The Acceptable Time
January 14, 2008 on 9:51 pm | In devotionals | 1 CommentBehold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. -2 Corinthians 6:2
Some people will say the reason they are not Christians is that it is just not their time yet. They don’t think they are ready.That would be like someone who is drowning in the middle of the ocean saying to the lifeguard, “I am not ready yet.” What part of dead do they not understand? I would say that if you are drowning, then you are ready for salvation. Unbelievers are in a worse state than a person who is drowning, because they are separated from God by their sin. If they are wondering when they should come to Jesus Christ, the time is right now. Not tomorrow. Not next week. Not next month. It’s right now. God says, “Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:2). This is the acceptable time. We don’t know how long it will last. There is coming a day when Jesus Christ will return to this earth for His people. There is coming a day when He will catch all true believers up into heaven with Him. We call it the rapture of the church. It is that moment that we look forward to as Christians, when we will go to be with the Lord. It is described in Scripture as happening “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (2 Corinthians 15:52). Now is the time when God is looking in grace upon those who are separated from Him by sin, and the gospel is going out to them. Now is the day of salvation.
C4W Devotions are used by permission from Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie P.O. Box 4000 Riverside CA 92514
His way or Your way?
January 3, 2008 on 9:45 pm | In devotionals | No CommentsCome now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit” whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. -James 4:13-14
The Bible doesn’t condemn the person who makes plans for the future. Rather, it criticizes the person who makes those plans with no thought whatsoever for the will of God. That is a dangerous thing to do. God will not share His glory with another. There is nothing wrong with making plans. Paul told the believers in Ephesus that he would return for renewed ministry among them, “God willing” (Acts 18:21). He wrote to the Corinthians that he planned another visit “if the Lord wills” (1 Corinthians 4:19). On other occasions, Paul spoke of his plans to do certain things and how the Lord changed his plans. We have our plans. We have our purposes. We have our agendas. But the Lord may redirect us. Jesus taught us to pray, “Your will be done” (Luke 11:2). Our prayers will be effective and successful when we align our will with the will of God and pray accordingly. Prayer is not getting our will in heaven; it is getting God’s will on Earth. It is not moving God our way; it is moving ourselves His way. We need to remember that His will may be different from ours. And we must be willing to accept that. Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God. We can always fall back on the simple promise of Jeremiah 29:11: “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” God’s plans for you are better than any plans you have for yourself. So don’t be afraid of God’s will, even if it is different from yours.
C4W Devotions are used by permission from Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie P.O. Box 4000 Riverside CA 92514
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