Good Words for Today
What happens when we worship? When William Temple tried to define worship, he wrote a statement that is both beautiful and profound: To worship is to quicken the conscience by the holiness of God, To feed the mind with the truth of God, To purge the imagination by the beauty of God, To open the heart to the love of God, To devote the will to the purpose of God. All of that is utterly countercultural. You don’t get that by spending hours on social media. Come to think of it, you won’t get that in the great universities of the world. Cambridge and Harvard can teach you how to think at a high level, but if you want to worship, you’ll need to go into the presence of God.
"Fill my cup, Lord; I lift it up Lord; Come and quench this thirsting of my soul. Bread of Heaven, feed me till I want no more. Fill my cup, fill it up and make me whole."
Heavenly Father, when I am tempted to give up, help me to keep going. Grant me a cheerful spirit when things don’t go my way. Give me the courage to do whatever needs to be done. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
The moment we come to Christ, the Holy Spirit gives us a brand‑new wardrobe. We exchange the tattered rags of our self‑righteousness for the dazzling garments of a brand‑new life. For hatred, we receive love. For misery, joy. For bitterness, forgiveness. For cowardice, boldness. For stinginess, compassion. For pride, humility. For envy, contentment.
In our modern society, many people hold tragic misconceptions about who God is. Some think He is a hate‑filled, angry deity who seeks every opportunity to send people to hell; others picture him as a nice old man who sits benignly on a rocking chair in heaven. Against these false notions stands the simple yet majestic truth revealed by Jesus Christ: God has made himself known in the person of his Son. Those who come to him must come by way of Jesus Christ, or they can’t come at all.
"God would never make it in the travel industry because he is always leading his best clients into the wilderness." John Piper
Christ is not an “option” men may choose. He is not an “option” on a long menu of religious choices any more than gravity is an “option” we may disregard if we like. If you think gravity is an “option,” climb to the top of The Empire State Building, jump off, and see what happens! The result will not be a positive experience. Those who treat Jesus as an “option” will one day discover that ignoring him leads to eternal destruction.
Since the days of Jesus, Satan has been a defeated foe. Though he continues to fight against the Lord, his doom is sure, and his final destiny in the Lake of Fire is guaranteed by the victory Christ won at the cross.
Seven blessings of the Holy Spirit pictured as a dove (Matthew 3:16): 1) He brings peace to our souls. 2) He comes quietly, without fanfare. 3) He establishes a personal relationship with us. 4) He produces gentleness within. 5) He leads us toward purity, honesty, and a truly “harmless” life. 6) He brings God’s divine approval that we are indeed his children. 7) He leads us toward a beautiful, grace‑filled Christian life.
The world "as we know it” is coming to an end. There are many things we know and many things we don’t know about the future. This much is certain: Jesus is coming again. His return may be sooner than we think. Jesus is coming. Are you ready?
Nothing on earth or in heaven is more desirable than God. We may die, but even death itself cannot sever our relationship with God because it is as secure as God himself. As long as God is in heaven, we will be with him in glory. No wicked man can take that from us.
"Whoever hates correction will die" (Proverbs 15:10). Failure isn’t final, but it might be fatal if you learn nothing from it.
"In the beginning God." Ponder those four words. This is where all biblical truth begins. Miss this, and you'll miss the whole Bible. If you can believe Genesis 1:1, you won’t have any trouble with the rest of the Bible.
The Bible predicts a time in the last days when God will shake the nations so that those things that cannot be shaken will remain (Hebrews 12:26-27). When Eugene Peterson paraphrased the last part of verse 27 in The Message, he said that God will shake the earth, “getting rid of all the historical and religious junk so that the unshakable essentials stand clear and uncluttered." Unshakable essentials. That says it all. God is shaking the earth so that we will figure out what matters most.
God of the impossible, may I never doubt your power or believe that you are not equal to my circumstances. Amen.
No one likes to admit their sin. Hiding and denying seem much more comfortable. But a red face and a few hot tears will go a long way to bring us back to God.
