Tag Archives: Christianity

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Receiving The Blessing Of The Cross

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By David Wilkerson
[May 19, 1931 - April 27, 2011]

God delights in using failures—men and women who think they can do almost
nothing right. A woman wrote to me recently saying, “My marriage is failing. I
seem to do everything wrong in raising my children. I feel like I’m not worth
anything to anybody. I’ve not been a very good wife, mother or Christian. I’ve
got to be the world’s worst failure.”

She is just the kind of person the Lord is looking for—people who know that
if anything good happens through them, it must be because of God. All the
hotshot Christians who go about bowling people over with their great abilities
never impress God. God looked down on a scheming, base, weakling of a man
called Jacob and said, “Fear not, thou worm Jacob . . . I will help thee . . .
behold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth . . .
thou shalt rejoice in the Lord” (Isaiah 41:14–16).

Men often use God to achieve fortune, fame, honor and respect. Talent,
personality and cleverness are used to advance God’s kingdom, but He is not
impressed. His strength is perfected in our weakness, our inability to obey His
commandments in our own strength.

God calls us to a life of holiness and separation. He tells us we can be free
from the bondage of sin. His Word comes to us with some impossible challenges:
“Resist the devil. Walk in the Spirit. Come out from among them. Love your
enemies. Leave behind all your fears. Put down your lustful desires. Let no sin
have dominion over you.”

When you think honestly about how little you can do on your own to fulfill
these challenges, you realize how very weak you are. Your heart begins to cry,
“Lord, how can we do such great, holy things?” That is when our Lord takes
over! He comes with such a comforting message: “Lay down your weapons. Quit
trying to be so self–sufficient and strong. I am your weapon and your
strength. Let Me do what you never can do. I will give you My righteousness, My
holiness, My rest, My strength. You cannot save yourself or please Me in any way
other than by receiving the blessings of the cross by faith. Let Me be in charge
of your growth in holiness.”

Read this devotion online: http://www.worldchallenge.org/en/node/22537?src=devo-email

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The Believer’s Destanation

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Read | John 14:1-3

The Bible is clear that those who trust in Jesus as their personal Savior will have eternal life. Furthermore, it promises that followers of God will spend eternity with Him in heaven.

The New Testament contains approxi- mately 200 references to heaven, most of which are from the teachings of Jesus Himself. Obviously, the topic was quite important to our Lord. Why, then, do we often fail to talk about it ourselves?

Sadly, one reason we ignore the subject is that we simply feel too satisfied here on earth. Maybe we think we have it pretty good, whether because of a loving family, a stable job, or a nice home. Surrounded by such comfort, it can seem hard to imagine an even better place.

Other people, however, do not have it so easy here on earth. They are the ones who most easily grasp the concept of heaven. They are the individuals who live their lives in need, nursing the belief that life beyond earth will supply all that they lack.

You see, it is rarely our desperation that makes it difficult to envision our heavenly home. Rather, our success is oftentimes the greatest obstacle to a desire for the everlasting home where we truly belong. We can become so distracted by earthly things that we grow blind to the spiritual reality of eternal life. Why don’t we think more about heaven? Very simply, it is because many of us don’t want to go yet!

What in your life might be obstructing the view of your heavenly home? Jesus has gone before us to prepare our eternal dwelling, and who would know how to fix a place to our liking better than our Creator? Don’t let anything dim your vision of the excellent future home awaiting you.

http://www.intouch.org

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Because He Is Risen

 

Read | 1 Corinthians 15:20-23Heaven_Pic

Jesus is alive. He was resurrected from the dead and lives in heaven, interceding on our behalf. Because He is risen, we can have confidence that . . .

• Our sins are forgiven. Jesus came into this world to give His life as a ransom for many (Matt. 20:28). Through His death on the cross, the debt for our iniquities has been paid completely. We are a forgiven people.

• The Lord is actively involved in our lives. Jesus made many promises to His followers of all generations. He pledged that those who abide in Him and do His will would bear much fruit for God’s kingdom, enjoy spiritual blessings, and have guidance from the indwelling Holy Spirit, who is ever-present (Matt. 5:1-12; John 15:5).

