“Those who have served well gain an excellent standing and great assurance in their faith in Christ Jesus.” v.13
As Christ Followers we are all called to serve. However, there are some that will be appointed to different roles within the church. Some may serve as Elders and others as Deacons. These role should not be based on social status, church attendance, or personality, but based on the persons character, integrity, and service.
However, the qualities listed don’t just pertain to these positions. These are the qualities and standards that all of us who claim to be Christ Followers should be pursuing. Because these qualities are evident in our life, we may be asked to serve in bigger ways that help advance Gods Kingdom and care for others with the love of Christ.
Today, are you developing the Character, Integrity, and a Heart to Serve that is described of here? If not, what need to change so you can begin to live life this way?
“For there is only one God & one Mediator who can reconcile God & humanity – the man Christ Jesus. He gave his life to purchase freedom for everyone. This is the message God gave the world at just the right time.” v. 5-6 (NLT)
Today, who will you live for? Jesus gave His life for us, will we live our lives for Him? May this song be our prayer today!
“The purpose of my instruction is that all believers would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and genuine faith.” v. 5 (NLT)
Love is the central word in what Jesus says is the greatest commandment, “To love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul and strength.” He goes on to say that the second greatest command is, “To love our neighbor as ourselves!” However, somewhere in the mix we have lost sight of this very important statement by Jesus. Let’s be honest, loving others takes time, work and sometimes resources. It’s much easier to love ourselves that to love others. Loving God has some of the same characteristics as well. It requires commitment, self-discipline, and a giving heart. Let’s be honest, love requires much from us!
But, when we experience God’s love, it changes the way we love. When we understand the serious nature and high cost of sin, it causes us to see the Cross in a whole new light. The cross is a picture of both God’s wrath and God’s Love. Because God punishes sin, the Cross was the extreme punishment for sin. But, because God loves us, the Cross was the extreme expression of God’s love! The Cross stands between God’s wrath and God’s love! It reveals both a God that seeks Justice and God provides Love.
Through the cross we can be filled with the love of God and therefore love others. The level at which we love, can be measured by the purity of our heart, clearness of our conscience, and the depth of our genuine faith. This is the essence of a true Christ Follower! It requires much of us, but produces so much more in us!
Today, will your Love for God and others be seen by your purity, clear conscience, and genuine faith?
“May the Lord lead your hearts into a full understanding and expression of the love of God and the patient endurance that comes from Christ.” v.5
As Christmas winds down and the New Year approaches, what a great verse to focus on for today! I want this!!! I want my heart to have a full understanding and expression of the Love of God and the patient endurance that comes from Christ!!!! Yes Lord may this verse seep deep into my heart so I can know you more, and represent you in a way that influences the people you have placed in my life, so they will want to know you more also. That’s the desire of my heart!
Today, think about what it means to have a full understanding of God’s love and how it affects you personally.
“With all these things in mind, dear brothers and sisters, stand firm and keep a strong grip on the teaching we passed on to you both in prison and by letter.” v. 15
This is a simple reminder of the importance of knowing the truth about the things of God! We live in a day and age where words and situations are manipulated to justify actions and lifestyles. It’s becoming the norm more and more. As things get manipulated they get spun as the ‘new normal’ and beliefs of old are somewhat said to be outdated, or, even better yet, used against us in some form or another.
The Bible is clear that in the last days, believers won’t have it easy. Our faith and beliefs will be tested, possibly even to the point of death. But the truth that we hold, will last forever, and one day it will bring us into the presence of God because of our faith in Jesus Christ.
The challenge for you and I is to know the Truth so well that we don’t get caught in the manipulation of it. But it doesn’t stop there! It also means that we need to Live the Truth, and Share the Truth with the people around us so they to might be able to share in the victory we have in the Gospel and be set free from the things of this world! This is the essence of the Gospel and the mission Jesus gave all of us in Matthew 28.
“Jesus came and told his disciples, ‘I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations,[b] baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’” Matthew 28:18-20 (NLT)
Today, if you were given a test on how well you know scripture, how do you think you would do? Would you be embarrassed by what you don’t know? I want to encourage you to spend some extra time reading and praying, so you can know the Truth found in Scripture and live it out in your daily life!
“So we keep on praying for you, asking our God to enable you to live a life worthy of his call. May he give you the power to accomplish all the good things your faith prompts you to do. 12 Then the name of our Lord Jesus will be honored because of the way you live, and you will be honored along with him. This is all made possible because of the grace of our God and Lord, Jesus Christ.” v. 11-12 (NLT)
Have you ever had good intentions? Have you ever had good intentions spiritually, like Reading the Bible, Praying more often, Sharing your Faith, Repenting of Sin in away that you don’t want to do it again, but then over time find that you have given up of fallen short? I know I have! I’ve had good intentions but then lacked the follow through, the commitment, the discipline, and ultimately the power to accomplish some of these things. Why, because I tried to do them in my own power!
One of the most challenging Spiritual Disciplines for me is prayer. Yes, I pray but I wish it was more of an instinctual natural attitude instead of an, “Oh yeah, lets pray moment.” I think sometimes this causes me to rely on myself more times than I should, causing me to have several good intentions.
