Energy for Today’s To-Dos

Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. (Philippians 2:12–13)

God is the decisive worker here. Work out your own salvation . . . for it is God who works in you, the willing and the working. God wills and he works for his good pleasure. But believing this does not make Christians passive. It makes them hopeful and energetic and courageous.

Each day there is a work to be done in our special ministry. Paul commands us to work at doing it. But he tells us how to do it in the power that God supplies: believe him! Believe the promise that in this day God will be at work in you to will and work for his good pleasure.

It is God himself, graciously at work each moment, that brings the promise of future grace into our present experience. It is not the gratitude for past grace that Paul focuses on when explaining how we work out our salvation. I mention this simply because so many Christians, when asked what the motive is for obedience, will say gratitude. But that is not what Paul emphasizes when he talks about motive and power for our working. He focuses on faith in what God is yet to do, not just what he has done. Work out your salvation! Why? How? For there is fresh grace for every moment from God. He is at work in your willing and doing every time you will and do. Believe that for the challenges of the next hour and the next thousand years.

The power of future grace is the power of the living Christ — always there to work for us at every future moment that we enter. So when Paul describes the effect of the grace of God that was with him, he says, “I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me to bring the Gentiles to obedience — by word and deed” (Romans 15:18).

Therefore, since he would not dare to speak of anything but what Christ accomplished through his ministry, and yet he did, in fact, speak of what grace accomplished through his ministry (1 Corinthians 15:10), this must mean that the power of grace is the power of Christ.

Which means that the power we need for the next five minutes and the next five decades of ministry is the future grace of the omnipotent Christ, who will always be there for us — ready to will and ready to work for his good pleasure.

John Piper 

Yes, you CAN do family worship (Dr. Roger's Recipe)

BIBLE MEDITATION:

Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. Deuteronomy 11:18-19

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

When your children are little, it’s always good to have family worship, to start the day with the Word of God. Now, my wife and tried all kinds of things with our kids for family worship. I want to give you one of the simplest, easiest forms of family worship. I don’t know why I didn’t discover it a long time ago. It is such a blessing. We still do it with our grandchildren, and with our grown children at breakfast when they’re there.

We just let one of the little children who are old enough to read take the Bible and choose a proverb. They can choose it at random. Or, since Proverbs has 31 chapters—basically the same as the number of days in the month—choose a proverb from the corresponding day. If it’s the seventh, choose from the seventh chapter of Proverbs, and read a proverb, just one. And let that child explain what he thinks that proverb means.  Then everyone else just talk about it for a few moments.

It is so simple. But when your children are learning those proverbs and having to think about what they mean, you are giving them distilled wisdom, a nugget of truth they can carry with them to school and to work.

ACTION POINT:

Give your children and grandchildren wise instruction, but let that instruction be joined with training. Train up a child.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Grace Given Abundantly

God will not be moved.

His word is truth.

He loves you with an everlasting love. 

Abundant grace available through Christ, there is salvation in no one else.

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. - 1 John 4:10

but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. - Romans 5:8

For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. - Romans 5:10

In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. - 1 John 4:9

He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. - 1 John 2:2

Where Have All The Leaders Gone

There is a time to go home.

Death comes to all.

Are you ready to step up? 

Church leadership has to be strategically filled with younger people.

1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. - Hebrews 12:1-2

but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. - Romans 5:8

Characteristics of a Great Leader

Leaders demonstrate love.

That person is kind.

They love you in truth.

Moses went out to meet his father-in-law and bowed down and kissed him. And they asked each other of their welfare and went into the tent. - Exodus 18:7

Moses is humbled by his father in law.

He bows out of respect.

They love each other.

Are you committed to loving people?

God uses you to demonstrate His love for others.

Boldly preach the word of God.

Share the good news of Jesus Christ everywhere.

Jesus saves!

What a mighty God we serve.

Love people regardless of their level of education, color of skin or socioeconomic status.

God alone is good!

Leaders credit others

8 Then Moses told his father-in-law all that the LORD had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel's sake, all the hardship that had come upon them in the way, and how the LORD had delivered them.

9 And Jethro rejoiced for all the good that the LORD had done to Israel, in that he had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians. - Exodus 18:8-9

Leadership is understanding where the people need to go, lead them there and then give them credit when you arrive.

Doing it together is key, God works through His people, giving them His wisdom.

Faith in God alone!