Jesus spoke several times about the power of prayer for those who believe—we have assurance that our petitions will be heard and answered. When our requests are in accordance with the Lord’s will, we’ll receive what we have asked for (1 John 5:14-15).

Jesus gave His word that He would prepare a place for us in heaven and return one day to bring us to our everlasting home. Then we will live with Him forever. We can face each day secure in the knowledge of these truths. We can face each day secure in the knowledge of these truths.

Because Jesus has accomplished all this for us, He deserves our steadfast allegiance. Our worldview is to be framed by His life and words. We must stand firm and not compromise when the world tries to draw us away. Honor our risen Savior by following Him wholeheartedly (1 Cor. 15:58).

http://www.intouchministries.org

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The Power Of Testimony

Mar 20, 2013flower5

Read | John 9:1-38

Have you ever considered the sheer power in your simple testimony? John’s gospel tells a wonderful story of a blind man whom Jesus healed. If the story simply ended with the man opening his eyes and praising God, even that would surely be powerful. However, John takes the account further and shows us what happened next.

The Jewish authorities didn’t know what to make of this miraculous healing. They had all the facts—a man they knew was born blind, the crowd that overheard his interaction with Jesus, the proof of identity that his parents provided—and yet they refused to believe what was clear to so many. That is, they challenged the man’s testimony.

The religious authorities voiced their disbelief by calling Jesus a sinner (John 9:24), as if this untruth would somehow disqualify His miracle.

The man’s response in John 9:25 was brilliant in its simplicity: “Whether He is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.”

No matter what else was said, the man knew the Pharisees could not refute the basic fact that he had been healed. Scripture
shows that the authorities lost their tempers because they could not argue their way around that fact.

People simply cannot argue against the truth of your experience with Jesus. Rejoice that the Lord has given you such a powerful weapon in the midst of so great a spiritual battle. In situations where you anticipate a confrontation about your faith, take the time to reread John 9 so God can encourage you.

http://www.intouchminitires.org

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Silent Change

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Here’s Today’s Devotional from The Vine…praise

 

When the ruler of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and didn’t know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the ruler of the feast called the bridegroom, - John 2:9

 

Christ wrought this miracle without noise or ostentation. He said nothing to call attention to what He was going to do. The people about Him did not know of the wonderful work He had wrought. So He works today. He is not in the storm, the earthquake, the whirlwind; but in the “still small voice.” His kingdom comes into men’s hearts, not with observation and show, but silently, without parade. The bad life is changed, by His work, into moral purity, and yet no one saw the change made or the hand that wrought it. Silently help comes in the hours of need; silently prayer’s answers glide down; silently the angels come and go.

It is significant also that the “servants which drew the water knew.” Those who work with Christ are admitted into the inner chamber where omnipotence is unveiled. The lesson is very simple and beautiful. Christ takes into His confidence those who serve Him; calls them no more servants but friends. Those who do Christ’s will know of His doctrine, and see His ways of working. If we would see Christ’s power and glory, we must enter heartily into His service. Ofttimes it is in the lowliest ways, and in the paths of humble, self-denying service, that the most of His glory appears.

The ruler did not know whence the wine came; is it not often so with us? People do not know whence the blessings come which glide so softly into their hearts. Many a troubled Christian kneels in prayer in great fear, oppressed by a sense of need, and rises with new rich joy in his heart, yet knowing not whence the strange sweet blessing came. We drink the cups which God fills for us with heavenly sweetness, we receive the gifts which are brought down to us from the very throne, and yet ofttimes we do not know whence these things come, nor recognize the divine presence that works so close beside us.

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The Lightest Cross

By: L. B. Cowmana-bluecross2

The Lightest Cross

“And he went out carrying his own cross” (John 19:17).

