February 26 – Served Or Served

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” – Mark 10:45 (NASB)

It has always been that some served, some were served, but the ones served never really served others. It was not that long ago while not necessarily a career goal, a life in “service” might have been one’s only option.  Choosing one’s own way in life has not always been possible. The homes of the wealthy and even middle class with the means, had a servant or two. But Jesus Christ, the Son of Man who is our creator, our sovereign God, did not come to earth as a man to be served by others even though it would be appropriate. He came to do the serving. Throughout his 3 years of public ministry he taught his disciples and preached that service to others is our calling. As humans we find serving others very difficult and we prefer our own personal servants. By example, the ultimate service performed by Christ was to die and a cross carrying the sins of all the world in order to pay the penalty of our sins. By his service, he made us free from being servants to sin and death and we were made servants to Christ to proclaim His name.

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September 26 – Trading Weary for Rest

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” – Matthew 11:28 (NASB) 

Weary. Heavy-laden. Do not we all feel this way from time to time? in this passage. This is an open invitation from Jesus to all who hear—but expressed in such a way that the ones who will respond to the invitation are those who are burdened by their own effort of trying to be good enough to please God and “qualify” for heaven. The ‘rest’ that Jesus promises is rest from just that self-effort to be righteous enough through one’s own good works. Many will think and say “I’ve lived a pretty good life and I’m going to heaven.” A pretty good life will never be good enough. There is only one way any of us will find ourselves to be that good and that is through Jesus Christ who gives to us His righteousness. It is impossible for us to be good enough even though we’ve been better than pretty good. Jesus says, “Come to Me because I can give you rest from your weariness. I can lift that heavy burden off of you. And it is free.” He bought that rest for us when he was crucified without sinning and died for sinners⸺that’s us. 

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January 28 – All Times All Times All

“Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.”  2 Corinthians 9:7-8 (NASB)

When we look at the first verse in our passage, Paul teaches that God is love and, He loves a cheerful giver. What an important bit to remember when planning gifts for Christian work. Then, the next verse Paul teaches that God is all-powerful. That is, God expresses his love to his people through his power. And why? In order to help us go even further in faith in giving. Let’s now, look at how Paul expresses this. The concept 'all' appears five times: all grace, all sufficiency, all things, all times, every good work. Paul describes the infinite goodness and greatness of God. God has power “to make all grace abound toward you.” He involves Himself in details of our lives, even in our decisions to give for a certain cause. In the service of the Lord grace brings more grace to the table. The believer’s grace in joyful giving can hardly be compared with God’s abounding grace to the believer for God showers his love on the joyful donor, who is unable to match God’s grace. He grants the gift of salvation, spiritual gifts, the fruit of the Spirit, and material needs as blessings.

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August 26 – Fruit Bearing

Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!  - Matthew 7:9-11  (ESV)

What do we expect from our Lord when we petition Him in prayer?  Perhaps the idea of prayer is one that God hears us irrespective of the fact that we have a relationship to Him.  When we make our requests to God in prayer, do we believe that He will answer?  Really believe? The lead in to these verses is the promise that if we ask, we will receive, if we seek we will find, and  if we knock it will be opened.  We are promised in this verse that just as we give good gifts to our children, God our Father more assuredly gives good things to us when we ask Him.  If we look at the larger context of this passage, (just a small clip from the chapter) we find the instruction to take care that our life is without offence to others, to our friends and family, our spouse, and those we are accountable to.  Such offenses cloud both the asking and the seeing our requests fulfilled. And make sure that our life is bearing spiritual fruit. It is the fruit of our lives that proves our faith and devotion in God.  

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May 4 – Waves Only Waver

“If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking.  But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.”  - James 1:5-6 (NLT)

If counsel is what we need, then it is wisdom that we ask for from God.  This we are promised in a  familiar and popular verse.  We are promised that God is generous and not stingy when it comes to giving us the wisdom we need.  We are also promised that God will not shame us for asking.  We often shame each other when we are asked because we expect they should already know or have what they are asking for.  God does not rebuke us for having a request for wisdom.  Then we learn that God wants our request to be made in pure faith trusting in His promises. No attachments, no addendum, no contingencies which all add up to doubt and doubt does not mix with faith.  Asking with doubt is not faith.  It is a lack of faith.  If we have ever watched the sea or lake when the waves are up. They are random, they never repeat and we have no idea where they will go. When we doubt, we are acting like a windblown wave and we are not truly believing God will or even can give us the wisdom He promises. 

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April 11 – All Things Freely Given

“He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?”  -Romans 8:32  (NASB)

Yesterday we looked at the first part of a multi-promise understanding that since God is our defense, we really need not fear any adversary that seeks our destruction.  Today, the part of that promise is that God the Father gave us of his own prefect will, his unique Son.  The Father did not spare His own Son but actually delivered Him over for us all.  Some of that 'us', that is 'mankind', hated God’s son Jesus.  They rejected the offer of righteousness and His invitation into the Kingdom of Heaven.  Instead, out of hate and jealously they conspired and manipulated the masses to call for Jesus to be put to death on a Roman cross.  God the Father did not step in, and though He could easily have, He did not spare His Son from a criminal execution, from death.  Not deserving of death but freely submitting to the Father, Jesus was crucified.  Now, we who believe Jesus is the Son of God, and that he died, was buried, and rose again to new life can trust that God will give us everything we need to live for Him.

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March 4 – A Matter of Peace

“The Lord will give strength to His people; The Lord will bless His people with peace.”  -Psalm 29:11  (NASB)

Isn’t it interesting, how many times the word ‘peace?’ is found in God’s word?  Give or take it's 400 times. The verse and version we selected for today tells us that “The Lord will give…” and “The Lord will bless…” Another version might say “May the Lord…”  Both ways are affirmative promises. Comfort also comes because we receive two things we really need; strength and peace.  When we are in need of strength, we are likely also in need of peace in our lives. By trusting God’s word and the promises we find here, we receive not only strength and peace, we also are comforted because we know and trust that God always fulfills the promises He makes to us.  We are not left to fend off the enemy on our own – because that is a losing cause.  God gives us the strength and the victory in our fight against unrighteousness.  And with the victory comes the peace.  Actually, we have peace even before the battle because God promised it to be so.  Peace is not a shy matter in God’s Word. Today, let’s affirm the strength and peace we have from God.    

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February 29 – Asking, Sending, Helping, Abiding

“I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.”  -  John 14:16-17 (NASB)

Chapters 13-17 in the Gospel of John are a watershed of promises. Jesus poured out his heart and love for his disciples and His prayer (John 17:20 NASB) establishes that Jesus included all believers in these promises. Today our promises are given by Jesus first to the eleven disciples left with Him.  Satan, having entered Judas Iscariot, is exposed sent out to do his evil deed.  Jesus first ‘asks the Father’ and with this began His priestly and intercessory work on our behalf.  He asks and promises to send to them ‘another’ Helper and the Greek word means “another of the same kind.”  Someone like Jesus Himself who takes His place to do His work. Jesus promises this someone will be a ‘helper.’ This is a kind of helper that is called “alongside to help, to encourage, to exhort.” He promises this helper will be with us forever as he come into us to dwell and abide.  'Abiding' has to do with God's Holy Spirit having permanent residence in all believers. This means Jesus gives us Himself. A powerful promise that God is not only with us, He is in us permanently – that is what ‘forever’ means. 

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December 29 – Peace For Whom?

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”  -Luke 2:14   (ESV)
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”  John 14:27 (ESV) 

We can reliably say that Christ’s mission on earth was to bring peace.  But, not the peace of the world which is little more than a brief cease fire.  Our first verse is most often heard and sung from the King James Version – “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” Luke 2:14 (KJV)  The world has long embraced this as if God was promising peace on earth out of His good will toward all people.  But, the angel’s message to the shepherds promised Peace among those with whom He is pleased. "Without faith it is impossible to please God " Hebrews 11:6 (ESV).  So, the angel did not promise to bring peace to all on the earth.  It is offered to all but what brings us God’s peace is faith in God.  Jesus does not offer the peace of the world, as our second verse informs us, but the peace that came with Jesus when he was born in Bethlehem.  So Paul prays, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing” Romans 15:13  (ESV). Rejoice today that God has given us peace with Him.

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March 31 – Will He Not, Indeed

“He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?”  Romans 8:32  (NASB)

We often find in our verses reasons to recognize how wonderful and loving God is to us his creation.  When, in His plan He brought Jesus, His Son into this world, to show His love to us in a remarkable way. He made a wonderful provision in arranging for Jesus to die for us so as to provide a way for us to have eternal life by faith in Him.  Because it is by faith we accept what Jesus did for us by dying on the cross, and rising from the grave. Our Father in heaven is providing what we need to continue living here on earth while we fulfill God's will and calling. Others who have not yet heard need to hear and accept the plan provided by Jesus.  And going far beyond He has promised to provide a place for us in eternity, living in true fellowship with Himself.  Let's thank our wonderful Lord for His wonderful provision for our needs here on earth and for the promise of a place in heaven forever and ever.  He did not hold back what was needed for our salvation and new life, He continues to not hold back on any promised blessings. 

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December 17 – Possessing Our Inheritance

“He said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. ‘Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, And the very ends of the earth as Your possession.”  Psalm 2:7-8 (NASB)

Christmas time is a time for singing praises to God for the gift of Jesus.  Have you wondered how that got started?  Of course we have been looking at the songs the angels sang for the shepherds near Bethlehem the night Jesus was born and we sing that song now.  But the song which the angels sang that night was not the first song about the birth of our Savior.  Actually the coming of the Savior was mentioned in several of the songs sung long before He came.  The New Testament reminds us that some of the Old Testament Psalms had referred to Jesus.  Today's we have a verse from Psalm 2.   These words and others like them were being sung for years and for many centuries before Jesus came to earth in the form of a human.  That's because God had planned long ago to send a Savior.  God gave us His Son so that we would have a way to enjoy the inheritance He desires us to have, to be His children.

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June 8 – Desires, Given and Fulfilled

“Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4 (NASB)

We have two wonderful promises given to us in this verse. We usually think of prayer as being the way to get what we want from God. But this verse doesn't mention prayer.  Yet, it gives us the promise that God responds to our desires without our expressing them if our attitude to Him is right and if are focused on happily pleasing the Lord.  So, to what kind of desires does the Lord respond?  This is the second promise we find here, for God will give us the very desires we should have in our heart.  We will learn to desire what delights us in the Lord, and what delights the Lord as well.  Where do our desires come from? If we are thrilled about God and what He has done, we will find our heart's desires have actually come to to us from the Lord.  And as we enjoy our life in the Lord, those desires are fulfilled for us by Him.  Every good and perfect gift comes from the Lord and that includes what we desire. Today, let's find the thrill of living in the Lord and enjoy the fulfillment of the desires He has given us. 

March 16 – Given All Things

“He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” Romans 8:32  (NIV)

There is nothing in all the history of this world which demonstrates the love of God more clearly than the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. The Bible verse we have chosen for today reminds us how we can apply this truth to our daily lives. When we sense that we have some special need, we may wonder if God will really be there to help meet the need. We may ask ourselves if God really cares. Our verse can then remind us how much God did for us when He gave us His Son to die for us – to suffer the consequences of our sin – in our place. And now His Son is our Savior who is praying for us.  So how could God do all these big things for us and then not give us all that we need for less important things in order to help us live for Him?  God promised to graciously give us all things. That is something to think about.

October 7 – Got Wisdom?

“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” James 1:5 (NIV)

Our verse today has a promise that is very potent and important. God, who possess all knowledge and is perfectly wise has promised us that if we lack wisdom, if we need help making the right choices, we should ask Him for it. The promise is that He will respond by giving us wisdom generously. When He gives us wisdom God is not stingy and we receive all that we need. He also does not criticize us when he gives us wisdom. Whatever has happened to put us in a tight spot needing help, God does not find fault. No request for wisdom is too small or insignificant and no request is too much to ask for. He is with us and on our side when we ask, His promise is that what we ask for will be given to us, believe it today.

February 2

“He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” Romans 8:32 (NIV)

A few days ago our verse was Romans 8:31 about if God is for us, no one against us will be able to defeat us. We are right in thinking that God did show His great love for us in sending His Son into this world and allowing him to live and then to die on the cross for us. We thank Him for accepting us into His family as we believe in Jesus as our savior and receive his new resurrected life as our eternal life.  We have trusted God for salvation brought to us by His Love. Let us be sure we keep on trusting him for everything else we need to live for Him. He will take care of our material needs and our spiritual needs. Our verse says that God supplies our needs along with our Savior. Yes, His provision for our needs is a part of the gift of eternal life and comes from God’s motivation of love.