2024-11-20
1 Timothy 1:12 NLT
One of the greatest missionaries in the history of the church was Mary Slessor, although she started out as a most unlikely candidate. Because of her father’s drinking problem, eleven-year-old Mary was working twelve-hour shifts in the mills, assisting her family in paying their bills. She discovered she could prop books on her loom as she worked. While she read about the land of Calabar (modern Nigeria), Mary grew convinced she should go there as a missionary.
In 1876, she sailed for West Africa aboard the S.S. Ethiopia, which, ironically, was loaded with hundreds of barrels of whiskey. Remembering how alcohol had harmed her family, she said, “Scores of barrels of whiskey, and only one missionary.” But what a missionary! Mary was a combination of circuit preacher, nanny, nurse, village teacher, and negotiator who alone transformed three pagan regions by preaching the gospel. She deflected tribal wars and rescued women and children by the hundreds. For forty years she toiled as God enabled her.
God loves to use people the world overlooks or discards. Mary Slessor was one of them. So was Paul. “He… appointed me to serve him, even though I used to blaspheme the name of Christ. In my insolence, I persecuted his people. But God had mercy on me because I did it in ignorance and unbelief. Oh, how generous and gracious our Lord was! He filled me with the faith and love that come from Christ Jesus” (vv. 12-14 NLT). The God who used the apostle and Mary Slessor can use you too – if you surrender your life to Him.
Soul food: Ecc 5-8; John 11:38-57; Ps 81; Prov 30:11-14
2024-11-19
2 Timothy 4:3 NKJV
People who desire to beautify themselves with diamonds use the timeless counterfeit – cubic zirconia. But now, scientists can create real diamonds in a labouratory. And they are so good that gemologists have trouble recognizing labouratory diamonds from mined ones. To tell them apart, an expert’s checklist is used: weight, color, clarity, and brilliance. Without it, an imposter could pretend a two-day-old diamond is one that took thousands of years to develop.
The same is true with spiritual truth. If Christians don’t know their Bibles, spiritual imposters can pass off all manner of lies as truth. It’s not enough for someone to do miracles in Jesus’ name. “Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not… done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me'” (Matthew 7:22-23 NKJV).
The Bible says that even Satan can disguise himself as an angel of light. Paul warns: “For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear. They will reject the truth and chase after myths” (2 Timothy 4:3-4 NLT).
The Bible uses the word “doctrine” fifty-five times. That’s how important it is. We need to have the desire of a diamond expert – a desire not to be deceived. If careful examination, study, and care are taken in determining the quality of a precious stone, how much more should the same effort be applied to the precious Word of God?
Soul food: Ecc 1-4; John 11:28-37; Ps 50; Prov 30:7-10
2024-11-18
John 12:46 NKJV
John Ortberg writes: “In 1780 a Jesus-follower in Great Britain named Robert Raikes could not stand the cycle of poverty and ignorance that was destroying little children, a whole generation. He said, ‘The world marches forward on the feet of little children.’ So he took children who had to work six days a week in squalor. Sunday was their free day. He said, ‘I’m going to start a school for free to teach them to read and write and learn about God.’ He did, and he called it Sunday school. Within fifty years, there were 1.5 million children being taught by 160,000 volunteer teachers who had a vision for the education of a generation. Sunday school was not a privatized, optional program for church kids. It was one of the great educational volunteer triumphs of the world.
The alphabet of the Slavic peoples is called Cyrillic. It was named for Saint Cyril, who was a missionary to the Slavs and discovered they had no written alphabet. Thus he created one for them so they would be able to read about Jesus in their own language…
A Methodist missionary, Frank Laubach, cited an extraordinary encounter with God about a century ago that put him on a mission to lift the world out of ignorance. He began a worldwide literacy movement. The phrase ‘Each one teach one’ flows out of the extraordinary life of this man. He travelled to more than a hundred countries and led to the development of primers in 313 languages. He became known as ‘the apostle to the illiterates.'”
Soul food: Rom 15-16; John 11:17-27; Ps 8; Prov 30:5-6
2024-11-17
Matthew 4:16 NKJV
First and most importantly, Jesus brought the light of salvation to all mankind. But one of the enduring benefits of His kingdom is His impact on learning and education. The word university began with those who believed that God created the universe; therefore, His ways must be studied and known. Martin Luther highlighted from the New Testament the priesthood of all believers. In the process, he changed education because he taught that every person needs to be capable of reading and writing so they can study the Scriptures for themselves. This ushered in a goal of worldwide literacy for everyone in a society.
In America, the first law to call for mass universal education was announced in Massachusetts in 1647. It was named, believe it or not, “The Old Deluder Satan Act.” Its wording goes: “It being one chief product of that Old Deluder Satan, to keep men from the knowledge of the Scriptures… and to the end that learning may not be buried in the graves of our forefathers.” This is a lovely idea that everybody should learn: that ignorance is the devil’s tool, and that God is the God of truth.
In nation after nation, Christian missionaries discovered languages that had not been written. So in acts of extraordinary sacrifice, they dedicated their lives to the chore. They assembled the first dictionaries. They penned the first grammars. They formed the first alphabets. And the first significant proper name written in numerous languages was the name Jesus.
Soul food: Dan 1:3-21; Dan 5:11-12; Dan 6:10-28; Dan 9:1-19
2024-11-16
Matthew 10:32 NKJV
To share your faith effectively with others, you must overcome these three obstacles.
(1) You must be sure of your own salvation. John writes: “He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself… And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son… These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God” (1 John 5:10-11, 13 NKJV).
(2) You must get over your fear of rejection. That means getting to the root of your fear, which is ego. Only when self-preservation and self-interest are crucified can you make Christ known without fear. Jesus said, “Whoever accepts anyone I send accepts me” (John 13:20 NIV). Get over yourself! If someone rejects you, you may lose face. But if they reject Jesus, they will lose their soul.
(3) You must use wisdom in sharing the gospel. “He that winneth souls is wise” (Proverbs 11:30). God can work on both ends of the line. He can prepare the heart of your listener so that they’re open to what you have to say, and He can give you the right words and the right approach to talk to them. Jesus said, “The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you” (John 14:26 NIV).
Soul food: Rom 12-14; John 11:1-16; Ps 105:1-15; Prov 30:1-4
2024-11-15
Matthew 4:19 KJV
Jesus told professional fishermen, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” These men knew three things about catching fish:
(1) You must go where the fish are. You say, “I thought we were supposed to separate ourselves from the world.” Jesus didn’t avoid the culture; He engaged it in order to change it. And you must do the same. Jesus prayed: “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world” (John 17:15-18 NKJV).
(2) You must be ready when the fish are biting. “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15 NIV). The saying, “When the pupil is ready, the teacher will appear,” is a true saying.
(3) You must use the right bait to catch fish. Paul said, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16 NKJV). The word “gospel” means good news. Honest sinners already feel bad about their sins and struggles; what they need is the power to change. And “the gospel… is the power of God to salvation.”
Keep these three principles clearly in mind, and today go fishing for souls.
Soul food: Rom 9:17-11:36; John 10:22-42; Ps 83:9-18; Prov 29:23-27
