All in Daily Devotional
The calling, what is it? Why does the Lord ask some to deliver His word and the Gospel to the world in a greater, or higher, way than is usual among believers? Pastors, prophets, and missionaries have felt this urging since Jesus first called His apostles. The calling in them is unquenchable and the need to preach the gospel, prophesy, or reach out to those who have not heard the good news can't be resisted.
God never forsakes us. This is our contemplation this morning. Men will turn their backs on kings, and one another, but God never forsakes us, His People. We are asked to love Him with all our heart, our soul, our mind, and our strength, because this is how He loves us, but do we understand and believe this to be absolutely true? Do we love our neighbors as we love ourselves? We are His people, and His inheritance, and as such we are priceless in His eyes.
Our devotional reading today regarding quantity vs quality membership in churches is one that really strikes home. I have had this conversation with pastors, and others In the church many times before, and have even had a prophetic dream regarding it. Isaiah is quite right when he says that those who should see... often do not.
Have you ever wondered what happens when we break bread together? Is sharing a meal and the breaking of bread a spiritual occurrence or just the fulfillment of a biological need? This is our thought for this morning, and we should think on this every time we sit down to eat. Is communion the only time the Jesus joins you at the dinner table?
When I was young in the faith I sang the song "Onward Christian Soldiers" as if I were at war with the world. What I missed in those opening lyrics was the word "as". I missed the fact that this was a song of unity and support for one another and the church; not a call to a spiritually founded world war. I missed the message of 1 Timothy 6... The real war isn’t in the world, it is within ourselves.
One morning in 2016 I awoke to a single thought... to who do we owe our allegiance? Perhaps this message was in response to a recent election and its unsettling aftermath, but in any case I find that we owe our first allegiance to God and His son Jesus Christ. Paul conveyed this concern to the early Christians of Corinthians when he wrote these words:
Yesterday we spoke of the unpleasant task of discipline within the church, so today I am contemplating a more upbeat and pleasing topic... joy and rejoicing. We tend to think of God in a more serious light, but did you realize that he sings for you?
Today's topic regarding discipline within the Church is one of those very difficult and touchy subjects. The end result could be the separation of someone from a church (or as the Church knows it... Excommunication), or the removal of a local church from the greater Church. As I read my morning devotional, Pastor E. M. Bounds spoke of discipline within our churches like this:
Intercessory prayer is more than just praying for someone... it is praying with them; it is praying the needs and desires of someone who might be in a coma using the words and supplication that we would pray with them if they were able to hold our hands and pray alongside us... it remains a joint prayer as we ask for God's intercession in a situation or life. It is being with someone who might be silent, but who prays with us in the presence of God. Isn’t this exactly what the Holy Spirit does when he prays for us in groanings which we alone cannot utter; at times when we have no words?
I have been contemplating the instruction that Jesus gave his apostles in the Garden of Gethsemane just before He went to pray. Specifically, I am dwelling on the account as recorded in the book of Luke. Jesus told Peter and the brothers to pray in order to fend off temptation. What was it about that moment and place that would heighten temptation?
Paul asks for prayer, but that selfsame prayer is needed today. Pray in the spirit for those who preach the gospel. When was the last time you prayed for your pastor or priest? Was it because he was ill, or were you praying for the gospel message he was preparing to bring to the church? There are daily reasons to pray for our pastors (such as healing) that are similar to those for which we pray for one another, but there is a more important need as well... bold revelation of the truth revealed in the gospel, and protection against the daily assault against his faith.
Do we consistently obey even the most trivial things that God requires of us? Do we understand the danger of falling asleep while on watch? How can we combat our inattention and a drowsiness of faith?
“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”
1 Peter 5:8
The 2024 presidential election in the United States is over for another four years, and a new president has been elected, but this doesn’t mean that that our nation is at ease. Now begins the big job of healing that facilitates making peace within ourselves, and loving one another. Are we praying for our neighbors and enemies? Do we realize how important praying for them is when it comes to restoring tranquility, calm, and order to our country? Let’s think on this today, and pray as we should for one another.
Praying for others, and receiving prayers from them as well. In Ephesians 6, Paul is giving us a lesson on how to live our lives. Then, in verse 18 he speaks of prayer, and specifically praying in the spirit for all the saints... for others.
When we, as Christians, correct those within our midst we must be very careful. We should do so with humility, but we should also take care that we don't get dirty. Our scripture reference says this in a slightly different way when it says "lest you too be tempted" but the idea is the same. When we come into close contact with sin we are in danger of becoming tempted, and sinning ourselves.