Luke 7:7
“Wherefore neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee: but say in a word, and my servant shall be healed.” The meekness of this certain centurion should humble us. Though he was a man of great authority, power and pride had not overcome him. He knew he was not worthy to approach Jesus on his own; yet he believed that if Jesus just said a Word his servant would be healed. “…say in a word…” His great faith in just one Word caused even Jesus to marvel. But this man knew that one word from the Word changes everything. Who else can speak things into existence? Psalm 33:8-9 “Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.” Who else can speak peace to a raging storm? Matthew 8:26 “And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.” Who else can speak and cast out demons? Luke 4:36 “And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, What a word is this! for with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out.” Who else can speak eternal life? John 5:24 “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” In times of doubt, uncertainty, chaos, confusion, or fear, look to Him. Just a word from the Word is all we need today. Bible Reading: Isaiah 21-22 | Proverbs 4
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Galatians 2:21
“I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.” Some people want to do everything themselves. Maybe you are even one of them. Though we all struggle with this characteristic from time to time, there is one thing we must come to realize that we ourselves simply cannot contribute any part… our salvation. Other than our sin to make it necessary and our faith to believe in Jesus, any attempt to contribute to our salvation nullifies our justification. Ephesians 2:8-9 “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Grace is getting something we do not deserve…a Gift. Romans 3:24 “Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:” Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” If you have to work or pay for something is it still a gift? Works negate grace. Romans 11:6 “And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.” If we try to mix in our works, we disregard His plan of salvation. There is nothing we can do to earn our way to Heaven, other than receive His grace through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. Any attempt to work our way to Heaven will only leave us frustrated and exhausted. Romans 4:5 “But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.” Jesus paid it all. Rest in His grace today. Bible Reading: Isaiah 19-20 | Proverbs 3 James 3:16
“For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.” In the maze of life, we sometimes wander aimlessly, unsure which way to go and often forgetting which way we came. It is so easy to be confused about our surroundings. Sometimes it’s the place that feels unfamiliar and sometimes it’s the people. One turn of events can cause us to stumble through our days out of habit instead of steps of faith. When we are confused, we need to remember that it did not come from God. 1 Corinthians 14:33 “For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.” Our confusion can be replaced by His peace when we take every thing to Him in prayer. Philippians 4:6-7 “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Pour out your confusion to Him. Ask for that miracle. Cry to Him for deliverance. Beg for His forgiveness. Plead for His guidance. Seek His face through His Word. Psalm 71:1 “In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust: let me never be put to confusion.” We can wipe away our confusion today by trusting in Him. Bible Reading: Isaiah 17-18 | Proverbs 2 Deuteronomy 5:32
“Ye shall observe to do therefore as the LORD your God hath commanded you: ye shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.” The devil will allow distraction after distraction to try and keep you from spending time with the Lord in His Word. You place your Bible on the table…and you get a text message. Open your Bible, and there is a knock at the door. Sit back down, and realize your coffee is now cold…so you have to go warm it up. While waiting, a child has woken up and needs your attention. All the while your open Bible is still there on the table…waiting. The list could go on and on of how our enemy attacks when we try to make the Lord our priority. Unless we are intentional, those distractions will soon no longer be needed when we get in the habit of doing anything and everything else first. 1 Samuel 12:20 “And Samuel said unto the people, Fear not: ye have done all this wickedness: yet turn not aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart;” Serving the Lord with all your heart begins by putting Him above anyone or anything else. Talk to Him first. Spend time in His Word first. When faced with a choice, choose Him. Deuteronomy 5:33 “Ye shall walk in all the ways which the LORD your God hath commanded you, that ye may live, and that it may be well with you, and that ye may prolong your days in the land which ye shall possess.” Blessings abound when we avoid the distractions and simply walk in His ways. Bible Reading: Isaiah 15-16 | Proverbs 1 Luke 6:22
“Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake.” No one likes to be left out and uninvited. But what if the Lord is protecting us from being included into something? No one likes to be excluded from the company of those you considered family. But what if the Lord removed you to prevent a greater disappointment later? Our human flesh hates dissatisfaction and displeasure. Both of them often lead to being discontent. Jesus understands our pain, and He is Able to comfort us like no one else can. He faced the same disappointments, yet it never caused Him to sin. Hebrews 2:18 “For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.” Hebrews 4:15 “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” Instead of focusing on what was lost, we can choose to rejoice in what we have been given. Luke 6:23 “Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold, your reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets.” Our reward is so much greater than anything we think we have lost. Anything we are willing to lose for Him is always replaced with something better. When we are excluded from something, it is an opportunity to be set apart unto Him. 2 Timothy 2:21 “If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work.” Bible Reading: Isaiah 13-14 | Revelation 22 Luke 6:7
