Practicing Purity

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Christian young people have asked me what specific things they can do to practice moral purity. Three of those are:

• First, watch the crowd they hang out with. Choose their friends wisely (see Proverbs 13:20). 

• Second, guard what they put into their minds from books, movies, and music (see Psalm 101:3a, Proverbs 6:27). 

• Lastly, control their thought life (see Proverbs 23:7a, Philippians 4:8). The thought is the father of the deed. Someone has well said, "We cannot keep the birds from flying over our heads, but we can keep them from making a nest in our hair."

ACTION POINT:

Walk with God today as you never have before. Guard your heart (Proverbs 4:23, Ephesians 5:3-5). Make a covenant with your eyes (Job 31:1). Set a guard over your lips (Psalm 141:3). Take charge of your thought life: “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” (Philippians 4:8)

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Parenting Isn’t for Cowards!

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Thou shalt keep therefore His statutes, and His commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the LORD thy God giveth thee, for ever.” Deuteronomy 4:40

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

What happened to letting children be children? May God have mercy on us who stand by while boys and girls date at the age of ten, go steady by the time they’re thirteen, get married by the age of seventeen, and get divorced before they’re old enough to vote. As Dr. James Dobson has written, “Parenting isn’t for Cowards.” May God give us wisdom to help young people who are standing in tall dry grass with boxes of matches!

ACTION POINT:

Are you a parent? I challenge you today to get back to the Word of God. Stand up to the pressures of society. Corral your teens into your home with love. Form a prayer group of parents and teens. Do whatever it takes to rescue your children before it’s too late.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

“I'm Okay—You’re Okay”?

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him.” Proverbs 30:5

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Postmodernism tells us that there is no absolute truth. Whatever you believe is okay. Whatever I believe is okay, too. Whether they agree or not doesn’t matter. 

But in this age of postmodern thought, we must contend with this basic truth: Truth stands alone. It doesn’t require human interpretation. And let me add that in discussing Christian Truth, there is a divine disturbance that occurs. I don’t believe we can be neutral about real truth. If Jesus is God, then we must bow down and worship. If Jesus is not God, we ought to boot Him out the door as a liar and a lunatic. You must decide. There is no neutral ground. Either you are with Him, or you are against Him.

ACTION POINT:

Pray for the hundreds of believers who are in jail around the world because they did not stand on neutral ground. They boldly proclaimed Christ knowing that doing so would cause them to be imprisoned or even killed.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Saved from Sin’s Penalty, Power, and Presence

BIBLE MEDITATION:
“And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Thess.5:23
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Some people get confused about when salvation happens. Let me see if I can shed some light on this subject. Salvation can be explained by using three verbal tenses in the English language. The moment you repent and believe upon Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you are saved from the penalty of sin. After that, you enter a process of sanctification where you are being saved from the power of sin. When you get to heaven, you will be saved from the presence of sin. What happens when you enter into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ? You are justified immediately in your spirit. You are sanctified progressively in your soul. And you will be ultimately glorified in your body.

ACTION POINT:
Using Psalm 32:7, 41:2, 121:7-8, praise God that the preservation of your salvation is His job and not yours.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Seeing Him Who is Invisible

“Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.” - Matthew 5:8

Let me tell you how to experience God: Get your heart pure, and you will see God with the eyes of faith.

You see, Jesus is not talking about your physical body. You get your spiritual heart right and your spiritual eyes will see. Hebrews 11:27 says that Moses “endured as seeing Him who is invisible.” You get your heart right and you’ll see the invisible God…

...in circumstances
...in nature
...in the face of your spouse, your child, your grandchild.

You’ll see Him in the Scriptures. God will become a bright, living reality to you.

Put on the eyes of faith today and find God creating and sustaining life. Maybe there is a tree ablaze with the red and gold of fall. Do you see the hand of God?

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Victory Is Just a Prayer Away

BIBLE MEDITATION:
“Uphold me according unto Thy Word, that I may live: and let me not be ashamed of my hope.” Ps.119:116

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Paul did much of his writing from a prison cell. Maybe you also feel like you are in a prison of sorts today with every door shut in your face. Maybe you are in a prison of despair and doubt. Perhaps you just heard from the doctor and received a bad report, or are dreading a visit this week. Maybe you’re in a financial prison of debt or a domestic prison of abuse and you feel there is no way out. Friend, I want to tell you that there is a way out for you. God is still on His throne. He hears and answers every prayer.

Victory over your situation is just a prayer away. The circumstances may not change, but your perspective and attitude will change as you begin to pray and praise God. You and I don’t have a need that God cannot meet.

ACTION POINT:
Pray this prayer today: “Father, I need You. I need You to forgive me where I have failed You. I need You to change my heart and strengthen my faith so I see my prison as a palace. Change my attitude from dread to joy, from jealousy to contentment, from worry to trust. I love You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Mourning with Purpose

“Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.” - Matthew 5:4

We’ve done all we can do to keep ourselves from feeling any pain. We have psychologists who numb our neuroses, counselors who absolve us of guilt, doctors to sedate our pain, insurance agents to take away our worries, and even at death we have the mortuary to try to beautify death for us.

But Jesus was a man of sorrows. He saw the sin around Him, and it broke His heart. In Matthew 23:34-39 we read how Jesus’ heart ached for Jerusalem and the destruction sin had wrought in the hearts of men.

Do the things that break the heart of Jesus, break yours?
Do you have a dry eye in a hell-bent world?
It’s time to be like Jesus. 

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers