Music’s Powerful Influence

BIBLE MEDITATION

“…bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5

 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

Satan is waging a battle to control the thought life of America’s teenagers. The typical teenager listens to an average of 10,500 hours of music from the seventh to the 10th grade. That’s only 500 hours shy of all the time spent in school from first through 12th grade!

Do you have any idea of the fatalism that is bombarding the airwaves of young people’s heads every day? The National Education Association estimates that a percentage of the 5,000 teenage suicides we have in America every year is caused by the fatalistic music of today’s youth. Somebody has said, “You let me write the songs that a nation sings, and I don’t care who makes its laws.”

ACTION POINT

Are there teens in your life? If so, spend some time this week talking with them about the music they listen to and the healthy choices they need to make to take back the ground that Satan is trying to conquer with his onslaught of fatalistic music.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Five Purposes for Suffering

For those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)

We seldom know the micro reasons for our sufferings, but the Bible does give us faith-sustaining macro reasons.

It is good to have a way to remember some of these so that, when we are suddenly afflicted, or have a chance to help others in their affliction, we can recall some of the truths God has given us to help us not lose hope.

Here is one way to remember: 5 R’s (or if it helps, just pick three and try to remember them).

The macro purposes of God in our sufferings include:

Repentance: Suffering is a call for us and others to turn from treasuring anything on earth above God. Luke 13:4–5:

“Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

Reliance: Suffering is a call to trust God and not the life-sustaining props of this world. 2 Corinthians 1:8–9:

We were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.

Righteousness: Suffering is the discipline of our loving heavenly Father so that we come to share his righteousness and holiness. Hebrews 12:6, 10–11:

“The Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.” . . . He disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

Reward: Suffering is working for us a great reward in heaven that will make up for every loss here a thousandfold. 2 Corinthians 4:17:

This light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison.

Finally, Reminder: Suffering reminds us that God sent his Son into the world to suffer so that our suffering would not be God’s condemnation but his purification. Philippians 3:10:

. . . that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings.

So, it is understandable that the Christian heart would cry out in suffering, “Why?” since we don’t know most of the micro reasons for our suffering — why now, why this way, why this long? But don’t let that ignorance of the micro reasons cause you to overlook the massive help God gives in his word by telling us his macro purposes for us.

“You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful” (James 5:11).

John Piper 

Bible Study

7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.

8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ

9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith-

10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,

11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. - Philippians 3:7-11

He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. - Acts 1:3

12 "Now a word was brought to me stealthily; my ear received the whisper of it. 

13 Amid thoughts from visions of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, 

14 dread came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones shake. 

15 A spirit glided past my face; the hair of my flesh stood up. 

16 It stood still, but I could not discern its appearance. A form was before my eyes; there was silence, then I heard a voice: 

17 'Can mortal man be in the right before God? Can a man be pure before his Maker? 

18 Even in his servants he puts no trust, and his angels he charges with error; 

19 how much more those who dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation is in the dust, who are crushed like the moth.  - Job 4:12-19

My flesh trembles for fear of you, and I am afraid of your judgments.  - Psalm 119:120

No Need to Fear

BIBLE MEDITATION

“Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Joshua 1:9

 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

The devil is the sinister minister of fear. When he clamps his icy fingers of fear on your heart, do you become afraid of what he’ll do to you if you take a stand for God? Don’t be afraid. Fear is an insult to God, who said, “I will be with you.” Fear will destroy you.

Are you a worrywart? One lady said, “Don’t tell me it does no good to worry. Most of the things I worry about never come to pass.” Be not dismayed. God will take care of you.

ACTION POINT

Ask the Holy Spirit to show you what your fears are, then confess them as sin. Repent, then reach up and take hold of His right hand that is outstretched to sustain you and give you the victory!

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Prevailing Grace

“I have seen his ways, but I will heal him; I will lead him and restore comfort to him and his mourners.” (Isaiah 57:18)

Learn your doctrine from biblical texts. It stands up better that way, and feeds the soul.

For example, learn the doctrine of irresistible grace from texts. In this way, you will see that it does not mean grace cannot be resisted; it means that when God chooses, he can and will overcome that resistance.

In Isaiah 57:17–19, for instance, God chastises his rebellious people by striking them and hiding his face: “Because of the iniquity of his unjust gain I was angry, I struck him; I hid my face and was angry” (verse 17).

