DAILY HOPE DEVOTIONAL - We Know God’s Truth Through Conscience

We Know God’s Truth Through Conscience

BY RICK WARREN — MARCH 30, 2017

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“Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it” (Romans 2:14 NLT, second edition). 

God leads us to discover his truth not only through creation but also through our conscience.

Some things are hard wired in us by God; we know they are always right or always wrong, no matter what anybody else says. Our conscience tells us this. The Bible says, “Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right” (Romans 2:14-15, NLT, second edition).

Say we take a random sample of 1 million people from around the planet and put them on a corner in New York City. We say, “Here’s a 92-year-old blind lady with a walker. She needs to cross the street. Tell me which of these three options is morally right: One, you can let her try to cross on her own. Two, you can help her cross the street. Three, you can push her into oncoming traffic.”

The apostle Paul says, even non-Christians have been wired to know the right thing to do (see Romans 2:14-16). Regardless of whether or not we follow it, every one of us knows what is right because God has given us a conscience.

We are also led to the truth through careful consideration, through God’s commandments, and through Jesus Christ, which we’ll explore as the week continues.

Talk It Over

• How does it make you feel to do the opposite of what your conscience tells you is right?
• If your conscience leads you to discover truth, how can you find out more about God’s truth?
• How does following your conscience make you more like Christ?

Our Daily Bread - The Greatest Invitation

The Greatest Invitation

March 31, 2017

Read: Isaiah 55:1–7 | Bible in a Year: Judges 11–12; Luke 6:1–26

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Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Isaiah 55:1

During a recent week, I received several invitations in the mail. Those inviting me to attend “free” seminars on retirement, real estate, and life insurance were immediately thrown away. But the invitation to a gathering honoring a longtime friend caused me to reply immediately, “Yes! I accept.” Invitation + Desire = Acceptance.

Isaiah 55:1 is one of the great invitations in the Bible. The Lord said to His people who were in difficult circumstances, “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.” This is God’s remarkable offer of inner nourishment, deep spiritual satisfaction, and everlasting life (vv. 2–3).

Lord Jesus, thank You for Your promise of mercy, forgiveness, and eternal life.

Jesus’s invitation is repeated in the last chapter of the Bible: “The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ And let the one who hears say, ‘Come!’ Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life” (Rev. 22:17).

We often think of eternal life as beginning when we die. In reality, it begins when we receive Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.

God’s invitation to find eternal life in Him is the greatest invitation of all! Invitation + Desire = Acceptance.

Lord Jesus, thank You for Your promise of mercy, pardon, and eternal life. I acknowledge my failures and receive Jesus as my Savior today.

When we accept Jesus’s invitation to follow Him, our whole life changes direction.

INSIGHT:

In Isaiah 55, the prophet draws on the imagery of a royal banquet to give discouraged Judeans hope that, despite their suffering, God’s promises to them remained trustworthy. In the background of Isaiah 55 is God’s promise of an eternal covenant with the line of David (Ps. 89:28–29). Isaiah’s report broadens God’s promise to the line of David even further, depicting a royal feast where all Judeans share the kingly role of representing Yahweh to the nations (55:3–5). When Jesus came, He said He was the ultimate fulfillment of Isaiah’s promise (John 7:37) and invited everyone, especially the forgotten and marginalized, to His feast (Matt. 22:1–14). Through His Spirit, Jesus’s followers can enjoy Christ’s abundant life and, as His representatives, invite all the world to the banquet. Who might you invite to the feast?

CGMG ABOVE ONLY - The Message that Saves

The Message that Saves	FRIDAY MAR. 31

 Romans 1:16-17 (GNB)
I have complete confidence in the gospel; it is God's power to save all who believe, first the Jews and also the Gentiles For the gospel reveals how God puts people right with himself: it is through faith from beginning to end. As the scripture says, "The person who is put right with God through faith shall live."

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The cure for sin and freedom from every bondage of the devil is believing in the glorious gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. It is not preaching about sin that saves sinners; preaching about what Jesus has done to save and deliver them from sin and the devil's bondage is what stirs up the faith for them to be saved.

Revealing the unrelenting love of God to sinners, John 3:16. Expose the revelation that God is no longer holding their sins against them because Jesus has taken their sins away, 2Cor.5:19. Help them come to the saving knowledge that because of Jesus, they have been reconciled back to God, Col.1:21. Tell them that God is not angry with them; and that through Christ, God's grace has been freely made available to redeem and restore them, Rom.3:23-24. Inform them that all they need to do now is believe and accept this free gift of grace that has been given to them by the death of Christ. Tell them that they need to run to God to accept this wonderful salvation that has been freely made available for them.

The more people are conscious of the grace of God that is available to them in Christ Jesus, the more they will run to God to receive His love and grace and the more they will walk in righteousness, victory and dominion over sin and the devil. If people are made conscious of the grace of God that is available in Christ Jesus, then we must continue to preach the gospel about the unrelenting love of God and all the wonderful things that God has accomplished for them in Christ Jesus.

PRAYER FOCUS: Receive God's grace to continue to meditate on the gospel of Christ and to continue to preach this gospel of grace unto others.

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DCLM DAILY MANNA - JUDGMENT ON BACKSLIDING

FRIDAY, MARCH 31, 2017

JUDGMENT ON BACKSLIDING

-2 KINGS 17:9-23

KEY VERSE:

"And they left all the commandments of the LORD their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made a grove, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served Baal. And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire, and

Though God is compassionate and merciful to mankind, He does not allow any form of sin. God had been sending prophets and preachers to the nation of Israel from time to time to warn them of their wickedness and evil ways. But they would not take to any of His warnings. They became obstinate and turned their back to every reproof and correction of God. They resorted to the use of divination and enchantment and wrought wickedness to provoke God. They took undue advantage of God’s faithfulness to His promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Backsliding is a great sin. These fifteen verses under consideration present to us some areas of great importance: The children of Israel abused the privilege of being God’s choice as a nation. They also wasted God’s resources upon them. Anyone who misuses this great opportunity will pay dearly for it. Israel also had the highest spiritual teaching through the word of God. But they became wicked, rejected God and romanced with idols. They neglected His word, rejected His worship and disobeyed His directives on how to do His appointed feasts. They backslid causing God’s anger and judgment to come upon them as punishment for their sin. God’s longsuffering should never be taken for granted. As loving as God is, His eyes are too holy to behold sin. Israel was rejected because they backslid. God is not a partial judge. The same judgment awaits all who wantonly abuse His kindness, and take for granted His forbearance and deeds of mercy.

Thought for the day: As loving as God is, He is also a consuming fire.

Bible Reading in one Year: MICAH 1-4

Faith Food Devotional - RAISED TOGETHER

March 31

RAISED TOGETHER

And what is the exceeding greatness of his power . . . Which he wrought in Christ, WHEN HE RAISED HIM from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places. . . . AND YOU hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins." — EPHESIANS 1:19,20; 2:1

If you were to open your Bibles to Ephesians 2:1, a King James Version would look something like this: CHAPTER 2 AND you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins. When a word is italicized in the King James Version, that means the word is not in the original manuscripts; the translators have added it. So the original reads, “And you who were dead in trespasses and sins.” I wanted you to see that the verb which controls Ephesians 2:1 is back in Ephesians 1:20! (Paul didn’t write in chapter and verse; men divided Paul’s writings later for easy reference.) Our text today makes it clearer for you. Notice the capitalized words: “. . . WHEN HE [GOD] RAISED HIM [Christ] from the dead. . . . AND [raised] YOU . . . who were dead in trespasses and sins.” The same verb that expresses the reviving of Christ also expresses the reviving of Christ’s people! So the mighty act of God which raised Christ from the dead also raised His Body!

Confession: The same mighty Power that raised Jesus from the dead also raised me!

Open HEAVENS Devotional - THE WAYS GOD FIGHTS

THE WAYS GOD FIGHTS – Friday March 31st 2017

THE WAYS GOD FIGHTS – Friday March 31^st 2017

Memorise: And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen. Mark 16:20

Read: Isaiah 54:16-17 (KJV)

¹⁶ Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy.

¹⁷ No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.

Bible in one year: Exodus 39-40, Jeremiah 5:1-17, Hymn: Sing hymn 3

MESSAGE:

Psalm 24:8-10 reveals our Heavenly Father as the Lord of Hosts, who is mighty in battle. As a Man of War, there are some battles He may fight for you, while there are some others He may fight with you. He may also fight some battles through you. In Exodus 14:13-21, when the children of Israel were confronted with the Egyptians and the Red Sea, they thought their end had come, but Moses told them to be quiet, to wait and watch as the Lord would fight for them. Sure enough, God parted the Red Sea for them to go over, and He drowned all their enemies. The reason why some people are in defeat is because they are trying to fight the battles that only God can fight for them. You may want to ask this question: how do I identify such battles? May God open your eyes to know the battles meant for Him alone! I also pray for you that God will not ignore the battles only He can fight on your behalf. The Lord will arise for you, as you give Him quality praise and worship, and will drown your enemies.

