2021-09-24
Hebrews 5:4 NCV
When it comes to knowing what our purpose is, we have two options. 1) Guesswork. If we only rely on our own knowledge and feelings to find our purpose, we’re likely to get it wrong somewhere. We’d probably end up choosing the purpose we think we’d like, rather than the purpose that’s actually right for us. We can’t see the whole picture.
So we need: 2) Revelation. In the Bible, we read: ‘To be a high priest is an honour, but no one chooses himself for the work. He must be called by God as Aaron was.’ We can apply a similar thought to our own calling – it’s not our choice, but God’s. And we can actually draw comfort from this, because it means that when God has called us to do a certain thing, we can be confident that He’ll provide the resources, wisdom, connections and strategy we need to fulfil it.
We can also find guidance in His Word. In the Bible, we can discover insights into why we exist, how life works, how best to live our lives, what to avoid, and what to expect in the future. There are a lot of self-help books out there, and while many of them contain good advice, none of them are God’s personal message to His children. The Message paraphrases Paul’s words: ‘God’s wisdom…goes deep into the interior of his purposes…It’s not the latest message, but more like the oldest – what God determined as the way to bring out his best in us’ (1 Corinthians 2:7 MSG).
Each one of us has been created to fulfil a certain unique purpose in life. And to discover it, we need to turn to God and His Word, not the world’s wisdom.
1 Sam 1-3; Luke 23:1-12; Ps 34; Prov 21:14-16
2021-07-14
Luke 5:5 NIV
Lesson five: Stand on the promises of God. In their previous fishing attempt, the disciples were trusting in their own experience and ability. But this time they were trusting in Christ’s promise: ‘Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch’ (v.4 NIV). Jesus didn’t specifically say, ‘Peter, if you go fishing with me, I promise you a big catch.’ He didn’t need to say it because Peter realised that when Christ told him to go fishing, and then got into his boat, and then told him exactly where to put down the net, there was no way it was going to come up empty. Peter trusted God and expected Him to act. He expected Him to keep His promise.
When we get God’s presence in our boats, God’s plan in our heads, and God’s promises in our hearts, we can’t fail. But we might be saying to God, ‘That sounds great, but right now I’m defeated by the problems I’m experiencing. I’m having some hard times, and I’m struggling to trust You.’ If we’re feeling beaten by our circumstances, here’s one thing we can do to help us rebuild our trust in God: read the Bible, find a specific promise from Him, and start claiming it.
When we start expecting God to act, we’ll find that His promise will inject new hope into our situations. Just because we haven’t solved the problem doesn’t mean there’s no answer. With God, success often begins at the point of failure, and it’s after we’ve ‘fished all night and caught nothing’ that He steps in.
So today, be encouraged and don’t give up. Try again, but this time do it with Jesus in your boat, and He’ll make all the difference.
Acts 8-9; Luke 7:11-23; Ps 118:10-18; Prov 15:31-32
2021-06-26
Acts 4:13 NIV
To be “under the influence” means to be controlled by something or someone other than yourself. Who you are, what you are, and where you are today is because you were under the influence of certain people. The company you keep influences your thinking, your thinking influences your actions, your actions influence your character, and your character determines your destiny.
Influence is impossible to escape. It’s like the weather – always there to be reckoned with. That’s why it’s essential to monitor your children’s use of the internet, what they watch on television, and the company they keep because these things can influence them for good or evil. And if you’re really wise, you’ll spend time under the influence of Jesus. You’ll read His Word and spend time with Him in prayer. Indeed, the more time you spend with Him, the more you’ll become like Him.
When the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, they were transformed to the extent that some folks thought they were drunk. But Peter said: “These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ‘In the last days,’ God says, ‘I will pour out my Spirit on all people'” (Acts 2:15-17 NIV). Two chapters later, we read this: “When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus” (v. 13 NIV). And today the Holy Spirit, who is simply the influence of Christ, can transform your life too.
Soul food: Jer 18-21; Luke 2:41-52; Ps 59:1-8; Prov 14:21-22
2021-05-23
Acts 4:13 NIV
Being ‘under the influence’ of something means to be controlled by something or someone other than yourself. Our family and friends, the books we read, and the social media accounts we follow all have an influence on us and help shape who we are today. It works like this: the people who speak into our lives influence our thinking, our thinking influences our actions, our actions influence our character, and our character determines our destiny.
We can be influenced by others without being aware of their power over us – hopefully they’re having a good influence on us, but they could be having a bad influence – so it’s important that we’re mindful of who and what we’re surrounding ourselves with.
The best influencer we can have is Jesus. We need to allow Him to speak into our hearts and minds by reading the Bible and spending time in prayer. The more time we spend with Him, the more we’ll become like Him.
When the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, they were transformed to the extent that some people thought they were drunk. But Peter said: ‘These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: “In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people”‘ (Acts 2:15-17 NIV). Two chapters later, we read this: ‘When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realised that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus’ (v.13 NIVUK).
And the Holy Spirit, who is simply the influence of Christ, can transform our lives too.
Acts 1:4-8; Rom 12:1-8; 1 Cor 12:1-13
2021-03-29
John 15:3 KJV
Your new nature is programmed to want to obey God in much the same way a calculator is programmed to compute numbers. When you put in the right information, you get the right response. And when you feed your new nature with God’s Word, it’s designed to give you the right response. That’s why Satan tries to keep you so busy doing other things that you don’t spend time reading your Bible. His goal is to keep you weak and ineffective.
Paul writes, “We all…beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image” (2 Corinthians 3:18 NKJV). A mirror is simply a reflector. And the more time you spend in God’s Word, the more you begin to reflect His likeness. But it won’t happen by just grabbing a verse here and there or skimming through a passage. No, it calls for renewing your mind every day with God’s Word, to the extent that the Holy Spirit connects with your spirit and produces a Christlike lifestyle.
Jesus said: “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me” (John 15:3-4). When food dries on a plate, that plate needs to “abide” in some hot, soapy water so that all the junk can be removed. That’s why you need to soak your mind in God’s Word. It removes not only gross sin, but hardened, baked-on, stubborn attitudes that keep you from growing in grace.
Soul food: Est 1-4; Matt 25:41-46; Ps 69:19-36; Prov 8:30-31
