Bible League: Living His Word We also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding...— Colossians 1:9 NKJV Why do unbelievers not concern themselves with what the Spirit has to say? Because they do not see Him or know Him (John 14:17). In a creation governed by the Lord God, non-Christians do not know what the Lord wants them to do in life, because they lack the insight provided by the Lord's Spirit. They go through life without the benefit of what Jesus called "the Helper" (John 14:16). Non-Christians, then, are adrift in the world without a compass. Although they're held responsible for the direction they take, they lack the enlightening presence that can point the way. They make decisions based on their own desires, instead of on the direction of the Spirit. Even worse, they are vulnerable to the leading of Satan, who couldn't care less what the Spirit has to say. Christians, in contrast, have been given the Holy Spirit. Indeed, the Bible says that the Holy Spirit has been poured out upon them (Joel 2:28). As a result, they go through life with the help of the Helper. They are aware of the Spirit's presence and can follow His guidance. The possibility of living in harmony with the will of the Lord is real, because they have access to the insight of the Holy Spirit. However, based on our verse for today, simply having the Holy Spirit is not enough. We need to be filled with all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit has to give. We need to be filled with all the wisdom and understanding necessary to live properly in the Lord God's creation. The Apostle Paul asked in prayer that the church in Colossae would be filled with the knowledge of the Lord's will through all wisdom and spiritual understanding. He asked so that they would "walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work..." (Colossians 1:10). We must pray this prayer as well—for ourselves and those we care about. Bible in a Year Old Testament ReadingGenesis 42, 43 Genesis 42 -- Joseph's Brothers Sent to Egypt, Simeon Detained NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Genesis 43 -- The Return to Egypt with Benjamin NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading Matthew 13:33-58 Matthew 13 -- Parables of the Sower; Weeds among Wheat; Mustard Seed; Yeast; Treasure; Pearls; Net; Prophet without Honor NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion But if you refuse to serve the LORD, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the LORD.Insight The people had to decide whether they would obey the Lord, who had proven his trustworthiness, or obey the local gods, which were only handmade idols. It's easy to slip into a quiet rebellion—going about life in your own way. But the time comes when you have to choose who or what will control you. Challenge The choice is yours. Will it be God, your own limited personality, or another imperfect substitute? Once you have chosen to be controlled by God's Spirit, reaffirm your choice every day. Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Hebrews 4:9 There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.How different will be the state of the believer in heaven from what it is here! Here he is born to toil and suffer weariness, but in the land of the immortal, fatigue is never known. Anxious to serve his Master, he finds his strength unequal to his zeal: his constant cry is, "Help me to serve thee, O my God." If he be thoroughly active, he will have much labor; not too much for his will, but more than enough for his power, so that he will cry out, "I am not wearied of the labor, but I am wearied in it." Ah! Christian, the hot day of weariness lasts not forever; the sun is nearing the horizon; it shall rise again with a brighter day than thou hast ever seen upon a land where they serve God day and night, and yet rest from their labors. Here, rest is but partial, there, it is perfect. Here, the Christian is always unsettled; he feels that he has not yet attained. There, all are at rest; they have attained the summit of the mountain; they have ascended to the bosom of their God. Higher they cannot go. Ah, toil-worn laborer, only think when thou shalt rest forever! Canst thou conceive it? It is a rest eternal; a rest that "remaineth." Here, my best joys bear "mortal" on their brow; my fair flowers fade; my dainty cups are drained to dregs; my sweetest birds fall before Death's arrows; my most pleasant days are shadowed into nights; and the flood-tides of my bliss subside into ebbs of sorrow; but there, everything is immortal; the harp abides unrusted, the crown unwithered, the eye undimmed, the voice unfaltering, the heart unwavering, and the immortal being is wholly absorbed in infinite delight. Happy day! happy! when mortality shall be swallowed up of life, and the Eternal Sabbath shall begin. Daily Light on the Daily Path Romans 5:14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.Hebrews 2:9 But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone. 2 Corinthians 5:14 For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; Romans 5:19 For as through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous. 1 Corinthians 15:45 So also it is written, "The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL." The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 1 Corinthians 15:46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual. Genesis 1:26,27 Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." • God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Hebrews 1:1-3 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, • in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. • And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, John 17:2 even as You gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life. 1 Corinthians 15:47,48 The first man is from the earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven. • As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly, so also are those who are heavenly. 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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