Latest Thoughts of the Day

I Corinthians 1:11

11/12/2019

My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you.

They would not have informed Paul of this except that there was a genuine spiritual danger involved. Party spirit, favorite teachers, charismatic charmers are always a danger to the church. What Jesus wants is that we be united in faith and love. What the devil wants is that we should divide. If a particular teacher has an attractive gift we ought not to be overly impressed. What has he that he has not been given? The giver of every good and perfect gift is God. If another teacher is weaker, is not God one who uses the weak things to shame the strong? Paul will go on to challenge the Corinthians concerning favorite teachers. We should take the challenge, too. Let us look to God, by whatever means, to show us Jesus.

Romans 1:11

11/11/2019

I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong--

ROMANS 1:11
I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong—
Paul is conscious of his ability to impart spiritual gifts as signs of the Apostles, useful in the first century to establish a church not yet blessed by a complete Bible. Paul will go on to speak of the ordinary gifts of encouragement that believers can all use to encourage one another, and he expects personal encouragement from his visit. But there are special gifts that only an Apostle can administer, and Paul longs to use these to strengthen the church at Rome. We are thankful for a complete canon of Scripture. We are thankful for the divine testimony to the Word of God that God made to them. Help us, Lord, to seek the ordinary gifts you still impart. And draw us in faith and love to Jesus.

Romans 1:11

11/11/2019

Acts 1:11

11/10/2019

"Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."

Inhabitants of the Earth will behold Jesus coming down from heaven in a way quite similar to His departure at this time. But that will be a long way away, and there is much to be done to serve Him in continuing to do and teach what He did and taught. We wait for Him, but we do not stand around gazing at the sky. Get busy dear ones. Pray and encourage one another, following His leading in accomplishing the work He purposes for you to do. Anticipate His return by praying for strength from God to serve. Be busy in His work as we wait for Jesus.

John 1:11

11/9/2019

He came to that which was His own, but His own did not receive Him.

From the promise to Abraham that He would make of him a great nation, God had directed history for 1000 years to bring David and then Solomon to the throne of Israel. For 500 more years He directed history to preserve and prepare His people for the coming of His Son. During 500 silent years, God had preserved Israel against every enemy. They were truly His own. But when, in the person of Jesus, God Himself came to His own, those who were His own did not receive Him. They had been molded and fashioned to be His people, but they refused to receive Him when He came. The Gentiles were to be included before God’s purposes could be complete. Thank You, Lord, for using their rejection to bring to us to Jesus.

Luke 1:11

11/8/2019

Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense.

Zechariah had been chosen by lot to offer the incense that day in the Holy Place of the Temple. God had purposed a very personal meeting between Zachariah and an angel of the Lord, in a place that had the focus of a multitude of people who were taking part in worship. That he had encountered the Lord in a special way would be evident to many. But what this all meant, and how it would give testimony to the coming Christ was yet a mystery, even to Zechariah himself. We can see the wonderful unfolding of God’s purposes in Zechariah as he contributes his part in what God is doing. We see the coming of John the Baptist into the world, and hear his powerful testimony to Jesus.

Mark 1:11

11/7/2019

And a voice came from heaven: "you are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased."

Of the three accounts in Scripture of this event, none contains any reaction, either from the crowd or from Jesus Himself. Other times where God speaks, people say, “It thundered”. When Jesus spoke from heaven to Saul of Tarsus, the bystanders heard a sound but did not understand the words. Matthew records these words as heard by the people, while Mark and Luke record them as heard by Jesus, with a personal assurance, intimate and tender. They must have been wonderfully encouraging to Jesus, as He rose from the waters of baptism to begin His public ministry. They are wonderful reassurance to us, as we respond by acknowledging that He is God’s beloved Son, in whom we are well pleased. The one Mediator between God and man is Jesus.

Matthew 1:11

11/6/2019

...and Josiah the father of Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the exile to Baylon.

There was chaos around the time of the Babylonian captivity, when one king or another was set up and deposed as the people are being taken away group by group. Matthews’s purpose is to paint with broad strokes the progress of the throne of Israel, and to arrange in groups of fourteen the reigns of the succeeding kings. We cannot press for specifics a portion of scripture not written to be specific. What we know is that God preserved the line of David’s throne in a verifiable succession down to Jacob, the father of Joseph, who was to be married to Mary, the mother of Jesus. Matthew establishes Jesus’ legal right to the throne of David. These genealogy exist no more, since the One they pointed to has come, even Jesus.

Malachi 1:11

11/5/2019

"My Name will be great among the nations, from the rising to the setting of the sun. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to my Name, because my Name will be great among the nations," says the Lord Almighty

God assures the people of Israel that if they do not appreciate who He is, there will be those who do. And it will be a multitude that no man can number. How clearly history since then has proved the truth of God’s words. The Jews as a nation remain obstinate, refusing to acknowledge the claims of Christ, and determined to systematically reject Him. But the door has opened to the Gentiles, and from every tribe and tongue and nation, multitudes have arisen to declare Your praise. We worship You, Lord God, and are glad to bow in submission and faith to your Son, Jesus.