2022-01-19
Ezekiel 36:26 NKJV
Cyprian, a wealthy noble who lived during the Third Century, enjoyed galloping about Carthage in his gold and bejeweled chariot. He wore fancy clothes studded with diamonds and precious stones and lived a debauched life. In a letter to one of the Christian theologians of his time, Cyprian said he couldn’t possibly conceive how he could change his life – the life he had lived for so long. The inveterate habits, tastes, and desires that he had developed, the sins he clutched to his bosom, how could he possibly give these things up? How could he ever become like the Christians he saw? He said it seemed to him to be an utterly impossible thing.
Yet in the mysterious providence and grace of God, that which seemed utterly impossible came to pass and Cyprian was transformed. God reached down and took out of Cyprian’s breast that stony heart and placed within him a heart of flesh – a heart tuned to love his God and sing his praises. Cyprian, who later became one of the great Christian leaders of the early church, said things that before had seemed utterly impossible, mysterious, and difficult to understand had all become plain. All his problems had disappeared.
You say, “But I don’t understand the new birth.” The good news is you don’t have to. You just have to trust in Christ and be born again. All kinds of people – the great and the mighty, the base and the low, the noble and ignoble, the savage and the sophisticate – have experienced the regenerating power of God and enjoyed a new life in Christ. And you can too.
Soul food: Gen 40-41; Luke 4:1-13; Ps 89:1-14; Pro 2:20
2022-01-18
Proverbs 13:18 NIV
When someone corrects you, be teachable and not unreachable. “Let every man be quick to listen but slow to use his tongue, and slow to lose his temper” (James 1:19 PHPS). If you do the first two things, the third one naturally falls into place. If you are quick to listen and slow to answer back, you’re going to be slow to lose your temper. “Whoever heeds correction is honored.” So use your ears more than your mouth, and be willing to accept correction.
The wisest people have a “teach me” attitude and are willing to learn from others. You can learn from anyone, if you just know the right questions to ask. It is important that you never stop asking questions, because the moment you’re through learning in life, you’re through! Period! Be teachable, not unreachable.
Husband, can you learn from your wife, or does that threaten you? When she makes a suggestion, do you get defensive? Do you take every comment as a threat to your manhood? Wife, can you learn from your husband? Parent, can you learn from your children? If you want to end up lonely in life, never admit your mistakes, never learn from anyone, and never let anyone teach you anything. How long has it been since you admitted to your spouse, “Honey, I was wrong; it was my fault”? Some people haven’t said that in years.
The Bible says, “Humbly accept the word planted in you” (James 1:21 NIV). The word “humble” here means “gentle.” When you approach God’s Word, you ought to approach it with a gentle, or humble, attitude that says, “Lord, I’m willing to be taught.”
Soul food: Gen 37-39; Luke 3:21-38; Ps 84; Pro 2:16-19
2022-01-17
Proverbs 15:1 GNT
When someone disagrees with you, be tender without surrender. You will never be able to please everyone. You will always meet people who like to argue and quarrel. Some people will contradict everything you say. How should you respond to them? One of the tests of spiritual maturity is how you handle those who disagree with you. Some people have a need to demolish anyone who disagrees with them. If you challenge them or offer a comparison, complaint, or criticism, they respond with a full-blown personal attack. Then what do you do? You have three alternatives:
(1) You can retreat in fear. Many people choose this route because they haven’t developed the ability to respond in gentleness. So, if you’re a “peace at any price” person, it will have hidden costs in your life’s most important relationships.
(2) You can react in anger. Anger is often a telltale sign that you feel insecure and threatened by someone’s disapproval. It’s a warning light that tells you you’re about to lose something, often your self-esteem. When we become angry, often we become sarcastic and attack the other person’s self-worth.
(3) You can respond in gentleness. “A gentle answer quiets anger, but a harsh one stirs it up.” This is the kind of response that requires a fine balance between maintaining your right to an opinion, while equally respecting another person’s right to their opinion. It requires being tender without surrendering your convictions. Sometimes you must stand by your convictions. But other times you will find you’re answering this question: “Is our relationship more important than the point I’m trying to prove?”
