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HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
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Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"Giving Grace, Sharing Grace" — A Year with Jesus for 07/09/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
What do you do when the leaders in your church don't get along? Do you divide up into different camps and deepen the disagreement? Or, do you spend time with one another in careful, biblical, Spirit-led discussion of the issues? Do you recognize that some disagreements are matters of people's different missions and particular responsibilities to answer My call? How do you know what to do about these kinds of issues and when to do it?
The same Holy Spirit that guided the church to come to an understanding of the Gentile issue in the first part of Acts chapter 15 was also at work to guide the church through the break-up of Paul and Barnabas' working together as a mission team.
Barnabas was an encourager. That was his nature. That was his giftedness — and was even in the meaning of his name, which was given to him by the apostles (Acts 4:36). When Paul suggested to Barnabas that they go back to visit the churches where they had taught on their previous mission, Barnabas wanted to take John Mark with them as they had done previously. However, Paul did not want to take John Mark because he had deserted them during their previous mission (Acts 13:13; Acts 15:37-38). The result was that Barnabas and Paul had a heated difference of opinion. However, their difference of opinion was over the best way to accomplish My mission.
Notice what you don't hear happening in the early church over this issue:
The churches in Jerusalem, Judea, Antioch, and Galatia didn't divide over whether Barnabas was right or Paul was right. There was too much work to do to allow the momentum of the church to be destroyed because Barnabas and Paul had a different sense of how to accomplish My mission.
Paul and Barnabas didn't go around bad-mouthing each other. What Paul wrote a short time later in one of his letters showed no animosity toward Barnabas and suggested respect for Barnabas' ministry (1 Corinthians 9:6). We also know that Paul later reconciled with John Mark (Colossians 4:10; Philemon 1:24) and asked for John Mark to come to him when he was near the end of his life (2 Timothy 4:11). Paul and Barnabas each stuck to his own convictions. Each pursued his own calling. However, neither felt it was necessary to put down the other. As Paul would say to the Corinthians:
Rather than power brokers, think of us as servants of the Anointed One, the Liberating King, caretakers of the mysteries of God. Because we are in this particular role, it is especially important that we are people of fidelity and integrity. It makes little difference to me how you or any human court passes judgment on me. I even resist the temptation to compare myself to the ever-changing human standard. Although I am not aware of any flaw that might exclude me from this divine service, that's not the reason I stand acquitted — the only supreme judge, our Lord, will examine me in the proper time. So resist the temptation to act as judges before all the evidence is in.
(1 Corinthians 4:1-5)
The churches didn't hyperventilate over this problem. There was no exaggerated language that made this issue bigger than it really was. You don't hear about Paul and Barnabas having saved the church from dividing or being criticized as hypocrites for not being able to keep the peace among themselves. The disciples didn't go around wringing their hands because this great mission team split over what to do about a young missionary who abandoned them on their first journey.
The early church let Paul and Barnabas go their separate ways, permitting each to answer his own call from Me to reach the nations and to train others to do the same. Barnabas took John Mark and continued on his mission. John Mark was given a second chance. He was strengthened through his relationship with Barnabas, and Barnabas restored him to useful service to the brotherhood and even to Paul.
Paul took Silas with him on his mission and raised up another powerful missionary leader. Paul's work with other young disciples followed Barnabas' example (as well as My example) of mentoring and growing future leaders. The world was blessed by having two great mission teams, led by two passionate but different types of leaders, and more future missionaries were trained by each one.
So please hear the lesson of this important time in the early church. Don't make disagreements among church leaders about how to carry out My mission more than they really are. Passionate disciples with unique gifts and a very clear sense of My call in their lives will have differences in opinion, strategy, and style. Some of those opinions, strategies, and styles are going to clash. This conflict doesn't mean that they are bad. This lack of harmony doesn't mean that one is right and the others are wrong.
Yes, I want My disciples to live in unity, and Paul and Barnabas clearly ministered in unity with each other. Don't define unity as meaning that everyone thinks the same thing. However, understand that unity does mean that My disciples must love each other, respect each other, and give each other the opportunity to serve Me and live out My mission with passion and focus. You don't give up on or scandalize another disciple because he or she disagrees with you, or with someone you respect, over strategy or a personal sense of calling. Give grace to each other as you share grace with the lost using the grace I have given you to minister!
Verses to Live
The following text is a short report on Paul and Barnabas' disagreement. As Luke writes Acts, he wants you to know this happened. The small number of words and the lack of emphasis on this disagreement show you how little their split impacted the brotherhood as a whole. Don't let Satan make differences over strategy, over a personal sense of calling, or over personal style into bigger issues that destroy My people!
Some days later, Paul proposed another journey to Barnabas.
Paul:
Let's return and visit the believers in each city where we preached the Lord's message last time to see how they're doing.
Barnabas agreed and wanted to bring John Mark along, but Paul felt that was a mistake since John Mark had abandoned them in Pamphylia and hadn't finished the previous mission. Their difference of opinion was so heated that they decided not to work together anymore. Barnabas took John Mark and sailed to Cyprus, while Paul chose Silas as his companion. The believers in Antioch commissioned him for this work, entrusting him to the grace of the Lord. They traveled through Syria and Cilicia to strengthen the churches there.
(Acts 15:36-41)
Response in Prayer
O Father, give me a passion to serve You with devotion and focus. Give me the grace to allow others to serve You differently than I do. Use each of us to share Your grace with our fallen world. I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
What do you do when the leaders in your church don't get along? Do you divide up into different camps and deepen the disagreement? Or, do you spend time with one another in careful, biblical, Spirit-led discussion of the issues? Do you recognize that some disagreements are matters of people's different missions and particular responsibilities to answer My call? How do you know what to do about these kinds of issues and when to do it?
The same Holy Spirit that guided the church to come to an understanding of the Gentile issue in the first part of Acts chapter 15 was also at work to guide the church through the break-up of Paul and Barnabas' working together as a mission team.
Barnabas was an encourager. That was his nature. That was his giftedness — and was even in the meaning of his name, which was given to him by the apostles (Acts 4:36). When Paul suggested to Barnabas that they go back to visit the churches where they had taught on their previous mission, Barnabas wanted to take John Mark with them as they had done previously. However, Paul did not want to take John Mark because he had deserted them during their previous mission (Acts 13:13; Acts 15:37-38). The result was that Barnabas and Paul had a heated difference of opinion. However, their difference of opinion was over the best way to accomplish My mission.
Notice what you don't hear happening in the early church over this issue:
The churches in Jerusalem, Judea, Antioch, and Galatia didn't divide over whether Barnabas was right or Paul was right. There was too much work to do to allow the momentum of the church to be destroyed because Barnabas and Paul had a different sense of how to accomplish My mission.
Paul and Barnabas didn't go around bad-mouthing each other. What Paul wrote a short time later in one of his letters showed no animosity toward Barnabas and suggested respect for Barnabas' ministry (1 Corinthians 9:6). We also know that Paul later reconciled with John Mark (Colossians 4:10; Philemon 1:24) and asked for John Mark to come to him when he was near the end of his life (2 Timothy 4:11). Paul and Barnabas each stuck to his own convictions. Each pursued his own calling. However, neither felt it was necessary to put down the other. As Paul would say to the Corinthians:
Rather than power brokers, think of us as servants of the Anointed One, the Liberating King, caretakers of the mysteries of God. Because we are in this particular role, it is especially important that we are people of fidelity and integrity. It makes little difference to me how you or any human court passes judgment on me. I even resist the temptation to compare myself to the ever-changing human standard. Although I am not aware of any flaw that might exclude me from this divine service, that's not the reason I stand acquitted — the only supreme judge, our Lord, will examine me in the proper time. So resist the temptation to act as judges before all the evidence is in.
(1 Corinthians 4:1-5)
The churches didn't hyperventilate over this problem. There was no exaggerated language that made this issue bigger than it really was. You don't hear about Paul and Barnabas having saved the church from dividing or being criticized as hypocrites for not being able to keep the peace among themselves. The disciples didn't go around wringing their hands because this great mission team split over what to do about a young missionary who abandoned them on their first journey.
The early church let Paul and Barnabas go their separate ways, permitting each to answer his own call from Me to reach the nations and to train others to do the same. Barnabas took John Mark and continued on his mission. John Mark was given a second chance. He was strengthened through his relationship with Barnabas, and Barnabas restored him to useful service to the brotherhood and even to Paul.
Paul took Silas with him on his mission and raised up another powerful missionary leader. Paul's work with other young disciples followed Barnabas' example (as well as My example) of mentoring and growing future leaders. The world was blessed by having two great mission teams, led by two passionate but different types of leaders, and more future missionaries were trained by each one.
So please hear the lesson of this important time in the early church. Don't make disagreements among church leaders about how to carry out My mission more than they really are. Passionate disciples with unique gifts and a very clear sense of My call in their lives will have differences in opinion, strategy, and style. Some of those opinions, strategies, and styles are going to clash. This conflict doesn't mean that they are bad. This lack of harmony doesn't mean that one is right and the others are wrong.
Yes, I want My disciples to live in unity, and Paul and Barnabas clearly ministered in unity with each other. Don't define unity as meaning that everyone thinks the same thing. However, understand that unity does mean that My disciples must love each other, respect each other, and give each other the opportunity to serve Me and live out My mission with passion and focus. You don't give up on or scandalize another disciple because he or she disagrees with you, or with someone you respect, over strategy or a personal sense of calling. Give grace to each other as you share grace with the lost using the grace I have given you to minister!
Verses to Live
The following text is a short report on Paul and Barnabas' disagreement. As Luke writes Acts, he wants you to know this happened. The small number of words and the lack of emphasis on this disagreement show you how little their split impacted the brotherhood as a whole. Don't let Satan make differences over strategy, over a personal sense of calling, or over personal style into bigger issues that destroy My people!
Some days later, Paul proposed another journey to Barnabas.
Paul:
Let's return and visit the believers in each city where we preached the Lord's message last time to see how they're doing.
Barnabas agreed and wanted to bring John Mark along, but Paul felt that was a mistake since John Mark had abandoned them in Pamphylia and hadn't finished the previous mission. Their difference of opinion was so heated that they decided not to work together anymore. Barnabas took John Mark and sailed to Cyprus, while Paul chose Silas as his companion. The believers in Antioch commissioned him for this work, entrusting him to the grace of the Lord. They traveled through Syria and Cilicia to strengthen the churches there.
(Acts 15:36-41)
Response in Prayer
O Father, give me a passion to serve You with devotion and focus. Give me the grace to allow others to serve You differently than I do. Use each of us to share Your grace with our fallen world. I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"Guidance from the Holy Spirit" — A Year with Jesus for 07/08/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Precious Disciple,
The conference that you read about in the verses below occurred in Jerusalem. The focus of that conference was what should be done about Gentiles becoming Christians. There was a controversy concerning whether Gentile Christians would have to follow the law of Moses fully to be accepted into My family. The decision was crucial for the future of the mission of My church. At risk was the worldwide mission to the nations, the mission I had given before I ascended back to the Father. The wrong answer at this point in the development of the early church would have limited My movement to being nothing more than another sect of Judaism. However, the disciples at the conference came to the correct answer because they trusted in the leading of the Holy Spirit.
I had promised My disciples that I would send the Holy Spirit to them to be with them and to empower them to be My witnesses all over the world (Acts 1:8), and they believed it!
I promised them that the Holy Spirit would be their Helper and their Counselor Who would guide them into all truth (John 16:13), and they trusted that what I told them was true.
They had experienced the Holy Spirit responding to their worship of prayer and fasting by calling Barnabas and Paul into the mission field (Acts 13:1-3), and they sent out these great disciples as missionaries.
So when it came time to make this huge decision about Gentile Christians, what did they do? They relied on the Holy Spirit to lead them. Peter said that Cornelius' conversion happened because "God decided" to include Gentiles, and He confirmed their inclusion by sending the Holy Spirit to Cornelius and his household. So they described the final decision they reached this way: "It has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us..." They were confident that the Holy Spirit was helping to provide them a clear path forward as they prayed and worked together on a resolution of their controversy.
So here's My point: You need to trust in the leading and guidance of the Holy Spirit as you seek to live out My mission in your world. The power and the guidance of the Holy Spirit are gifts I have left you as you wait for My return!
Verses to Live
These words that Luke wrote in Acts show how My disciples in the early church relied on the Holy Spirit to help them make a crucial decision. They made this monumental decision with certainty because they were convicted that the Holy Spirit was guiding them. I want you to trust that the Holy Spirit will also guide you in your decisions as you seek to live out My mission to reach the lost world.
Upon arrival [of Paul, Barnabas, and others from Antioch] in Jerusalem, the church, the apostles, and the elders welcomed them warmly; and they reported all they had seen God do. But there were some believers present who belonged to the sect of the Pharisees. They stood up and asserted,
Pharisees:
No, this is not acceptable. These people must be circumcised, and we must require them to keep the whole Mosaic law.
The apostles and elders met privately to discuss how this issue should be resolved. There was a lot of debate, and finally Peter stood up.
Peter:
My brothers, you all know that in the early days of our movement, God decided that I should be the one through whom the first outsiders would hear the good news and become believers. God knows the human heart, and He showed approval of their hearts by giving them the Holy Spirit just as He did for us. In cleansing their hearts by faith, God has made no distinction between them and us. So it makes no sense to me that some of you are testing God by burdening His disciples with a load that neither our forefathers nor we have been able to carry. No, we all believe that we will be liberated through the grace of the Lord Jesus — they also will be rescued in the same way.
There was silence among them while Barnabas and Paul reported all the miraculous signs and wonders God had done through them among outsiders.
When they finished, James spoke.
James:
My brothers, hear me. Simon Peter reminded us how God first included outsiders in His favor, taking people from among them for His name. This resonates with the words of the prophets:
"After this, I will return and rebuild the house of David, which has fallen into ruins. From its wreckage I will rebuild it; so all the nations may seek the Eternal One — including every person among the outsiders who has been called by My name."
This is the word of the Lord, who has been revealing these things since ancient times. So here is my counsel: we should not burden these outsiders who are turning to God. We should instead write a letter, instructing them to abstain from four things: first, things associated with idol worship; second, sexual immorality; third, food killed by strangling; and fourth, blood. My reason for these four exceptions is that in every city there are Jewish communities where, for generations, the laws of Moses have been proclaimed; and on every Sabbath, Moses is read in synagogues everywhere.
This seemed like a good idea to the apostles, the elders, and the entire church. They commissioned men from among them and sent them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They sent two prominent men among the believers, Judas (also known as Barsabbas) and Silas, to deliver this letter:
The brotherhood, including the apostles and elders in Jerusalem, send greetings to the outsider believers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia. We have heard that certain people from among us — without authorization from us — have said things that, in turn, upset you and unsettle your minds. We have decided unanimously to choose and send two representatives, along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul who, as you know, have risked their lives for our Lord Jesus the Anointed. These representatives, Judas and Silas, will confirm verbally what you will read in this letter. It has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to keep you free from all burdens except these four: abstain from anything sacrificed to idols, from blood, from food killed by strangling, and from sexual immorality. Avoid these things, and you will be just fine. Farewell.
So the men were sent to Antioch. When they arrived, they gathered the community together and read the letter. The community rejoiced at the resolution to the controversy.
(Acts 15:4-31)
Response in Prayer
O Father, bless the leaders in our churches today. Give them hearts that yearn for Your will and a passion to lead us to live out Your mission to our lost world. Give them a willingness to work together to achieve that mission and a commitment to rely on Your Spirit to lead them to consensus and to clarity about the directions that they are to lead us. We need Your wisdom, guidance, and direction for our lives and for our churches. We ask for Your leading through the influence of the Holy Spirit. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Precious Disciple,
The conference that you read about in the verses below occurred in Jerusalem. The focus of that conference was what should be done about Gentiles becoming Christians. There was a controversy concerning whether Gentile Christians would have to follow the law of Moses fully to be accepted into My family. The decision was crucial for the future of the mission of My church. At risk was the worldwide mission to the nations, the mission I had given before I ascended back to the Father. The wrong answer at this point in the development of the early church would have limited My movement to being nothing more than another sect of Judaism. However, the disciples at the conference came to the correct answer because they trusted in the leading of the Holy Spirit.
I had promised My disciples that I would send the Holy Spirit to them to be with them and to empower them to be My witnesses all over the world (Acts 1:8), and they believed it!
I promised them that the Holy Spirit would be their Helper and their Counselor Who would guide them into all truth (John 16:13), and they trusted that what I told them was true.
They had experienced the Holy Spirit responding to their worship of prayer and fasting by calling Barnabas and Paul into the mission field (Acts 13:1-3), and they sent out these great disciples as missionaries.
So when it came time to make this huge decision about Gentile Christians, what did they do? They relied on the Holy Spirit to lead them. Peter said that Cornelius' conversion happened because "God decided" to include Gentiles, and He confirmed their inclusion by sending the Holy Spirit to Cornelius and his household. So they described the final decision they reached this way: "It has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us..." They were confident that the Holy Spirit was helping to provide them a clear path forward as they prayed and worked together on a resolution of their controversy.
So here's My point: You need to trust in the leading and guidance of the Holy Spirit as you seek to live out My mission in your world. The power and the guidance of the Holy Spirit are gifts I have left you as you wait for My return!
Verses to Live
These words that Luke wrote in Acts show how My disciples in the early church relied on the Holy Spirit to help them make a crucial decision. They made this monumental decision with certainty because they were convicted that the Holy Spirit was guiding them. I want you to trust that the Holy Spirit will also guide you in your decisions as you seek to live out My mission to reach the lost world.
Upon arrival [of Paul, Barnabas, and others from Antioch] in Jerusalem, the church, the apostles, and the elders welcomed them warmly; and they reported all they had seen God do. But there were some believers present who belonged to the sect of the Pharisees. They stood up and asserted,
Pharisees:
No, this is not acceptable. These people must be circumcised, and we must require them to keep the whole Mosaic law.
The apostles and elders met privately to discuss how this issue should be resolved. There was a lot of debate, and finally Peter stood up.
Peter:
My brothers, you all know that in the early days of our movement, God decided that I should be the one through whom the first outsiders would hear the good news and become believers. God knows the human heart, and He showed approval of their hearts by giving them the Holy Spirit just as He did for us. In cleansing their hearts by faith, God has made no distinction between them and us. So it makes no sense to me that some of you are testing God by burdening His disciples with a load that neither our forefathers nor we have been able to carry. No, we all believe that we will be liberated through the grace of the Lord Jesus — they also will be rescued in the same way.
There was silence among them while Barnabas and Paul reported all the miraculous signs and wonders God had done through them among outsiders.
When they finished, James spoke.
James:
My brothers, hear me. Simon Peter reminded us how God first included outsiders in His favor, taking people from among them for His name. This resonates with the words of the prophets:
"After this, I will return and rebuild the house of David, which has fallen into ruins. From its wreckage I will rebuild it; so all the nations may seek the Eternal One — including every person among the outsiders who has been called by My name."
This is the word of the Lord, who has been revealing these things since ancient times. So here is my counsel: we should not burden these outsiders who are turning to God. We should instead write a letter, instructing them to abstain from four things: first, things associated with idol worship; second, sexual immorality; third, food killed by strangling; and fourth, blood. My reason for these four exceptions is that in every city there are Jewish communities where, for generations, the laws of Moses have been proclaimed; and on every Sabbath, Moses is read in synagogues everywhere.
This seemed like a good idea to the apostles, the elders, and the entire church. They commissioned men from among them and sent them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They sent two prominent men among the believers, Judas (also known as Barsabbas) and Silas, to deliver this letter:
The brotherhood, including the apostles and elders in Jerusalem, send greetings to the outsider believers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia. We have heard that certain people from among us — without authorization from us — have said things that, in turn, upset you and unsettle your minds. We have decided unanimously to choose and send two representatives, along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul who, as you know, have risked their lives for our Lord Jesus the Anointed. These representatives, Judas and Silas, will confirm verbally what you will read in this letter. It has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to keep you free from all burdens except these four: abstain from anything sacrificed to idols, from blood, from food killed by strangling, and from sexual immorality. Avoid these things, and you will be just fine. Farewell.
So the men were sent to Antioch. When they arrived, they gathered the community together and read the letter. The community rejoiced at the resolution to the controversy.
(Acts 15:4-31)
Response in Prayer
O Father, bless the leaders in our churches today. Give them hearts that yearn for Your will and a passion to lead us to live out Your mission to our lost world. Give them a willingness to work together to achieve that mission and a commitment to rely on Your Spirit to lead them to consensus and to clarity about the directions that they are to lead us. We need Your wisdom, guidance, and direction for our lives and for our churches. We ask for Your leading through the influence of the Holy Spirit. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
In the Cross" — A Year with Jesus for 07/07/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
As Barnabas and Paul fought for the truth of the gospel against those seeking to corrupt it with doing works based on law, one message was central. That one message was, and is, centered in what I did on the cross. As profound as that message is, there is nothing flashy about it. In fact, it is a hard message to "sell" as a great philosophy. However, it was never intended to be just a philosophy. In the simple message of My sacrificial death and glorious resurrection is great power.
What is that message?
It is that God loved the world so much He came to your world in human flesh. I, Jesus of Nazareth, came as God incarnate. I was God in human skin. I lived a sinless life of service to others. Then I was handed over to the Romans by My own people and My own religious leaders to be crucified. This crucifixion was the sin offering for all people of all time. I was the last and perfect sacrifice needed to atone for sin. After My resurrection, I ascended to the Father and poured out the Holy Spirit to empower My people to share My message. This message of the cross became and still is the saving message for all people in all places throughout all time. All people now can base their relationship with the Father on the grace given them in My sacrifice and in their reception of that message by faith. They were and are invited to experience that message in baptism. The gift of the Holy Spirit is given to them to live in them, empower them, and assure them of living with Me forever.
This message is the gospel. Nothing more should be added to it. Nothing should be taken from it. It doesn't need to be dressed up with fancy wisdom or fancy philosophy. For Paul, it was everything. He changed his life to proclaim it. He risked his life to share it. He defended it against impostor gospels. He died because of it. He forever changed the course of religious history by proclaiming it. His message still stands as the sentinel of grace and a life lived with clarity and focus. As Paul wrote, "May I never put anything above the cross of our Lord Jesus the Anointed!"
Verses to Live
In the following collection of verses from Paul's letters to the Galatian and Corinthian Christians, notice the emphasis on the cross — the essence of God's love, the heart of My gospel, and the message that has changed the world!
May I never put anything above the cross of our Lord Jesus the Anointed. Through Him, the world has been crucified to me and I to this world.
(Galatians 6:14)
I have been crucified with the Anointed One — I am no longer alive — but the Anointed is living in me; and whatever life I have left in this failing body I live by the faithfulness of God's Son, the One who loves me and gave His body on the cross for me.
(Galatians 2:20)
For people who are stumbling toward ruin, the message of the cross is nothing but a tall tale for fools by a fool. But for those of us who are already experiencing the reality of being rescued and made right, it is nothing short of God's power.
...
It seems the Jews are always asking for signs and the Greeks are always on the prowl for wisdom. But we tell a different story. We proclaim a crucified Jesus, God's Anointed. For Jews this is scandalous, for outsiders this is moronic, but for those of us living out God's call — regardless of our Jewish or Greek heritage — we know the Anointed embodies God's dynamic power and God's deep wisdom.
...
My brothers and sisters, I did not pose as an expert with all the answers. I did not pretend to explain the mystery of God with eloquent speech and human wisdom. I claimed to know nothing with certainty other than the reality that Jesus is the Anointed One, the Liberating King, who was crucified on our behalf. I was moved to utter despair during my time with you. I would find myself trembling in dread and fear. The sermons I preached were not delivered with the kind of persuasive elegance some have come to expect, but they were effective because I relied on God's Spirit to demonstrate God's power. If this were not so, your faith would be based on human wisdom and not the power of God.
(1 Corinthians 1:18, 22-24; 1 Corinthians 2:1-5)
Response in Prayer
O Father, may I never boast except of the love and grace that You have given Me in Jesus. Thank You, Jesus, for Your incarnation and sacrifice. Thank You Holy Spirit for Your power exercised in the resurrection of Jesus and made alive in Me. May my life reflect Your work in me, O God, and may I share Your grace with those who do not know it. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
As Barnabas and Paul fought for the truth of the gospel against those seeking to corrupt it with doing works based on law, one message was central. That one message was, and is, centered in what I did on the cross. As profound as that message is, there is nothing flashy about it. In fact, it is a hard message to "sell" as a great philosophy. However, it was never intended to be just a philosophy. In the simple message of My sacrificial death and glorious resurrection is great power.
What is that message?
It is that God loved the world so much He came to your world in human flesh. I, Jesus of Nazareth, came as God incarnate. I was God in human skin. I lived a sinless life of service to others. Then I was handed over to the Romans by My own people and My own religious leaders to be crucified. This crucifixion was the sin offering for all people of all time. I was the last and perfect sacrifice needed to atone for sin. After My resurrection, I ascended to the Father and poured out the Holy Spirit to empower My people to share My message. This message of the cross became and still is the saving message for all people in all places throughout all time. All people now can base their relationship with the Father on the grace given them in My sacrifice and in their reception of that message by faith. They were and are invited to experience that message in baptism. The gift of the Holy Spirit is given to them to live in them, empower them, and assure them of living with Me forever.
This message is the gospel. Nothing more should be added to it. Nothing should be taken from it. It doesn't need to be dressed up with fancy wisdom or fancy philosophy. For Paul, it was everything. He changed his life to proclaim it. He risked his life to share it. He defended it against impostor gospels. He died because of it. He forever changed the course of religious history by proclaiming it. His message still stands as the sentinel of grace and a life lived with clarity and focus. As Paul wrote, "May I never put anything above the cross of our Lord Jesus the Anointed!"
Verses to Live
In the following collection of verses from Paul's letters to the Galatian and Corinthian Christians, notice the emphasis on the cross — the essence of God's love, the heart of My gospel, and the message that has changed the world!
May I never put anything above the cross of our Lord Jesus the Anointed. Through Him, the world has been crucified to me and I to this world.
(Galatians 6:14)
I have been crucified with the Anointed One — I am no longer alive — but the Anointed is living in me; and whatever life I have left in this failing body I live by the faithfulness of God's Son, the One who loves me and gave His body on the cross for me.
(Galatians 2:20)
For people who are stumbling toward ruin, the message of the cross is nothing but a tall tale for fools by a fool. But for those of us who are already experiencing the reality of being rescued and made right, it is nothing short of God's power.
...
It seems the Jews are always asking for signs and the Greeks are always on the prowl for wisdom. But we tell a different story. We proclaim a crucified Jesus, God's Anointed. For Jews this is scandalous, for outsiders this is moronic, but for those of us living out God's call — regardless of our Jewish or Greek heritage — we know the Anointed embodies God's dynamic power and God's deep wisdom.
...
My brothers and sisters, I did not pose as an expert with all the answers. I did not pretend to explain the mystery of God with eloquent speech and human wisdom. I claimed to know nothing with certainty other than the reality that Jesus is the Anointed One, the Liberating King, who was crucified on our behalf. I was moved to utter despair during my time with you. I would find myself trembling in dread and fear. The sermons I preached were not delivered with the kind of persuasive elegance some have come to expect, but they were effective because I relied on God's Spirit to demonstrate God's power. If this were not so, your faith would be based on human wisdom and not the power of God.
(1 Corinthians 1:18, 22-24; 1 Corinthians 2:1-5)
Response in Prayer
O Father, may I never boast except of the love and grace that You have given Me in Jesus. Thank You, Jesus, for Your incarnation and sacrifice. Thank You Holy Spirit for Your power exercised in the resurrection of Jesus and made alive in Me. May my life reflect Your work in me, O God, and may I share Your grace with those who do not know it. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"Unacceptable!" — A Year with Jesus for 07/06/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Follower,
I hate racism! Bigotry and racial prejudice are unacceptable. It comes in all sorts of forms, some overt and some cloaked in apparently acceptable language. On the other hand, racial inclusion nearly always requires that people must be tolerant, kind, and patient if social, racial, and cultural differences are going to be accepted among My people. The evil one loves to use racial bias and bigotry to fuel suspicion and divide peoples into warring groups. My first followers couldn't see their bigotry and prejudice because it was so close to them and so much a part of them. Unfortunately, this can still be true in your day.
During My disciples' first several decades as a movement, my people had to deal with deep-seated racial issues. Some of these prejudices were social and were related to the handling of food and table fellowship. Others were seated in hatred and suspicion of people of different races. Some used the Scriptures as their basis for exclusion. In other words, there were social, ethnic, and religious prejudices that My early followers had to overcome all while often being a persecuted and oppressed people.
As you have seen in your readings from Acts about the early Christian movement, My disciples were slow in taking My good news to those outside of Judaism. Then suddenly, "outsiders" (non-Jews) came pouring into My family of faith. The question that My early church faced was very simple to state, but very difficult to navigate: What is the requirement for non-Jews to become Christians and live in fellowship with Jewish Christians?
Paul and Barnabas had experienced My hand of grace enabling them to reach "outsiders" in Antioch, in Galatia, and in places in between. The church in Antioch became a shining light of Jewish people and non-Jewish people coming together as My people (Acts 11:19-24). They then were called by the Holy Spirit to send Barnabas and Paul (then known as Saul) to reach even more "outsiders" (Acts 13:1-3). Led and empowered by the Holy Spirit, these two great missionaries joined with other believers in sharing My saving grace with those who were lost, including those in Galatia. (The last two Scriptures below are from the letter Paul later wrote to the Galatian Christians.) Barnabas and Paul shared My gospel regardless of people's race, ethnicity, or culture. Many "outsiders" believed and followed Me. At some point, there were more non-Jewish Christians than Jewish ones. The church at Antioch along with the churches in regions outside of Judea and Galilee was overjoyed at what God was doing among the "outsiders" (Acts 14:26-28; Acts 15:1-4).
But, as Luke puts it in the verses below from Acts, "Their peace was disturbed..." Paul wouldn't back down, as you've already seen in the book of Galatians. There was also a group that became known as Judaizing teachers. They were just as adamant as Paul but said it was "not acceptable" for non-Jews to join into Christian fellowship without requiring circumcision and the keeping of the Mosaic Law. Paul knew his position would not be popular with the Pharisees and Judaizing teachers, but Paul and Barnabas weren't concerned about popularity; they were defending grace. In their minds, this disagreement still all boiled down to an issue of the flesh — racial hatred tinged with racial pride — and to an issue of fear — not wanting to be ostracized by fellow Jews.
Led by the elders, apostles, My half-brother James, along with Barnabas and Paul, the church met in Jerusalem to decide this issue. For Me, however, the issue was clear. The Father sent Me to save the world (John 3:16-17), not one race of people. The Father sent me into the world so the people of the world could know that I love them (1 John 4:8-10). I died to bring all people to Me (John 12:32-33). When I commissioned My disciples shortly before ascending back to the Father, I told them to go and make disciples of all nations. The word I chose for nations literally means "outsiders" (Matthew 28:18-20).
