Video Bible Lesson - Developing a Vibrant Faith by Dr. Charles Stanley

Developing a Vibrant Faith

by Dr. Charles Stanley

1/2 Hour of God’s Power with Scott Ralls

1/23/2020

01/23/2020

Developing a Vibrant Faith
Dr. Charles Stanley
Acts 9:1-16
The apostle Paul had a strong commitment to know and serve Jesus Christ. His passion and love for the Lord was obvious—Jesus was always central in his thinking, whether he was working as a tent maker, preaching to the crowd, or even sitting in chains at prison. What fueled his love for the Lord?
Paul's conversion experience on the Damascus Road was a motivating force in his life. Grateful for the gift of grace he had received at salvation, the apostle told many people about his encounter with the resurrected Christ and its impact on him. We, too, have a story to tell of God's mercy in saving us and of the new life we have in Him.
Paul's zeal also came from his firm conviction that the gospel message was true and available to everyone (John 3:16). On the cross, Jesus took all our sins—past, present, and future—upon Himself (1 Pet. 2:24). He suffered our punishment so that we might receive forgiveness and be brought into a right relationship with God. Through faith in Christ, we've been born again, and the indwelling Holy Spirit helps us every day (John 14:26). The more we understand what Jesus has accomplished on our behalf, the greater will be our passion to share the gospel.
Developing a vibrant faith requires time and energy plus a commitment to obey God. Regularly studying the Bible will strengthen your beliefs and give you courage to speak. Caring about the spiritual welfare of others will move you into action. Do you have a passion to serve Jesus wherever He leads?

#Jesus, #Christian, #Bible, #Salvation, #Heaven, #God, #HolySpirit

God is Always Present

God is Always Present

Why standest thou afar off, O Lord? (Psalms 10:1)

God is "a very present help in trouble." But He permits trouble to pursue us, as though He were indifferent to its overwhelming pressure, that we may be brought to the end of ourselves, and led to discover the treasure of darkness, the unmeasurable gains of tribulation.

We may be sure that He who permits the suffering is with us in it. It may be that we shall see Him only when the trial is passing; but we must dare to believe that He never leaves the crucible. Our eyes are holden; and we cannot behold Him whom our soul loveth. It is dark--the bandages blind us so that we cannot see the form of our High Priest; but He is there, deeply touched. Let us not rely on feeling, but on faith in His unswerving fidelity; and though we see Him not, let us talk to Him. Directly we begin to speak to Jesus, as being literally present, though His presence is veiled, there comes an answering voice which shows that He is in the shadow, keeping watch upon His own. Your Father is as near when you journey through the dark tunnel as when under the open heaven!
--Daily Devotional Commentary

What though the path be all unknown?
What though the way be drear?
Its shades I traverse not alone
When steps of Thine are near.

Uncontrolled Weakness

Uncontrolled Weakness

Dr. Charles Stanley

Judges 16:1-24

The book of Judges tells of a man named Samson, who was so strong he could kill a lion with his bare hands (14:5-6). He possessed physical strength unequalled by any human being. But this could not compensate for his inner weakness.

All of us have areas of weakness. God wants these character flaws to show us how totally dependent we are upon Him. When we handle them properly, they drive us into a deeper, more intimate relationship with the Lord. But uncontrolled weakness wreaks havoc in a person’s life.

Samson’s Achilles’ heel was uncontrollable lust. Although he was raised in a godly home and had a clear calling in life, he gave in to his desires and deliberately violated the truth he knew so well. Despite Nazirite laws forbidding involvement with foreign women, Samson pursued a harlot in Gaza (16:1). Later, he met a woman named Delilah, and even though her motives were blatantly treacherous, he gave himself over—heart, mind, and spirit—to sexual indulgence. He was in such bondage to the sin that he ultimately allowed it to dictate his actions, even at the cost of his life.

Before he died, Samson lost everything: his strength, eyesight, and honor. The man who once led his country mightily became a slave to his enemies (vv. 18-25).

What is your weakness? Is it lust, insecurity, fear, greed, gossip, or pride? Personality flaws can be a powerful motivation for good or ill, depending on our response. A proclivity for sin can ruin your life—as it did Samson’s—or drive you to utter dependence on God. The outcome is up to you.

Does It Really Matter If I Don’t Read God’s Word Today?

Does It Really Matter If I Don’t Read God’s Word Today?
LYSA TERKEURST

“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” Isaiah 55:10-11 (ESV)

I closed my eyes, and warm tears slipped down my face onto my pillow. I knew I should pray but quite honestly, I just couldn’t find the words. I could hear the kids fighting in the kitchen. More evidence I wasn’t measuring up. I knew I should get up and address whatever was causing the chaos between them, but I just didn’t have it in me. Not that day.

I didn’t know what to do.

I didn’t know who to call.

I didn’t know how to pray and get some sort of answer from God.

And I certainly didn’t have a clue how to find something relatable to read in the Bible.

This is the desperate place I was in during the early days of my family. And while I knew I needed to connect with God’s truth, I honestly had no clue how much He was offering me. I simply wanted Him to rain down “right now” wisdom and refreshment. But God’s Word offers us so much more. Scripture also supplies us with seed for our future.

We see this powerful truth in Isaiah 55:10-11, which says:

“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”

This water imagery would have been quite significant to the people of Israel. Because of where they lived, they were heavily dependent on seasonal rains for water. Water simply wasn’t as easily accessible to them as it was for other nations like the Egyptians with the Nile River.

