Verse of the Day

Category: Uncategorized

  • September 13, 2018

    STEPPING OUT ON FAITH


    Habakkuk 2:4

    If any man should shrink back, My soul will not be well pleased in him; but the righteous shall live by My faith.

    Personal Challenge

    Habakkuk was having to deal with a similar issue to what Paul had to deal with many years later. The problem was those followers of God who were putting more value and credence into practicing the law than living a life of faith in God, driven by faith and a heart focused on Him. Paul’s challenge was the Judaizers that were trying to pull the new Christians back to practicing the law. God wants us to live by faith in Him. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

  • September 10, 2018

    NO LONGER WHAT WE WERE




    1 Corinthians 6:11


    And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.


    Encouraging Words


    Paul reminds us that before we became children of God through the work of Christ we were living vile and contemptible lives. Through our baptism into Christ, the dirt of this world was washed off of us. Through our chrismation, we received the Holy Spirit and were sanctified. Through the faith of Jesus and the faith that He gives us, we are becoming justified. We are no longer what we were. Glory be to God!

  • September 9, 2018

    GOD KNOWS


    Nahum 1:7

    The Lord is merciful to those who wait on Him in the day of affliction, and He knows those who reverence Him.

    Personal Challenge

    God knows everything, especially that which we think is hidden in our hearts. Even after knowing the true nature of our hearts, He still shows us mercy, because He loves us unconditionally. How much more could we encounter His love and mercy in our lives if we were to strive to wait on Him and reverence Him the way that He deserves? Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

  • September 8, 2018

    Saint of the Week

    St. Mark the Ascetic

  • September 7, 2018

    TO JUDGE OR NOT TO JUDGE



    1 Corinthians 5:12-13
    For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? But those who are outside God judges. Therefore “put away from yourselves the evil person.”

    Personal Challenge

    For some reason, many Christians have determined that is their responsibility to judge the world for its sins and errors. Paul reminds us that the only time that we have the right to judge another is when that person is a brother or sister in Christ and their behavior is impacting the body. Even then, we are admonished to treat our brother or sister in a loving and Christ-centered way. We must always be careful to remember that we have our own sins and faults that we can be judged for. When it comes to those outside of the body of Christ, we are commanded to love them as we love ourselves so that we might win them over to Christ. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

  • September 6, 2018

    FROM THE BELLY OF HADES



    Jonah 2:3

    and (Jonah) said:
    “I cried out in my affliction to the Lord, my God,
    And He heard my voice;
    Out of the belly of Hades, You heard the cry of my voice.”


    Encouraging Words

    Sometimes the afflictions of our lives make us feel like we have been cast into the very pits of Hades. Even in these situations, we can hold on to the hope that our Lord will hear our voice as we cry out and He will lift us up from the pit of despair. There is no place, no point in time, no situation, that can prevent our Lord from being there and applying His grace and mercy in our lives. Glory be to God!

  • September 5, 2018

    FOOLS FOR CHRIST’S SAKE


    1 Corinthians 4:10

    We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are distinguished, but we are dishonored!

    Personal Challenge

    Paul, as well as the rest of the apostles, considered themselves to be fools, weak, and dishonored, in their position with Christ. The closer one gets to Christ the more humble they become. The closer one becomes to Christ, the more they understand their sinfulness, their insigni­ficance, and their need for Him. A prideful Christian needs to check their relationship with the living Christ. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner?

  • September 4, 2018

    BETWEEN THE PORCH AND THE ALTAR


    Joel 2:17-18


    Between the porch and the altar, the priests of the altar, ministering to the Lord, will each be weeping and will say, “O Lord, spare Your people; do not give Your inheritance to reproach, that the Gentiles should rule over them, lest they should say among the Gentiles, ‘Where is their God?’ ”

    But the Lord was zealous for His land and spared His people.

    Encouraging Words


    Up to this point, Joel has been writing about the challenges that his people have been facing and the practices of the church. The altar is where the priest would prepare and offer up the sacrificial lamb for the people of the land. This was a blood sacrifice. The porch is where the people would stand in their sin, sickness, and death, waiting and hoping on the sacrifice. The priest stood between these two worlds filled with death. At this point in the text, Joel turns to the future, the coming High Priest, who would offer up the final and ultimate sacrifice that would bring salvation to His entire creation. Jesus is both this High Priest and the Sacrificial Lamb. Glory be to God!

  • September 3, 2018

    WISDOM?



    1 Corinthians 3:18

    Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise.

    Personal Challenge


    We, as a modern and “enlightened” society, act as if we are so wise. Apparently, the people of Paul’s day did the same thing. We act as if we have all of the right answers. We condemn others who not believe or behave the way that we expect. However, Paul reminds us that the wisdom that we confess and praise is the wisdom of the world, which pales in comparison to God’s wisdom and the wisdom that He will bestow upon us when we are willing to become fools in this world for Him. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

  • September 2, 2018

    OUR WHOLE HEART



    Joel 2:12-13

    Now says the Lord your God, “Turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting and wailing and with mourning; rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for He is merciful and compassionate. He is longsuffering and plenteous in mercy and repents of evils.

    Personal Challenge


    As long as we continue to live in our physical bodies, we will be tempted to sin. Sometimes the temptation comes from the outside, from the fallen and corrupt world. More often, though, the temptation comes from within. It may be a thought that we hold on to for an extended time until it festers into a sinful act. It may be a passion or a desire that we have not yet mastered by turning it over to our Lord, It may be the one thing in our life that we hide deep within our heart refusing to let go of. Joel reminds us that in order to reap the gifts that our Lord wants to pour out upon us, we must turn to Him with our whole heart, we must accompany that with actions such as fasting, wailing, and morning, which are all acts of repentance. He wants our heart, which then drives our actions, given in repentance. Then we will see His mercy and compassion and forgiveness. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!