Archive for March, 2009

Read John 9

*Today’s devotion was written by Charlie Bibb

This chapter came to me at a time in my life when I needed to hear from God the most.  It gave me a divine peace when I was looking for answers.  We had just got the news of Caitlyn’s illness and the emotions in my family were running very high.  After searching the scriptures God brought me to John chapter 9. 

It is here where He revealed to me 2 major points that would impact my family’s life; the first being the discussion between Jesus and His disciples about the man who was born blind.  Jesus was about to perform a miracle in the blind mans life that would bring all the glory to the Father.    In every thing we do and say we should do it to the glory of God, both in the good times and in the bad. 

The second point was when Jesus spit on the ground and mixed the spit with dirt. Then He smeared it on the man’s eyes, and told him, “Wash it off in the pool of Siloam.”  This must have been very irritating to his eyes.  Not only was he blind but now he had dirt in his eyes.  It was here that God showed me the most important person in this chapter and that his name was never mentioned in the scriptures.  It was the one who took the blind man by his hand to the pool of Siloam. 

God has called all of us to take people with all kinds of hurts, habits and hang ups by the hand to the pool of living water which is Jesus, so they may be healed.

Are you living your life as a Christian so that God the Father gets all the glory?  Do you seek mans approval more than you do Gods?  Who has God put in your life or around you to lead to the living water?  Are you willing to do what ever it takes to get them there?

Read John 8

For some reason, a lot of Christians I know love to point fingers and throw rocks.  And yet throughout Scripture Jesus constantly challenges us to quit pointing fingers and asks us to drop the stupid rocks.

Of course, if you’re sinless, I would encourage you to point fingers and throw rocks.  You have every right to.  Jesus gave permission for anyone near him.  He said, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” John 8:7 (NIV)  But, last time I checked, none of us are sinless, so we better put out fingers and rocks away. 

Now, I’m not saying we shouldn’t confront sin.  We should.  Jesus did.  But notice what Jesus doesn’t do.  He doesn’t condemn her.  He loves her.  Yet at the same time, He doesn’t condone or tolerate her sin either.  He clearly tells her to “…leave your life of sin.” John 8:11 (NIV) 

I need to be transparent for a minute.  I’m more than a little tired of the reputation other Christians are giving us!  I’m sick of the hypocrisy!!  So I have an idea, and I would love for you to join in with me on this.  Maybe it’s time we start calling out the hypocrisy of the religious insiders and love on the people far from God.  After all, isn’t that exactly what Jesus did that day?

Who do you need to stop pointing fingers at and start loving instead?  Are you willing to drop the rocks?  Who do you need to meet with privately about their sin? 

Read John 7

God is in control.  Of course, you already know that.  Or at least you say that you know that.  But do you really?  Do you really believe that God is in control? 

There were those in Jesus’ day who thought they could hamper or prevent Jesus’ ministry from taking off.   We might even say that they thought they were in control.  They thought they could silence the Son of God according to their own timetable and could limit Jesus’ ministry through their own efforts. 

But they were wrong.  They didn’t have a chance.  They weren’t in control.  Because God was!

John says that, “…they tried to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his time had not yet come.” John 7:30 (NIV)

God is just as in control today as He’s ever been.  He is still on the throne and very much in charge.  And no one can alter His plan or prevent Him from doing what He wants to do!

So, take some time today and acknowledge that God is in control.  Let your Heavenly Father know how much he means to you and that you are open to whatever He wants you to do.  And most importantly, don’t get in the way of what He is trying to do in your life and the lives of others!

Read Chapter 6

In life we tend to shake our head with frustration when someone breaks their word, quits the team or walks away from a commitment. The old phrase is “your word is your bond” may have lost some meaning in today’s world, however, times got tough and many of Jesus’ disciples quit. 

After a chapter of feeding the 5K & walking on water, Jesus has some challenging words with all his followers and many Jews (v.41-65).  Many loved the miracles and benefits of Jesus, but when it can down to believing in Him exclusively, decisions had to be made.  Then one of the saddest verses in the NT occurs in verse 66 “as a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore.” 

How about your life?  Have you found yourself withdrawing from Christ?  Are you not walking with Him anymore? 

Take some time today and examine where you might have stopped walking with Him.  Admit your stumble, commit to taking that step again and trust Him to give you strength.