But they did not respond with repentance. Rather, they kept backsliding. They resisted: “But he went on backsliding in the way of his own heart” (verse 17).

So grace can be resisted. In fact, Stephen said to the Jewish leaders, “You always resist the Holy Spirit” (Acts 7:51).

What then does God do? Is he powerless to bring those who resist to repentance and wholeness? No. He is not powerless. The next verse says, “I have seen his ways, but I will heal him; I will lead him and restore comfort to him and his mourners” (Isaiah 57:18).

So, in the face of recalcitrant, grace-resisting backsliding, God says, “I will heal him.” He will “restore.” The word for “restore” is to “make whole or complete.” It is related to the word shalom, “peace.” That wholeness and peace is mentioned in the next verse which explains how God turns around a grace-resisting backslider.

He does it by “‘creating the fruit of the lips. Peace, peace (shalom, shalom), to the far and to the near,’ says the Lord, ‘and I will heal him’” (Isaiah 57:19). God creates what is not there — peace, wholeness. This is how we are saved. And this is how we are brought back from backsliding — again and again.

The grace of God triumphs over our resistance by creating praise where it did not exist. He brings shalom, shalom to the near and the far. Wholeness, wholeness to the near and the far. He does it by “restoring,” that is, replacing the disease of resistance with the soundness of submission.

The point of irresistible grace is not that we can’t resist. We can, and we do. The point is that when God chooses, he overcomes our resistance and restores a submissive spirit. He creates. He says, “Let there be light!” He heals. He leads. He restores. He comforts.

Therefore, we never boast that we have returned from backsliding. We fall on our faces before the Lord and with trembling joy thank him for his irresistible grace that conquered all our resistance.

John Piper 

Bible Study

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.

11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.

14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,

15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.

16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;

17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,

18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,

19 and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel,

20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak. - Ephesians 6:10-20

14 But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you,

15 and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses.

16 And his name-by faith in his name-has made this man strong whom you see and know, and the faith that is through Jesus has given the man this perfect health in the presence of you all. - Acts 3:14-16

1 I love you, O LORD, my strength. 

2 The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.  - Psalm 18:1-2

It is the LORD who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed." - Deuteronomy 31:8

What Truly Is Salvation?

BIBLE MEDITATION

“Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God…” 1 John 5:1

 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

What is salvation? Not a creed. You say, “Well, I believe the plan of salvation.” You can believe the plan of salvation and go straight to Hell. You’re not saved by the plan of salvation, you’re saved by the Man of salvation.

Salvation is not a creed. It’s not a code. You say, “Well, I believe if you live right, you’ll go to heaven.” If you could be saved by living right, then Calvary was a blunder. It’s not a cause. You say, “I’m a member of a good, fundamental, Bible-believing church.” It’s not any of these things. It’s Christ.

Salvation is not believing something; it is receiving Someone. The true Gospel is one that centers on Jesus Christ.

ACTION POINT

Ask God to give you a divine opportunity to boldly share Jesus with someone today. Maybe it’s a co-worker, maybe it’s your child. Maybe it’s a stranger that sits next to you at a restaurant. Be strong and of good courage, God will go before you to prepare the way.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Caused to Return

Cause us to return, O Lord, that we may return! (Lamentations 5:21, my translation)

There is no hope for God’s people unless God causes them to return from their sliding and leaping into sin and unbelief.

The book of Lamentations is the bleakest book in the Bible. God himself had decimated the apple of his eye: Jerusalem.

The Lord gave full vent to his wrath; he poured out his hot anger, and he kindled a fire in Zion that consumed its foundations. (Lamentations 4:11)

He has killed all who were delightful in our eyes. (Lamentations 2:4)

The Lord has afflicted her for the multitude of her transgressions. (Lamentations 1:5)

So how does the book end?

It ends with the only hope there is:

Cause us to return, O Lord, that we may return! (Lamentations 5:21)

That is my only hope — and your only hope!

Jesus said to Peter, “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers” (Luke 22:31–32).

Not if you return. But when you return. I have prayed for you! You will return. And when you do, it will be my sovereign grace that brought you back from the precipice of apostasy.

Christian, this is true for you. This is your only hope of perseverance in faith. Glory in it.

Christ Jesus is the one who . . . is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. (Romans 8:34)

He will cause us to return. Therefore, “to him who is able to keep you from stumbling . . . be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever” (Jude 1:24–25). Amen!

