GOD’S WORD FOR JULY 6

We are reading from a daily devotional  called “Running To Win” written by Erwin Lutzer  and the late, great D.L. Moody.   Erwin Lutzer is a light in our day as D.L. Moody was in his.  Besides his many ministries, and many books, Pastor Lutzer was Senior Pastor at Moody Church in Chicago for 36 years and now serves as Pastor Emeritus there.  He is  Chancelor and a former professor at Moody Bible Institute, where he taught Theology and Ministry, and now has numerous radio teachings.

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AGAINST THE CURRENT

James 2:20

“Faith apart from works is useless.”

(This message is timely for this Independence day—-especially with the 250^th birthday.  Everyone is enjoying the celebration—and rightly so—- but with the situation like it is—-with this nation in danger of losing many of the freedoms we hold dear—we all need to examine ourselves and see if we’re giving at least equal time doing our part to voice the crucial message of locking those freedoms in…..calling representatives and senators to vote for preserving those freedoms that American men and women fought and died for.)

D.L. MOODY

You may very often see dead fish floating with the stream, but you never saw dead fish swimming against it. Well, such a fish is a false believer.  Profession is just floating down the stream, but confession is swimming against it, no matter how strong the tide.

ERWIN LUTZER

I like Moody’s phrase, “PROfession is floating down the stream, CONfession is swimming against it.”   Confessing Christ as Lord brings with it a transformation of the heart, a transformation of values.  We begin to hate what we once loved and love what we once hated.

Yet, the cultural currents are swirling around us.  Solzhenitsyn  recounts a chilling tale from Russia.  A deputy’s fervent praise of Stalin led to a standing ovation that went on for minutes without end.  After a factory director dared to sit after eleven long minutes, he was imprisoned for a decade.  Solzhenitsyn’s point?  Freedom dies with “thunderous applause.”

We cannot go along with the cultural currents that conflict with our Christian convictions – especially if evil is accepted and applauded.  We need heroes who are willing to stand against the culture.  Just because you are under pressure does not mean you should ever violate your conscience.  The Bible says, “Whatsoever does not proceed from faith is sin.”  (Romans 14:23).

Churches need to stand against the current of society, even if we become known as counter-cultural for what we stand for.  

Let us be faithful to our conscience and to the Word of God, swimming against the stream of the sins and confusion of our culture.

PRAYER

Father, I seek not just profession but confession, with my  faith firmly rooted in You.

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Ephesians 5:11

take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them

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1 Corinthians 16:13

Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong.

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1 Peter 5:8-9

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.

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Philippians 1:27

Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel,

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Galatians 5:1

Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.

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James 1:12

Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

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1 Corinthians 15:58

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

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Exodus 14:13

And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever.

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