2025-08-16
Psalm 23:1 NIV
Spurgeon’s contemporary, Dr. Joseph Parker, pastored the City Temple Church in London. One day he walked up to his pulpit and read this verse: “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.” After a long pause, he closed his Bible, looked at the congregation, and said, “Friends, that is enough!”
And scripturally and practically speaking, he is right! When God is your shepherd, you “lack nothing.” Even in the grimmest circumstances, you need “fear no evil” because He is always with you (v.4 NIV). And you get to enjoy two things every human being craves – sufficiency and security – because with God, there is no lack of ability or resources to take care of us in any situation (See Philippians 4:19). It’s the reason Paul said that although he had nothing, he possessed everything (See 2 Corinthians 6:10).
From God’s perspective we need nothing but God Himself. The Bible tells us, “He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:32 KJV). And since He has already given us His greatest treasure, will He withhold from us any lesser resource? But there are some things we need to remember regarding God’s timing.
(1) Because of His superior wisdom, He calls the shots, and when the time is right, the answer will come.
(2) There are commandments He gives us, and until we obey them, the answer won’t come.
(3) Faith is crucial in receiving the answer.
Jesus Himself said, “I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours” (Mark 11:24 NLT).
Soul food: Gal 1-3; Matt 18:21-35; Ps 119:105-112; Pro 18:9
2025-08-15
Romans 5:17 NKJV
The Bible says, “Those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.” The righteousness that God approves and accepts comes as a “gift.” And it’s based on “grace.” And grace means “unmerited, unearned, undeserved favour with God.”
Are you trying through your own efforts to earn right standing before God? Do you believe that by doing more good deeds, giving more, praying more, serving more, that God will love you more and bless you? These are all good things. Indeed, they are important things. But the righteousness God accepts is a “gift” which He Himself bestows and you yourself cannot earn. Indeed, if you had to earn it, it wouldn’t be a gift; it would be a reward for your efforts. Furthermore, how would you know when you had done enough to please God and be acceptable before Him? Satan will take every opportunity to condemn you for never doing enough. When that happens, you begin to fall into the trap of guilt, condemnation, and shame.
When you base your relationship with God on your own merits, you will always fall short. Note something else in this Scripture. When you see your righteousness as a gift bestowed upon you by God because you have placed your trust in Christ, you begin to “reign in life.” Link this Scripture together with Romans 6:14, “For sin shall not have dominion over you,” and you begin to get the picture. Instead of being ruled by the world, the flesh, and the devil, you “reign” over them.
Soul food: Judg 19:16-21:25; Matt 18:10-20; Ps 119:97-104; Pro 18:6-8
2025-08-14
1 Peter 3:7 AMP
To have a successful marriage, you must understand that your mate is not only physically different from you but mentally and emotionally different too. Let’s say a problem arises at breakfast. After work, he has forgotten it; he compartmentalized it to focus on work. For him, it’s over, but not necessarily for her. She may have rehearsed and processed it while multitasking during day. It hasn’t disappeared; it’s unfinished business. After work, he comes home, and there is tension. He thinks, “What’s the problem?” She thinks, “How could he possibly forget?” He is thinking, “Surely she’s not still thinking about that incident from this morning?”
This is a good moment to introduce the Bible verse, “Live… in an understanding way.” Understanding brings happiness. A man’s brain functions in a compartmentalized way. He moves from family, to work, to recreation, with each compartment separate from the other. But in a woman’s brain the compartments are connected. While he is working, she is thinking about the kids, the argument at breakfast, and planning dinner simultaneously. So this morning’s incident is still in her mind.
By understanding these differences, she can give him time to get back into the “family compartment” before raising the issue. And he can realize she is not being unreasonable, she just needs closure so she can feel good about the relationship again. In marriage, some things must be resolved while other things must be processed, forgiven, and forgotten. And if your goal is to live in harmony, you must understand this principle.
Soul food: Judg 16:1-19:15; Matt 18:1-9; Ps 119:89-96; Pro 18:1-5
2025-08-13
Mark 4:33 NIV
If you’re serious about reaching and teaching people, there are two things you must try to do:
(1) Talk to them, not above them. A preschooler was eating an apple in the back of the car. “Daddy,” he said, “why is my apple turning brown?” His father explained: “Because after you assimilated the skin on the exterior, the core structure of the apple came into contact with the atmosphere, which caused it to oxidize, thus changing its molecular structure and transforming it into a different color.” After a long silence, the little boy replied, “Daddy, are you talking to me?” Can the listener understand and apply what you’re saying?
Paul told the church at Corinth, “I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready… Indeed, you are still not ready” (1 Corinthians 3:2 NIV). Jesus made a point of tailoring His remarks so the people listening could grasp the message. The Bible says, “With… parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand.” Think about it: Jesus was God, and He could easily have awed us with His knowledge. But because His desire was to change our lives for the better, He stayed on our level and spoke in a language we understand. And you must learn to do the same.
(2) Say it over and over again. The fundamental law of learning is repetition. It’s been said that people have to hear something sixteen times before they believe it and really “get it.” The question that should concern you isn’t, “What will I say?” but, “What will people take away from it?”
Soul food: Judg 12-15; Matt 17:14-27; Ps 119:81-88; Pro 17:27-28
2025-08-12
1 Peter 5:4 NKJV
The fifth crown is the crown of glory. Peter wrote: “The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed: Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away” (vv. 1-4 NKJV).
This crown seems especially designed for pastors and Christian leaders. That doesn’t mean you have to be an official pastor or a member of a church staff. As one pastor explains: “You might be the shepherd of a small group. Your flock might be your family… It might be your Sunday school class… The Lord often gives us responsibility for the spiritual well-being and maturing of others, and what an opportunity to serve Him!”
This raises an interesting question: What are we going to do with these crowns? Revelation 4:10-11 describes a great worship service that will occur when we arrive in heaven. “The twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying: ‘You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power'” (NKJV). Imagine kneeling before the Lord and laying your crown at His feet, overwhelmed with gratitude for all that He has done for you.
Soul food: Judg 9:34-11:40; Matt 17:1-13; Ps 119:73-80; Pro 20:25
2025-08-11
Revelation 2:10 NKJV
The fourth crown is the crown of life. Two different verses depict it for us. “Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him” (James 1:12 NKJV). “Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.”
A pastor explains it this way: “The Crown of Life is given in recognition of enduring and triumphing over temptations and trials, even to the point of martyrdom. Motivated by our love for Christ, we persevere and never quit until He takes us home… Almost every New Testament book was written to believers who lived in danger of martyrdom. The apostles counselled them to persevere so they could inherit the Crown of Life.”
Today we are living in one of the most intense periods of persecution in the history of the church. Open Doors, an organization that monitors persecution, reports on the top fifty nations where Christians face the most severe persecution. In 2017, they said trends are getting worse every year, and that “one hundred percent of Christians in twenty-one countries around the world experience persecution for their faith in Christ, and more than 215 million Christians face ‘high levels’ of persecution. Nearly one in every twelve Christians today lives in an area or culture in which Christianity is illegal, forbidden, or punished.”
The Bible says, “All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (2 Timothy 3:12 NKJV). But the good news is that it gives each of us a marvellous opportunity to lay claim to the crown of life.
Soul food: Judg 7:1-9:33; Matt 16:13-28; Ps 119:65-72; Pro 17:23-26
