The Only Intercessor

5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time. - 1 Timothy 2:5-6

Now an intermediary implies more than one, but God is one. - Galatians 3:20

6 But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises.

7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second. - Hebrews 8:6-7

5 Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God,

6 who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. - 2 Corinthians 3:5-6

16 For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation.

17 So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath,

18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.

19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain,

20 where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. - Hebrews 6:16-20

So we go boldly before the throne of grace because of Jesus and God's mercy!!!

We study His word!

We keep His word in our hearts and on our minds!

We share the truth of the gospel to convict the lost and let the word lead them to salvation!!

We praise God for He alone is worthy!!

We thank Jesus for His sacrifice.

We honor Jesus with our obedience to God's commands! 

On the Proving Ground

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; try my reins and my heart. For Thy lovingkindness is before mine eyes: and I have walked in Thy truth.” Psalm 26:2-3

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

How do automobile manufacturers make sure their vehicles are safe for people to drive? They put their vehicles onto a proving ground. They’re driven hundreds of miles over rough roads and through water and heat—screeching, turning, twisting, hitting the brakes, accelerating to top speeds. They want to see if that automobile will stand the test.

It is the same with our spiritual lives. God gives the test first and the lesson afterwards. Read throughout Scripture and you will find this to be true. Joseph was tested. David was tested. Moses was tested. Peter was tested.

When God gets ready to prove you, He is not going to test you in the good times because that is not a test. Anybody can serve God in the sunshine. 

ACTION POINT:

The test is not how you behave when there is victory all around; the test is how you behave when God brings you to the wilderness. He wants to know what is in your heart. Are you fully devoted to God?

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

We Killed Jesus

Sinner, you and I killed Jesus. 

The sin of man was the cause. 

Sin entered into God's perfect design, perverting perfection and forever creating a separation between Creator and creation. 

Because of our sin, God's wrath towards you and I had to be satisfied.

But praise God, He had a plan!

He sent His only Son to ransom wicked sinful man.

Without Christ, we had no acceptable means by which we could be reconciled to God!

And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation,  - Revelation 5:9

Learning to Love, Learning to Hate

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Ye that love the LORD, hate evil: He preserveth the souls of His saints; He delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.” Psalm 97:10

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

This may come as a surprise to you, but just because you’re a Christian doesn’t mean you’re supposed to love everything. 

Now, we hear that Christians are to be a people of love, and that is true. But did you know that if you’re a Christian, not only must you learn to love, but you also must learn to hate?

If you love God, then you are to hate what God hates. It is true in every realm. If you love flowers, you hate weeds. If you love health, you hate germs. If you love God, you hate evil. It is just that plain.

Romans 12:9b tells us in even stronger terms to “abhor that which is evil.” A hypocrite, something none of us want to be, is someone who says he loves God, but then he doesn’t hate sin.

ACTION POINT:

Don’t tell others you love God if you don’t hate that which nailed His Son to the cross.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

The Impending Great Tribulation

“For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” - Matthew 24:21

General Omar Bradley said this about our generation:

We know more about war than about peace.

We know more about killing than about living.

This is our 20th Century’s claim to progress – knowledge of science outstrips capacity for control.

We have too many men of science, too few men of God.

The world has achieved brilliance without wisdom, power without conscience.

We are a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants.

I think he said a mouthful. Jesus said there’s coming a time like never before seen in history – the Great Tribulation – when all our progresses and advances will come down to one thing – Jesus Christ.

Where will you be on the day of Tribulation?

Where do you want to be?

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

What Are You Afraid Of?

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me.” Psalm 23:4

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

In Matthew 25, we read the parable of the talents. When the master who had distributed the talents came to see the stewardship of those talents, one man had taken his talent and hidden it in the ground.

You may have a buried talent, but you’ve been covered up by the sinister minister of fear, who keeps you from achieving your dreams. You say, “But what if I fail?” You can be so afraid of making a mistake that your entire life will be a mistake. The fear of failure keeps so many from competing that they never even get in the race. They just lose by default!

ACTION POINT:

Sir Walter Scott was called a “dunce” by his teachers. Napoleon Bonaparte was next to last in his military class. Walt Disney was fired as a cartoonist because the newspaper said he couldn’t draw! It’s not bad to fail. We all will fail. But may God deliver you from the spirit of failure, which is a spirit of fear.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Is Courtesy a Way of Life for You?

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Thou hast also given me the shield of Thy salvation: and Thy right hand hath holden me up, and Thy gentleness hath made me great.” Psalm 18:35

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Do you know what our churches could use a little bit more of? Courtesy among the brethren—love in the little things, love that says “please” and “thank you,” love that steps back and gives the other person first place. The gentleness of our Lord.

It never ceases to amaze me how people so quickly lose their religion when they leave church on Sunday morning. They go to their cars in the parking lot, then cut people off in traffic. And don’t ever take someone’s “regular” seat in church. You’re seen as stealing their “rightful” place in the worship service!

ACTION POINT:

May God cleanse our churches of self-righteousness and pride. May He purify us from anything that seeks to elevate self over others. 

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers