August 28, 2016
David addressed the spiritual emptiness of his own soul by expressing his feeling towards God. His soul’s thirst for God was just as real as a deer’s thirst for water. His psalms are like prayers recorded in a spiritual journal. They reveal the heart of the man that God Himself called a “man after my own heart” (Acts 13:22). David knew that only God could satisfy his soul’s deep longing. Many today don’t recognize this need. Sure, they feel the spiritual emptiness, but they vainly attempt to fill it or medicate it with worldly things. Yet, only God will satisfy. As Augustine once said, “Thou hast made us for Thyself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in thee.”
August 27, 2016
In spite of some painful differences that had occurred between the Corinthians and Paul, he reminded them of the spiritual reality of their oneness in Christ. For it was God who had put them together in Christ, establishing them as belonging to Him. God had anointed, sealed and guaranteed them with the down payment of His Holy Spirit. It is good to remember the oneness we have in Christ when disunity or disagreement may come. For the same Spirit lives in each of us as a deposit guaranteeing our future together in Christ.
August 26, 2016
Paul requested that the Corinthian church be in prayer for him and his fellow ministers of the gospel. This was a request for corporate prayers, which he called real “help.” The modern church often overlooks the help that is found in prayer, especially the combined and unified prayers of the many. Do you need help today? Ask the saints of God to join together to pray on your behalf.
August 25, 2016
The apostle Paul closed his epistle to the Corinthians with five instructions for men that are more than applicable today.
1) “Be watchful.” – Be vigilant, stay awake, stand guard. You are built to be a protector. Protect your families, churches, and neighborhoods.
2) “Stand firm in the faith.” – Persevere and grow in faith. Know and stand fast in the Word. Be spiritual leaders who never give up.
3) “Act like men.” – This is a call to biblical masculinity. Grow up. Stop acting like little boys still playing with their toys. Real men are like trucks. They run better when carrying a load. Take responsibility. Work. Sacrifice. Endure pain without complaint. Serve.
4) “Be strong” – Grow strong. Exercise your body and mind to be strengthened for defense of your family and faith. Be courageous. Gain mastery over your appetites and desires, so that you have self-control.
5) “Love” – Let love be the motive for all action. This is “agape” love, which is sacrificial and unconditional. Be full of passion and fire for God and for others. Answer the call to be a man of God with great passion and enthusiasm. Put away passivity. Love!
August 24, 2016
Job, the man of sorrow, asked, “Is there life after death?” Or more specifically, “Is there a resurrection of the dead?” Those suffering grief have joined Job throughout the centuries asking the same question. Yet, no definitive answer to this question was given until the coming of the Man of Sorrow, Jesus, who answered, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live” (John 11:25). Job’s question has been answered.
August 23, 2016
We are all children of Adam and as such, subject to the wages of sin, which is death. Yet, God has sent Christ, who is like a second Adam, that we might be born again becoming the righteous children of God and receiving eternal life. Just as Adam’s death pointed to our own, so Christ’s resurrection points to our own future resurrection. Christ is the prototype, the “firstborn among many brothers” (Rom. 8:29). Since Christ is raised, so we who believe will be raised.
August 22, 2016
The Lord is our salvation. Those who have believed and received Christ as Lord and Savior have been saved from sin’s penalty, are being saved from sin’s power and will ultimately be saved from sin’s presence. However, this salvation does not mean that his followers will not experience trouble. In fact, Jesus warned his disciples that “in this world there will be trouble” (John 16:33). Yet, He is not only our salvation, but our “stronghold,” our fortress of protection and defense. When storms of tribulation come, run to Him, for He has overcome the world.
August 21, 2016
Paul called on the Corinthians to pursue and exercise spiritual gifts that would edify the other members of the church. Apparently, many were striving for gifts that only edified the individual who exercised them. Specifically, Paul named speaking in tongues without an interpretation as an example of a wrong use of spiritual gifting, because it did not build up the hearer. A timeless principle may be understood in this–– that spiritual gifts are to be used to build up the body of Christ, not for self-edification.
August 20, 2016
How many have wished they could take back their words? Yet, once said, they linger on. If only there were a delete button to erase ill chosen words. Instead, the more poorly spoken thoughts tend to linger the longest. Better to keep quiet and stay out of trouble. Fill you mind and mouth with God’s Word. Let the Spirit of Christ rule your speech.
August 19, 2016
When the evil Haman convinced the king of Persia to issue a decree to annihilate the Jews, Queen Esther asked her fellow Jews to fast and pray for three days. One night during this time of prayer and fasting, the king couldn’t sleep. He asked his servants to bring his book of chronicles and memorable deeds and read them to him. Perhaps he hoped to fall asleep to their bedtime reading. However, the section they read reminded him of how Esther’s relative Mordecai had helped save him from an assassination conspiracy. This led to him honoring Mordecai and eventually, hanging Haman. What a coincidence that the king’s insomnia led to reading the exact report concerning Mordecai. This little book of Esther, which is notable in that it never mentions God, is filled with such “coincidences.” While God’s people fasted and prayed, He worked behind the scenes to move the king’s hand.