GEMS OF ENCOURAGEMENT FOR SATURDAY AUGUST 25, 2012.
PROVERB
A greedy man stirs up dissension, but he who trusts in the Lord will prosper. Proverbs 28:25.
PROMISE
Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor male prostitutes, nor homosexual offenders, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. I Corinthians 6:9-10.
PRAISE
Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify You. I will praise You as long as I live, and in Your name I lift up my hands. Psalm 63:3-4.
August 26, 2012
Determination: August 24, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR FRIDAY AUGUST 24, 2012.
DETERMINATION
DEFINITION:
Definite decision; firmness; resolve; a fixed purpose of intention.
SCRIPTURE:
Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Romans 12:11.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
Some people have a great deal of determination in running their lives and others have very little. You can see different levels of determination in the same family. One’s level of determination stems from the intensity of one’s desire. One of our deep concerns today is the lack of determination that people have to serve the Lord with all of their hearts.
Apparently this was a concern that Paul had for the Christian’s in the church at Rome when he wrote them and instructed them to never be lacking in their zeal to serve the Lord.
The story is told of a student in the late 19th century, Mary McLeod Bethune. She spent two years training at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago to become a missionary in Africa. After she graduated, no mission board would take her as an African-American woman to serve under their mission.
Unable to fulfill her dream, and seemingly what was a calling from God, she did not give up because she was determined to serve Jesus. She went to Florida and started a small school for African-American girls here in America. This small school, because of her determination, became Bethune-Cookman College and she became a powerful force for change in the status of women.
Mary’s legacy came about because of her determination to serve her Lord. Her dream of going to Africa did not become a reality because God had something better for her. Her determination to think big allowed God to lead her and do His thing in her life.
That kind of determination is not seen often enough today. People are satisfied with the status quo. Worse yet they seem to want everything given to them.
We as parents and as believers need to develop a new determination to give all that we have to serving the Lord. We need more believers outwardly serving Jesus. We need to stand for our faith and for the moral standards that God has given us in His Word. Not only here in America but the world needs people with a new and vibrant determination to do the impossible. With God all things are possible. Just think what might happen if we all took the challenge from Paul to serve the Lord with zeal and determination.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Philippians 4:13.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
PRAYER:
Thank You, Lord, for my salvation that I have received by Your mercy and grace. Give me a new determination to serve You and honor You with my life. May the determination that You give me help me to lead my family, friends and neighbors to a relationship with You.
DETERMINATION
DEFINITION:
Definite decision; firmness; resolve; a fixed purpose of intention.
SCRIPTURE:
Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Romans 12:11.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
Some people have a great deal of determination in running their lives and others have very little. You can see different levels of determination in the same family. One’s level of determination stems from the intensity of one’s desire. One of our deep concerns today is the lack of determination that people have to serve the Lord with all of their hearts.
Apparently this was a concern that Paul had for the Christian’s in the church at Rome when he wrote them and instructed them to never be lacking in their zeal to serve the Lord.
The story is told of a student in the late 19th century, Mary McLeod Bethune. She spent two years training at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago to become a missionary in Africa. After she graduated, no mission board would take her as an African-American woman to serve under their mission.
Unable to fulfill her dream, and seemingly what was a calling from God, she did not give up because she was determined to serve Jesus. She went to Florida and started a small school for African-American girls here in America. This small school, because of her determination, became Bethune-Cookman College and she became a powerful force for change in the status of women.
Mary’s legacy came about because of her determination to serve her Lord. Her dream of going to Africa did not become a reality because God had something better for her. Her determination to think big allowed God to lead her and do His thing in her life.
That kind of determination is not seen often enough today. People are satisfied with the status quo. Worse yet they seem to want everything given to them.
We as parents and as believers need to develop a new determination to give all that we have to serving the Lord. We need more believers outwardly serving Jesus. We need to stand for our faith and for the moral standards that God has given us in His Word. Not only here in America but the world needs people with a new and vibrant determination to do the impossible. With God all things are possible. Just think what might happen if we all took the challenge from Paul to serve the Lord with zeal and determination.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Philippians 4:13.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
PRAYER:
Thank You, Lord, for my salvation that I have received by Your mercy and grace. Give me a new determination to serve You and honor You with my life. May the determination that You give me help me to lead my family, friends and neighbors to a relationship with You.
Hand: August 23, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR THURSDAY AUGUST 23, 2012.
HAND
DEFINITION:
Help; aid; participation; custody.
