Tuesday, January 18, 2022

Tuesday, January 18, 2022
Philippians 2:3

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves.

Jesus described loving others as the second greatest commandment, and this was reflected through His entire life, including His sacrifice for us. Valuing others above yourself is a quality that Christ embodied as He was nailed to a cross for the sins of the world. Can you imagine if, during His time on earth, He had acted out of selfish ambition? As examples of Christ, we are called to humility, putting the needs of others above our own.

Monday, January 17, 2022

Monday, January 17, 2022
Matthew 23:12

For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

Oftentimes it’s easy to think highly of ourselves, taking pride in the successes and talents that God has blessed us with. But as humans we are inherently flawed, and no matter what kind of pedestal we put ourselves on, none of us are perfect. God’s word tells us that those who exalt themselves will inevitably be brought low, but those who remain humble will be honored by Him.

Friday, January 14, 2022

Friday, January 14, 2022
Romans 1:16 “I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes,”

God’s grace is available to everyone, no matter who they are or where they come from, but it’s up to those who believe in Him to spread the good news. Jesus’ great commission to all his followers was to spread the message of salvation to all people of the world, inviting them to accept Christ into their hearts.

Paul isn’t ashamed of the gospel, and we shouldn’t be either. The value of a single human life is impossible to ascertain, but we know that even the least person is infinitely loved by God. If that’s true, we should be doing all we can to spread the message of salvation to those around us. God wants everyone to spend eternity with Him in heaven, and with the power of Christ and the gift of grace He has given us, we can help save souls for eternity.

Thursday, January 13, 2022

Thursday, January 13, 2022
Romans 6:14-15 “For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace. …Are we to sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means!”

Christ’s sacrifice was not meant to give us permission to break God’s laws; rather, it was to save us from our inevitable mistakes. As Paul said earlier in Romans 3, it’s true that all of us have sinned and fallen short, and doubtless, each one of us will continue making mistakes throughout the rest of our lives.

But in Jesus, we are no longer guilty of a lifetime of crimes in the eyes of God. At the same time, if we believe that He is Lord and accept His forgiveness, we should be following His commandments to the best of our ability each and every day. Our actions are not what saves us, but our loyalty to God and His laws are a reflection of what our hearts believe. As James, the brother of Jesus writes later in the New Testament: “faith without works is dead.”

Wednesday, January 12, 2022

Wednesday, January 12, 2022
Romans 5:8 “…But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Humans have been trouble ever since the Fall, when sin and death entered our world. When Jesus walked the earth, it was full of corruption and violence, and not much has changed since then. The world is still full of evil, but it’s full of people, whom God calls his children.

God’s overwhelming love for each and every individual is impossible to fully grasp, but we can get a small glimpse of it when we step back and realize that, even though every one of us has broken God’s law time and time again, He loved us enough to shed the blood of His son. The greatest act of love anyone could ever give to you happened two thousand years ago on a cross, and because of that sacrifice, we have hope beyond this world.

Tuesday, January 11, 2022

Tuesday, January 11, 2022
Romans 10:9-10 “…If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”

Paul makes the message of the gospel clear: that if we hold to the authenticity of Jesus, and trust in His resurrection, we will be saved from our sins. “Confessing with our mouths” means that we do not hesitate to speak the truth about Christ. If we don’t stick to what we believe, our words are meaningless.

But believing “in our hearts” that Jesus was raised from the dead isn’t simply believing that He was resurrected, either. After all, God brought many people back to life throughout the Bible. Instead, this is a firm belief in the fact that Christ conquered death, sealing His sacrifice for all of humanity. He showed us that death no longer has any hold over us, and those who believe can look forward to eternity with a loving God who has forgiven us.