Tuesday, January 17, 2017

Love Draws the Curtain of Mercy



BIBLE MEDITATION:
“Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins.” Proverbs 10:12


DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
There are people in every fellowship who take joy in finding something bad about somebody else. When they hear something ugly, they take great delight in exposing it.


Love does not rejoice in iniquity. Love wishes that it never happened. Love tries to cover it up. That doesn’t mean we condone sin, we cover it. Not “cover-up,” but cover. Let me illustrate.


Noah had three sons, Ham, Shem, and Japheth. Ham came and saw his father’s nakedness and was quick to tell others. Shem and Japheth walked backward into the tent and covered their father to help him cover his shame – not to condone what he had done, but to cover it.


ACTION POINT:
Wouldn’t the world be a lot better place if we had that spirit? When the enemy tempts you to “stir the pot,” remember that love rejoices not in iniquity.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Monday, January 16, 2017

Living Each Day Like It’s THAT Day

BIBLE MEDITATION:
“But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.” 1 Peter 4:7

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Years ago, G. Campbell Morgan was a great expositor of the Word of God. He said, “I never lay my head on the pillow without thinking that perhaps before I awake the final morning may have dawned. I never begin work without thinking that He may interrupt it to begin His own.”

Every night before we go to sleep, we ought to say, “Jesus may come tonight.” And every day when we get our tools and go to work, this may be the last day of work that we do. We are to be looking for His return. We are also to be longing for His return.

ACTION POINT:
Are you praying for Jesus to return? If you love Him, you ought to be longing for His return. I have Him in my heart, but I long to lay my eyes upon Him and walk with Him and talk with Him. “Even so, come Lord Jesus” (Revelation 22:20).

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Sunday, January 15, 2017

God's Will For Your Life


Read John 21


Jesus is the Son of God.
He died for your sin.
God raised Him from the dead.
He is not in the tomb!
He has risen!!
His command, "feed my lambs".
His command, "tend my sheep".
His command, "feed my sheep".
His command, "follow me".


31 And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again.
32 And he said this plainly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.
33 But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man." - Mark 8:31-33

34 And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
35 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it.
36 For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?
37 For what can a man give in return for his soul?
38 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels." - Mark 8:34-38


Follow Jesus regardless of your past.
Your sin is buried with Christ.
He took it on that cross!
Your sin qualifies you to follow Christ.
When you realize you are a sinner saved by grace and that only Christ takes away sin!!
Satan is your accuser but Jesus is your Savior!!


Follow Jesus regardless of the cost.
You will be persecuted!

67 So Jesus said to the Twelve, "Do you want to go away as well?"
68 Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life,
69 and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God."
70 Jesus answered them, "Did I not choose you, the Twelve? And yet one of you is a devil." - John 6:67-70

Follow Jesus regardless of what others may do or say.
Look to Calvary to see God's approval.
Though none go with me, I still will follow. 
He made you in His image!
His Son purchased you back from sin and death through His blood sacrifice.


I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh." - John 6:51

53 So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.
54 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.
55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.
56 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him.
57 As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me.
58 This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever." - John 6:53-58

Thanks you Pastor Richter!!!

Submission Must Come Before Victory


BIBLE MEDITATION:
“A man's pride shall bring him low: but honor shall uphold the humble in spirit.” Proverbs 29:23


DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Have you ever taught someone to drive? What was the first thing you showed him? If you’re like me, even before I showed my children the ignition switch, the accelerator, or the blinker, I showed them the brakes.


Now suppose your learner said, “I don’t want to know anything about the brakes. I just want to know how to make this thing go!” You would probably reply, “You aren’t ready yet to learn to drive! Forget the accelerator. Before you can go, you’ve got to learn to stop.”


ACTION POINT:
Put this in a spiritual realm. What if I asked you to submit to God and you said, “I’m not interested in submission. I want the victory!” God is not going to pour out His power upon you until He sees in you a spirit of submission.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Saturday, January 14, 2017

Facing the Giants


BIBLE MEDITATION:
“For verily I say unto you, that whosoever shall say unto this mountain, be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.” Mark 11:23


DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Did you ever play “king of the mountain” as a child? When you were on high ground, you could shove the others down, even though they were entrenched and determined to overtake you.


In Joshua 14, we read that Caleb faced a city of giants, and yet because he had wholly followed the Lord, he had the strength of the Lord and said, “Give me this mountain” (Joshua 14:11-12).


All of us face giants every day – giants of doubt, fear, discouragement, financial ruin, sickness, broken relationships. Do you think the giants in the Promised Land took God by surprise? God knew they were there all the time – they were part of His purpose to strengthen His children’s faith.


ACTION POINT:
It’s time you got a bulldog grip on the Word of God and believe what He says to be true.


LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Friday, January 13, 2017

Reasoning Together—Being Reconciled One to Another


BIBLE MEDITATION:
Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Isaiah 1:18


DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Every rebel has a reason for his or her actions. You’ve probably heard a young person say, “Well, my dad drinks, so I smoke pot.” Do you know what kind of reasoning that is? Brute beast reasoning, like Peter mentions in 2 Peter 2:12. This young person doesn’t think he has to obey his father. And he further reasons, “He’s not worthy of my obedience.”


Do you know the only people who can demand perfect parents? Perfect children.


The only people who can demand a perfect pastor is a perfect church member.


The only person who can demand a perfect politician is a perfect citizen!


There is never a license for rebellion. There are ways to reason together in a church, home, and government.


ACTION POINT:
A spirit of rebellion will bring a nation to its knees. Jesus gave His life to reconcile us. Can you live otherwise?

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Thursday, January 12, 2017

Mere Circumstance or God


We speak a lot about fate and circumstance.
We think there are no rhyme or reason to the things that take place on a daily basis.
But there is an unseen orchestrated effort going on as we walk here on earth.
God is seated on His throne, all-seeing, all-knowing and working things together to achieve His purpose. 
He knows your past, present and future. 
He alone holds you.
We are put in situations by His divine hand.
The big question is what will we do? 
Will we miss these opportunities?
I know as I look back, that I have failed many times as I was given a chance to speak Your word of hope.
It haunts me!

Lord, let us always be bold. Amen

Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word. - Acts 8:4

26 Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza." This is a desert place.
27 And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship
28 and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah.
29 And the Spirit said to Philip, "Go over and join this chariot."
30 So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, "Do you understand what you are reading?"
31 And he said, "How can I, unless someone guides me?" And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
32 Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this: "Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter and like a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he opens not his mouth. 
33 In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth." 
34 And the eunuch said to Philip, "About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?"
35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus.
36 And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, "See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?"
38 And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. - Acts 8:26-38

14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?
15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!"
16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, "Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?"
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
18 But I ask, have they not heard? Indeed they have, for "Their voice has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world."  - Romans 10:14-18

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. - John 16:13

8 But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim);
9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
11 For the Scripture says, "Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame."
12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him.
13 For "everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?
15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!"
16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, "Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?"
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
18 But I ask, have they not heard? Indeed they have, for "Their voice has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world."  - Romans 10:8-18

20 Then Isaiah is so bold as to say, "I have been found by those who did not seek me; I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me." 
21 But of Israel he says, "All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people." - Romans 10:20-21