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O Lord, I’d Win a World for You

O Lord, I’d win a world for you,
Make millions hear the message of truth,
Throw mountains into the midst of the sea,
Grow churches where hearts are changed forever!

But where’s the path to greater things?
I’ve toiled with sweat and tears and blood.
I’ve fought in battle with Satan himself.
So few have faith! Where have I failed?

O Lord, keep me from looking for fruit,
But watch the sowing in every soil.
Give patience to walk the path of service,
O Savior who brings the season of harvest!

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As They Did To Me

As the anniversary of 9-11 came around this week, many still want vengeance for what happened to us.  But, is that what we should be seeking?  Both had the Spirit of the Lord, but isn’t it good that Jesus, while on the cross, sought forgiveness rather than vengeance for us like Samson would have done?

I.  Judges 15:1-15.  Back and forth Samson waged war with the Philistines, each seeking vengeance for what he or they perceived the other side had done to him or them.  They literally fought fire with fire, and it all came from worldly thinking: “As they have done to me, so have I done to them.”

II.  Romans 9:20-24.  God’s sole right to vengeance is rooted in His sovereignty.  Since He made everything, everything is His (Colossians 1:16).  Since God has the sole right to reveal His wrath (Romans 12:19), He also has the sole right to bring mercy.  His wrath will be wreaked against those against Him or who don’t know Him (Romans 1:18-21) and those in the church who deliberately sin or shrink back (Hebrews 10:26-31).

III.  Romans 12:14-21.  Since we’ve all sinned (Romans 3:23), we’ve all earned His wrath (Romans 6:23), but He has shown mercy to those in His Son by Jesus’ work on the cross (Romans 8:31-39).  So, rather than waging war as Samson or the world does (2 Corinthians 10:3-5), we who have escaped God’s vengeance by obeying the gospel, persuade men instead and reconcile them to God’s mercy through the gospel (2 Corinthians 5:11-21).

Realizing that you have escaped God’s vengeance through the gospel, do you seek vengeance or mercy for others?

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Speaking the Truth in Love

What chance does the gospel have to be heard in a world that has become so competitive with waves of noise, each more flashy and entertaining?  So many have closed their ears.  How can we be God’s megaphone, speaking the truth in love, and get them to listen?  Should we beat the world at its own game in order to be heard?

I. 1 Kings 19:1-18.  After Elijah defeated the prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel, he becomes discouraged by Jezebel’s death threats and runs away.  After refreshing him, God shows Elijah His power not in the wind, earthquake, or fire but in the gentle whisper.  Then, God shows him that He works in our weaknesses.  It’s the same with the gospel (1 Corinthians 1:18-31).  God’s grace is as sufficient for us as it was Paul (2 Corinthians 12:8-10).

II. Ephesians 4:11-16.  Jesus, our Head, supplies us with truth that equips us to attain to unity and maturity in Him.  This seems strange in the boisterous world that believes that truth is relative.  But, the church is the pillar and foundation of the truth, who speaks the truth in love.  That truth, His Word, is a living and active, double-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12-13) that we wield as part of the armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18) as we wage war differently than the world (2 Corinthians 10:3-5).

III. James 3:1-10.  So, in our weaknesses, Jesus’ body, the church, supplies the tongue.  What a difficulty this is with such an untamable appendage!  Yet, speaking the truth in love, we reach the lost with a low whisper and grow up in Him, working together to build ourselves up.  Much like an adolescent must choose healthy food for his various body parts to grow up correctly into his adult-sized head, so the church must commit to knowing and living out truth to grow up properly into Him.

It’s God’s power and work, but He entrusts His weak and fallible servants to speak His words of truth in love to lead the lost and strengthen the saved.

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Let my teaching be incisive

  1. Help me, Father, to put people face to face with your Word.
  2. Make me a faithful proclaimer of the Good News.
  3. May I be an example, not a stumbling block, to others.
  4. Show through my life the blessed state of life in Christ.
  5. Keep me from speaking in generalities.
  6. Let my teaching be incisive, addressing directly people’s needs.
  7. Put people in my path to be reached by your grace.
  8. Prevent me from getting in the way of the working of your power.
  9. Give me a humble attitude, while showing certainty of my faith.
  10. Thank you for making me a part of your plan to save others.
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Fling Out the Sons of Faith

A prayer of thanks, beside your loving Word,
Beside your saving works of power, O God,
Is little enough, though from a thankful heart —
In all our need, your mercy stands apart.

What grace received, in Christ, and every gift,
What spiritual change, what holy Spirit to lift
Our souls from dark and weary bondage — Lord!
By every man and woman let Christ be heard!

Fling out the sons of faith, that all may hear
The blessed News of grace, and come to fear
Your Name. Let countless prayers of thanks abound!
Let angels sing with joy, the lost are found!