In a battle against the Amorites in Joshua 10:9-14, while Joshua was busy fighting, God also was busy hurling heavy stones upon his enemies. God and Joshua fought together and victory was won. This is an example of a battle where God fights with you. In this case, God may just be waiting for you to start the fight before He joins in. Consequently, if you wait for Him to start the battle, He may never do so. Take for instance the battle for the salvation of souls; God expects us to go and preach the good news of the gospel to sinners, and then He will back us up with signs and wonders (Hebrews 2:4). If you don’t go out to evangelise, you may never see the signs and wonders promised by God being manifested in your life.

Finally, there are battles God will fight through you. In such cases, God will be behind the scenes while He puts you forward. The enemy will then examine you to see how vulnerable you are. He will be attracted to attacking you because to him, you will appear to be an easy prey. However, when he attacks, God will quietly tell you what to do, and the enemy will be floored. In Mark 11:23-24, Jesus said you are the one to speak to the mountain in faith, and God will move it into the sea. You are the one to condemn any tongue that rises against you while God frustrates every weapon designed against you. (Isaiah 54:17). In all of these, are you correctly playing your part?

Prayer Point

Father, teach my hands to war and my fingers to fight only battles You want me to fight. Also, grant me wisdom to engage the enemy the way You want it done.

Open Heaven Daily Devotional, written by Pastor E.A Adeboye

Marriage Insights - Quotes on "Preparing for Marriage"

When you’re ready to pledge to love and serve the person you’re marrying as Christ washed the feet of His disciples, then you’re ready for marriage. The problem comes into our married lives when we marry out of “neediness.” We aren’t to marry out of neediness, but to serve one another and work to bring out the best in each other so that together you serve Christ in a manner that could never happen apart from the manner in which you complete one another in Christ. (Cindy Wright)

• Get yourself healthy before you get yourself married. Too often we bring our unexamined selves into our marriage relationship. Also, have a cultivating commitment to have a quality relationship with each other in your marriage. (Neil Clark Warren)

• When you’re marrying, you’re marrying all of the history of that person. (Unknown)

• This is a good time to identify your family differences and your personal expectations of marriage that result from your unique upbringing. We all have expectations, even if we aren’t aware of them. Most of our expectations are not voiced —or even recognized —until they have been broken. When a spouse doesn’t do or say something that we “expected,” we realize it and react —often not too positively. There’s no way you will be able to identify every expectation or discuss every situation you may face and consider how you would want to deal with it. However, the process of learning to identify and discuss expectations as you realize them creates a healthy building block for discussions when stressful situations arise in the future. (Dr Debbie L. Cherry, Child-Proofing Your Marriage)

• To have a great marriage each of you has to have some idea what kind of family you want to have —a lot of children, few children, or no children at all. You also might want to discuss where you’d like raise your children —what part of the country, what kind of community. It may depend on the kind of family you come from. If both of you are only children, that may be what you want for yourselves. If both of you came from a large family, you both may want to duplicate that experience. Or you may want the opposite.

CGMG ABOVE ONLY - Heal the Sick

Heal the Sick

THURSDAY MAR. 30

 Matthew 10:1 & 8, Luke 9:1-2
... He… called … his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease. *Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give. *Then he called his twelve disciples together, and gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases. And he sent them to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick.

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As a disciple of Jesus Christ, He has anointed you with power to heal 'all' manners of sicknesses and diseases. It is the same way He commanded you and I to preach the gospel that He has commanded us to heal the sick. Sickness is not from God but from the devil. Healing is of God. That is why Jesus manifested the work of God by healing the sick and everyone that was oppressed by the devil, John 9:1-7. If healing were not of God, then Jesus would have been working against God by healing the sick. You can heal the sick because God has given you the power and, as a matter of fact, commands us to do so. As you step out in faith with this realization and encourage the sick with the revelation that the same price that Jesus paid for sin is the same price He paid for sickness, God will manifest His healing power through you.

