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Will Be Impossible for Them

Ministry is like herding cats to safety away from the cliff of culture that is crumbling beneath their paws.  In the Tower of Babel story in Genesis 11:1-9, God reveals a spiritual insight in verse 6 that can help the church move forward: “And the LORD said, ‘Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do.  And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them.'”

I.  Luke 22:31-32.  Told to fill the earth, mankind stayed all together and wanted to make a name for themselves rather than glorify God’s name.  In this behind-the-scenes heavenly insight similar to Job 2:3-5 or 1 Kings 22:19-23, God tells us that we should not put limitations upon what we can do in His kingdom for His name.  Yet, beaten down by the world, the church keeps the gospel contained within the walls of our buildings.

II.  Ephesians 4:1-16.  It takes unity to do so.  If Christians today were united as one people of God and spoke the one language of His Word, then we could have the unity of the Spirit centered around the seven “ones” of this passage.  If we could “attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God” to “the fullness of Christ,” then what we’ve already done as the church would be the beginning of what we would do.

III.  John 14:12-14.  We believe that “with man it is impossible” (Mark 10:27) rather than “all things are possible for one who believes” (Mark 9:23) and so shrink back (Hebrews 10:39).  We must believe that Jesus can with us and our churches and ask in His name so He can do it.  And then we must live the impossible with others by doing all, in word or deed, in His name (Colossians 3:17) every moment of every day of our lives.

What can we do together to make a name for God and not ourselves?  … if we were united in Christ with one direction, purpose, and goal?  … if we believed that God could do the impossible through us working together?

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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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We breathe your air

Lord God, you are sovereign over all creation. You spoke absolutely everything into existence with the word of your mouth. You planned it all and brought it all to fruition. You sustain the universe and keep planets and galaxies in line. All life depends on your moment-by-moment, constant care. We breathe your air. We eat food you cause to grow. We move within a protective bubble of atmosphere, gravity, earth, weather, seasons, and water, with perfect conditions for our well-being. You are to be praised and thanked every day, time and again, for all you have done and continue to do for us.

We’ve no idea what might happen today. Misfortune may fall. Time and chance occur in our lives. Disaster and death may invade our routine. Things we consider blessings may happen as well. Plans will most certainly go awry. We confess that we do not have control over our world or our surroundings. But you know all things. You are in control. We cannot blame you for anything, for you intend only our good. Often, we suffer because of sin. This world has been affected by it. We must cope and work in between Eden and Heaven. We trust in you. We want to live by the power of the Word and the strength of your Spirit. Glorify the Lord Jesus in us.

Give us courage to speak and act like your people. Help us to live out the Good News. Put words into our mouths to speak to those in need, from the outflow of holy Scripture which we have stored up in our hearts. You do not offer us religion, but life. In the Way is love, hope, goodness, joy, and peace. Let us speak constantly of these and possess them in our hearts.

The world is in need of them as well. Thank you for folding us into your plan of salvation, for making us a part of this great mission to save souls. The responsibility awes us, we feel the weight of the work before us. Such an eternal impact that we can make causes us to rejoice. We can do something that truly will last forever. As we also do when we pray for others’ salvation and for our brothers’ effort to teach about Jesus’ death.

  • Bless plans of some brothers to travel to China and teach.
  • Give good results to our friends in New Zealand, Britain, Belgium, Nepal, Bangladesh, Ireland, Bolivia, South Africa, South Sudan, and Japan.
  • Bring the gospel to the Bind people of India, who as far as we know have no one to work among them.
  • Bless the efforts of our good friends Randy and Kathy Short in Recife, Brazil.

Father, you give your children unity of purpose, mind, and heart. Help us to speak the same language. Cause the Good News to give us one voice. May we be known for our love for one another. May the truth shine forth, and not opinions or personalities.

Make this day a moment of victory, whatever happens. Bless our families and our marriages. Lead our children and our siblings to your love. Give our parents your blessing for their patience with us. Let friends and neighbors be touched through your presence in us. Glorify yourself in us, may your name be praised in every way.

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Never a glass half empty

Father, let us never be people
who only see a glass half empty,
but a nation who lives in your fullness,
a family who dives into piled-up grace,
who delights in gift upon gift,
agents of a single mission who refuse
to keep salvation for self,
who understand that gospel means sharing,
that Good News means speaking,
that the Cross is proclamation,
and that the Spirit brings transformation
and a change of eternal destiny.

Lord God, keep us from squabbles and minor issues,
tear from us the tendency toward clergy preachers,
pride in physical things and buildings,
merit of our own construction,
and build us up in the Word as members of the body,
each one aware of his responsibility,
each one active in his place,
everyone contributing to the greater good
and growth of the saints.

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The benefits of love

1 Cor 16.14

  1. The purpose of love brings fulfillment. Even menial and unpleasant tasks become meaningful when done in love. The worst job is redeemed by love. Every activity holds the potential as a channel to express love.
  2. The work of love produces usefulness. Nothing is wasted when love is at work. “Every work performed by love is beneficent, it has a brightness in it to enlighten, a balm in it to soothe, a music in it to charm, an aroma in it to please” (D. Thomas).
  3. The force of love creates unity. Love binds everything in life into a coherent whole. It brings oneness to the self and to the community. If God is love, then love embraces all of one’s existence.

This outline was inspired by one by D. Thomas in J.S. Exell’s Biblical Illustrator, on the Bible text above.

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Put on

By John Henson, McMinnville TN

Colossians 3:12-14

  1. Bowels of Mercies: A Heart of Compassion (Verse 12)
  2. Kindness, Humility, Meekness, Longsuffering (Verse 12)
  3. Forbearing, forgiving (Verse 13)
  4. The Bond of Perfectness: The Bond of Unity (Verse 14)
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Spiritual unity in 3-D

Ephesians 4.1-13

Introduction

  1. A friend once said that in order to have unity we may have to fight a lot. By that he meant we must work hard for it.
  2. Unity comes from the cross of Christ, Eph 2.11-22.
  3. Christ blessed the peacemakers, because he was the first and greatest of them, Mt 5.9.
  4. Some movies offer a 3-D experience. Unity in Christ also comes in 3-D:

Continue reading “Spiritual unity in 3-D”

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May my words be only those you give me

Heavenly Father, may my words be only those you give me, and my actions be those which honor the Son. May our worship be in spirit and in truth, our message faithful to the gospel. Through these may we have unity with one another, for sake of the kingdom.