people around you who are in need. It reminds me of one of Paul’s challenges to the church in Galatia—“whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone” (Galatians 6:10).
While we may not be able to end the practice of abortion in our corner of the world, we can reach out to a scared and confused, young, pregnant girl who has chosen life for her baby. Likewise, we can’t solve world hunger, but donating to a local food pantry or bringing a meal to a neighbor who is going through a rough time are a couple of ways we can shine the light and love of Jesus in our own corner of the world (Matthew 5:16).
We should never underestimate the huge impact our small efforts can have on the lives of others. Showing concern to a person during a time of physical or emotional need can eventually open the door to sharing how Jesus can meet an even greater spiritual need.
As John Maxwell said, “People don’t care how much you know—until they know how much you care.” —Jeff Olson
What are some humanitarian needs that God is calling you to meet in your corner of the world? How can you help a hurting person today?
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(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...first church of the lampstand
July 13, 2009
READ: Revelation 1:10-2:5
Repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand. — Revelation 2:5
I love it when churches have names like “King of Glory Lutheran Church” or “Alpha and Omega Missionary Baptist Church.” If the church in Ephesus were still around, maybe we’d call them something nifty like “First Church of the Lampstand.”
We often miss the significance of John’s glorious vision in Revelation 1 of Jesus standing among the seven golden lampstands. These weren’t just decorative candelabras but substantial sources of light. How significant, then, that the lampstands represent the seven churches who were called to bring the light of Jesus into a very dark world.
We live in a dark world that desperately needs the candlepower of Christ shining through us. Let’s be careful, then, not to repeat the mistake of the Ephesians who “left [their] first love” (Rev. 2:4). Although praised for doing many things well, they had failed to keep Jesus in first place.
It’s easy to let things crowd Jesus out until soon we’re doing “church work” for all the wrong reasons. What then? We lose our impact. Jesus warned, “Repent and do the first works, or else I will . . . remove your lampstand from its place” (v.5). We can’t afford to let that happen. Keep Jesus in first place so that His light will continue to shine brightly in this dark world. — Joe Stowell
Works that are done out of love for Jesus shine brightest in a dark world.
Source: Our Daily Bread
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(5 votes, average: 4.40 out of 5)whatever it takes
Joseph tore himself away, but he left his cloak in her hand as he ran from the house (v.12).
READ: Genesis 39:6-12
A province in Indonesia has asked a few of its residents to add a certain fashion accessory to their wardrobe—a padlock. Let me explain. To curb the prostitution that sometimes occurs in massage parlors, masseuses in East Java were prompted to wear a lock on the waistband of their pants.
While this idea seems a bit medieval, it certainly sends the message that immorality is not an option. As Christians, we need to mirror that message in our lives for “God has called us to live holy lives, not impure lives” (1 Thessalonians 4:7).
Joseph was committed to living a pure life, despite the sexual advances of his boss’s wife. At first, the hardworking hunk tried to fend her off with this reality check: “Look . . . my master trusts me with everything in his entire household. He has held back nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How could I do such a wicked thing?” (Genesis 39:8-9).
Although Joseph emphatically refused to commit adultery, Mrs. Potiphar had a one-track mind. So Joseph wisely “kept out of her way as much as possible” (v.10). Like Joseph, we need to avoid situations where seduction threatens our virtue.
When temptation calls, we’ve got to “run from sexual sin” (1 Corinthians 6:18). That’s what Joseph did when Potiphar’s wife pounced on him in private. Joseph “tore himself away, but he left his cloak in her hand as he ran from the house” (v.12).
Joseph gave up his reputation, his job, and his status in order to honor God by abstaining from sexual sin. We need to prize purity the way he did, leaving behind unhealthy dating relationships, certain Internet sites, and even entire lifestyles—anything that’s causing us to lead impure lives. As Christians, we should be willing to do whatever it takes. —Jennifer Benson Schuldt
If Christ’s resurrection makes us right with God, then how might our continued sinning be living a lie? Where do you need to claim the truth of the resurrection?
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(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...He watches me
July 12, 2009
READ: Matthew 10:16-31
Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. —Matthew 10:31
One Sunday morning at church, we sang “His Eye Is on the Sparrow” as a congregational hymn. It was a rare opportunity to give voice to a song usually performed by a soloist.
During the first chorus, I noticed a friend who was weeping so hard that he couldn’t sing. Knowing a bit of what he had been through recently, I recognized his tears as ones of joy at realizing that, no matter what our situation, God sees, knows, and cares for us.
Jesus said, “Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows” (Matt. 10:29-31). The Lord spoke these words to His 12 disciples as He sent them out to teach, heal, and bear witness of Him to “the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (v.6). He told them that even though they would face persecution for His sake, they should not be afraid, even of death (vv.22-26).
When threatening circumstances press us to lose hope, we can find encouragement in the words of this song: “I sing because I’m happy, I sing because I’m free. For His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.” We are under His watchful care. — David C. McCasland
When you put your cares in God’s hands, He puts His peace in your heart.
Source: Our Daily Bread
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...pioneer of the pioneers
July 11, 2009
READ: 2 Corinthians 5:12-21
I have made it my aim to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build on another man’s foundation. —Romans 15:20
In the early 19th century, US President Thomas Jefferson completed the Louisiana Purchase, stretching the borders of the fledgling republic “from sea to shining sea.”
The problem, however, was that no one really knew what was in that vast expanse of land. Maps would be needed, with clear instructions for the pioneers who would travel to the Pacific. Explorers Lewis and Clark became, in effect, the pioneers of the pioneers—preparing the way for the most massive land migration in US history. They cut a new trail that others would follow.
The apostle Paul’s commitment to ministry was framed by a similar priority. In Romans 15:20, he wrote, “I have made it my aim to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build on another man’s foundation.” He wanted his efforts in ministry to cut a new trail—and others followed. Timothy, Titus, Mark, and Silas are just a few who followed the trail that Paul blazed.
Today that commitment is seen in Jesus’ followers who take the message of the Savior to the uttermost parts of the world. As we pray today, let’s ask for God’s blessing on His Word as we, His “ambassadors,” cut a new trail in our generation (2 Cor. 5:20). — Bill Crowder
God gave you a message to share; don’t keep it to yourself.
Source: Our Daily Bread
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