Grace Is Pardon — and Power!

By the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. (1 Corinthians 15:10)

Grace is not simply leniency when we have sinned. Grace is the enabling gift and power of God not to sin. Grace is power, not just pardon.

This is plain, for example, in 1 Corinthians 15:10. Paul describes grace as the enabling power of his work. It is not simply the pardon of his sins; it is the power to press on in obedience. “I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.”

Therefore, the effort we make to obey God is not an effort done in our own strength, but “by the strength that God supplies — in order that in everything God may be glorified” (1 Peter 4:11). It is the obedience of faith. Faith in God’s ever-arriving gracious power to enable us to do what we should.

Paul confirms this in 2 Thessalonians 1:11–12 by calling each of our acts of goodness a “work of faith,” and by saying that the glory this brings to Jesus is “according to the grace of our God” because it happens “by his power.” Listen for all those phrases:

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.

The obedience that gives God pleasure is produced by the power of God’s grace through faith. The same dynamic is at work at every stage of the Christian life. The power of God’s grace that saves through faith (Ephesians 2:8) is the same power of God’s grace that sanctifies through faith.

John Piper 

 

Strength to Wait with Patience

May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy. (Colossians 1:11)

“Strengthened” is the right word. The apostle Paul prayed for the church at Colossae, that they would be “strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience” (Colossians 1:11). Patience is the evidence of an inner strength.

Impatient people are weak, and therefore dependent on external supports — like schedules that go just right and circumstances that support their fragile hearts. Their outbursts of oaths and threats and harsh criticisms of the culprits who crossed their plans do not sound weak. But that noise is all a camouflage of weakness. Patience demands tremendous inner strength.

For the Christian, this strength comes from God. That is why Paul is praying for the Colossians. He is asking God to empower them for the patient endurance that the Christian life requires. But when he says that the strength of patience is “according to [God’s] glorious might” he doesn’t just mean that it takes divine power to make a person patient. He means that faith in this “glorious might” is the channel through which the power for patience comes.

Patience is indeed a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22), but the Holy Spirit empowers (with all his fruit) through “hearing with faith” (Galatians 3:5). Therefore Paul is praying that God would connect us with the “glorious might” that empowers patience. And that connection is faith.

John Piper 

The Power of His Word

“And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army.”

REVELATION 19:19

 

PONDER THIS

In Revelation 19, the battle is set. Here is the Antichrist and his armies. They have come to make war on Heaven’s King. But this is laughable. Jesus, followed by the armies of Heaven, is coming this time not for His Church, but this time with His Church after the seven years of the Great Tribulation. Here’s the Antichrist, this braggart, with his followers, speaking blasphemies, ready to make war with Jesus. And the battle ensues, the moment of anticipation has come, but it’s over with two words. Jesus says, “Drop dead.” He destroys them with the sword that goes out of His mouth. (See Revelation 19:21.) His word, the same word that spoke them into existence, will speak them into oblivion.

How often do you reflect on the power of God’s Word?

How does the reminder that Satan is no match for Jesus change the way you view the problems you are facing today?

PRACTICE THIS

Take time today to read Genesis 1 and John 1; reflect on the truth and power of Jesus as God’s Word.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

The Power God Supplies

 “By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, ‘and was not found, because God had taken him’; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God.” HEBREWS 11:5

 

PONDER THIS

Noah.” Violence, vice, and wickedness were so rampant that God decided He was going to destroy the world with a flood. In the days of Noah, Enoch walked with God. In a day of demonic force, he walked with God.

You might be tempted to say, “Pastor, it’s easy for you because you’re a preacher. You don’t know where I work. You don’t know what my house is like. It’s hard for me to walk with God.” The reality is, it’s impossible for any of us to walk with God in our own strength. Think about a power plant. Somebody says, “that plant generates power.” But in the truest sense, it releases power. The power is in the atomic energy that is released. In the same way, the power that’s in my life is from God who is releasing His power into me to walk the Christian life day by day. I would not be faithful were it not for the Lord in me. Enoch walked with God. If it’s God who walks with you, then you do not have to generate the power. The power comes from Him.

Would you say you are more reliant on yourself or on God for daily power?

What are some practical ways you can depend on God for power each day?

PRACTICE THIS

Write out your schedule for the week. Consider practical ways you can depend on God’s power rather than your own as you walk through this week.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Are You Glad You Are Not God?

Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength! (Psalm 96:7)

Here’s at least part of the experience that the psalmist is referring to when he says, “Ascribe [= give] to the Lord strength.” What are we doing when we “Ascribe to the Lord strength”?

First, by God’s grace, we give attention to God and see that he is strong. We give heed to his strength. Then we give our approval to the greatness of his strength. We give due regard to its worth.

We find his strength to be wonderful. But what makes this wonder that we experience a “giving” kind of wonder — “Give to the Lord strength!” — is that we are especially glad that the greatness of the strength is his and not ours.

We feel a profound fitness in the fact that he is infinitely strong, and we are not. We love the fact that this is so. We do not envy God for his strength. We are not covetous of his power. We are full of joy that all strength is his.

Everything in us rejoices to go out of ourselves and behold this power — as if we had arrived at the celebration of the victory of a distance runner who had beaten us in the race, and we found our greatest joy in admiring his strength, rather than resenting our loss.

We find the deepest meaning in life when our hearts freely go out of ourselves to admire God’s power, rather than turning inward to boast in our own — or even think about our own. We discover something overwhelming: It is profoundly satisfying not to be God, but to give up all thoughts or desires to be God.

In our giving heed to God’s power there rises up in us a realization that God created the universe for this: so that we could have the supremely satisfying experience of not being God, but admiring the Godness of God — the strength of God. There settles over us a peaceful realization that admiration of the infinite is the final, all-satisfying end of all things.

We tremble at the slightest temptation to claim any power as coming from us. God has made us weak to protect us from this: “We have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us” (2 Corinthians 4:7).

Oh, what love this is, that God would protect us from replacing the everlasting heights of admiring his power with the futile attempt to boast in our own! It is a great gladness not to be, but rather to see, God!

John Piper 

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 

The Piercing Power of the Word

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)

The word of God is our only hope. The good news of God’s promises and the warnings of his judgment are sharp enough and living enough and active enough to penetrate to the bottom of my heart and show me that the lies of sin are indeed lies.

Abortion will not create a wonderful future for me. Neither will cheating, or dressing provocatively, or throwing away my sexual purity, or keeping quiet about dishonesty at work, or divorce, or vengeance. And what rescues me from this deception is the word of God. 

The word of God’s promise is like throwing open a great window of bright morning sunlight on the roaches of sin masquerading as satisfying pleasures in our hearts. God has given you his good news, his promises, his word to protect you from the deep deceptions of sin that try to harden your heart and lure it away from God and lead it to destruction. 

Be of good cheer in your battle to believe. Because the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, it will penetrate deeper than any deception of sin has ever gone and reveal what is truly valuable and what is truly worth trusting and loving.

John Piper 

Self-Made Towers

“Now the whole earth had one language and one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they dwelt there. Then they said to one another, ‘Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.’ They had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar. And they said, ‘Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.’  GENESIS 11:1-4

 

PONDER THIS

The very name of the place, Babel, means, “Gate to God.” They said, “This is the gate to God. We’re going to show people how to get to God.” Today, we know that there’s only one gate to God, and His name is Jesus. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. And no man cometh unto the Father but by Me” (John 14:6). Even though we know this to be true, we still can fall into this sin pattern of looking to ourselves instead of looking to God.

Notice the personal pronouns there. Six times they use pronouns like: they, us, and we. This is religion with Man at the center and Man in the circumference. Rather than saying, “Our Father which art in Heaven hallowed be Thy name,” they’re saying, “Our brothers who are on the Earth, hallowed by our name. Let us make for us a name.” This is sheer defiance against God, yet this is something we are all too familiar with. We are quick to build lives for ourselves without ever considering God. The problem is we don’t have the answers. We were made to look to Him.

What are some ways you have tried to grow your faith in your own strength? What was the result?

What would it look like to look to God first in all things? What are some ways you can start practicing that?

PRACTICE THIS

Confess before God how you have tried to pursue your own way instead of His.

 

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Strength from the Power of God

“So the woman bore a son and called his name Samson; and the child grew, and the Lord blessed him. And the Spirit of the Lord began to move upon him at Mahaneh Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol.” JUDGES 13:24-25

 

PONDER THIS

Many of us know the story of Samson, but do you know the secret of his strength? There was something supernatural about his strength. His strength was in the power of God. The Bible says the Holy Spirit of God would come upon him. Don’t ever make the mistake that his strength was in his hair. His hair was only a symbol of that strength.