John Piper 

Bible Study

6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you,

7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.

8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.

10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.

11 To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen. - 1 Peter 5:6-11

4 For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit,

5 and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come,

6 and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. - Hebrews 6:4-6

20 But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge.

21 I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth.

22 Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son.

23 No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also.

24 Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father.

25 And this is the promise that he made to us-eternal life.

26 I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you.

27 But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie-just as it has taught you, abide in him. - 1 John 2:20-27

12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,

13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. - John 1:12-14

Is the Gospel True?

BIBLE MEDITATION

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.” Ephesians 2:8

 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

How can you tell whether or not you have the true Gospel? Paul gives you three tests.

Its source. Where did it come from? God gave it. It is direct and divine revelation. The true Gospel is authenticated by its source.

Its salvation. Any gospel that is not the Gospel of grace is not the true Gospel. You can’t beg it. You can’t buy it. You can’t borrow it. You can’t steal it. You can’t earn it. It was bought by Christ on the cross. It is the supernatural work of God.

Its subject. It is the grace of Christ. Jesus is the subject. From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible is all about Jesus.

ACTION POINT

Take an hour or two this week and find the prophecies about Jesus in the book of Isaiah. Take comfort in knowing that Jesus is the One who was, who is, and who is to come!

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

How to Repent

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

A vague, bad feeling that you are a crummy person is not the same as conviction for sin. Feeling rotten is not the same as repentance.

This morning I began to pray, and felt unworthy to be talking to the Creator of the universe. It was a vague sense of unworthiness. So I told him so. Now what?

Nothing changed until I began to get specific about my sins. Crummy feelings can be useful if they lead to conviction for specific sins. But vague feelings of being a bad person are not usually very helpful.

The fog of unworthiness needs to take shape into clear dark pillars of disobedience. Then you can point to them and repent and ask for forgiveness and take aim with your gospel bazooka to blow them up.

So I began to call to mind the commands I frequently break. These are the ones that came to mind.

Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. Not 95%, but 100%. (Matthew 22:37)

Love your neighbor as you love yourself. Be as eager for things to go well for him as you are for things to go well for you. (Matthew 22:39)

Do all things without grumbling. No grumbling — inside or outside. (Philippians 2:14)

Cast all your anxieties on him — so you are not being weighed down by them anymore. (1 Peter 5:7)

Only say things that give grace to others — especially those closest to you. (Ephesians 4:29)

Redeem the time. Don’t fritter away the minutes, or dawdle. (Ephesians 5:16)

So much for any pretensions to great holiness! I’m undone.

This is much worse than vague, crummy feelings. Ah, but now the enemy is visible. The sins are specific. They’ve come out of hiding. I look them in the eye. I’m not whining about feeling crummy. I’m apologizing to Christ for not doing specific things that he commanded.

I’m broken, and I’m angry at my sin. I want to kill it, not me. I’m not suicidal. I’m a sin-hater and a sin-murderer. (“Put to death what is earthly in you,” Colossians 3:5; “Put to death the deeds of the body,” Romans 8:13.) I want to live. That’s why I’m a killer — of my sin!

In this conflict, I hear the promise, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Peace rises.

Now, prayer feels possible and right and powerful again.

John Piper 

Bible Study

6 Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people.

7 And he said with a loud voice, "Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water." - Revelation 14:6-7

12 "Yet even now," declares the LORD, "return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; 

13 and rend your hearts and not your garments." Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster. 

14 Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the LORD your God?  - Joel 2:12-14

But when the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses, he did not presume to pronounce a blasphemous judgment, but said, "The Lord rebuke you." - Jude 1:9

51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,

52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. - 1 Corinthians 15:51-52

Satan Wants to Destroy You

BIBLE MEDITATION

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”

Ephesians 6:12

 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

There is a ruthless, cruel underworld system that wars against you. The crime bosses are but amateurs compared to this syndicate, ruled by the master of deception. He’s called the “destroyer,” “liar,” “accuser,” “tempter,” and “prince.” Satan is indescribably wicked, brilliantly stupid, and hideously beautiful. If he can’t convince you that he does not exist, then he tries to spread the lie that he is only in Hell. He is not in Hell. Hell was prepared for the devil and his angels, but he is not there yet!

