April 10 - Warning against Partial Righteousness
#LifeOfChrist
“‘For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven’” (Matthew 5:20).
The righteousness practiced by the religious leaders further displeased God because it was partial, falling way short of His perfect standard. Again in Matthew 23, Jesus illustrates this phony righteousness: “You tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others” (v. 23).
The Jewish leaders were conscientious about making nonessential tithes of the smallest plants and seeds, yet they totally neglected showing justice and mercy to others or having heartfelt faithfulness to God.
To a large degree this sin of partial righteousness flows directly from externalism. Unregenerate people disregard justice, mercy, and faithfulness because those traits basically reflect a divinely transformed heart. Without a new heart no one can accomplish “the weightier provisions of the law.”
In a separate encounter, the Lord quoted Isaiah and further warned the Phari-sees of their empty and misdirected religion: “This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far away from Me. But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men” (Mark 7:6–7). Like the religious leaders and many of the people of Jesus’ day, professing believers today can be constantly exposed to Scripture but only superficially responsive to it. Their watered-down, partial obedience to God’s commands demonstrates their failure to grasp the profound spiritual intent of God’s law and their probable unsaved condition.
Ask Yourself
Realize afresh today that the only obedience which interests God is total obedience—the kind that can only be accomplished through Christ’s righteousness, imputed to His redeemed children. What instances of partial obedience need to be converted to full obedience in your life?
#LifeOfChrist
“‘For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven’” (Matthew 5:20).
The righteousness practiced by the religious leaders further displeased God because it was partial, falling way short of His perfect standard. Again in Matthew 23, Jesus illustrates this phony righteousness: “You tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others” (v. 23).
The Jewish leaders were conscientious about making nonessential tithes of the smallest plants and seeds, yet they totally neglected showing justice and mercy to others or having heartfelt faithfulness to God.
To a large degree this sin of partial righteousness flows directly from externalism. Unregenerate people disregard justice, mercy, and faithfulness because those traits basically reflect a divinely transformed heart. Without a new heart no one can accomplish “the weightier provisions of the law.”
In a separate encounter, the Lord quoted Isaiah and further warned the Phari-sees of their empty and misdirected religion: “This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far away from Me. But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men” (Mark 7:6–7). Like the religious leaders and many of the people of Jesus’ day, professing believers today can be constantly exposed to Scripture but only superficially responsive to it. Their watered-down, partial obedience to God’s commands demonstrates their failure to grasp the profound spiritual intent of God’s law and their probable unsaved condition.
Ask Yourself
Realize afresh today that the only obedience which interests God is total obedience—the kind that can only be accomplished through Christ’s righteousness, imputed to His redeemed children. What instances of partial obedience need to be converted to full obedience in your life?
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I hate sin. I hate the sin still in me. I long for the day when it is gone forever.
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Eternity is way too long to be wrong about Jesus.
HE IS RISEN! 🙌✝️ Let that truth ECHO in your marriage every morning!
Because He lives, we can face tomorrow — TOGETHER, STRONGER, more in love, more like Him! 🌅 1 Cor 15:20–22 ❤️
What “Because He lives” declaration are you making over your marriage this Easter? #StrongMarriage #Easter
Because He lives, we can face tomorrow — TOGETHER, STRONGER, more in love, more like Him! 🌅 1 Cor 15:20–22 ❤️
What “Because He lives” declaration are you making over your marriage this Easter? #StrongMarriage #Easter
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There is no reincarnation. You get one life, then you meet your Maker.
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Being a wife and mother is not a "lesser path."
It is one of the most powerful, formative, and God-honoring roles in the world.
Not every woman is called to it. But our culture has no business belittling what God has designed.
It is one of the most powerful, formative, and God-honoring roles in the world.
Not every woman is called to it. But our culture has no business belittling what God has designed.
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Satan wants to distract you with things that don't matter. He wants you to forget about eternity and focus on the now.
Don't let him win. Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus, saints.
Don't let him win. Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus, saints.
