2021-01-22
Romans 12:6 NIV
Don’t say, “I’m of no use to God,” or “I’m not needed in the church,” or “There’s no way God could use me.” You are gifted by God! You are called to use your gift to bless others, build up the church, and display His kingdom to a watching world. “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised” (1 Peter 4:10-11 NIV).
Every Christian is a minister, and has a ministry. The ministry of the church is to be carried out as individual believers exercise their spiritual gifts in ministering to one another. And to the extent that you don’t exercise your spiritual gift, you hinder the ministry of your church.
And since the Holy Spirit decides which particular gift each of us receives, there’s no place for jealousy and competitiveness. Paul writes: “For who makes you different from anyone else? [obviously, the answer is God!] What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” (1 Corinthians 4:7 NIV).
Each of us is gifted differently, and each of us is gifted perfectly. The Holy Spirit in His divine wisdom has given to each of us the precise gift, or gifts that will enable us to function most effectively in the body of Christ. So start using your gift today!
Soul food: Isa 12-16; Matt 9:14-26; Ps 91; Prov 3:3-4
2021-01-21
1 Corinthians 12:11 NKJV
The Bible says, “There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit” (v. 4 NKJV). The word gifts comes from the Hebrew word “charis,” which literally means grace. That means you cannot earn, qualify for, work for, or deserve a spiritual gift. The Holy Spirit gives them to each of us “individually as He wills.” They are not something you get by study, practice, or inheritance. They are not highly developed natural talents. They are supernatural endowments that enable you to carry out God’s will in God’s way. And you will never discover God’s way until you realize that you are not meant to serve Him by drawing on your own abilities, but by depending upon the indwelling power of His Spirit. In a sense, you are like a glove; the Holy Spirit within you fills that glove, moves it and accomplishes through it what needs to be done.
A young pastor once said to an older pastor, “I’m discouraged because God expects the very best from me, and as hard as I try I can’t always give it to Him.” The older pastor said, “Son, God expects nothing from you but failure!” Then he added. “But he has given the Holy Spirit to you so that you need not fail.” Jesus told His disciples, “He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5 NKJV). The secret to success is not just in activity, but in abiding! Your job is to learn the ways of God, and lean on the power of God.
Soul food: Isa 8-11; Matt 9:1-13; Ps 89:38-52; Prov 3:1-2
2021-01-20
1 Corinthians 10:13 NKJV
God’s plan for turning temptation into triumph is not to “endure” temptation, but to “escape” temptation. That calls for two things:
(1) Don’t get into a tempting situation. Too many people are like the little boy sitting under the farmer’s apple tree. When the farmer asked him, “Son, are you trying to steal my apples?”, he replied, “No sir, I’m trying not to.” His problem was being under the apple tree in the first place. Martin Luther said, “You can’t keep the birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from building nests in your hair.” You can’t keep pornography off the internet, but you can avoid it by obeying God’s Word which says, “I will set nothing wicked before my eyes” (Psalm101:3 NKJV).
(2) If you get into a tempting situation, get out of it quickly. The Bible never says we are to fight temptation, it says we are to flee from it. Paul tells Timothy, “Flee also youthful lusts” (2 Timothy 2:22). He warns the Corinthians, “Flee sexual immorality” (1 Corinthians 6:18 NKJV). Potiphar’s wife repeatedly tried to seduce Joseph. “Now Joseph was well-built and handsome, and after a while his master’s wife took notice…and said, ‘Come to bed with me!'” (Genesis 39:7 NIV). But Joseph fled, leaving his coat behind.
God does not provide a way of escape before the temptation or after the temptation, but with the temptation. Are you being tempted today? Pray and God will strengthen you. “The Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations” (2 Peter 2:9 NKJV).