Soul food: Gen 35-36; Luke 3:11-20; Ps 81; Pro 2:11-15
2022-01-16
Romans 14:1 NIV
When someone upsets or disappoints you, God expects you to be gracious toward them instead of judgmental. The Bible says, “If someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted” (Galatians 6:1 NIV). You say, “Tempted how?” Tempted to become judgmental or “holier than thou.” That’s the wrong response. “Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling.”
Instead of criticizing their faults, you’re supposed to help strengthen their faith. You set yourself up for Satan’s attack in your own areas of weakness the moment you begin to pass judgment on someone else. What’s your reaction to people when they mess up their lives? Do you say, “I told you so,” or “I could see it coming,” or “It serves you right,” or “How could you be such a fool?”
Jesus didn’t do that! His reaction to the woman caught committing adultery was full of compassion and sensitivity. He defended her publicly, then restored her privately. He was gracious, not judgmental. Why should you work at not being judgmental? Because that is the way Christ treated you. “Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God” (Romans 15:7 NIV).
God puts up with a lot from you, right? And if He puts up with your inconsistencies and weaknesses, you can learn to put up with other people’s shortcomings. Whenever you’re tempted to judge another person, pause and remember how much God has forgiven you. The more you recognize God’s grace to you, the more gracious you will be to others.
Soul food: Judg 16:23-31; 2 Cor 12:3-11
2022-01-15
Philippians 4:5 GNT
The Greek word used for gentleness means “strength under control.” It pictures a wild stallion that has been tamed. It doesn’t mean to be weak and wimpy. The only two people in the Bible who were called gentle – Moses and Jesus – were both strong. Gentleness is restraining your reactions. It’s choosing your response to people rather than merely reacting to them. For the next few days, let’s look at what it means to be gentle.
When someone serves you, be thoughtful and not demanding. Paul writes, “Don’t just think about your own affairs, but be interested in others, too, and in what they are doing” (Philippians 2:4 TLB). How do you treat restaurant servers, clerks, administrative assistants, employees, bank tellers, police officers, and others who serve you? Are you rude and difficult? Are you aloof and impersonal, as if they were just “part of the machinery?” Do you realize they may have had a difficult day too, or do you think only of yourself?
The first way you develop gentleness is to try and understand the people who serve you. And the first place you should be gentle is at home. The Bible tells wives to adorn themselves with “a gentle…spirit” (1 Peter 3:4 TLB). Peter is simply saying that gentleness can be more attractive than any clothes or jewelry you choose to wear. To husbands, the Bible says, “You husbands should try to understand the wives you live with” (v. 7 PHPS). If you are normally insensitive and overbearing, you will have to work extra hard on this. The Scriptures say you must be understanding, not demanding toward the people who serve you and the people with whom you live.
Soul food: Gen 32-34; Luke 3:1-10; Ps 79; Pro 2:9-10
2022-01-14
Proverbs 10:19 NIV
The story is told of a wealthy grandfather who went to his doctor to be fitted for a unique hearing aid. The device not only allowed him to hear perfectly, it was hidden so no one could see it. When he went back for a follow-up visit, the doctor said, “Your family must be happy to know that now you can hear.” The grandfather said, “Well, I haven’t told them about my hearing aid. I just sit around and listen to their conversations – and I’ve already changed my will three times!”
The Bible says, “The prudent hold their tongues.” And this isn’t only a law of speech, it’s a law of science. The odds of putting food in your mouth grow exponentially the more times you open it. To put it another way, the potential for saying the wrong thing rises proportionately to the amount of words you say. Ever notice that the person who habitually throws in their “two cents’ worth” frequently says something that’s worth about two cents, or less? The writer of Proverbs says, “Do you see someone who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool than for them” (Proverbs 29:20 NIV).
A man walked into a pet shop one day, where a colorful parrot was sitting on a perch. The man looked at the bird, and in a cocky tone asked, “Hey, stupid, can you speak?” To his amazement the parrot replied, “Yes, stupid, can you fly?” Why does God say so much about offenses of the tongue? Because when you sin with your tongue, you offend Him, affect others, and hurt yourself.
Soul food: Gen 30:25-31:55; Luke 2:41-52; Ps 74:12-23; Pro 2:7-8
