Video Bible Lesson - Recognize Your Vulnerability by Dr. Charles Stanley

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

6/11/20

Recognize Your Vulnerability

Dr. Charles Stanley

1 Corinthians 10:12-13Some Christians see a fellow believer fall into sin but fail to acknowledge that they, too, could stumble. That's dangerous. Satan has them right where he wants them: deceived by a false sense of confidence. Three enemies are constantly at work trying to bring us down: the Devil, his world system, and our own treacherous flesh.Even though believers have a righteous standing before God, we must each, like Paul, acknowledge an internal problem: "sin which dwells in me" (Rom. 7:20). Satan takes full advantage of this weakness, luring us with fleshly and worldly temptations. He stokes our pride so we'll be blinded to our own vulnerability to stumbling.Christians need to be continually on guard. Since ignorance--of the nature of sin, the strategies of the Enemy, and our own areas of weakness--sets us up for failure, we cannot afford to be careless in our thinking. Anytime you find yourself excusing, redefining, or rationalizing sin, you've lost your sensitivity to the Lord. God's Word must always fill our minds and direct our steps.If you've drifted from the Lord, turn back to Him by acknowledging your sin and accepting full responsibility for it. Repentance simply means changing your mind and going in a different direction--toward God instead of away from Him.The next step is harder. Respond with gratitude for the Lord's chastisement. Every time believers fall into sin, God lovingly works to bring them back into a fellowship with Him. His discipline may be painful, but it's always good because it brings us to our senses and reconnects us with our Father.

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

The Requirements of Servanthood.....Dr. Charles Stanley

The Requirements of Servanthood

Dr. Charles Stanley

Luke 19:1-9 

When Jesus left His home in heaven, He didn't come to earth to be a superstar. He came to serve. As His disciples, we've been left here on earth to follow His example and serve a lost and hurting world. The story of Zacchaeus shows us some Christlike qualities that we need to develop in order to serve as the Lord did.

Awareness: Although surrounded by a crowd, Jesus stopped and took notice of one particular man perched in a tree. Zacchaeus was hated and rejected because he was a tax collector. Although he was rich, there was something missing in his life, and Christ recognized his need. There are people all around us "hanging in trees"--needy, empty, and searching for hope. But too often, we're preoccupied with our activities and don't even notice them.

Availability: Jesus was heading to Jerusalem to carry out the most important act in human history: our redemption. Yet He stopped to have a meal with a spiritually needy man. What could be so important that it keeps you too busy to give others what they need most--your time?

Acceptance: Although Zacchaeus was a notorious sinner, Jesus didn't say, "Clean up your act, and then I'll come to your house." We're called, not to fix people but to share the transforming gospel of Christ.

How are you doing at serving those around you? Maybe it's time to slow down and open your spiritual eyes to see all the needy people. God places opportunities all around us, but if we're not attentive, we'll miss them. Sometimes you just have to look up to see who’s in the tree.

There are No Lesser Requests for Jesus

There are No Lesser Requests for Jesus
KAREN EHMAN

“So Jesus went with him, and a large crowd was following and pressing against him.” Mark 5:24 (CSB)

Jesus seldom behaved like people expected Him to in social situations. Instead of seeking to rub shoulders with the powerful or cozying up to the popular, He was the master of noticing those who least expected to be seen.

Although He was the Son of God and on a very big mission, Jesus was never too busy to pay attention to those around Him. He lived alert. Even when He was on His way to do something that seemed grandiose, He turned His attention to what seemed to be a lesser request.

Jesus wasn’t about doing big things; He was about doing the right thing. And often for Him, the right thing was noticing one simple soul.

Mark 5 records such a scene for us. Christ had just restored a demon-possessed man. That was surely something grand! Then He crossed over to the other side of the lake with His disciples. A large crowd soon gathered. Suddenly, in front of Jesus stood Jairus, the ruler of the synagogue, with a rather desperate request. His daughter was dying, and he longed for Jesus to heal her.

Of course, Jesus agreed. There wasn’t a lot of hoopla surrounding His decision. He didn’t draw attention to what He was about to do — posting it on Twitter with the hashtag #MiracleOnTheWay or uploading a pic on Instagram with a really cool filter for effect.

We are simply told in today’s key verse, Mark 5:24, “So Jesus went with him,” even though the verse also tells us, “a large crowd was following and pressing against him.” The crowd didn’t prevent Jesus from helping the individual standing in front of Him.