Paul prays that God would enable you(us) to live a life worthy of his call. Then he goes on to say that we would have the POWER, this is supernatural God given power, to accomplish the things our faith challenges us to do. God given power!!!! What has God been challenging you to do? Are you doing that in your own power or is God given power doing that through you? This is the difference between good intentions and transformation!
Today, let’s not let our life be defined by good intentions, but let us rely on the God given power to produce in us the discipline, strength, and commitment we need to accomplish all the good things your faith prompts us to do.
“Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. 20 Do not scoff at prophecies, 21 but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good. 22 Stay away from every kind of evil.” v. 19-22
When we trust Jesus to be our Lord and Savior we are given the Holy Spirit! The Bible says that the Holy Spirit comes and lives on the inside of us to reveal the things of God and to transform us from the inside out. Each believer gets the Holy Spirit. However, not all believers surrender everything so that the Holy Spirit can control all aspects of their life.
Sadly, we tend to hold on to things or close off the Spirits work in certain area of our life because we want to be in control. Because of this, we stifle the work of the Holy Spirit, and slow down the transformation process of becoming more like Jesus. For us to experience the radical love, grace, mercy, power, and transformation of Jesus, we have to surrender total control to Him and allow the Holy Spirit to convict us of things that need to be given to God through prayer.
When we ignore these convictions or just simply rebel, we harden our hearts toward the things of God and run the risk of getting caught in deeper sin before we actually hear God speaking to us about that situation through the Holy Spirit again. Don’t let this happen to you, think about the work of the Holy Spirit in your life. Have you totally surrendered to Him?
Today, are there areas in your life where you are stifling the Holy Spirit? Let’s not pray for more of the Holy Spirit, (we received all of Him the day we trusted Jesus), Let’s pray and surrender more of us to Him, so we can experience more Him in our daily lives!
“God’s will is for you to be holy, so stay away from all sexual sin. 4 Then each of you will control his own body[b] and live in holiness and honor—5 not in lustful passion like the pagans who do not know God and his ways. 6 Never harm or cheat a Christian brother in this matter by violating his wife,[c] for the Lord avenges all such sins, as we have solemnly warned you before. 7 God has called us to live holy lives, not impure lives. 8 Therefore, anyone who refuses to live by these rules is not disobeying human teaching but is rejecting God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.” v. 3-8
Strong words with deep meaning. When we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior we are made Holy. However, to live in Holiness means to live pure in a sinful world. Almost every passage of scripture that encourages us to turn from sin starts with sexual sin. If you look at our world today the number 1 temptation we face involves sexual thoughts and or actions. Why, because because sex sells! Therefor, its everywhere.
If we are going to live pure in a dirty world we have to begin by examining our thoughts, what we watch, and what we listen too. Have you ever listened to what some of the main stream music is talking about? I am guilty here of getting wrapped up in a song and not thinking about what it is talking about. Often times Stephanie and I will talk about what the song is actually saying … it’s scary sometimes when you actually listen to the words and pick up on all the innuendos. We have to be even more careful now because our 3 and 6 year old like to sing along. It’s not good when you hear them singing along and then the phrase “pantie snatcher” comes over their lips. It creates a very uncomfortable situation. I had to apologize to him and tell him not all the songs on the radio are good songs and asked him not to sing that song again. He replied, well change the channel to a song I can sing. That’s innocence by the way.
Now please hear me, I am not saying that you need to only listen to Christian Music. What makes it Christian music by the way? That’s probably another topic. However, what you listen to, what you watch, and how you think, begins to be seen in your actions. This is all the more reason why we need to be spending time in Gods Word.
When we know the Word, we will begin to live it out daily. This begins to change our thoughts and our actions.
Today, what are you going to let fill your mind? Where will you spend your time? How will this impact how you live? Let’s not be defined by the world, but by the work of Christ in our lives so we can be Holy, as our Father is Holy!
“So we have been greatly encouraged in the midst of our troubles and suffering, dear brothers and sisters,because you have remained strong in your faith. It gives us new life to know that you are standing firm in the Lord.” v. 7-8 (NLT)
We are in this together! We see this play out in almost every aspect of life, from friendships, to marriage, to teamwork on the field or at work, for the most part we affect others in someway & they impact us also. However, when it comes to our Spiritual Journey, we want to keep that to ourselves. By doing this, others miss out on being encouraged by the work that God is doing in us and through us. Now don’t get me wrong … I’m not saying to do things for the applause of others. I’m simply saying that the stand you take for Christ, the words you use, how you treat friends and loved ones, the places you go and the way that you serve, impacts and encourages others to stand for Christ also. It allows them the see the invisible, the work of the Gospel.
Today, who’s watching you? Who’s being encouraged to live more boldly for Christ because of you? We are in this together and I am encouraged when others around me live boldly for Jesus. It stirs my heart to live for Him also!
“For we speak as messengers approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts.” v.4 (NLT)
Everyone want’s to be liked!!!! However, we have to stand for what is right even if we know it may be unpopular by others. This is where tension is created. We want to honor God, but we don’t want to offend our friends. So many times we are caught in the middle.
These are defining moments that we either allow others opinions keep us trapped from the things that God want to do in our life, or we risk it all, trusting the details to God and share the truth in love by our words and actions. It is a tough place to be but it’s also where we get to see God do amazing things in us.
Today, will you be trapped by fear of what others might think, or step out in faith and see how God grows you and uses you?
Dan Gould 