I shared My vision of the future for My people with John in the book of Revelation. There will be "a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language" (Revelation 7:9 NLT). Anyone who believes in Me and trusts in My death, burial, and resurrection can be baptized and added to My people regardless of race, culture, social standing, ethnicity, or accomplishment. I do not want prejudice existing in My people. I do not want anything added to My simple gospel of saving grace. Prejudice is unacceptable for anyone who claims to follow Me! (1 John 4:20)
Verses to Live
The issues you find in the different readings that follow took a while to be resolved appropriately in the early church. You know how We — Father, Son, and Spirit — feel. We want all people included in Our family. We want no racial or prejudicial barriers to be placed in the way of anyone coming to Us and receiving salvation. If the early church could overcome these huge barriers, you have to know that you can, too!
They [Paul and Barnabas] then passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. They preached their message in Perga and then went to the port of Attalia. There they set sail for Antioch, where they were first entrusted to the grace of God for the mission they had now completed. They called the church together when they arrived and reported all God had done with and through them, how God had welcomed outsiders through the doorway of faith. They stayed with the disciples in Antioch for quite a while.
Their [the Antioch church's] peace was disturbed, however, when certain Judeans came with this teaching: "Unless you are circumcised according to Mosaic custom, you cannot be saved."
Paul and Barnabas argued against this teaching and debated with the Judeans vehemently, so the church selected several people — including Paul and Barnabas — to travel to Jerusalem to dialogue about this issue with the apostles and elders there. The church sent them on their way. They passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, stopping to report to the groups of believers there that outsiders were now being converted. This brought great joy to them all. Upon arrival in Jerusalem, the church, the apostles, and the elders welcomed them warmly; and they reported all they had seen God do. But there were some believers present who belonged to the sect of the Pharisees. They stood up and asserted,
Pharisees:
No, this is not acceptable. These people must be circumcised, and we must require them to keep the whole Mosaic law.
(Acts 14:24-28; Acts 15:1-5)
Therefore it is my [James'] judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles [not require them to follow the law of Moses], but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood.
(Acts 15:19-20)
Do you think I care about the approval of men or about the approval of God? Do you think I am on a mission to please people? If I am still spinning my wheels trying to please men, then there is no way I can be a servant of the Anointed One, the Liberating King.
(Galatians 1:10)
The troublemakers who are putting pressure on you to be circumcised are trying to impress the flesh. They want to avoid the persecution that comes from preaching the cross of the Anointed One, the Liberating King. But even those who receive circumcision can't keep the law — although they think they can — and they hope to influence which way you go with your own skin so they can have bragging rights over your flesh.
(Galatians 6:12-13)
Response in Prayer
O Father, forgive us — forgive me — for the prejudice that we let divide Your people. I am deeply troubled and sorry that we have let prejudice separate and divide us. I ask Your forgiveness for the times I have been a part of bigotry toward another group or individual. I ask that the Holy Spirit make my heart burn for the lost of my world and yearn to see all prejudices that divide people swallowed up in the grace You provided when You died for us, Lord Jesus. I ask for Your help, O Lord, that I can love others into Your family so we can enjoy Your family together forever. It is in Your name, dear Jesus, that I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Follower,
I hate racism! Bigotry and racial prejudice are unacceptable. It comes in all sorts of forms, some overt and some cloaked in apparently acceptable language. On the other hand, racial inclusion nearly always requires that people must be tolerant, kind, and patient if social, racial, and cultural differences are going to be accepted among My people. The evil one loves to use racial bias and bigotry to fuel suspicion and divide peoples into warring groups. My first followers couldn't see their bigotry and prejudice because it was so close to them and so much a part of them. Unfortunately, this can still be true in your day.
During My disciples' first several decades as a movement, my people had to deal with deep-seated racial issues. Some of these prejudices were social and were related to the handling of food and table fellowship. Others were seated in hatred and suspicion of people of different races. Some used the Scriptures as their basis for exclusion. In other words, there were social, ethnic, and religious prejudices that My early followers had to overcome all while often being a persecuted and oppressed people.
As you have seen in your readings from Acts about the early Christian movement, My disciples were slow in taking My good news to those outside of Judaism. Then suddenly, "outsiders" (non-Jews) came pouring into My family of faith. The question that My early church faced was very simple to state, but very difficult to navigate: What is the requirement for non-Jews to become Christians and live in fellowship with Jewish Christians?
Paul and Barnabas had experienced My hand of grace enabling them to reach "outsiders" in Antioch, in Galatia, and in places in between. The church in Antioch became a shining light of Jewish people and non-Jewish people coming together as My people (Acts 11:19-24). They then were called by the Holy Spirit to send Barnabas and Paul (then known as Saul) to reach even more "outsiders" (Acts 13:1-3). Led and empowered by the Holy Spirit, these two great missionaries joined with other believers in sharing My saving grace with those who were lost, including those in Galatia. (The last two Scriptures below are from the letter Paul later wrote to the Galatian Christians.) Barnabas and Paul shared My gospel regardless of people's race, ethnicity, or culture. Many "outsiders" believed and followed Me. At some point, there were more non-Jewish Christians than Jewish ones. The church at Antioch along with the churches in regions outside of Judea and Galilee was overjoyed at what God was doing among the "outsiders" (Acts 14:26-28; Acts 15:1-4).
But, as Luke puts it in the verses below from Acts, "Their peace was disturbed..." Paul wouldn't back down, as you've already seen in the book of Galatians. There was also a group that became known as Judaizing teachers. They were just as adamant as Paul but said it was "not acceptable" for non-Jews to join into Christian fellowship without requiring circumcision and the keeping of the Mosaic Law. Paul knew his position would not be popular with the Pharisees and Judaizing teachers, but Paul and Barnabas weren't concerned about popularity; they were defending grace. In their minds, this disagreement still all boiled down to an issue of the flesh — racial hatred tinged with racial pride — and to an issue of fear — not wanting to be ostracized by fellow Jews.
Led by the elders, apostles, My half-brother James, along with Barnabas and Paul, the church met in Jerusalem to decide this issue. For Me, however, the issue was clear. The Father sent Me to save the world (John 3:16-17), not one race of people. The Father sent me into the world so the people of the world could know that I love them (1 John 4:8-10). I died to bring all people to Me (John 12:32-33). When I commissioned My disciples shortly before ascending back to the Father, I told them to go and make disciples of all nations. The word I chose for nations literally means "outsiders" (Matthew 28:18-20).
I shared My vision of the future for My people with John in the book of Revelation. There will be "a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language" (Revelation 7:9 NLT). Anyone who believes in Me and trusts in My death, burial, and resurrection can be baptized and added to My people regardless of race, culture, social standing, ethnicity, or accomplishment. I do not want prejudice existing in My people. I do not want anything added to My simple gospel of saving grace. Prejudice is unacceptable for anyone who claims to follow Me! (1 John 4:20)
Verses to Live
The issues you find in the different readings that follow took a while to be resolved appropriately in the early church. You know how We — Father, Son, and Spirit — feel. We want all people included in Our family. We want no racial or prejudicial barriers to be placed in the way of anyone coming to Us and receiving salvation. If the early church could overcome these huge barriers, you have to know that you can, too!
They [Paul and Barnabas] then passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. They preached their message in Perga and then went to the port of Attalia. There they set sail for Antioch, where they were first entrusted to the grace of God for the mission they had now completed. They called the church together when they arrived and reported all God had done with and through them, how God had welcomed outsiders through the doorway of faith. They stayed with the disciples in Antioch for quite a while.
Their [the Antioch church's] peace was disturbed, however, when certain Judeans came with this teaching: "Unless you are circumcised according to Mosaic custom, you cannot be saved."
Paul and Barnabas argued against this teaching and debated with the Judeans vehemently, so the church selected several people — including Paul and Barnabas — to travel to Jerusalem to dialogue about this issue with the apostles and elders there. The church sent them on their way. They passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, stopping to report to the groups of believers there that outsiders were now being converted. This brought great joy to them all. Upon arrival in Jerusalem, the church, the apostles, and the elders welcomed them warmly; and they reported all they had seen God do. But there were some believers present who belonged to the sect of the Pharisees. They stood up and asserted,
Pharisees:
No, this is not acceptable. These people must be circumcised, and we must require them to keep the whole Mosaic law.
(Acts 14:24-28; Acts 15:1-5)
Therefore it is my [James'] judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles [not require them to follow the law of Moses], but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood.
(Acts 15:19-20)
Do you think I care about the approval of men or about the approval of God? Do you think I am on a mission to please people? If I am still spinning my wheels trying to please men, then there is no way I can be a servant of the Anointed One, the Liberating King.
(Galatians 1:10)
The troublemakers who are putting pressure on you to be circumcised are trying to impress the flesh. They want to avoid the persecution that comes from preaching the cross of the Anointed One, the Liberating King. But even those who receive circumcision can't keep the law — although they think they can — and they hope to influence which way you go with your own skin so they can have bragging rights over your flesh.
(Galatians 6:12-13)
Response in Prayer
O Father, forgive us — forgive me — for the prejudice that we let divide Your people. I am deeply troubled and sorry that we have let prejudice separate and divide us. I ask Your forgiveness for the times I have been a part of bigotry toward another group or individual. I ask that the Holy Spirit make my heart burn for the lost of my world and yearn to see all prejudices that divide people swallowed up in the grace You provided when You died for us, Lord Jesus. I ask for Your help, O Lord, that I can love others into Your family so we can enjoy Your family together forever. It is in Your name, dear Jesus, that I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"God's New Creation Counts for Everything" — A Year with Jesus for 07/05/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Faithful Friend,
I told My disciples in the last few hours before My crucifixion, "I don't call you servants any longer; servants don't know what the master is doing, but I have told you everything the Father has said to Me. I call you friends" (John 15:15). To some of My friends, I revealed deeper things in special revelation to give them the authority to teach the good news about Me in all of its simple truth. The apostle Paul was one of these special people. The Father revealed Me to Paul so that he could proclaim My story, share My grace, and bring My salvation to "outsider nations."
Paul didn't learn this message from any mortal (Galatians 1:11-17; Galatians 2:1-10). He didn't get the details of the gospel from the apostles or any other witnesses. In his letter to the Galatians, Paul was battling to preserve this authoritative message about the Father's grace. The Galatians were trying to add Jewish practices to the gospel — practices established in the law given to Moses and other practices added by tradition. Paul was right in adamantly declaring that any gospel that added requirements to the gospel of grace received through faith is really no gospel at all (Galatians 1:6-9).
Finding new life in Me and becoming a "new creation" come only from being "in" Me. Paul told the Corinthians:
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
(2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV)
Paul made it clear to the Galatians that this "new creation" happened through faith and was experienced in baptism. This new life could not come through any form of law-keeping or doings works of the law of Moses:
So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
(Galatians 3:26-29 NIV)
During our continuing journey through the New Testament over the next few months, you will see time and again that people will try to add some additional requirement to My simple gospel. Thankfully, Paul never abandoned what the Father had revealed in him (Galatians 1:15-16): I AM the good news the world needs. I AM "the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me" (John 14:6 NLT). So Paul reminded his Galatian brothers and sisters at both the beginning and the end of his letter that there is only one gospel, the one delivered to him from God about Me. Paul also reminded the Galatians that there is only one thing that ultimately matters: "God's new creation is what counts, and it counts for everything."
Verses to Live
As you read these seemingly unconnected passages from the beginning and the end of Galatians, remember what I said about one, simple, and transformational message. There is only one. That message finds its focus in Me. When I come into a person's life, I make everything new. This change is what matters!
Surely you are familiar with my personal history, with my dedication to the teachings and traditions of Judaism. I persecuted the church of God — in fact, I meant to destroy it. I excelled in the teachings of Judaism far above other Jewish leaders, and I was zealous to practice the ways of our ancestors. But God — who set me apart even before birth and called me by His grace — chose, to His great delight, to reveal His Son in me so I could tell His story among the outsider nations. I didn't confer with anyone right away, nor did I go to those who were already emissaries in Jerusalem. I went straight to Arabia and later returned to Damascus.
After living this adventurous mission for three years, I made my way to Jerusalem and spent 15 days with Cephas, whom you know as Peter. But I didn't see any emissary other than James, our Lord's brother. (You can be certain that what I am offering you is an authentic account. Before God, it's the whole truth — I wouldn't lie.) Later I journeyed to Syria and Cilicia; and since I had spent so little time in Judea among the churches of the Anointed One, no one there could pick me out of a crowd. But stories of my call and mission preceded me: "The very man who wanted to kill us all is now preaching the faith he once labored to destroy." And so they praised God for the miracle He did in my life.
(Galatians 1:13-24)
The troublemakers who are putting pressure on you to be circumcised are trying to impress the flesh. They want to avoid the persecution that comes from preaching the cross of the Anointed One, the Liberating King. But even those who receive circumcision can't keep the law — although they think they can — and they hope to influence which way you go with your own skin so they can have bragging rights over your flesh.
May I never put anything above the cross of our Lord Jesus the Anointed. Through Him, the world has been crucified to me and I to this world. Let me be clear: circumcision won't save you — uncircumcision won't either for that matter — for both amount to nothing. God's new creation is what counts, and it counts for everything. May peace and mercy come to all of you who live by this rule and to the Israel of God.
(Galatians 6:12-16)
Response in Prayer
Father, forgive me for the times I've added requirements to the simple, pure, and powerful gospel about Jesus. Thank You that Your gospel is so simple, clear, and focused. Thank You for Jesus Who makes this message Your powerful and simple truth that brings new life. I thank You in Jesus' name. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Faithful Friend,
I told My disciples in the last few hours before My crucifixion, "I don't call you servants any longer; servants don't know what the master is doing, but I have told you everything the Father has said to Me. I call you friends" (John 15:15). To some of My friends, I revealed deeper things in special revelation to give them the authority to teach the good news about Me in all of its simple truth. The apostle Paul was one of these special people. The Father revealed Me to Paul so that he could proclaim My story, share My grace, and bring My salvation to "outsider nations."
Paul didn't learn this message from any mortal (Galatians 1:11-17; Galatians 2:1-10). He didn't get the details of the gospel from the apostles or any other witnesses. In his letter to the Galatians, Paul was battling to preserve this authoritative message about the Father's grace. The Galatians were trying to add Jewish practices to the gospel — practices established in the law given to Moses and other practices added by tradition. Paul was right in adamantly declaring that any gospel that added requirements to the gospel of grace received through faith is really no gospel at all (Galatians 1:6-9).
Finding new life in Me and becoming a "new creation" come only from being "in" Me. Paul told the Corinthians:
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
(2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV)
Paul made it clear to the Galatians that this "new creation" happened through faith and was experienced in baptism. This new life could not come through any form of law-keeping or doings works of the law of Moses:
So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
(Galatians 3:26-29 NIV)
During our continuing journey through the New Testament over the next few months, you will see time and again that people will try to add some additional requirement to My simple gospel. Thankfully, Paul never abandoned what the Father had revealed in him (Galatians 1:15-16): I AM the good news the world needs. I AM "the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me" (John 14:6 NLT). So Paul reminded his Galatian brothers and sisters at both the beginning and the end of his letter that there is only one gospel, the one delivered to him from God about Me. Paul also reminded the Galatians that there is only one thing that ultimately matters: "God's new creation is what counts, and it counts for everything."
Verses to Live
As you read these seemingly unconnected passages from the beginning and the end of Galatians, remember what I said about one, simple, and transformational message. There is only one. That message finds its focus in Me. When I come into a person's life, I make everything new. This change is what matters!
Surely you are familiar with my personal history, with my dedication to the teachings and traditions of Judaism. I persecuted the church of God — in fact, I meant to destroy it. I excelled in the teachings of Judaism far above other Jewish leaders, and I was zealous to practice the ways of our ancestors. But God — who set me apart even before birth and called me by His grace — chose, to His great delight, to reveal His Son in me so I could tell His story among the outsider nations. I didn't confer with anyone right away, nor did I go to those who were already emissaries in Jerusalem. I went straight to Arabia and later returned to Damascus.
After living this adventurous mission for three years, I made my way to Jerusalem and spent 15 days with Cephas, whom you know as Peter. But I didn't see any emissary other than James, our Lord's brother. (You can be certain that what I am offering you is an authentic account. Before God, it's the whole truth — I wouldn't lie.) Later I journeyed to Syria and Cilicia; and since I had spent so little time in Judea among the churches of the Anointed One, no one there could pick me out of a crowd. But stories of my call and mission preceded me: "The very man who wanted to kill us all is now preaching the faith he once labored to destroy." And so they praised God for the miracle He did in my life.
(Galatians 1:13-24)
The troublemakers who are putting pressure on you to be circumcised are trying to impress the flesh. They want to avoid the persecution that comes from preaching the cross of the Anointed One, the Liberating King. But even those who receive circumcision can't keep the law — although they think they can — and they hope to influence which way you go with your own skin so they can have bragging rights over your flesh.
May I never put anything above the cross of our Lord Jesus the Anointed. Through Him, the world has been crucified to me and I to this world. Let me be clear: circumcision won't save you — uncircumcision won't either for that matter — for both amount to nothing. God's new creation is what counts, and it counts for everything. May peace and mercy come to all of you who live by this rule and to the Israel of God.
(Galatians 6:12-16)
Response in Prayer
Father, forgive me for the times I've added requirements to the simple, pure, and powerful gospel about Jesus. Thank You that Your gospel is so simple, clear, and focused. Thank You for Jesus Who makes this message Your powerful and simple truth that brings new life. I thank You in Jesus' name. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"Focusing on Prayer" — A Year with Jesus for 07/04/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
Prayer is one of the most precious gifts you have received as the Father's child! One of the reasons I sent the Holy Spirit to you was so that you would have His help in your prayer life (Romans 8:26-27). James began and ended his tract on living for the Father with straightforward teaching on prayer. I want you to notice several things about this teaching that are highlighted in bold for you in the verses below.
However, the first truth about prayer you must know is this: prayer is rooted in the grace of your Father in heaven. I taught you to address your heavenly Father with the simple words, "Our Father" (Matthew 6:9). Your Father longs to give you good gifts. He longs to "grant all that you need" and "He gives lavishly and never scolds you for asking"! Your Father longs to lift you "up from the floor of despair" and bring you lasting life! (See the underlined emphasis in the verses below.) In other words, prayer is first and foremost about your Father. Recognize that prayer is a gift of grace from your Father in heaven. Your prayers need to come from a heart fully yielded to Him.
James also gives several other key truths that are connected to prayer, and that grow out of the following principles:
Ask the Father — remember He longs to be gracious.
Your request should come from an undivided heart; it should "be anchored by your single-minded commitment to God."
You should enlist righteous people, like your elders, to help you pray for your deepest needs.
Your prayers should be offered in faith — remember, don't doubt the Father longs to hear you.
Your prayers should be rooted in the righteousness of your life.
Prayers don't need to be uttered with a lot of words or fancy language, but your heart needs to be intensely riveted on the Father as you pray. The focus of your intensity, when you pray, should be the Father, not the perfect choice of your words.
Prayer is a great gift. Use this gift. Seek the Father. Come to Him out of a life lived for Him. He longs to be gracious to you.
Verses to Live
When I was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane on the night I was betrayed, the soldiers and the crowd sent by the religious leaders knew where to find Me because going there was My regular practice (Luke 22:39-40; Luke 21:37). My request of the Father was specific and heartfelt — "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done" (Luke 22:42 NIV). My surrender to His will was not new. I had prayed this prayer many times. I hope My example for you, along with the following words from James for you, will give you the direction and encouragement you need to pray with confidence to the Father who loves you and longs to bless you. My desire is that you will seek godly people to join you in a confident prayer offered with intensity out of lives lived to honor the Father. (The bold highlights words about how you should pray and the underlining highlights the Father's response to your prayers.)
If you don't have all the wisdom needed for this journey, then all you have to do is ask God for it; and God will grant all that you need. He gives lavishly and never scolds you for asking.
The key is that your request be anchored by your single-minded commitment to God. Those who depend only on their own judgment are like those lost on the seas, carried away by any wave or picked up by any wind. Those adrift on their own wisdom shouldn't assume the Lord will rescue them or bring them anything. The splinter of divided loyalty shatters your compass and leaves you dizzy and confused.
(James 1:5-8)
Are any in your community suffering? They should pray. Are any celebrating? They should sing praises to God. Are any sick? They should call the elders of your church and ask them to pray. They will gather around and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. Prayers offered in faith will restore them from sickness and bring them to health. The Lord will lift them up from the floor of despair; and if the sickness is due to sin, then God will forgive their sins. So own up to your sins to one another and pray for one another. In the end, you may be healed. Your prayers are powerful when they are rooted in a righteous life. Remember Elijah? He was a man, no different from us. He prayed with great intensity asking God to withhold the rain; God answered his prayers and did not allow a single drop of rain to fall for three and a half years. It did not rain until Elijah prayed again for God to open the skies, when the rain came down and the earth produced a great crop.
(James 5:13-18)
Response in Prayer
O Father, my Abba Father, thank You for the grace of prayer. Thank You for listening to both my words and my heart. I know that You long to hear my heart when I pray. I know that You have given me the blessed Holy Spirit to make my deepest longings, sighs, and groanings known to You. Forgive me when I pray without my focus on You. Forgive me for the times that I have prayed without the intensity of my heart longing to communicate with You. I especially ask that You hear my heart as I pray for several of my friends by name, friends who need Your grace, healing, and strength... In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
Prayer is one of the most precious gifts you have received as the Father's child! One of the reasons I sent the Holy Spirit to you was so that you would have His help in your prayer life (Romans 8:26-27). James began and ended his tract on living for the Father with straightforward teaching on prayer. I want you to notice several things about this teaching that are highlighted in bold for you in the verses below.
However, the first truth about prayer you must know is this: prayer is rooted in the grace of your Father in heaven. I taught you to address your heavenly Father with the simple words, "Our Father" (Matthew 6:9). Your Father longs to give you good gifts. He longs to "grant all that you need" and "He gives lavishly and never scolds you for asking"! Your Father longs to lift you "up from the floor of despair" and bring you lasting life! (See the underlined emphasis in the verses below.) In other words, prayer is first and foremost about your Father. Recognize that prayer is a gift of grace from your Father in heaven. Your prayers need to come from a heart fully yielded to Him.
James also gives several other key truths that are connected to prayer, and that grow out of the following principles:
Ask the Father — remember He longs to be gracious.
Your request should come from an undivided heart; it should "be anchored by your single-minded commitment to God."
You should enlist righteous people, like your elders, to help you pray for your deepest needs.
Your prayers should be offered in faith — remember, don't doubt the Father longs to hear you.
Your prayers should be rooted in the righteousness of your life.
Prayers don't need to be uttered with a lot of words or fancy language, but your heart needs to be intensely riveted on the Father as you pray. The focus of your intensity, when you pray, should be the Father, not the perfect choice of your words.
Prayer is a great gift. Use this gift. Seek the Father. Come to Him out of a life lived for Him. He longs to be gracious to you.
Verses to Live
When I was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane on the night I was betrayed, the soldiers and the crowd sent by the religious leaders knew where to find Me because going there was My regular practice (Luke 22:39-40; Luke 21:37). My request of the Father was specific and heartfelt — "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done" (Luke 22:42 NIV). My surrender to His will was not new. I had prayed this prayer many times. I hope My example for you, along with the following words from James for you, will give you the direction and encouragement you need to pray with confidence to the Father who loves you and longs to bless you. My desire is that you will seek godly people to join you in a confident prayer offered with intensity out of lives lived to honor the Father. (The bold highlights words about how you should pray and the underlining highlights the Father's response to your prayers.)
If you don't have all the wisdom needed for this journey, then all you have to do is ask God for it; and God will grant all that you need. He gives lavishly and never scolds you for asking.
The key is that your request be anchored by your single-minded commitment to God. Those who depend only on their own judgment are like those lost on the seas, carried away by any wave or picked up by any wind. Those adrift on their own wisdom shouldn't assume the Lord will rescue them or bring them anything. The splinter of divided loyalty shatters your compass and leaves you dizzy and confused.
(James 1:5-8)
Are any in your community suffering? They should pray. Are any celebrating? They should sing praises to God. Are any sick? They should call the elders of your church and ask them to pray. They will gather around and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. Prayers offered in faith will restore them from sickness and bring them to health. The Lord will lift them up from the floor of despair; and if the sickness is due to sin, then God will forgive their sins. So own up to your sins to one another and pray for one another. In the end, you may be healed. Your prayers are powerful when they are rooted in a righteous life. Remember Elijah? He was a man, no different from us. He prayed with great intensity asking God to withhold the rain; God answered his prayers and did not allow a single drop of rain to fall for three and a half years. It did not rain until Elijah prayed again for God to open the skies, when the rain came down and the earth produced a great crop.
(James 5:13-18)
Response in Prayer
O Father, my Abba Father, thank You for the grace of prayer. Thank You for listening to both my words and my heart. I know that You long to hear my heart when I pray. I know that You have given me the blessed Holy Spirit to make my deepest longings, sighs, and groanings known to You. Forgive me when I pray without my focus on You. Forgive me for the times that I have prayed without the intensity of my heart longing to communicate with You. I especially ask that You hear my heart as I pray for several of my friends by name, friends who need Your grace, healing, and strength... In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"The Urgency of Living Patiently" — A Year with Jesus for 07/03/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Precious One,
In the verses I want to share with you today, James teaches you about the urgency of living patiently. Let Me explain what he means and what I want you to do to live this "urgency with patience" lifestyle.
First, notice that the rich who are corrupt are going to fall under judgment. I know some of My disciples have had their lives ruined by those who abused their wealth and power: mistreating "their" workers, hoarding "their" wealth while neglecting the human need all around them, abusing the legal system for "their" advantage, underpaying those who work for "them," and exploiting both people and animals to the point of exhaustion and even death sometimes. Be patient, My precious ones, and be faithful. I will relieve your suffering. Be patient: help is on the way. We — the Almighty Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — command heaven's armies. We will enforce justice upon all, including on those who think they are above justice. Hang on; I AM coming with justice!
Second, remember the farmer and his crops. There is a time to plant, and there is a time to reap. The harvest is not far off for you. Please wait like a good farmer who trusts that the harvest will come. Strengthen your resolve. I will come when it is harvest time. Your waiting will be worth all the pain and difficulty you have endured!
Third, while you are waiting, treat each other with grace and compassion. Complaining about others and judging their motives never accomplishes My work. These wearisome behaviors tear down those that you need at your side as you await My coming. To help you know how to wait with grace and compassion for My coming, remember the great people and prophets of old like Job. Rely upon the Spirit I have given to you to strengthen, comfort, and encourage you as you wait.
Finally, don't feel that you have to be overly dramatic when giving your word. Just say "yes" and "no." You don't need to use an oath. Keep your word. There will be times when you find that this is difficult, but remember that I AM coming, and I will hold you to your word.
I AM coming. I will judge those who mistreat you and abuse you. However, I will also hold you to the standard of character and compassion that reflects My own character and compassion. Time is short. These matters are urgent. You must live with holy and passionate patience.
Verses to Live
The following verses are James' words of exhortation. Trust them. Live them. They come with My authority and approval. Be ready for Me. Be patient waiting for My justice and My coming. Know I have heard your cries and have seen your struggles, and I AM coming down to avenge you. Until I return, seek the Spirit's strength and guidance as you face difficulties in your life. It is urgently important that you live patiently trusting James' words and trusting that My promises are true!
Hey, you rich folk, misery is on its way; so cry and moan because you will watch your riches rot before your eyes as the moths devour your fine clothes. Your stockpile of silver and gold is tarnished and corroded, and this rust will stand up in the final judgment and testify against you. It will eat your flesh like fire and become a permanent and painful reminder that you have hoarded your wealth through these last days. Listen. You held back a just wage from the laborers who mowed your fields, and that money is crying out against you, demanding that justice be done. The cries of the people who harvested your crops and made you a profit have fallen upon the ears of the supreme Lord of heavenly armies. Your life on the earth has been one of luxury, pleasure, and endless consumption; you have feasted to your hearts' content on animals you slaughtered, but now the day of slaughter comes for you. You have condemned and murdered the righteous man, and he did not defend himself.
For this reason, my brothers and sisters, be patient as you wait for the return of the Lord. Look! The farmer knows how to wait patiently for the land to produce vegetables and fruits. He cannot harvest a freshly planted seed. Instead, he waits for the early and the late showers to nourish the soil. You need this same kind of patience, so in the meantime, strengthen your resolve because the Lord will be coming soon.
Brothers and sisters, don't waste your breath complaining about one another. If you judge others, you will be judged yourself. Be very careful! You will face the one true Judge who is right outside the door. The prophets who declared the word of the Lord are your role models, my brothers and sisters, for what it means to live patiently in the face of suffering. Look, we bless and honor the memory of those who persevered under hardship. Remember how Job endured and how the Lord orchestrated the triumph of his final circumstances as a grand display of His mercy and compassion.
It is even more important, my brothers and sisters, that you remember not to make a vow by the heavens or the earth or by anything. When you say "yes," it should always mean "yes," and "no" should always mean "no." If you can keep your word, you will avoid judgment.
(James 5:1-12)
Response in Prayer
Father, please give me patience. I want to be Your person of character in the world where You have placed me. I trust that Jesus will return for me. Even so, dear Father, I do need patience while I wait. I don't want to be unprepared for Jesus' coming because I lose patience and begin to live like those who have no hope in You. I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Precious One,
In the verses I want to share with you today, James teaches you about the urgency of living patiently. Let Me explain what he means and what I want you to do to live this "urgency with patience" lifestyle.
First, notice that the rich who are corrupt are going to fall under judgment. I know some of My disciples have had their lives ruined by those who abused their wealth and power: mistreating "their" workers, hoarding "their" wealth while neglecting the human need all around them, abusing the legal system for "their" advantage, underpaying those who work for "them," and exploiting both people and animals to the point of exhaustion and even death sometimes. Be patient, My precious ones, and be faithful. I will relieve your suffering. Be patient: help is on the way. We — the Almighty Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — command heaven's armies. We will enforce justice upon all, including on those who think they are above justice. Hang on; I AM coming with justice!
Second, remember the farmer and his crops. There is a time to plant, and there is a time to reap. The harvest is not far off for you. Please wait like a good farmer who trusts that the harvest will come. Strengthen your resolve. I will come when it is harvest time. Your waiting will be worth all the pain and difficulty you have endured!
Third, while you are waiting, treat each other with grace and compassion. Complaining about others and judging their motives never accomplishes My work. These wearisome behaviors tear down those that you need at your side as you await My coming. To help you know how to wait with grace and compassion for My coming, remember the great people and prophets of old like Job. Rely upon the Spirit I have given to you to strengthen, comfort, and encourage you as you wait.
Finally, don't feel that you have to be overly dramatic when giving your word. Just say "yes" and "no." You don't need to use an oath. Keep your word. There will be times when you find that this is difficult, but remember that I AM coming, and I will hold you to your word.
I AM coming. I will judge those who mistreat you and abuse you. However, I will also hold you to the standard of character and compassion that reflects My own character and compassion. Time is short. These matters are urgent. You must live with holy and passionate patience.
Verses to Live
The following verses are James' words of exhortation. Trust them. Live them. They come with My authority and approval. Be ready for Me. Be patient waiting for My justice and My coming. Know I have heard your cries and have seen your struggles, and I AM coming down to avenge you. Until I return, seek the Spirit's strength and guidance as you face difficulties in your life. It is urgently important that you live patiently trusting James' words and trusting that My promises are true!
Hey, you rich folk, misery is on its way; so cry and moan because you will watch your riches rot before your eyes as the moths devour your fine clothes. Your stockpile of silver and gold is tarnished and corroded, and this rust will stand up in the final judgment and testify against you. It will eat your flesh like fire and become a permanent and painful reminder that you have hoarded your wealth through these last days. Listen. You held back a just wage from the laborers who mowed your fields, and that money is crying out against you, demanding that justice be done. The cries of the people who harvested your crops and made you a profit have fallen upon the ears of the supreme Lord of heavenly armies. Your life on the earth has been one of luxury, pleasure, and endless consumption; you have feasted to your hearts' content on animals you slaughtered, but now the day of slaughter comes for you. You have condemned and murdered the righteous man, and he did not defend himself.
For this reason, my brothers and sisters, be patient as you wait for the return of the Lord. Look! The farmer knows how to wait patiently for the land to produce vegetables and fruits. He cannot harvest a freshly planted seed. Instead, he waits for the early and the late showers to nourish the soil. You need this same kind of patience, so in the meantime, strengthen your resolve because the Lord will be coming soon.
Brothers and sisters, don't waste your breath complaining about one another. If you judge others, you will be judged yourself. Be very careful! You will face the one true Judge who is right outside the door. The prophets who declared the word of the Lord are your role models, my brothers and sisters, for what it means to live patiently in the face of suffering. Look, we bless and honor the memory of those who persevered under hardship. Remember how Job endured and how the Lord orchestrated the triumph of his final circumstances as a grand display of His mercy and compassion.
It is even more important, my brothers and sisters, that you remember not to make a vow by the heavens or the earth or by anything. When you say "yes," it should always mean "yes," and "no" should always mean "no." If you can keep your word, you will avoid judgment.
(James 5:1-12)
Response in Prayer
Father, please give me patience. I want to be Your person of character in the world where You have placed me. I trust that Jesus will return for me. Even so, dear Father, I do need patience while I wait. I don't want to be unprepared for Jesus' coming because I lose patience and begin to live like those who have no hope in You. I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
Humbly Yield Control" — A Year with Jesus for 07/02/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Disciple,
Yesterday I talked to you about letting the Spirit lead the dance of your life. Today, I want you to notice what happens when a person takes the lead of his or her own life. This is what happens when a person's "constant pursuit of gratification" and continual "focus on self-indulgence" have control of his or her heart:
Prayers go unanswered.
Envy and jealously control life in ways similar to an out-of-control addiction.
Pride and arrogance rule over a person's heart.
Overbearing criticism shows up regularly in conversations.
Accusations are made against good people.
A sense of control of one's destiny makes a person oblivious to the fragility of his or her own life.
Good things that need to be done go undone and neglected.
Just as Paul emphasized in the verses yesterday, James reminds you today with strong words that you must consciously and humbly offer yourself to the Father. Don't be afraid to be physically demonstrative with your humble repentance. Not only ask for His forgiveness but also offer Him control over your heart and your life. Offer your whole self to the Father — heart, soul, mind, and strength — to be used as His person and controlled by His Spirit.
Rid your heart of the evil influences that poison it and that make it inhospitable to the Holy Spirit. I sent the Holy Spirit to live in your heart. The Spirit wants to bring God's character, compassion, and blessing to life in you. So resist the power of evil, Satan, and the demonic world. Drive the evil one away and invite the Holy Spirit to take control!
Verses to Live
In the verses below, James uses his typical straightforward style to challenge his readers to look at their hearts. He wants you to be aware of what motivates your heart. He warns of all sorts of ways pride and arrogance sneak in and steal a person's heart from God. So offer yourselves to God... in humility.
Where do you think your fighting and endless conflict come from? Don't you think that they originate in the constant pursuit of gratification that rages inside each of you like an uncontrolled militia? You crave something that you do not possess, so you murder to get it. You desire the things you cannot earn, so you sue others and fight for what you want. You do not have because you have chosen not to ask. And when you do ask, you still do not get what you want because your motives are all wrong — because you continually focus on self-indulgence. You are adulterers. Don't you know that making friends with this corrupt world order is open aggression toward God? So anyone who aligns with this bogus world system is declaring war against the one true God. Do you think it is empty rhetoric when the Scriptures say, "The spirit that lives in us is addicted to envy and jealousy"? You may think that the situation is hopeless, but God gives us more grace when we turn away from our own interests. That's why Scripture says,
God opposes the proud, but He pours out grace on the humble.
So submit yourselves to the one true God and fight against the devil and his schemes. If you do, he will run away in failure. Come close to the one true God, and He will draw close to you. Wash your hands; you have dirtied them in sin. Cleanse your heart, because your mind is split down the middle, your love for God on one side and selfish pursuits on the other.
Now is the time to lament, to grieve, and to cry. Dissolve your laughter into sobbing, and exchange your joy for depression. Lay yourself bare, facedown to the ground, in humility before the Lord; and He will lift your head so you can stand tall. My brothers and sisters, do not assault each other with criticism. If you decide your job is to accuse and judge another believer, then you are a self-appointed critic and judge of the law; if so, then you are no longer a doer of the law and subject to its rule; you stand over it as a judge. Know this — there is One who stands supreme as Judge and Lawgiver. He alone is able to save and to destroy, so who are you to step in and try to judge another?
Listen carefully, those of you who make your plans and say, "We are traveling to this city in the next few days. We'll stay there for one year while our business explodes and revenue is up." The reality is you have no idea where your life will take you tomorrow. You are like a mist that appears one moment and then vanishes another. It would be best to say, "If it is the Lord's will and we live long enough, we hope to do this project or pursue that dream." But your current speech indicates an arrogance that does not acknowledge the One who controls the universe, and this kind of big talking is the epitome of evil. So if you know the right way to live and ignore it, it is sin — plain and simple.
(James 4:1-17)
Response in Prayer
O Father, please forgive me. Forgive me for trying to live my life by my own power. Forgive me for the times I've wandered from the Spirit's lead in the dance of my life. Forgive me for my willful sins. Please forgive me for those sins of neglect and laziness when good things have gone undone. I humbly offer myself — my heart, my mind, my spirit, and my body — to be controlled by You and used for Your glory. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Disciple,
Yesterday I talked to you about letting the Spirit lead the dance of your life. Today, I want you to notice what happens when a person takes the lead of his or her own life. This is what happens when a person's "constant pursuit of gratification" and continual "focus on self-indulgence" have control of his or her heart:
Prayers go unanswered.
Envy and jealously control life in ways similar to an out-of-control addiction.
Pride and arrogance rule over a person's heart.
Overbearing criticism shows up regularly in conversations.
Accusations are made against good people.
A sense of control of one's destiny makes a person oblivious to the fragility of his or her own life.
Good things that need to be done go undone and neglected.
Just as Paul emphasized in the verses yesterday, James reminds you today with strong words that you must consciously and humbly offer yourself to the Father. Don't be afraid to be physically demonstrative with your humble repentance. Not only ask for His forgiveness but also offer Him control over your heart and your life. Offer your whole self to the Father — heart, soul, mind, and strength — to be used as His person and controlled by His Spirit.
Rid your heart of the evil influences that poison it and that make it inhospitable to the Holy Spirit. I sent the Holy Spirit to live in your heart. The Spirit wants to bring God's character, compassion, and blessing to life in you. So resist the power of evil, Satan, and the demonic world. Drive the evil one away and invite the Holy Spirit to take control!
Verses to Live
In the verses below, James uses his typical straightforward style to challenge his readers to look at their hearts. He wants you to be aware of what motivates your heart. He warns of all sorts of ways pride and arrogance sneak in and steal a person's heart from God. So offer yourselves to God... in humility.
Where do you think your fighting and endless conflict come from? Don't you think that they originate in the constant pursuit of gratification that rages inside each of you like an uncontrolled militia? You crave something that you do not possess, so you murder to get it. You desire the things you cannot earn, so you sue others and fight for what you want. You do not have because you have chosen not to ask. And when you do ask, you still do not get what you want because your motives are all wrong — because you continually focus on self-indulgence. You are adulterers. Don't you know that making friends with this corrupt world order is open aggression toward God? So anyone who aligns with this bogus world system is declaring war against the one true God. Do you think it is empty rhetoric when the Scriptures say, "The spirit that lives in us is addicted to envy and jealousy"? You may think that the situation is hopeless, but God gives us more grace when we turn away from our own interests. That's why Scripture says,
God opposes the proud, but He pours out grace on the humble.
So submit yourselves to the one true God and fight against the devil and his schemes. If you do, he will run away in failure. Come close to the one true God, and He will draw close to you. Wash your hands; you have dirtied them in sin. Cleanse your heart, because your mind is split down the middle, your love for God on one side and selfish pursuits on the other.
Now is the time to lament, to grieve, and to cry. Dissolve your laughter into sobbing, and exchange your joy for depression. Lay yourself bare, facedown to the ground, in humility before the Lord; and He will lift your head so you can stand tall. My brothers and sisters, do not assault each other with criticism. If you decide your job is to accuse and judge another believer, then you are a self-appointed critic and judge of the law; if so, then you are no longer a doer of the law and subject to its rule; you stand over it as a judge. Know this — there is One who stands supreme as Judge and Lawgiver. He alone is able to save and to destroy, so who are you to step in and try to judge another?
Listen carefully, those of you who make your plans and say, "We are traveling to this city in the next few days. We'll stay there for one year while our business explodes and revenue is up." The reality is you have no idea where your life will take you tomorrow. You are like a mist that appears one moment and then vanishes another. It would be best to say, "If it is the Lord's will and we live long enough, we hope to do this project or pursue that dream." But your current speech indicates an arrogance that does not acknowledge the One who controls the universe, and this kind of big talking is the epitome of evil. So if you know the right way to live and ignore it, it is sin — plain and simple.
(James 4:1-17)
Response in Prayer
O Father, please forgive me. Forgive me for trying to live my life by my own power. Forgive me for the times I've wandered from the Spirit's lead in the dance of my life. Forgive me for my willful sins. Please forgive me for those sins of neglect and laziness when good things have gone undone. I humbly offer myself — my heart, my mind, my spirit, and my body — to be controlled by You and used for Your glory. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"Who Leads in Your Dance of Life?" — A Year with Jesus for 07/01/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Child of the King,
You may have noticed in our time together the last few days that I have had you read from Galatians and/or James in your Bible. These two letters were written to very different groups of people, with different religious backgrounds, but with similar concerns. Those concerns as stated from the viewpoint of the recipients of the letters were these:
How am I supposed to live a righteous life if I don't live by the law?
Can I call myself a disciple of Jesus if I don't do what the Father says, and I don't display the Father's righteous character and gracious compassion in my life?
What about those who live in ways that are in rebellion to the character of the Father — don't they need to live under the law?
What about those who claim to be Christians, but don't live righteously and appear to be hypocrites?
In today's verses, Paul emphasizes that the law cannot do what the Spirit can do to answer these questions. The Spirit comes and brings My power to transform you. Remember what I promised shortly before My death, burial, resurrection, and ascension:
"I tell you the truth: whoever believes in Me will be able to do what I have done, but they will do even greater things, because I will return to be with the Father. .. I will ask the Father to send you another Helper, the Spirit of truth, who will remain constantly with you."
(John 14:12, 16)
Through prayer and the empowering presence of the Spirit within you individually, as well as the Spirit working through you collectively, I AM at work in you. I AM also at work through you to do these "greater things." The law cannot give you this power and cannot fulfill this promise. Only the presence and power of the Holy Spirit can.
You began your walk with Me through the work of the Holy Spirit. I have done great things among you, within you, and through you by the power of the Spirit. Do not depend on law-keeping in an attempt to be holy and to live righteous lives. I want you to understand that life, especially a life of character and devotion to God, is like a holy dance. In this dance of life, you can lead the dance and allow the sinful desires of the flesh to control the direction of your dance. Or, you can be led by the Spirit, and the Spirit's fruit of holy character — "unconditional love, joy, peace, patience, kindheartedness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control" — will shine through in your life.
How are you going to be led by the Spirit? I want you to know that the dance of life with the Spirit in the lead begins here:
[S]et aside [y]our self-interests and work together to create true community instead of a culture consumed by provocation, pride, and envy.
After committing yourself to Me, your first step in this dance of holy living is to consciously set aside your own desire. Give up your fleshly focus and self-interest. This submission is keeping "each step in perfect sync with God's Spirit." Keeping in step with the Spirit happens because you consciously and willfully ask the Spirit to take the lead in the dance of your life. As you offer yourself to Me, ask that the Father keep pouring the Spirit's power and presence into your life (Luke 11:13; 1 Thessalonians 4:8).
The Holy Spirit is like a permanent heavenly guest in your life. The Spirit will not intrude into the secret places of your self-will and self-interest unless you invite Him and yield to His leading in your dance of life. However, the more you consciously and intentionally ask your heavenly guest to take control, the more the Spirit will exert His influence. The apostle Paul pointed to the following ways to offer the Spirit the lead in your dance of life:
Speak to one another in songs, hymns, and spiritual songs.
Sing.
Make music in your heart to God.
Give thanks in all circumstances.
Submit to one another as you reverence Me in your heart.
Let the message about Me be your strong defense against the influence of evil in your life.
Pray consciously depending upon the Spirit to be at work in your prayers.
Be alert.
(Ephesians 5:15-21; Ephesians 6:17-18)
You began your holy dance being led by the Spirit. Continue to invite the Spirit to lead. As you do, you will notice your life becoming more and more like the life you saw Me live (2 Corinthians 3:17-18).
Verses to Live
Dear follower, know that I long to do greater things in you and through you and for you through the power of the Holy Spirit. So let the Spirit lead the dance of your life. When you do, you will find that you will not need a law to tell you what to do. Rather than trying to obey a law, you will find "each step in perfect sync" with the Spirit!
Galatians, don't act like fools! Has someone cast a spell over you? Did you miss the crucifixion of Jesus the Anointed that was reenacted right in front of your eyes? Tell me this: Did the Holy Spirit come upon you because you lived according to the law? Or was it because you heard His message of grace through faith? Are you so foolish? Do you think you can perfect something God's Spirit started with any human effort? Have you suffered so greatly for nothing — if it was indeed for nothing? You have experienced the Spirit He gave you in powerful ways. Miracle after miracle has occurred right before your eyes in this community, so tell me: did all this happen because you have kept certain provisions of God's law, or was it because you heard the gospel and accepted it by faith?
(Galatians 3:1-5)
Here's my instruction: walk in the Spirit, and let the Spirit bring order to your life. If you do, you will never give in to your selfish and sinful cravings. For everything the flesh desires goes against the Spirit, and everything the Spirit desires goes against the flesh. There is a constant battle raging between them that prevents you from doing the good you want to do. But when you are led by the Spirit, you are no longer subject to the law.
It's clear that our flesh entices us into practicing some of its most heinous acts: participating in corrupt sexual relationships, impurity, unbridled lust, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, arguing, jealousy, anger, selfishness, contentiousness, division, envy of others' good fortune, drunkenness, drunken revelry, and other shameful vices that plague humankind. I told you this clearly before, and I only tell you again so there is no room for confusion: those who give in to these ways will not inherit the kingdom of God.
The Holy Spirit produces a different kind of fruit: unconditional love, joy, peace, patience, kindheartedness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. You won't find any law opposed to fruit like this. Those of us who belong to the Anointed One have crucified our old lives and put to death the flesh and all the lusts and desires that plague us.
Now since we have chosen to walk with the Spirit, let's keep each step in perfect sync with God's Spirit. This will happen when we set aside our self-interests and work together to create true community instead of a culture consumed by provocation, pride, and envy.
(Galatians 5:16-26)
Response in Prayer
Almighty God — Father, Son, and Spirit — thank You for Your grace that has brought forgiveness, cleansing, new life, and the power for me to live my new life in Jesus. Today, dear Father, I am aware of the gift of the Holy Spirit, the gift Jesus promised and then sent to me to be in me and to be with me until I find myself at home with You. May I never do anything to grieve the Spirit or put out the Spirit's fire. I offer myself to be led by the Spirit. I yield my will to have the Spirit work Your transformation in me. I ask that the Spirit fully conform me into the likeness of my Savior, Jesus, in Whose name I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Child of the King,
You may have noticed in our time together the last few days that I have had you read from Galatians and/or James in your Bible. These two letters were written to very different groups of people, with different religious backgrounds, but with similar concerns. Those concerns as stated from the viewpoint of the recipients of the letters were these:
How am I supposed to live a righteous life if I don't live by the law?
Can I call myself a disciple of Jesus if I don't do what the Father says, and I don't display the Father's righteous character and gracious compassion in my life?
What about those who live in ways that are in rebellion to the character of the Father — don't they need to live under the law?
What about those who claim to be Christians, but don't live righteously and appear to be hypocrites?
In today's verses, Paul emphasizes that the law cannot do what the Spirit can do to answer these questions. The Spirit comes and brings My power to transform you. Remember what I promised shortly before My death, burial, resurrection, and ascension:
"I tell you the truth: whoever believes in Me will be able to do what I have done, but they will do even greater things, because I will return to be with the Father. .. I will ask the Father to send you another Helper, the Spirit of truth, who will remain constantly with you."
(John 14:12, 16)
Through prayer and the empowering presence of the Spirit within you individually, as well as the Spirit working through you collectively, I AM at work in you. I AM also at work through you to do these "greater things." The law cannot give you this power and cannot fulfill this promise. Only the presence and power of the Holy Spirit can.
You began your walk with Me through the work of the Holy Spirit. I have done great things among you, within you, and through you by the power of the Spirit. Do not depend on law-keeping in an attempt to be holy and to live righteous lives. I want you to understand that life, especially a life of character and devotion to God, is like a holy dance. In this dance of life, you can lead the dance and allow the sinful desires of the flesh to control the direction of your dance. Or, you can be led by the Spirit, and the Spirit's fruit of holy character — "unconditional love, joy, peace, patience, kindheartedness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control" — will shine through in your life.
How are you going to be led by the Spirit? I want you to know that the dance of life with the Spirit in the lead begins here:
[S]et aside [y]our self-interests and work together to create true community instead of a culture consumed by provocation, pride, and envy.
After committing yourself to Me, your first step in this dance of holy living is to consciously set aside your own desire. Give up your fleshly focus and self-interest. This submission is keeping "each step in perfect sync with God's Spirit." Keeping in step with the Spirit happens because you consciously and willfully ask the Spirit to take the lead in the dance of your life. As you offer yourself to Me, ask that the Father keep pouring the Spirit's power and presence into your life (Luke 11:13; 1 Thessalonians 4:8).
The Holy Spirit is like a permanent heavenly guest in your life. The Spirit will not intrude into the secret places of your self-will and self-interest unless you invite Him and yield to His leading in your dance of life. However, the more you consciously and intentionally ask your heavenly guest to take control, the more the Spirit will exert His influence. The apostle Paul pointed to the following ways to offer the Spirit the lead in your dance of life:
Speak to one another in songs, hymns, and spiritual songs.
Sing.
Make music in your heart to God.
Give thanks in all circumstances.
Submit to one another as you reverence Me in your heart.
Let the message about Me be your strong defense against the influence of evil in your life.
Pray consciously depending upon the Spirit to be at work in your prayers.
Be alert.
(Ephesians 5:15-21; Ephesians 6:17-18)
You began your holy dance being led by the Spirit. Continue to invite the Spirit to lead. As you do, you will notice your life becoming more and more like the life you saw Me live (2 Corinthians 3:17-18).
Verses to Live
Dear follower, know that I long to do greater things in you and through you and for you through the power of the Holy Spirit. So let the Spirit lead the dance of your life. When you do, you will find that you will not need a law to tell you what to do. Rather than trying to obey a law, you will find "each step in perfect sync" with the Spirit!
Galatians, don't act like fools! Has someone cast a spell over you? Did you miss the crucifixion of Jesus the Anointed that was reenacted right in front of your eyes? Tell me this: Did the Holy Spirit come upon you because you lived according to the law? Or was it because you heard His message of grace through faith? Are you so foolish? Do you think you can perfect something God's Spirit started with any human effort? Have you suffered so greatly for nothing — if it was indeed for nothing? You have experienced the Spirit He gave you in powerful ways. Miracle after miracle has occurred right before your eyes in this community, so tell me: did all this happen because you have kept certain provisions of God's law, or was it because you heard the gospel and accepted it by faith?
(Galatians 3:1-5)
Here's my instruction: walk in the Spirit, and let the Spirit bring order to your life. If you do, you will never give in to your selfish and sinful cravings. For everything the flesh desires goes against the Spirit, and everything the Spirit desires goes against the flesh. There is a constant battle raging between them that prevents you from doing the good you want to do. But when you are led by the Spirit, you are no longer subject to the law.
It's clear that our flesh entices us into practicing some of its most heinous acts: participating in corrupt sexual relationships, impurity, unbridled lust, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, arguing, jealousy, anger, selfishness, contentiousness, division, envy of others' good fortune, drunkenness, drunken revelry, and other shameful vices that plague humankind. I told you this clearly before, and I only tell you again so there is no room for confusion: those who give in to these ways will not inherit the kingdom of God.
The Holy Spirit produces a different kind of fruit: unconditional love, joy, peace, patience, kindheartedness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. You won't find any law opposed to fruit like this. Those of us who belong to the Anointed One have crucified our old lives and put to death the flesh and all the lusts and desires that plague us.
Now since we have chosen to walk with the Spirit, let's keep each step in perfect sync with God's Spirit. This will happen when we set aside our self-interests and work together to create true community instead of a culture consumed by provocation, pride, and envy.
(Galatians 5:16-26)
Response in Prayer
Almighty God — Father, Son, and Spirit — thank You for Your grace that has brought forgiveness, cleansing, new life, and the power for me to live my new life in Jesus. Today, dear Father, I am aware of the gift of the Holy Spirit, the gift Jesus promised and then sent to me to be in me and to be with me until I find myself at home with You. May I never do anything to grieve the Spirit or put out the Spirit's fire. I offer myself to be led by the Spirit. I yield my will to have the Spirit work Your transformation in me. I ask that the Spirit fully conform me into the likeness of my Savior, Jesus, in Whose name I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
Wisdom, Peace, and Righteousness" — A Year with Jesus for 06/30/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Disciple,
When James wrote about wisdom and peace, he used terms whose meanings were rooted in what you call the Old Testament — The Law, the Prophets, and the Writings. To fully appreciate what James taught in today's verses, you must understand what peace and wisdom meant when he used those terms.
For James, peace was much more than an absence of conflict. Peace was living in true shalom — the state of blessing and wholesomeness in life that comes when people live in complete harmony with the Father's will. For James, righteousness would flourish, and compassion would be displayed when the joy of right living produced the place and the people where the Father's presence would love to dwell. True shalom for them, and for you, is the blessing of living Our life in your world. True shalom is experiencing the blessedness of the Father's presence and rule over every area of life.
For James, wisdom was not some theoretical attainment of mental excellence, but a life full of all the goodness and true shalom that come from the Father's grace. This life flowed out of a person's commitment to living the Father's values in his or her world. James emphasized that this wisdom would be shown by a disciple's example of good living. This kind of wisdom was not just the subject of some philosophical speculation. Instead, this true wisdom was about life being tuned to Our righteous character and gracious compassion. Wisdom would mean living in reverential respect for Us and living in harmony with your neighbor. This reverential respect for Us would then be the beginning of all wisdom:
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
all those who practice it have a good understanding.
(Psalm 111:10 ESV)
What I taught as the two greatest commands captures both elements of true wisdom — living in reverential respect for the Father and loving your neighbor:
And again the crowd was amazed. They were astonished at His [Jesus'] teaching.
Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, a group of Pharisees met to consider new questions that might trip up Jesus. A legal expert thought of one that would certainly stump Him.
Pharisees:
Teacher, of all the laws, which commandment is the greatest?
Jesus (quoting Scripture):
"Love the Eternal One your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind." This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is nearly as important, "Love your neighbor as yourself." The rest of the law, and all the teachings of the prophets, are but variations on these themes.
(Matthew 22:33-40)
Wisdom springs from living these two principles. However, when jealousy and selfish ambition are found in a group or culture, true wisdom and peace go out the window. Chaos and evil flourish as each person competes for his or her own interest at the expense of others. Loving God is soon forgotten in the love of power, the pursuit of prestige, and the jockeying for position. Love of neighbor is ignored in the rush to love oneself and forget about others.
This kind of selfishness that masquerades as worldly wisdom has given the world the mess in which it finds itself. This selfishness is one way the evil one captures the hearts of people and enslaves them in what is not wise. This kind of selfishness never brings true wisdom and true shalom. So rather than focusing on what you can get for yourself, center your focus on how to live the character and compassion that you see in Me. Also, notice the characteristics that James said are from the devil and should not be found among My disciples:
Jealousy
Selfishness, selfish ambition
Pride
Now notice the character qualities that James urges you to pursue:
Purity
Peace
Gentleness
Deference
Mercy
Other good fruits untainted by hypocrisy
Make this last set of attributes the goal to bring forth in your daily life. If you do so, you will find yourself in God's peace, the true shalom that brings real life. This harmony is true wisdom!
Verses to Live
James spoke in clear, simple language to remind you that heavenly wisdom and true peace will be found where the life of God is lived. Righteousness is the natural result of such a life lived in the Spirit.
Who in your community is understanding and wise? Let his example, which is marked by wisdom and gentleness, blaze a trail for others. If your heart is one that bleeds dark streams of jealousy and selfishness, do not be so proud that you ignore your depraved state. The wisdom of this world should never be mistaken for heavenly wisdom; it originates below in the earthly realms, with the demons. Any place where you find jealousy and selfish ambition, you will discover chaos and evil thriving under its rule. Heavenly wisdom centers on purity, peace, gentleness, deference, mercy, and other good fruits untainted by hypocrisy. The seed that flowers into righteousness will always be planted in peace by those who embrace peace.
(James 3:13-18)
Response in Prayer
O Father, please bless me with true wisdom. I commit to pursuing the things that bring peace and demonstrate wise living. Forgive me for the times that I have put my own desires and my own yearning for things and status above developing the true wisdom that brings peace. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Disciple,
When James wrote about wisdom and peace, he used terms whose meanings were rooted in what you call the Old Testament — The Law, the Prophets, and the Writings. To fully appreciate what James taught in today's verses, you must understand what peace and wisdom meant when he used those terms.
For James, peace was much more than an absence of conflict. Peace was living in true shalom — the state of blessing and wholesomeness in life that comes when people live in complete harmony with the Father's will. For James, righteousness would flourish, and compassion would be displayed when the joy of right living produced the place and the people where the Father's presence would love to dwell. True shalom for them, and for you, is the blessing of living Our life in your world. True shalom is experiencing the blessedness of the Father's presence and rule over every area of life.
For James, wisdom was not some theoretical attainment of mental excellence, but a life full of all the goodness and true shalom that come from the Father's grace. This life flowed out of a person's commitment to living the Father's values in his or her world. James emphasized that this wisdom would be shown by a disciple's example of good living. This kind of wisdom was not just the subject of some philosophical speculation. Instead, this true wisdom was about life being tuned to Our righteous character and gracious compassion. Wisdom would mean living in reverential respect for Us and living in harmony with your neighbor. This reverential respect for Us would then be the beginning of all wisdom:
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
all those who practice it have a good understanding.
(Psalm 111:10 ESV)
What I taught as the two greatest commands captures both elements of true wisdom — living in reverential respect for the Father and loving your neighbor:
And again the crowd was amazed. They were astonished at His [Jesus'] teaching.
Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, a group of Pharisees met to consider new questions that might trip up Jesus. A legal expert thought of one that would certainly stump Him.
Pharisees:
Teacher, of all the laws, which commandment is the greatest?
Jesus (quoting Scripture):
"Love the Eternal One your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind." This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is nearly as important, "Love your neighbor as yourself." The rest of the law, and all the teachings of the prophets, are but variations on these themes.
(Matthew 22:33-40)
Wisdom springs from living these two principles. However, when jealousy and selfish ambition are found in a group or culture, true wisdom and peace go out the window. Chaos and evil flourish as each person competes for his or her own interest at the expense of others. Loving God is soon forgotten in the love of power, the pursuit of prestige, and the jockeying for position. Love of neighbor is ignored in the rush to love oneself and forget about others.
This kind of selfishness that masquerades as worldly wisdom has given the world the mess in which it finds itself. This selfishness is one way the evil one captures the hearts of people and enslaves them in what is not wise. This kind of selfishness never brings true wisdom and true shalom. So rather than focusing on what you can get for yourself, center your focus on how to live the character and compassion that you see in Me. Also, notice the characteristics that James said are from the devil and should not be found among My disciples:
Jealousy
Selfishness, selfish ambition
Pride
Now notice the character qualities that James urges you to pursue:
Purity
Peace
Gentleness
Deference
Mercy
Other good fruits untainted by hypocrisy
Make this last set of attributes the goal to bring forth in your daily life. If you do so, you will find yourself in God's peace, the true shalom that brings real life. This harmony is true wisdom!
Verses to Live
James spoke in clear, simple language to remind you that heavenly wisdom and true peace will be found where the life of God is lived. Righteousness is the natural result of such a life lived in the Spirit.
Who in your community is understanding and wise? Let his example, which is marked by wisdom and gentleness, blaze a trail for others. If your heart is one that bleeds dark streams of jealousy and selfishness, do not be so proud that you ignore your depraved state. The wisdom of this world should never be mistaken for heavenly wisdom; it originates below in the earthly realms, with the demons. Any place where you find jealousy and selfish ambition, you will discover chaos and evil thriving under its rule. Heavenly wisdom centers on purity, peace, gentleness, deference, mercy, and other good fruits untainted by hypocrisy. The seed that flowers into righteousness will always be planted in peace by those who embrace peace.