Soul food: Isa 4-7; Matt 8:28-34; Ps 89:15-37; Prov 2:21-22
2021-01-19
1 Corinthians 10:13 NKJV
Is there a particular temptation that’s constantly meeting and beating you at every turn? God has made a way for you to turn temptation into triumph. Satan is called “the tempter,” and he knows which temptations you succumb to most easily. But Paul writes: “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man.” Jesus Himself was “in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15 NKJV). And here’s the reason: “In that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted” (Hebrews 2:18 NKJV).
Many young Christians think that when they get saved they no longer have to face temptation. No, when you get saved you will face more temptation than when you were lost. The same wind that blew at your back on your way to hell will blow in your face on your way to heaven. Temptation never takes a vacation. And if you take a vacation, it will go with you. It will hit you when you feel strongest, knock you down and kick you when you feel weakest. That’s why the Bible says, “Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12 NKJV).
What’s the answer? “But God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able” (v.13 NKJV). Note two things: First, you will be tempted. Second, you will never face a temptation greater than you can bear because God is faithful. He answers prayer. Particularly the prayer Jesus told us to pray: “Do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one” (Matthew 6:13 NKJV).
Soul food: Isa 1-3; Matt 8:18-27; Ps 89:1-14; Prov 2:20
2021-01-18
Isaiah 50:7 NKJV
Prize fighter James Corbett was once asked: “What’s the most important thing for a man to do to become a champion?” He replied, “Fight one more round.” Successful people have different talents, but they all have these qualities: perseverance, tenacity, and stick-to-it-iveness.
Thomas Grey wrote seventy-five drafts of “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard” before he was satisfied with his poetic masterpiece. S.N. Behrman, the American playwright, wrote plays for eleven years before he sold a single one. Somerset Maugham earned only five hundred dollars in his first ten years as a writer. While working full time in a factory, Enrico Caruso studied voice for twelve years before becoming a successful performer. George Gershwin composed almost one hundred melodies before he sold his first one – for five dollars.
There’s an important lesson for you in each of these stories: If your dream doesn’t come true immediately, don’t get discouraged. Continue to pursue your craft and develop your talent. Study and learn. Grow by experience. Keep working. Victory goes to the man or woman who is willing to “fight one more round.” When you quit, God can do no more for you. But when you persevere, He will come to your aid.
Note what His Word says: “The Lord God will help Me; therefore I shall not be disgraced; therefore I have set My face like a flint, and I know that I will not be ashamed.” When does God promise to help you? When you set your face like a flint.
Soul food: Exo 39-40; Matt 8:10-17; Ps 84; Prov 2:16-19
2021-01-17
Proverbs 23:7 KJV
It was a long hard road that took the Chandler family out of the cotton fields and out of poverty in Mississippi. All nine children have memories of the share croppers’ cabin and having nothing to wear or to eat. But today, all nine are college graduates!
Here’s their inspiring story: Their parents borrowed two dollars to buy a bus ticket for their son Cleveland, who worked his way through school, and became Chairman of the Economics Department at Howard University. Luther went to the University of Omaha, and became the public service employee manager for Kansas City. He helped his brother James get to Omaha, and then to Yale for graduate work. James, in turn, helped Herman, who is now a technical manager in Dallas. Donald works in Minneapolis. The children also helped themselves – picking cotton, pulling corn, digging potatoes. Fortson went to Morehouse College in Atlanta, and became a Baptist minister in Colorado. Princess earned an M.A. from Indiana University, and became a schoolteacher. Gloria is also a schoolteacher. Bessie has an M.A. and is a dietician at a veterans’ hospital. Then in 1984, all the children got together and bought a home for their parents.
The Bible says, “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” If you convince yourself that you can’t, or allow others to convince you of that, then you won’t. But if you believe that by God’s grace you can, then you will! If the Chandlers can do it, you can do it too. Forget what has happened in the past! Every day God gives you the choice to begin your life over again.
Soul food: Gen 5:22-24; Heb 11:5; 2 Kings 2:1-12; Acts 1:9-11