As they journeyed to the place where Jairus’s beloved daughter lay ill, masses once again pressed in all around Jesus. In the assembly was a woman who’d suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all her money. However, instead of getting well, she grew worse. She approached Jesus in the crowd and touched His cloak, thinking, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed” (Mark 5:28, NIV).

Her touch didn’t escape the notice of Jesus. He again responded to the soul that stood before him, telling her that her faith had made her well.

This story has always fascinated me. The way Jesus took time — while in the middle of a throng of people — to notice an individual and meet that person’s needs. And in the case of the woman, it was the need of a seemingly insignificant person. She wasn’t important like the synagogue ruler Jairus. In fact, we aren’t even told her name. Yet, she was important to Jesus.

Jairus worried this stop had taken up too much time and it might be too late for his daughter. But it is never too late for Jesus. He still healed Jairus’s daughter. Jesus knew how to patiently minister to each distinct person’s particular pain.

Could we try to be more like Jesus, this perfect man who was never too busy to notice someone who needed His touch? Sure, we also have many things to keep us active. Crowds of people and projects press in. Whether at work or at home, we are often on our way to do something time-sensitive and important. But Jesus is calling us to stop and notice. To give a special touch that may heal a heart or cheer a weary soul … or change a life.

I once heard it said that Jesus’ real ministry was the person He found standing in front of Him. Who is that for you today?

Father, in the midst of all my pressing needs and responsibilities, help me not to be too busy to notice and care for the person standing in front of me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY:
Galatians 6:2, “Carry one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” (CSB)

Beach Lessons

Beach Lessons
by Katherine Britton

Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven – for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.”  –Luke 7:47, ESV

How do you explain to a child who’s never been to the ocean what waves are like? You might fill a bathtub with water and splash it back and forth. That could teach action of waves – but what about the look? You might take the child to a nearby river with a few rapids, and show them how the foam collects at the bottom of a fall “like on top of a wave.” You might show them a 4x6 inch photograph. You might try to show them what waves sound like with a conch shell. But what about their vast dimensions along the shore? What about their unending nature? What about the undercurrent of a wave going back to sea?

No substitute can convey the scale and true nature of waves continually breaking on the shore. No analogies or to-scale models prepare children for their first trip to the beach. They can’t grasp the greatness until they’ve seen it for themselves.

Have you seen the greatness of God’s forgiveness yet?

No measure of teaching, preaching, and analogizing can make us really grasp what God’s forgiveness means. Even after we reach adulthood, we’re still creatures of experience. It takes a firsthand experience – recognition of how vast our sins really are – before we can appreciate how vast God’s mercy is to cover them.

Jesus gave Simon the Pharisee the example of two men who owed another money – one owed him five hundred days’ wages, one owing him fifty. The moneylender forgives both debts, but, as Simon empathizes, the one forgiven the larger sum has a greater reason to love the one who canceled his debt. But all Simon heard were Jesus’s words. He failed to realize what a vast stretch of sand he stood on, and what a great tide it would take to overtake all of those grains of sand. As a result, it’s the woman Jesus recognizes for her great love of her Savior.

Intersecting Faith & Life: Is it possible that we can extend love and forgiveness if we don’t understand how much Christ has shown us? Take your own “beach trip” and survey the vastness of God’s incredible forgiveness that covers incredible sin.

Lessons from the Wilderness

Lessons from the Wilderness
By: Amanda Idleman

Your unfailing love is better than life itself; how I praise you! - Psalm 63:3

Psalm 63 was written by David while he was alone in the wilderness of Judah. David had reason to be afraid, lonely, confused, and probably lacking in supplies. Yet, he writes a Psalm that declares his love, praise, and thankfulness for God’s presence in his life.

How often do we hit similar “wilderness” seasons in our life and react with the same level of praise and adoration that poured out of David’s heart for God? The more natural response would be to begin to call into question the character and nature of God when our life takes unexpected turns. How could a loving God allow this to happen? Where was God when I needed him? How can I trust God while the world suffers under the weight of sin and death?

While God is not afraid of our questions, He also is worthy of our praise no matter what circumstances we face in our lives. David gained a powerful sense of perspective in his wilderness season; he realized that what he needed more than anything else was a relationship with God. He declares that while his food options were pretty limited, God satisfied more than the richest feast (v.5) and he praised God joyfully!