(James 3:13-18)
Response in Prayer
O Father, please bless me with true wisdom. I commit to pursuing the things that bring peace and demonstrate wise living. Forgive me for the times that I have put my own desires and my own yearning for things and status above developing the true wisdom that brings peace. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"The Power of Your Speech" — A Year with Jesus for 06/29/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
Learn to wait and think before you speak. Give the Holy Spirit an opportunity to guide your conversation instead of being thrust into overly hasty speech on the whim of your emotions, especially your anger. Your speech can bring a great blessing to others, but it can also wound others deeply. Part of controlling your speech involves protecting your heart from exposure to evil in all of its forms. Solomon said it this way:
Guard your heart above all else,
for it determines the course of your life.
Avoid all perverse talk;
stay away from corrupt speech.
(Proverbs 4:23-24)
In the verses below, My half-brother, James, connects the purity of your heart and the control of your speech. That's because your heart influences your speech, and your speech impacts your heart. Here is what I taught My disciples:
"Count on this: no good tree bears bad fruit, and no bad tree bears good fruit. You can know a tree by the fruit it bears. You don't find figs on a thorn bush, and you can’t pick grapes from a briar bush. It's the same with people. A person full of goodness in his heart produces good things; a person with an evil reservoir in his heart pours out evil things. The heart overflows in the words a person speaks; your words reveal what's within your heart."
(Luke 6:43-45)
So listen first. I created you with two ears to listen and one voice to speak. Let that priority of importance — listening is more important than speaking — rule your conversation. And when you speak, speak words of blessing that bring your hearers what they need most:
Don't let one rotten word seep out of your mouths. Instead, offer only fresh words that build others up when they need it most. That way your good words will communicate grace to those who hear them.
(Ephesians 4:29)
Verses to Live
James' words are clear and easy to understand. As you read them in the verses below, firmly resolve to put them into practice. You have a very high-powered gift in your ability to speak. Use it to be a blessing!
Listen, open your ears, harness your desire to speak, and don't get worked up into a rage so easily, my brothers and sisters. Human anger is a futile exercise that will never produce God's kind of justice in this world. So walk out on your corrupt liaison with smut and depraved living, and humbly welcome the word of truth that will blossom like the seed of salvation planted in your souls.
(James 1:19-21)
My brothers and sisters, do not encourage a large number of you to become teachers because teachers will be held to a higher standard. We all stumble along the way. If a person never speaks hurtful words or shouts in anger or profanity, then he has achieved perfection. The one who can control his tongue can also control the rest of his body. It's like when we place a metal bit into a horse's mouth to ride it; we can control its entire body with the slightest movement of our hands. Have you ever seen a massive ship sailing effortlessly across the water? Despite its immense size and the fact that it is propelled by mighty winds, a small rudder directs the ship in any direction the pilot chooses. It's just the same with our tongues! It's a small muscle, capable of marvelous undertakings.
And do you know how many forest fires begin with a single ember from a small campfire? The tongue is a blazing fire seeking to ignite an entire world of vices. The tongue is unique among all parts of the body because it is capable of corrupting the whole body. If that were not enough, it ignites and consumes the course of creation with a fuel that originates in hell itself. Humanity is capable of taming every bird and beast in existence, even reptiles and sea creatures great and small. But no man has ever demonstrated the ability to tame his own tongue! It is a spring of restless evil, brimming with toxic poisons. Ironically this same tongue can be both an instrument of blessing to our Lord and Father and a weapon that hurls curses upon others who are created in God's own image. One mouth streams forth both blessings and curses. My brothers and sisters, this is not how it should be. Does a spring gush crystal clear freshwater and moments later spurt out bitter salt water? My brothers and sisters, does a fig tree produce olives? Is there a grapevine capable of growing figs? Can salt water give way to freshwater?
(James 3:1-12)
Response in Prayer
O Father in heaven, please forgive me for the times I've failed to use my speech to be a blessing. Forgive me for the times I've not listened or have spoken impulsively, defensively, and angrily. Forgive me for not speaking encouragement into the lives of those around me who have needed it. Forgive me for saying critical things, hurtful things, about people or to people. I ask now for the help of the Holy Spirit to use my speech to be a blessing. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
Learn to wait and think before you speak. Give the Holy Spirit an opportunity to guide your conversation instead of being thrust into overly hasty speech on the whim of your emotions, especially your anger. Your speech can bring a great blessing to others, but it can also wound others deeply. Part of controlling your speech involves protecting your heart from exposure to evil in all of its forms. Solomon said it this way:
Guard your heart above all else,
for it determines the course of your life.
Avoid all perverse talk;
stay away from corrupt speech.
(Proverbs 4:23-24)
In the verses below, My half-brother, James, connects the purity of your heart and the control of your speech. That's because your heart influences your speech, and your speech impacts your heart. Here is what I taught My disciples:
"Count on this: no good tree bears bad fruit, and no bad tree bears good fruit. You can know a tree by the fruit it bears. You don't find figs on a thorn bush, and you can’t pick grapes from a briar bush. It's the same with people. A person full of goodness in his heart produces good things; a person with an evil reservoir in his heart pours out evil things. The heart overflows in the words a person speaks; your words reveal what's within your heart."
(Luke 6:43-45)
So listen first. I created you with two ears to listen and one voice to speak. Let that priority of importance — listening is more important than speaking — rule your conversation. And when you speak, speak words of blessing that bring your hearers what they need most:
Don't let one rotten word seep out of your mouths. Instead, offer only fresh words that build others up when they need it most. That way your good words will communicate grace to those who hear them.
(Ephesians 4:29)
Verses to Live
James' words are clear and easy to understand. As you read them in the verses below, firmly resolve to put them into practice. You have a very high-powered gift in your ability to speak. Use it to be a blessing!
Listen, open your ears, harness your desire to speak, and don't get worked up into a rage so easily, my brothers and sisters. Human anger is a futile exercise that will never produce God's kind of justice in this world. So walk out on your corrupt liaison with smut and depraved living, and humbly welcome the word of truth that will blossom like the seed of salvation planted in your souls.
(James 1:19-21)
My brothers and sisters, do not encourage a large number of you to become teachers because teachers will be held to a higher standard. We all stumble along the way. If a person never speaks hurtful words or shouts in anger or profanity, then he has achieved perfection. The one who can control his tongue can also control the rest of his body. It's like when we place a metal bit into a horse's mouth to ride it; we can control its entire body with the slightest movement of our hands. Have you ever seen a massive ship sailing effortlessly across the water? Despite its immense size and the fact that it is propelled by mighty winds, a small rudder directs the ship in any direction the pilot chooses. It's just the same with our tongues! It's a small muscle, capable of marvelous undertakings.
And do you know how many forest fires begin with a single ember from a small campfire? The tongue is a blazing fire seeking to ignite an entire world of vices. The tongue is unique among all parts of the body because it is capable of corrupting the whole body. If that were not enough, it ignites and consumes the course of creation with a fuel that originates in hell itself. Humanity is capable of taming every bird and beast in existence, even reptiles and sea creatures great and small. But no man has ever demonstrated the ability to tame his own tongue! It is a spring of restless evil, brimming with toxic poisons. Ironically this same tongue can be both an instrument of blessing to our Lord and Father and a weapon that hurls curses upon others who are created in God's own image. One mouth streams forth both blessings and curses. My brothers and sisters, this is not how it should be. Does a spring gush crystal clear freshwater and moments later spurt out bitter salt water? My brothers and sisters, does a fig tree produce olives? Is there a grapevine capable of growing figs? Can salt water give way to freshwater?
(James 3:1-12)
Response in Prayer
O Father in heaven, please forgive me for the times I've failed to use my speech to be a blessing. Forgive me for the times I've not listened or have spoken impulsively, defensively, and angrily. Forgive me for not speaking encouragement into the lives of those around me who have needed it. Forgive me for saying critical things, hurtful things, about people or to people. I ask now for the help of the Holy Spirit to use my speech to be a blessing. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
Find Glory in Only This" — A Year with Jesus for 06/28/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Child Saved by Grace,
When you offered your heart to Me in faith trusting in My death to pay the penalty for your sins, the Father counted you righteous. The law could not make you righteous. Your works could not make you righteous. Only your trust and participation by faith in My sacrifice could do this for you.
The law, however, did play a role in your coming to God. The law showed you where you have sinned and fallen short of Our holiness. The law reminded you that you did not measure up to the righteous character and gracious compassion of your Father. Like looking in a mirror, reading the law could point out what was wrong with you; however, the law had no power to correct what was wrong in you. But when your faith was expressed in baptism, when by faith you shared in My crucifixion, burial, and resurrection (Romans 6:3-7), you put on Me like a new garment and you became righteous (Galatians 3:26-29; 2 Corinthians 5:21).
You were saved by grace based on your absolute trust that what I did for you would make you righteous. As Paul said it below in his teaching on law and grace:
I [Paul] have been crucified with the Anointed One — I am no longer alive — but the Anointed is living in me; and whatever life I have left in this failing body I live by the faithfulness of God's Son, the One who loves me and gave His body on the cross for me.
There is no room for you to glory in your national origin, your racial heritage, or your religious pedigree. None of those things can save you or make you righteous. Your source of glory and your source of righteousness are found only in My death and resurrection. My death and resurrection have liberated you from the burden of law-keeping as an attempt at righteousness. My death and resurrection have provided the basis for your adoption into Our spiritual family, "the Israel of God." (Compare Galatians 3:29.)
There will always be religious people who will pressure you to accept some basis for your salvation other than faith in My death, burial, and resurrection. However, there is only one gospel that can save you (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)! There is only One Who can bring you salvation (Acts 4:12). There is only One Who is the way to the Father (John 14:6). Don't retreat from the grace that you have found in Me.
Know and rely on the source of your identity, your glory, and your salvation. I died for you. You died with Me. You died to the law and to the concept that law-keeping can be the way to be made right with God. I am now alive in you and you are part of My people, "the Israel of God"! No law can do that for you. No religious leaders, no matter how important they appear to be, can offer you more. Any other gospel is not really good news. Don't forsake the one gospel by which you were saved!
Verses to Live
As you read through Paul's complex reasoning below, remember to grab hold of what is said near the end: "God's new creation is what counts, and it counts for everything." Remember what matters: My death, your faith, the Father's grace, and the power to make you into a new creation and a part of Our forever family!
But when Cephas came to Antioch, there was a problem. I [Paul] got in his face and exposed him in front of everyone. He was clearly wrong. Here's what was going on: before certain people from James arrived, Cephas used to share meals with the Gentile outsiders. And then, after they showed up, Cephas suddenly became aloof and distanced himself from the outsiders because he was afraid of those believers who thought circumcision was necessary.
The rest of the Jewish believers followed his lead, including Barnabas! Their hypocritical behavior was so obvious — their actions were not at all consistent with everything the good news of our Lord represents. So I approached Cephas and told him in plain sight of everyone: "If you, a Jew, have lived like the Gentile outsiders and not like the Jews, then how can you turn around and urge the outsiders to start living like Jews?" We are natural-born Jews, not sinners from the godless nations. But we know that no one is made right with God by meeting the demands of the law. It is only through the faithfulness of Jesus the Anointed that salvation is even possible. This is why we put faith in Jesus the Anointed: so we will be put right with God. It's His faithfulness — not works prescribed by the law [or any law] — that puts us in right standing with God because no one [in all humanity] will be acquitted and declared "right" for doing what the law demands. Even though we are seeking a right relationship with God through the Anointed, the fact is we have been found out. We are sinners. But does that mean the Anointed is the one responsible for our sins? Absolutely not! If I reconstruct something I have worked so hard to destroy, then I prove myself a sinner.
The law has provided the means to end my dependence on it for righteousness, and so I died to the law. Now I have found the freedom to truly live for God. I have been crucified with the Anointed One — I am no longer alive — but the Anointed is living in me; and whatever life I have left in this failing body I live by the faithfulness of God's Son, the One who loves me and gave His body on the cross for me. I can't dismiss God's grace, and I won't. If being right with God depends on how we measure up to the law, then the Anointed's sacrifice on the cross was the most tragic waste in all of history
(Galatians 2:11-21)
May I never put anything above the cross of our Lord Jesus the Anointed. Through Him, the world has been crucified to me and I to this world. Let me be clear: circumcision won't save you — uncircumcision won't either for that matter — for both amount to nothing. God's new creation is what counts, and it counts for everything. May peace and mercy come to all of you who live by this rule and to the Israel of God.
(Galatians 6:14-16)
Response in Prayer
Father God, as I see Peter and Barnabas led astray so easily by pressure from their friends, I am reminded of my own susceptibility to peer pressure. I don't want to depend on the law to save me. Neither do I want to depend on the acceptance of my religious contemporaries to validate my own faith. Like Paul, I never want to put anything above the cross of Jesus as my source of salvation. I thank You for this gift in Jesus' name. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Child Saved by Grace,
When you offered your heart to Me in faith trusting in My death to pay the penalty for your sins, the Father counted you righteous. The law could not make you righteous. Your works could not make you righteous. Only your trust and participation by faith in My sacrifice could do this for you.
The law, however, did play a role in your coming to God. The law showed you where you have sinned and fallen short of Our holiness. The law reminded you that you did not measure up to the righteous character and gracious compassion of your Father. Like looking in a mirror, reading the law could point out what was wrong with you; however, the law had no power to correct what was wrong in you. But when your faith was expressed in baptism, when by faith you shared in My crucifixion, burial, and resurrection (Romans 6:3-7), you put on Me like a new garment and you became righteous (Galatians 3:26-29; 2 Corinthians 5:21).
You were saved by grace based on your absolute trust that what I did for you would make you righteous. As Paul said it below in his teaching on law and grace:
I [Paul] have been crucified with the Anointed One — I am no longer alive — but the Anointed is living in me; and whatever life I have left in this failing body I live by the faithfulness of God's Son, the One who loves me and gave His body on the cross for me.
There is no room for you to glory in your national origin, your racial heritage, or your religious pedigree. None of those things can save you or make you righteous. Your source of glory and your source of righteousness are found only in My death and resurrection. My death and resurrection have liberated you from the burden of law-keeping as an attempt at righteousness. My death and resurrection have provided the basis for your adoption into Our spiritual family, "the Israel of God." (Compare Galatians 3:29.)
There will always be religious people who will pressure you to accept some basis for your salvation other than faith in My death, burial, and resurrection. However, there is only one gospel that can save you (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)! There is only One Who can bring you salvation (Acts 4:12). There is only One Who is the way to the Father (John 14:6). Don't retreat from the grace that you have found in Me.
Know and rely on the source of your identity, your glory, and your salvation. I died for you. You died with Me. You died to the law and to the concept that law-keeping can be the way to be made right with God. I am now alive in you and you are part of My people, "the Israel of God"! No law can do that for you. No religious leaders, no matter how important they appear to be, can offer you more. Any other gospel is not really good news. Don't forsake the one gospel by which you were saved!
Verses to Live
As you read through Paul's complex reasoning below, remember to grab hold of what is said near the end: "God's new creation is what counts, and it counts for everything." Remember what matters: My death, your faith, the Father's grace, and the power to make you into a new creation and a part of Our forever family!
But when Cephas came to Antioch, there was a problem. I [Paul] got in his face and exposed him in front of everyone. He was clearly wrong. Here's what was going on: before certain people from James arrived, Cephas used to share meals with the Gentile outsiders. And then, after they showed up, Cephas suddenly became aloof and distanced himself from the outsiders because he was afraid of those believers who thought circumcision was necessary.
The rest of the Jewish believers followed his lead, including Barnabas! Their hypocritical behavior was so obvious — their actions were not at all consistent with everything the good news of our Lord represents. So I approached Cephas and told him in plain sight of everyone: "If you, a Jew, have lived like the Gentile outsiders and not like the Jews, then how can you turn around and urge the outsiders to start living like Jews?" We are natural-born Jews, not sinners from the godless nations. But we know that no one is made right with God by meeting the demands of the law. It is only through the faithfulness of Jesus the Anointed that salvation is even possible. This is why we put faith in Jesus the Anointed: so we will be put right with God. It's His faithfulness — not works prescribed by the law [or any law] — that puts us in right standing with God because no one [in all humanity] will be acquitted and declared "right" for doing what the law demands. Even though we are seeking a right relationship with God through the Anointed, the fact is we have been found out. We are sinners. But does that mean the Anointed is the one responsible for our sins? Absolutely not! If I reconstruct something I have worked so hard to destroy, then I prove myself a sinner.
The law has provided the means to end my dependence on it for righteousness, and so I died to the law. Now I have found the freedom to truly live for God. I have been crucified with the Anointed One — I am no longer alive — but the Anointed is living in me; and whatever life I have left in this failing body I live by the faithfulness of God's Son, the One who loves me and gave His body on the cross for me. I can't dismiss God's grace, and I won't. If being right with God depends on how we measure up to the law, then the Anointed's sacrifice on the cross was the most tragic waste in all of history
(Galatians 2:11-21)
May I never put anything above the cross of our Lord Jesus the Anointed. Through Him, the world has been crucified to me and I to this world. Let me be clear: circumcision won't save you — uncircumcision won't either for that matter — for both amount to nothing. God's new creation is what counts, and it counts for everything. May peace and mercy come to all of you who live by this rule and to the Israel of God.
(Galatians 6:14-16)
Response in Prayer
Father God, as I see Peter and Barnabas led astray so easily by pressure from their friends, I am reminded of my own susceptibility to peer pressure. I don't want to depend on the law to save me. Neither do I want to depend on the acceptance of my religious contemporaries to validate my own faith. Like Paul, I never want to put anything above the cross of Jesus as my source of salvation. I thank You for this gift in Jesus' name. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"A Clear Command" — A Year with Jesus for 06/27/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Lover of God,
During My earthly ministry, I was asked: "which commandment is the greatest?" (Matthew 22:36). Quoting Old Testament Scriptures, My reply was
"'You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"
(Matthew 22:37-39 NLT)
In this two-part answer, it is essential to remember that the first part, loving God, is the basis for the second part, loving your neighbor. As John said,
We love because He [God] has first loved us. If someone claims, "I love God," but hates his brother or sister, then he is a liar. Anyone who does not love a brother or sister, whom he has seen, cannot possibly love God, whom he has never seen. He gave us a clear command, that all who love God must also love their brothers and sisters.
(1 John 4:19-21)
Sometimes theologians make things so much more complex than they really are. They did it in My day when I walked the streets of Galilee, Judea, and Samaria. Some still do it in your day. However, as John said, here's "a clear command":
"Love your neighbor as yourself"!
This command is what I want to emphasize today and what I want you to live in your life every day.
Arrogance, prejudice against the foreigners, bigotry toward other races, playing favorites based on earthly status, judging people by their appearances, murder, adultery, and covetousness can all be countered by a simple, yet profound, concept:
"Love your neighbor as yourself"!
This command is the Father's royal law. This order is the law that gives you freedom. This charge is the only debt you should ever owe anyone. Faithfully living this one principle satisfies the heart of the law as you live in relationship with others with the righteous character and gracious compassion of your Father in heaven!
Remembering this principle is important because I care deeply about how you talk to each other and how you talk about each other and how you interact with each other. How you treat those on the margins of your society matters deeply to Me. Whether you care for the widows, orphans, and foreigners among you reveals how closely your heart is aligned with My heart. How you treat the poor, hungry, imprisoned, sick, and those without shelter matters to Me immensely. I care so deeply about these things and these people that your treatment of them will be one of the ways you will be judged to be My disciples on the last day (Matthew 25:31-46).
So practice love and mercy! Give graciously to those in need. Speak blessings and not curses into the lives of those around you. The list could go on and on, but I don't need to get so specific. I want to remind you again of a clear command, pure and simple. Don't just know the words, but evaluate how you treat everyone by this standard:
"Love your neighbor as yourself"!
Verses to Live
As I've already emphasized, what I want you to understand from the following verses is really pretty simple: "Love your neighbor as yourself"! The Father said it in the law. I said it in My ministry. James and John taught it in their writings. The apostle Paul proclaimed it repeatedly in his letters. So quit quibbling over the details of Scripture. Live the heart of Your Savior. Reflect the character of your Father in heaven. Display the fruit the Spirit longs to bring into your life. Obey this clear command: "Love your neighbor as yourself"!
If you put yourself on a pedestal, thinking you have become a role model in all things religious, but you can't control your mouth, then think again. Your mouth exposes your heart, and your religion is useless. Real, true religion from God the Father's perspective is about caring for the orphans and widows who suffer needlessly and resisting the evil influence of the world.
My brothers and sisters, I know you've heard this before, but stop playing favorites! Do not try to blend the genuine faith of our glorious Lord Jesus, the Anointed One, with your silly pretentiousness. If an affluent gentleman enters your gathering wearing the finest clothes and priceless jewelry, don't trip over each other trying to welcome him. And if a penniless bum crawls in with his shabby clothes and a stench fills the room, don't look away or pretend you didn't notice — offer him a seat up front, next to you. If you tell the wealthy man, "Come sit by me; there's plenty of room," but tell the vagrant, "Oh, these seats are saved. Go over there," then you'll be judging God's children out of evil motives.
My dear brothers and sisters, listen: God has picked the poor of this world to become unfathomably rich in faith and ultimately to inherit the Kingdom, which He has pledged to those who love Him. By favoring the rich, you have mocked the poor. And, correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it the rich who step on you while climbing the ladder of success? And isn't it the rich who take advantage of you and drag you into court? Aren't they the ones mocking the noble name of our God, the One calling us?
Remember His call, and live by the royal law found in Scripture: love others as you love yourself. You'll be doing very well if you can get this down.
(James 1:26-27; James 2:1-8)
Don't owe anyone anything, with the exception of love to one another — that is a debt which never ends because the person who loves others has fulfilled the law. The commands given to you in the Scriptures — do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not take what is not yours, do not covet — and any other command you have heard are summarized in God's instruction: "Love your neighbor as yourself." Does love hurt anyone? Absolutely not. In fact, love achieves everything the law requires.
(Romans 13:8-10)
For the whole law comes down to this one instruction: "Love your neighbor as yourself..."
(Galatians 5:14)
But if you show favoritism — paying attention to those who can help you in some way, while ignoring those who seem to need all the help — you'll be sinning and condemned by the law. For if a person could keep all of the laws and yet break just one; it would be like breaking them all. The same God who said, "Do not commit adultery," also says, "Do not murder." If you break either of these commands, you're a lawbreaker, no matter how you look at it. So live your life in such a way that acknowledges that one day you will be judged. But the law that judges also gives freedom, although you can't expect to be shown mercy if you refuse to show mercy. But hear this: mercy always wins against judgment! Thank God!
(James 2:9-13)
Response in Prayer
O Father, open My heart to love others, especially those in need, as You have loved me. O Jesus, thank You for showing me this kind of love in action through Your earthly ministry. Holy Spirit, keep pouring love into my heart so that it overflows into the lives others. I commit to love my neighbor as I love myself. I ask for your help to live Your righteous character and holy compassion in Jesus' name. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Lover of God,
During My earthly ministry, I was asked: "which commandment is the greatest?" (Matthew 22:36). Quoting Old Testament Scriptures, My reply was
"'You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"
(Matthew 22:37-39 NLT)
In this two-part answer, it is essential to remember that the first part, loving God, is the basis for the second part, loving your neighbor. As John said,
We love because He [God] has first loved us. If someone claims, "I love God," but hates his brother or sister, then he is a liar. Anyone who does not love a brother or sister, whom he has seen, cannot possibly love God, whom he has never seen. He gave us a clear command, that all who love God must also love their brothers and sisters.
(1 John 4:19-21)
Sometimes theologians make things so much more complex than they really are. They did it in My day when I walked the streets of Galilee, Judea, and Samaria. Some still do it in your day. However, as John said, here's "a clear command":
"Love your neighbor as yourself"!
This command is what I want to emphasize today and what I want you to live in your life every day.
Arrogance, prejudice against the foreigners, bigotry toward other races, playing favorites based on earthly status, judging people by their appearances, murder, adultery, and covetousness can all be countered by a simple, yet profound, concept:
"Love your neighbor as yourself"!
This command is the Father's royal law. This order is the law that gives you freedom. This charge is the only debt you should ever owe anyone. Faithfully living this one principle satisfies the heart of the law as you live in relationship with others with the righteous character and gracious compassion of your Father in heaven!
Remembering this principle is important because I care deeply about how you talk to each other and how you talk about each other and how you interact with each other. How you treat those on the margins of your society matters deeply to Me. Whether you care for the widows, orphans, and foreigners among you reveals how closely your heart is aligned with My heart. How you treat the poor, hungry, imprisoned, sick, and those without shelter matters to Me immensely. I care so deeply about these things and these people that your treatment of them will be one of the ways you will be judged to be My disciples on the last day (Matthew 25:31-46).
So practice love and mercy! Give graciously to those in need. Speak blessings and not curses into the lives of those around you. The list could go on and on, but I don't need to get so specific. I want to remind you again of a clear command, pure and simple. Don't just know the words, but evaluate how you treat everyone by this standard:
"Love your neighbor as yourself"!
Verses to Live
As I've already emphasized, what I want you to understand from the following verses is really pretty simple: "Love your neighbor as yourself"! The Father said it in the law. I said it in My ministry. James and John taught it in their writings. The apostle Paul proclaimed it repeatedly in his letters. So quit quibbling over the details of Scripture. Live the heart of Your Savior. Reflect the character of your Father in heaven. Display the fruit the Spirit longs to bring into your life. Obey this clear command: "Love your neighbor as yourself"!
If you put yourself on a pedestal, thinking you have become a role model in all things religious, but you can't control your mouth, then think again. Your mouth exposes your heart, and your religion is useless. Real, true religion from God the Father's perspective is about caring for the orphans and widows who suffer needlessly and resisting the evil influence of the world.
My brothers and sisters, I know you've heard this before, but stop playing favorites! Do not try to blend the genuine faith of our glorious Lord Jesus, the Anointed One, with your silly pretentiousness. If an affluent gentleman enters your gathering wearing the finest clothes and priceless jewelry, don't trip over each other trying to welcome him. And if a penniless bum crawls in with his shabby clothes and a stench fills the room, don't look away or pretend you didn't notice — offer him a seat up front, next to you. If you tell the wealthy man, "Come sit by me; there's plenty of room," but tell the vagrant, "Oh, these seats are saved. Go over there," then you'll be judging God's children out of evil motives.
My dear brothers and sisters, listen: God has picked the poor of this world to become unfathomably rich in faith and ultimately to inherit the Kingdom, which He has pledged to those who love Him. By favoring the rich, you have mocked the poor. And, correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it the rich who step on you while climbing the ladder of success? And isn't it the rich who take advantage of you and drag you into court? Aren't they the ones mocking the noble name of our God, the One calling us?
Remember His call, and live by the royal law found in Scripture: love others as you love yourself. You'll be doing very well if you can get this down.
(James 1:26-27; James 2:1-8)
Don't owe anyone anything, with the exception of love to one another — that is a debt which never ends because the person who loves others has fulfilled the law. The commands given to you in the Scriptures — do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not take what is not yours, do not covet — and any other command you have heard are summarized in God's instruction: "Love your neighbor as yourself." Does love hurt anyone? Absolutely not. In fact, love achieves everything the law requires.
(Romans 13:8-10)
For the whole law comes down to this one instruction: "Love your neighbor as yourself..."
(Galatians 5:14)
But if you show favoritism — paying attention to those who can help you in some way, while ignoring those who seem to need all the help — you'll be sinning and condemned by the law. For if a person could keep all of the laws and yet break just one; it would be like breaking them all. The same God who said, "Do not commit adultery," also says, "Do not murder." If you break either of these commands, you're a lawbreaker, no matter how you look at it. So live your life in such a way that acknowledges that one day you will be judged. But the law that judges also gives freedom, although you can't expect to be shown mercy if you refuse to show mercy. But hear this: mercy always wins against judgment! Thank God!
(James 2:9-13)
Response in Prayer
O Father, open My heart to love others, especially those in need, as You have loved me. O Jesus, thank You for showing me this kind of love in action through Your earthly ministry. Holy Spirit, keep pouring love into my heart so that it overflows into the lives others. I commit to love my neighbor as I love myself. I ask for your help to live Your righteous character and holy compassion in Jesus' name. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"Just Do It!®" — A Year with Jesus for 06/26/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Disciple,
Read My harsh words to the Pharisees about their all-talk-legalism and not-much-help religion (Matthew 23:1-36). When you do, you will know that I loathe empty religion full of just religious words with little redemptive action. I want you to read through James' teaching in the verses below. He is all about caring for the poor and forgotten — underlined in the verses below. James reminds you that you must have a faith that demonstrates itself in action — bold in the verses below.
While Nike's marketing phrase "Just Do It!"® became a registered trademark in your era, that concept has always been at the heart of My kingdom. My teaching was not about just doctrine. My teaching emphasized the necessity of living to please the Father while you live in a world of moral depravity, human need, and religious confusion. I wanted the things I taught My disciples to be done... to be obeyed... to be put into practice.
Remember what I taught while on earth?
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven. Simply calling Me 'Lord' will not be enough. Only those who do the will of My Father who is in heaven will join Me in heaven."
(Matthew 7:21)
As I was finishing the Sermon on the Mount, I told the story about the wise man who put into practice what I taught,and the foolish man who heard My words and didn't obey them and his life came crashing down (Matthew 7:24-27).
When I washed My disciples' feet and demonstrated My love for them, I told them:
"You call me 'Teacher' and 'Lord,' and you are right, because that's what I am. And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other's feet. I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you. I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message. Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them."
(John 13:13-17 NLT)
When My own family came to see Me in the crowds, I told My disciples this:
"Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?" Then he [Jesus] looked at those around him and said, "Look, these are my mother and brothers. Anyone who does God's will is my brother and sister and mother."
(Mark 3:33-35 NLT)
Do you remember what I said in the Great Commission about obedience?
"I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 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)
So My question for some of you Christians is really simple: When are you going to quit just talking religion? When are you going to get around to doing what I ask, obeying what I taught, and doing something that makes a difference in the lives of real people?
James is pretty clear about what I want from My disciples: Live holy lives and help needy people! It's really pretty simple to understand. So now I ask that you "Just Do It!"®
Verses to Live
Although these verses come from two different chapters in James, their thoughts parallel each other and drive home the message I want you to know and follow. All throughout Scripture, We — Father, Son, and Spirit — have called Our people to reflect our righteous character and gracious compassion. My half-brother James reminds you to do the same. Don't just read these truths; put them into practice! (Underlining highlights instruction about caring for the poor and forgotten while the bold emphasizes the necessity of faith that demonstrates itself in action.)
Listen, open your ears, harness your desire to speak, and don't get worked up into a rage so easily, my brothers and sisters. Human anger is a futile exercise that will never produce God's kind of justice in this world. So walk out on your corrupt liaison with smut and depraved living, and humbly welcome the word of truth that will blossom like the seed of salvation planted in your souls.
Put the word into action. If you think hearing is what matters most, you are going to find you have been deceived.