Fling out across the islands, waters, and lands,
And if themselves refuse to cross the sands
And seas to reach the unsaved — O Lord, then raise
A holy nation, a people who follow your ways!

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The Lord Has Indeed Risen

A resurrection lesson just before Christmas?  It makes sense if we realize that Jesus was the baby born to die.  The angel declared to Joseph in Matthew 1:21 as Mary was with child that Jesus would save their people from their sins.  The second person of the Godhead took on flesh in Bethlehem so that He could die on the cross for our sins and be raised for our redemption.  Good news indeed!

I.  Luke 24:13-27.  Not all get this–even those who would call upon His name.  Like the two who were in Jerusalem and heard that Jesus was alive, we too trudge on to Emmaus, not realizing the implication of what His resurrection means for us.  We need to spend time with the risen Savior and let Him speak to us of how His sufferings were necessary for Him to overcome death for us.

II.  Luke 24:28-32.  Just like their eyes were opened with the breaking of bread, so must we be cut to the heart (Acts 2:36-41) like those at Pentecost.  We have to have a moment of awakening to what God has done for us through the gospel.  And no wonder the reenactment of the Lord’s Supper hit them.  No doubt that Jesus spoke of the Passover from their history in escaping slavery in Egypt and how the Christ was the Lamb of God, whose blood saved them from death (1 Peter 1:17-21).

III.  Luke 24:33-35.  Tired from their seven-mile journey no more, the disciples, hearts burning from the Scriptures made alive in them, returned to Jerusalem that same day, bursting in on the remaining Eleven with the good news that Jesus had indeed risen.  It was the same information that they had left Jerusalem with earlier that day, but this time they were convinced and could not contain the joy of that message.

Awakened to the good news of great joy, these two followers didn’t need to be told to tell others; they couldn’t wait to proclaim the gospel!  God’s plan has been there all along: He would be born a baby to grow up without sin to die on the cross and then be raised from the dead.  Do you truly know this?  Or are you trudging on your way to Emmaus?

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Save many from destruction

Heavenly Father, Lord over all —

Save many from Hurricane Florence’s destruction and from risk of life and limb.

Grant that congregations will have a strong vision for your gospel and an unwavering commitment to save many for eternal life.

May every word be seasoned with salt, laced with love, and girded by truth.

Strengthen the church, to be all you desire.

Open opportunities here and now for evangelism.

Keep your people focused upon your goodness, your power, and your one hope of heaven.

Uphold those men and women who promote peace and unity through the truth of the gospel; defeat those who cause dissension and division.

Because Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior, Amen.

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Seasoned with Salt

Benevolence springs from who we are in Christ.  Edification is the building up of and teaching truth to everyone around us so that we can get to our third main value as Christians: evangelism.  We can not, however, share the good news with others unless we are the type of people from whom the gospel can be received.  In the close of his letter to the Colossians, Paul gives us great insight into this:

Colossians 4:2-6
2 Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.
3 And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains.
4 Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should.
5 Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.
6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

  1. We are to be devoted to prayer, being watchful and thankful.  Prayer is essential for open doors and for a clear proclaiming of the good news.

  2. We must be wise toward the lost, knowing our audience and making the most of every opportunity that God gives us.  We must also pray that God would open our eyes to recognize them as they come before us and for the wisdom, which God gives to us if we ask, to know what to do with the opportunities when He gives them to us.

  3. Finally, we must watch our words to answer everyone well.  They must be full of grace or, like tasty food that people would want to eat, seasoned with salt.   Salt also creates thirst–in this case spiritual thirst.

How are you prepared to share the gospel?

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Bridge of Life

To reach another soul, as mine
Was touched by grace, and draw
From darkness’ fear, across the line
To safety — a bridge of life — what awe!

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This day with hope

Father, so many people groups remain to be reached. They live not only in remote corners of the earth, but near us as well, in poor ghettos and rich enclaves, behind walls of their own choosing or imposed upon them, people considered sane and others thought to be crazy, people who suffer great pain or wrongs, others who live in pleasure and luxury. Let us never refrain from speaking and from offering the salvation in Christ that we have come to know.

Let us see this day with hope and expectation. Help us hold on to faith in the flurry of activities, in the whirl of work and demands. Show us the opportunities that lie before us. Give us courage to create moments of openness by our demeanor and speech.

Make us see that in our world we deal with souls who will live forever in heaven or hell, people who were created in your image, individuals with perspectives, opinions, fears, and ambitions. Help us hear and observe to understand, that we might more effectively share the truth of the gospel.

Let the Good News be to us our life. Let us be willing to surrender all for the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us be wholly dependent upon the guidance of your Spirit. Let your love be our most precious possession. Let your presence comfort and encourage us at every step of our journey toward eternity. Amen!