Bible League: Living His Word Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.— Ephesians 5:2 NLT There are many commandments in the Bible. Jesus taught us, however, that two of them stand above the others. An expert in religious law had asked him, "Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?" Jesus replied, "'You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments," (Matthew 22:36-40). What about Jesus Himself? Did Jesus follow His own teaching on love? Our verse for today has the answer. He did. Indeed, He set a stellar example in this regard. He lived a life full of love. He loved the Lord God by obeying Him, even though the Lord expected Him to offer Himself up as a sacrifice for our sins (Matthew 26:39). He loved his neighbors by his willingness to actually die for us. He didn't have to do it, but He did it anyway. He loved us enough to go through the pain and humiliation that all of it meant (Hebrews 12:2). The Apostle Paul says we should follow the example of Jesus. We should, that is, be filled with love. How far does this go? It goes as far as the example Jesus set. We should be willing to give our lives for our neighbors. Few of us will be asked to go that far, but we should be ready to go that far if necessary. We must always be ready to turn from our selfish ways, take up our crosses daily, and follow Jesus' example (Luke 9:23). Jesus' obedience to the laws of love teaches us that there is much more to life than the mere satisfaction of our own wants and desires. Further, it teaches us that if we're ready to follow Him in this regard, even to the point of giving our lives for our neighbors, then it will be pleasing to God the Father. Bible in a Year Old Testament Reading1 Samuel 19, 20, 21 1 Samuel 19 -- David Protected from Saul NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB 1 Samuel 20 -- David and Jonathan's Covenant NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB 1 Samuel 21 -- David Takes the Consecrated Bread NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading Luke 15:11-32 Luke 15 -- Parables of the Lost Sheep, Lost Coin, and Prodigal Son NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion There are “friends” who destroy each other,but a real friend sticks closer than a brother. Insight Loneliness is everywhere. Many people feel cut off and alienated from others. Being in a crowd just makes people more aware of their isolation. We all need friends who will stick close, listen, care, and offer help when it is needed—in good times and bad. It is better to have one such friend than dozens of superficial acquaintances. Challenge Instead of wishing you could find a true friend, seek to become one. There are people who need your friendship. Ask God to reveal them to you, and then take on the challenge of being a true friend. Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Exodus 17:12 And his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.So mighty was the prayer of Moses, that all depended upon it. The petitions of Moses discomfited the enemy more than the fighting of Joshua. Yet both were needed. So, in the soul's conflict, force and fervour, decision and devotion, valour and vehemence, must join their forces, and all will be well. You must wrestle with your sin, but the major part of the wrestling must be done alone in private with God. Prayer, like Moses', holds up the token of the covenant before the Lord. The rod was the emblem of God's working with Moses, the symbol of God's government in Israel. Learn, O pleading saint, to hold up the promise and the oath of God before him. The Lord cannot deny his own declarations. Hold up the rod of promise, and have what you will. Moses grew weary, and then his friends assisted him. When at any time your prayer flags, let faith support one hand, and let holy hope uplift the other, and prayer seating itself upon the stone of Israel, the rock of our salvation, will persevere and prevail. Beware of faintness in devotion; if Moses felt it, who can escape? It is far easier to fight with sin in public, than to pray against it in private. It is remarked that Joshua never grew weary in the fighting, but Moses did grow weary in the praying; the more spiritual an exercise, the more difficult it is for flesh and blood to maintain it. Let us cry, then, for special strength, and may the Spirit of God, who helpeth our infirmities, as he allowed help to Moses, enable us like him to continue with our hands steady "until the going down of the sun;" till the evening of life is over; till we shall come to the rising of a better sun in the land where prayer is swallowed up in praise. Daily Light on the Daily Path Psalm 91:15 "He will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.1 Chronicles 4:10 Now Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, "Oh that You would bless me indeed and enlarge my border, and that Your hand might be with me, and that You would keep me from harm that it may not pain me!" And God granted him what he requested. 2 Chronicles 1:7,8,10 In that night God appeared to Solomon and said to him, "Ask what I shall give you." • Solomon said to God, "You have dealt with my father David with great lovingkindness, and have made me king in his place. • "Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people, for who can rule this great people of Yours?" 1 Kings 4:29 Now God gave Solomon wisdom and very great discernment and breadth of mind, like the sand that is on the seashore. 2 Chronicles 14:11,12 Then Asa called to the LORD his God and said, "LORD, there is no one besides You to help in the battle between the powerful and those who have no strength; so help us, O LORD our God, for we trust in You, and in Your name have come against this multitude. O LORD, You are our God; let not man prevail against You." • So the LORD routed the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled. Psalm 65:2 O You who hear prayer, To You all men come. New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org. |
    |