The Spirit of God was on him, and yet he gave way to the appetites of the flesh. He was called on to declare war on the enemies of God, and yet he fraternized and fellow-shipped with them. He fought the Lord’s battles by day and broke the Lord’s commandments by night. His name speaks of light, but he ended his life in darkness, having his eyes put out. It’s amazing how a man could soar so high and yet go so low. There are three persons occupying the place in which you stand: The person you are now; the person you could be for God; and the person you may be if you take your eyes off God.

When has your focus most been set on God? What threatens that focus?

What are some ways you would live differently if you followed God’s direction daily?

PRACTICE THIS

Talk to a Christian friend and ask him or her to keep you accountable for living in God’s way.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

The Dynamo of God

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, ‘The just shall live by faith.’” ROMANS 1:16-17

 

PONDER THIS

The word power in this verse is the word we get dynamite from. It’s the Greek word dunamis. It’s the dynamite of the Gospel. There’s power in the Gospel. Only the Gospel of Jesus can blow sin out. That power can make a crooked man straight, make an impure woman pure, make an alcoholic sober, and give a hope that is steadfast and sure.

Jesus doesn’t just forgive you and then you have a big explosion, and all the dust settles. He comes into you and gives you a power that energizes you and works through you. That is the dynamo of God, His Holy Spirit. When you receive Christ, God doesn’t just wind you up and let you go on your own. We go and we operate in His power.

How have you seen the power of the Gospel at work?

Who are some people you are hesitant to share the Gospel with? How are you encouraged to remember God’s Gospel power?

PRACTICE THIS

Make a list of people you know need Christ but you are hesitant to share with. Ask God to equip you to share with them as He desires.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

The Power in a Sugar Cube

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” JOHN 14:26-27

 

PONDER THIS

We don’t have to pray for the Holy Spirit to come. He came on the day of Pentecost in great power. We seek to be filled with the Spirit of God to witness. That power has been given. You want to be a soul winner across the street or around the world? The Spirit of God will guide you.

He is also the one who energizes the message. I can preach the Gospel, but the Holy Spirit of God must impart the Gospel. I need more than mere words when I preach. It is the Holy Spirit of God that gives that power not only to enlighten but also to energize.

I heard it said there is enough power in a cube of sugar to destroy all of London. There’s atomic power in a cube of sugar. But it’s got to be released. It makes me think of the Church, full of people. The power is there, but that power must be released in us. We have been given the power of God to live as sent people to be witnesses to the ends of the earth.

How has the Holy Spirit’s guidance and energy to share the Gospel impacted you?

What are some ways you actively live as a witness? What are some places where that is more challenging? How does the Holy Spirit help you with those obstacles?

PRACTICE THIS

Consider who you might share your faith with today. Ask God to equip and energize you to do so.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

The Great Exchange

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed. (Romans 1:16–17)

We need righteousness to be acceptable to God. But we don’t have it. What we have is sin.

So, God has what we need and don’t deserve — righteousness; and we have what God hates and rejects — sin. What is God’s answer to this situation?

His answer is Jesus Christ, the Son of God who died in our place and bore our condemnation. “By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he [God] condemned sin in the flesh” (Romans 8:3). Whose flesh bore the condemnation? His. Whose sins were being condemned? Ours. This is the great exchange. Here it is again in 2 Corinthians 5:21: “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

God lays our sins on Christ and punishes them in him. And in Christ’s obedient death, God fulfills and vindicates his righteousness and imputes (credits) it to us. Our sin on Christ; his righteousness on us.

We can hardly stress too much that Christ is God’s answer to our greatest problem. It is all owing to Christ.

You can’t love Christ too much. You can’t think about him too much, or thank him too much, or depend upon him too much. All our forgiveness, all our justification, all our righteousness is in Christ.

This is the gospel — the good news that our sins are laid on Christ and his righteousness is laid on us, and that this great exchange becomes ours not by works but by faith alone. “By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9).

Here is the good news that lifts burdens and gives joy and makes strong.

John Piper 

God’s Great Power Seen in a Small Seed

PRAY OVER THIS

“So Jesus said to them, ‘Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, “Move from here to there,” and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.’” Matthew 17:20

 

PONDER THIS

There’s a story about Darius the Great as he invaded Europe. He came into Europe, and Alexander the Great came to meet Darius of the Persians. Darius sent Alexander a bag of sesame seeds. His point was they were going to cover the land like countless sesame seeds. Alexander the Great sent him back a bag of mustard seeds to say, “You are going to meet fire and power and strength like you’ve never known before.”

