Trusting His Love to Provide

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“And they that know Thy name will put their trust in Thee: for Thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek Thee.” Psalm 9:10

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

After World War II, a group of humanitarians placed orphan boys in tent cities to care for them. But the boys would wake up in the night from nightmares. A psychiatrist surmised that their fear was because they had such an uncertain future. 

He decided to feed the boys a big meal each night, then give them each a piece of bread. He instructed them to hold the bread in their hands so it could be their breakfast. Somehow just holding in their hand a piece of bread helped them to sleep all night.

When you go to bed tonight, I want you to have bread—not in your hand, but in your heart. He is the Bread of Heaven and His name is Jesus!

ACTION POINT:

Take a walk with the Lord today. Tell Him your fears. Confidently place them before the Lord. Trust in His love to provide.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

New Life, a New Creation in Christ

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“For with Thee is the fountain of life: in Thy light shall we see light.” Psalm 36:9

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Jesus had a life that the grave could not keep. While He carried your sins to the grave and left them there, Jesus came out of that grave living, risen, and victorious! 

When Jesus rose, you rose with Him. Christians are not just nice people, they are new creatures. We have the same power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead. We have come out of the grave of the old life. Our old master has no more hold on us. The old debt has no more penalty that we have to pay. 

When Jesus came out of that grave, we came out with Him and we have been raised to walk in newness of life.

ACTION POINT:

Are you walking around in the grave clothes of your old life? Shed them, my friend! Jesus came to give you new life! Believe that you are now a new creation in Christ!

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

The Most Astounding Claim In All Of History

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

In a world of many ways, Jesus claims to be the way.

“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life;

whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” John 3:36

Amidst a culture that questions truth, Jesus claims to be the truth.

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31-32

To all who long for peace and joy in life, Jesus claims to be the life.

Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up

to eternal life.” John 4:13-14

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”

John 6:35

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”

John 10:10

An important question: “Do you believe his claims?”

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

John 11:25-26

A more important question: “Will you receive his love?”

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

John 3:16

The most important question: “Will you call him lord?”

Jesus said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20:27-28

Thanks Pastor David!!

The Undeniable, Living Christ

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“...we believe and are sure that Thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.” John 6:69

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Jesus Christ is a fact of history. All secular historians who have any merit admit that, regardless of what they believe about Him, Jesus lived! There’s no way to explain that the Christian Church exists apart from the fact that Jesus Christ was here.

What did the early church preach? Not only that Jesus was here, but that He walked out of the grave. How do you explain that? Somebody said, “Well, they must have made up the story. They said they touched Him, they said they ate with Him.” Oh? We’re talking about men who died for their faith. Do you think they would willingly, knowingly die for a lie? A man may live for a lie, but few would die for one.

ACTION POINT:

Are you willing to die for the cause of Christ? This man who died for you...are you willing to die for Him?

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

He is Risen!

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“He is not here: for He is risen.” Matthew 28:6

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

It is a disturbing truth that Jesus Christ literally came out of the grave. You just can’t be neutral about the resurrection. If you are a thinking person, you’re going to have to face the fact of the resurrection. 

Either it is true or it is not true. Either He came out of that grave or He did not. Now which side are you on? 

You can’t just ball it all up and say, “It doesn’t really make any difference. Let’s just put our arms around everybody. We all believe the same thing.” No, no, no! When you take a stand for truth, you’re going to have a head-on collision with the darkness that doesn’t want the light shining in!

ACTION POINT:

Pray for those in fulltime ministry as they proclaim the truth to a lost world. Pray for God’s protection as they go to the frontline and battle for souls!

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

NEW COVENANT COMMUNITY

Leviticus 16

1 The LORD spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they drew near before the LORD and died,

2 and the LORD said to Moses, "Tell Aaron your brother not to come at any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat that is on the ark, so that he may not die. For I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat.

3 But in this way Aaron shall come into the Holy Place: with a bull from the herd for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering.

4 He shall put on the holy linen coat and shall have the linen undergarment on his body, and he shall tie the linen sash around his waist, and wear the linen turban; these are the holy garments. He shall bathe his body in water and then put them on.

5 And he shall take from the congregation of the people of Israel two male goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering.

6 "Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering for himself and shall make atonement for himself and for his house.

7 Then he shall take the two goats and set them before the LORD at the entrance of the tent of meeting.

8 And Aaron shall cast lots over the two goats, one lot for the LORD and the other lot for Azazel.

9 And Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for the LORD and use it as a sin offering,

10 but the goat on which the lot fell for Azazel shall be presented alive before the LORD to make atonement over it, that it may be sent away into the wilderness to Azazel.

