Bible League: Living His Word For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.The Apostle Paul felt it was necessary to encourage Timothy to utilize the spiritual gift he had been given. He said, "Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership" (I Timothy 4:14) and he said, "I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands" (II Timothy 1:6). Why would Paul feel the need to encourage Timothy in this way? Whenever a person puts the gifts of the Holy Spirit into action the Kingdom of God is advanced and enhanced. As a result, opposition from the enemy may arise. There is temptation, then, to refrain from using the gifts in order to avoid the opposition. From Paul's point of view, however, yielding to the opposition is unacceptable. In our verse for today he gives four reasons for this. First, the spirit we have been given is not a spirit of fear. Since the spirit we have been given is the Holy Spirit, the point is well taken. The Holy Spirit has no "gift of fear." If a person experiences fear when faced with opposition, it comes from self or Satan, not the Holy Spirit. Second, the spirit we have been given is a spirit of power. The Holy Spirit enables us to utilize our gifts. This enablement is a powerful spiritual force working in us in order to help us advance and enhance the Kingdom of God. The whole point of it being given is to help us resist opposition, not to shrink back from it. Third, the spirit we have been given is a spirit of love. The Holy Spirit fills us with love for the people to which we minister. This love keeps us from shrinking back as well. It impels us to use our gifts so that people will be helped. Finally, the spirit we have been given is a spirit of a sound mind. When the opposition comes we don't yield to it because we understand what is happening. We act appropriately under the circumstances in order to withstand and overcome the opposition. Don't shrink back in fear. Rather, step forward with all the power, love, and soundness of mind you have been given. Bible in a Year Old Testament ReadingDaniel 3, 4 Daniel 3 -- Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego Refuse to Bow to Golden Image, Survive the Fiery Furnace NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Daniel 4 -- Nebuchadnezzar's Confession of God's Kingdom; Daniel Interprets the Vision of a Great Tree NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading 1 John 3 1 John 3 -- He laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.Insight Believing that God exists is only the beginning; even the demons believe that much. God will not settle for mere acknowledgment of his existence. He wants a personal, dynamic relationship with you that will transform your life. Those who seek God will find that they are rewarded with his intimate presence. Challenge Sometimes we wonder about the fate of those who haven't heard of Christ and have not even had a Bible to read. God assures us that all who honestly seek him—who act in faith on the knowledge of God that they possess—will be rewarded. When you tell others the gospel, encourage them to be honest and diligent in their search for truth. Those who hear the gospel are responsible for what they have heard. Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Romans 8:23 Even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.This groaning is universal among the saints: to a greater or less extent we all feel it. It is not the groan of murmuring or complaint: it is rather the note of desire than of distress. Having received an earnest, we desire the whole of our portion; we are sighing that our entire manhood, in its trinity of spirit, soul, and body, may be set free from the last vestige of the fall; we long to put off corruption, weakness, and dishonor, and to wrap ourselves in incorruption, in immortality, in glory, in the spiritual body which the Lord Jesus will bestow upon his people. We long for the manifestation of our adoption as the children of God. "We groan," but it is "within ourselves." It is not the hypocrite's groan, by which he would make men believe that he is a saint because he is wretched. Our sighs are sacred things, too hallowed for us to tell abroad. We keep our longings to our Lord alone. Then the apostle says we are "waiting," by which we learn that we are not to be petulant, like Jonah or Elijah, when they said, "Let me die;" nor are we to whimper and sigh for the end of life because we are tired of work, nor wish to escape from our present sufferings till the will of the Lord is done. We are to groan for glorification, but we are to wait patiently for it, knowing that what the Lord appoints is best. Waiting implies being ready. We are to stand at the door expecting the Beloved to open it and take us away to himself. This "groaning" is a test. You may judge of a man by what he groans after. Some men groan after wealth--they worship Mammon; some groan continually under the troubles of life--they are merely impatient; but the man who sighs after God, who is uneasy till he is made like Christ, that is the blessed man. May God help us to groan for the coming of the Lord, and the resurrection which he will bring to us. Daily Light on the Daily Path Job 7:16 "I waste away; I will not live forever. Leave me alone, for my days are but a breath.Psalm 55:6,8 I said, "Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest. • "I would hasten to my place of refuge From the stormy wind and tempest." 2 Corinthians 5:2,4 For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven, • For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life. Philippians 1:23 But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; Hebrews 12:1-3 Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, • fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. • For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful. New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. 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