Do you have a sense of guilt over something from your past? Is there someone to whom you need to make amends or restitution? Restitution is restoring or paying back something that has been lost, stolen, or damaged. Maybe it’s not something you actually stole. Maybe you hurt or sinned against someone and you need to seek forgiveness. Is there a letter you need to write or a call you need to make? Could not doing so be hindering your relationship with God?
In Jeremiah’s day, God removed His restraining grace and let sin run its course because of their ongoing rebellion. What does the loss of restraining grace look like in a nation or an individual life? Could the same thing be playing out in our country or yours, wherever you live?
The loss of His restraining grace leads to a downward slide into an increasingly godless society. Paul gives us a list of sins that occur near the bottom of that free fall: homosexuality, sexual immorality, unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil, envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice, gossip, slander, hatred of God and His Word, lack of respect, pride, inventing all kinds of evil, rebellion against parents and all authority, lack of trustworthiness, and a lack of love and mercy. But the very bottom is when a society approves of those who practice such things. Could we already be there and, if so, how should we respond?
All of God’s Word is valuable for teaching us to live a God-honoring life, but today’s New Testament reading contains a great synopsis of the basics of the Christian life including our responsibilities whether older men and women or younger.
Also, read about God’s incredible patience and the reason God may be allowing some unpleasant circumstances in our lives.
When you look around and see the ungodly prospering and others living any way they want, have you ever wondered, does being good matter? Why do some people seem to have no remorse for the way they live and even mock those who try to live right … and seem to get away with it?
The world is full of people who are caught in patterns of sin, who are without hope, who have been hurt or disappointed by others, or who are spiritually deluded. Many of them are our co-workers, our friends and neighbors, and others God has placed in our lives. How can we make a difference in their lives? Our New Testament passage shows us four ways.
We’ll also look at how so many today call evil good and good evil. Many things that are advocated would have seemed impossible 10 years ago. It makes us wonder how people can be so blinded to the truth. But it’s not just unbelievers who can become deluded. How can we avoid spiritual delusion in our own lives?
And finally, read about overcoming evil and the only One who is “hope-worthy.”
Are you struggling with discouragement? It might be discouragement about what is going on in the world, in our nation, in your family, or in your personal life. In today’s reading, a man who knew God and understood His dealings with His people well still struggled with discouragement. What was God’s response to him and how does it apply to us?
Also, read about conditions in the last days and warnings about not turning to the world for answers to our problems.
Tent-making, sewing and Bible study have one thing in common. They all require the ability to “cut it straight.”
When a seamstress cuts out the pieces of a pattern, she must do so accurately or the pieces won’t fit together properly. As a tent-maker, Paul understood this principle because it also applied to his trade. And he used the same language to explain the importance of accuracy in our study of God’s Word. Today we’ll look at ten important principles that will help us “cut it straight.”
What is God’s “umbrella of protection” and how do we stay under it in the home, in the workplace, and in other areas of life? How, also, do we put ourselves outside of His protective authority? And how does the Church itself act as an umbrella of protection for its members?
We live in a world that can be dangerous at times. And there is wisdom in being mindful of genuine danger. But could there be a kind of fear that is wrong, even sinful? Could it lead to guilt, anxiety, and paranoia? And when it does, could it be part of God’s early warning system to keep us from experiencing deeper emotional or spiritual issues?
In today’s other readings, we’ll look at God’s faithfulness in hard times. And on our part, the importance of doing what is morally right and not what appears to benefit us at the moment. We’ll, also, talk about a biblical view of authority and contentment in our circumstances whatever they may be.
We have become an entitlement society. Young people think they are entitled to the latest smartphone or electronic gadget. Former employees believe they are entitled to compensation whether or not they were faithful employees. And men and women of all ages, physical conditions, and situations seem intent on living off whatever they can get. Of course, there are times when churches, families, and even strangers, should take care of others, especially widows, but the Bible gives careful instructions for the dispensing of such help.
Also, read about the cost of obedience, what it has cost others, and what Jesus said about the cost of not standing up for the truth.