SCRIPTURE:
Let Your hand become my help, for I have chosen Your precepts. Psalm 119:173.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
I can still remember when our children were trying to learn to walk. They always were reaching out to hold our hand. But soon when they gained confidence in themselves they no longer would reach for our hand. But almost without fail they would fall and sometimes even hurt themselves. Their over-confidence in themselves taught them a lesson that a strong helping hand could have kept them from falling and helped them gain confidence faster.
Many times we are sure that you have been in situations, as we have often been, when we needed to take someone’s hand to help us walk on a slippery or treacherous path. As we get older we often welcome having someone’s hand to assist us to keep us from slipping or even falling.
On a trip to Panama we had the opportunity to go to visit a remote Indian tribe. We took a bus to a remote area and then walked down a steep hill to get into a dugout canoe. The mud was very slippery and there was no railing to take hold of. We were not the least bit confident that we could get from the river bank into the canoe safely. There were no steps and the river bank was very uneven, muddy and rocky.
A teenage Indian boy, standing near the canoe with both of his bare feet planted firmly on the ground, reached out with his one hand to grab ours and with his other hand he grabbed our arm. With these helping hands we felt more confident that we could make it into the canoe. We got into the canoe, went down the river, met the tribe and returned knowing that we had a very special day. We also knew that without the helping hands of this teenage Indian boy we may have found ourselves taking an unexpected swim.
Ken remembers holding the hand of a young blind boy in Guatemala helping him to his class at the school our ministry sponsored. He was trying to learn English and spent his time asking questions about America and seemingly not concerned about his blindness. He held my hand tightly trusting me to lead him in the right direction.
In the verse we have written above the psalmist tells us, “Let Your hand become my help, for I have chosen Your precepts.” God is holding out His hand every moment of everyday for us to hold. And when we live by His precepts He has promised to lead us according to His will. When we read this verse we think back to the many times others have held out their hands to help us and the times we have held out our hands to help others.
In life we all have been in difficult situations, both physically and spiritually, where we have overestimated our feeble abilities. Those are the times we reached out for help. The Psalmist tells us (Psalm 139:10) that “Your hand (God’s) shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.” In Psalm 89:13 we read, “You have a mighty arm; strong is Your hand and high is Your right hand.” You can call out to God and say, “Give me a hand” and He will rush to your side.
We were so grateful for the strong and steady hand of the Indian boy on that river bank in Panama but we are so much more grateful that we have God’s hand leading us and supporting us on the slippery slope of life.
When adversity begins to strike you, remember that God is ready to stretch out His hand to strengthen you.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Philippians 4:13.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
PRAYER:
Thank You for Your strong hand that is always there for me and my family. Help us to put our complete trust in You and not to succumb to the evils of this world. Just as a child needs his father’s hand so do I need Your hand to give me daily strength and guidance.
HAND
DEFINITION:
Help; aid; participation; custody.
SCRIPTURE:
Let Your hand become my help, for I have chosen Your precepts. Psalm 119:173.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
I can still remember when our children were trying to learn to walk. They always were reaching out to hold our hand. But soon when they gained confidence in themselves they no longer would reach for our hand. But almost without fail they would fall and sometimes even hurt themselves. Their over-confidence in themselves taught them a lesson that a strong helping hand could have kept them from falling and helped them gain confidence faster.
Many times we are sure that you have been in situations, as we have often been, when we needed to take someone’s hand to help us walk on a slippery or treacherous path. As we get older we often welcome having someone’s hand to assist us to keep us from slipping or even falling.
On a trip to Panama we had the opportunity to go to visit a remote Indian tribe. We took a bus to a remote area and then walked down a steep hill to get into a dugout canoe. The mud was very slippery and there was no railing to take hold of. We were not the least bit confident that we could get from the river bank into the canoe safely. There were no steps and the river bank was very uneven, muddy and rocky.
A teenage Indian boy, standing near the canoe with both of his bare feet planted firmly on the ground, reached out with his one hand to grab ours and with his other hand he grabbed our arm. With these helping hands we felt more confident that we could make it into the canoe. We got into the canoe, went down the river, met the tribe and returned knowing that we had a very special day. We also knew that without the helping hands of this teenage Indian boy we may have found ourselves taking an unexpected swim.
Ken remembers holding the hand of a young blind boy in Guatemala helping him to his class at the school our ministry sponsored. He was trying to learn English and spent his time asking questions about America and seemingly not concerned about his blindness. He held my hand tightly trusting me to lead him in the right direction.
In the verse we have written above the psalmist tells us, “Let Your hand become my help, for I have chosen Your precepts.” God is holding out His hand every moment of everyday for us to hold. And when we live by His precepts He has promised to lead us according to His will. When we read this verse we think back to the many times others have held out their hands to help us and the times we have held out our hands to help others.
In life we all have been in difficult situations, both physically and spiritually, where we have overestimated our feeble abilities. Those are the times we reached out for help. The Psalmist tells us (Psalm 139:10) that “Your hand (God’s) shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.” In Psalm 89:13 we read, “You have a mighty arm; strong is Your hand and high is Your right hand.” You can call out to God and say, “Give me a hand” and He will rush to your side.
We were so grateful for the strong and steady hand of the Indian boy on that river bank in Panama but we are so much more grateful that we have God’s hand leading us and supporting us on the slippery slope of life.
When adversity begins to strike you, remember that God is ready to stretch out His hand to strengthen you.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Philippians 4:13.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
PRAYER:
Thank You for Your strong hand that is always there for me and my family. Help us to put our complete trust in You and not to succumb to the evils of this world. Just as a child needs his father’s hand so do I need Your hand to give me daily strength and guidance.
Target: August 22, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR WEDNESDAY AUGUST 22, 2012.
TARGET
DEFINITION:
A goal or objective; a design of circles.
SCRIPTURE:
I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:14.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
Our family is very competitive. Our children were always very competitive not only among themselves but also in sports and in their school classes. Now we see the same competitiveness among our grandchildren. As parents we encouraged our children to always do their best in every task they attempted whether it was work or play. A successful life by itself demands some sorts of competitiveness. Being competitive drives a person to always have goals in life and to do all one can to meet that goal and do it in a way to win.
In training our children we also warned them that they may not always win. In fact, many times in our lives we may not win, so when we lose we need to lose with graciousness and even humility. This is tough not only to teach but to learn. No one ever wants to lose but at times it will happen. Children today also need to be told that when one is “racing’ toward a goal that they have set, that they need to “race” fairly and abide by the rules.
Part of winning is to know your target. In the 2004 Olympics the gold medal winner in rifle shooting was ready to win his second medal in another event. He had a commanding lead and everyone was certain that he would win the second medal that he really wanted. In fact it was his best event and he was highly favored. But something went wrong. Although he hit the middle of the target he did not win. He had aimed at the wrong target. This is an excellent example for all of us to make sure that we are aiming for the right targets in life because it is so easy to get off course and aim for the wrong target.
In Paul’s letter to the Philippians (above verse) he expresses the importance of focusing on the right target in our Christian life. Paul uses this word “goal” as the same word used as an athlete running a race. The same word is also used for the object to aim for in archery. In each of these definitions the prospect of winning depends on us being focused on the proper targets. For us as believers we need to be focused on a lifetime pursuit of becoming more like our Savior, Jesus.
Take a moment now and decide what your focus is on in your life. Are you preoccupied with getting ahead in life thus making life more comfortable for you? Are you focused on the target desiring to be more like Jesus? We encourage you today to make God’s goals your goals and aim directly at that target. Keep your eyes on your target. If you take your eyes off your target you will be sure to miss it. Success in your Christian life depends on keeping your eyes on Jesus.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Philippians 4:13.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
PRAYER:
Help me today to focus on targets that honor You. Give me goals today that will make me more like You and will also let others see Christ through me.
TARGET
DEFINITION:
A goal or objective; a design of circles.
SCRIPTURE:
I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:14.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
Our family is very competitive. Our children were always very competitive not only among themselves but also in sports and in their school classes. Now we see the same competitiveness among our grandchildren. As parents we encouraged our children to always do their best in every task they attempted whether it was work or play. A successful life by itself demands some sorts of competitiveness. Being competitive drives a person to always have goals in life and to do all one can to meet that goal and do it in a way to win.
In training our children we also warned them that they may not always win. In fact, many times in our lives we may not win, so when we lose we need to lose with graciousness and even humility. This is tough not only to teach but to learn. No one ever wants to lose but at times it will happen. Children today also need to be told that when one is “racing’ toward a goal that they have set, that they need to “race” fairly and abide by the rules.
Part of winning is to know your target. In the 2004 Olympics the gold medal winner in rifle shooting was ready to win his second medal in another event. He had a commanding lead and everyone was certain that he would win the second medal that he really wanted. In fact it was his best event and he was highly favored. But something went wrong. Although he hit the middle of the target he did not win. He had aimed at the wrong target. This is an excellent example for all of us to make sure that we are aiming for the right targets in life because it is so easy to get off course and aim for the wrong target.
In Paul’s letter to the Philippians (above verse) he expresses the importance of focusing on the right target in our Christian life. Paul uses this word “goal” as the same word used as an athlete running a race. The same word is also used for the object to aim for in archery. In each of these definitions the prospect of winning depends on us being focused on the proper targets. For us as believers we need to be focused on a lifetime pursuit of becoming more like our Savior, Jesus.
Take a moment now and decide what your focus is on in your life. Are you preoccupied with getting ahead in life thus making life more comfortable for you? Are you focused on the target desiring to be more like Jesus? We encourage you today to make God’s goals your goals and aim directly at that target. Keep your eyes on your target. If you take your eyes off your target you will be sure to miss it. Success in your Christian life depends on keeping your eyes on Jesus.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Philippians 4:13.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
PRAYER:
Help me today to focus on targets that honor You. Give me goals today that will make me more like You and will also let others see Christ through me.
Father: August 21, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR TUESDAY AUGUST 21, 2012
FATHER
DEFINITION:
A male parent; God
SCRIPTURE:
Honor your father and mother, which is the first commandment with promise. Ephesians 6:2.
So Judah gathered together to ask help from the Lord, God, their Father; and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord. II Chronicles 20: 4.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
It is highly evident that our society is in rapid decline morally and spiritually. We do not have to look much farther for the cause of this decline than the disintegration of the family unit. God ordained the family to be the basis of society. When the family breaks down, society breaks down. Many children are living either in one parent families or in dysfunctional families.
It was God’s plan that father’s should lead the family and provide for them. It is alarming how many fathers have abandoned their families today. This is not biblical and in fact the scriptures give us a very clear direction for fathers as to how to live their lives. No human father is perfect but with the Holy Spirit, knowledge of God’s Word, and godly mentors a man can become a successful dad and father. Following are several principles to help a father accomplish what God expects from a man who is or becoming a father.
Make sure you have made your decision to follow Jesus so that you can help your children to trust in Jesus as early in their life as possible. They will then grow with the understanding that God is to be the center of everything they do. It is the father’s leadership role to teach this to the children.
Make sure you set biblical standards in your home such as honesty, purity, loyalty and integrity and then live by them. These values will guide your children to make right value decisions. Teach your children about love, respect, and mutual encouragement. This will teach them how to treat others and how to develop good relationships with others.
In your vocation be a model in cooperation and doing your work at your work-place and at home “heartily, as to the Lord and not to men.” Colossians 3:23. Your children then will be inclined to form a healthy work ethic. Teach your children the right way to handle money: to earn it honestly, give the first 10% back to God, and to invest it intelligently. Teach your children to “be generous and willing to share what they have.” I Timothy 6:18
Unless children learn how to function properly under authority rebelliousness can easily develop. A father has a role to teach their children by example because children notice when there is a disconnect between what is taught and what is practiced in the home. Setting a good example is essential.
The importance of the father’s role of setting a good example and being the spiritual leader of his family is seen in the family of Gideon. Gideon was a highly successful leader, under God, of the army of Israel. He led an army of 10,000 and defeated 135, 000 Medianites with 300 soldiers. Gideon could lead a nation but he failed as a father and could not lead his own family.
His failure came as a result of an extramarital relationship, which is sin in God’s sight. In this relationship he had a son, named Abimelech (Judges 8:31). This caused real problems within his family. In Judges 9:5 we read that after the death of his father, Gideon, Abimelech went to his father’s home and murdered his seventy half-brothers.
Fathers need to put their trust daily in the hands of their Heavenly Father. In the second verse above from II Chronicles we read about the time that King Jehoshaphat of Judah faced a problem. Three neighboring tribes, the Moabites, Amonites and Meunites simultaneously waged war against the King with the sole purpose of dethroning him.
The King needed help. He went to his Heavenly Father asking Him for His leading, His guidance and His protection. Most leaders would have crumbled under this pressure. Many fathers today crumble under much less pressure. Because they do not turn to their Heavenly Father for guidance.
The King proclaimed and led his people in a time of prayer and a fast throughout his land. God heard His prayer and the prayer of his people (his family) and answered their prayers. The tribes ended up fighting each other and destroying themselves because God did intervene on behalf of the King and the people of Judah (his family).
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Philippians 4:13.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
PRAYER:
Thank You that we know that whatever concern us concerns You as well. As fathers, and mothers, help us to look to God for guidance and enable us to be spiritual leaders in our home. Help us to plant healthy concepts daily into the minds and hearts of our children equipping them to be motivated to fulfill Your purpose in their lives.
FATHER
DEFINITION:
A male parent; God
SCRIPTURE:
Honor your father and mother, which is the first commandment with promise. Ephesians 6:2.
So Judah gathered together to ask help from the Lord, God, their Father; and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord. II Chronicles 20: 4.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
It is highly evident that our society is in rapid decline morally and spiritually. We do not have to look much farther for the cause of this decline than the disintegration of the family unit. God ordained the family to be the basis of society. When the family breaks down, society breaks down. Many children are living either in one parent families or in dysfunctional families.
It was God’s plan that father’s should lead the family and provide for them. It is alarming how many fathers have abandoned their families today. This is not biblical and in fact the scriptures give us a very clear direction for fathers as to how to live their lives. No human father is perfect but with the Holy Spirit, knowledge of God’s Word, and godly mentors a man can become a successful dad and father. Following are several principles to help a father accomplish what God expects from a man who is or becoming a father.
Make sure you have made your decision to follow Jesus so that you can help your children to trust in Jesus as early in their life as possible. They will then grow with the understanding that God is to be the center of everything they do. It is the father’s leadership role to teach this to the children.
Make sure you set biblical standards in your home such as honesty, purity, loyalty and integrity and then live by them. These values will guide your children to make right value decisions. Teach your children about love, respect, and mutual encouragement. This will teach them how to treat others and how to develop good relationships with others.
In your vocation be a model in cooperation and doing your work at your work-place and at home “heartily, as to the Lord and not to men.” Colossians 3:23. Your children then will be inclined to form a healthy work ethic. Teach your children the right way to handle money: to earn it honestly, give the first 10% back to God, and to invest it intelligently. Teach your children to “be generous and willing to share what they have.” I Timothy 6:18
Unless children learn how to function properly under authority rebelliousness can easily develop. A father has a role to teach their children by example because children notice when there is a disconnect between what is taught and what is practiced in the home. Setting a good example is essential.
The importance of the father’s role of setting a good example and being the spiritual leader of his family is seen in the family of Gideon. Gideon was a highly successful leader, under God, of the army of Israel. He led an army of 10,000 and defeated 135, 000 Medianites with 300 soldiers. Gideon could lead a nation but he failed as a father and could not lead his own family.
His failure came as a result of an extramarital relationship, which is sin in God’s sight. In this relationship he had a son, named Abimelech (Judges 8:31). This caused real problems within his family. In Judges 9:5 we read that after the death of his father, Gideon, Abimelech went to his father’s home and murdered his seventy half-brothers.
Fathers need to put their trust daily in the hands of their Heavenly Father. In the second verse above from II Chronicles we read about the time that King Jehoshaphat of Judah faced a problem. Three neighboring tribes, the Moabites, Amonites and Meunites simultaneously waged war against the King with the sole purpose of dethroning him.
The King needed help. He went to his Heavenly Father asking Him for His leading, His guidance and His protection. Most leaders would have crumbled under this pressure. Many fathers today crumble under much less pressure. Because they do not turn to their Heavenly Father for guidance.
The King proclaimed and led his people in a time of prayer and a fast throughout his land. God heard His prayer and the prayer of his people (his family) and answered their prayers. The tribes ended up fighting each other and destroying themselves because God did intervene on behalf of the King and the people of Judah (his family).
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Philippians 4:13.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
PRAYER:
Thank You that we know that whatever concern us concerns You as well. As fathers, and mothers, help us to look to God for guidance and enable us to be spiritual leaders in our home. Help us to plant healthy concepts daily into the minds and hearts of our children equipping them to be motivated to fulfill Your purpose in their lives.
Ignorance: August 20, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR MONDAY AUGUST 20, 2012
IGNORANCE
DEFINITION:
Having little or no knowledge; unlearned; uninformed.
SCRIPTURE:
As sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 5:21.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
The apostle Paul in his writing to the Romans deals with a concern that seemed to be confusing believers in the church at Rome. Basically Paul is saying that ignorance, in God’s sight, does not give one an excuse for not knowing God. In Romans 5:12-21, Paul sets out to show us how one man’s death can provide salvation for many not from a specific sin but the inherited sin that entered the human realm. Men are sinners by nature inherited from Adam. To prove His point He uses Adam to establish the principle that it is possible for one man’s actions to affect many people. As a result of the sin of Adam we are all born with a sin nature.
In this passage, the apostle Paul addresses the issue of ignorance or lack of understanding. Roman law was considered at that time to be the source of the idea that ignorance of the law excuses a person from obeying the law. When people were ignorant of God’s righteousness, Paul, wrote in Romans 10:3, that they established their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. Many people do this today. When we live according to our own standards of right and wrong, we might feel good about ourselves for a period of time, but that does not make us spiritually healthy. Only when we are measured by God’s standard of righteousness, which is Jesus, do we know the condition of our spiritual health.
When some people become physically sick they avoid going to the doctor because they do not want to hear that something is wrong with them. Some people avoid going to church for the same reason. They know they are spiritually sick but do not want to hear that they are doing wrong. Ignorance of our sickness doesn’t make us healthy and ignorance of our sin doesn’t make us innocent. When God gave the law to the Children of Israel through Moses, He established that even unintentional sin required a sacrifice for forgiveness. You can read this in Leviticus 4.
None of us can achieve the righteousness of Christ, but thankfully we do not have to. In Roamns 5:21 the apostle Paul tells us that He shares His righteousness with us. The good news about finding out what is wrong with us is that the Great Physician can make us well. In obedience to His heavenly Father, Jesus bore all of our sins in His own body on the cross so that by His wounds we have been healed, I Peter 2:25.
God has made known to us His great gift of salvation so that we cannot claim ignorance as an excuse for remaining in sin. God is the measurer and the healer of our spiritual health and ignorance about this on our behalf is not acceptable or a valid excuse.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Philippians 4:13.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
PRAYER:
Our family rejoices that You are our Great Physician and that You know our heart. Our prayer is that You will show us any attitude or action that we might do that does not please You. Make us clean vessels for You to use and keep us in good spiritual health.
IGNORANCE
DEFINITION:
Having little or no knowledge; unlearned; uninformed.
SCRIPTURE:
As sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 5:21.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
The apostle Paul in his writing to the Romans deals with a concern that seemed to be confusing believers in the church at Rome. Basically Paul is saying that ignorance, in God’s sight, does not give one an excuse for not knowing God. In Romans 5:12-21, Paul sets out to show us how one man’s death can provide salvation for many not from a specific sin but the inherited sin that entered the human realm. Men are sinners by nature inherited from Adam. To prove His point He uses Adam to establish the principle that it is possible for one man’s actions to affect many people. As a result of the sin of Adam we are all born with a sin nature.
In this passage, the apostle Paul addresses the issue of ignorance or lack of understanding. Roman law was considered at that time to be the source of the idea that ignorance of the law excuses a person from obeying the law. When people were ignorant of God’s righteousness, Paul, wrote in Romans 10:3, that they established their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. Many people do this today. When we live according to our own standards of right and wrong, we might feel good about ourselves for a period of time, but that does not make us spiritually healthy. Only when we are measured by God’s standard of righteousness, which is Jesus, do we know the condition of our spiritual health.
When some people become physically sick they avoid going to the doctor because they do not want to hear that something is wrong with them. Some people avoid going to church for the same reason. They know they are spiritually sick but do not want to hear that they are doing wrong. Ignorance of our sickness doesn’t make us healthy and ignorance of our sin doesn’t make us innocent. When God gave the law to the Children of Israel through Moses, He established that even unintentional sin required a sacrifice for forgiveness. You can read this in Leviticus 4.
None of us can achieve the righteousness of Christ, but thankfully we do not have to. In Roamns 5:21 the apostle Paul tells us that He shares His righteousness with us. The good news about finding out what is wrong with us is that the Great Physician can make us well. In obedience to His heavenly Father, Jesus bore all of our sins in His own body on the cross so that by His wounds we have been healed, I Peter 2:25.
God has made known to us His great gift of salvation so that we cannot claim ignorance as an excuse for remaining in sin. God is the measurer and the healer of our spiritual health and ignorance about this on our behalf is not acceptable or a valid excuse.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Philippians 4:13.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
PRAYER:
Our family rejoices that You are our Great Physician and that You know our heart. Our prayer is that You will show us any attitude or action that we might do that does not please You. Make us clean vessels for You to use and keep us in good spiritual health.
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