If some fail to do what God requires, it's as if they forget the word as soon as they hear it. One minute they look in the mirror, and the next they forget who they are and what they look like. However, it is possible to open your eyes and take in the beautiful, perfect truth found in God's law of liberty and live by it. If you pursue that path and actually do what God has commanded, then you will avoid the many distractions that lead to an amnesia of all true things and you will be blessed.
If you put yourself on a pedestal, thinking you have become a role model in all things religious, but you can't control your mouth, then think again. Your mouth exposes your heart, and your religion is useless. Real, true religion from God the Father's perspective is about caring for the orphans and widows who suffer needlessly and resisting the evil influence of the world.
(James 1:19-27)
Brothers and sisters, it doesn't make any sense to say you have faith and act in a way that denies that faith. Mere talk never gets you very far, and a commitment to Jesus only in words will not save you. It would be like seeing a brother or sister without any clothes out in the cold and begging for food, and saying, "Shalom, friend, you should get inside where it's warm and eat something," but doing nothing about his needs — leaving him cold and alone on the street. What good would your words alone do? The same is true with faith. Without actions, faith is useless. By itself, it's as good as dead. I know what you're thinking: "OK, you have faith. And I have actions. Now let's see your faith without works, and I'll show you a faith that works."
Do you think that just believing there's one God is going to get you anywhere? The demons believe that, too, and it terrifies them! The fact is, faith has to show itself through works performed in faith. If you don't recognize that, then you're an empty soul. Wasn't our father Abraham made right with God by laying his son Isaac on the altar? The faith in his heart was made known in his behavior. In fact, his commitment was perfected by his obedience. That's what Scripture means when it says, "Abraham entrusted himself to God, and God credited him with righteousness." And living a faithful life earned Abraham the title of "God's friend." Just like our father in the faith, we are made right with God through good works, not simply by what we believe or think. Even Rahab the prostitute was made right with God by hiding the spies and aiding in their escape. Removing action from faith is like removing breath from a body. All you have left is a corpse.
(James 2:14-26)
Response in Prayer
Almighty God, thank You for Your words of truth in the Scriptures. Please help me understand and act on these Scriptures as I am guided and led by the Holy Spirit. I commit to living Your truth, O God, to honor You and be a blessing to those in need. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Disciple,
Read My harsh words to the Pharisees about their all-talk-legalism and not-much-help religion (Matthew 23:1-36). When you do, you will know that I loathe empty religion full of just religious words with little redemptive action. I want you to read through James' teaching in the verses below. He is all about caring for the poor and forgotten — underlined in the verses below. James reminds you that you must have a faith that demonstrates itself in action — bold in the verses below.
While Nike's marketing phrase "Just Do It!"® became a registered trademark in your era, that concept has always been at the heart of My kingdom. My teaching was not about just doctrine. My teaching emphasized the necessity of living to please the Father while you live in a world of moral depravity, human need, and religious confusion. I wanted the things I taught My disciples to be done... to be obeyed... to be put into practice.
Remember what I taught while on earth?
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven. Simply calling Me 'Lord' will not be enough. Only those who do the will of My Father who is in heaven will join Me in heaven."
(Matthew 7:21)
As I was finishing the Sermon on the Mount, I told the story about the wise man who put into practice what I taught,and the foolish man who heard My words and didn't obey them and his life came crashing down (Matthew 7:24-27).
When I washed My disciples' feet and demonstrated My love for them, I told them:
"You call me 'Teacher' and 'Lord,' and you are right, because that's what I am. And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other's feet. I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you. I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message. Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them."
(John 13:13-17 NLT)
When My own family came to see Me in the crowds, I told My disciples this:
"Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?" Then he [Jesus] looked at those around him and said, "Look, these are my mother and brothers. Anyone who does God's will is my brother and sister and mother."
(Mark 3:33-35 NLT)
Do you remember what I said in the Great Commission about obedience?
"I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 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)
So My question for some of you Christians is really simple: When are you going to quit just talking religion? When are you going to get around to doing what I ask, obeying what I taught, and doing something that makes a difference in the lives of real people?
James is pretty clear about what I want from My disciples: Live holy lives and help needy people! It's really pretty simple to understand. So now I ask that you "Just Do It!"®
Verses to Live
Although these verses come from two different chapters in James, their thoughts parallel each other and drive home the message I want you to know and follow. All throughout Scripture, We — Father, Son, and Spirit — have called Our people to reflect our righteous character and gracious compassion. My half-brother James reminds you to do the same. Don't just read these truths; put them into practice! (Underlining highlights instruction about caring for the poor and forgotten while the bold emphasizes the necessity of faith that demonstrates itself in action.)
Listen, open your ears, harness your desire to speak, and don't get worked up into a rage so easily, my brothers and sisters. Human anger is a futile exercise that will never produce God's kind of justice in this world. So walk out on your corrupt liaison with smut and depraved living, and humbly welcome the word of truth that will blossom like the seed of salvation planted in your souls.
Put the word into action. If you think hearing is what matters most, you are going to find you have been deceived.
If some fail to do what God requires, it's as if they forget the word as soon as they hear it. One minute they look in the mirror, and the next they forget who they are and what they look like. However, it is possible to open your eyes and take in the beautiful, perfect truth found in God's law of liberty and live by it. If you pursue that path and actually do what God has commanded, then you will avoid the many distractions that lead to an amnesia of all true things and you will be blessed.
If you put yourself on a pedestal, thinking you have become a role model in all things religious, but you can't control your mouth, then think again. Your mouth exposes your heart, and your religion is useless. Real, true religion from God the Father's perspective is about caring for the orphans and widows who suffer needlessly and resisting the evil influence of the world.
(James 1:19-27)
Brothers and sisters, it doesn't make any sense to say you have faith and act in a way that denies that faith. Mere talk never gets you very far, and a commitment to Jesus only in words will not save you. It would be like seeing a brother or sister without any clothes out in the cold and begging for food, and saying, "Shalom, friend, you should get inside where it's warm and eat something," but doing nothing about his needs — leaving him cold and alone on the street. What good would your words alone do? The same is true with faith. Without actions, faith is useless. By itself, it's as good as dead. I know what you're thinking: "OK, you have faith. And I have actions. Now let's see your faith without works, and I'll show you a faith that works."
Do you think that just believing there's one God is going to get you anywhere? The demons believe that, too, and it terrifies them! The fact is, faith has to show itself through works performed in faith. If you don't recognize that, then you're an empty soul. Wasn't our father Abraham made right with God by laying his son Isaac on the altar? The faith in his heart was made known in his behavior. In fact, his commitment was perfected by his obedience. That's what Scripture means when it says, "Abraham entrusted himself to God, and God credited him with righteousness." And living a faithful life earned Abraham the title of "God's friend." Just like our father in the faith, we are made right with God through good works, not simply by what we believe or think. Even Rahab the prostitute was made right with God by hiding the spies and aiding in their escape. Removing action from faith is like removing breath from a body. All you have left is a corpse.
(James 2:14-26)
Response in Prayer
Almighty God, thank You for Your words of truth in the Scriptures. Please help me understand and act on these Scriptures as I am guided and led by the Holy Spirit. I commit to living Your truth, O God, to honor You and be a blessing to those in need. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
Tested and Proven Character" — A Year with Jesus for 06/25/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Faithful Follower,
About the same time Paul was trying to help the Galatian believers understand grace, My half-brother James was working with believers around Jerusalem and writing to those who had been in Jerusalem but now were scattered around the world. James had to emphasize the importance of putting faith into practice. While their emphases are different, Paul and James shared a common theme:
For when we place our faith in Christ Jesus, there is no benefit in being circumcised or being uncircumcised. What is important is faith expressing itself in love.
(Galatians 5:6)
They both were trying to help Christians face three primary challenges:
Standing up faithfully under trials and temptations.
Correctly understanding grace to mean that they had to be people of righteous character and gracious compassion.
Treating each other as brothers and sisters, giving grace regardless of social position.
James' first few paragraphs in his letter on how to live godly lives contain these themes. So you shouldn't be surprised that James' writing has very practical teaching for everyday godly living. While James' writing is sometimes called a letter, it reads more like a tract or study guide about wise and godly living. Regardless of what you want to call James' writing, His message has resonated in the hearts of My disciples over the centuries.
Some, however, have tried to put what James wrote about godly living at odds with what Paul wrote in his letter to the Galatians. However, I want you to see these two pieces of Scripture as complementary to each other. Use the good Jewish practice of examining what each says based on the principles implicit in "on the one hand, but then on the other hand." You will find these two letters to be quite powerful and practical when read together.
I want you to pay attention to the key areas of focus in James' opening paragraphs:
Trials, tests, and hardships are difficult, but you can joyfully face them knowing that they produce both character in you and the crown of life for you.
Don't blame your temptations on God; they come from your own desires. Our Father in heaven gives only good gifts. He is consistently good and gracious to you.
If you want to have spiritual wisdom to handle times of trial, testing, and hardship or if you want to avoid being ensnared in temptations that lead you to sin and death, then pray without doubting for the Father to give you wisdom.
Like so many other things you will find in James' writing, these truths are practical and sound. Do what James urges you to do and you will grow strong in the faith, and your character and compassion will come to reflect Me.
Verses to Live
Remember that James was My half-brother. He did a great job of summarizing My teaching and making it into very understandable and applicable truth. As you read, ask yourself how his teaching sounds like My own teaching. Be blessed by the following excerpt from James' small powerhouse of a book.
Don't run from tests and hardships, brothers and sisters. As difficult as they are, you will ultimately find joy in them; if you embrace them, your faith will blossom under pressure and teach you true patience as you endure. And true patience brought on by endurance will equip you to complete the long journey and cross the finish line — mature, complete, and wanting nothing. If you don't have all the wisdom needed for this journey, then all you have to do is ask God for it; and God will grant all that you need. He gives lavishly and never scolds you for asking.
The key is that your request be anchored by your single-minded commitment to God. Those who depend only on their own judgment are like those lost on the seas, carried away by any wave or picked up by any wind. Those adrift on their own wisdom shouldn't assume the Lord will rescue them or bring them anything. The splinter of divided loyalty shatters your compass and leaves you dizzy and confused.
If you are a brother of humble means, celebrate the fact that God has raised you up. If you are rich and seemingly invincible, savor the humble reality that you are a mere mortal who will vanish like a flower that withers in the field. The sun rises with a blazing heat that dries the earth and causes the flower to wither and fall to the ground and its beauty to fade and die. In the same way, the rich will fall and die in the midst of their busy lives.
Happy is the person who can hold up under the trials of life. At the right time, he'll know God's sweet approval and will be crowned with life. As God has promised, the crown awaits all who love Him.
No one who is tempted should ever be confused and say that God is testing him. The One who created us is free from evil and can't be tempted, so He doesn't tempt anyone. When a person is carried away with desire, lured by lust, and when desire becomes the focus and takes control, it gives birth to sin. When sin becomes fully grown, it produces death.
My dearly loved brothers and sisters, don't be misled. Every good gift bestowed, every perfect gift received comes to us from above, courtesy of the Father of lights. He is consistent. He won't change His mind or play tricks in the shadows. We have a special role in His plan. He calls us to life by His message of truth so that we will show the rest of His creatures His goodness and love.
(James 1:2-18)
Response in Prayer
Father, I thank You for the book of James in the New Testament. It is so practical and down to earth. As I read it along with the book of Galatians, open my eyes and transform my life as I try to put Your teaching into effect in my life. I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Faithful Follower,
About the same time Paul was trying to help the Galatian believers understand grace, My half-brother James was working with believers around Jerusalem and writing to those who had been in Jerusalem but now were scattered around the world. James had to emphasize the importance of putting faith into practice. While their emphases are different, Paul and James shared a common theme:
For when we place our faith in Christ Jesus, there is no benefit in being circumcised or being uncircumcised. What is important is faith expressing itself in love.
(Galatians 5:6)
They both were trying to help Christians face three primary challenges:
Standing up faithfully under trials and temptations.
Correctly understanding grace to mean that they had to be people of righteous character and gracious compassion.
Treating each other as brothers and sisters, giving grace regardless of social position.
James' first few paragraphs in his letter on how to live godly lives contain these themes. So you shouldn't be surprised that James' writing has very practical teaching for everyday godly living. While James' writing is sometimes called a letter, it reads more like a tract or study guide about wise and godly living. Regardless of what you want to call James' writing, His message has resonated in the hearts of My disciples over the centuries.
Some, however, have tried to put what James wrote about godly living at odds with what Paul wrote in his letter to the Galatians. However, I want you to see these two pieces of Scripture as complementary to each other. Use the good Jewish practice of examining what each says based on the principles implicit in "on the one hand, but then on the other hand." You will find these two letters to be quite powerful and practical when read together.
I want you to pay attention to the key areas of focus in James' opening paragraphs:
Trials, tests, and hardships are difficult, but you can joyfully face them knowing that they produce both character in you and the crown of life for you.
Don't blame your temptations on God; they come from your own desires. Our Father in heaven gives only good gifts. He is consistently good and gracious to you.
If you want to have spiritual wisdom to handle times of trial, testing, and hardship or if you want to avoid being ensnared in temptations that lead you to sin and death, then pray without doubting for the Father to give you wisdom.
Like so many other things you will find in James' writing, these truths are practical and sound. Do what James urges you to do and you will grow strong in the faith, and your character and compassion will come to reflect Me.
Verses to Live
Remember that James was My half-brother. He did a great job of summarizing My teaching and making it into very understandable and applicable truth. As you read, ask yourself how his teaching sounds like My own teaching. Be blessed by the following excerpt from James' small powerhouse of a book.
Don't run from tests and hardships, brothers and sisters. As difficult as they are, you will ultimately find joy in them; if you embrace them, your faith will blossom under pressure and teach you true patience as you endure. And true patience brought on by endurance will equip you to complete the long journey and cross the finish line — mature, complete, and wanting nothing. If you don't have all the wisdom needed for this journey, then all you have to do is ask God for it; and God will grant all that you need. He gives lavishly and never scolds you for asking.
The key is that your request be anchored by your single-minded commitment to God. Those who depend only on their own judgment are like those lost on the seas, carried away by any wave or picked up by any wind. Those adrift on their own wisdom shouldn't assume the Lord will rescue them or bring them anything. The splinter of divided loyalty shatters your compass and leaves you dizzy and confused.
If you are a brother of humble means, celebrate the fact that God has raised you up. If you are rich and seemingly invincible, savor the humble reality that you are a mere mortal who will vanish like a flower that withers in the field. The sun rises with a blazing heat that dries the earth and causes the flower to wither and fall to the ground and its beauty to fade and die. In the same way, the rich will fall and die in the midst of their busy lives.
Happy is the person who can hold up under the trials of life. At the right time, he'll know God's sweet approval and will be crowned with life. As God has promised, the crown awaits all who love Him.
No one who is tempted should ever be confused and say that God is testing him. The One who created us is free from evil and can't be tempted, so He doesn't tempt anyone. When a person is carried away with desire, lured by lust, and when desire becomes the focus and takes control, it gives birth to sin. When sin becomes fully grown, it produces death.
My dearly loved brothers and sisters, don't be misled. Every good gift bestowed, every perfect gift received comes to us from above, courtesy of the Father of lights. He is consistent. He won't change His mind or play tricks in the shadows. We have a special role in His plan. He calls us to life by His message of truth so that we will show the rest of His creatures His goodness and love.
(James 1:2-18)
Response in Prayer
Father, I thank You for the book of James in the New Testament. It is so practical and down to earth. As I read it along with the book of Galatians, open my eyes and transform my life as I try to put Your teaching into effect in my life. I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"'Rubber Meets the Road' Discipleship" — A Year with Jesus for 06/24/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
I know that believing in Me is not always easy or natural. So I want to remind you of My half-brother James. My apostle James had been murdered by Herod in one of the several waves of persecution against My people in Jerusalem (Acts 12:1-2). With many of the apostles driven from Jerusalem, My half-brother James began to serve as one of the great leaders of the church there.
James becoming a great leader in the Jerusalem churches was quite a special development for Me. You see, James did not believe in Me during My earthly ministry. In fact, he joined with My other half-brothers "in speaking contemptuously" of Me and teasing Me about My wanting to do something great for the Father.
Later in My ministry when I was crucified, James was not there with My mother Mary caring for her. Instead, I placed her in the care of the beloved disciple (John 19:25-28). My other half-brothers also were not there to comfort our mother and support Me through the agony and humiliation of the crucifixion.
However, I made a special point of appearing to James after My resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:7). This meeting was one of those "rubber meets the road" moments where all of life hangs in the balance. James had to decide what he truly believed about Me and what he would do with his faith in Me. Would he continue to see Me as little more than his half-brother? Would he recognize Me as his Savior and Lord and as the Son of God? He had to decide. And when James decided, he truly decided!
My mother and my half-brothers were present when I poured out the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost (Acts 1:12-14). Over time, James would grow in influence and importance in the church in Jerusalem — something quite surprising for someone from Nazareth to do in Jerusalem (John 1:46). He was an important person for the apostles to keep informed about things happening among them (Acts 12:16-17). He was considered one of the "pillars" of the church in Jerusalem. He was so important that he was even mentioned first before Peter and John in the list of pillars of the church (Galatians 2:9).
The early Jewish Christians faced a huge decision. Would they accept Gentiles into fellowship without requiring circumcision and keeping the Mosaic Law? James' influence in the council of leaders in Jerusalem was vital for the positive outcome (Acts 15:12-22). His words brought peace, provided a way for My disciples to stay in fellowship, and kept the mission to non-Jews on track. What joy the Father and I had at seeing his good work!
One of the most impressive and touching things James did, however, was the way he talked about Me. I was his half-brother. But when faith took hold in his heart, I was so much more to him. Notice below how he begins his letter to scattered believers. He literally says, "James, a slave of God and the Lord Jesus Christ"! He did not label himself a household servant — diakonos in Greek. Instead, he used a different Greek word, doulos, that means "slave"! This kind of slave lives to do his Master's bidding. He considered Me to be his Master! Remarkable, don't you think?
So when you have one of those days when you struggle with your faith, remember My beloved brother James. He didn't believe at first. In fact, he once thought I was out of My mind. Later, as he risked his life for Me and My church, he saw Me as God and viewed himself as My "slave."
When the "rubber meets the road" moments come in your life, when everything is on the line, please remember James. His faith in My resurrection was so strong that he gave up everything, risked everything, and lived his life completely to honor Me as "the Lord Jesus Christ"!
Verses to Live
You've read My note about James. Now I will let you read a little bit about him from Scripture. The following passages will go in reverse order to the description I shared above. I hope you will come to believe in Me as passionately and completely as James did. After all, you are part of My family (Mark 3:31-35). We are siblings by the grace of God and the cost of My incarnation and cross (Hebrews 2:14-18; Romans 8:28-29).
From James, a slave of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes dispersed abroad. Greetings!
(James 1:1 NET)
... it was time for Jesus to move on. He began a long walk through the Galilean countryside. He was purposefully avoiding Judea because of the violent threats made against Him by the Jews there who wanted to kill Him. It was fall, the time of year when the Jews celebrated the Festival of Booths.
Brothers of Jesus (to Jesus):
Let's get out of here and go south to Judea so You can show Your disciples there what You are capable of doing. No one who seeks the public eye is content to work in secret. If You want to perform these signs, then step forward on the world's stage; don't hide up here in the hills, Jesus.
Jesus' own brothers were speaking contemptuously; they did not yet believe in Him, just as the people in His hometown did not see Him as anything more than Joseph's son.
(John 7:1-5)
Let me [Paul] remind you, brothers and sisters, of the good news that I preached to you when we first met. It's the essential message that you have taken to heart, the central story you now base your life on; and through this gospel, you are liberated — unless, of course, your faith has come to nothing. For I passed down to you the crux of it all which I had also received from others, that the Anointed One, the Liberating King, died for our sins and was buried and raised from the dead on the third day. All this happened to fulfill the Scriptures; it was the perfect climax to God's covenant story. Afterward He appeared alive to Cephas (you may know him as Simon Peter), then to the rest of the twelve. If that were not amazing enough, on one occasion, He appeared to more than 500 believers at one time. Many of those brothers and sisters are still around to tell the story, though some have fallen asleep in Jesus. Soon He appeared to James, His brother and the leader of the Jerusalem church, and then to all the rest of the emissaries He Himself commissioned.
(1 Corinthians 15:1-7)
Response in Prayer
O Father, what a powerful story the life of James tells. I thank You for his turn-around from unbeliever to believer and from ridiculer to leader. I thank You for Jesus' resurrection that has turned around my life. Grow my faith, O God. I want to be totally dedicated to Your glory and the glory of my Lord Jesus Christ. I want to be known as Your slave — a disciple dedicated to You heart, soul, mind, and strength. I ask this in the name of my older brother, Savior, and Lord. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
I know that believing in Me is not always easy or natural. So I want to remind you of My half-brother James. My apostle James had been murdered by Herod in one of the several waves of persecution against My people in Jerusalem (Acts 12:1-2). With many of the apostles driven from Jerusalem, My half-brother James began to serve as one of the great leaders of the church there.
James becoming a great leader in the Jerusalem churches was quite a special development for Me. You see, James did not believe in Me during My earthly ministry. In fact, he joined with My other half-brothers "in speaking contemptuously" of Me and teasing Me about My wanting to do something great for the Father.
Later in My ministry when I was crucified, James was not there with My mother Mary caring for her. Instead, I placed her in the care of the beloved disciple (John 19:25-28). My other half-brothers also were not there to comfort our mother and support Me through the agony and humiliation of the crucifixion.
However, I made a special point of appearing to James after My resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:7). This meeting was one of those "rubber meets the road" moments where all of life hangs in the balance. James had to decide what he truly believed about Me and what he would do with his faith in Me. Would he continue to see Me as little more than his half-brother? Would he recognize Me as his Savior and Lord and as the Son of God? He had to decide. And when James decided, he truly decided!
My mother and my half-brothers were present when I poured out the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost (Acts 1:12-14). Over time, James would grow in influence and importance in the church in Jerusalem — something quite surprising for someone from Nazareth to do in Jerusalem (John 1:46). He was an important person for the apostles to keep informed about things happening among them (Acts 12:16-17). He was considered one of the "pillars" of the church in Jerusalem. He was so important that he was even mentioned first before Peter and John in the list of pillars of the church (Galatians 2:9).
The early Jewish Christians faced a huge decision. Would they accept Gentiles into fellowship without requiring circumcision and keeping the Mosaic Law? James' influence in the council of leaders in Jerusalem was vital for the positive outcome (Acts 15:12-22). His words brought peace, provided a way for My disciples to stay in fellowship, and kept the mission to non-Jews on track. What joy the Father and I had at seeing his good work!
One of the most impressive and touching things James did, however, was the way he talked about Me. I was his half-brother. But when faith took hold in his heart, I was so much more to him. Notice below how he begins his letter to scattered believers. He literally says, "James, a slave of God and the Lord Jesus Christ"! He did not label himself a household servant — diakonos in Greek. Instead, he used a different Greek word, doulos, that means "slave"! This kind of slave lives to do his Master's bidding. He considered Me to be his Master! Remarkable, don't you think?
So when you have one of those days when you struggle with your faith, remember My beloved brother James. He didn't believe at first. In fact, he once thought I was out of My mind. Later, as he risked his life for Me and My church, he saw Me as God and viewed himself as My "slave."
When the "rubber meets the road" moments come in your life, when everything is on the line, please remember James. His faith in My resurrection was so strong that he gave up everything, risked everything, and lived his life completely to honor Me as "the Lord Jesus Christ"!
Verses to Live
You've read My note about James. Now I will let you read a little bit about him from Scripture. The following passages will go in reverse order to the description I shared above. I hope you will come to believe in Me as passionately and completely as James did. After all, you are part of My family (Mark 3:31-35). We are siblings by the grace of God and the cost of My incarnation and cross (Hebrews 2:14-18; Romans 8:28-29).
From James, a slave of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes dispersed abroad. Greetings!
(James 1:1 NET)
... it was time for Jesus to move on. He began a long walk through the Galilean countryside. He was purposefully avoiding Judea because of the violent threats made against Him by the Jews there who wanted to kill Him. It was fall, the time of year when the Jews celebrated the Festival of Booths.
Brothers of Jesus (to Jesus):
Let's get out of here and go south to Judea so You can show Your disciples there what You are capable of doing. No one who seeks the public eye is content to work in secret. If You want to perform these signs, then step forward on the world's stage; don't hide up here in the hills, Jesus.
Jesus' own brothers were speaking contemptuously; they did not yet believe in Him, just as the people in His hometown did not see Him as anything more than Joseph's son.
(John 7:1-5)
Let me [Paul] remind you, brothers and sisters, of the good news that I preached to you when we first met. It's the essential message that you have taken to heart, the central story you now base your life on; and through this gospel, you are liberated — unless, of course, your faith has come to nothing. For I passed down to you the crux of it all which I had also received from others, that the Anointed One, the Liberating King, died for our sins and was buried and raised from the dead on the third day. All this happened to fulfill the Scriptures; it was the perfect climax to God's covenant story. Afterward He appeared alive to Cephas (you may know him as Simon Peter), then to the rest of the twelve. If that were not amazing enough, on one occasion, He appeared to more than 500 believers at one time. Many of those brothers and sisters are still around to tell the story, though some have fallen asleep in Jesus. Soon He appeared to James, His brother and the leader of the Jerusalem church, and then to all the rest of the emissaries He Himself commissioned.
(1 Corinthians 15:1-7)
Response in Prayer
O Father, what a powerful story the life of James tells. I thank You for his turn-around from unbeliever to believer and from ridiculer to leader. I thank You for Jesus' resurrection that has turned around my life. Grow my faith, O God. I want to be totally dedicated to Your glory and the glory of my Lord Jesus Christ. I want to be known as Your slave — a disciple dedicated to You heart, soul, mind, and strength. I ask this in the name of my older brother, Savior, and Lord. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"Released from the Curse" — A Year with Jesus for 06/23/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved Child of God,
I love Peter's statement about the apostle Paul's writings:
And remember, our Lord's patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him — speaking of these things in all of his letters. Some of his comments are hard to understand...
(2 Peter 3:15-16 NLT)
Some things Paul wrote are very easy for almost anyone to understand. Other things he wrote used technical language and logic, a kind of logic and reasoning that he had learned in the school of Gamaliel for rabbis (Acts 22:3). Today's verses contain some of that rabbinic style of teaching. So I want you to pay close attention to what Paul says and not lose his important message to you.
Some people in the Galatian churches knew little about the Scriptures — what you call the Old Testament. Others were very accomplished in the study of the Scriptures. So Paul had to use different styles of teaching and different kinds of examples that made sense to these very different people. He wanted to bring them together in My church through the Father's grace. Some of Paul's teaching you will understand. Some may be a bit confusing. Don't let any confusion discourage you. With a little time and with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, you will be able to understand the most important things the Spirit led Paul to write to these new Christians.
The fundamental truth behind what Paul wrote is very important. That truth is that your being made right with the Father depends on your faith in:
My sacrifice on the cross.
My resurrection from the dead.
My pouring out the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and on you at your conversion.
You are saved by faith in Me and what I did to save you, not by keeping any law!
In your verses for today, Paul made several points about the inability of a law to save people and make them righteous. This inability of a law to save is true of all law, even the law of Moses. Here are some of the key points to notice in Paul's message:
Abraham was counted righteous by the Father because of his faith — not because he obeyed the Mosaic Law. (Abraham lived hundreds of years before the Mosaic law was given.)
People who trust in Me are counted righteous because of their faith just as Abraham was.
Trying to be counted righteous by obeying law ends only in frustration. If you break one law out of a system of laws, then you are guilty of all of the law. ("Cursed is everyone who doesn't live by and do all that is written in the law.")
I obeyed and fulfilled the law completely, then endured the cross to carry the curse of the law for you and to release you from that curse.
No one can be counted righteous or made right with the Father by obeying the law. The life the Father wants to give you is found only by trusting what I did to make you right with Him.
This life as the Father's beloved child is yours no matter your nationality, race, or gender. It is given you when you trust in Me and put Me on in baptism and become the Father's beloved child.
Verses to Live
Law in general, and the Mosaic law, which came from God, are good. They help limit the corruption in a society that comes from people who do evil things. They also help you better understand the kind of character the Father wants from you as His child. But no law-keeping can save you! Only I can do that. So quit trying to earn your salvation by trying to be better by doing a list of rules. Trust that what I did for you in my life, death, and resurrection makes you right with God. Realize that the good things you do and the godly life you try to lead are not done to earn Our favor or get you into heaven. You are choosing to do those things because you have been saved. You do them because you have been adopted into Our family. You want to share the character and compassion of the Father with others!
You remember Abraham. Scripture tells us, "Abraham believed God and trusted in His promises, so God counted it to his favor as righteousness." Know this: people who trust in God are the true sons and daughters of Abraham. For it was foretold to us in the Scriptures that God would set the Gentile nations right by faith when He told Abraham, "I will bless all nations through you." So those who have faith in Him are blessed along with Abraham, our faithful ancestor.
Listen, whoever seeks to be righteous by following certain works of the law actually falls under the law's curse. I'm giving it to you straight from Scripture because it is as true now as when it was written: "Cursed is everyone who doesn't live by and do all that is written in the law." Now it is absolutely clear that no one is made right with God through the law because the prophet Habakkuk told us, "By faith the just will obtain life." The law is not the same thing as life formed by faith. In fact, you are warned against this when God says, "The one who observes My laws will live by them." I am trying to tell you that the Anointed One, the Liberating King, has redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. It was stated in the Scriptures, "Everyone who hangs on a tree is cursed by God." This is what God had in mind all along: the blessing He gave to Abraham might extend to all nations through the Anointed One, Jesus; and we are the beneficiaries of this promise of the Spirit that comes only through faith.
My dear brothers and sisters, here's a real-life example I can give you: With a last will and testament, when all the property is accounted for, the document is signed, witnessed, and notarized; and afterward no one can make changes to it. In a similar way, God's promises established a binding agreement with Abraham and his offspring. In the Scriptures, it is carefully stated, "and to your descendant" (meaning one), not "and to your descendants" (meaning many). Therefore, in these covenant promises, God was not referring to every son and daughter born into Abraham's family but to the Anointed One to come. What this all means is that the law given to Israel comes along some 430 years after the promise made to Abraham; so it does not invalidate the covenant God previously agreed to or in any way do away with His promise. You see, if the law became the sole basis for the inheritance, then it would put God in the position of breaking a covenant because He had promised it to Abraham.
