I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief! (Mark 9:24 NLT)
Here is something that you and I must dwell upon. Personally, I am constantly brought to this: I have not yet learnt thoroughly to believe what I believe in! I believe in the finished work of Christ, yet sometimes I am just as miserable about myself as any man could be. I am often almost at the point of giving up because of what a wretched kind of thing I am. If there is anything in this world that would cause me to give up the Christian ministry, it is myself. Do you understand what I mean? Oh, how we are discouraged by what we find in ourselves! And so, we don't believe what we believe in. We believe in the finished work of Christ, and that God puts all that finished work to our account. God does not see us in ourselves – He sees us in Christ. He does not see us, He sees Christ in us. We don't believe that! If we really did we would be delivered from ourselves and would indeed be triumphant Christians.
Of course, that does not mean that we can just behave anyhow. We may speak and act wrongly, but for every Christian there is a refuge – a mercy seat. It has not to be made; it is there with the precious Blood. That has not to be shed; it is shed. There is a High Priest making intercession for us. There is everything that we need. The work is finished, completed. Oh, we Christians must believe our beliefs! We must take hold, with both hands, of the things which are of our Christian faith.
~T. Austin-Sparks~
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Sunday Reflection: The Gift of Seeing God
To get the most out of this devotion, set aside time to read the Scripture referenced throughout.
Throughout Scripture, we find examples of people who longed to encounter God. Moses sought His glory (Ex. 33:18). David asked to meet Him in person (Psalm 27:7-9). And Job directly experienced Him—resulting in humble repentance (Psalm 42:4-5). The stories of these members of God’s family remind us that we’re made to long for the Lord’s presence.
They also remind us of God’s generosity and kindness. Though He gives us many gifts on this earth, He wants us to remember that sharing in His life is the ultimate blessing—that our heart’s true satisfaction is found in Him alone. What stands in the way of our ability to say with the psalmist, “You are my Lord; I have no good besides You” (Psalm 16:2)? Whatever the obstacle is, we can be honest about it with our heavenly Father. God forgives and provides us with the strength we need to follow Him.
Think about it
• For some people, the idea of seeing God is exciting and joyful, while others feel intimidated or overwhelmed. How do you feel at the thought?
• For some people, the idea of seeing God is exciting and joyful, while others feel intimidated or overwhelmed. How do you feel at the thought?
• Experiencing God’s presence often requires small, faithful steps of praying and studying the Bible. How can you move toward Him today?
~Dr. Charles F. Stanley~
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View from the Top
I sometimes think Jesus views the Church much differently than we view the Church. In fact, there is a really alarming verse that points to this. It is Revelation 3:1,
"And to the angel of the church in Sardis write, ‘These things says He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars: "I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead."
WOW! That was written to a church that on the outside looked like they had it all together!
They had a reputation of being a living, vibrant church! People who saw them went to seminars to find out how they were doing it, and people applauded them for their success. But Jesus says, "You're dead!"
The Knox Bible puts it this way, How thou dost pass for a living man and all the while art a corpse. The Living Bible says, I know your reputation as a live and active church, but you're dead.
You see, activity is not synonymous with life. Sometimes people and churches that are decaying spiritually cover it up with activity. They are still "going through the motions," but there is really a spiritual decay eating away inside.
People think they are doing great, but Jesus sees right to the heart of the matter, both in our individual lives and in the Church.
May God keep you and me from being so mislead. May we look to Him always for our daily bread, recognizing and acknowledging that every blessing we possess, every stride of progress we make, is the result of His goodness and His grace alone.
He is the One whose view really matters!
~Bayless Conley~
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Riches and Poverty!
(J.C. Ryle)
Many in every age have disturbed society by stirring up the poor against the rich. But so long as the world is under the present order of things, universal equality cannot be attained.
So long as . . .
some are wise, and some are foolish;
some are strong, and some are weak;
some are healthy, and some are diseased;
so long as children reap the fruit of their parent's misconduct;
so long as sun, and rain, and heat, and cold, and wind, and waves, and drought, and blight, and storm, and tempest are beyond man's control--so long will there be inequality in this world.
Take all the property in England by force this day, and divide it equally among the inhabitants. Give every person over twenty years old an equal portion. Let all share alike, and begin the world over again. Do this, and see where you would be at the end of fifty years. You would just have come round to the point where you began! You would just find things as unequal as before!
Some would have worked--and some would have been lazy;
some would have been always careless--and some always scheming;
some would have sold--and others would have bought;
some would have wasted--and others would have saved.
And the end would be that some would be rich--and others would be poor.
We might as well say . . .
that all people ought to be of the same height, weight, strength, and cleverness;
or that all oak trees ought to be of the same shape and size;
or that all blades of grass ought to be of the same length
--as that all people were meant to be equal.
Settle it in your mind that the main cause of all the suffering you see around you, is sin. Sin is the grand cause . . .
of the enormous luxury of the rich--and the painful degradation of the poor;
of the heartless selfishness of the highest classes--and the helpless poverty of the lowest.
Sin must be first cast out of the world;
the hearts of all people must be renewed and sanctified;
the devil must be bound;
the Prince of Peace must come down and take His great power and reign
--all this must be before there ever can be universal happiness, or the gulf be filled up which now divides the rich and poor.
Beware of expecting a millennium to be brought about . . .
by any method of government,
by any system of education,
or by any political party.
Labor to do good to all men; pity your poorer brethren, and help every reasonable endeavor to raise them from their low estate. Do not slacken your hand from any endeavor . . .
to increase knowledge,
to promote morality,
to improve the temporal condition of the poor.
But never, never forget . . .
that you live in a fallen world,
that sin is all around you,
and that the devil is abroad.