Be warned: Satan comes against you to obsess, depress, and possess. But, be encouraged: Jesus has purchased your victory with His blood!

ACTION POINT

Satan is portrayed as a roaring lion in 1 Peter 5:8. Put on the full armor of God. (See Ephesians 6:10-18.) Claim the victory that only faith in King Jesus can achieve.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

He Knows Your Need

“Do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.” (Matthew 6:31–32)

Jesus wants his followers to be free from worry. In Matthew 6:25–34, he gives at least seven arguments designed to take away our anxiety. One of them lists food and drink and clothing, and then says, “Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all” (Matthew 6:32).

Jesus must mean that God’s knowing is accompanied by his desiring to meet our need. He is emphasizing we have a Father. And this Father is better than any earthly father.

I have five children. I love to meet their needs. But my knowing falls short of God’s knowing in at least three ways.

First, right now I don’t know where any of my children are. I could guess. They’re in their homes or at work or school, healthy and safe. But they might be lying on a sidewalk with a heart attack.

Second, I don’t know what is in their heart at any given moment. I can guess from time to time. But they may be feeling some fear or hurt or anger or lust or greed or joy or hope. I can’t see their hearts. They don’t even know their own hearts perfectly.

Third, I don’t know their future. Right now they may seem well and steady. But tomorrow some great sorrow may befall them.

This means I can’t be for them a very strong reason not to worry. There are things that may be happening to them now, or may happen tomorrow, that I do not even know about. But it is totally different with their Father in heaven. Our Father in heaven! He knows everything about us, where we are, now and tomorrow, inside and out. He sees every need.

Add to that, his huge eagerness to meet our needs. Remember the “much more” of Matthew 6:30, “If God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you?”

Add to that his complete ability to do what he is eager to do (he feeds billions of birds hourly, around the world, Matthew 6:26).

So join me in trusting the promise of Jesus to meet our needs. That’s what Jesus is calling for when he says, “Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.”

John Piper 

Bible Study

1 And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness

2 for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry.

3 The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread."

4 And Jesus answered him, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone.'"

5 And the devil took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time,

6 and said to him, "To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will.

7 If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours."

8 And Jesus answered him, "It is written, "'You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.'" 

9 And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here,

10 for it is written, "'He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,' 

11 and "'On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.'" 

12 And Jesus answered him, "It is said, 'You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.'"

13 And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time. - Luke 4:1-13

3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,

4 who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,

5 to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. - Galatians 1:3-5

16 If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life-to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that.

17 All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.

18 We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him.

19 We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. - 1 John 5:16-19

1 Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God,

2 and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.

3 And this we will do if God permits.

4 For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit,

5 and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come,

6 and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. - Hebrews 6:1-6

How Do We Control Our Minds?

BIBLE MEDITATION

“For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.”

Proverbs 23:7

 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

There was a sign in a business that said, “We are not what we think we are; what we think—we are.” What are you allowing into your mind and thereby allowing to control your heart, your actions, and your words? God made you so that you can’t think two thoughts at one time. If you’re thinking what’s right, you can’t be thinking what’s wrong. And as you think, you will become.

Guard your mind. Center your mind upon the Lord Jesus. Use Philippians 4:8 as the filter through which you pass each thought:

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.

Don’t let the devil take away your pure-hearted devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ. Stay in love with Jesus and there won’t be any room for those filthy, dirty, wicked, lascivious, lustful, and prideful thoughts that bombard us all.

ACTION POINT

Start today to actively marshal your thoughts. You must be purposeful about this or it won’t happen. Focus on “casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

The Giver Gets the Glory

To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power, so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 1:11–12)

It is very good news that God designs his glory to be magnified through the exercise of his grace.

To be sure, God is glorified through the power of his wrath (Romans 9:22), but repeatedly the New Testament (and the Old Testament, for example, Isaiah 30:18) says that we should experience God’s grace so that God gets glory.

Ponder how this works in the prayer of 2 Thessalonians 1:11–12.

Paul prays that God would fulfill our good resolves.

How? He prays that they would be done “by [God’s] power.” That is, that they would be “[works] of faith.”

Why? So that Jesus would be glorified in us.

That means the giver gets the glory. God gave the power. God gets the glory. We have faith; he gives power. We get the help; he gets the glory. That’s the deal that keeps us humble and happy, and keeps him supreme and glorious.

