Running Together

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.” 1 Corinthians 9:24

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

I have a race to run. God has given you a race to run as well. Every man runs his own race. We’re not racing against each other to win the victor’s crown. We are in a pilgrimage together. I’m not trying to outrun you. And you’re not trying to outrun me. That is good news!

God has a plan for your life with particular speed bumps, detours, and hurdles to cross. And you are to stay in the race until it is over. But you are not running alone!

ACTION POINT:

Though we are not in the same race, we are in the journey together, so we encourage one another to win. And I want you to win the victor’s crown today! Run, my friend, run!

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

An Extreme Make-Over Is Underway

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Moreover whom He did predestinate, them He also called: and whom He called, them He also justified: and whom He justified, them He also glorified.” Romans 8:30

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Dr. Scofield, who edited the Scofield Bible, says that “predestination is the effective exercise of the will of God by which things before determined by Him are brought to pass.” That is, God says He is determined to do something and then He does it. God’s wisdom is sovereign.

What did God predestinate? That those whom God foreknew will be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ, who is the Firstborn.

God had one Son and He said, “I want more just like Him.” And so God is redeeming a whole race of people, so that all these people might be conformed to the image of God’s Son.

If you are saved, you are predestined to be like Jesus. When God foreknew that you would receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior, then He said, “It is settled. You will one day be like My Son.”

ACTION POINT:

Thank God for what He has done and is going to do, in shaping you into the image of the Lord Jesus Christ.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Who Is Keeping You In God’s Hand?

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Know therefore that the Lord thy God, He is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love Him and keep His commandments to a thousand generations.” Deuteronomy 7:9

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

When I talk about eternal security, inevitably I will hear, “Well, maybe your sins can’t take you out of the hand of God, but Satan can.”

In all due respect, I respond, “Pardon me. But that is foolishness. If Satan could take you out of the hand of God, why hasn’t he done it yet? Hasn’t he been nice to you? That would be a strange doctrine. You’re going to heaven by the grace of the devil!”

God saves us. God keeps us. What has been settled in eternity can never be undone by the ways of men or the schemes of the devil.

ACTION POINT:

Read Romans 8:38-39 today. These would be important verses for you to memorize.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Is There Enough “Goodness” in Your Cup?

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.” Isaiah 64:6

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

There is none good, no not one. If you asked every single human being on planet earth to deposit in a cup all of his or her goodness, there would not be enough goodness in that cup to save even one person!

Isaiah 64:6 says our righteousness is as “filthy rags” in the sight of God. The cross of Jesus Christ is our only hope. Jesus took our sin upon the cross. Jesus took our shame upon the cross. Jesus took our suffering upon the cross. And by His death, He paid the sin debt and now we have His righteousness.

In 1906, Jessie Brown Pounds wrote these words: “I must needs go home by the way of the cross, there's no other way but this; I shall ne'er get sight of the gates of light, if the way of the cross I miss.”

ACTION POINT:

Get this clear with yourself: Whose righteousness are you depending on? Your own? Your accumulated lifetime of “good works”? Or the righteousness of the sinless Lamb of God, Who became your substitute on the Cross and paid your sin debt in full?

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Whose Clothes Are You Wearing?

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, He hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.” Isaiah 61:10

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

There are some who may be reading this who are going to be absolutely speechless when they stand before the King of Heaven. They are church members, but they’re not saved. Instead, they’re dressed in the rags of self-righteousness rather than the wedding garment of His righteousness.

In 1834 hymn writer Edward Mote wrote this timeless pledge, “When He shall come with trumpet sound, Oh may I then in Him be found. Dressed in His righteousness alone, Faultless to stand before the throne.”

ACTION POINT:

It would be tragic indeed for those who acted in every conceivable religious way to think they can come to the wedding without Christ’s righteousness. I’m not trying to get you to doubt your salvation, but I want to ask you, are you saved? How do you know?

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

When Your Feet Are Slipping…

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Truly God is good to Israel, even to such as are of a clean heart.” Psalm 73:1

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Asaph, the author of Psalm 73, started his psalm by talking about the purity of a person’s heart and the goodness of God. Then he says, “But as for me, my feet were almost gone; my steps had well nigh slipped” (Psalm 73:2).

He had the idea that when he got right with God, that he wouldn’t have any more troubles. Are you sure about that? Yes! Psalm 73:13-14 says, “Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency. For all the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every morning.”

He said, “I got right with God and I still have problems!” He had a false expectation that the Bible doesn’t necessarily give. Christians are not due preferential treatment.

ACTION POINT:

Seek the Lord through His Word and in prayer. You will find the presence of God is enough, even in the midst of our trials.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Hungry for God

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“With long life will I satisfy him, and show him My salvation.” Psalm 91:16

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

One day I was eating in a cafeteria in New York when the door of the restaurant opened and a man ran in. He rushed to a table that had been abandoned by patrons just shortly before. He began to stuff his mouth with the leftovers when the management discovered him. He rushed out like a squirrel scurrying to safety. No pride. He didn’t care what people thought.

A man who is starving is dead serious about the matter of getting food. He’s focused. He’s only got one thing on his mind—where is his next meal? He’s not concerned about popularity, position, or possessions.

What are you hungry for today? Is Jesus enough to satisfy your appetite?

ACTION POINT:

When a person is thirsty or hungry enough, he will pay any price.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers