A Ministry of Reconciliation Now everything is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. . . —2 Corinthians 5:18 The world abounds with people whose sin has alienated them from God. Christ’s sacrificial work has restored Christians to a love relationshipRead More …

The Judgment Seat For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each may be repaid for what he has done in the body, whether good or bad.—2 Corinthians 5:10 There are many motivations in the Christian’s life. One is our awareness that one day weRead More …

Open Doors and Adversaries . . . because a wide door for effective ministry has opened for me—yet many oppose me.—1 Corinthians 16:9 Open doors of service may also let in adversaries. Paul had many of both. As Paul wrote to the Corinthians from Ephesus, he was trying to determineRead More …

Humble Yourself “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”—Luke 14:11 There are two ways to attain high esteem. One is the world’s method: Take every opportunity to promote yourself before others; seize occasions for recognition and manipulate your way intoRead More …

Redeeming the Time Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk—not as unwise people but as wise— making the most of the time, because the days are evil.—Ephesians 5:15–16 These days we are bombarded with opportunities that entice us to invest our time and energy. Each day the voices ofRead More …

Abundant Life A thief comes only to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and have it in abundance.—John 10:10 Jesus warns us to be on guard for thieves who will try to rob us of what God has for us. JesusRead More …

The Spirit of Wisdom The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him— a Spirit of wisdom and understanding, a Spirit of counsel and strength, a Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.—Isaiah 11:2 Throughout His ministry, Jesus relied upon the Holy Spirit to direct Him asRead More …

Victory One Step at a Time The Lord your God will drive out these nations before you little by little. You will not be able to destroy them all at once; otherwise, the wild animals will become too numerous for you.—Deuteronomy 7:22 When God led His people into the PromisedRead More …

The Meek Blessed are the gentle, because they will inherit the earth.—Matthew 5:5 In popular thinking the term meek implies weakness. The word Jesus used had a different meaning. His picture of meekness is that of a stallion that has been brought into subjection to its master. Whereas it onceRead More …

Hunger and Thirst Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, because they will be filled.—Matthew 5:6 Hunger and thirst are the body’s way of telling us that we are “empty.” Our natural response to physical hunger and thirst is to seek food and water to satisfy our need.Read More …