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Buddha died
Muhammad died
Krishna died
Jesus Christ died and resurrected from the dead
That’s why I follow Christ
Muhammad died
Krishna died
Jesus Christ died and resurrected from the dead
That’s why I follow Christ
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The fruit of the Spirit isn't something you produce by trying harder. It's what grows when you abide in the Vine: Jesus (John 15:5).
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April 11: Curses, the Old Testament, and Freedom.
#Devotional
Deuteronomy 21:1–22:30; 2 Corinthians 5:11–21; Psalm 38:1–22
And if a man commits a sin punishable by death, and so he is put to and you hang him on a tree, his dead body shall not hang on the tree, but certainly you shall bury him on that day, for cursed by God is one that is being hung” (Deut 21:22–23).
Being hung on a tree was a sign of being CURSED.
Romans 5:12 tells us that the punishment of sin is death; we as sinners deserve that curse.
If Christ wasn’t cursed for us by being hung on a tree (the cross), then we would still have a debt to pay and a curse to live under.
It can be difficult to find significance in the Old Testament, especially in passages that are as harsh as this one. But the Old Testament still holds meaning for us today, and that meaning often reveals our human and individual state.
The same is true for those odd laws about crimes and marrying foreigners (Deut 21:1–14). It’s not that we’re supposed to practice these laws; they were intended for a land and a place. But we are meant to use them to understand God’s conceptual framework.
God always opposes taking a life. Similarly, marrying someone who doesn’t share your belief in Christ (the equivalent of an Israelite marrying a foreigner) will be detrimental to God’s work: that person will lead you astray.
The law may not be in force anymore, but God’s framework for interpreting the moral values in the world remains the same.
There isn’t always a clear connection between the Old Testament LAWS and our lives today since the contextual framework is often quite complex. But there is always an easy relationship between our actions and what Christ has done for us.
We are free from the OLD TESTAMENT laws and the curse we deserve, but that freedom is meant to prompt us to live like Christ—not for ourselves (see Rom 7).
We are called to live as free people should live. We are called to live for God’s kingdom.
What moral values are you learning from the OLD TESTAMENT? In what ways are you currently misusing the freedom that Christ has given you?
#Devotional
Deuteronomy 21:1–22:30; 2 Corinthians 5:11–21; Psalm 38:1–22
And if a man commits a sin punishable by death, and so he is put to and you hang him on a tree, his dead body shall not hang on the tree, but certainly you shall bury him on that day, for cursed by God is one that is being hung” (Deut 21:22–23).
Being hung on a tree was a sign of being CURSED.
Romans 5:12 tells us that the punishment of sin is death; we as sinners deserve that curse.
If Christ wasn’t cursed for us by being hung on a tree (the cross), then we would still have a debt to pay and a curse to live under.
It can be difficult to find significance in the Old Testament, especially in passages that are as harsh as this one. But the Old Testament still holds meaning for us today, and that meaning often reveals our human and individual state.
The same is true for those odd laws about crimes and marrying foreigners (Deut 21:1–14). It’s not that we’re supposed to practice these laws; they were intended for a land and a place. But we are meant to use them to understand God’s conceptual framework.
God always opposes taking a life. Similarly, marrying someone who doesn’t share your belief in Christ (the equivalent of an Israelite marrying a foreigner) will be detrimental to God’s work: that person will lead you astray.
The law may not be in force anymore, but God’s framework for interpreting the moral values in the world remains the same.
There isn’t always a clear connection between the Old Testament LAWS and our lives today since the contextual framework is often quite complex. But there is always an easy relationship between our actions and what Christ has done for us.
We are free from the OLD TESTAMENT laws and the curse we deserve, but that freedom is meant to prompt us to live like Christ—not for ourselves (see Rom 7).
We are called to live as free people should live. We are called to live for God’s kingdom.
What moral values are you learning from the OLD TESTAMENT? In what ways are you currently misusing the freedom that Christ has given you?
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April 11 - Beware of Redefined, Self-centered Righteousness
#LifeOfChrist
“‘For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven’” (Matthew 5:20).
Many people today—and sadly, more and more within the church—have redefined biblical concepts to fit their own human perspectives. Like the scribes and Pharisees, religionists know they can’t match God’s righteousness, so they simply change the definition of holiness. A prime example from Old Testament times is how the Jews reinterpreted God’s command,
“Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy” (Lev. 11:44).
They turned this from a call for inner holiness into a requirement to perform certain rituals.
The godly person will never rely on self-centered, redefined righteousness. Instead, he will focus on the kind of holiness Jesus taught. He will be broken about sin and mourn over the evil propensity of his heart. Such people long only for the righteousness God can give through His Spirit. They will never rely on their own strength or wisdom for what they can do spiritually.
God has always been focused on inner righteousness. When Samuel was ready to anoint David’s oldest brother, Eliab, to succeed King Saul, God told him,
“Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Sam. 16:7).
And that inner righteousness must be perfect:
“Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matt. 5:48).
To be truly qualified for entrance into Christ’s kingdom we must be as holy as God Himself.
Ask Yourself
Being broken over sin is certainly a crucial part of dealing with its incessant appeal and presence in our lives. But be sure you’re not choosing to remain in perpetual inactivity and introspection. How well is your grieving over sin being translated into renewed obedience?
#LifeOfChrist
“‘For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven’” (Matthew 5:20).
Many people today—and sadly, more and more within the church—have redefined biblical concepts to fit their own human perspectives. Like the scribes and Pharisees, religionists know they can’t match God’s righteousness, so they simply change the definition of holiness. A prime example from Old Testament times is how the Jews reinterpreted God’s command,
“Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy” (Lev. 11:44).
They turned this from a call for inner holiness into a requirement to perform certain rituals.
The godly person will never rely on self-centered, redefined righteousness. Instead, he will focus on the kind of holiness Jesus taught. He will be broken about sin and mourn over the evil propensity of his heart. Such people long only for the righteousness God can give through His Spirit. They will never rely on their own strength or wisdom for what they can do spiritually.
God has always been focused on inner righteousness. When Samuel was ready to anoint David’s oldest brother, Eliab, to succeed King Saul, God told him,
“Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Sam. 16:7).
And that inner righteousness must be perfect:
“Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matt. 5:48).
To be truly qualified for entrance into Christ’s kingdom we must be as holy as God Himself.
Ask Yourself
Being broken over sin is certainly a crucial part of dealing with its incessant appeal and presence in our lives. But be sure you’re not choosing to remain in perpetual inactivity and introspection. How well is your grieving over sin being translated into renewed obedience?
Anyone can act like a Christian on Sundays in a building.
But, how do you act when...
-the barista messes up your
coffee order,
-the other driver cuts you off on
the highway,
-the ref blows the call in your
kid's game?
That's when true fruit is revealed.
But, how do you act when...
-the barista messes up your
coffee order,
-the other driver cuts you off on
the highway,
-the ref blows the call in your
kid's game?
That's when true fruit is revealed.
Dear Christians,
Read the Bible.
Study the Bible.
Meditate on the Bible.
Obey the Bible.
Love the Bible.
Be transformed by the Bible.
Repeat daily until God calls you home.
Read the Bible.
Study the Bible.
Meditate on the Bible.
Obey the Bible.
Love the Bible.
Be transformed by the Bible.
Repeat daily until God calls you home.
As a Christian parent…
If I get more excited about my child making a 3-pointer, hitting a home-run, scoring a goal, or winning a game than I do about them following Jesus, reading the Bible, going to church, and serving others…
Then, it’s time to reevaluate my priorities.
If I get more excited about my child making a 3-pointer, hitting a home-run, scoring a goal, or winning a game than I do about them following Jesus, reading the Bible, going to church, and serving others…
Then, it’s time to reevaluate my priorities.
A man saturated in Scripture becomes dangerous - to the devil, to sin, and to complacency. Open that Bible like your spiritual life depends on it.
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The same Gospel that has saved people for 2,000 years still saves people today.
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