People God Chooses to Do His Work

BIBLE MEDITATION:
“But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty.” 1 Corinthians 1:27

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
The people God chooses to do His work are plain, simple folks. All you have to do is look at the twelve men Jesus chose to be His disciples. Fishermen, a tax collector, a “zealot.” What a ragtag bunch! But they ended up “turning the world upside down.” And those who watched them exclaimed, “Why, these are ignorant and unlearned men!” (Acts 4:13). Maybe you didn’t make the “Who’s Who,” or worse, the “Who’s Not”! That’s all right. God has a plan for you. God knows what He is doing. He turns the table on the world’s idea of success. Wealth, fame, acclaim. None of these are necessary for you to be used of God.

ACTION POINT:
What a glorious truth for you to share with someone today who may be feeling like they’re not worth much. Ask God to lead you to that someone right now.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

God Is In Control

BIBLE MEDITATION:
“For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.” Is.41:13
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Once I had the rare opportunity of visiting with Corrie Ten Boom. I drank in her words. I listened and kept my mouth shut. One of her statements went straight to my heart: “There is no panic in heaven, only plans.” That is how God operates — no panic. Did you know the Holy Trinity never meets in an emergency session? God has never stepped down from His throne. Jesus has not left His right hand, and the Holy Spirit has not stopped interceding for you, His child. Refuse to listen to Satan’s lies of fear, discouragement, and despair. You are a victor. And God is in control!

ACTION POINT:
Repeat the following throughout the day today, “God is in control of my life. He will not leave me. His right hand will sustain me all the length of my days.”

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

HOW TO BUILD GOD’S CHURCH

2 Kings 22-25

God uses means to build and strengthen His Church, and there are ways to lean into this strengthening work of God.

Eagerness: Seek the Lord (2 Kings 22:1-2)

• In Scripture, if you find someone who has genuine faith in God, you are finding someone who seeks after God.

• When the Old Testament prophets see people running to idols for satisfaction, they don’t correct the impulse of searching. They point to the true

Source of life.

Purity: Clean the House (2 Kings 22:3-6)

• In the Old Testament era, the truths about God’s rule and blessing were often packed into things that were highly visible (temple, land, priestly

garments, anointing the king with oil).

• New Testament believers pursue real reform not by destroying the worship sites of false gods but by striving after purity and holiness before God.

Revelation: Find the Book (2 Kings 22:11-13; 23:1-27)

• As soon as Josiah gets his hands on the Book, he wants it read before all the people and he wants the people to make a covenant to live under this Word.

• Our sole confidence as a church as we face the future is this: God builds His Church by His Spirit through His Word!

The End of 2 Kings: Tragedy and Hope (2 Kings 25)

• It would seem that God’s promise to claim a people for His own possession had failed, but there’s a ray of hope: a living king in the

line of David.

• Jesus alone is able to bring more than temporary reform. He is able to build His Church.

Thanks Matt!

The Will of God

BIBLE MEDITATION:
“For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is My brother, and My sister, and mother.” Mark 3:35

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Major Ian Thomas, English author and founder of a worldwide missionary fellowship, once wrote, “Which of these things in the life of Jesus is more spiritual? When Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount? When He raised Lazarus from the dead? When He washed His disciples’ feet? Or when He spat on the ground and made clay to anoint the blind man’s eyes? None was more spiritual than the other. Jesus did not divide His life up into little segments of spirituality. He was simply available to do whatever His Father willed.” The will of God is not a road map. It is a relationship! You just simply set yourself apart to do the will of God.

ACTION POINT:
Are you segregating your life into activities that are more spiritual than others? Surrender all you are to Him and make yourself available for whatever He calls you to do today.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Bridging the Stress Gap

BIBLE MEDITATION:
“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” Is. 40:31

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Stress is nothing new. Noah had it when he was building the ark with no rain in sight. Martha had it when she was preparing a meal for our Lord. Stress is the gap between the demands placed on us and the strength we have in meeting those demands. It is not a sin to be stressed, nor a sin to be weary. It is a sin, though, not to seek a lessening of that stress which tears down the temple of the Holy Spirit, your body. Where is your answer? In waiting upon the Lord — waiting in the midst of demands. When you learn to wait on Him, God steps in to bridge the stress gap with His mighty strength.

ACTION POINT:
Ask God to equip you to be a stress-buster today. Perhaps it will be your boss or your spouse that is “stressed out.” Rejoice in the opportunity you have to share God’s love.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

LIVING IN LIGHT OF CHRIST’S RETURN

2 Thessalonians 1:3-12

3 We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing.

4 Therefore we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring.

5 This is evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are also suffering-

6 since indeed God considers it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you,

7 and to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels

8 in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.

9 They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might,

10 when he comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed, because our testimony to you was believed.

11 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,

12 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.

A vision of Christ’s future return shapes how we live now.

The persecution of believers is evidence of belonging. (1:4-5)

• Christianity isn’t an escape from suffering. It’s an invitation to suffering.

The return of Jesus brings final judgment and salvation. (1:6-10)

• The Bible doesn’t portray an unbelieving world in a uniform way.

• The Bible doesn’t portray God’s response to an unbelieving world in a uniform way.

• In the Gospels, we see God in flesh, opposing the proud and giving grace to the humble.

• Before we denounce evil too quickly, we must realize that, in our fallen condition, we’re on the inside of the

problem of evil, not the outside.

The mission of the Church necessitates divine empowerment. (1:11-12)

• He doesn’t just call us to walk in a manner

worthy of the call, he is making us worthy of the call!

The reward that awaits us is worth it all. (2:13-14)

• We can’t live in the light of the Day, if we never contemplate the Day.

Thanks Matt!!

THE GOSPEL EXCHANGE

2 Timothy 1:15-2:7

15 You are aware that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes.

16 May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains,

17 but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me earnestly and found me-

18 may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that Day!-and you well know all the service he rendered at Ephesus.

1 You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus,

2 and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

3 Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.

4 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.

5 An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.

6 It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops.

7 Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

A Making the hand-off...

• Our Inspiration – Who do we emulate?

(2 Timothy 1:15-18)

People who live for the gospel

People who die for the gospel

• Our Instructions – What do we do?

(2 Timothy 2:1-3)

Rely on the resource of grace. (2 Timothy 2:1)

Develop devoted disciple-makers. (2 Timothy 2:2)

Share in suffering for the gospel. (2 Timothy 2:3)

• Our Illustrations – How do we live? (2 Timothy 2:4-6)

A life of denial (2 Timothy 2:4)

A life of discipline (2 Timothy 2:5) 

A life of diligence (2 Timothy 2:6)

Thanks Jim!