Think of a time when you were unsure how your physical needs would be met. It could be a time that money was in short supply and you were unsure how you were going to make ends meet. It could be a season of sickness where you or someone you love no longer had the stamina to make it through the day the way they are accustomed to. Parents know these time periods well when they face sleep deprivation or navigate other parenting challenges.

Can you look back and see how God was present with you through that time? It’s not too late to sing His praise for the ways He has provided. Even if we aren’t like David, singing praises in the middle of the storm, we can still look back and thank God for His grace and provision through our own wilderness seasons.

God’s nature is constant despite the changing nature of the world we live in. David recognized God’s amazing loving nature even when he had reason to be discouraged. This is a great reminder to us that God is still good, still kind, still great, and still worthy of our praise even when the world suffers through chaos.

Beyond that, we see from David’s Psalms that the wilderness seasons are not wasted times. David was on the run, all alone, and definitely not being as productive as he could be, yet, some of the most beautiful psalms of praise were created in this season of his life. God used this time to grow David’s faith in the Lord.

It’s easy to get frustrated when our lives are forced to hit pause or when we feel lost and lacking purpose. God is still at work and still with us even in these uncomfortable seasons. He speaks to us in the wilderness. He grows our faith in these moments. He reveals to us more of who He is in the wilderness. God never wastes our pain.

When we feel stuck, we have the chance to look to the Lord with renewed passion and faith. We can open our ears to hear his voice with fresh fervor that our need produces in our hearts. As David did, we can still praise God beyond what we are seeing and trust that His love is still available to us in the hard moments life brings our way.

A Prayer for Dealing with People Who Bring You Down

A Prayer for Dealing with People Who Bring You DownBy Carrie Lowrance

A servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be kind to everyone, be able to teach, and be patient with difficult people. - 2 Timothy 2:24 (NLT)

We all have people in our lives who try to bring us down. You may have that one parent that tries to bring you down all the time. You could have a boss that is always criticizing you. Maybe you have a friend that is very subtle in tearing you down. It is so easy to get frustrated and angry at people who act like this. It is also easy to take their words to heart, cause them to stop us in our tracks, and never pursue the dream that the Lord has planted in us. As Christians, how should we deal with people like this?

Remember Our Value & Worth

• We must remember that our worth and value is not in those around us.
• Our value and worth are in the Lord.
• We all have value because we have all been blessed with talents and gifts.
• He has created all of us uniquely and we are all valuable to him beyond measure.

We Must Turn The Other Cheek And Keep Moving Ahead

• When people try to bring us down we must let if fall on deaf ears.
• We need to continue to pursue the dreams the Lord has placed in us and the roads on which He is leading us.
• If we are having an off day at work, forgive ourselves for the mistakes we make, and make an effort to enjoy the rest of our day.
• Listen closely to the Lord’s guidance in our hearts on how to specifically handle a situation.

Pray For Those Around Us

The most important thing we can do for these people (other than not lashing back) is to pray for them. Take the time to get to know the people that tear you down. Get inside their lives, thoughts and emotions. Then pray as specifically as you can about their situation. Reach out to them and help them if you can. If there is something they have always dreamed of doing, encourage them to go for it. If it is something you know a lot about, offer to mentor them. If they are suffering from past hurts but don’t know how to get past it, research some good, Christian therapists in your area and pass on the information. If they are struggling with a self-esteem issue, point out all the good characteristics and talents they have. Compliment them at least once a week when/if you see them. You never know what will become of the seeds you plant in love.

Pray for their salvation. It’s hard to know how to pray for someone when it comes to this matter. The best way I know to pray in this way, is to ask the Lord to reveal himself in a way that is unique to the individual. Ask the Lord to open their eyes, heart, mind and soul in a way that they have no doubt that He exists. In a way that would speak specifically to them.

Dear Lord,

Please help me when those around me try to bring me down. Allow me to recognize the hurts and issues in their lives and how I can be of help to them. Help me to keep my natural human tendencies in check and not to retaliate back. Quietly remind me where my true worth and value really lie. Give me comfort in knowing that You are leading me on a better path and give me the strength to continue pursuing it. Please clear my heart of any issues that will hinder me from praying for those around me. In Your Name I pray. Amen.