“Our Daily Bread” http://odb.org/
The Daily Devotions of Greg Laurie
http://www.harvest.org/devotional/daily-devotions/home.ht
“Homily Grits Devotional” http://www.homilygrits.com/
1 Corinthians 15:17… And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! (NKJV)
I write today, after the celebration yesterday, I call “Resurrection Sunday”… I use this term, to distinguish this memorable day, where Christians celebrate the resurrection of their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (almost 2000 years ago)…from the Easter bunny, that so very many people concentrate their thoughts on, along with all the commercialism that is associated with the Easter holidays…
This brings to mind something Jesus taught us, in…Matthew 6:24… “Noone can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” (NKJV)
I can assure you, that many people thought more about buying and sharing Easter candy and gifts for their children…than thinking about what Christ’s resurrection from the grave means to them and their eternal future…
Of course we love our children and our grandchildren… But placing them, or anything else ahead of pleasing Jesus Christ (assuming one calls themselves a Christian), kind of explains why so many people believe in Jesus Christ…but they are not followers of Jesus Christ…
To be a true follower of Jesus Christ…one has to be a disciple of Jesus Christ… Here is a link titled…“Discipleship”, which lists 59 Bible verses about being a disciple of Christ, for those who want to read some scripture on the subject… http://www.openbible.info/topics/discipleship
I went through most of these timeless pieces of scripture, trying to pick out some that really describe what living for the Lord as His disciple really means… There were several I would have liked to post…but here are a few…
John 13:35… “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for oneanother.” (NKJV) Hate should not exist against another human being…for any reason…Matthew 5:43-44… How many of us harbor hate or wish ill feelings against anyone else… Jesus tells Christians that we must always forgive others, just like He has forgiven us, even though the person may not deserve forgiveness…Matthew 6:14-15…&…Luke 6:27…
Matthew 10:32-33… “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, himI will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. 33 But whoever denies Me before men, himI will also denybefore My Father who is in heaven.” (NKJV)
Jesus teaches us this, in…John 8:31-32… Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 And you shall know the truth, and thetruth shall make you free.” (NKJV)
The apostle John goes into a little more detail about this truth, in this scripture…1 John 2:3-6… Now by this we know that we know Him, if wekeep His commandments. 4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected inhim. By this we know that we are in Him. 6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as Hewalked. (NKJV)
Can you honestly say that you are living as a disciple of Christ ?? This “truth” that will “make you free” from Satan’s chains of sin…can only be received by those who call upon Jesus Christ with a repentant heart…as they turn from their sins, and seek Jesus Christ to become their personal Lord and Savior… This truth of God’s grace through saving faith alone in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9), only comes through obedience to the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ…2 Thessalonians 1:8-9…
Here is a link for this most important days writing, about how God’s grace is received to become a Christian in God’s eyes; through obeying the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ…
I would be sure the gospel of Jesus Christ was heard by many people during this Holy Week… If you haven’t responded to God’s general call to repent of your sins, through obeying the gospel of Jesus Christ…I would urge you to spend some time reading about God’s grace, and how it is obtained, in the link above…
What better time than right now… Luke pens this, in…Acts 17:27-30… so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; 28 for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’ 29 Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the DivineNature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising. 30 Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, (NKJV)
Heavenly Father, How can we ever repay You, for sending down Your Son Jesus Christ…to shed His blood on the cross at Calvary… I pray Father, that You would draw all of those You don’t yet know as Your redeemed children, to Yourself…John 6:44… I pray Father, that Your Word that they have seen or heard, would cut right to the very core of their soul, like a two-edged sword…Hebrews 4:12-13…and that hearts would be softened, and lives would be changed by Your grace, forever… I pray for this fullness of Christ for all of us, in Jesus’ most precious name and for His sake…amen…
written by bruce r mills
P.S. Here is a great link for questions about discipleship… http://www.gotquestions.org/Christian-discipleship.html
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