Tagged: message of the day
“I will give you a new heart.” –Ezekiel 36:26 Because of the effect of sin on the human race, the human heart is “beyond remedy” (Jer 17:9). It cannot be fixed, controlled, educated, or bettered sufficiently to please God or to give us the power to live a free, fully human life. We are doomed unless we can get a heart transplant. Our problem is that all possible donors have the same defective heart. They too need a heart transplant and are also looking for donors. We need to be saved from this impossible situation. Jesus alone is the Savior....
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“Woe to the shepherds…who have been pasturing themselves.” –Ezekiel 34:2 Ezekiel prophesied against the secular and religious leaders in Israel, who had been fattening their bank accounts by exploiting those they were supposed to be serving (Ez 34:3ff). As a result, the people suffered brutally, while the “shepherds” profited. Today, it’s not unusual to see a CEO walking away with a multimillion dollar settlement while leaving his former company in ruins and many former employees out of work. It’s easy to see the crass exploitation in these examples. In contrast, in today’s Gospel, Jesus addresses those who worked hard for...
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“Yet you are a man, and not a god, however you may think yourself like a god.” –Ezekiel 28:2 What are you taking credit for? Do you think you’re so smart? Do you think that “by your wisdom and your intelligence you have made riches for yourself”? (Ez 28:4) Do you believe that you have gotten where you are primarily because of your hard work? Do you think: “Our own hand won the victory; the Lord had nothing to do with it”? (Dt 32:27) “Who confers any distinction on you? Name something you have that you have not received. If,...
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“In Christ all will come to life again, but each one in proper order.” –1 Corinthians 15:22-23 The English word “assumption” is perhaps an unfortunate translation of the Latin word “assumptio.” “Assumptio” means to be taken up. The English word “assumption” usually means having an unwarranted expectation. Nevertheless, God can work through this translation. The Bible teaches that all Christians will be assumed to meet Jesus in the air when He comes again at the end of the world (1 Thes 4:17). Very few Christians expect to go to hell; we generally assume that we’ll be assumed to meet Jesus....
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“Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, Who inspires and perfects our faith.” –Hebrews 12:2 When we are persecuted and, like Jeremiah, thrown in the muddy cistern to die (Jer 38:6), “let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus” (Heb 12:2). When we are tempted to “grow despondent or abandon the struggle” (Heb 12:3), “let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus” (Heb 12:2). When there’s division in our families, “three against two and two against three” (Lk 12:52), let us forgive 70 x 7 (Mt 18:22) and “fix [our] eyes on Jesus” (Heb 3:1). When we get the...
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