Lord Jesus, may I never take your blessings for granted or feel that I have advanced so far that sin cannot touch me, lest what happened to others should also happen to me. Amen.
Jesus isn’t looking for a good show. He wants your heart to be his.
"Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him" (John 7:38). To speak of “streams of living water” highlights four facts about the Spirit’s ministry in the believer: *He takes up residence within the “inner being.” *He “flows” with an inexhaustible supply. *He brings the life of God to the soul. *He satisfies the deep thirst inside every heart.
Thank You, Lord Jesus, for remembering how weak I am. I praise You for the gift of the Holy Spirit, my Counselor, Helper, Comforter, and Friend. Amen.
Lord Jesus, grant that we might not be discouraged even a little bit by the things that happen around us. We want to pray and to pray more than we do. We ask for “praying grace” so that we will keep on praying when it would be easier to give up. Amen.
"The wind blows wherever it pleases" (John 3:8). The symbol of the Holy Spirit as God’s wind ought to greatly encourage us. How we need the fresh wind of the Spirit today! He alone can wake us out of our spiritual lethargy. He alone can dispel the toxic fumes of unbelief and carnality. He alone can bring the sweet aroma of heaven back into our lives.
“Why do you look for the living among the dead?” (Luke 24:5). When Jesus walked out of the tomb, all his people came out with him. Let the people of God rejoice. “He is risen! He is risen indeed.”
After 2000 years, when we think of Pilate, we remember one thing. When he had a chance, he gave the wrong answer to the world’s most important question. We all have to answer the same question sooner or later: What will you do with Jesus? May God give you grace to say, “Jesus, I give you my heart today!”
“Why did you strike me?” (John 18:23). Behold the enmity of sinners for the Son of God. In their anger, they attack the One who came to save them. In their rage, they mock the Savior of the world.
We don’t need to go looking for trouble. If we are faithful to Christ, sooner or later, trouble will find us.
Pilate tried to wash his hands, but the stain remained. To say, “I don’t want to decide,” means “I lack the courage to choose.” Not to decide is to decide. No one can remain neutral about Jesus. “Everyone on the side of truth listens to me,” Jesus said. Which side are you on today?
“Crown Him the Lord of love! Behold His hands and side— Rich wounds, yet visible above. In beauty glorified. No angel in the sky Can fully bear that sight, But downward bends His wond’ring eye At mysteries so bright.”
In the end we will discover that though we failed him a thousand times, he never failed us, not even once. You can trust him in the darkest hours of life because his Word has not failed. We may fail him, but he will not fail us. His Word will stand.
Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem marks the beginning of eight days that changed the world. For the moment, the crowd shouts, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” B ut those aren’t the only shouts Jesus will hear. Angry voices will soon drown out the praise. The King rides on in majesty, on his way to the cross.
When you pray for a loved one who seems hardened against the Lord, pray that the eyes of their heart might be opened so that the light of God can come flooding in. If that seems hopeless, at least it puts the hopeless case at God’s doorstep, which is where it belongs. On Saturday night there was a “hopeless case” in the Garden Tomb. On Sunday morning the whole world changed. You never know what God will do, so keep on believing and keep on praying. God specializes in impossible situations, and he loves to prove that hopeless cases aren’t hopeless after all.
Believing in Jesus means trusting in Him so much that if he can’t take you heaven, you aren’t going to go there.
Lord Jesus, thank you for being my Good Shepherd. Keep me close to your side today. When I wander, bring me home again. Amen.
“God uses men who are weak and feeble enough to lean on Him.” Hudson Taylor, pioneer missionary to China
Miracles always begin with desperation. If you could do it yourself, why would you need God?
“The dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are still alive will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). Sometimes people say that nothing is as certain as death and taxes. But I know one thing more sure than that: Some Christians will never die. One generation—the final one—will be living when Christ returns, and that generation of Christians will never taste death but will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air. Are you ready?
Be patient. Give God time to work. God works across the generations to accomplish his purposes; we’re worried about which dress to buy for the big party this weekend weekend.