The Final Goal: The Greatest Turnaround
Read: John 2:13-22
After He was raised from the dead, His disciples remembered He had said this. – John 2:22
World Cup Finals are often a time for the unexpected. In 1966 the world watched incredulously as the little-known footballing nation of North Korea defeated Italy on the way to a quarterfinal match with Portugal. The crowd of 52,000 at Goodison Park were even more stunned when North Korea went 3-0 up against Portugal in the space of just 24 exhilarating minutes. Could this be an embarrassing exit for one of the tournament favourites? But Portugal star Eusebio and his team performed one of the greatest turnarounds in Cup history to win the game 5-3. For the next 36 years, North Korea’s improbable run made it the most successful Asian team in the history of the World Cup.
Israel expected that their long-promised Saviour would ride into Jerusalem as a conqueror and they would be set free from Roman rule. They didn’t expect Him to die on a cross.
Then everyone assumed that death had defeated Him as He lay in the tomb. But in the greatest turnaround that history has ever known Jesus rose from the dead on the third day. Death was the loser; Jesus the victor. When we put our trust in Him we are the beneficiaries—just as God had planned. —Kevin Gregory
There is no need to fear our greatest enemy, death,
when we put our trust in our greatest champion, Jesus.
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Loading ...ODJ: tossing it back
True godliness with contentment is itself great wealth (v.6).
READ: 1 Timothy 6:1-12
During a Major League Baseball game between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Washington Nationals last summer, a man named Steve Monforto caught a foul ball as he sat in the bleachers. Since fans are allowed to keep balls hit into the stands, Monforto handed the prize catch to his 3-year-old daughter Emily. But instead of treasuring the gift, she innocently tossed the ball back on the field!
As fans gasped and laughed, Steve simply hugged Emily and let her know that “she didn’t do anything wrong.” Fortunately for the smooth-fielding father, a Phillies representative brought him a new baseball to take home.
Just as little Emily didn’t see the value in the baseball, you and I sometimes don’t value what God has given us. Paul addressed this issue in 1 Timothy 6 as he implored his young protégé to be content. After warning Timothy about false teachers who are more interested in making a buck than blessing others (vv.3-5), he wrote, “True godliness with contentment is itself great wealth” (v.6). The word contentment in this context literally means “a perfect condition, not lacking anything.”
Does that describe you and me? Instead of being grateful for the gifts our heavenly Father has placed in our lives, sometimes we toss them away and grasp for useless stuff that we think we need. Paul nailed it when he wrote, “If we have enough food and clothing, let us be content” (v.8).
If we keep seeking stuff that “we can’t take” out of this world (v.7), we’ll only end up being “trapped by [our] many foolish and harmful desires” (v.9). There’s only one thing Paul tells us to “hold tightly”—the eternal life we have in Jesus.
Today, instead of moaning about your meager lot in life—tossing God’s good gifts back in His face—thank Him for all He’s given you. —Tom Felten
What’s the difference between being content with what you have and simply being lazy and lacking motivation? How will you work on being more contented with what God has given you?
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(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...ODB: a snail’s pace
July 3, 2010
READ: Romans 5:1-5
Tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. —Romans 5:3-4
One of my earliest childhood mem- ories was watching snails in our backyard flower garden. I was fascinated by this little creature with a shell, a slimy little tummy, and tiny eyes that turned like periscopes. But what really seemed unusual was how slowly a snail travels.
How slow does a snail go? One study clocked a snail at 0.00758 miles per hour—or 40 feet in one hour. No wonder we use the phrase moving at a snail’s pace to mean “slow.”
Although a snail does move at a “sluggish” pace, one virtue it does possess is perseverance. The great 19th-century preacher Charles Spurgeon wryly observed, “By perseverance the snail reached the ark.”
According to the apostle Paul, perseverance is a key component in character development. He explained that “tribulation produces perseverance” (Rom. 5:3). And upon that building block go character and hope (v.4). The original Greek word translated “perseverance” means “steadfastness, constancy, and endurance.” It was used of believers who endured in their walk of faith despite many painful trials.
Have setbacks slowed you down to a snail’s pace? Be encouraged. God doesn’t ask for a fast finish. He expects persevering progress. —Dennis Fisher
Great achievement requires great perseverance.
(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) Loading ...Good Examples?
By Debra Ayis, 20, Nigeria
I tried recently to talk to a friend about Christ. It wasn’t the first time. In fact, I had been “preaching” to him for years. But this particular occasion was different because it was the first heart-to-heart talk we’d had since the unfortunate death of his 16-year-old sister.
He was at my house recovering from a grievous illness when I tried to persuade him to turn to God. But as I coaxed him to change his ways, he said it was not like he didn’t believe in God. It’s just that he wasn’t close to Him—a fact he saw no fault with.
Then he said something that shook me. He said people always told him to become a better Christian, but the church seemed to him to be the breeding ground for gossip and pretence. In fact, the only person he regarded as a real friend was Jacob, a boy his parents kept discouraging him to keep as a friend.
The reason was simple. Although Jacob did all the things that deemed him as bad company, he was the only one who was always there for my friend. In school, Jacob would defend him even if he was the one in the wrong. When his sister had passed away, Jacob had accompanied him all the way back to make sure he was okay.
He went on to give countless examples on how his non-Christian friend had come through for him and proven his worth, when no believer was anywhere to be found. The Christians in his life have been like the priest and Levite in Jesus’ parable (Luke 10:30-35). Only the Samaritan, an outcast, had shown compassion to the dying man.
Upon hearing this, I reconsidered my reasons for not turning up for the sister’s funeral. I realized there was more that I could have done to support my friend emotionally, deeds that would have meant so much more than the lectures I always gave him. Moreover, I felt ashamed that my actions had not proved Christ as I was trying to make my words do.
Are we good examples of what we preach? Do we let Christ’s light shine through unselfish acts of love? Do we show by action that we are what we preach? Or do we hide behind doctrines and let the “Samaritans” show His love?
WHO AM I?
Do I speak of my understanding,
Of Scriptures and Christ,
To hide the truth that
Maybe I don’t live like Him,
Shine like Him?
Do I try to hide the truth
From myself as well as others,
That knowing is not doing?
Who am I?
Do I act like Him?
Do I truly follow in His footsteps,
Or do I hide behind theology,
Convincing myself
That I am like Him?
(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) Loading ...
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