The mustard seed may be small and insignificant in many ways, but it has strength. Someone once said, “Any fool can count the seeds in an apple, but only God can count the apples in a seed.” Isn’t that a beautiful thought? Only God can count the effectiveness of a seed. A seed can reproduce and reproduce repeatedly. It is a secret and a mystery to us, but it is fully known to God. He sees the seed, and He knows the fruit before anyone else sees it coming. We may dismiss faith the size of a mustard seed, but God knows what it can really do.

When was a time you underestimated God’s power?

How have you seen the power of small faith? Who do you need to share this with?

PRACTICE THIS

Ask a fellow believer to share how he or she has seen the power of God.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

No One is Too Far for God to Reach

PRAY OVER THIS

“If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, ‘Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.’ For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For ‘whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’”

Romans 10:9-13

 

PONDER THIS

While I was a pastor in Florida, I had a group of men I would meet with for prayer. We felt the need for revival in our city. We decided to start by praying for the meanest man in our city. And I said, “How do you get the meanest man saved?” We agreed you begin to pray for him and then you witness to him. After a long time praying, I went by his house and knocked on the door. I presented Jesus Christ to him and asked, “Would you like to be saved?” He said he would, and I led him in the sinner’s prayer. He gave his heart to Christ in the same way a little boy would trust Christ as his personal Savior. I’ve never been able to forget that. The man everybody was afraid of became a follower of Christ. God had softened his heart by prayer. There is no man, no woman, no boy, no girl too difficult for God to save.

Who are some people you believe are very far from God? How often do you pray for them?

Why is it important to trust God’s power to transform hearts over our ability to share or persuade?

PRACTICE THIS

Set a daily reminder to pray for someone you know who is far from God.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Do You Need God’s Power in Your Life?

PRAY OVER THIS

“For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

Hebrews 4:12

 

PONDER THIS

The Bible is not the book of the month. It is the book of the ages. It has survived and it is applicable. It is up to date. It is relevant. “The word of the Lord endures forever” (1 Peter 1:25).

There is life-changing power in this book. I have preached this book long enough to know it’s not like any other book. We read other books, but this book reads us. God says His Word is quick and powerful. God says, “Is not My word . . . like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?” (Jeremiah 23:29). Even the hardest rock will break. I’ve seen it happen so many times. The Bible has real power.

What kind of power? It has power to save the sinner. It has power to break addiction. It has power to bring humility to the proudest person. It has power to heal the broken parts of your story. You won’t be saved, and you won’t get anybody else saved apart from the Word of God. The Gospel of Christ is the dynamite of God that saves.

PRACTICE THIS

Where do you need to see God’s power right now?

Who in your life needs the power of Jesus?

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Live Confident in God’s Sovereign Power

The immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe . . . (Ephesians 1:19)

The omnipotence of God means eternal, unshakable refuge in the everlasting glory of God no matter what happens on this earth. And that confidence is the source and power of radical obedience to the call of God.

Is there anything more freeing, more thrilling, or more strengthening than the truth that God Almighty is your refuge — all day, every day, in all the ordinary and extraordinary experiences of life?

If we believed this, if we really let this truth of God’s omnipotence get hold of us, what a difference it would make in our personal lives and in our ministries! How humble and powerful we would become for the saving purposes of God!

The omnipotence of God means refuge for the people of God. And when you really believe that your refuge is the omnipotence of God Almighty, there is a joy and a freedom and a power that spills over in a life of radical obedience to Jesus Christ.

The omnipotence of God means reverence, recompense, and refuge for his covenant people.

I invite you to accept the terms of his covenant of grace: Turn from sin and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ; and the omnipotence of God Almighty will be the reverence of your soul, the recompense of your enemies, and the refuge of your life — forever.

John Piper 

God’s Power in You

Pray Over This

“Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.” John 16:7

Ponder This

There is a problem when we ask the question “What would Jesus do if He were here?” Here’s the problem: He is here. He’s not far away beyond the blue peering down through the clouds saying, “You work it out.” He says, “I will come to you. I will abide in you now.” The Christian life is not lived by you; it’s lived by Jesus in you. If it’s lived where you live, it will be Jesus Christ living that life in you. That’s the secret.

