Jesus, the Bridge Spanning the Great Divide

BIBLE MEDITATION:

 “And that He might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby.” Ephesians 2:16

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Up in heaven is the holy God.

Down below is the sinful man.

And sin is the dividing rod that separates.

Without God, man has an empty void in his life he knows he must fill, so man is constantly trying to reach God. But he keeps rebounding off the sin barrier.

Then God, moved in mercy by the pitiful plight of sinful man, said, “I will do something.”

God sent His Son, the Lord Jesus, to make a way. And upon the rough-hewn timbers of a cross, Jesus gave His life so you and I could live forever and live forgiven. Jesus built a bridge between man and God. It’s a bridge man could never build. And a bridge that man can never take away.

God made a way that we couldn’t make . . . for me . . . and for you.

ACTION POINT:

Since Jesus built a bridge of love for you to be reconciled to God, it’s your turn to build a bridge of love to someone who is lost and searching.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Remembering Our Heroes

BIBLE MEDITATION:

 “And Moses said unto the people, Remember this day, in which ye came out from Egypt, out of the house of bondage; for by strength of hand the Lord brought you out from this place.” Exodus 13:3

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Each year, Americans remember those brave-hearted souls who fought and gave their lives so that you and I would have the rights and privileges of living in a free country.

Remembering is important. In fact, God instructs His people on many occasions in the Old Testament to remember from whence they came and to remember His providence.

It is by the mighty hand of God that we are saved, we are protected, and we are free to live in the Land of the Brave. Never take that freedom for granted, my friend. It is a precious commodity for which the world hungers. And it is a powerful charge for you and me to protect.

ACTION POINT:

Do you know of someone in your life who has served in the armed forces of this country? Make a point this week to express to them your gratitude for their service.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Secure in the Arms of Jesus

BIBLE MEDITATION:

 “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” Acts 16:31

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

A Christian is not somebody who merely believes that Christ died for his sins. The devil believes that. A Christian is somebody who has repented of his sins and invited Christ into his heart to be his Savior and Lord.

You can intellectually believe that an airplane can fly, but in order to fly you must try out its wings. In the same way, when you give your heart to Jesus Christ, He takes control of your life and begins to make you into the person He wants you to be.

Your life doesn’t have to be absolutely perfect for you to go to heaven. At the moment you trust Christ as your personal Savior, you are eternally saved, eternally secure, and God begins to work on you.

ACTION POINT:

Isn’t it wonderful to know you are saved? Now, spread the word of that assurance to a neighbor today.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Putting the Emphasis on the Eternal

BIBLE MEDITATION:

 “And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on Me shall never thirst.” John 6:35

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Sometimes people in large churches get a lot of grief from “the world” because of the great expenses of building and maintaining their church. I’ve heard, “Why didn’t they take that money and feed the poor?”

 Here’s my answer, “People need Jesus.” The social gospel thinks all men need is food. If I had five billion dollars and bought everybody on earth a meal, in several hours they’d all be hungry again.

There’s nothing wrong with feeding the poor. We ought to do that. But the social gospel puts an emphasis on what is temporary. The true gospel puts the emphasis upon what is eternal. Folks need more than soup and soap, they need salvation.

ACTION POINT:

Think about ways that you can get involved with the need to feed, clothe, and house the homeless. Then find the open door to feed them with the Bread of Life, Jesus Christ.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Are You Looking Through the Right Eyeglasses?

BIBLE MEDITATION:

 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:1

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

People join churches today with wrong expectations. They think church membership guarantees blessings and no burdens. Some think that God is just a heavenly cafeteria. And if it doesn’t work out as they wish, they say, “Well, it’s not paying off! I thought if I gave my heart to Jesus, then He would supply everything I want. And I’d have no more worries.”

People fall away because their expectations are not met. Let me tell you what real faith is. Real faith is not just receiving from God the things you want. Real faith is accepting from God the things He gives.

ACTION POINT:

How are your spiritual eyeglasses? Are you looking at life with the eyes of the Lord? And trusting that He will provide, not necessarily what you want, but what you need?

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

With Prayer and Supplication

These two go hand in hand!!!

Definition of prayer: a petition to God

Definition of supplication: to plead humbly

So when we pray, we go humbly before the Lord with a petition.

It could be a request for help or a heartfelt song of praise for God, for His mercy and His great majesty.

We pray for the lost to see the light that is Christ!

We pray for our brothers and sisters who are ill.

Prayer and supplication is one of the ways we love our brothers.

Ministering to their physical needs is another.

Christ intercedes for us from His throne!

do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. - Philippians 4:6

16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;

17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,

18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,

19 and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, - Ephesians 6:16-19

1 First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people,

2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.

3 This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior,

4 who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

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.

7 For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth. - 1 Timothy 2:1-7

34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died-more than that, who was raised-who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?

36 As it is written, "For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered." 

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers,

39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. - Romans 8:34-39

The Heavens, a Testimony of Creator God

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse.” Romans 1:20

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Can intellectuals believe in God? Absolutely! Many intellectuals believe in God. As a matter of fact, your intellect has very little to do with your belief in God.

Out of all of the secular professional groups, do you know what professional group has the highest number of believers in God?  The astronomers do. Over 90% of the world’s great astronomers believe in God. Why? Because they have studied the heavens.

It’s not a sign of intelligence not to believe in God. If you’re intelligent, you have to say, “Somebody created all of this.”

ACTION POINT:

Take a walk with your family under the canopy of the night sky. Praise God for His handiwork in the heavens.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers