Shoes play a large role in our life, despite the fact that we really don’t pay any attention to them. But if you look in your closet, I bet you have at least five different pairs and when you walk out the door, you’re wearing at least one of them. Shoes, despite being fashionable, play a much more practical role in our lives as well. They protect our feet. When a foot is damaged, you can become pretty immobile. Think of that reality being placed in a real physical battle, your odds of survival are slim.
This being true, spiritually speaking, if we don’t have the right resources to protect our Christian walk when the battle comes, we are in danger of falling. So Paul directs us to shod our feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace. It helps us stand firm in the fight while also being balanced going forward.
This means we are to be fully prepared each day with the sure knowledge of the gospel message. Because of Jesus, I have peace with God. Because of Jesus, I can have peace in my soul and walk in this peace and not be shaken. To stand firm and fight the enemy, we must stand on the foundation of the Gospel message. We must stand in the truth of what Jesus has done and advance forward knowing it is He in whom we find our sure footing.
Pastor Jason Witt
A humble and contrite heart is a precious thing to God, but it has become a very rare virtue in our American culture which makes much of self-assertiveness and disconnects self-esteem from the integrity, godly character, and hard work that once produced it. The Bible says that God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble (1 Peter 5:5, James 4:6).
A good antidote for the pride that so easily besets us is to authentically and humbly pray this prayer of David. Pray it every day, and then read the Word expecting the Spirit to help you see your own blind spots and unknown weaknesses. The greatest temptation for anyone who has experienced success is to take credit for it and/or to become addicted to men’s praise for it. David was tested by stunning success. The greatest was perhaps the best, which gained him instant renown when he took down the great Philistine giant, Goliath, with a single rock from a slingshot. Songs were sung in his honor.
But success is a hard thing to take, and there are few who can navigate its pitfalls. It was at the peak of his success that David fell. He stopped praying his own prayer, became proud, self-sufficient, and forgot that God was the source of all blessing in his life.
Until the day we die, or the Lord Jesus comes, we will have to contend with our sinful flesh. We need God to answer this prayer, so we need to humble ourselves in the sight of God and pray it earnestly.
Tom Day
These Sadducees were funny. They were trying to get Jesus in a “what if” question. They said what if a guy dies and has seven brothers. When one brother would die, they would, if they wanted to, marry his wife and so on. They all died and asked who does she belong to in the resurrection? They were deceiving themselves into thinking they knew the scriptures but they didn’t know the power of God, nor did they know the scriptures.
We can often deceive ourselves into thinking we know the scriptures. We see it all the time from politicians and movie stars. They say things like “Well, it says in the Bible, don’t judge.” Or they make the case that “Jesus loves everyone.” They speak not knowing the scriptures nor knowing the power of God. May we be encouraged to not be like these Sadducees and work to know the scriptures and the power of God.
Joshua Navarro
Ever been angry with God? Jonah was. God was determined to grant repentance and lavish mercy upon the people of Nineveh. And Jonah, God’s messenger to the people, was not a happy camper. Jonah preferred that God’s judgment reign down on the Ninevites, rather than God’s grace.
We know that God’s ways are always perfect. Yet sometimes, we can find ourselves disagreeing with Him. His ways are not our ways. We would do things differently!
It is likely, if your heart leans in displeasure towards the Lord, He will ask you the same question posed to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry?” God often asks us questions, because they reveal the truth in our hearts. We then recognize the error of our position before Him.
May we always be honest with God, and in turn, may we always be open to receiving His counsel. It is by faith in Him that the eyes of our hearts will see that He is good. Always.
Jeff Deal
Everywhere you turn people are looking for love, yet who else can love us the way God loves us. Many times we are too busy and too distracted to remember that the most important thing of all is love and how we express that love to others.
How does this happen in the church? We need to see one another as God does, glorified in Christ, instead of focusing on the faults and shortcomings of others. We need to focus on who they are in Jesus. That’s what God did for us, God expressed His perfect love to us through Jesus’ death on the cross, that by the power of the Holy Spirit, we may express that same love to others.
Jesus prayed to the Father, “I in them, You in ME, that they may be made perfect in one…” all so that the love of God might be seen by all.
Pastor Doug Hardin
Until we go home to the Lord, we are going to battle the flesh. Many times it is going to come down to which one you are feeding more. Are you feeding the flesh or are you feeding the Spirit? When you starve the flesh and don’t allow it to have dominion over you, you are fighting the good fight and you are pleasing the Lord. It is important to note the way we can have victory over the flesh, by living in the power of the Spirit. Stop depending on yourself, you can’t do it on your own. You can only put the flesh to death through the Spirit.
For the King,
Daniel Batistelli
Maybe you’ve told a friend that you would take a bullet for them because you love them. Paul’s love for the Jewish people takes it about one million steps further than taking a bullet for someone by saying that he would give up his salvation if he could and be damned to hell if the Jews would come to know Jesus.
That is a deep love that Paul only has because he shares the heart of Christ. If we are unwilling to sacrifice the little things in life for the sake of someone’s salvation, do we actually love them as Christ loves us? Be willing to sacrifice yourself so that others can see and know Jesus.
Blessings,
Pastor Sean Boehm
Chapter 39 ended with Joseph in prison, but being prospered in the Lord. As it so happens, two former servants of Pharaoh are in the same part of the prison with Joseph, who notices their downcast faces. He asks why they’re sad. It’s good that Joseph, going through his own difficulties, still finds time to care about others. This is a good lesson for us, because so many times we’re so focused on what’s getting us down, it ruins our day.
Those are the times we should look to others and their needs. As bad of time as you’re having, is it worse than those around you? Joseph, serving out his time in prison, prospered by the Lord, cares about his fellow prisoners.
Oh, how this speaks to me! Because I can get into a “Woe is me!” attitude and not care for the others around me. Yet God has put us here to serve with cheerful hearts, no matter our circumstances. Who needs God’s help today?
Lord, give me a servant’s heart,
Pastor Ron Kitchell
Oftentimes in our worship of God, we can get caught up in what He can give us rather than Who is He. It is great that we look to what the Lord provides for us because He is our Provider. But, it cannot be our sole focus.
This is the beginning of a doxology that Paul goes into after he spends about three chapters talking about God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility. In the context of this verse, I think it is a great thing to do what Paul is doing and ponder upon who God is. Just reflect on everything that God is and does. As Paul did that, it brought him to this conclusion and a place of wonderful worship of God. Have you sat and reflected upon who God is recently? Take some time today in scripture to reflect upon everything about God so, in the time of want, God alone is enough to sustain that need.
Blessings,
Pastor Sean Boehm
I have always been fascinated and so reinforced in my faith by seeing prophecy fulfilled in our time. These regions that were enemies of God and His people 2,500 years ago are still contending with Israel today. Tyre and Sidon is modern Lebanon and Philistia is the Gaza Strip. Today, Israel uses Joel 3:4 as their constant military strategy. When someone strikes them, they swiftly and speedily retaliate. This is why I love prophecy because through it, God proves over and over that what He says, He will do. Whether it is predicted hundreds or thousands of years before, it WILL happen.
What does that mean for us? All the glorious prophecies throughout the Bible about Jesus’ return are as sure as if they had already happened. So today let’s all take comfort in knowing that no matter how bad things get around us, Jesus is coming soon to set everything right.
Longing for His soon return,
Pastor Gerard Deleeuw