There is a poem called “The Changed Cross.” It represents a weary one who thought that her cross was surely heavier than those of others whom she saw about her, and she wished that she might choose an other instead of her own. She slept, and in her dream she was led to a place where many crosses lay, crosses of different shapes and sizes. There was a little one most beauteous to behold, set in jewels and gold. “Ah, this I can wear with comfort,” she said. So she took it up, but her weak form shook beneath it. The jewels and the gold were beautiful, but they were far too heavy for her.

Next she saw a lovely cross with fair flowers entwined around its sculptured form. Surely that was the one for her. She lifted it, but beneath the flowers were piercing thorns which tore her flesh.

At last, as she went on, she came to a plain cross, without jewels, without carvings, with only a few words of love inscribed upon it. This she took up and it proved the best of all, the easiest to be borne. And as she looked upon it, bathed in the radiance that fell from Heaven, she recognized her own old cross. She had found it again, and it was the best of all and lightest for her.

God knows best what cross we need to bear. We do not know how heavy other people’s crosses are. We envy someone who is rich; his is a golden cross set with jewels, but we do not know how heavy it is. Here is another whose life seems very lovely. She bears a cross twined with flowers. If we could try all the other crosses that we think lighter than our own, we would at last find that not one of them suited us so well as our own.
–Glimpses through Life’s Windows

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If thou, impatient, dost let slip thy cross,
Thou wilt not find it in this world again;
Nor in another: here and here alone
Is given thee to suffer for God’s sake.

In other worlds we may more perfectly
Love Him and serve Him, praise Him,
Grow nearer and nearer to Him with delight.
But then we shall not any more
Be called to suffer, which is our appointment here.
Canst thou not suffer, then, one hour or two?
If He should call thee from thy cross today,
Saying: “It is finished-that hard cross of thine
From which thou prayest for deliverance,
” Thinkest thou not some passion of regret
Would overcome thee? Thou would’st say,
“So soon? Let me go back and suffer yet awhile
More patiently. I have not yet praised God.”
Whensoe’er it comes, that summons that we look for,
It will seem soon, too soon. Let us take heed in time
That God may now be glorified in us.
–Ugo Bassi‘s Sermon in a Hospital.
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Unfailing Joys

English: Wine grapes. Español: Uvas de vino ro...

English: Wine grapes. Español: Uvas de vino rojo. Русский: Грозди винограда. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Here’s Today’s Devotional from The Vine…

 

When the wine ran out, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no wine.” - John 2:3

 

This incident is a very fitting illustration of the failure of all this world’s joys. The wine gave out at a wedding-feast. There was not enough of it to last through to the end of the feast. It is just so with all earth’s pleasure. It comes in cups, not in fountains, and the supply is limited and soon exhausted. It is so especially with sin’s pleasures. The prodigal soon runs through with his abundance and begins to be in want.

A poet compared the pleasures of sin to a snowflake on the river, “a moment white, then gone for ever.” but it is true in a sense also of pure pleasures. Even the sweetness of human love is but a cupful which will not last for ever. The joy which so fills us today, tomorrow is changed to sorrow. Amid the gladness of the marriage altar there is the knell of the end in the words “till death us do part.”One of every two friends must hold the other’s hand in farewell at the edge of the valley, must stand by the other’s grave and walk alone part of the way.

The best wine of life and of love will fail. If there were nothing better in this world, how sad it would be! But it is here that we see the glory of Christ‘s gospel. Jesus comes when earth’s wine fails and gives heaven’s wine to supply the lack. How beautiful and how true is the picture here, the failing wine, and then Jesus coming with power and supplying the want! That is what He is doing continually. He takes lives which have drained their last drop of earthly gladness and He satisfies them with spiritual good and blessing, so that they want nothing more.

When human joy fails, if we have Jesus with us, He gives new joy, better than the world’s, and in unfailing abundance. How sad it is for those who have not taken Christ into their lives, and who have nothing but the empty cup when earth’s wine gives out!

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A Sense Of Unworthiness

By David Wilkersonblue2
[May 19, 1931 - April 27, 2011]

Suddenly, we are plagued by a sense of unworthiness. We turn inward, thinking,
“I did it again! I haven’t changed at all. I’ll never be Christlike. I still
react like a babe, not a mature Christian. Why haven’t I changed?”

