Clean for a Day

ALL – Psalm 119:113-128
ALL – Proverbs 28:19-20
OT – Daniel 5:1-31
NT – 2 Peter 2:1-22

Interesting passage for the day: There is an old saying that “A dog comes back to what he has vomited, and a pig is washed only to come back and wallow in the mud again.” That is the way it is with those who turn again to their sin. – 2 Peter 2:22, The Living Bible

Thought: Jesus Christ came from heaven to earth. God became man, and He lived a blameless, sinless life among us. In His time, He gave His life on the cross. His blood sprinkled those who trust in Him, making them holy and cleansing them from sin. Because Jesus died and paid for our sin, we are free to live. We can say no to sin. We can live by His Spirit and walk in His righteousness.

That is the good news. And yet some schemers try to take advantage of Jesus. They think that Jesus just died to save us. Since we aren’t saved by being good, He can’t possibly expect us to be good, can He? We might as well just get saved, live a lazy or even rebellious spiritual life until Jesus comes back, and then everything will be great. Right? We’ll go on sinning for now, because Jesus died for our sins already—right? Isn’t that how it works?

Absolutely not! Peter tells us that Jesus saved us so that we can be holy and pure rather than sinful. Those who claim to be saved but who don’t take the time to be “doers of the Word” and not just hearers—who know what Jesus taught but won’t do what Jesus said—are like dogs and pigs. They go back to their filth and sin. They remain unchanged by Jesus. Their salvation was only skin-deep, and in their hearts and spirits they held on to their sinful nature.

Jesus is not just here to save us from hell. He came to make us citizens of heaven. Those who refuse His offer have only one place left to go: back to the very hell they thought they had escaped. If you’re not walking with Jesus today, then you’re not walking with Jesus at all. Don’t be fooled because the refreshing waters of His Word and Spirit made you feel all cleaned up one day years ago. Even a pig can be clean for a day.

Question: Are you clean today? Are you walking with Jesus? Do you love Him enough to do what He wants? Or do you see Jesus as enabling you to do what you want?

To review the Bible reading plan options, please visit http://tinyurl.com/yj2o7jz.

Belonging in Heaven

ALL – Psalm 67:1-7
ALL – Proverbs 23:29-35
OT – Isaiah 41:17-43:13
NT – Ephesians 2:1-22

Interesting passage for the day: Now you are no longer strangers to God and foreigners to heaven, but you are members of God’s very own family, citizens of God’s country, and you belong in God’s household with every other Christian. – Galatians 2:19, The Living Bible

Thought: It’s nice to belong. No, it’s amazing to belong.

Everyone’s been an outsider at some point. Being an outsider is just…awkward. Perhaps you spend some time living in someone else’s house. You’re used to having chores at home, but in their house you feel like you have no role at all and you’re useless. Maybe you’re visiting a new church and you discover that they have some sort of “understood” pattern for when to stand and when to sit—but they don’t communicate it verbally, so you’re constantly finding yourself in the wrong position. Or perhaps you’re not into sports and someone takes you to a basketball game. You’re barely interested but you feel stupid knowing nothing, and you can’t even begin to follow what’s going on.

It’s that first-ever day of school feeling. “Will I ever really belong here?”

When we first get to know God’s people, everything’s new and foreign. They open up the Bible and tell us strange things. We realize we don’t belong. But we want to belong. We recognize the truth, the grace, the love, the righteousness. We want to know Jesus.

And then we give our lives to Jesus—we submit to Him, confess how awful we’ve been, ask for forgiveness and receive it. He welcomes us into His family, takes us by the hand and walks us up to the throne of His Father—now ours. And the heavenly Father says, “You belong in my household with every other Christian.”

We who trust in Jesus Christ are no longer strangers. We belong in God’s house. We belong.

Question: Do you still feel like an outsider, or have you realized in your heart that you belong with God? What is keeping you from being at rest in Jesus’ family?

To review the Bible reading plan options, please visit http://tinyurl.com/yj2o7jz.