I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.  - Isaiah 42:8

For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.  - Isaiah 48:11

And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the LORD your God for the good land he has given you. - Deuteronomy 8:10

11 "Take care lest you forget the LORD your God by not keeping his commandments and his rules and his statutes, which I command you today,

12 lest, when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and live in them,

13 and when your herds and flocks multiply and your silver and gold is multiplied and all that you have is multiplied,

14 then your heart be lifted up, and you forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery,

15 who led you through the great and terrifying wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water, who brought you water out of the flinty rock,

16 who fed you in the wilderness with manna that your fathers did not know, that he might humble you and test you, to do you good in the end.

17 Beware lest you say in your heart, 'My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.'

18 You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day.

19 And if you forget the LORD your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you today that you shall surely perish.

20 Like the nations that the LORD makes to perish before you, so shall you perish, because you would not obey the voice of the LORD your God. - Deuteronomy 8:11-20

And all that generation also were gathered to their fathers. And there arose another generation after them who did not know the LORD or the work that he had done for Israel. - Judges 2:10

Teach the generations, God alone is good!

Thanks Pastor Kevin!!

We Work by Grace

By the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. (1 Corinthians 15:10)

Paul realized that the first part of this verse might be misunderstood: “I worked harder than any of them.” So he goes on to say, “Though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.”

Paul does not trace his obedience back to his thankfulness for past grace. He traces it up to moment-by-moment, ever-arriving grace. He is banking on the promise of God’s future grace to arrive at every moment of need. In every instant of Paul’s intention and effort to obey Christ, grace was at work to produce that intention and that effort. Paul did not bring about his work merely out of gratitude for past grace, but in moment-by-moment reliance on the arrival of promised grace. Paul wants to emphasize that the ever-arriving grace of God is the decisive cause of his work.

Does it really say that? Doesn’t it just say that the grace of God worked with Paul? No, it says more. We have to come to terms with the words, “Though it was not I.” Paul wants to exalt the moment-by-moment grace of God in such a way that it is clear that he himself is not the decisive doer of this work.

Nevertheless, he is a doer of this work: “I worked harder than any of them.” He worked. But he said it was the grace of God “toward me.”

If we let all the parts of this verse stand, the end result is this: grace is the decisive doer in Paul’s work. Since Paul is also a doer of his work, the way grace becomes the decisive doer is by becoming the enabling power of Paul’s work.

I take this to mean that, as Paul faced each day’s ministry burden, he bowed his head and confessed that, unless future grace was given for that day’s work, he would not be able to do it.

Perhaps he recalled the words of Jesus, “Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). So he prayed for future grace for the day, and he trusted in the promise that it would come with power. “My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).

Then he acted with all his might.

John Piper 

Does God love you because you're so lovely?

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Grace is the most beautiful word in the Bible other than Jesus. Grace is why God loves us when there is nothing lovely about us.

We are not loved because we are valuable. We are valuable because we are loved. “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (1 John 4:10)

That, friend, is God’s amazing grace. We are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.

I love Him for His grace. It is all Jesus. It’s not the church. It’s not good deeds. Amazing grace is in the Lord Jesus Christ. He loves you. He died for you.

ACTION POINT:

Thank God for the justification you have through Jesus Christ. Thank God for the grace He has abundantly given you.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Ministry — More Important Than Life

But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus.” (Acts 20:24)

According to the New Testament, “ministry” is what all Christians do. According to Ephesians 4:11–12, pastors have the job of equipping the saints for the work of ministry. But ordinary Christians are the ones who do the ministry.

What ministry looks like is as varied as Christians are varied. It’s not an office like elder or deacon; it’s a lifestyle devoted to making much of Christ and meeting the needs of others.

It means that we “do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith” (Galatians 6:10). Whether we are bankers or bricklayers, it means that we aim at advancing other people’s faith and holiness to the glory of God.

Fulfilling your ministry is more important than staying alive. This conviction is what makes the lives of radically devoted people so inspiring to watch. Most of them speak the way Paul did about his ministry here in Acts 20:24: “I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus.” Doing the ministry that God gives us to do is more important than life.

You may think you need to save your life in order to do your ministry. On the contrary, how you lose your life may be the capstone of your ministry. It certainly was for Jesus — only in his thirties.

We need not fret about keeping ourselves alive in order to finish our ministry. God alone knows the appointed time of our service. He will decide when our death is not an interruption of our ministry, but the last act of our ministry.

Henry Martyn was right when he said, “If [God] has work for me to do, I cannot die.” In other words, I am immortal until my work is done. Therefore, ministry is more important than life.

John Piper