In James 5:15, the Bible says, and the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. In Acts 14:8-10, Apostle Paul did not have to pray for the lame man to be healed. By faith, he commanded him to stand up and the man leaped and walked. Paul spoke in the name (authority) of Jesus. He spoke as if it were Jesus speaking. In John 14:12, Jesus declared that those who believe in Him will do the works that He did and even greater works, because He was going to the Father. This is why even Peter's shadow healed the sick (Acts 5:14-16) and materials that touched Apostle Paul's body healed the sick, Acts 19:11-12. That same power is at work within you.

PRAYER FOCUS: Thank God for anointing you with His power to heal all manners of sicknesses and diseases. Declare in faith that today, you will heal the sick. Declare healing over everyone you know that is sick.

      BIBLE IN ONE YEAR READING PLAN:  JUDGES 1-2   Empowered to do Exploits... - See more at: http://www.cgmglobal.org/aboveonly/index.php#sthash.M1sOpb7F.dpuf

Our Daily Bread - LIFE AND DEATH

Life and Death

March 30, 2017

Read: Genesis 50:22–26 | Bible in a Year: Judges 9–10; Luke 5:17–39

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I am about to die. But God will surely come to your aid. Genesis 50:24

I will never forget sitting at the bedside of my friend’s brother when he died; the scene was one of the ordinary visited by the extraordinary. Three of us were talking quietly when we realized that Richard’s breathing was becoming more labored. We gathered around him, watching, waiting, and praying. When he took his last breath, it felt like a holy moment; the presence of God enveloped us in the midst of our tears over a wonderful man dying in his forties.

Many of the heroes of our faith experienced God’s faithfulness when they died. For instance, Jacob announced he would soon be “gathered to [his] people” (Gen. 49:29–33). Jacob’s son Joseph also announced his impending death: “I am about to die,” he said to his brothers while instructing them how to hold firm in their faith. He seems to be at peace, yet eager that his brothers trust the Lord (50:24).

We can believe the promise that Jesus will prepare a place for us in His Father’s house.

None of us knows when or how we will breathe our last breath, but we can ask God to help us trust that He will be with us. We can believe the promise that Jesus will prepare a place for us in His Father’s house (John 14:2–3).

Lord God, Your dwelling place will be with Your people, and You will be our God, wiping away our tears and banishing death. May it be so!

The Lord will never abandon us, especially at the time of our death.

INSIGHT:

Genesis, the book of beginnings, concludes with important endings. At the beginning of chapter 50, we find one of the Old Testament’s greatest examples, Joseph, weeping over the death of his father, Jacob. The chapter ends with Joseph’s death and burial. In between, three key events take place. First, Joseph takes his father’s remains back to Canaan to their familial home. This marks Joseph’s first return to the land since the dark days of Genesis 37, when his brothers sold him into slavery. Second, Joseph reassures them of his love and forgiveness by affirming God’s purposes and his own desire to care for his brothers and their families (50:19–21). Third, Joseph, anticipating death, again reminds the Israelites of their proper home in Canaan by asking that they take his bones to be buried in the land of promise. These ideas prepare the way for the exodus—God’s eventual rescue of Israel from bondage in Egypt more than 400 years later.

DCLM DAILY MANNA - RESTORATION PROMISED

THURSDAY, MARCH 30, 2017

RESTORATION PROMISED

-JEREMIAH 31:1-14

KEY VERSE:

"The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee" (Jeremiah 31:3).

Our God is a loving God. He will not for ever put away the prodigal son. When He sees elements of repentance in the backslider or sinner, He forgives because of His kindness, longsuffering and love. In application, this was exactly what happened to Israel in our text. Although a larger part of them had been sent into captivity because of their sins, there was God’s promise of restoration because of His love. God in this passage gives assurance to His people that He will again take them into covenant relationship with Him. He will settle them again. They shall have a joyful return to their land after many years of captivity. During the captivity, Israel was scattered and became a miserable flock. The change in their fortune is compared by the prophets to a shepherd seeking His lost sheep and feeding them again in green pastures. Taking the whole chapter together, we can see the restoration of Israel generally and specifically that of Judah to the Promised Land. At the end of the age, God will take Israel into a new covenant relationship with Himself from which they have been cut hundreds of years ago because of their rebellion. During this time, all shall come to the knowledge of God and the earth shall be filled with songs of joy. Those who have given their lives to Christ now and yielded to the Holy Spirit, will have their sins remembered no more. With the great and wonderful love of God shown to us, we should always remain grateful to Him.

Thought for the day: Taking God’s forbearance for granted is as deadly as taking a snake by its tail.

Bible Reading in one Year: OBADIAH-JONAH