“I have chosen you.” (John 15:16a, KJV )
Today, a reminder from Oswald Chambers’ devotional, “My Utmost for His Highest”: “Keep that note of greatness in your creed. It is not that you have got God, but that He has got you.” – Luther
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23, NKJV)
Perhaps the only state worse than wrong doing is wrong being.
We need to guard against becoming comfortable with a lifestyle that is contrary to God’s will and way. This is what the Bible calls “sin.”
Oswald Chambers eloquently describes the peril of a conscience that is no longer troubled by wrong-doing: “One of the penalties of sin is our acceptance of it. It is not only God who punishes for sin, but sin establishes itself in the sinner and takes its toll. No struggling or praying will enable you to stop doing certain things, and the penalty of sin is that you gradually get used to it, until you finally come to the place where you no longer even realize that it is sin.”
Stay close to God through obedience to His scriptures, and through the spiritual disciplines of prayer, meditation, and gathering with other members of the family of God for worship and fellowship. If you persist in these things, you will develop a heart that is sensitive to what pleases God — and what does not. This is the sure path to life, peace, and joy. – Luther
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17, NIV)
A while ago, I heard a podcast of a panel of bible teachers/scholars who were discussing the widespread lack today of “bible engagement” by Christians. There seem to be many reasons — but no excuses — for why we keep the word of God at arm’s length, instead of embracing it, and becoming intimately familiar with all that it says.
Paul’s letter to his protege Timothy reminds all of us of the primacy of both carefully reading and faithfully heeding scripture in the daily living of the Christian.
On this topic, Oswald Chambers (1874-1917) offered a thought worth pondering — and accepting: “Am I learning how to use my Bible? The way to become complete for the Master’s service is to be well soaked in the Bible; some of us only exploit certain passages. Our Lord wants to give us continuous instruction out of His word; continuous instruction turns hearers into disciples.”
It is difficult to be a faithful disciple without also knowing the heart of the Person we have chosen to follow. Holy scripture introduces us to our Father’s heart. – Luther
Daily Encouragement 