Bible League: Living His Word But we continue to preach because we have the same kind of faith the psalmist had when he said, "I believed in God, so I spoke."The Apostle Paul faced many hardships when he went out and preached the gospel of Jesus Christ. He said that he and his companions were "pressed on every side by troubles," "perplexed," "hunted down," "knocked down," and they lived "under constant danger of death" (II Corinthians 4:8-11). The happy result of all this trouble, however, was that the people who accepted the gospel he preached received eternal life (II Corinthians 4:12). Although we may never have to face the same level of opposition that Paul faced, we still have to face opposition. Each of us in our own unique ways participates in shining the light of the gospel into this dark world we live in and the forces of evil don't sit idly by. Rather, they oppose us. They do what they can to impede the spread of the gospel. They do what they can to keep those they have blinded from seeing the light (II Corinthians 4:4). Nevertheless, like Paul, we continue to do the work and people continue to receive eternal life. Jesus' prophecy that we would be His witnesses to the ends of the earth is coming true before our very eyes (Acts 1:8). We continue to do the work because, like Paul, we continue to believe. We received the gospel of Jesus Christ and we accepted it in faith. By the grace of God our eyes and ears were opened and something changed inside of us. The Holy Spirit entered our very souls and we stopped opposing the truth and we became firm believers. Instead of living lives in opposition to truth, we began the process of re-ordering our lives in its light. And thus, like Paul and the psalmist, we speak. We believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ, and we speak what we believe. It's what you do when you really believe in something. You don't just hold it in. You let it out. The change that occurs within you demands it. The faith that rises up in your soul cannot be held back. Although Satan may do what he can to stop the process, the process of re-ordering our lives includes changing what we speak. You believe in Jesus Christ and the gospel message. Go forth, then, and speak what you believe. Bible in a Year Old Testament ReadingEzekiel 24, 25, 26 Ezekiel 24 -- Parable of the Boiling Pot; Ezekiel's Wife Dies NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Ezekiel 25 -- God's Vengeance upon Ammon, Moab, Edom and Philistia NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Ezekiel 26 -- Judgment on Tyre NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading James 3 James 3 -- Taming the Tongue; the Wisdom from above NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion Don't let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, in your faith, and in your purity.Insight Timothy was a young pastor. It would have been easy for older Christians to look down on him because of his youth. He had to earn the respect of his elders by setting an example in his speech, life, love, faith, and purity. Challenge Regardless of your age, God can use you. Whether you are young or old, don't think of your age as a handicap. Live so others can see Christ in you. Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Ephesians 4:30 Grieve not the Holy Spirit.All that the believer has must come from Christ, but it comes solely through the channel of the Spirit of grace. Moreover, as all blessings thus flow to you through the Holy Spirit, so also no good thing can come out of you in holy thought, devout worship, or gracious act, apart from the sanctifying operation of the same Spirit. Even if the good seed be sown in you, yet it lies dormant except he worketh in you to will and to do of his own good pleasure. Do you desire to speak for Jesus--how can you unless the Holy Ghost touch your tongue? Do you desire to pray? Alas! what dull work it is unless the Spirit maketh intercession for you! Do you desire to subdue sin? Would you be holy? Would you imitate your Master? Do you desire to rise to superlative heights of spirituality? Are you wanting to be made like the angels of God, full of zeal and ardour for the Master's cause? You cannot without the Spirit--"Without me ye can do nothing." O branch of the vine, thou canst have no fruit without the sap! O child of God, thou hast no life within thee apart from the life which God gives thee through his Spirit! Then let us not grieve him or provoke him to anger by our sin. Let us not quench him in one of his faintest motions in our soul; let us foster every suggestion, and be ready to obey every prompting. If the Holy Spirit be indeed so mighty, let us attempt nothing without him; let us begin no project, and carry on no enterprise, and conclude no transaction, without imploring his blessing. Let us do him the due homage of feeling our entire weakness apart from him, and then depending alone upon him, having this for our prayer, "Open thou my heart and my whole being to thine incoming, and uphold me with thy free Spirit when I shall have received that Spirit in my inward parts." Daily Light on the Daily Path John 6:37 "All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.Exodus 22:27 for that is his only covering; it is his cloak for his body. What else shall he sleep in? And it shall come about that when he cries out to Me, I will hear him, for I am gracious. Leviticus 26:44 'Yet in spite of this, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not reject them, nor will I so abhor them as to destroy them, breaking My covenant with them; for I am the LORD their God. Ezekiel 16:60 "Nevertheless, I will remember My covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you. Isaiah 1:18 "Come now, and let us reason together," Says the LORD, "Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool. Isaiah 55:7 Let the wicked forsake his way And the unrighteous man his thoughts; And let him return to the LORD, And He will have compassion on him, And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon. Luke 23:42,43 And he was saying, "Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!" • And He said to him, "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise." Isaiah 42:3 "A bruised reed He will not break And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish; He will faithfully bring forth justice. 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. |
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