Then Paul says that this glorification of Christ is “according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus.”

God’s answer to Paul’s prayer that we rely on God’s power to do good works is grace. God’s power to enable you to do what you resolve to do is grace.

That’s the way it works in the New Testament over and over. Trust God for gracious enabling, and he gets the glory when the help comes.

We get the help. He gets the glory.

That’s why Christian living, not just Christian conversion, is good news.

John Piper 

Bible Study

1 Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, till the storms of destruction pass by. 

2 I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me. 

3 He will send from heaven and save me; he will put to shame him who tramples on me. Selah God will send out his steadfast love and his faithfulness!  - Psalm 57:1-3

Behold, the Lord has one who is mighty and strong; like a storm of hail, a destroying tempest, like a storm of mighty, overflowing waters, he casts down to the earth with his hand.  - Isaiah 28:2

23 Behold the storm of the LORD! Wrath has gone forth, a whirling tempest; it will burst upon the head of the wicked. 

24 The fierce anger of the LORD will not turn back until he has executed and accomplished the intentions of his mind. In the latter days you will understand this.  - Jeremiah 30:23-24

22 You lift me up on the wind; you make me ride on it, and you toss me about in the roar of the storm. 

23 For I know that you will bring me to death and to the house appointed for all living.  - Job 30:22-23

Do You Praise God?

BIBLE MEDITATION

“Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands! Serve the Lord with gladness; come before His presence with singing.”

Psalm 100:1

 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

There’s nothing wrong with getting excited in church. I heard about a man who came to a cold church. The preacher said something he agreed with and he said, “Amen.” Everybody turned around and looked at him. After a while, he said, “Praise the Lord.” Then people arched their eyebrows. Next time he said “Amen” an usher tapped him on the shoulder to quiet him down. The usher said, “What is wrong with you?” He said, “Well, nothing. I’ve just got religion.” To which the usher curtly replied, “Well, mister, you didn’t get it here.”

It’s easier to cool down a zealot than it is to warm up a corpse.

ACTION POINT

What does it mean to make a joyful noise unto the Lord? How do you make a joyful noise to Him...not just on Sundays in church, but all week long? Sing one of your favorite hymns throughout the day today.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Delayed Deliverances

Immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened. (Acts 16:26)

In this age, God rescues his people from some harm. Not all harm. That’s comforting to know, because otherwise we might conclude from our harm that he has forgotten us or rejected us.

So be encouraged by the simple reminder that in Acts 16:19–24, Paul and Silas were not delivered, but in verses 25–26, they were.

First, no deliverance:

“They seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace.” (verse 19)

“The magistrates tore the garments off them.” (verse 22)

They “inflicted many blows upon them.” (verse 23)

The jailer “fastened their feet in the stocks.” (verse 24)

But then, deliverance:

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God . . . and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened. (verses 25–26)

God could have stepped in sooner. He didn’t. He has his reasons. He loves Paul and Silas.

Question for you: If you plot your life along this continuum of Paul’s initial suffering and later deliverance, where are you? Are you in the stripped-and-beaten stage, or the unshackled, door-flung-open stage?

Both are God’s stages of care for you. He has not left you or forsaken you (Hebrews 13:5).

If you are in the fettered stage, don’t despair. Sing. Freedom is on the way. It is only a matter of time. Even if it comes through death. “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Revelation 2:10).

John Piper 

More Aware of Your Presence Lord

Lift up your heads.

Listen to His words.

Weigh the implications of denying Him.

Recently an important public figure died.

The world made much of him.

His accolades were shouted with marvel as to what he brought to the world.

But one statement he made stuck with me and has haunted me.

His statement "When I die, the first question I'm will ask God is. Did you really have a son?" 

The lostness of this thinking brings me such sorrow.

He lived 80 something years and he was still denying God and His Son.

He was very public about it too.

These verses came to my mind in my grief of a soul more than likely going to spend eternity in Hell forever separated from God and His glory.

And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.' - Matthew 7:23

but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven. - Matthew 10:33

36 For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?

37 For what can a man give in return for his soul?

38 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels." - Mark 8:36-38

There is mercy and forgiveness in Christ alone.

Are you denying Him before man?

Fall before His throne of grace.

Be at peace in the gift of His accepted substitutionary death and the eternal life given through His resurrection.