Now you're asking yourselves, "So why did God give us the law?" God commanded His heavenly messengers to deliver it into the hand of a mediator for this reason: to help us rein in our sins until the Offspring, about whom the promise was made in the first place, would come. A mediator represents more than one, but God is only one. "So," you ask, "does the law contradict God's promise?" Absolutely not! Never was there written a law that could lead to resurrection and life; if there had been, then surely we could have experienced saving righteousness through keeping the law. But we haven't. Scripture has subjected the whole world to sin's power so that the faithful obedience of Jesus the Anointed might extend God's promises to everyone who has faith. Before faith came on the scene, the law did its best to keep us in line, restraining us until the faith that was to come was fully revealed. So then, the law was like a tutor, assigned to train us and point us to the Anointed, so that we will be acquitted of all wrong and made right by faith. But now that true faith has come, we have no need for a tutor. It is your faith in the Anointed Jesus that makes all of you children of God because all of you who have been initiated into the Anointed One through the ceremonial washing of baptism have put Him on. It makes no difference whether you are a Jew or a Greek, a slave or a freeman, a man or a woman, because in Jesus the Anointed, the Liberating King, you are all one. Since you belong to Him and are now subject to His power, you are the descendant of Abraham and the heir of God's glory according to the promise.
(Galatians 3:6-29)
Response in Prayer
O Father, I offer You my heart so that the Holy Spirit will help me understand and live Your truth. One thing I know, dear Father, is that You sent Jesus to save me and include me in Your family. So thank You from the bottom of my heart. I trust that what Jesus did not only paid for my sin but also provided the way for You to make me righteous in Your eyes. May the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart and the actions in my daily life show Your character and compassion to people in my world. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved Child of God,
I love Peter's statement about the apostle Paul's writings:
And remember, our Lord's patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him — speaking of these things in all of his letters. Some of his comments are hard to understand...
(2 Peter 3:15-16 NLT)
Some things Paul wrote are very easy for almost anyone to understand. Other things he wrote used technical language and logic, a kind of logic and reasoning that he had learned in the school of Gamaliel for rabbis (Acts 22:3). Today's verses contain some of that rabbinic style of teaching. So I want you to pay close attention to what Paul says and not lose his important message to you.
Some people in the Galatian churches knew little about the Scriptures — what you call the Old Testament. Others were very accomplished in the study of the Scriptures. So Paul had to use different styles of teaching and different kinds of examples that made sense to these very different people. He wanted to bring them together in My church through the Father's grace. Some of Paul's teaching you will understand. Some may be a bit confusing. Don't let any confusion discourage you. With a little time and with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, you will be able to understand the most important things the Spirit led Paul to write to these new Christians.
The fundamental truth behind what Paul wrote is very important. That truth is that your being made right with the Father depends on your faith in:
My sacrifice on the cross.
My resurrection from the dead.
My pouring out the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and on you at your conversion.
You are saved by faith in Me and what I did to save you, not by keeping any law!
In your verses for today, Paul made several points about the inability of a law to save people and make them righteous. This inability of a law to save is true of all law, even the law of Moses. Here are some of the key points to notice in Paul's message:
Abraham was counted righteous by the Father because of his faith — not because he obeyed the Mosaic Law. (Abraham lived hundreds of years before the Mosaic law was given.)
People who trust in Me are counted righteous because of their faith just as Abraham was.
Trying to be counted righteous by obeying law ends only in frustration. If you break one law out of a system of laws, then you are guilty of all of the law. ("Cursed is everyone who doesn't live by and do all that is written in the law.")
I obeyed and fulfilled the law completely, then endured the cross to carry the curse of the law for you and to release you from that curse.
No one can be counted righteous or made right with the Father by obeying the law. The life the Father wants to give you is found only by trusting what I did to make you right with Him.
This life as the Father's beloved child is yours no matter your nationality, race, or gender. It is given you when you trust in Me and put Me on in baptism and become the Father's beloved child.
Verses to Live
Law in general, and the Mosaic law, which came from God, are good. They help limit the corruption in a society that comes from people who do evil things. They also help you better understand the kind of character the Father wants from you as His child. But no law-keeping can save you! Only I can do that. So quit trying to earn your salvation by trying to be better by doing a list of rules. Trust that what I did for you in my life, death, and resurrection makes you right with God. Realize that the good things you do and the godly life you try to lead are not done to earn Our favor or get you into heaven. You are choosing to do those things because you have been saved. You do them because you have been adopted into Our family. You want to share the character and compassion of the Father with others!
You remember Abraham. Scripture tells us, "Abraham believed God and trusted in His promises, so God counted it to his favor as righteousness." Know this: people who trust in God are the true sons and daughters of Abraham. For it was foretold to us in the Scriptures that God would set the Gentile nations right by faith when He told Abraham, "I will bless all nations through you." So those who have faith in Him are blessed along with Abraham, our faithful ancestor.
Listen, whoever seeks to be righteous by following certain works of the law actually falls under the law's curse. I'm giving it to you straight from Scripture because it is as true now as when it was written: "Cursed is everyone who doesn't live by and do all that is written in the law." Now it is absolutely clear that no one is made right with God through the law because the prophet Habakkuk told us, "By faith the just will obtain life." The law is not the same thing as life formed by faith. In fact, you are warned against this when God says, "The one who observes My laws will live by them." I am trying to tell you that the Anointed One, the Liberating King, has redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. It was stated in the Scriptures, "Everyone who hangs on a tree is cursed by God." This is what God had in mind all along: the blessing He gave to Abraham might extend to all nations through the Anointed One, Jesus; and we are the beneficiaries of this promise of the Spirit that comes only through faith.
My dear brothers and sisters, here's a real-life example I can give you: With a last will and testament, when all the property is accounted for, the document is signed, witnessed, and notarized; and afterward no one can make changes to it. In a similar way, God's promises established a binding agreement with Abraham and his offspring. In the Scriptures, it is carefully stated, "and to your descendant" (meaning one), not "and to your descendants" (meaning many). Therefore, in these covenant promises, God was not referring to every son and daughter born into Abraham's family but to the Anointed One to come. What this all means is that the law given to Israel comes along some 430 years after the promise made to Abraham; so it does not invalidate the covenant God previously agreed to or in any way do away with His promise. You see, if the law became the sole basis for the inheritance, then it would put God in the position of breaking a covenant because He had promised it to Abraham.
Now you're asking yourselves, "So why did God give us the law?" God commanded His heavenly messengers to deliver it into the hand of a mediator for this reason: to help us rein in our sins until the Offspring, about whom the promise was made in the first place, would come. A mediator represents more than one, but God is only one. "So," you ask, "does the law contradict God's promise?" Absolutely not! Never was there written a law that could lead to resurrection and life; if there had been, then surely we could have experienced saving righteousness through keeping the law. But we haven't. Scripture has subjected the whole world to sin's power so that the faithful obedience of Jesus the Anointed might extend God's promises to everyone who has faith. Before faith came on the scene, the law did its best to keep us in line, restraining us until the faith that was to come was fully revealed. So then, the law was like a tutor, assigned to train us and point us to the Anointed, so that we will be acquitted of all wrong and made right by faith. But now that true faith has come, we have no need for a tutor. It is your faith in the Anointed Jesus that makes all of you children of God because all of you who have been initiated into the Anointed One through the ceremonial washing of baptism have put Him on. It makes no difference whether you are a Jew or a Greek, a slave or a freeman, a man or a woman, because in Jesus the Anointed, the Liberating King, you are all one. Since you belong to Him and are now subject to His power, you are the descendant of Abraham and the heir of God's glory according to the promise.
(Galatians 3:6-29)
Response in Prayer
O Father, I offer You my heart so that the Holy Spirit will help me understand and live Your truth. One thing I know, dear Father, is that You sent Jesus to save me and include me in Your family. So thank You from the bottom of my heart. I trust that what Jesus did not only paid for my sin but also provided the way for You to make me righteous in Your eyes. May the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart and the actions in my daily life show Your character and compassion to people in my world. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
Shocking Language, Amazing Grace!" — A Year with Jesus for 06/22/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Disciple,
Some of Paul's language in his letter to the Galatians is harsh. He begins his letter without his normal prayer of thanksgiving for them. (Even though the congregations in Corinth were a spiritual mess, Paul began his letter to the Corinthians with a prayer of thanksgiving.) The lack of his normal thanksgiving combined with the strong language Paul used toward those promoting legalism should be shocking to you. It was shocking to them. However, Paul wanted to get their attention! Grace and My good news message were at stake:
No matter the source of the false gospel [you people of Galatia are now believing], even if it is preached by us [Paul and the apostles] or a heavenly messenger, ignore it. May those who add to or subtract from the gospel of Jesus be eternally cursed! Listen again: if anyone preaches to you a gospel other than what you have accepted, may he find himself cursed.
(Galatians 1:8-9)
Paul demanded their attention with these very harsh, but needed words!
Paul went on in his letter to the Galatians to share his open rebuke of Cephas, whom you know as Peter. He and Barnabas had behaved poorly, their treatment of Gentile brothers and sisters were sinful and influenced by Jewish prejudice (Galatians 2:11-18). In the verses you will read today, you will see Paul use tough words again — notice especially the words emphasized in bold. Paul was using very intense language. What was the compelling reason for such a sharp edge to Paul's words? The truth of My gospel was being perverted.
Are people justified before the Father and accepted as His beloved children because they have earned it through their good works? No! They are justified because they hear the message of My gospel and accept it by faith.
Are people accepted as holy and considered part of the Father's family because they obey a set of rules? No! The Father's acceptance and the grace they receive move them to act consistently with My character and compassion as they are led by the Holy Spirit.
Too many teach and so many labor under the false notion that they have to earn their way to heaven. This false understanding was true with the Galatians. It is also true in your day. People fear that they have to work hard to gain the favor of an angry god. This fear is not the teaching of My gospel. This false concept is not the truth about your God. This legalistic approach to righteousness is not the truth about the Father who sent Me. It is not the truth about Me. Since I gave up everything to save you, why would I or My Father give you a set of obscure religious obstacles for you to navigate so you could find My grace? A false approach to discipleship based on your accomplishments drips with the rot of the devil's vile work. It is not the truth about the Holy Spirit Who lives in you to comfort, encourage, and empower you.
You do not have to earn Our loving grace. I came to give you that grace. I paid the debt of sin so you could experience that grace. I ask you to accept that grace through faith in what I did for you. You don't do good deeds to earn My favor. Your acts of kindness toward others are your response to the grace you have received. Your good deeds are your demonstrated appreciation for your salvation and adoption in My family. These actions are also a reflection of who you are becoming by the power of the Spirit — you are being transformed to be like Me (2 Corinthians 3:18)!
When you became a child of the Father, I gave you the Holy Spirit to live in you (Acts 2:38-39; Titus 3:3-7; Romans 8:9) and to empower you to live as the Father's child in your world (Romans 8:13; 2 Corinthians 3:17-18). As you will see in a few days, the Spirit is at work to produce character and compassion in you that reflect My nature. This evidence of the Spirit's work in you is called the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). The Holy Spirit is your guarantee of ultimate salvation (2 Corinthians 5:4-5; Ephesians 1:13-14). So don't just begin your life in Me through the Spirit; seek the Spirit's help in all you do!
Verses to Live
Paul chose strong language to address My followers in Galatia. He chose this harsh language because his message was vitally important to them. If they gave up grace, they would lose Me and the salvation I came to bring them! He's telling them, "Don't give up grace for law-keeping. Don't give up the power of the Holy Spirit for your own futile efforts to live for Me." Some of his strong language in the verses below is in bold. On the other hand, also notice the underlined words where Paul mentioned the great spiritual benefits of faith, the Spirit, and love.
Galatians, don't act like fools! Has someone cast a spell over you? Did you miss the crucifixion of Jesus the Anointed that was reenacted right in front of your eyes? Tell me this: Did the Holy Spirit come upon you because you lived according to the law? Or was it because you heard His message of grace through faith? Are you so foolish? Do you think you can perfect something God's Spirit started with any human effort? Have you suffered so greatly for nothing — if it was indeed for nothing? You have experienced the Spirit He gave you in powerful ways. Miracle after miracle has occurred right before your eyes in this community, so tell me: did all this happen because you have kept certain provisions of God's law, or was it because you heard the gospel and accepted it by faith?
(Galatians 3:1-5)
So stand strong for our freedom! The Anointed One freed us so we wouldn't spend one more day under the yoke of slavery, trapped under the law.
Listen because I, Paul, am going to make this message very clear so it cannot be misunderstood: if you undergo the rite of circumcision, then all that the Anointed accomplished will be lost on you. And understand this: if you choose to be circumcised, then you will oblige yourself to do every single rule of the law for the rest of your life. You, and anyone else who seeks to be on the right side of God through the law, have effectively been cut off from the Anointed, circumcised from grace, and cast off from the favor of God. We, on the other hand, continue to live through the Spirit's power and wait confidently in the hope that things will be put right through faith. Here's the thing: in Jesus the Anointed whether you are circumcised or not makes no difference. What makes a difference is faith energized by love.
Who has impeded your progress and kept you from obeying the truth? You were off to such a good start. I know for certain the pressure isn't coming from God. He keeps calling you to the truth. You know what they say, "Just a little yeast causes all the dough to rise," so even the slightest detour from the truth will take you to a destination you do not desire. Despite this, I'm confident because the Lord reassures me that you will truly hear and take my message to heart. Besides, I also know that these troublemakers, whoever they are, will answer to God and be judged accordingly. As for me, brothers and sisters, if I continue to preach circumcision — as these agitators claim — then why do I still face persecution? If I were to preach a compromised version of the good news, then the scandal of the cross would come to an end. I really wish that these people who weigh you down with corrupt counsel would mutilate themselves.
(Galatians 5:1-12)
Response in Prayer
O Father, I don't want to delude myself into thinking that I can be transformed by my own power to become the person You want me to be. Thank You for the grace You have given me in Jesus. Your grace has saved me. Thank You for the continuing grace of the Holy Spirit within me — the Spirit Who is at work to transform me to be more and more like Jesus. I give You thanks and praise You for Your grace to me in Jesus. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Disciple,
Some of Paul's language in his letter to the Galatians is harsh. He begins his letter without his normal prayer of thanksgiving for them. (Even though the congregations in Corinth were a spiritual mess, Paul began his letter to the Corinthians with a prayer of thanksgiving.) The lack of his normal thanksgiving combined with the strong language Paul used toward those promoting legalism should be shocking to you. It was shocking to them. However, Paul wanted to get their attention! Grace and My good news message were at stake:
No matter the source of the false gospel [you people of Galatia are now believing], even if it is preached by us [Paul and the apostles] or a heavenly messenger, ignore it. May those who add to or subtract from the gospel of Jesus be eternally cursed! Listen again: if anyone preaches to you a gospel other than what you have accepted, may he find himself cursed.
(Galatians 1:8-9)
Paul demanded their attention with these very harsh, but needed words!
Paul went on in his letter to the Galatians to share his open rebuke of Cephas, whom you know as Peter. He and Barnabas had behaved poorly, their treatment of Gentile brothers and sisters were sinful and influenced by Jewish prejudice (Galatians 2:11-18). In the verses you will read today, you will see Paul use tough words again — notice especially the words emphasized in bold. Paul was using very intense language. What was the compelling reason for such a sharp edge to Paul's words? The truth of My gospel was being perverted.
Are people justified before the Father and accepted as His beloved children because they have earned it through their good works? No! They are justified because they hear the message of My gospel and accept it by faith.
Are people accepted as holy and considered part of the Father's family because they obey a set of rules? No! The Father's acceptance and the grace they receive move them to act consistently with My character and compassion as they are led by the Holy Spirit.
Too many teach and so many labor under the false notion that they have to earn their way to heaven. This false understanding was true with the Galatians. It is also true in your day. People fear that they have to work hard to gain the favor of an angry god. This fear is not the teaching of My gospel. This false concept is not the truth about your God. This legalistic approach to righteousness is not the truth about the Father who sent Me. It is not the truth about Me. Since I gave up everything to save you, why would I or My Father give you a set of obscure religious obstacles for you to navigate so you could find My grace? A false approach to discipleship based on your accomplishments drips with the rot of the devil's vile work. It is not the truth about the Holy Spirit Who lives in you to comfort, encourage, and empower you.
You do not have to earn Our loving grace. I came to give you that grace. I paid the debt of sin so you could experience that grace. I ask you to accept that grace through faith in what I did for you. You don't do good deeds to earn My favor. Your acts of kindness toward others are your response to the grace you have received. Your good deeds are your demonstrated appreciation for your salvation and adoption in My family. These actions are also a reflection of who you are becoming by the power of the Spirit — you are being transformed to be like Me (2 Corinthians 3:18)!
When you became a child of the Father, I gave you the Holy Spirit to live in you (Acts 2:38-39; Titus 3:3-7; Romans 8:9) and to empower you to live as the Father's child in your world (Romans 8:13; 2 Corinthians 3:17-18). As you will see in a few days, the Spirit is at work to produce character and compassion in you that reflect My nature. This evidence of the Spirit's work in you is called the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). The Holy Spirit is your guarantee of ultimate salvation (2 Corinthians 5:4-5; Ephesians 1:13-14). So don't just begin your life in Me through the Spirit; seek the Spirit's help in all you do!
Verses to Live
Paul chose strong language to address My followers in Galatia. He chose this harsh language because his message was vitally important to them. If they gave up grace, they would lose Me and the salvation I came to bring them! He's telling them, "Don't give up grace for law-keeping. Don't give up the power of the Holy Spirit for your own futile efforts to live for Me." Some of his strong language in the verses below is in bold. On the other hand, also notice the underlined words where Paul mentioned the great spiritual benefits of faith, the Spirit, and love.
Galatians, don't act like fools! Has someone cast a spell over you? Did you miss the crucifixion of Jesus the Anointed that was reenacted right in front of your eyes? Tell me this: Did the Holy Spirit come upon you because you lived according to the law? Or was it because you heard His message of grace through faith? Are you so foolish? Do you think you can perfect something God's Spirit started with any human effort? Have you suffered so greatly for nothing — if it was indeed for nothing? You have experienced the Spirit He gave you in powerful ways. Miracle after miracle has occurred right before your eyes in this community, so tell me: did all this happen because you have kept certain provisions of God's law, or was it because you heard the gospel and accepted it by faith?
(Galatians 3:1-5)
So stand strong for our freedom! The Anointed One freed us so we wouldn't spend one more day under the yoke of slavery, trapped under the law.
Listen because I, Paul, am going to make this message very clear so it cannot be misunderstood: if you undergo the rite of circumcision, then all that the Anointed accomplished will be lost on you. And understand this: if you choose to be circumcised, then you will oblige yourself to do every single rule of the law for the rest of your life. You, and anyone else who seeks to be on the right side of God through the law, have effectively been cut off from the Anointed, circumcised from grace, and cast off from the favor of God. We, on the other hand, continue to live through the Spirit's power and wait confidently in the hope that things will be put right through faith. Here's the thing: in Jesus the Anointed whether you are circumcised or not makes no difference. What makes a difference is faith energized by love.
Who has impeded your progress and kept you from obeying the truth? You were off to such a good start. I know for certain the pressure isn't coming from God. He keeps calling you to the truth. You know what they say, "Just a little yeast causes all the dough to rise," so even the slightest detour from the truth will take you to a destination you do not desire. Despite this, I'm confident because the Lord reassures me that you will truly hear and take my message to heart. Besides, I also know that these troublemakers, whoever they are, will answer to God and be judged accordingly. As for me, brothers and sisters, if I continue to preach circumcision — as these agitators claim — then why do I still face persecution? If I were to preach a compromised version of the good news, then the scandal of the cross would come to an end. I really wish that these people who weigh you down with corrupt counsel would mutilate themselves.
(Galatians 5:1-12)
Response in Prayer
O Father, I don't want to delude myself into thinking that I can be transformed by my own power to become the person You want me to be. Thank You for the grace You have given me in Jesus. Your grace has saved me. Thank You for the continuing grace of the Holy Spirit within me — the Spirit Who is at work to transform me to be more and more like Jesus. I give You thanks and praise You for Your grace to me in Jesus. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"Everything on the Line" — A Year with Jesus for 06/21/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
You live in a world awash in religious ideas, ideologies, and philosophies. But there is one fundamental difference between all of them and the true gospel. That difference is the Father's grace brought to you through My death, burial, and resurrection! Paul summarized this message well in some of his first words in his letter to the new believers in Galatia:
May the grace and peace of God the Father and the Lord Jesus the Anointed live in you; He is the very Savior who rescues us from this present, perverse age dominated by evil by giving His life according to our Father's will to deal with our sins.
As Paul and Barnabas completed their first mission trip, they returned to Syrian Antioch. Gentiles from all over the region of Pamphylia and southern Galatia had come to faith in Me. They trusted in what I did to save them. As Paul said in his letter to the Galatians, they placed their faith in Me by putting Me on in baptism:
It is your faith in the Anointed Jesus that makes all of you children of God because all of you who have been initiated into the Anointed One through the ceremonial washing of baptism have put Him on. It makes no difference whether you are a Jew or a Greek, a slave or a freeman, a man or a woman, because in Jesus the Anointed, the Liberating King, you are all one. Since you belong to Him and are now subject to His power, you are the descendant of Abraham and the heir of God's glory according to the promise.
(Galatians 3:26-29)
The Galatians became children of God and descendants of Abraham — that is, heirs to the promises God made to Abraham — through this experience of baptism based on their faith. All walls dividing them as people were torn down and they became one in Me (Ephesians 2:13-22). Grace had won their hearts (Ephesians 2:1-10). The Father had adopted them into His family as full heirs of all that grace has to offer.
Unfortunately, people in every era have had a tendency to add requirements to this grace. This tendency is what happened to many new believers both in Antioch and in Galatia. Some tried to make non-Jewish believers become Jews before they could be saved. They pushed a "distorted version [of the gospel] which is not the gospel at all"! So Paul made one important truth very clear: If you add some new requirement to the gospel, it is no longer My gospel (Galatians 1:6-9). It devolves into legalism, law-keeping, and falling from grace:
For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God's grace.
(Galatians 5:4)
Verses to Live
Paul didn't invent the gospel he preached. He received that good message from Me. He and Barnabas spoke this good news. They defended it. They spoke strongly against all who would add to it or take from it. Paul used the words "eternally cursed" for anyone who adds to it or takes from this good message of grace.
Everything was on the line for My early believers. They would either devolve into works-based attempts at righteousness like most other religions, or they would trust in My sacrifice to make them right with the Father. They would recognize that their salvation came by grace through faith demonstrated in baptism (Galatians 3:26-29), or they would keep trying to earn the Father's favor by doing good works. To give way to legalism, to return to law-keeping as the way of righteousness, is to give Me up for what is not salvation!
Then they [Paul and Barnabas at the end of their first missionary journey] passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. And when they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia, and from there they sailed to Antioch, where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work that they had fulfilled. And when they arrived and gathered the church together, they declared all that God had done with them, and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles. And they remained no little time with the disciples.
But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved." And after Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and the elders about this question.
(Acts 14:24-28 ESV; Acts 15:1-2 ESV)
Paul, an emissary commissioned directly by Jesus the Anointed One and God the Father (who raised Him from the dead) — not (as some claim) an agent of men or any person — and all the brothers and sisters with me to you, the churches of Galatia.
May the grace and peace of God the Father and the Lord Jesus the Anointed live in you; He is the very Savior who rescues us from this present, perverse age dominated by evil by giving His life according to our Father's will to deal with our sins. May God's glorious name forever receive honor. Amen.
Frankly I am stunned. I cannot believe that you have abandoned God so quickly — even after He called you through the grace of the Anointed One — and have fallen for a different gospel. Actually there is only one true gospel of the Anointed, and you — because of divisive prodding by others — are accepting a distorted version which is not the gospel at all!
No matter the source of the false gospel, even if it is preached by us or a heavenly messenger, ignore it. May those who add to or subtract from the gospel of Jesus be eternally cursed! Listen again: if anyone preaches to you a gospel other than what you have accepted, may he find himself cursed!
Do you think I care about the approval of men or about the approval of God? Do you think I am on a mission to please people? If I am still spinning my wheels trying to please men, then there is no way I can be a servant of the Anointed One, the Liberating King.
Know this, dear brothers and sisters: the good news I brought to you isn't the latest in fiction or the product of some creative mind. It is not a legend I learned or one that has been passed down from person to person, ear to ear. I was gifted with this message as Jesus the Anointed revealed Himself miraculously to me.
(Galatians 1:1-12)
Response in Prayer
O Father, may I never trust anything or anyone but Christ alone as my Savior. I thank You for giving me grace. I thank You for adopting me into Your family. I thank You that I did not have to earn it or achieve it. I thank You that Jesus paid my debts and won me life. I trust in this grace. I trust in Your loving mercy and Jesus' sacrifice to save me. Thank You! In Jesus' name, I thank You! Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
You live in a world awash in religious ideas, ideologies, and philosophies. But there is one fundamental difference between all of them and the true gospel. That difference is the Father's grace brought to you through My death, burial, and resurrection! Paul summarized this message well in some of his first words in his letter to the new believers in Galatia:
May the grace and peace of God the Father and the Lord Jesus the Anointed live in you; He is the very Savior who rescues us from this present, perverse age dominated by evil by giving His life according to our Father's will to deal with our sins.
As Paul and Barnabas completed their first mission trip, they returned to Syrian Antioch. Gentiles from all over the region of Pamphylia and southern Galatia had come to faith in Me. They trusted in what I did to save them. As Paul said in his letter to the Galatians, they placed their faith in Me by putting Me on in baptism:
It is your faith in the Anointed Jesus that makes all of you children of God because all of you who have been initiated into the Anointed One through the ceremonial washing of baptism have put Him on. It makes no difference whether you are a Jew or a Greek, a slave or a freeman, a man or a woman, because in Jesus the Anointed, the Liberating King, you are all one. Since you belong to Him and are now subject to His power, you are the descendant of Abraham and the heir of God's glory according to the promise.
(Galatians 3:26-29)
The Galatians became children of God and descendants of Abraham — that is, heirs to the promises God made to Abraham — through this experience of baptism based on their faith. All walls dividing them as people were torn down and they became one in Me (Ephesians 2:13-22). Grace had won their hearts (Ephesians 2:1-10). The Father had adopted them into His family as full heirs of all that grace has to offer.
Unfortunately, people in every era have had a tendency to add requirements to this grace. This tendency is what happened to many new believers both in Antioch and in Galatia. Some tried to make non-Jewish believers become Jews before they could be saved. They pushed a "distorted version [of the gospel] which is not the gospel at all"! So Paul made one important truth very clear: If you add some new requirement to the gospel, it is no longer My gospel (Galatians 1:6-9). It devolves into legalism, law-keeping, and falling from grace:
For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God's grace.
(Galatians 5:4)
Verses to Live
Paul didn't invent the gospel he preached. He received that good message from Me. He and Barnabas spoke this good news. They defended it. They spoke strongly against all who would add to it or take from it. Paul used the words "eternally cursed" for anyone who adds to it or takes from this good message of grace.
Everything was on the line for My early believers. They would either devolve into works-based attempts at righteousness like most other religions, or they would trust in My sacrifice to make them right with the Father. They would recognize that their salvation came by grace through faith demonstrated in baptism (Galatians 3:26-29), or they would keep trying to earn the Father's favor by doing good works. To give way to legalism, to return to law-keeping as the way of righteousness, is to give Me up for what is not salvation!
Then they [Paul and Barnabas at the end of their first missionary journey] passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. And when they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia, and from there they sailed to Antioch, where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work that they had fulfilled. And when they arrived and gathered the church together, they declared all that God had done with them, and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles. And they remained no little time with the disciples.
But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved." And after Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and the elders about this question.
(Acts 14:24-28 ESV; Acts 15:1-2 ESV)
Paul, an emissary commissioned directly by Jesus the Anointed One and God the Father (who raised Him from the dead) — not (as some claim) an agent of men or any person — and all the brothers and sisters with me to you, the churches of Galatia.
May the grace and peace of God the Father and the Lord Jesus the Anointed live in you; He is the very Savior who rescues us from this present, perverse age dominated by evil by giving His life according to our Father's will to deal with our sins. May God's glorious name forever receive honor. Amen.
Frankly I am stunned. I cannot believe that you have abandoned God so quickly — even after He called you through the grace of the Anointed One — and have fallen for a different gospel. Actually there is only one true gospel of the Anointed, and you — because of divisive prodding by others — are accepting a distorted version which is not the gospel at all!
No matter the source of the false gospel, even if it is preached by us or a heavenly messenger, ignore it. May those who add to or subtract from the gospel of Jesus be eternally cursed! Listen again: if anyone preaches to you a gospel other than what you have accepted, may he find himself cursed!
Do you think I care about the approval of men or about the approval of God? Do you think I am on a mission to please people? If I am still spinning my wheels trying to please men, then there is no way I can be a servant of the Anointed One, the Liberating King.
Know this, dear brothers and sisters: the good news I brought to you isn't the latest in fiction or the product of some creative mind. It is not a legend I learned or one that has been passed down from person to person, ear to ear. I was gifted with this message as Jesus the Anointed revealed Himself miraculously to me.
(Galatians 1:1-12)
Response in Prayer
O Father, may I never trust anything or anyone but Christ alone as my Savior. I thank You for giving me grace. I thank You for adopting me into Your family. I thank You that I did not have to earn it or achieve it. I thank You that Jesus paid my debts and won me life. I trust in this grace. I trust in Your loving mercy and Jesus' sacrifice to save me. Thank You! In Jesus' name, I thank You! Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"Celebrating Our Work in You" — A Year with Jesus for 06/20/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Friend,
I want you to learn to rejoice in Our work in you. We — Father, Son, and Spirit — delight in your obedience and service to the kingdom of heaven. Angels rejoice when you find lost people and bring them to know Me, to experience the Father's grace, and to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Luke 15:7, 10). Yes, I want you to be passionate about the mission to which I have called you. I also want you to be equally passionate about celebrating My work done through you. Learn to rejoice with Us in the work we have done through you (Philippians 4:4-7).
I mentioned several things in My note yesterday that Paul and Barnabas did as they completed their missionary journey — their first missionary journey. Today, I want to focus on one of those things that many of My disciples have forgotten to do: celebrate Our work done through you, among you, for you, and within you (Acts 14:27-28). We are always at work in you (Philippians 2:13). Even when things look bad and life is hard, We continue to work and redeem the messes of your life for your good (Romans 8:28-29).
We know that you are not perfectly mature. We are far more aware of the undone things in your life than you are. However, We will carry those things to full completion and bring you to us in holiness to share in Our glory (Philippians 1:6; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24). Please recognize your progress in grace. Please celebrate your victories for grace. Please acknowledge the work We have done through you!
Rejoice! Celebrate! This enthusiasm is not bragging on yourself, but giving glory to Us and blessing the family of believers. This kind of joy encourages others to live out Our mission in their lives. This kind of celebration gives other believers hope that their service in My name can be a blessing to the kingdom of heaven.
Learn to rejoice with Us in the victories won over sin, death, hell, and the hold they have on the children of your world. Celebrate Our work done in and through you!
Verses to Live
The following is Luke's summary of the end of Paul and Barnabas' mission trip. You will notice several things these two do to establish and strengthen the churches in the cities they had previously visited. I want you to spend some extra time on the last three sentences, the ones in bold. Paul and Barnabas spent time with the believers who sent them out, and they reported to them all that We had done through them. When's the last time you've taken a significant amount of time with other believers and celebrated our work done among you, through you, and within you? We want you to celebrate with Us! Paul and Barnabas and the church at Antioch surely did. Won't you?
After they [Paul and Barnabas] proclaimed the good news there [Derbe] and taught many disciples, they returned to some of the cities they had recently visited — Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch in Pisidia. In each place, they brought strength to the disciples, encouraging them to remain true to the faith.
Paul and Barnabas:
We must go through many persecutions as we enter the kingdom of God.
In each church, they would appoint leaders, pray and fast together, and entrust them to the Lord in whom they had come to believe.
They then passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. They preached their message in Perga and then went to the port of Attalia. There they set sail for Antioch, where they were first entrusted to the grace of God for the mission they had now completed. They called the church together when they arrived and reported all God had done with and through them, how God had welcomed outsiders through the doorway of faith. They stayed with the disciples in Antioch for quite a while.
(Acts 14:21-28)
Response in Prayer
O Father in heaven, I confess that I often grow discouraged by my own lack of spiritual progress. I sometimes feel as if all of my spiritual efforts are in vain. Even worse, Father, I recognize now that I have let a false sense of humility rob me of rejoicing over Your work done in me, through me, with me, and for me. Forgive me God. I recognize that without Your grace, Your mercy, and Your power I would be lost. O God, I know how empty my life would be if it were not for Your grace to work through me, in me, and for me for Your glory. Teach me to rejoice in You, Your work, and Your glory. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Friend,
I want you to learn to rejoice in Our work in you. We — Father, Son, and Spirit — delight in your obedience and service to the kingdom of heaven. Angels rejoice when you find lost people and bring them to know Me, to experience the Father's grace, and to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Luke 15:7, 10). Yes, I want you to be passionate about the mission to which I have called you. I also want you to be equally passionate about celebrating My work done through you. Learn to rejoice with Us in the work we have done through you (Philippians 4:4-7).
I mentioned several things in My note yesterday that Paul and Barnabas did as they completed their missionary journey — their first missionary journey. Today, I want to focus on one of those things that many of My disciples have forgotten to do: celebrate Our work done through you, among you, for you, and within you (Acts 14:27-28). We are always at work in you (Philippians 2:13). Even when things look bad and life is hard, We continue to work and redeem the messes of your life for your good (Romans 8:28-29).
We know that you are not perfectly mature. We are far more aware of the undone things in your life than you are. However, We will carry those things to full completion and bring you to us in holiness to share in Our glory (Philippians 1:6; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24). Please recognize your progress in grace. Please celebrate your victories for grace. Please acknowledge the work We have done through you!
Rejoice! Celebrate! This enthusiasm is not bragging on yourself, but giving glory to Us and blessing the family of believers. This kind of joy encourages others to live out Our mission in their lives. This kind of celebration gives other believers hope that their service in My name can be a blessing to the kingdom of heaven.
Learn to rejoice with Us in the victories won over sin, death, hell, and the hold they have on the children of your world. Celebrate Our work done in and through you!
Verses to Live
The following is Luke's summary of the end of Paul and Barnabas' mission trip. You will notice several things these two do to establish and strengthen the churches in the cities they had previously visited. I want you to spend some extra time on the last three sentences, the ones in bold. Paul and Barnabas spent time with the believers who sent them out, and they reported to them all that We had done through them. When's the last time you've taken a significant amount of time with other believers and celebrated our work done among you, through you, and within you? We want you to celebrate with Us! Paul and Barnabas and the church at Antioch surely did. Won't you?
After they [Paul and Barnabas] proclaimed the good news there [Derbe] and taught many disciples, they returned to some of the cities they had recently visited — Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch in Pisidia. In each place, they brought strength to the disciples, encouraging them to remain true to the faith.
Paul and Barnabas:
We must go through many persecutions as we enter the kingdom of God.
In each church, they would appoint leaders, pray and fast together, and entrust them to the Lord in whom they had come to believe.
They then passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. They preached their message in Perga and then went to the port of Attalia. There they set sail for Antioch, where they were first entrusted to the grace of God for the mission they had now completed. They called the church together when they arrived and reported all God had done with and through them, how God had welcomed outsiders through the doorway of faith. They stayed with the disciples in Antioch for quite a while.
(Acts 14:21-28)
Response in Prayer
O Father in heaven, I confess that I often grow discouraged by my own lack of spiritual progress. I sometimes feel as if all of my spiritual efforts are in vain. Even worse, Father, I recognize now that I have let a false sense of humility rob me of rejoicing over Your work done in me, through me, with me, and for me. Forgive me God. I recognize that without Your grace, Your mercy, and Your power I would be lost. O God, I know how empty my life would be if it were not for Your grace to work through me, in me, and for me for Your glory. Teach me to rejoice in You, Your work, and Your glory. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"First Mission Is Completed!" — A Year with Jesus for 06/19/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Disciple,
In today's verses, Luke writes about the last part of Paul and Barnabas' first missionary journey. As you saw yesterday, they developed a strategic rhythm in sharing the gospel. They would share My message first in the synagogues with Jews and God-fearers. Then, when resistance and opposition mounted, they would go to non-Jews in that same city. The methodology was quite effective. However, it brought a lot of resistance among some in the Jewish community:
Finally the Jews and outsiders who opposed them joined forces and enlisted the political leaders in their plan to beat and stone Paul and Barnabas. They learned of the plan and escaped to Lystra and Derbe in Lycaonia, and the surrounding countryside, where they continued proclaiming the good news.
(Acts 14:5-7)
This resistance, even when in the form of persecution, did not stop Barnabas and Paul. The power of the Holy Spirit and the joy of My grace buoyed them. Furthermore, the resistance did not keep additional people from believing their message.
Along the way, Barnabas and Paul met some challenges that were quite different from the ones of their Jewish upbringing. In places where superstition and false religion were the customs, Barnabas and Paul found their miracles didn't always point people to Me. Instead, the miracles sometimes created confusion and false worship of the miracle workers. Rather than accept the worship and adulation of the crowds, Paul and Barnabas taught the truth and pointed the people to Me:
Friends! No! No! Don't do this! [That is, don't worship us, Paul and Barnabas.] We're just humans like all of you! We're not here to be worshiped! We're here to bring you good news — good news that you should turn from these worthless forms of worship and instead serve the living God, the God who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that they contain.
Soon, My faithful emissaries, Barnabas and Paul, were facing attacks from hostile non-believing Jews, non-Jews who did not understand their message, and political leaders who were incited by leading Jewish officials to oppose My messengers. To prepare the new believers for what was ahead, Barnabas and Paul did two very important things. First, they warned these new believers that they must face "many persecutions as we enter the kingdom of God." Second, they appointed leaders — godly older men called elders — to help guide these new communities of believers. When they returned to Antioch (in Syria) where they began their mission efforts, they reported on the great work We — Father, Son, and Spirit — had led them to do and empowered them to accomplish.
Verses to Live
As you read the verses below, a new era in the life of My people and a new era in sharing My message had fully begun. Now there were disciples of different nationalities, cultures, and languages coming into My family. This diversity was a glorious beginning. However, many roadblocks, difficulties, hardships, and persecutions lay ahead. But nothing could stop the advancement of the good message of the Father's grace. That message focused on what I had done in My life, teaching, death, burial, resurrection, exaltation and sending of the Spirit. This message was empowered and validated by the Holy Spirit.
This first mission of Barnabas and Paul wasn't easy. But when they returned, they could truthfully say, "Our first mission is completed!"
In Lystra they [Paul and Barnabas] met a man who had been crippled since birth; his feet were completely useless. He listened to Paul speak, and Paul could see in this man's face that he had faith to be healed.
Paul (shouting):
Stand up on your own two feet, man!
The man jumped up and walked! When the crowds saw this, they started shouting in Lycaonian.
Crowd:
The gods have come down to us! They've come in human form!
They decided that Barnabas was Zeus and Paul was Hermes (since he was the main speaker). Before they knew it, the priest of Zeus, whose temple was prominent in that city, came to the city gates with oxen and garlands of flowers so the Lycaonians could offer sacrifices in worship to Paul and Barnabas! When they heard of this, Paul and Barnabas were beside themselves with frustration — they ripped their tunics as an expression of disapproval and rushed out into the crowd.
Paul and Barnabas (shouting):
Friends! No! No! Don't do this! We're just humans like all of you! We're not here to be worshiped! We're here to bring you good news — good news that you should turn from these worthless forms of worship and instead serve the living God, the God who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that they contain. Through all previous generations, God has allowed all the nations to follow their own customs and religions, but even then God revealed Himself by doing good to you — giving you rain for your crops and fruitful harvests season after season, filling your stomachs with food and your hearts with joy.
In spite of these words, they were barely able to keep the crowds from making sacrifices to them.
Then unbelieving Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and incited the crowds against the Lord's emissaries. The crowds turned on Paul, stoned him, dragged him out of the city, and left him there, thinking he was dead. As the disciples gathered around him, he suddenly rose to his feet and returned to the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe. After they proclaimed the good news there and taught many disciples, they returned to some of the cities they had recently visited — Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch in Pisidia. In each place, they brought strength to the disciples, encouraging them to remain true to the faith.
Paul and Barnabas:
We must go through many persecutions as we enter the kingdom of God.
In each church, they would appoint leaders, pray and fast together, and entrust them to the Lord in whom they had come to believe.
They then passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. They preached their message in Perga and then went to the port of Attalia. There they set sail for Antioch, where they were first entrusted to the grace of God for the mission they had now completed. They called the church together when they arrived and reported all God had done with and through them, how God had welcomed outsiders through the doorway of faith. They stayed with the disciples in Antioch for quite a while.
(Acts 14:8-28)
Response in Prayer
O Father, I want to have the same joyful courage in my time as Paul and Barnabas demonstrated. I know that living the values of Your kingdom and sharing Your grace with others will not always be appreciated. However, I also know that the world needs these kingdom values. I know that so many need to discover Your saving grace. Help me please, dear LORD, to know how to share your message effectively and not worry about the hardships that may come from bringing Your grace to the unbelieving world. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
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This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Disciple,
In today's verses, Luke writes about the last part of Paul and Barnabas' first missionary journey. As you saw yesterday, they developed a strategic rhythm in sharing the gospel. They would share My message first in the synagogues with Jews and God-fearers. Then, when resistance and opposition mounted, they would go to non-Jews in that same city. The methodology was quite effective. However, it brought a lot of resistance among some in the Jewish community:
Finally the Jews and outsiders who opposed them joined forces and enlisted the political leaders in their plan to beat and stone Paul and Barnabas. They learned of the plan and escaped to Lystra and Derbe in Lycaonia, and the surrounding countryside, where they continued proclaiming the good news.
(Acts 14:5-7)
This resistance, even when in the form of persecution, did not stop Barnabas and Paul. The power of the Holy Spirit and the joy of My grace buoyed them. Furthermore, the resistance did not keep additional people from believing their message.
Along the way, Barnabas and Paul met some challenges that were quite different from the ones of their Jewish upbringing. In places where superstition and false religion were the customs, Barnabas and Paul found their miracles didn't always point people to Me. Instead, the miracles sometimes created confusion and false worship of the miracle workers. Rather than accept the worship and adulation of the crowds, Paul and Barnabas taught the truth and pointed the people to Me:
Friends! No! No! Don't do this! [That is, don't worship us, Paul and Barnabas.] We're just humans like all of you! We're not here to be worshiped! We're here to bring you good news — good news that you should turn from these worthless forms of worship and instead serve the living God, the God who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that they contain.
Soon, My faithful emissaries, Barnabas and Paul, were facing attacks from hostile non-believing Jews, non-Jews who did not understand their message, and political leaders who were incited by leading Jewish officials to oppose My messengers. To prepare the new believers for what was ahead, Barnabas and Paul did two very important things. First, they warned these new believers that they must face "many persecutions as we enter the kingdom of God." Second, they appointed leaders — godly older men called elders — to help guide these new communities of believers. When they returned to Antioch (in Syria) where they began their mission efforts, they reported on the great work We — Father, Son, and Spirit — had led them to do and empowered them to accomplish.
Verses to Live
As you read the verses below, a new era in the life of My people and a new era in sharing My message had fully begun. Now there were disciples of different nationalities, cultures, and languages coming into My family. This diversity was a glorious beginning. However, many roadblocks, difficulties, hardships, and persecutions lay ahead. But nothing could stop the advancement of the good message of the Father's grace. That message focused on what I had done in My life, teaching, death, burial, resurrection, exaltation and sending of the Spirit. This message was empowered and validated by the Holy Spirit.
This first mission of Barnabas and Paul wasn't easy. But when they returned, they could truthfully say, "Our first mission is completed!"
In Lystra they [Paul and Barnabas] met a man who had been crippled since birth; his feet were completely useless. He listened to Paul speak, and Paul could see in this man's face that he had faith to be healed.
Paul (shouting):
Stand up on your own two feet, man!
The man jumped up and walked! When the crowds saw this, they started shouting in Lycaonian.
Crowd:
The gods have come down to us! They've come in human form!
They decided that Barnabas was Zeus and Paul was Hermes (since he was the main speaker). Before they knew it, the priest of Zeus, whose temple was prominent in that city, came to the city gates with oxen and garlands of flowers so the Lycaonians could offer sacrifices in worship to Paul and Barnabas! When they heard of this, Paul and Barnabas were beside themselves with frustration — they ripped their tunics as an expression of disapproval and rushed out into the crowd.
Paul and Barnabas (shouting):
Friends! No! No! Don't do this! We're just humans like all of you! We're not here to be worshiped! We're here to bring you good news — good news that you should turn from these worthless forms of worship and instead serve the living God, the God who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that they contain. Through all previous generations, God has allowed all the nations to follow their own customs and religions, but even then God revealed Himself by doing good to you — giving you rain for your crops and fruitful harvests season after season, filling your stomachs with food and your hearts with joy.
In spite of these words, they were barely able to keep the crowds from making sacrifices to them.
Then unbelieving Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and incited the crowds against the Lord's emissaries. The crowds turned on Paul, stoned him, dragged him out of the city, and left him there, thinking he was dead. As the disciples gathered around him, he suddenly rose to his feet and returned to the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe. After they proclaimed the good news there and taught many disciples, they returned to some of the cities they had recently visited — Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch in Pisidia. In each place, they brought strength to the disciples, encouraging them to remain true to the faith.
Paul and Barnabas:
We must go through many persecutions as we enter the kingdom of God.
In each church, they would appoint leaders, pray and fast together, and entrust them to the Lord in whom they had come to believe.
They then passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. They preached their message in Perga and then went to the port of Attalia. There they set sail for Antioch, where they were first entrusted to the grace of God for the mission they had now completed. They called the church together when they arrived and reported all God had done with and through them, how God had welcomed outsiders through the doorway of faith. They stayed with the disciples in Antioch for quite a while.
(Acts 14:8-28)
Response in Prayer
O Father, I want to have the same joyful courage in my time as Paul and Barnabas demonstrated. I know that living the values of Your kingdom and sharing Your grace with others will not always be appreciated. However, I also know that the world needs these kingdom values. I know that so many need to discover Your saving grace. Help me please, dear LORD, to know how to share your message effectively and not worry about the hardships that may come from bringing Your grace to the unbelieving world. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
For All People" — A Year with Jesus for 06/18/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Precious Believer,
You were saved by grace when you fully trusted Me and participated in what I did to save you. This truth was the message that I gave the apostle Paul to share with all people, Jewish and non-Jewish alike. Remember, when I commissioned Ananias of Damascus to go and share the message of grace with Paul, I told Ananias this about Paul's mission:
"Yes, but you [Ananias] must go! I have chosen him [Paul] to be My instrument to bring My name far and wide — to outsiders, to kings, and to the people of Israel as well."
(Acts 9:15)
Paul was chosen even before he was born to bring My message of grace to those outside the people of Israel! (Galatians 1:15-16) So what you read today in the verses below helps you understand how he began to live out that purpose in his mission efforts with Barnabas.
Paul and Barnabas began their mission to Pisidian Antioch in the synagogue sharing My message with Jews and God-fearing Gentiles. Paul and Barnabas' message was rooted in the teaching of the Law and Prophets. They tried to help these good people understand the Father's plan. As Paul said, that plan was to send Me as the Messiah and as the fulfillment of those teachings of the Law and the Prophets:
"God has selected one of David’s descendants as the long-promised Liberator of Israel. I am speaking of Jesus."
(Acts 13:23)
However, Paul and Barnabas also emphasized a theme from the prophet Habakkuk — that righteousness comes from living by faith:
"Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith."
(Habakkuk 2:4)
This theme was central to Paul's message to both Jews and non-Jews. He was never ashamed of this message. He saw it as the good news of grace that comes to all people who fully entrust their lives to Me. He and Barnabas encouraged people to "remain steadfast in the grace of God."
When opposition to their message arose among the Jews, Paul and Barnabas saw it as their signal to reach out to non-Jews in Pisidian Antioch. The Jewish prophets of old had spoken of being "a light to the nations beyond Israel" and bringing "redemption to every corner of the earth." My parting words to My disciples had been to "make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19). Paul was "My instrument to bring My name far and wide." So the mission strategy Paul and Barnabas would use in many cities they visited was simple: First, they would go to the synagogues and speak to Jews and God-fearers about Me as the Messiah. Then, they would share that message with non-Jews. Soon, just as Barnabas and Paul had experienced in a different Antioch (the one in Syria), My church was made up of people from all sorts of different backgrounds (Acts 11:19-26).
The promise of the Jewish prophets was being fulfilled. All peoples, Jews and non-Jews alike, were coming to believe in Me and being made righteous by their faith because of grace. This progress was good news. Neither threat, intimidation, persecution, nor rejection could stop this message. Because of the power of the Holy Spirit at work through My people and in their message of grace, there was great joy wherever that message was received in faith!
I want you to experience that great joy! I want you to share that same message! I want all peoples — young and old, rich and poor, of all races and nationalities and languages — to find this joy that comes from knowing Me. So believe in Me. Trust Me. Share Me with your world!
Verses to Live
In these verses, we get to see Paul's mission methodology and strategy emerge. He went to Jews first, and then to non-Jews. We also discover Paul's source of power found in his message: God's grace experienced through the joy of salvation empowered by the Holy Spirit. Finally, you see how My emissaries, My apostles, could be completely resolute in their mission. They knew I called them to this task, and they were not ashamed to share the message about Me. Their strategy of sharing the message about Me changed the world! Want proof? Go look in the mirror. You are following Me nearly two thousand years later because of their work!
Paul and Barnabas prepared to leave the synagogue [in Pisidian Antioch], but the people wanted to hear more and urged them to return the following Sabbath. As the people dispersed after the meeting, many Jews and converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas. Privately Paul and Barnabas continued teaching them and urged them to remain steadfast in the grace of God. The next Sabbath, it seemed the whole city had gathered to hear the message of the Lord. But some of the Jewish leaders were jealous when they saw these huge crowds. They began to argue with and contradict Paul's message, as well as slander him. Paul and Barnabas together responded with great confidence.
Paul and Barnabas:
OK, then. It was only right that we should bring God's message to you Jewish people first. But now, since you are rejecting our message and identifying yourselves as unworthy of eternal life, we are turning to the outsiders. The Lord has commanded us to do this. Remember His words:
I have appointed you a light to the nations beyond Israel,
so you can bring redemption to every corner of the earth.
These words created two strong reactions. The outsiders were thrilled and praised God's message, and all those who had been appointed for eternal life became believers. Through them the Lord's message spread through the whole region. But the Jewish leaders united the aristocratic religious women and the city's leading men in opposition to Paul and Barnabas, and soon they were persecuted and driven out of the region. They simply shook the dust off their feet in protest and moved on to Iconium. The disciples weren't intimidated at all; rather, they were full of joy and the Holy Spirit.
(Acts 13:42-52)
For I [Paul] am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes — the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, "It is through faith that a righteous person has life."
(Romans 1:16-17 NLT)
Response in Prayer
Father in heaven, thank You for the grace that it is mine in Jesus. I trust in what Jesus did to save me. I know that You have given me life in Jesus — life that does not end with physical death. I know that You have made me righteous by Your grace. I know that I did not earn this righteousness, but that You gave it to me freely because of Your love expressed in Jesus. So help me, dear Father, as I seek to share this message of grace with others so that they can share in my joy and Your grace. I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Precious Believer,
You were saved by grace when you fully trusted Me and participated in what I did to save you. This truth was the message that I gave the apostle Paul to share with all people, Jewish and non-Jewish alike. Remember, when I commissioned Ananias of Damascus to go and share the message of grace with Paul, I told Ananias this about Paul's mission:
"Yes, but you [Ananias] must go! I have chosen him [Paul] to be My instrument to bring My name far and wide — to outsiders, to kings, and to the people of Israel as well."
(Acts 9:15)
Paul was chosen even before he was born to bring My message of grace to those outside the people of Israel! (Galatians 1:15-16) So what you read today in the verses below helps you understand how he began to live out that purpose in his mission efforts with Barnabas.
Paul and Barnabas began their mission to Pisidian Antioch in the synagogue sharing My message with Jews and God-fearing Gentiles. Paul and Barnabas' message was rooted in the teaching of the Law and Prophets. They tried to help these good people understand the Father's plan. As Paul said, that plan was to send Me as the Messiah and as the fulfillment of those teachings of the Law and the Prophets:
"God has selected one of David’s descendants as the long-promised Liberator of Israel. I am speaking of Jesus."
(Acts 13:23)
However, Paul and Barnabas also emphasized a theme from the prophet Habakkuk — that righteousness comes from living by faith:
"Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith."
(Habakkuk 2:4)
This theme was central to Paul's message to both Jews and non-Jews. He was never ashamed of this message. He saw it as the good news of grace that comes to all people who fully entrust their lives to Me. He and Barnabas encouraged people to "remain steadfast in the grace of God."
When opposition to their message arose among the Jews, Paul and Barnabas saw it as their signal to reach out to non-Jews in Pisidian Antioch. The Jewish prophets of old had spoken of being "a light to the nations beyond Israel" and bringing "redemption to every corner of the earth." My parting words to My disciples had been to "make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19). Paul was "My instrument to bring My name far and wide." So the mission strategy Paul and Barnabas would use in many cities they visited was simple: First, they would go to the synagogues and speak to Jews and God-fearers about Me as the Messiah. Then, they would share that message with non-Jews. Soon, just as Barnabas and Paul had experienced in a different Antioch (the one in Syria), My church was made up of people from all sorts of different backgrounds (Acts 11:19-26).
The promise of the Jewish prophets was being fulfilled. All peoples, Jews and non-Jews alike, were coming to believe in Me and being made righteous by their faith because of grace. This progress was good news. Neither threat, intimidation, persecution, nor rejection could stop this message. Because of the power of the Holy Spirit at work through My people and in their message of grace, there was great joy wherever that message was received in faith!
I want you to experience that great joy! I want you to share that same message! I want all peoples — young and old, rich and poor, of all races and nationalities and languages — to find this joy that comes from knowing Me. So believe in Me. Trust Me. Share Me with your world!
Verses to Live
In these verses, we get to see Paul's mission methodology and strategy emerge. He went to Jews first, and then to non-Jews. We also discover Paul's source of power found in his message: God's grace experienced through the joy of salvation empowered by the Holy Spirit. Finally, you see how My emissaries, My apostles, could be completely resolute in their mission. They knew I called them to this task, and they were not ashamed to share the message about Me. Their strategy of sharing the message about Me changed the world! Want proof? Go look in the mirror. You are following Me nearly two thousand years later because of their work!
Paul and Barnabas prepared to leave the synagogue [in Pisidian Antioch], but the people wanted to hear more and urged them to return the following Sabbath. As the people dispersed after the meeting, many Jews and converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas. Privately Paul and Barnabas continued teaching them and urged them to remain steadfast in the grace of God. The next Sabbath, it seemed the whole city had gathered to hear the message of the Lord. But some of the Jewish leaders were jealous when they saw these huge crowds. They began to argue with and contradict Paul's message, as well as slander him. Paul and Barnabas together responded with great confidence.
Paul and Barnabas:
OK, then. It was only right that we should bring God's message to you Jewish people first. But now, since you are rejecting our message and identifying yourselves as unworthy of eternal life, we are turning to the outsiders. The Lord has commanded us to do this. Remember His words:
I have appointed you a light to the nations beyond Israel,
so you can bring redemption to every corner of the earth.
These words created two strong reactions. The outsiders were thrilled and praised God's message, and all those who had been appointed for eternal life became believers. Through them the Lord's message spread through the whole region. But the Jewish leaders united the aristocratic religious women and the city's leading men in opposition to Paul and Barnabas, and soon they were persecuted and driven out of the region. They simply shook the dust off their feet in protest and moved on to Iconium. The disciples weren't intimidated at all; rather, they were full of joy and the Holy Spirit.
(Acts 13:42-52)
For I [Paul] am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes — the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, "It is through faith that a righteous person has life."
(Romans 1:16-17 NLT)
Response in Prayer
Father in heaven, thank You for the grace that it is mine in Jesus. I trust in what Jesus did to save me. I know that You have given me life in Jesus — life that does not end with physical death. I know that You have made me righteous by Your grace. I know that I did not earn this righteousness, but that You gave it to me freely because of Your love expressed in Jesus. So help me, dear Father, as I seek to share this message of grace with others so that they can share in my joy and Your grace. I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"Freedom and Forgiveness" — A Year with Jesus for 06/17/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Believer,
The verses you read today are from Paul's sermon in the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch. As a rabbi trained by the respected Gamaliel (Acts 5:34; Acts 22:3), Paul would have been readily invited to speak after the readings from what you call the Old Testament — "passages from the Law and the Prophets." Paul's message to these devoted Jewish followers of "I AM" — the English translation for the covenant name for Us (Father, Son, and Spirit) given to the Hebrew people through Moses (Exodus 3:14-15) — was very similar to the sermon Peter preached on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:22-41).
Paul's sermon stressed something very important that Peter's sermon also included, but did not emphasize in quite the same way. Notice these words from the preaching of My servant, Paul:
So you must realize, my brothers, that through this resurrected man forgiveness of sins is assured to you. Through Jesus, everyone who believes is set free from all sins — sins which the law of Moses could not release you from.
This message was the essence of Paul's ministry, especially to Jews — to emphasize that I came as the fulfillment of God's promises in "the Law and the Prophets." Through my sacrificial death, burial, and resurrection, I brought liberation from sin, liberation that no other sacrifice or act of obedience could bring! When I called Paul on the road to Damascus, this truth was one of the things I called him to preach to both Jews and non-Jews. When I appeared to him on the road, Paul asked Who it was that was appearing to him. As Paul explained later in his defense before King Agrippa, I replied:
I am Jesus, the One you are persecuting. Get up now, and stand upright on your feet. I have appeared to you for a reason. I am appointing you to serve Me. You are to tell My story and how you have now seen Me, and you are to continue to tell the story in the future. I will rescue you from your Jewish opponents and from the outsiders — for it is to the outsiders I am sending you. It will be your mission to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the kingdom of Satan to the kingdom of God. This is so that they may receive forgiveness of all their sins and have a place among those who are set apart for a holy purpose through having faith in Me.
(Acts 26:15-18)
The cities where Paul preached on the trip you are reading about in Acts made up a region that was often called Galatia. He would soon need to write the letter of Galatians to remind those folks not to compromise on the good news he had shared with them. Listen to his strong words:
Frankly I am stunned. I cannot believe that you have abandoned God so quickly — even after He called you through the grace of the Anointed One — and have fallen for a different gospel. Actually there is only one true gospel of the Anointed, and you — because of divisive prodding by others — are accepting a distorted version which is not the gospel at all!
No matter the source of the false gospel, even if it is preached by us or a heavenly messenger, ignore it. May those who add to or subtract from the gospel of Jesus be eternally cursed! Listen again: if anyone preaches to you a gospel other than what you have accepted, may he find himself cursed!
(Galatians 1:6-9)
Apart from Me, there is no gospel, no true good news that liberates from law, sin, and death. I AM the One Whom Paul passionately preached as Messiah, Savior, Son of God, and Lord!
Verses to Live
I hope you realize as you read the verses below, and in a few days when we go through the letter to the Galatians, that My gospel is different from any other religion. It is based on grace — the freedom and forgiveness that come from trusting and sharing in My death, burial, and resurrection. This grace sets you free from the law, sin, and death (Romans 6:1-23). It is a revolutionary message. It is not another religious message about trying to be good enough to get into heaven. It is a radical message that calls you to abandon your futile attempts to save yourself. It invites you to accept My sacrifice and My grace. It calls you to live for Me with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength out of appreciation for the salvation you have received. It calls you to love your neighbors as yourself because you want them to share in this grace.
Paul and his entourage boarded a ship and set sail from Paphos. They traveled north to Perga in Pamphylia. John Mark, however, abandoned the mission and returned to Jerusalem.
Paul and Barnabas continued from Perga to Pisidian Antioch; and on the Sabbath, they entered the synagogue and sat down. After the regular reading of the Hebrew Scriptures — including passages from the Law and the Prophets — the synagogue leaders sent a message to them: "Brothers, if you would like to give us some exhortation, please do so." Paul rose to his feet, offered a gesture of greeting, and began his message.
Paul:
Israelites and other God-fearing people, please hear me. The God of the Israelites chose our ancestors and helped them become a large population while they were living in Egypt many years ago. He displayed His great power by leading them out of that powerful nation. For about 40 years, He endured their constant complaining in the wilderness. He opened up some land for them in Canaan by destroying the seven nations living there, and that land became their inheritance for about 450 years. They had tribal leaders through the time of the prophet Samuel. Then they asked for a king, and God gave them one — Saul, son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin — who reigned for 40 years. After God moved Saul aside, He made David king in his place. God had this to say about David: "I have found David, son of Jesse, to be a man after My own heart. He's the kind of king who will rule in ways that please Me." God has selected one of David's descendants as the long-promised Liberator of Israel. I am speaking of Jesus.
Before Jesus arrived on the scene, His cousin John was hard at work, proclaiming to all the people of Israel a ceremonial washing through baptism and pointing to a new direction in thought and life. John's ministry climaxed when he said, "Who do you assume me to be? I am not the One you're looking for. No, but One is coming after me, One whose sandal thong I am unworthy to untie." My brothers, fellow descendants of our common father Abraham, and others here who fear God, we are the ones to whom God has sent this message of salvation.
But you know the people of Jerusalem and their leaders did not recognize Jesus. They didn't understand the words of the prophets that are read in the synagogues on Sabbath after Sabbath. As a result, they fulfilled the ancient prophecies by condemning Jesus. Even though they could find no offense punishable by death, still they asked Pilate to execute Jesus. When they carried out everything that had been foretold by the prophets, they took His body down from the tree and laid Him in a tomb. But that was not the end: God raised Him from the dead, and over a period of many days, He appeared to those who had been His companions from the beginning of their journey in Galilee until its end in Jerusalem. They are now witnesses to everyone. We are here to bring you the good news of God's promise to our ancestors, which He has now fulfilled for our children by raising Jesus. Consider the promises fulfilled in Jesus. The psalmist says, "You are My Son; today I have become Your Father."
Elsewhere God promises that Jesus will rise and never return to death and corruption again: "I will make You the holy and faithful promises I made to David." Similarly, another psalm says, "You will not abandon Me to experience death and the grave or leave Me to rot alone." We all know David died and was reduced to dust after he served God's purpose in his generation; these words obviously apply not to David but to the One God raised from death before suffering decay. So you must realize, my brothers, that through this resurrected man forgiveness of sins is assured to you. Through Jesus, everyone who believes is set free from all sins — sins which the law of Moses could not release you from. In light of all this, be careful that you do not fulfill these words of the prophet Habakkuk:
Look, you scoffers!
Be shocked to death.
For in your days I am doing a work,
a work you will never believe, even if someone tells you plainly!
Paul and Barnabas prepared to leave the synagogue, but the people wanted to hear more and urged them to return the following Sabbath. As the people dispersed after the meeting, many Jews and converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas. Privately Paul and Barnabas continued teaching them and urged them to remain steadfast in the grace of God.
(Acts 13:13-43)
Response in Prayer
O Father God, thank You for the gift of grace that was purchased at such a high price by Your Son and my Savior, Jesus of Nazareth, the promised Messiah, and my Lord. I trust in His sacrifice and resurrection, and I want to share that grace with others. Please empower me to do this through Your Holy Spirit that Jesus has given me. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Believer,
The verses you read today are from Paul's sermon in the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch. As a rabbi trained by the respected Gamaliel (Acts 5:34; Acts 22:3), Paul would have been readily invited to speak after the readings from what you call the Old Testament — "passages from the Law and the Prophets." Paul's message to these devoted Jewish followers of "I AM" — the English translation for the covenant name for Us (Father, Son, and Spirit) given to the Hebrew people through Moses (Exodus 3:14-15) — was very similar to the sermon Peter preached on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:22-41).
Paul's sermon stressed something very important that Peter's sermon also included, but did not emphasize in quite the same way. Notice these words from the preaching of My servant, Paul:
So you must realize, my brothers, that through this resurrected man forgiveness of sins is assured to you. Through Jesus, everyone who believes is set free from all sins — sins which the law of Moses could not release you from.
This message was the essence of Paul's ministry, especially to Jews — to emphasize that I came as the fulfillment of God's promises in "the Law and the Prophets." Through my sacrificial death, burial, and resurrection, I brought liberation from sin, liberation that no other sacrifice or act of obedience could bring! When I called Paul on the road to Damascus, this truth was one of the things I called him to preach to both Jews and non-Jews. When I appeared to him on the road, Paul asked Who it was that was appearing to him. As Paul explained later in his defense before King Agrippa, I replied:
I am Jesus, the One you are persecuting. Get up now, and stand upright on your feet. I have appeared to you for a reason. I am appointing you to serve Me. You are to tell My story and how you have now seen Me, and you are to continue to tell the story in the future. I will rescue you from your Jewish opponents and from the outsiders — for it is to the outsiders I am sending you. It will be your mission to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the kingdom of Satan to the kingdom of God. This is so that they may receive forgiveness of all their sins and have a place among those who are set apart for a holy purpose through having faith in Me.
(Acts 26:15-18)
The cities where Paul preached on the trip you are reading about in Acts made up a region that was often called Galatia. He would soon need to write the letter of Galatians to remind those folks not to compromise on the good news he had shared with them. Listen to his strong words:
Frankly I am stunned. I cannot believe that you have abandoned God so quickly — even after He called you through the grace of the Anointed One — and have fallen for a different gospel. Actually there is only one true gospel of the Anointed, and you — because of divisive prodding by others — are accepting a distorted version which is not the gospel at all!
No matter the source of the false gospel, even if it is preached by us or a heavenly messenger, ignore it. May those who add to or subtract from the gospel of Jesus be eternally cursed! Listen again: if anyone preaches to you a gospel other than what you have accepted, may he find himself cursed!
(Galatians 1:6-9)
Apart from Me, there is no gospel, no true good news that liberates from law, sin, and death. I AM the One Whom Paul passionately preached as Messiah, Savior, Son of God, and Lord!
Verses to Live
I hope you realize as you read the verses below, and in a few days when we go through the letter to the Galatians, that My gospel is different from any other religion. It is based on grace — the freedom and forgiveness that come from trusting and sharing in My death, burial, and resurrection. This grace sets you free from the law, sin, and death (Romans 6:1-23). It is a revolutionary message. It is not another religious message about trying to be good enough to get into heaven. It is a radical message that calls you to abandon your futile attempts to save yourself. It invites you to accept My sacrifice and My grace. It calls you to live for Me with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength out of appreciation for the salvation you have received. It calls you to love your neighbors as yourself because you want them to share in this grace.
Paul and his entourage boarded a ship and set sail from Paphos. They traveled north to Perga in Pamphylia. John Mark, however, abandoned the mission and returned to Jerusalem.
Paul and Barnabas continued from Perga to Pisidian Antioch; and on the Sabbath, they entered the synagogue and sat down. After the regular reading of the Hebrew Scriptures — including passages from the Law and the Prophets — the synagogue leaders sent a message to them: "Brothers, if you would like to give us some exhortation, please do so." Paul rose to his feet, offered a gesture of greeting, and began his message.
Paul:
Israelites and other God-fearing people, please hear me. The God of the Israelites chose our ancestors and helped them become a large population while they were living in Egypt many years ago. He displayed His great power by leading them out of that powerful nation. For about 40 years, He endured their constant complaining in the wilderness. He opened up some land for them in Canaan by destroying the seven nations living there, and that land became their inheritance for about 450 years. They had tribal leaders through the time of the prophet Samuel. Then they asked for a king, and God gave them one — Saul, son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin — who reigned for 40 years. After God moved Saul aside, He made David king in his place. God had this to say about David: "I have found David, son of Jesse, to be a man after My own heart. He's the kind of king who will rule in ways that please Me." God has selected one of David's descendants as the long-promised Liberator of Israel. I am speaking of Jesus.
Before Jesus arrived on the scene, His cousin John was hard at work, proclaiming to all the people of Israel a ceremonial washing through baptism and pointing to a new direction in thought and life. John's ministry climaxed when he said, "Who do you assume me to be? I am not the One you're looking for. No, but One is coming after me, One whose sandal thong I am unworthy to untie." My brothers, fellow descendants of our common father Abraham, and others here who fear God, we are the ones to whom God has sent this message of salvation.
But you know the people of Jerusalem and their leaders did not recognize Jesus. They didn't understand the words of the prophets that are read in the synagogues on Sabbath after Sabbath. As a result, they fulfilled the ancient prophecies by condemning Jesus. Even though they could find no offense punishable by death, still they asked Pilate to execute Jesus. When they carried out everything that had been foretold by the prophets, they took His body down from the tree and laid Him in a tomb. But that was not the end: God raised Him from the dead, and over a period of many days, He appeared to those who had been His companions from the beginning of their journey in Galilee until its end in Jerusalem. They are now witnesses to everyone. We are here to bring you the good news of God's promise to our ancestors, which He has now fulfilled for our children by raising Jesus. Consider the promises fulfilled in Jesus. The psalmist says, "You are My Son; today I have become Your Father."
Elsewhere God promises that Jesus will rise and never return to death and corruption again: "I will make You the holy and faithful promises I made to David." Similarly, another psalm says, "You will not abandon Me to experience death and the grave or leave Me to rot alone." We all know David died and was reduced to dust after he served God's purpose in his generation; these words obviously apply not to David but to the One God raised from death before suffering decay. So you must realize, my brothers, that through this resurrected man forgiveness of sins is assured to you. Through Jesus, everyone who believes is set free from all sins — sins which the law of Moses could not release you from. In light of all this, be careful that you do not fulfill these words of the prophet Habakkuk:
Look, you scoffers!
Be shocked to death.
For in your days I am doing a work,
a work you will never believe, even if someone tells you plainly!
Paul and Barnabas prepared to leave the synagogue, but the people wanted to hear more and urged them to return the following Sabbath. As the people dispersed after the meeting, many Jews and converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas. Privately Paul and Barnabas continued teaching them and urged them to remain steadfast in the grace of God.
(Acts 13:13-43)
Response in Prayer
O Father God, thank You for the gift of grace that was purchased at such a high price by Your Son and my Savior, Jesus of Nazareth, the promised Messiah, and my Lord. I trust in His sacrifice and resurrection, and I want to share that grace with others. Please empower me to do this through Your Holy Spirit that Jesus has given me. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"Listening for My Call" — A Year with Jesus for 06/16/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Precious Disciple,
To truly worship Me as Lord you must offer yourself to Me heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12:28-31). Your worship acknowledges My sovereignty as King and also acknowledges the only truly and living God as Father, Son, and Spirit. This worship invites the Holy Spirit to bring the character and compassion of the kingdom of heaven into your world. The Spirit longs to make clear what you need to do to fulfill My mission in your lost world. This guidance from the Holy Spirit is something I promised you and prayed for you on the night I was betrayed (John 14:1-31; John 15:1-27; John 16:1-33). This guidance from the Spirit unleashed in worship (Ephesians 5:15-21; Acts 13:1-3) leads you to fulfilling my mission and is something I again promised to you before I ascended into heaven (Acts 1:8).
Genuine worship, whether individual in your everyday life or in community, should lead you to achieving your mission. This appeal has been true through the ages — the call of Isaiah came during a powerful time of worship and is a great example of this principle (Isaiah 6:1-8). It was true of My earliest disciples. It should be true in you. Worshiping Me leads to mission outreach with Me. That is the natural direction worship leads My disciples. That is what happened in community worship for the church in Antioch with Barnabas and Paul in the verses below.
Paul (who is still identified at this point in Acts by his Jewish name, Saul) and Barnabas delivered the contribution of Christians in Antioch to the believers in Jerusalem. This gift was to help the Jerusalem believers through the severe famine that Agabus had prophesied (Acts 11:27-30). On returning to Antioch, Paul and Barnabas were accompanied by Barnabas' cousin Mark (also known as John Mark). Mark was the son of a very influential lady in Jerusalem who had hosted meetings for Me in My ministry and for the early disciples in her home (Acts 12:12). Mark would accompany Barnabas and Paul on the early part of their first mission trip. And even though he had his moments of failure (Acts 13:13), Barnabas mentored him (Acts 15:37-39) and Mark proved to be incredibly valuable to Paul later (2 Timothy 4:11-13) and to My church through the ages through the influence of his writings.
Barnabas and Paul returned to Antioch with this young disciple. They joined in worship and fasting with the other Christians in Antioch. In their worship, the Spirit made clear that Barnabas and Paul (Saul), who were two of their most important leaders, needed to be sent out on a mission. So with prayer and more fasting they placed their hands on these two and sent them to bless people in other places who had never heard the good news of My grace. Mark accompanied them on the early part of this crucial mission journey.
Verses to Live
When you worship, anticipate the movement of the Spirit in your worship to lead you and stir you to mission. The event described in the following verses is not just the story of what happened in the early church long ago. It is also a reminder of what the Spirit longs to lead you and your fellow believers to do today!
Meanwhile, the time Barnabas and Saul spent in Jerusalem came to an end, and they reported back to Antioch, bringing along John, who was also called Mark.
The church in Antioch had grown strong, with many prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon (a dark man from Central Africa), Lucius (from Cyrene in North Africa), Manaen (a member of Herod's governing council), and Saul. Once they were engaged in a time of worship and fasting when the Holy Spirit spoke to them, "Commission Barnabas and Saul to a project I have called them to accomplish." They fasted and prayed some more, laid their hands on the two selected men, and sent them off on their new mission. Having received special commissioning by the Holy Spirit, Barnabas and Saul went to nearby Seleucia on the coast. Then they caught a ship to the island of Cyprus.
(Acts 12:25; Acts 13:1-4)
Response in Prayer
O Father, as I worship you individually, and as I worship you with other Christians, I offer myself to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Stir my heart with joy and enthusiasm. Convict my heart of sin, including the sin I do not or will not see in myself. Convict and correct me gently, O God, but please do convict and correct me, both for my good and for Your glory. Open my eyes and my heart to the mission to which You are calling me. Give me the courage to go and to serve and to share the gospel of Jesus in tangible ways as the Spirit leads me. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Precious Disciple,
To truly worship Me as Lord you must offer yourself to Me heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12:28-31). Your worship acknowledges My sovereignty as King and also acknowledges the only truly and living God as Father, Son, and Spirit. This worship invites the Holy Spirit to bring the character and compassion of the kingdom of heaven into your world. The Spirit longs to make clear what you need to do to fulfill My mission in your lost world. This guidance from the Holy Spirit is something I promised you and prayed for you on the night I was betrayed (John 14:1-31; John 15:1-27; John 16:1-33). This guidance from the Spirit unleashed in worship (Ephesians 5:15-21; Acts 13:1-3) leads you to fulfilling my mission and is something I again promised to you before I ascended into heaven (Acts 1:8).
Genuine worship, whether individual in your everyday life or in community, should lead you to achieving your mission. This appeal has been true through the ages — the call of Isaiah came during a powerful time of worship and is a great example of this principle (Isaiah 6:1-8). It was true of My earliest disciples. It should be true in you. Worshiping Me leads to mission outreach with Me. That is the natural direction worship leads My disciples. That is what happened in community worship for the church in Antioch with Barnabas and Paul in the verses below.
Paul (who is still identified at this point in Acts by his Jewish name, Saul) and Barnabas delivered the contribution of Christians in Antioch to the believers in Jerusalem. This gift was to help the Jerusalem believers through the severe famine that Agabus had prophesied (Acts 11:27-30). On returning to Antioch, Paul and Barnabas were accompanied by Barnabas' cousin Mark (also known as John Mark). Mark was the son of a very influential lady in Jerusalem who had hosted meetings for Me in My ministry and for the early disciples in her home (Acts 12:12). Mark would accompany Barnabas and Paul on the early part of their first mission trip. And even though he had his moments of failure (Acts 13:13), Barnabas mentored him (Acts 15:37-39) and Mark proved to be incredibly valuable to Paul later (2 Timothy 4:11-13) and to My church through the ages through the influence of his writings.
Barnabas and Paul returned to Antioch with this young disciple. They joined in worship and fasting with the other Christians in Antioch. In their worship, the Spirit made clear that Barnabas and Paul (Saul), who were two of their most important leaders, needed to be sent out on a mission. So with prayer and more fasting they placed their hands on these two and sent them to bless people in other places who had never heard the good news of My grace. Mark accompanied them on the early part of this crucial mission journey.
Verses to Live
When you worship, anticipate the movement of the Spirit in your worship to lead you and stir you to mission. The event described in the following verses is not just the story of what happened in the early church long ago. It is also a reminder of what the Spirit longs to lead you and your fellow believers to do today!
Meanwhile, the time Barnabas and Saul spent in Jerusalem came to an end, and they reported back to Antioch, bringing along John, who was also called Mark.
The church in Antioch had grown strong, with many prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon (a dark man from Central Africa), Lucius (from Cyrene in North Africa), Manaen (a member of Herod's governing council), and Saul. Once they were engaged in a time of worship and fasting when the Holy Spirit spoke to them, "Commission Barnabas and Saul to a project I have called them to accomplish." They fasted and prayed some more, laid their hands on the two selected men, and sent them off on their new mission. Having received special commissioning by the Holy Spirit, Barnabas and Saul went to nearby Seleucia on the coast. Then they caught a ship to the island of Cyprus.
(Acts 12:25; Acts 13:1-4)
Response in Prayer
O Father, as I worship you individually, and as I worship you with other Christians, I offer myself to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Stir my heart with joy and enthusiasm. Convict my heart of sin, including the sin I do not or will not see in myself. Convict and correct me gently, O God, but please do convict and correct me, both for my good and for Your glory. Open my eyes and my heart to the mission to which You are calling me. Give me the courage to go and to serve and to share the gospel of Jesus in tangible ways as the Spirit leads me. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Re: HEARTLIGHT — A Year with Jesus
"Surprised?" — A Year with Jesus for 06/15/2016
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
I hope you enjoy reading the verses below as much as I enjoyed being at work in the lives of My disciples bringing them deliverance.
You have to admit that the reaction of the early believers to Peter's release from prison in this account would be humorous, except for the fact that so much was at stake. Peter's life was on the line. James had just been martyred for My cause. These early disciples were praying "constantly and intensely" for Peter's deliverance. They were down to a few hours before Peter's scheduled execution. Then, they saw their prayers answered as they hoped they would be. However, when Rhoda told these praying disciples that Peter was at the door knocking to get inside, they told her, "Rhoda, you're crazy!"
Peter was equally shocked and surprised by the events as they unfolded! He "assumes he was dreaming" when the mighty messenger from heaven, one of My angels, appeared to him. This heavenly messenger assured, instructed, and delivered Peter from the soldiers on each side of him, from the double chains that bound him, from the prison that held him, and from the impending execution scheduled for him.
In addition, My people also were delivered from a tyrannical ruler. This Herod was from a family of three rulers all called Herod. Each of these three had opposed Me at different times — at My birth, at My trial before My crucifixion, and in My ministry through My people in the earliest days of My church. The arrogance of this batch of evil rulers ended with a gross and ugly death of this last Herod, who was eaten by worms.
Surprised?
Yes, My people were surprised by Peter's liberation and deliverance from Herod's desire to execute him and by their deliverance from the harm that Herod had planned for them.
Yes, Herod in his arrogance during a grand moment of earthly praise was surprised by his bitter end.
Yes, the enemies of the early disciples were surprised by the deliverance that We — Father, Son, and Spirit — won for our people when things were so tenuous.
Yes, We are the God of the Exodus. We helped David defeat Goliath. We defeated the power of death and crucifixion leaving behind the empty tomb.
What lies ahead for you, dear beloved, is surprise after surprise until you share with all of Our redeemed, throughout all history, in the grandest surprise of all: ultimate deliverance! This surprise really should be no surprise at all because of our guarantee: the Holy Spirit! (Ephesians 1:13-14)
Verses to Live
Psalm 2 speaks powerfully about the ultimate defeat of any earthly ruler who sets himself up as a rival to God's Anointed Son — that's Me, Jesus, your Lord and Messiah. So despite "hard times" coming to the disciples, I delivered them. I also will deliver you.
Years after Peter's deliverance, My apostle Paul described deliverance coming to him in one of two ways. One of these will most certainly be your deliverance as well:
And I will continue to rejoice. For I know that as you pray for me and the Spirit of Jesus Christ helps me, this will lead to my deliverance. For I fully expect and hope that I will never be ashamed, but that I will continue to be bold for Christ, as I have been in the past. And I trust that my life will bring honor to Christ, whether I live or die.
(Philippians 1:18-20 NLT)
Paul was confident that I would deliver him either from death and to productive service or through death to be with Me. I AM the Lord of deliverance! My deliverance also is exemplified in the following account about Peter and other early believers in Jerusalem.
Back in Jerusalem, hard times came to the disciples. King Herod violently seized some who belonged to the church with the intention of mistreating them. He ordered James (brother of John) to be executed by the sword, the first of those appointed as emissaries to be martyred. This move pleased Jewish public opinion, so he decided to arrest Peter also. During the holy festival of Unleavened Bread, he caught Peter and imprisoned him, assigning four squads of soldiers to guard him. He planned to bring him to trial publicly after the Passover holiday.
During Peter's imprisonment, the church prayed constantly and intensely to God for his safety. Their prayers were not answered, until the night before Peter's execution.
Picture this event: Peter is sound asleep between two soldiers, double-chained, with still more guards outside the prison door watching for external intruders. Suddenly the cell fills with light: it is a messenger of the Lord manifesting himself. He taps Peter on the side, awakening him.
Messenger of the Lord:
Get up, quickly.
The chains fall off Peter's wrists.
Messenger of the Lord:
Come on! Put on your belt. Put on your sandals.
Peter puts them on and just stands there.
Messenger of the Lord:
Pull your cloak over your shoulders. Come on! Follow me!
Peter does so, but he is completely dazed. He doesn't think this is really happening — he assumes he is dreaming or having a vision. They pass the first guard. They pass the second guard. They come to the iron gate that opens to the city. The gate swings open for them on its own, and they walk into a lane. Suddenly the messenger disappears.
Peter finally realized all that had really happened.
Peter:
Amazing! The Lord has sent His messenger to rescue me from Herod and the public spectacle of my execution which the Jews fully expected.
Peter immediately rushed over to the home of a woman named Mary. (Mary's son, John Mark, would eventually become an important associate of the apostles.) A large group had gathered there to pray for Peter and his safety. He knocked at the outer gate; and a maid, Rhoda, answered. She recognized Peter's voice, but she was so overcome with excitement that she left him standing on the street and ran inside to tell everyone.
Rhoda:
Our prayers were answered! Peter is at the front gate!
Praying Believers:
Rhoda, you're crazy!
Rhoda:
No! Peter's out there! I'm sure of it!
Praying Believers:
Well, maybe it's his guardian angel or something.
All this time, Peter was still out in the street, knocking on the gate. Finally they came and let him in. Of course, the disciples were stunned, and everyone was talking at once. Peter motioned for them to quiet down and then told them the amazing story of how the Lord engineered his escape.
Peter:
Could you please get word to James, our Lord's brother, and the other believers that I'm all right?
Then he left to find a safer place to stay.
But when morning came and Peter was gone, there was a huge uproar among the soldiers. Herod sent troops to find Peter, but he was missing. Herod interrogated the guards and ordered their executions. Peter headed down toward the coast to Caesarea, and he remained there.
At this time there was major political upheaval. Herod was at odds with the populace of neighboring Tyre and Sidon, so the two cities sent a large group of representatives to meet with him. They won over one of Herod's closest associates, Blastus, the director of the treasury; then they pressured Herod to drop his grudge. Cooperation was important to the two cities because they were all major trading partners and depended on Herod's territory for food. They struck a deal, and Herod came over to ratify it. Dressed in all his royal finery and seated high above them on a platform, he made a speech; and the people of Tyre and Sidon interrupted with cheers to flatter him.
The People:
This is the voice of a god! This is no mere mortal!
Herod should have given glory to the true God; but since he vainly accepted their flattery, that very day a messenger of the Lord struck him with an illness. It was an ugly disease, involving putrefaction and worms eating his flesh. Eventually he died.
Through all this upheaval, God's message spread to new frontiers and attracted more and more people.
(Acts 12:1-24)
Response in Prayer
Thank You, O God — Father, Son, and Spirit — for repeatedly surprising Your people with Your deliverance. Thank You for every prayer for deliverance that has been answered with a "Yes!" — whether deliverance from death to new service or through death to new life with You forever. I thank You for your providence and guiding grace even when my prayers are not answered in the way I had hoped and thought best. I trust in Your grace and my complete deliverance when Jesus returns and all my prayers find their "Yes!" in Your ultimate deliverance! In Jesus' name, I thank You. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
Note from Jesus
Dear Beloved,
I hope you enjoy reading the verses below as much as I enjoyed being at work in the lives of My disciples bringing them deliverance.
You have to admit that the reaction of the early believers to Peter's release from prison in this account would be humorous, except for the fact that so much was at stake. Peter's life was on the line. James had just been martyred for My cause. These early disciples were praying "constantly and intensely" for Peter's deliverance. They were down to a few hours before Peter's scheduled execution. Then, they saw their prayers answered as they hoped they would be. However, when Rhoda told these praying disciples that Peter was at the door knocking to get inside, they told her, "Rhoda, you're crazy!"
Peter was equally shocked and surprised by the events as they unfolded! He "assumes he was dreaming" when the mighty messenger from heaven, one of My angels, appeared to him. This heavenly messenger assured, instructed, and delivered Peter from the soldiers on each side of him, from the double chains that bound him, from the prison that held him, and from the impending execution scheduled for him.
In addition, My people also were delivered from a tyrannical ruler. This Herod was from a family of three rulers all called Herod. Each of these three had opposed Me at different times — at My birth, at My trial before My crucifixion, and in My ministry through My people in the earliest days of My church. The arrogance of this batch of evil rulers ended with a gross and ugly death of this last Herod, who was eaten by worms.
Surprised?
Yes, My people were surprised by Peter's liberation and deliverance from Herod's desire to execute him and by their deliverance from the harm that Herod had planned for them.
Yes, Herod in his arrogance during a grand moment of earthly praise was surprised by his bitter end.
Yes, the enemies of the early disciples were surprised by the deliverance that We — Father, Son, and Spirit — won for our people when things were so tenuous.
Yes, We are the God of the Exodus. We helped David defeat Goliath. We defeated the power of death and crucifixion leaving behind the empty tomb.
What lies ahead for you, dear beloved, is surprise after surprise until you share with all of Our redeemed, throughout all history, in the grandest surprise of all: ultimate deliverance! This surprise really should be no surprise at all because of our guarantee: the Holy Spirit! (Ephesians 1:13-14)
Verses to Live
Psalm 2 speaks powerfully about the ultimate defeat of any earthly ruler who sets himself up as a rival to God's Anointed Son — that's Me, Jesus, your Lord and Messiah. So despite "hard times" coming to the disciples, I delivered them. I also will deliver you.
Years after Peter's deliverance, My apostle Paul described deliverance coming to him in one of two ways. One of these will most certainly be your deliverance as well:
And I will continue to rejoice. For I know that as you pray for me and the Spirit of Jesus Christ helps me, this will lead to my deliverance. For I fully expect and hope that I will never be ashamed, but that I will continue to be bold for Christ, as I have been in the past. And I trust that my life will bring honor to Christ, whether I live or die.
(Philippians 1:18-20 NLT)
Paul was confident that I would deliver him either from death and to productive service or through death to be with Me. I AM the Lord of deliverance! My deliverance also is exemplified in the following account about Peter and other early believers in Jerusalem.
Back in Jerusalem, hard times came to the disciples. King Herod violently seized some who belonged to the church with the intention of mistreating them. He ordered James (brother of John) to be executed by the sword, the first of those appointed as emissaries to be martyred. This move pleased Jewish public opinion, so he decided to arrest Peter also. During the holy festival of Unleavened Bread, he caught Peter and imprisoned him, assigning four squads of soldiers to guard him. He planned to bring him to trial publicly after the Passover holiday.
During Peter's imprisonment, the church prayed constantly and intensely to God for his safety. Their prayers were not answered, until the night before Peter's execution.
Picture this event: Peter is sound asleep between two soldiers, double-chained, with still more guards outside the prison door watching for external intruders. Suddenly the cell fills with light: it is a messenger of the Lord manifesting himself. He taps Peter on the side, awakening him.
Messenger of the Lord:
Get up, quickly.
The chains fall off Peter's wrists.
Messenger of the Lord:
Come on! Put on your belt. Put on your sandals.
Peter puts them on and just stands there.
Messenger of the Lord:
Pull your cloak over your shoulders. Come on! Follow me!
Peter does so, but he is completely dazed. He doesn't think this is really happening — he assumes he is dreaming or having a vision. They pass the first guard. They pass the second guard. They come to the iron gate that opens to the city. The gate swings open for them on its own, and they walk into a lane. Suddenly the messenger disappears.
Peter finally realized all that had really happened.
Peter:
Amazing! The Lord has sent His messenger to rescue me from Herod and the public spectacle of my execution which the Jews fully expected.
Peter immediately rushed over to the home of a woman named Mary. (Mary's son, John Mark, would eventually become an important associate of the apostles.) A large group had gathered there to pray for Peter and his safety. He knocked at the outer gate; and a maid, Rhoda, answered. She recognized Peter's voice, but she was so overcome with excitement that she left him standing on the street and ran inside to tell everyone.
Rhoda:
Our prayers were answered! Peter is at the front gate!
Praying Believers:
Rhoda, you're crazy!
Rhoda:
No! Peter's out there! I'm sure of it!
Praying Believers:
Well, maybe it's his guardian angel or something.
All this time, Peter was still out in the street, knocking on the gate. Finally they came and let him in. Of course, the disciples were stunned, and everyone was talking at once. Peter motioned for them to quiet down and then told them the amazing story of how the Lord engineered his escape.
Peter:
Could you please get word to James, our Lord's brother, and the other believers that I'm all right?
Then he left to find a safer place to stay.
But when morning came and Peter was gone, there was a huge uproar among the soldiers. Herod sent troops to find Peter, but he was missing. Herod interrogated the guards and ordered their executions. Peter headed down toward the coast to Caesarea, and he remained there.
At this time there was major political upheaval. Herod was at odds with the populace of neighboring Tyre and Sidon, so the two cities sent a large group of representatives to meet with him. They won over one of Herod's closest associates, Blastus, the director of the treasury; then they pressured Herod to drop his grudge. Cooperation was important to the two cities because they were all major trading partners and depended on Herod's territory for food. They struck a deal, and Herod came over to ratify it. Dressed in all his royal finery and seated high above them on a platform, he made a speech; and the people of Tyre and Sidon interrupted with cheers to flatter him.
The People:
This is the voice of a god! This is no mere mortal!
Herod should have given glory to the true God; but since he vainly accepted their flattery, that very day a messenger of the Lord struck him with an illness. It was an ugly disease, involving putrefaction and worms eating his flesh. Eventually he died.
Through all this upheaval, God's message spread to new frontiers and attracted more and more people.
(Acts 12:1-24)
Response in Prayer
Thank You, O God — Father, Son, and Spirit — for repeatedly surprising Your people with Your deliverance. Thank You for every prayer for deliverance that has been answered with a "Yes!" — whether deliverance from death to new service or through death to new life with You forever. I thank You for your providence and guiding grace even when my prayers are not answered in the way I had hoped and thought best. I trust in Your grace and my complete deliverance when Jesus returns and all my prayers find their "Yes!" in Your ultimate deliverance! In Jesus' name, I thank You. Amen.
Share on Facebook | Discuss this Verse
This daily devotional is written to help us all reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives and to help us realize we are not alone as we seek to live for Him. — Learn More
The Thoughts and Prayers for 'A Year with Jesus' are written by Phil Ware. You can email questions or comments to phil@heartlight.org.
Thanks to our invaluable editors:
Dr. Edward Holley - Executive Editor
Ray Butts - General Editor
Heartlight is proud to support Compassion International.
HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE? It's FREE! Visit the website to subscribe by email.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 1998-2015, Heartlight, Inc. 'A Year with Jesus' is part of the Heartlight Network.
© 1998-2016, Heartlight Inc.
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