DAILY DEVOTIONALS: 12.3.22

 TheLiving Word/the Word of Life “Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neitherlaboured in vain.” (Philippians2:16) There is such beautiful correlation between the living Word (Christ) and the written Word (the Bible) that certain Scriptures could well apply to either one. Such is the case with our text. The Philippians were exhorted to hold forth the Word of life, whichpresumably could mean either Christ, the living Word, or else the Scriptures, which speak of eternal life. The same dual meaning can be discerned in such texts as 2 Timothy 4:2 (“preach the word”) and Hebrews 4:12 (“the word of God is quick, and powerful”). In fact, there are many beautiful figures of speech that are applied in the Bible to the ministries of both Christ and the Scriptures in a believer’s life. For example, Christ is “the light of the world” (John8:12), but also “the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light” (Proverbs6:23). Similarly, Jesus said, “I am the bread of life” (John6:35), but He also said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God” (Luke4:4). The Lord Jesus Christ said, “If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink” (John7:37). God also promised that “as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven,...So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth” (Isaiah55:10-11). Both are described as the very personification of truth. Jesus said, “I am...the truth,” and He prayed to the Father, “Thy word is truth” (John14:6; 17:17). Finally, both must be received. “Receive...the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls” (James1:21), for “as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God” (John1:12). HMM ------------------ Conformity “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he mightbe the firstborn among many brethren.” (Romans 8:29) One of the greatest dangers facing Christians is the temptation to become conformed to the things of the world around them, thus destroying their testimony for the Lord. We are specifically commanded, in fact, “Be not conformed to this world” (Romans12:2). One cannot serve two masters, and the great privilege of the believer is the privilege of becoming conformed, not to a dying world, but to the living Christ. But first we must be conformed to His death, dying to the world and its standards. The greatest desire of the apostle Paul was to “win Christ....That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformableunto his death” (Philippians 3:8, 10). Death is far from the end, however. When Christ returns, He “shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body” (Philippians 3:21).In this verse, the Greek for “fashioned like” is the same as “conformed to.” These corruptible, dying bodies we now live in will one day be changed. As Christ rose from the dead, we also shall rise, and our bodies, like His, will be alive forevermore. Even that wonderful prospect is not the best of it, however. Not only will our bodies be incorruptible like His, but we shall be like Him—like Him in holiness, like Him in love, like Him in wisdom. “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appearwhat we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him” (1 John 3:2). In the words of our text, we are actually predestined to beconformed to the very image of the Son of God! HMM ---------------- EternalThings “While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things whichare seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (2Corinthians 4:18) One of the most difficult handicaps for a Christian to overcome is spiritual nearsightedness. It is easy to see temporal things but hard to think on eternal things. Paul, however, in the midst of an extremely busy and difficult temporal life, somehow did manage to keep his sights on that eternal life to which he was called. The wonderful redemption that Christ purchased for us with His blood is nothing less than “eternalredemption” (Hebrews9:12); and therefore “he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him” (Hebrews5:9). Consequently, as joint-heirs with Him, “they which are called...receive the promise of eternal inheritance” (Hebrews9:15). He is, surely, the “God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus” (1Peter 5:10) and has there provided for us “everlasting habitations” (Luke16:9). All of these eternal things—eternal redemption, eternal salvation, eternal inheritance, eternal habitations, and eternal glory—are of infinitely greater value than the temporal things that crowd our minds and limit our goals. They are all a part of the wonderfuleternal life we have already received through faith in Christ. It’s significant that the phrase “eternal life” (or “everlasting life,” which is the same Greek phrase) occurs no less than 44 times in the New Testament. God speaks of it often, and so shouldwe! The very first eternal thing mentioned in the Bible is the “everlasting covenant” God has made with all men (Genesis9:16). The last is the “everlasting gospel” to be preached to all men (Revelation14:6). HMM ----------------- FourCommands “Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.” (1Peter 2:17) Our text today gives four commands for believers to obey, each of which is difficult but nonetheless “is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men” (v. 15). It comes in a lengthy passage (2:11–3:12) that discussesthe matter of authority and a Christian’s proper response to it. Ponder each command: Honor all men. This could be translated “Give honor to all.” While the verb is the same as in the last command, its verb tense is not the same, here indicating a continued, conscious choice to do this, while honoring “the king” indicates the developmentof a lifestyle of showing respect to civil authority. Evidently our day-to-day encounters with sinful “men” require us to be continually choosing to regard them with honor and dignity. “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mindlet each esteem other better than themselves” (Philippians2:3). Love the brotherhood. Our agape love—God’s kind of unselfish, undeserved love—should extend, on a habitual basis as seen in the verb tense, to all believers. “See that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently” (1Peter 1:22). Fear God. A lifestyle marked by a reverential fear of God is in mind here. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs1:7). “Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil” (Proverbs3:7). Honor the king. As mentioned above, this is to be a life’s commitment, continually recognizing the God-given authority of human government (1Peter 2:1-14). “Having your conversation [i.e., manner of life] honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation” (v. 12). JDM ------------------ Abide “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no morecan ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” (John15:4-5) As recorded in John 14 to 16, many of Christ’s last words to His disciples as He was about to leave them regarded abiding. The word meno occurs 18 times in this discourse and is translated not only “abide” but also “remain,” “dwell,” “continue,” and “be present.” Let us look at what He told them about abiding while He was “yet present” (14:25) with them. First, “the Father...dwelleth in me” (14:10), “I am in the Father, and the Father in me” (v. 11). That is, they are one and the same, inseparably abiding together, giving great power to those believing on Him (v. 12). Furthermore, the very Spirit of God, the “Comforter,” will “abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive...but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you” (vv. 16-17). “I am in my Father, and ye in me, andI in you” (v. 20). Abiding in Him, as we see in our text and in verse 7 (as opposed to the tragic end of those who “abide not” [v. 6]), brings forth much fruit, and that fruit shall “remain” (v. 16). There is one requirement—that we keep His commandments (14:23 and 15:10), and if we do so, we will “continue” and “abide” in His love (15:9-10). “These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full” (v. 11).Not only are we to abide while in this world but throughout eternity. “In my Father’s house are many mansions [same root word, meaning abiding places]....I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (14:2-3). JDM ---------------- Repentant?Or Just Remorseful? - by Greg Laurie � www.harvest.org For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There�s no regret for that kind of sorrow. But worldly sorrow, which lacksrepentance, results in spiritual death. - 2 Corinthians 7:10 https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/repentant-or-just-remorseful/Listen If I were to get in my car and go down the freeway at 140 miles per hour, I would be remorseful if the highway patrol pulled me over. Why? Because I�d pay a penalty for mychoices. I�d get a ticket and maybe even spend the night in jail. And my insurance rates would go up significantly. But if I were to get in my car and do the same thing the next day, it would show that I was not repentant. There�s a difference between remorse and repentance. Sometimes we confuse the two. We�re remorseful when we�re sorry for getting caught. But we�re repentant when we�re sorryenough to stop doing the same thing. A lot of people feel remorse. Maybe someone traps them in a lie or catches them stealing. Or maybe they sin in some other way, and it catches up with them eventually. Thus,they�re remorseful. But do they change their behavior? If they simply plot a little more carefully the next time and hope they won�t get caught, that�s not repentance; that�s just remorse. The Bible says, �For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There�s no regret for that kind of sorrow. But worldlysorrow, which lacks repentance, results in spiritual death� (2 Corinthians 7:10 NLT). If you can continue on a course of sin despite feeling guilty about it, that tells me you don�t know God. Maybe you�ve never given your life to Jesus. Maybe there has never been a moment in your life when you said, �Lord, I�m sorry for my sin, sorry enough to turn away from it.� Perhaps you�ve been sorry because you�ve been found out, but are you willing to turn away from that sin and put your faith in Jesus? Jesus is telling us, �Friend, I love you, and I�m reaching out to you.� But you must reach out as well and take His hand. Have you done that yet? --------------------- Share Their Burden - by Greg Laurie � www.harvest.org Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and nights. No one said a word to Job, for they saw that his suffering was too great for words. �Job 2:13 https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/share-their-burden/Listen In one day, Job�s world fell apart. He lost everything he held dear in life. Then, to make matters worse, he was struck with boils from head to toe. As he sat in ashes and scraped his boils with a piece of pottery, his wife managed to add insult to injury. She said, �Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse Godand die!� (Job 2:9 NKJV). Job really needed some encouragement. Then we read that three friends came to visit him. And when they saw his miserable condition and how he was covered in boils, they were so stunned that they simply wept andsat with him for seven days without saying a word. That was the perfect thing to do in that instance. The Bible tells us, �Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep� (Romans 12:15 NKJV). Sometimes, that�s all we need to do. We should avoid the easy answers and clich�s when we�re seeking to comfort a suffering person. Sometimes, what we say to them can offend them because we didn�t think it through.We try to be helpful, but we can instead end up being hurtful. We say things like �I know how you feel� when we really don�t, or �There�s a reason for everything� when the person we�re trying to comfort clearly can�t see one. And it certainlydoesn�t help to point out that there�s always someone worse off when there are also a lot of people who are better off. That doesn�t mean there�s no time for us to share Scripture or to pray with someone who�s hurting. But don�t come in with a fast answer. Just go with them through what they�regoing through. Accompany them. Be a companion to them. The Bible tells us, �Share each other�s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ� (Galatians 6:2 NLT). When someone is suffering, sometimes the best thing that we cando for them is to simply be there for them. -------------------- HeIs Able �Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the powerthat worketh in us.� (Ephesians 3:20) Despite man�s arrogant pride, he is utterly unable to save himself or to make himself acceptable to God. Neither is he able to keep himself saved nor, above all, is he able to defeat sin and conquer death. But God is able! The word �able� (Greek dunamai) is closely related to the word for �power� (Greek dunamis), both speaking of God�s spiritual dynamics. He is all-powerful, His ability is without limit, and His power �works in us�! Therefore, �he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him� (Hebrews 7:25). Because the gospel of Christ is the �power of God untosalvation� (Romans 1:16), God �is of power to stablish you according to my gospel� (Romans16:25). Even when great troubles and sorrows and temptations come, He is able. �For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted� (Hebrews2:18). He �is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy� (Jude 1:24). In fact, He is able to meet every need of our lives and even to use us in His service. �God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work� (2Corinthians 9:8). Finally, �he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day� (2 Timothy 1:12). That day will surely come, but then He will give us bodies of glory, for �he is able even to subdue all things unto himself� (Philippians 3:21).HMM ------------------- Let the Lord Choose for You - by Greg Laurie � www.harvest.org He is the Rock; his deeds are perfect. Everything he does is just and fair. He is a faithful God who does no wrong; how just and upright he is! �Deuteronomy 32:4 https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/let-the-lord-choose-for-you/- Listen Have you ever drunk something so foul that you couldn�t finish it, like milk that you didn�t realize was already spoiled? In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus bowed down and prayed, �O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will� (Matthew26:39 NKJV). The cup that Jesus gazed into was something that turned His stomach. But it wasn�t a literal cup; it was a cup of suffering. Our Lord recoiled from the knowledge that He�someonewho was sinless, perfect, and pure�would have to take upon Himself everything that was sinful, imperfect, and impure. Jesus had never spent a moment out of fellowship with the Father, but soon He would have to bear all the sins of the world. Jesus knew what was going to happen. He knew thatJudas would betray Him, His disciples would abandon Him, and Peter would deny Him. And He knew about the whipping, the crucifixion, and all the rest. Jesus didn�t want to drink this cup, but He knew He had to. There was no question that it was going to be very difficult for Him, to say the least. He was going to face thefull wrath of God against all sin. But look at what it accomplished. It brought about our salvation. Because of what Jesus did, because He drank that cup, we can call upon His name. Although it was difficult,it was necessary for the attainment of the ultimate goal. Jesus gave us a model of what to do in times of uncertainty. He prayed, �Not as I will, but as You will.� We are not going to know the will of God in every situation. In thosetimes when we don�t know the will of God, will we let Him choose for us? We must never be afraid to place an unknown future into the hands of a known God. ------------------------ Trust God�s Plan - by Greg Laurie � www.harvest.org We use God�s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. �2 Corinthians 10:4 https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/trust-gods-plan/Listen Malchus should have been thankful that Peter was a fisherman and not a swordsman. As the disciples spent time with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, they saw the crowd coming.Peter drew his sword without hesitation and took a swing. Malchus, the high priest�s servant, lost his ear. Peter was trying to fight a spiritual battle with physical means. Jesus said to him, �Put away your sword. . . . Those who use the sword will die by the sword. Don�t you realize that I could ask my Father for thousands of angels to protectus, and he would send them instantly? But if I did, how would the Scriptures be fulfilled that describe what must happen now?� (Matthew 26:52�54 NLT). In other words, �Peter, that is not the way to fight this battle. This isn�t the time for that.� The Bible tells us, �We use God�s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments� (2 Corinthians 10:4NLT). It is also worth noting that Jesus healed the high priest�s servant. Malchus didn�t deserve it. Yet Jesus reached down and healed his ear. That was the last miracle Jesushad ever performed. You know the rest of the story. Our Lord was crucified. He bore the sins of the world. And He rose from the dead. For every Christian, there will come a Gethsemane, a place where we realize that our obedience overrules our personal desires. The glory of God becomes more important thanour glory and desires, and we say, �Not my will, but Yours, be done.� Are you at such a place right now? Surrender to the will of God. You will be glad that you did. His plan for you is better than your plan for yourself. -------------------- DidHe Really Die? �And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whetherhe had been any while dead. And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.� (Mark15:44-45) The absolute and total physical death of Christ is essential to the gospel. Certain liberals and detractors have for years tried to obscure or deny this vital teaching, claiming that Christ merely �swooned� on the cross and later revived in the tomb, then appearedto His followers who falsely claimed His resurrection. But to the Christian, the death of Christ is not an option. The Bible teaches that sin had separated each man from God: �For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God,� being declared righteous only �through faith in his blood� (Romans3:23, 25) that was shed on the cross. �Without shedding of blood is no remission� of sin (Hebrews9:22). There can be no Christianity without the real death of the real, sinless Son of God. It seems that the gospel writers, in recounting the events of the crucifixion, go to great lengths to make sure no one misunderstands. In Mark 15, for example, nearly 20 people are mentioned who no doubt would testify to His death. Consider the likely testimonyof the Roman guards who had tortured Him to the point of death (vv. 15-23), nailed Him on the cross (v. 24), and watched Him die. The executioner (v. 25) and the centurion (vv. 39, 44-45) were trained in killing. They knew how to recognize death. The thieves(v. 27), the mocking passersby (v. 29), the chief priests and scribes (v. 31), the grave keepers (v. 46), all would have had no doubt. Pilate was convinced (vv. 44-45), as were His many friends who watched (vv. 40-41, 47). There can be no doubt Christ surely died, and He died �to give his life a ransom for many� (Mark10:45). JDM -------------------- TheUrgency of Christ's Work �I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.� (John9:4) It is striking how often the Lord Jesus used the term �must� in connection with the different aspects of the work He came to do. Since He is our example, we also must be serious and urgent about our Father�s work. Even as a boy in the temple, He told His parents, �I must be about my Father�s business� (Luke2:49). Then early in His ministry, as He went from place to place, He said, �I must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also: for therefore am I sent� (Luke4:43). Toward the end of His earthly ministry, He said one day, �I must walk to day, and to morrow, and the day following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem� (Luke13:33). He also said to His disciples that �he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day� (Matthew16:21). He had told the great teacher of Israel, Nicodemus, �Ye must be born again.� To explain how this could be, He then said, �And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him shouldnot perish, but have eternal life� (John3:7, 14-15). Before we could ever be born again to everlasting life, therefore, Christ must be lifted up on the cross to die for our sins. Still, all �the scriptures must be fulfilled� (Mark14:49), and accordingly, �he must rise again from the dead� (John20:9). Yet, even this did not fully complete �the works of him that sent me,� for Christ had said that �the gospel must first be published among all nations� (Mark13:10). Therefore, we also must work the works of Him who sent us, before our days of opportunity are gone. HMM ----------------------- What�s Insulting to God - by Greg Laurie � www.harvest.org Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God�s throne. �Hebrews 12:2 https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/whats-insulting-to-god/Listen It is insulting to God to say that all religions are true and that Jesus is only one of many ways to Him. If that were the case, do you think God the Father would have letHis Son go through the agony of the cross? Jesus, who is God, is omniscient. He knew what would happen. He was fully aware of the horrors of the crucifixion waiting just around the bend. He knew His disciples wouldabandon Him and that Judas Iscariot would betray Him. And He knew that Simon Peter would deny him. Jesus knew they would rip open His back with scourging, press a crown of thorns onto His head, beat Him, spit on His face, and then crucify Him. Worst of all, He knew thatHe would bear all the sins of the world. And He recoiled from it. The Bible says that Jesus was �a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief� (Isaiah 53:3 NLT). But the sorrow Jesus experienced in Gethsemane on the night before His crucifixionseemed to be a culmination of all the sorrow He had ever known. I don�t think we can even begin to fathom what He was going through. And He did it all for us. Hebrews 12 reveals what kept Him going: �Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God�sthrone� (verse 2 NLT). The joy before Him, friend, was the knowledge that we would come into a relationship with God. Jesus refused diversion. He refused distraction. And He would not leave His path because He had to taste death for everyone. Jesus had to drink the cup. He had to go to thecross and die for our sins.