Hallelujah and Amen

January 25

1 Then Joseph fell on his father's face and wept over him and kissed him.

2 And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel.

3 Forty days were required for it, for that is how many are required for embalming. And the Egyptians wept for him seventy days.

4 And when the days of weeping for him were past, Joseph spoke to the household of Pharaoh, saying, "If now I have found favor in your eyes, please speak in the ears of Pharaoh, saying,

5 'My father made me swear, saying, "I am about to die: in my tomb that I hewed out for myself in the land of Canaan, there shall you bury me." Now therefore, let me please go up and bury my father. Then I will return.'"

6 And Pharaoh answered, "Go up, and bury your father, as he made you swear."

7 So Joseph went up to bury his father. With him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his household, and all the elders of the land of Egypt,

8 as well as all the household of Joseph, his brothers, and his father's household. Only their children, their flocks, and their herds were left in the land of Goshen.

9 And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen. It was a very great company.

10 When they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, they lamented there with a very great and grievous lamentation, and he made a mourning for his father seven days.

11 When the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning on the threshing floor of Atad, they said, "This is a grievous mourning by the Egyptians." Therefore the place was named Abel-mizraim; it is beyond the Jordan.

12 Thus his sons did for him as he had commanded them,

13 for his sons carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave of the field at Machpelah, to the east of Mamre, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite to possess as a burying place.

14 After he had buried his father, Joseph returned to Egypt with his brothers and all who had gone up with him to bury his father.

15 When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "It may be that Joseph will hate us and pay us back for all the evil that we did to him."

16 So they sent a message to Joseph, saying, "Your father gave this command before he died:

17 'Say to Joseph, "Please forgive the transgression of your brothers and their sin, because they did evil to you."' And now, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father." Joseph wept when they spoke to him.

18 His brothers also came and fell down before him and said, "Behold, we are your servants."

19 But Joseph said to them, "Do not fear, for am I in the place of God?

20 As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.

21 So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones." Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.

22 So Joseph remained in Egypt, he and his father's house. Joseph lived 110 years.

23 And Joseph saw Ephraim's children of the third generation. The children also of Machir the son of Manasseh were counted as Joseph's own.

24 And Joseph said to his brothers, "I am about to die, but God will visit you and bring you up out of this land to the land that he swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob."

25 Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear, saying, "God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here."

26 So Joseph died, being 110 years old. They embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt. - Genesis 50

1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 

2 He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. 

3 He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. 

4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.  - Psalms 23

1 But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved."

2 And after Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and the elders about this question.

3 So, being sent on their way by the church, they passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, describing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and brought great joy to all the brothers.

4 When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they declared all that God had done with them.

5 But some believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees rose up and said, "It is necessary to circumcise them and to order them to keep the law of Moses."

6 The apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider this matter.

7 And after there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, "Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe.

8 And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them, by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us,

9 and he made no distinction between us and them, having cleansed their hearts by faith.

10 Now, therefore, why are you putting God to the test by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear?

11 But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will."

12 And all the assembly fell silent, and they listened to Barnabas and Paul as they related what signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles.

13 After they finished speaking, James replied, "Brothers, listen to me.

14 Simeon has related how God first visited the Gentiles, to take from them a people for his name.

15 And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written,

16 "'After this I will return, and I will rebuild the tent of David that has fallen; I will rebuild its ruins, and I will restore it, 

17 that the remnant of mankind may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who are called by my name, says the Lord, who makes these things 

18 known from of old.'

19 Therefore my judgment is that we should not trouble those of the Gentiles who turn to God,

20 but should write to them to abstain from the things polluted by idols, and from sexual immorality, and from what has been strangled, and from blood.

21 For from ancient generations Moses has had in every city those who proclaim him, for he is read every Sabbath in the synagogues." - Acts 15:1-21

1 And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction.

2 The names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother;

3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus;

4 Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

5 These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, "Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans,

6 but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

7 And proclaim as you go, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.'

8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay.

9 Acquire no gold or silver or copper for your belts,

10 no bag for your journey, or two tunics or sandals or a staff, for the laborer deserves his food.

11 And whatever town or village you enter, find out who is worthy in it and stay there until you depart.

12 As you enter the house, greet it.

13 And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you.

14 And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town.

15 Truly, I say to you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town.

16 "Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.

17 Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues,

18 and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles.

19 When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour.

20 For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. - Matthew 10:1-20