Beloved, the devil wants you to keep worrying over your shortcomings and lack
of growth, thinking the race is impossible, so that you will become discouraged
and drop out.

It is certain that we will stumble at times because the race is going to
continue until our Lord returns. But we must always get on our feet and
continue moving on.

God‘s Word speaks of overcoming: “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the
world” (1 John 5:4). “He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will
be his God, and he shall be my son” (Revelation 21:7).

To overcome is to “conquer and get the best of all temptations and obstacles.”
What are our obstacles? They are every new reaction in the flesh, every failure
to be Christlike, every uprising of temper, bitterness or agitation.

David wrote, “My sin is ever before me” (Psalm 51:3). This man was exposed
before the whole world as an adulterer and a murderer. He also wrote, “For mine
iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for
me. . . . I am troubled; I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day
long” (Psalm 38:4-6).

What if David had worried and fretted over his failures? He repented
wholeheartedly and therefore he could say, “Thou hast turned for me my mourning
into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness”
(Psalm 30:11).

The fastest way to get rid of “a sense of unworthiness” is to trust in Christ‘s
forgiveness. And He is ready to forgive at all times: “For thou, Lord, art good,
and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee”
(Psalm 86:5).

Read this devotion online: http://www.worldchallenge.org/en/node/21834?src=devo-email

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Giving Thanks In Everything

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Read | Ephesians 5:15-21

Why would God command us to thank Him regardless of the circumstances? The idea defies human logic. But then, the Lord rarely binds Himself to man-made rules. Scriptural principles serve specific purposes in the Christian’s life. Gratitude keeps us aware of God’s presence, which builds our trust and ultimately strengthens our witness.

We must realize that thankfulness is not based on emotions or a situation’s outcome. We can be grateful even during trials, because God has promised to work all things for our good (Rom. 8:28). That means He has a purpose in mind for each experience, whether pleasant or difficult. A big problem stacked against our small resources sends us running to Him, thankful He has committed to work it to our benefit.

The believer’s part is to trust God will bring good from trials and to discover His plan, which gives further reason for thanking Him. Understanding His intentions renews our strength for facing difficult trials. Expressing gratefulness changes our attitude about God, ourselves, and our situations. Most people allow hurt and stress to form a pessimistic mindset, which negatively impacts every facet of their life. But believers have God’s Spirit working within to provide courage and a flow of thanksgiving.

When we demonstrate thankfulness in harsh circumstances, other people pay
attention. Coworkers, family, and friends will want for themselves the peace and
energy we derive from a grateful relationship God. So whatever you’re experiencing, go ahead and defy logic—praise the Lord.

http://www.intouch.minitries.org

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Surviving Our Present Culture

Feb 15, 2013

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Read | 1 Corinthians 3:1-3

When we are called into a new life with Christ, we will encounter obstacles. One of the biggest barriers is the culture in which we live. We may not ever recognize the danger we are in until we fall. Let’s look honestly at our world.

First, it’s a secular culture, which means it has little interest in religious matters or the Bible. It teaches us to trust in ourselves and in the things we can see rather than in our unseen triune God.

Our world is also materialistic. Its primary focus is on accumulating possessions and gaining wealth, not on caring about others and giving sacrificially. Tragically, many of the things our culture values stand in opposition to the way Jesus calls us to live. When Scripture contradicts what our society believes, it’s not uncommon for people to belittle our lifestyle as narrow-minded and extreme.

In many ways, our society is spiritually rebellious, in that it defies both the laws of God and the laws of man; obedience is considered optional. A large percentage of the population rejects God’s viewpoint on intimacy and marriage in order to please self—as a result, immorality is prevalent. But they have been deceived into thinking that they can violate God’s laws without any consequences.

Unless we’re careful, we can fall prey to the world’s traps. The key to avoiding its snares is God’s Word. When we study Scripture, the Holy Spirit will identify lies we are believing and show how we can apply God’s truth to set us free. Are you immersed in the culture or in God’s truth?

http://www.intouchminitries.org