Each Monday morning I begin the day excited about the next Sunday’s sermon because I get to share what God is going to teach me that week. Now, you may not be a pastor, but you have the same privilege of sharing with someone else what the Lord has been teaching you.
The passion to proclaim Jesus Christ is born from the Christian’s conversion experience, but enthusiasm can fizzle unless we continue learning and growing in faith. If we barely know God, why would we want to talk about Him? But if, on the other hand, we are continually growing in our knowledge of His character, works, and ways, we’ll want to share with others what we’ve learned. In the midst of the world’s ills, Christians have the most precious treasure—Jesus Christ! What good can we do for the kingdom of God or for our unbelieving friends if we stay quiet about Him?
The message we proclaim not only offers freedom from sin’s penalty but also provides the power to live righteously. When Christ died on the cross, each believer was crucified with Him, and sin’s allure and power were broken. This means Christ’s followers can say no to sins that enslave others and live victoriously in obedience to God.
Most people in the world are searching for a better, happier, more purposeful life. But Christians have the secret of life in Christ, who offers us rest for our souls (Matt. 11:29). This is a message we can’t keep to ourselves. As you open your Bible and pray today, ask God to reveal a truth you can share—and the person He wants you to tell
God never intends to trick or puzzle believers. He wants us to be confident about our salvation and has clearly laid out the plan. So if uncertainty should arise in your mind, realize the problem isn’t with the Lord.
Someone else, however, does want us confused: Satan knows that doubts will make us less effective as Christians. Here are four major tactics he uses:
1. Sin When we give in to temptation, our enemy piles on feelings of guilt so we’ll think, How can I be saved when I’m living like this? But Scripture assures us there’s no condemnation for believers in Christ (Rom. 8:1).
2. Ignorance Unless we’re immersed in God’s Word, it’s easy to have just a hazy notion of what transpired when we came to faith. But if we’re well grounded, we’re less likely to question our salvation in tough times.
3. Feelings Once we are saved, nothing can snatch us out of the Father’s hand (John 10:28-29). And yet sorrow and shame can make us want to hide instead of confessing and keeping lines of communication with God clear. (See Gen. 3:8; 1 John 1:9.) Be aware that feelings have nothing to do with the truth of our salvation.
4. Harassment Sometimes the devil comes at us like a roaring lion, other times like an angel of light (1 Peter 5:8; 2 Corinthians 11:14). Whatever his approach, he wants to take our eyes off Jesus. Scripture, however, promises that no weapon formed against believers will prosper (Isa. 54:17).
Spending time in God’s Word will help you to stand securely in your salvation. Then you’ll be better prepared to resist Satan’s strategies.
The limitations of the English language at times diminish our understanding of scriptural concepts. For instance, there is only one word for love in English, but the New Testament uses two different Greek words. One of them, phileo, refers to brotherly concern and affection, but the more powerful term agape signifies a sacrificial commitment to another’s satisfaction, security, and development. This is the kind of love that God has for us—and that the Holy Spirit produces in and through believers.
Perhaps the best way to understand agape is to see what it looks like. In His parable of the prodigal son, Jesus describes a father’s sacrificial love for his wayward son. When the young man demanded an early inheritance, the father didn’t deny his request, though he knew it would lead only to bitterness. So despite personal and financial sacrifice, he gave the son his share. Then the father waited patiently while the prodigal learned a difficult lesson.
No doubt that was a trying time for the father because a good dad wants to protect his children from mistakes and the resulting consequences. But a wise man also knows that some hard truths must be learned through painful experience. At times the best thing we can do is trust the Lord to reach defiant hearts.
But agape love doesn’t just let go; it also forgives and restores. When the prodigal son returned home humbled and contrite, his father reached out to receive him and restore him to the family—just our heavenly Father does for us.
Maybe there’s not enough money in the bank to cover that bill. Or a loved one died. Or your family is facing hard times. In difficult or painful circumstances, many believers turn to the Bible in search of comfort and guidance. Within its pages, we find assurance that encourages us through every season of life: “The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness” (Lam. 3:22-23).
God truly is faithful. In other words, we can count on Him to be and do exactly what He says. For instance, the Bible assures us that the Lord is trustworthy, loving, and incapable of failure (Psalm 37:5; Rom. 5:8; Josh. 1:5). Out of deep love for us, He’ll use any aspect of His multifaceted nature to provide exactly what He knows we need. He’s our Savior, Comforter, and Discipliner, who safely guides us through life’s changes and challenges.
No matter what hardships we face, we can trust God because He knows all things. He’s aware of the duration and intensity of our current season and uses His knowledge to offer us the best possible help and support. What’s more, the Lord is all-powerful, which means He is more than adequate to meet needs and change circumstances according to His plan. And our Father is everywhere, including right beside us in whatever we face. He promises, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you” (Heb. 13:5).
Difficulties may cause us to question God’s dependability. But if we’ll place our trust in our omniscient, omnipotent Father, we can begin each morning with a fresh sense of His faithfulness, which will carry us through the day.
Signs on the highway show us many different sorts of things. Speed limits. Animal crossings. How to find a rest stop or avoid a construction site. Similarly, all of creation is a sign communicating God’s message to us. He speaks to us through a full moon, waves crashing against rocks, or a vividly colored aspen tree. As we look upon the wonders of nature, something inside us resonates with the glory, power, love, and beauty of the Creator.
The Lord expresses His message in still another way that may initially be hard for us to comprehend as love: through the fall of man. You might wonder, If God loves us, then why would He let the first couple sin, spoiling the perfection they enjoyed in the garden and breaking the fellowship they had with Him?
The connection between God’s love and man’s sin is freedom. In giving Adam and Eve the option to obey or disobey, God demonstrated that He has not created us as robots, incapable of making choices. His love does not restrict our freedom to do right or wrong—even if that involves our saying “no” to the God who created us. However, having the freedom to choose means we will make mistakes and disobey the God who loves us.
But the wonderful news is that God expresses His love toward those who have rebelled against Him, through His gracious offer of salvation and forgiveness. Jesus Christ, who paid our sin debt on the cross, is the ultimate expression of divine love. Have you responded to His love by believing in Christ and receiving Him as your personal Savior?