Read John 5 

It’s possible to know the Bible and not know Jesus.  It’s true.  There are people all throughout the Gospels who had incredible knowledge about the Scriptures, but could never admit that Jesus was the one and only Son of God. 

They knew the Old Testament from cover to cover, but couldn’t connect the dots that Jesus was the Messiah.  They could quote the Book of Genesis back to you, but couldn’t recognize the Creator when He was standing right in front of them. 

In our passage today, you’ll notice that Jesus has a conversation with some skeptical Jewish leaders.  They couldn’t bring themselves to believe that Jesus was God in the flesh.  Jesus says to them, “You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life.  But the Scriptures point to me!  Yet you refuse to come to me to receive this life.” John 5:39-40 (NLT)

I don’t want to put anyone on a guilt trip, but I do want you to understand that it’s possible to know the Bible and not know Jesus.  You can be a member of a church and yet not be a part of God’s family. 

Anyway, this leads me to a few questions.  When in your life did you acknowledge that Jesus was God’s Son and give your life to Him?  How is that decision evident today?

I’d love to hear your stories!

Read John 4

As Jesus was by the well, he began a conversation with a Samaritan woman.  As you read chapter 4, I’m sure you will quickly see that this woman was not your average housewife with 3 kids and a white picket fence.  Her track record was messy, and she had very low reputation and self worth. 

As she talks with Jesus, she senses there is something different about him, and the process of “drinking the living water begins.” 

After a few moments she becomes a Christ follower and proceeds to tell her town (v.39) of her life change.  Who knew that a lowly Samarian woman would be a catalyst for an entire town? 

Take a moment today and think about who is in your circle of influence?  Who do you work with, talk to, hang out with or live by that you can be praying for and planning on having a small conversation that just might lead to a large transformation.

Read John 3

I think we’ve all heard enough sermons on John 3:16 to last us a lifetime.  I’m not saying I don’t love that verse.  I do.  It was the first Bible verse I ever memorized, and I bet it was the first one you memorized too!  In fact, it may be the most amazing verse in the entire Bible.  But the problem is that most of us know it all to well, to the neglect of the verse that comes right after it.

What I’m trying to say is that I think John 3:17 is an amazing verse of Scripture as well!  John writes, “God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.” (NLT)

In other words, Jesus’ mission was ultimately to bring salvation and not condemnation.  (Of course, if someone rejects the salvation that Jesus offers, then condemnation is what they will get in the end, but not because Jesus wanted that for them) 

Anyway, Jesus’ mission was about salvation and not condemnation, which in case you didn’t know, means your mission is about salvation and not condemnation. 

So, let me ask you a few questions with this thought in mind.  Who have you condemned and written off as hopeless?  Do you realize that Jesus gave his life for this person and wants to give them a new life?  Will you begin to pray for that person?

Read John 2

There are plenty of times in our lives when we simply forget something.  Sometimes it’s small while other times it could be huge. 

It must have been strange and amazing at the same time when the disciples saw Jesus cleansing the temple and  heard him make three very memorable statements (v.16-17, 19, 22) that the disciples later must have had flashbacks about.  Those flashbacks served as reminders to the disciples that their experiences with Jesus were real and life changing. 

What about your life?  Can you flashback to the times when Jesus felt so close to you?  Can you remember/recall the times were you felt completely on track with Jesus in all areas of your life? 

Take a few moments this morning and “have a flashback” as to when your spiritual life was at its peak.  What can you do to get back to being that person?

Read John 1

I’ve always loved the phrase in John 1:14 that says, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (NIV), but a couple of years ago, when reading in a parallel Bible, I discovered a paraphrase of this verse that I love even more.  Here is how the Message paraphrases this classic verse:  “The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood.”  

Isn’t that good? And additionally, isn’t that true?  Isn’t that exactly what Jesus did?  He left the perfect environment of Heaven, took on human flesh, and literally became one of us, and moved into our world!

I think sometimes we miss the significance of this event, the Incarnation.  God became one of us!!  He left up there and all of Heaven’s perfection to come down here and enter into our mess. 

So today, why don’t you take a few minutes and let our Heavenly Father know how thankful you are for His amazing plan to send His Son for us.  And then take a few minutes to thank Jesus for moving into the neighborhood.