The Final Goal: Time Is Running Out
Read: 2 Peter 3:8-13 The Lord isn’t really being slow about His promise, as some people think. No, He is being patient for your sake. – 2 Peter 3:9 Time is running out for the World Cup. After each tournament, the name of the winning country and the year of their World Cup victory are [...]
ODJ: no money down?
If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me (v.21).
READ: Matthew 19:16-30
Some people suppose that the offer of salvation is similar to other big-ticket items. Beds, refrigerators, and automobiles cost more than most people can afford, so stores often offer these products for no money down. Customers can enjoy these products for a year or so before beginning the dreaded monthly payments that slowly but surely drain their bank account. Likewise salvation costs nothing up front, but those who receive Jesus as Savior should eventually pay the price of making Him their Lord.
But this is backwards, for receiving salvation is the opposite of purchasing a car or couch. Unlike them, salvation is affordable to all. It does not lie beyond anyone’s price range (for Jesus has paid our debt to God), but it does demand that we put all our money down—and everything else that we are and have (Matthew 19:21).
Jesus explained that all who want to follow Him must “turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow Me,” for only those who lose their lives for His sake will save their lives (16:24-25). This makes sense, for it’s hard to argue that Jesus is our Savior if He’s not also our Lord. How can we claim that He has rescued us from sin if we remain enslaved to it?
Augustine explained the cost of salvation this way: “Give yourself, and you’ve got it. What are you worrying about? Why are you in such a sweat? You aren’t going to have to go looking for yourself, are you, or to go and buy yourself? Look, it’s you, who you are, what you are; give yourself for that thing, and you’ve got it.”
The gospel is free, but it doesn’t come cheap. It cost Jesus His life, and if we wish to receive His great salvation, it will cost ours too. —Mike Wittmer
What aspect of your life—a relationship, possession, talent, or activity—do you need to release to Jesus? Empty your pockets and enjoy the fullness of His salvation.
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Loading ...Do You Care That I’m in Pain?
By Natasha Pavez, 18, Australia PART 1 – Disillusionment of self in suffering I’ve been looking for a lifeline, Is there anybody out there? Can you pull me from this ocean of despair? I’m drowning in the pain, breaking down again Looking for a lifeline This is the chorus to the song “Lifeline” by secular [...]
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> Developing trust in God in suffering
(1 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5) Loading ...Do You Care That I’m in Pain? [Part 3]
<< PART 2 – Drawing near to God in suffering Part 3 – Developing trust in God in suffering “For examples of patience in suffering, dear brothers and sisters, look at the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. We give great honor to those who endure under suffering. For instance, you know [...]
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July 6, 2010
READ: Heb. 11:4-7,32-40
All these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise.—Hebrews 11:39
Abel doesn’t seem to fit in the first half of Hebrews 11. He’s the first “ancient” listed, but his story isn’t like the others mentioned there. Enoch went to heaven without dying. Noah saved mankind. Abraham started a people group. Isaac was a noted patriarch. Joseph rose to the top in Egypt. Moses led the greatest exodus ever.
Clearly, their faith was rewarded. By faith, they did what God asked, and He poured out blessings on them. They saw God’s promises fulfilled before their eyes.
But Abel? The second son of Adam and Eve had faith, and what did he get for it? Murdered. That sounds more like the folks in verses 35-38, who found that trusting God doesn’t always lead to immediate blessing. They faced “mockings,” “imprisonment,” and being “sawn in two.” “Thanks, but no thanks,” we might say. We would all prefer to be heroic Abraham instead of someone “destitute, afflicted, tormented” (v.37). Yet in God’s plan, there are no guarantees of ease and fame even for the devout.
While we might experience some blessings in this life, we may also have to wait until “something better” (v.40) comes along—the completion of God’s promises in Glory. Until then, let’s keep living “by faith.” —Dave Branon
What is done for Christ right now will be rewarded in eternity.
Source: Our Daily Bread
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