It is better that Jesus went back to Heaven and sent the Holy Spirit. Most of us think, “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could just have lived back in the time when Jesus was here in the flesh, walking the shores of Galilee?” But the truth is, we have the advantage over those who walked bodily with Jesus. They experienced Jesus on the outside; we have His presence inside to guide us.

What intimidates you about serving God? How does it encourage you to know God’s power is in you?

How can you remind yourself that the Holy Spirit lives in you and will guide you each day?

Practice This

Write out Galatians 2:20 on an index card and put it somewhere you will see it every morning to remind yourself of your identity in Jesus.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Stop Comparing Ourselves to Others

PRAY OVER THIS

“For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.” Galatians 6:3-4

 

PONDER THIS

Do you know Jesus raised three people from the dead? He raised a little girl who had just died (Mark 5:21-43), a young man on the way to his funeral (Luke 7:11-17), and He raised Lazarus (John 11:38-44). How did He raise that little girl? She had just died. Jesus went into her bedroom and said, “All the rest of you just stay out. You don’t believe.” But Jesus took that little girl and said, “Darling, get up!” She woke up. Her body was still warm. And then Jesus raised a man. He was on the way to the funeral. He was being transported. Now he was dead also, but his body was cold. Rigor mortis had set in. And Jesus raised him. Then Jesus raised Lazarus. Lazarus had been in the grave for four days. Corruption had already begun. The stench of death was there. And God raised Lazarus.

I want to ask you a question: Which one was the deadest? Dead is dead. It doesn’t matter whether you were like that little girl, like that young man, or like Lazarus. Dead is dead. There may be degrees of corruption but not degrees of death. Dead is dead. We must stop comparing ourselves to others and saying, “I’m better than him. I’m better than her.” That’s like dead people saying, “You’re more dead than I am.” Dead is dead; we all need God’s power at work in us.

When have you compared yourself to someone else in matters of faith?

How does pride inhibit intimacy with Christ?

PRACTICE THIS

Take time and consider where you have pridefully compared yourself with others. Repent and ask God to show His power in you.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

You Can’t Drown God’s Holy Word

PRAY OVER THIS

“‘But the word of the LORD endures forever.’ Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.”

1 Peter 1:25

 

PONDER THIS

There was a Scottish missionary named Alexander Duff who set sail for Holland in 1829. He had all his belongings on board, and the ship was wrecked. Alexander Duff and the others got to shore safely, but everything on board the ship went down. After they made it to shore, they were standing and watching to see if there was something that might wash ashore from the ship, something they might save. Duff, being a missionary, wanted his books, and he had taken eight hundred selected books.

After a while, they saw something bobbing along the shore and moving closer and closer. The only thing that survived out of the entire shipwreck was Duff's Bible. All the other volumes had gone to the bottom, but there was the Word of God still afloat. What a parable. Books come and books go, but you can't drown God's holy Word. “The Word of the Lord endures forever.”

How have you seen the reality that God’s Word outlasts the knowledge and wisdom of people?

How can you prioritize the Word of God over other sources of knowledge in daily life?

PRACTICE THIS

Spend time today taking in the wisdom of God revealed through His Word.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

The Same Source of Power

PRAY OVER THIS

“There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all.” 1 Corinthians 12:4-7

 

PONDER THIS

When Joyce and I got married, we got all kinds of gifts, as do many couples when they get married. It’s a custom. These gifts might include waffle irons, blenders, toasters, can openers, and coffee makers. All these items have different functions. But they all have to be plugged in; they don’t operate without power. It’s the same power that operates them all, but they all have different functions and different capacities. That is what Paul is saying about the body of the Lord Jesus Christ. We have different capacities and different functions, but it is the same Spirit. We’re all plugged into Him. What you need to do is to plug in your spiritual gift. Your ministry is your place of service, but God is the source of life for us all; He is the source of power for every gift.

God doesn’t want us all to be alike. We’re not a congregation of clones. God makes us different. Unity is not uniformity—everybody doing the same thing. Unity comes from the life of the Spirit within. We all share the same Holy Spirit, and we all have unique gifts to be used for His glory.

When have you sought to use a spiritual gift in your own strength—without relying on the Holy Spirit?

How have you pursued unity in your church? How can you do so further?

PRACTICE THIS

Think about someone you have had a difficult time getting along with in your church. What would it look like to have unity of the Spirit with that person? Pursue unity in one practical way this week.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers