The Scriptures reveal a profound connection between God's grace and His Holy Spirit. Living by the grace of God and walking according to the Spirit are two different perspectives on the same reality. As we consider what walking in the Spirit comprises, we also gain insight into living day by day by grace.
From the early days of the Lord's church, a constant threat has been posed by those who want to change God's grace into something it is not. The attempted changes always relate to either licentiousness or legalism.
These three Scriptures, interspersed in our previous meditations, indicate how God wants to use His word to impact us with His grace. The first passage describes God's word as "the word of His grace." God explains His grace to us through His word. He offers His grace to us through His word. He works His grace within us as we are nurtured in His word, trusting in what the Lord has to say to us. As God's word is taken in, its capabilities are unleashed, demonstrating that it is "able to build you up and give you an inheritance." The believers at Thessalonica had such an experience with the Scriptures. "For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe" (1 Thessalonians 2:13).
In examining grace and good works, we are again seeing that God's grace is not only His willingness to forgive us through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, but it is also His resource for shaping and using our lives as believers.
When considering the connection between grace and good works, God's ability is the priority issue. "And God is able to make all grace abound toward you." The Lord intends for us to be the objects of His ever-flowing grace. Our God is fully capable of accomplishing such an outpouring of His grace.
OSWALD CHAMBERS
God engineers circumstances to see what we will do. Will we be the children of our Father in heaven, or will we go back again to the meaner, common–sense attitude? Will we stake all and stand true to Him? “Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.” The crown of life means I shall see that my Lord has got the victory after all, even in me.
OSWALD CHAMBERS
For the past three hundred years men have been pointing out how similar Jesus Christ’s teachings are to other good teachings. We have to remember that Christianity, if it is not a supernatural miracle, is a sham.
OSWALD CHAMBERS
Beware of isolation; beware of the idea that you have to develop a holy life alone. It is impossible to develop a holy life alone; you will develop into an oddity and a peculiarism, into something utterly unlike what God wants you to be. The only way to develop spiritually is to go into the society of God’s own children, and you will soon find how God alters your set. God does not contradict our social instincts; He alters them.
OSWALD CHAMBERS
Jesus Christ is always unyielding to my claim to my right to myself. The one essential element in all our Lord’s teaching about discipleship is abandon, no calculation, no trace of self–interest.
OSWALD CHAMBERS
The Bible is a relation of facts, the truth of which must be tested. Life may go on all right for a while, when suddenly a bereavement comes, or some crisis; unrequited love or a new love, a disaster, a business collapse, or a shocking sin, and we turn up our Bibles again and God’s word comes straight home, and we say, “Why, I never saw that there before.”
“This is one problem Jesus came into the world to redress,” Mike Mason wrote. “He let us crucify Him to show us how much we push everyone away, even the Son of God. As the dust settled on Calvary, some of us realized what we were missing. We realized how much we wanted love and how much He wanted us. And so we invited Him to come back and live in our hearts…and something wonderful happened. We began to wake up to how badly we’d been treating people and how much we missed each other. We began to want one another with a deep, pure love. And so the church was born.” Mike Mason, Practicing the Presence of People
“We both believe and disbelieve a hundred times an hour, which keeps faith nimble.” —Emily Dickinson
“You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving.” —Amy Carmichael
When we know that God is our source of joy and courage, we have no reason to fear or be discouraged.
Have you ever thought of discouragement as the opposite of courage? How does that change how you look at and feel about discouragement? Does it make you want to fight it? Discouragement is an enemy to faith! Let’s be courageous!
After trauma, healthiness requires healing.
If we don’t open up the messes of our past with the Lord, that will seep right into our present and future. It doesn’t have to be that way. Jesus came to give us abundant life, freedom from our sins and those done to us, and joy. Giving Him access to every part of our lives will lead us there!
Life with God was never meant to be a calculated risk; it was meant to be an illogical surety.
Have you ever prayed a “Please, God, don’t send me there” kind of prayer? Many of us have! Getting in the God-mode of truly being flexible with whatever He calls us to, the illogical and inexplicable, is a big leap of faith. Are you ready for it?
Do you feel doubt about Jesus, especially during really hard times? Lean in to Jesus! See how He lived, what He did, how He led with humility, and how He loved and continues to love. Bring all of your thoughts to Him. He can handle all your questions!
The Creator of the galaxies became a Child, who became the Lamb of God.
What does it mean to know that Jesus is the Lamb? How can studying the names of God in Scripture draw you closer to who He is during this Holy Week?
The question is this: Are you going to plug in to God’s power and apply yourself? It takes commitment on a daily basis. And the moment you begin to relax, the moment you stop seeking to move forward spiritually, will be the moment your downward trend will begin.
Living the Christian life takes determination and, more importantly, yielding to the power that is available to you. You can make it if you want to. You can be more than a conqueror because of what Jesus Christ has done for you.
Sometimes, we wonder whether we have enough power to satisfy the demands in our lives. If you’re a Christian, then you have more power than you ever will need. It’s like wondering whether you have enough power to turn on your lights when you have an entire nuclear plant exclusively powering your home.
We sin because it’s our nature. We do what we do because we are wired to do it. It’s the way we are built. It is not that we are products of our environment, although that can affect us to some degree. We can be in a perfect environment or a horrible environment and still sin.
Maybe you’ve heard the story of the scorpion and the turtle. The scorpion was thinking about how to cross a river when he saw a turtle sunning himself on the riverbank. So, he went over to the turtle and said, “My dear sir, I was wondering if you might give me a lift across this river here.”
“If I were to do that,” the turtle replied, “I think that you might sting me.”
“What would be the logic in doing such a thing?” the scorpion asked.
“Well, you have a point there,” said the turtle. “Climb on.” So, the scorpion climbed on the turtle’s back, and they started making their way across the river. But suddenly the scorpion lifted his tail and stuck it into the turtle, giving him everything that he had.
The turtle, knowing that they were both about to die, said, “I have just one question: Why did you sting me? Where is the logic in that?”
“There is no logic in it, dear turtle,” the scorpion said. “It is just my nature.”
Make no mistake about it: We are sinners to the core. We don’t have to teach our children how to sin. It comes quite naturally to them, just as it came naturally to us. We aren’t sinners because we sin; we sin because we are sinners. It is in our nature.
We were just browsing our way through the world, doing what everyone else did and parroting what everyone else said. We were acting like everyone else. That was the way we used to live before we committed our lives to Jesus Christ.
God wants to spend all of eternity revealing to us His kindness, goodness, and grace. He wants to spend eternity showing us how much He loves us.
We have the astounding capacity to store millions of bits of information, keep it in order, and recall it when necessary. We are “wonderfully complex,” as Psalm 139 tells us. And God’s plan for those who put their faith in Christ is even more amazing. We don’t have to be afraid because His motive is always love for us.
God has custom-designed each of us with our own DNA blueprint, which every cell contains. And if you were to write out your individual blueprint in a book, it would require an estimated 200,000 pages. God, of course, knows about every word on every page.
You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men.“We disgust God when we weigh and compare Him against the things of the world. It makes him sick when we actual decide those things are better for us than God Himself. “ Francis Chan,
When you’re willing to wade into someone else’s troubles to help that person hold up under the weight, two things happen. First, he or she receives desperately needed blessings in the form of aid, support, and love. And second, you fulfill God’s command to love a neighbor as yourself.
"Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them." Deuteronomy 4:9 (NIV)
We have opportunity and influence in the lives of our children and others. Let's not take for granted all the Lord has done in our lives. Instead, let's be intentional to pass on the good things the Lord has accomplished so our children will be encouraged to trust Him for the things to come in their lives.
When we try to direct our lives according to our own agendas and plans, we experience only discontent and frustration. Our soul longs for more and our heart cries out, “Is this all there is?” The truth is that nothing and no one but God can bring us the peace and joy for which we are searching. Are you ready to become the clay and surrender your broken life to the Potter’s loving hands? Today is the day!
In our quest to give our whole heart to God, to serve the Creator and not the created, we should never reach the point where we think we have "arrived." Seeking God is a daily quest.
God promises we will be broken. Brokenness is essential to our purpose. God assigned Gideon to deliver Israel from the Midianites. The strategy was to place candles on earthen jars, and, on signal, break them. The enemy soldiers turned on one another, thinking they were surrounded in the darkness. Without brokenness, there was no victory. Sometimes we may regard ourselves as fine crystal—and in God’s eyes we are of immense worth. But the treasure of His life is placed in the earthen vessel of our humanity. To the extent we are broken, we manifest the life of Jesus to all around us.
Jesus knew something no one else did. He had unbroken communion with his Father. Do you suppose the Father desires the same for us? God desires the same abiding intimacy with you that he has with his Son.
If you do not know the Word of God, then you will be a baby the rest of your life. If you remain a baby in the Lord, you will always be carnal and not spiritual. Invest the time today to become mature Christians. Then, you will be able to hear and understand when the Holy Spirit speaks to you through God’s Word.
The maturing believer is a searching believer.
~John Powell~
We can't help everyone, but everyone can help someone.
“Mastery is not something that strikes in an instant, like a thunderbolt, but a gathering power that moves steadily through time, like the weather.”
— John Champlin Gardner, Jr.
“Nothing gives one person so much advantage over another as to remain cool and unruffled under all circumstances.”
— Thomas Jefferson
“The truly liberated human being is not always fighting against something, but more frequently is fighting for something or someone.”
— Denis Waitley
“With more success, comes greater problems along with greater ability to solve them.”
— Mark Victor Hansen
“Challenge everything you do. Expand your thinking. Refocus your efforts. Rededicate yourself to your future.”
— Patricia Fripp
“A professional is a person who can do his best at a time when he doesn't particularly feel like it.”
—Alistair Cooke
“We have not wings we cannot soar; but, we have feet to scale and climb, by slow degrees, by more and more, the cloudy summits of our time.”
— Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
The Bible is not an entertainment. It was never
designed to amuse.
~J. I. Packer~
The Scriptures reveal a profound connection between God's grace and His Holy Spirit. Living by the grace of God and walking according to the Spirit are two different perspectives on the same reality. As we consider what walking in the Spirit comprises, we also gain insight into living day by day by grace.
“I am who I am today because of the choices I made yesterday” ~ Eleanor Rooseveh
"If we wait until we're ready, we'll be waiting for the rest of our lives." ~ Lemeny Snicket
You may have friends who don't know God and you're really concerned about them. Or maybe you're reading this and you feel like this man who was being tormented by the devil, and you don't know where to turn. Realize that there's nothing you can do but to ask the Lord to help you. Simply ask.
What man cannot do, God does. When it comes to eternity, forgiveness, purpose, and truth, go to the manger, kneel with the shepherds. Worship the God who dared to do what man dared not dream!
I believe in the Word of God and in speaking truth so as not to stumble another with opinions.
Remember, your life is hidden with Christ in God. Whenever God looks at you, he sees Jesus, the perfect Lamb of God covering you. So, whom do you trust…your Advocate or your Accuser?
Envy of another man’s calling can work havoc in our own.
~Watchman Nee~
Many Christians know their Bible but they don't know the power of God's Word. You have to trust the Holy Spirit and watch Him open doors that no man can open, and watch Him close doors that no man can close. You'll be amazed at what God can do. What seems impossible to us is so very possible for Him.
Darkness comes. In the middle of it, the future looks blank. The temptation to quit is huge. Don't. You are in good company... You will argue with yourself that there is no way forward. But with God, nothing is impossible. He has more ropes and ladders and tunnels out of pits than you can conceive. Wait. Pray without ceasing. Hope. // John Piper
Go Beyond your feelings!
Our devotion for Jesus must be greater than our emotions for Jesus
Move in faith,operate in hope, But do all in love.
Always look through the eyes of Jesus<3
There are times when silence represents the highest respect. The word for such times is reverence.
The most powerful witness you can give the world is your personal testimony and how you live it. When you share what God has done in your life and how He changed you, you are the world’s best authority on your life and can speak with confidence.
It is good to remember from where we came.
The Holy Spirit is the one who convicts, comforts and assists us in rebuilding our lives. It is the method the Holy Spirit takes, first to convince and then to comfort.
~Matthew Henry~
Without purpose and direction in your life, you can throw it all away.
God will provide us with "true" comfort when and if we seek Him. (Isaiah 30:18-19: "Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you...How gracious he will be when you cry for help! As soon as he hears, he will answer you.")
Your family doesn't need nicer things, they need YOU.
Prioritize, be present, and pour more energy into your family than your job.
The truest marker of a man is that love motivates everything he does.
His love is strong but gentle.
He keeps diligent watch over his heart and family. He perceives danger & protects those he loves the best he can.
He stands firm on Christ and leads his family to do the same.
He acts like a man—not a boy—embracing his responsibility to love sacrificially and selflessly.
And he is strongest when he lives in full light these responsibilities.
Men, may you live as husbands marked by selfless love that comes from knowing the goodness and grace of Jesus.
Prayer is not the least we can do; it is the most.
~John Blanchard~
Follow Jesus’ example and demonstrated a willingness to lay your life down for your friends.
“In necessary things, unity; in doubtful things, liberty; in all things, charity.” —Augustine
In light of God’s deep affection, we no longer have to live in fear of rejection.
We don’t have to walk empty. Or wounded. Or fearful.
We don’t have to live starved for affection.
We can live in the deep, wild, and wondrous assurance that with every one of His millions of thoughts about us, God has nothing but love for us. And He's speaking this love over us right now.
There is a blessing which often goes with mourning, itself, but when the sorrow is of a spiritual sort—mourning for sin— then is it blest, indeed!
~C. H. Spurgeon~
“We both believe and disbelieve a hundred times an hour, which keeps faith nimble.” —
Emily Dickinson
My life changed when I became a Christian, I lost the taste for certain things I had become fond of. My friends changed too. With many of them, there just wasn't anything in common anymore. I know people looked at me and thought I was now crazy. They wondered, "What's wrong with Phil, what's gotten into him?"
We know the answer to that question, Jesus had gotten into me and my life was not turned upside down, rather it was turned right side up.
“In necessary things, unity; in doubtful things, liberty; in all things, charity.” —
Augustine
Jesus calls us to his rest, and meekness is His method. The meek man cares not at all who is greater than he, for he has long ago decided that the esteem of the world is not worth the effort.
~A.W. Tozer~
O God, I have tasted thy goodness, and it has both satisfied me and made me thirsty for more, I am painfully conscious
of my need for further grace.
~A.W. Tozer~
“Flatter me, and I may not believe you. Criticize me, and I may not like you. Ignore me, and I may not forgive you. Encourage me, and I may not forget you.” —William Arthur Ward
It is safe to tell the pure in heart that they shall see God,
for only the pure in heart want to.
~C.S. Lewis~
We cannot pursue knowledge of God in willful isolation. A complete understanding of the mystery of God comes with being part of a loving community of believers.
Ray Bently
The most authoritative answer to any question or problem is what God says about it through His Word.
This very day, put aside from you all bitterness and all malice, and say one to another, “If in anything you have offended me, it is forgiven; and if in anything I have offended you, I confess my error; let the breach be healed, and as children of God, let us be in union with one another.” Blessed are they who can do this, for “Blessed are the peacemakers!”
~C.H. Spurgeon~
I think one of the biggest reasons Christians have problems with consistency in their walk with Jesus is a lack of good quality Christian friends (and it requires spending time with them).
No sorrow will ever disturb me, no trial will ever disarm me, no circumstance will cause me to fret–for I shall rest in the joy of what my Lord is! That is the rest of the victory!
~Alan Redpath~
“If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did the most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next.” —C.S. Lewis
Give up the struggle and the fight; relax in the omnipotence of the Lord Jesus; look up into His lovely face and as you behold Him, He will transform you into His likeness. You do the beholding––He does the transforming. There is no short-cut to holiness.
~Alan Redpath~
“We both believe and disbelieve a hundred times an hour, which keeps faith nimble.”
Emily Dickinson
If you are attempting to live your life without fellowship, I encourage you to seek out companions who share your faith, and who can encourage you, love you, and with whom you can share the mysteries and knowledge of God.
If anyone asks you questions about biblical doctrine, you have to be able to prove it to them by showing where it is written in Scripture––always. Don't believe everything you think. You cannot be trusted to tell yourself the truth. Stay in the Word.
~Jerry Bridges~
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