“And the scribes and Pharisees watched him, whether he would heal on the sabbath day; that they might find an accusation against him.” Have you ever noticed bird circling over the same wooded area for an extended period of time? They are carefully watching over their intended target, waiting for just the right moment to pounce on their victim. The scribes and Pharisees watched Jesus like hawks watch their prey. They desired to find something, anything, that they could hold against Him. Luke 11:54 “Laying wait for him, and seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that they might accuse him.” Have you ever felt that way? Or even noticed someone eyeballing your every move? Critiquing your every word? Be encouraged that such things make us more like Jesus. John 15:18-19 “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” There will be people who watch us with an agenda in mind. Commit them to the Lord and allow Him to deal with their hearts. 2 Samuel 22:18 “He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them that hated me: for they were too strong for me.” But may this also remind us that there are also some who watch us for the example we are setting for them. 1 Timothy 4:12 “Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” 2 Timothy 3:14 “But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;” Everyone needs a Paul, a mentor, to learn from, but everyone also needs a Timothy to teach. Instead of focusing on those who seek to do you harm, concern yourself more with those who seek to follow you as you follow the Lord. Bible Reading: Isaiah 11-12 | Revelation 21 Psalm 27:13
“I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.” David clearly says that he would have fainted if he had not believed. He had enemies and false witnesses rising up around him that were cruel. He knew that his belief…his faith…had made the difference. Consider for a moment placing yourself in David’s shoes in this verse. We surely would have also fainted. “…unless I had believed…” Who would we be? What would we be doing? Where would we be? Why would we do anything? How would we be? “…unless I had believed…” The changes that take place the moment we place our faith in Him should encourage us to continue to do so. Believing in Him does not stop with salvation…it should be shown in our lives every day. Psalm 31:19 “Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of men!” Our walk with Him is a process of continually believing in His goodness which changes our perspective. 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 “We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;” 2 Corinthians 4:16 “For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.” Renewing our faith takes place when we spend time in His Word and in prayer. Take your burden to Him today, knowing that your faith in His goodness can carry you through anything you are facing. Bible Reading: Isaiah 9-10 | Revelation 20 Isaiah 41:10
“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” Some days feel like a whirlwind. Some feel like they will never end. Some are enjoyed from the mountaintop, while some are endured in the valley. Some days are a rollercoaster of emotions. Some leave you wondering what could possibly be next. Joshua 1:9 “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” Regardless of what your day looks like, there is something in today’s verse that can apply. Fearful? He is with you. Dismayed and confused? He is still on the throne. Weak and tired? He wants to be your Strength. Overwhelmed with your to-do list? He desires to help. Feeling good? He still is there to hold you up on that mountain. Feeling low? He can lift you up. Maybe no one understands, maybe no one even knows about it… but God does. Psalm 63:8 “My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.” Who sits at the right hand of God? His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Hebrews 12:2 “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” The Lord upholds His children through His Son. In the worst of times… He is always by our side. He is Sufficient for our every need. He gives strength to face another day. He sustains us. Isaiah 41:13 “For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.” We have no reason to fear with Him holding our hand. Bible Reading: Isaiah 7-8 | Revelation 19 Jeremiah 44:8
“In that ye provoke me unto wrath with the works of your hands, burning incense unto other gods in the land of Egypt, whither ye be gone to dwell, that ye might cut yourselves off, and that ye might be a curse and a reproach among all the nations of the earth?” They had provoked the Lord to wrath by making idols of other gods in the land of Egypt. The Lord called this a great evil against their souls. The works of their hands had led to their downfall. Isaiah 3:8 “For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen: because their tongue and their doings are against the LORD, to provoke the eyes of his glory.” Idolatry is the quickest way to face the wrath of God. Deuteronomy 32:16 “They provoked him to jealousy with strange gods, with abominations provoked they him to anger.” He tells us over and over that He is a Jealous God and that we should have no other gods before Him. Yet, so often we put so many other things before Him. 1 Timothy 6:10 “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” If He is not our priority, the idols in our lives can quickly cause idleness in our service. If our hands are idle, there are is no work being done, no souls being won. Proverbs 11:30 “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.” The works of our hands determine the fruit we possess. Bible Reading: Isaiah 5-6 | Revelation 18 1 Samuel 12:14
“If ye will fear the LORD, and serve him, and obey his voice, and not rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then shall both ye and also the king that reigneth over you continue following the LORD your God:” All throughout the Scriptures there are conditional blessings from the Lord. We can find many of them by looking for an if that is followed by a then. “If…then…” 1 Samuel 12:14 “If ye will fear the LORD, and serve him, and obey his voice, and not rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then…” The Lord used Samuel to speak unto the people of Israel and continue to teach them of the repercussions of their demanding a king. Would the Lord use King Saul in the lives of His children? Absolutely. But it was not what the Lord had intended for them. In order to continue following the Lord, the people had to first fear Him. This is a fear of reverence and respect for Who He is, a holy fear. If we do not first fear Him, we cannot make wise decisions. Proverbs 9:10 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.” Fearing the Lord leads to serving and obeying Him. Joshua 24:14 “Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD.” Some are fearful to follow Him simply because they are unwilling to give up things the flesh craves; yet, they still desire to follow. Job 28:28 “And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.” If we want to follow the Lord, we must first have a holy fear Him. Bible Reading: Isaiah 3-4 | Revelation 17 |
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