11 "Aaron shall present the bull as a sin offering for himself, and shall make atonement for himself and for his house. He shall kill the bull as a sin offering for himself.

12 And he shall take a censer full of coals of fire from the altar before the LORD, and two handfuls of sweet incense beaten small, and he shall bring it inside the veil

13 and put the incense on the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is over the testimony, so that he does not die.

14 And he shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the front of the mercy seat on the east side, and in front of the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.

15 "Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering that is for the people and bring its blood inside the veil and do with its blood as he did with the blood of the bull, sprinkling it over the mercy seat and in front of the mercy seat.

16 Thus he shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleannesses of the people of Israel and because of their transgressions, all their sins. And so he shall do for the tent of meeting, which dwells with them in the midst of their uncleannesses.

17 No one may be in the tent of meeting from the time he enters to make atonement in the Holy Place until he comes out and has made atonement for himself and for his house and for all the assembly of Israel.

18 Then he shall go out to the altar that is before the LORD and make atonement for it, and shall take some of the blood of the bull and some of the blood of the goat, and put it on the horns of the altar all around.

19 And he shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it and consecrate it from the uncleannesses of the people of Israel.

20 "And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall present the live goat.

21 And Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the people of Israel, and all their transgressions, all their sins. And he shall put them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is in readiness.

22 The goat shall bear all their iniquities on itself to a remote area, and he shall let the goat go free in the wilderness.

23 "Then Aaron shall come into the tent of meeting and shall take off the linen garments that he put on when he went into the Holy Place and shall leave them there.

24 And he shall bathe his body in water in a holy place and put on his garments and come out and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people and make atonement for himself and for the people.

25 And the fat of the sin offering he shall burn on the altar.

26 And he who lets the goat go to Azazel shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp.

27 And the bull for the sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the Holy Place, shall be carried outside the camp. Their skin and their flesh and their dung shall be burned up with fire.

28 And he who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp.

29 "And it shall be a statute to you forever that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict yourselves and shall do no work, either the native or the stranger who sojourns among you.

30 For on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be clean before the LORD from all your sins.

31 It is a Sabbath of solemn rest to you, and you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute forever.

32 And the priest who is anointed and consecrated as priest in his father's place shall make atonement, wearing the holy linen garments.

33 He shall make atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tent of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly.

34 And this shall be a statute forever for you, that atonement may be made for the people of Israel once in the year because of all their sins." And Aaron did as the LORD commanded Moses.

Two truths to consider...

These Old Testament laws represent God’s covenant relationship with

His people.

These Old Testament laws are not our testament laws.

Unless an Old Testament law is somehow restated or reinforced in the New Testament, it is no longer directly binding on God’s people.

These Old Testament laws are the Word of God for us even though

they are not the commands of God to us.

Three pieces of counsel...

Read these Old Testament laws carefully within their context.

Observe what these Old Testament laws reveal about the gospel

of God.

Imagine the effects of these Old Testament laws collectively within a community.

Four implications for the church...

We stand in awe together before the God who reigns over us.

We cannot be a casual community before God.

We must be a contrite community before God.

We fight in battle together against the sin that remains within us.

Our propensity to sin is strong.

We need help from one another.

The punishment for sin is severe.

We want help from one another.

We unite together around the cross of Christ.

God’s provision in the Old Testament: An annual sacrifice on

the Day of Atonement.

God saw the sins of Israel.

God was satisfied by the sacrifice of a substitute.

God’s provision in the New Testament: An abiding sacrifice

in the death of Christ.

God sees the sins in our lives.

God is satisfied by the sacrifice of His Son.

Our guilt is gone.

Our conscience is clear.

We work together in the mission of God.

We want to show God’s law through the way we share our lives.

We want to spread God’s gospel for the sake of God’s glory.

Thanks Pastor David!!

Peace with God—Because of the Cross

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“... having made peace through the blood of His cross.” Colossians 1:20

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

How can a cross bring peace if Jesus is the One hanging there? 

At the cross, wickedness was not appeased. Wickedness was confronted. 

At the cross, sin was not overlooked. Sin was atoned and paid for. 

God’s greatest righteousness confronted man’s greatest wickedness, and righteousness won! Peace was attained through the blood of the cross. 

Thank God for the cross! Thank God for Jesus!

ACTION POINT:

During this time of year, as you celebrate the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord, take a few moments to praise Jesus for the power and hope you have because of His resurrection.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers