Christ-Likeness: July 15, 2016

TODAY’S WORD FOR FRIDAY JULY 15, 2016.

CHRIST-LIKENESS

DEFINITION:

Living one’s life like Christ did while on this earth.

SCRIPTURE:

Put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness. Ephesians 4:24.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

God’s ultimate goal for all of us is that we be made like His Son, Jesus Christ. This was God’s plan and purpose for us from the beginning. As we read in Romans 8:29, “For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son”. The process of becoming like Christ is most of the time painful, but it is always worth it. What we mean by being Christ-like is to do as Jesus did always sowing the spirit of God’s love and forgiveness in all that we do and say.

Becoming Christ-like is an ongoing process that requires us to do battle with our sinful nature. The apostle Paul in Colossians 3:5-9 gives us a list of sinful acts that one must no longer be part of one’s life. The list includes sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, anger, rage, malice, slander, filthy language and lying. Paul tells us that we must put to death all these things because they all come from our old sinful nature.

To become Christ-like in today’s society is very difficult because of the pressure to conform to the growing evil that one faces daily. We live in a generation that thinks there is nothing more than “ME.” One who lives for themselves and will go along with the crowd cannot be Christ-like.

In the verse we have put above Paul says to “put off’ our old conduct and put on the new man” who was created according to what God wants. You can look at the Ten Commandments and they can be a great check list for you as how to live the way God wants you to live.

It is impossible to be Christ-like until we are willing to put aside our sinful will and live in obedience to God’s commandments just as Jesus was obedient to them.

Jesus said of Himself, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by Himself; He can do only what He sees His Father do, because whatever the Father does the Son does also.”

I Peter 4:1-2 reads that since God suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men (earthly desires), but for the will of God. We as believers must ask ourselves, “Am I doing the will of God by striving to be Christ-like?”

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Micah 7:8.

Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light.

PRAYER:

Help our family to do the will of our Heavenly Father and strive to be more Christ-like beginning today. May our goal be to put off our old conduct and put on the new man and stand against all the evils of the world that we will face, and lead us to be more and more Christ-like. May Your Spirit be our guide not only for today but until we meet You in the air.

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Rest: July 14, 2016

TODAY’S WORD FOR THURSDAY JULY 14, 2016

REST

DEFINITION:

Refreshing ease or inactivity after exertion or labor; peace and quiet; freedom from care; a time of quiet; an interval of tranquility.

SCRIPTURE:

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28

And He said to them, come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while. Mark 6:31.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

For many people life is a struggle. Many people are working longer and harder hours just to keep food on the table and a roof over their head for their families. They are weary and need a break. The scriptures remind us that rest at times is needed and important.

God demonstrated to us when He created the world what He thought about rest. It is written that on the seventh day God ended His work that He had made and He rested on the seventh day. If God needs to rest then we surely need to as well. God also ordained for us in the writing of the Ten Commandments that the seventh day be a day of rest and a day of worship. So therefore we need to have time to refresh ourselves not only physically but spiritually as well.

Jesus also needed rest when He ministered here on earth and it was difficult for Him to find a time and place to rest. In Mark 6:31 Jesus saw that it was time to rest and He called His disciples to come to Him to find a quiet place so they could rest awhile.

Doing what God calls us to do is very important but there are many times that we need to stop a moment and take a rest to renew ourselves physically, mentally and spiritually. In the verse above from Matthew Jesus tells us to come to Him and He will give us rest.

When we come to Jesus it changes things. We come to Jesus normally because we recognize we cannot carry on by ourselves alone. We acknowledge that we need Him. Oswald Chambers wrote in his book, “My Utmost for His Highest,” that the attitude of coming to Jesus is that we will let go of everything and deliberately commit all to Him. It is only then that we can experience the rest that Jesus gives.

Cleveland McAfee wrote the words to the song “Near to the Heart of God,” in 1901 after the death of his two nieces from diphtheria. The words are: “There is a place of quiet rest, near to the heart of God, a place where sin cannot molest, near to the heart of God.” These words offer us hope when we are hurting and need rest from the burden of grief and needed spiritual refreshment that can only come from God.

Romans 8:31-39 tells us that nothing is able to separate us from the enduring love of the Lord. I Peter 5:7 tells us to leave all of our cares and burdens to Him for He cares for you. Yes, near to the heart of God is the place for us to rest from the pressures of life.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Micah 7:8.

Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light.

PRAYER:

Thank You for Your promise that when we come to You that You will give us rest. Help me to know when it is time to set aside time to rest in Your love. Keep my heart open so I can hear Your voice when I have a special need.

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Cheerfulness: July 13, 2016

TODAY’S WORD FOR WEDNESDAY JULY 13, 2016.

CHEERFULNESS

DEFINITION:

Serene joyfulness; an attitude of hopefulness and gladness.

SCRIPTURE:

A happy heart makes the face cheerful but heartache crushes the spirit. Proverbs 15:13.

These things have I spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. John 16:33.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

Do you know many people that are cheerful most of the time? Because we live in such a stressful world many people find it is difficult to be cheerful. Those people that are cheerful usually have a more positive outlook on life. They have found some measure of peace and comfort and that peace comes from knowing Jesus as their Savior.

In the verse we have put above from John, Jesus said that it is in Him that we have peace. Those that do not have a personal relationship with Jesus cannot know this peace or even begin to comprehend it.

We all know that even as believers in Jesus we have good days and bad days. On our bad days few of us feel naturally inclined to be cheerful. The scripture tells us in the verse we have put above from Proverbs that cheerfulness comes from a happy heart. If our hearts are right with the Lord we will experience true happiness in spite of the inevitable struggles we must face in life.

Not every day will be a good day. Jesus warns us in John 16:33 that in this world we live in we will have tribulation (trouble). Therefore not every day will be a good day. But Jesus also tells us to be of good cheer because He has overcome the world and all the evil in it. The fact that the victory over the evil of this world that brings suffering and heartache has already been won brings comfort and cheer to our hearts in the midst of troublesome times.

When we let the Lord control our lives, we know that he is on our side in every battle we face. Just thinking about all the Lord has done for us and remembering His promise to never leave us nor forsake us will bring cheer to our heart and life and will encourage our spirit daily.

The apostle Paul reminds us that God has given so much to us and that he expects us to give back to Him a portion of our talent time and resources. In II Corinthians 9:7 Paul reminds us that God loves a cheerful giver. Thus we should cheerfully give back to God a portion of all that he has blessed us with.

In Romans 12:8 Paul also reminds us that we are all given different talents and abilities and we have a responsibility to use them for His glory and to grow the family of God but we must do it cheerfully. It is by our cheerful attitude that others will see that our faith is real.

And finally, in Proverbs 11:22 we read that a cheerful heart is good medicine. A cheerful word of encouragement from you can be like a pain relieving medicine for someone going through a rough time.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Micah 7:8.

Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light.

PRAYER:

Thank You Lord that You have already won the victory over this evil world. Thank You for the peace and cheer that comes from knowing You and from the assurance we have that You are with us in all of our circumstances because of Your promise to never leave us or forsake us.

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Commitment: July 12, 2016

TODAY’S WORD FOR TUESDAY JULY 12, 2016.

COMMITMENT

DEFINITION:

The act of consigning, pledging or engaging oneself; a promise; obligation.

SCRIPTURE:

Commit yourselves to the Lord and serve Him only. I Samuel 7:3.

Commit to the Lord whatever you do and your plans will succeed. Proverbs 16:3.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

In these two scripture verses we learn that God wants us to first commit ourselves to Him and secondly to commit all of our ways to Him.

There are numerous times in our life when a commitment to or for something is necessary. The most important commitment that one can make in a lifetime is a firm commitment to God. This is the first step in living a life that is pleasing to God. Making a commitment to God is more than going to church, reading the Bible or even praying.

To commit yourself to the Lord means entrusting everything – our lives, our families, our jobs, our possessions –to His control and His guidance.

A commitment to God is having a relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ. This is what makes Christianity meaningful, unique and different than all other religions. As we seek a closer relationship with God, He will be able to work in and through us because we will want to study His Word and pray and seek His guidance.

A commitment means more than a promise. A commitment requires action.

Jesus told His disciples in Luke 14 what He meant by true commitment and it would come at a cost. He told them that nothing, even their love for their father or mother could take precedence over loyalty to Him. In order to follow Jesus as one of His disciples it was necessary for them to commit to put Jesus first in their lives above everything else. To be a faithful and true follower of Jesus today demands this same commitment.

The nation of Israel was the fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham, "to make him into a great nation." (Genesis 12:2) When God promised Moses that He would deliver the Israelites from slavery under Pharaoh, He reminded Moses that the Israelites were His "own people" (Genesis 6:7) and that He was their God. God's desire was that the Israelites commit themselves to loving and serving Him and keeping His commandments and then He would bring them safely to the "Promised Land." The Old Testament covers the history of Israel and vividly portrays how the times of commitment to God brought God's blessing of protection and victory and how disobedience brought suffering and defeat.

God is faithful and wants to bless us abundantly but we cannot expect Him to bless us when we are not committed to Him. The world offers many distractions that interfere with our commitment to the Lord. It takes conscious effort on our part to be faithful to keep our commitment to the Lord. The Lord deserves our full commitment, not a half-hearted one.

II Chronicles 16:9 tells us, "The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him." The Lord knows all about each one of us. We cannot hide anything from God anymore than Adam and Eve could hide their sin from God in the Garden of Eden. As the eyes of the Lord search the world today will He find you committed to Him and serving Him faithfully?

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Micah 7:8.

Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light.

PRAYER:

Dear Lord, I want to follow You and serve You. Enable me to stay strong in my faith. Shield me from Satan’s temptations so that I will not be drawn away from my commitment to love You and serve You and put You first in my life.

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Defy: July 11, 2016

TODAY’S WORD FOR MONDAY JULY 11, 2016.

DEFY

DEFINITION:

To challenge the power of; resist boldly or openly.

SCRIPTURE:

Then the Philistine said, this day I defy the ranks of Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each other. I Samuel 17:10

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

When we think of the word defy it brings to mind the account in I Samuel 17 about David and Goliath.

The Philistine army had gathered its troops to fight the Israelites. The Israelites camped on a hill and the Philistines were on the opposite hill across a valley. In those days two armies often chose their best warriors to fight each other to end a conflict in order to avoid the bloodshed of an all-out war. The winner of the fight between the two warriors was considered the winner of the battle.

The Biblical account tells us that Goliath, the Philistine, came out and stood on the hill shouting out to the Israelites challenging them to send a warrior out to fight him. Goliath was over nine feet tall and was greatly feared by Saul and the Israelites. Goliath was very confident not only because of his height and strength but because of his shield, sword and heavy armor. The scripture tells us that Goliath came out every morning for forty days to defy Israel. No one had the courage to volunteer to fight this giant.

David, at that time came to the battle field to visit his brothers who were in Saul’s army. He heard Goliath taunting the Israelites and David reacted by saying, “Who does this Philistine think he is that he can defy the armies of God?” This was totally unacceptable in David’s mind. The Israelites army looked at Goliath and saw a heavily armed giant; but David looked at Goliath and saw just a man who had the shameless audacity to defy the armies of the living God.

David went to Saul and told him that he wanted to go and fight the giant. Saul offered David his armor and his sword but David chose to go against Goliath with only his sling shot and five stones. Goliath came to battle as the giant warrior of the Philistines. David came to battle in the name of the Lord.

Goliath looked down on David with contempt. As David looked up at Goliath he must have looked terrifyingly huge and menacing. From a human perspective David had no chance to defeat Goliath. David did not focus on the size of his enemy but on the Lord. Goliath didn’t realize that in fighting David he had to fight God. Goliath trusted in his own strength and was defeated. David trusted God to give him the victory.

David killed Goliath with just one stone shot from his sling shot. When the Philistines saw their giant warrior was dead they turned and ran.

There are two important things that we need to learn from David’s victory over Goliath. First, no man can defy God and win. Goliath defied God. Secondly, no battle is too big for God. With God all things are possible.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Micah 7:8.

Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light.

PRAYER:

Help me to be faithful in honoring You in all that I do. Keep me from defying You by neglecting to do what You want me to do. Guide me in all of my actions and in the words that come from my mouth this day.

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