Of course, I don’t think there was anything coincidental about their location or their dependence on the seasonal rains. The Israelites’ need to depend on God for physical sustenance and satisfaction would have served as a continual reminder of their need to depend upon Him spiritually as well.

I also want us to note that the Israelites didn’t just need the rain for immediate relief for themselves or nourishment for their plants. The rains served a dual purpose — enabling the crops to flourish in that year for food, as well as enabling the crops to produce the seeds necessary for the following year. The water provided not only sustenance for the present but assurance for the future.

How like the Word of God!

Scripture, like rain, brings us immediate nourishment and refreshment for our present circumstances (Psalm 19:7-10), but it also plants seeds to sustain us in the future (Isaiah 55:10). God already sees everything coming our way, and that means He knows exactly how to begin preparing our hearts today.

Sadly, though, the references to hunger and thirst we find at the beginning of this passage reveal the Israelites had not been turning to God or His Word as their source of wisdom and satisfaction (Isaiah 55:1-2). This is where we must make one important distinction between plants and people. When rain falls, plants are automatically nourished. We, however, are quite different. In our relationship with God, responding and receiving is our responsibility. We must choose to receive His truth and His grace.

Oh, friends. Let’s not miss out on all God is offering.

If I could go back and gently encourage my younger self in that desperate season, this is what I would say: Open up His Word, Lysa. Open it up on the days you feel like it and on the days you’re just not sure you can. Read it. Receive it. Let it soak deep into your soul.

Like my friend Kimberly Henderson says, “Some days God’s Word is going to feed us right away like bread, and other days it might feel more like holding onto seeds. Words that we may not grasp why we need them just yet but that still should be deposited in our hearts so they can grow.”

Yes. Being in God’s Word is more vital than we can possibly begin to know — both for our todays and our tomorrows.

Father God, I’m so amazed by the ways Your Word is both the perfect provision for today and the exact preparation I need for all of my tomorrows. I don’t ever want to take the gift of Your Word for granted. I want to accept the gift, open the gift and use the gift. Every single day. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY:
Isaiah 40:8, “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” (NIV)

A Unifying Christ

A Unifying Christ 
by Katherine Britton

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God - Romans 15:6,7

A couple years ago, I spent two weeks with missionary friends in France. Over the course of those days, I learned a bit about buying baguettes, European clothing sales and measurements, and where to watch for pickpockets. I picked up a couple helpful phrases, (often falling back on the always-applicable "pardon" and "bonjour"), took the RER train system, and frequented the French version of Walmart (it's called Auchan). I got used to hearing a language that made little sense to me in the streets. But two weeks did not instill a sense of belonging. I loved the experience, but the language barrier was too great to tempt me into staying.

Being back in our home culture with our native language made me feel like old friends with total strangers, who probably gave me an odd look at the time. But the unity of our common understanding was wildly apparent to me, and I couldn't help feeling joyful at the strangeness of hearing my own language again.

Compare this to the miracle of Pentecost, when a chaotic world market suddenly burst with understanding. Those standing the cosmopolitan heard a unifying call where they least expected it. They said,

"How is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia,Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs--we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!" (Acts 2:8-11)

After Peter's presentation of the Gospel, three thousand people were convinced of the truth of Christ and believed in Jesus. How does something like that happen?

Intersecting Faith & Life: We so easily forget the uniting power of Christ - in our homes, relationships, churches, etc. Faith transcends any cultural and language barrier on earth when we focus on this shared hope. What I experienced in France was such a small taste of what is possible. The message of the Gospel has reconciled our hearts to Christ, and it has power to reconcile us with each other. Let's speak to each other the language of the Gospel that we may build a culture of grace.

How Your Sleep is a Gift From God

How Your Sleep is a Gift From God
By Matthew S. Harmon

“…for he grants sleep to those he loves.” -Psalm 127:2

Psalm 127 is a well-known passage of Scripture. The first half (1-2) emphasizes the necessity of God superintending our work if it is not to be in vain, while the second half (3-6) extols the blessing that children are, picturing them as arrows in a man’s quiver. But tucked away at the end of verse two is a little appreciated line:

It is in vain that you rise up early
and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil;
for he gives to his beloved sleep.

What Solomon indicates here is that apart from the LORD’s blessing of our labor, it is vain (cp. Eccl 1:1-18). But this last line also recognizes the good gift that sleep is to his people. When we rest our heads on the pillow at night, we are in effect implicitly trusting both the sovereignty and goodness of God. We are trusting his sovereignty because sleep is the cessation of our labor. It is us recognizing that whatever remains undone, God alone is sovereign over it. We are trusting his goodness in surrendering to the rest that our bodies need to enable us to function. It is us recognizing that we are not God.

If you’re anything like me, it is easy for my mind to run wild at the end of the day as I lie in bed waiting to fall asleep. Often my mind turns to the things that did not get done, or what must get done for the next day. This can easily turn into sinful anxiety (cf. Matt 6:25-34). At the root of our anxiety is often the idol of control. Deep down we believe that we either have or must have control. And if we push that even further, it is at the root rebellion against the One who truly is Sovereign.

So tonight as you lie in bed, waiting for sleep to overtake you, and your mind turns to the things you did not get done, rest in the goodness and sovereignty of God. And then embrace sleep as God’s good gift.