Every day in the God's Word

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

SATURDAY APRIL 11, 2026.

SUBJECT : THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS!

Memory verse: "But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him." (Mark 16 vs 6.)

READ: Luke 18 vs 31 - 34:

18:31: Then He took the twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man will be accomplished.

18:32: For He will be delivered to the Gentiles, and will be mocked, and insulted, and spit upon.

18:33: They will scourge Him, and kill Him. And the third day He will rise again.

18:34: But they understood none of these things; and this saying was hidden from them, and they did not know the things which were spoken. 

INTIMATION:

Resurrection is the state of rising from the dead with new life. The bodily resurrection of Christ is the center of the Christian faith. The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is the central fact of Christian history. On it, the church is built; without it, there would be no Christian church today. Jesus’ resurrection is unique. Only Christianity has a God who became human, literally died for His people, and was raised again in power and glory to rule His church forever. Jesus’ resurrection is the key to the Christian faith. The Resurrection is vitally important for many reasons.

(1) Jesus kept His promise to rise from the dead, so we can be confident, therefore, that He will accomplish all He has promised. And because Christ was raised from the dead, we know that the kingdom of heaven has broken into the earth’s history. Our world is now headed for redemption, not disaster. God’s mighty power is at work destroying sin, creating new lives, and preparing us for Jesus’ second coming. 

(2) The Resurrection ensures that the ruler of God’s eternal kingdom will be the living Christ, not just an idea, hope, or dream. Jesus’ bodily resurrection shows us that the living Christ is ruler of God’s eternal kingdom, not a false prophet or impostor. We are assured that Christ is alive and ruling His kingdom. He is not a legend; He is alive and real.

(3) Christ’s resurrection gives us the assurance that we also will be resurrected. We can be certain of our resurrection because He was resurrected. Death is not the end—there is a future life. Because of the Resurrection, we know that death has been conquered and we, too, will be raised from the dead to live forever with Christ.  

(4) The power of God that brought Christ’s body back from the dead is available to us to bring our morally and spiritually dead selves back to life so that we can change and grow (First Corinthians 15 vs 12 - 15). We can now live for Him in an evil world. Death is no longer a source of dread or fear. Christ overcame it, and one day we will also since Christ has defeated it, and we have hope beyond the grave. The law will no longer make sinners out of us just because we cannot keep it.

(5) The Resurrection is the basis and authority for the church’s witness to the world. Jesus is more than just a human leader; He is the Son of God. We do not merely tell lessons from the life of a great teacher; we proclaim the reality of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Look at the early evangelistic sermons in the book of Acts: The apostles’ most important message was the proclamation that Jesus Christ had been raised from the dead. 

(6) The Resurrection gives meaning to the church’s sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. Like Jesus’ followers on the Emmaus Road, we break bread with our risen Lord, who comes in power to save us. 

(7) The Resurrection helps us find meaning even in great tragedy. No matter what happens to us as we walk with the Lord, the Resurrection gives us hope for the future. 

(8) God’s power that brought Jesus back from the dead is available to us so that we can live for Him in an evil world.

Christians can look very different from one another, and they can hold widely varying beliefs about politics, lifestyle, and even theology. But one central belief unites and inspires all true Christians: Jesus Christ rose from the dead! 

People who hear about the Resurrection for the first time may need time before they can comprehend this amazing story. Like the disciples, they may pass through four stages of belief: (1) At first, they may think it is a fairly tale, impossible to believe. (2) Like the apostle Peter, they may check out the facts but still be puzzled about what happened. (3) Only when they encounter Jesus personally will they be able to accept the fact of the Resurrection. (4) Then, as they commit themselves to Jesus and devote their lives to serving Him, they will begin fully to understand the reality of His presence with them. 

Because Christ rose from the dead, as He promised, we know that what He said is true and that He is God. The Resurrection affirms the truthfulness of Jesus’ life and words. The Resurrection confirms Jesus’ unique authority to say, I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11 vs 25). Because He rose, we have certainty that our sins are forgiven. Because He rose, He lives and represents us before God. Because He rose and defeated death, we know we also will be raised. Christ’s resurrection guaranteed both His promise to us and His authority to make that promise. We must take Him at His word and believe. 

His resurrection proved His lordship over the material world. All who trust in Christ will also defeat death and rise again to live eternally with Him. Because Christ is spiritually supreme in the universe, surely we should give Him first place in all our thoughts and activities. And the driving power that carries missionaries around the world and sets Christ’s church in motion is the faith that comes from the Resurrection.

Prayer: Abba Father, thank You for the power of Resurrection available to me to bring my morally and spiritually dead self back to life so that I can change and grow and live for You in this evil world. You have defeated death and has assured me of eternity with You, and I know that You who promised is faithful and will do it, in Jesus' Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

The Great King’s Wine

 The Great King’s Wine

We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. (Hebrews 4:15)

I have never heard anyone say, “The really deep lessons of my life have come through times of ease and comfort.” But I have heard strong saints say, “Every significant advance I have ever made in grasping the depths of God’s love and growing deep with him, has come through suffering.”

This is a sobering biblical truth. For example: “For [Christ’s] sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8). Paraphrase: No pain, no gain. Or:

Now let it all be sacrificed, if it will get me more of Christ. 

Here’s another example: “Although he was a son, [Jesus] learned obedience through what he suffered” (Hebrews 5:8). The same book said he never sinned (Hebrews 4:15). 

So learning obedience does not mean switching from disobedience to obedience. It means growing deeper and deeper with God in the experience of obedience. It means experiencing depths of yieldedness to God that would not have been otherwise attained. This is what came through suffering. No pain, no gain.

Samuel Rutherford said that when he was cast into the cellars of affliction, he remembered that the great King always kept his wine there. Charles Spurgeon said, “They who dive in the sea of affliction bring up rare pearls.”

Do you not love your beloved more when you feel some strange pain that makes you think you have cancer? We are strange creatures indeed. If we have health and peace and time to love, it can become a thin and hasty thing. But if we are dying, love becomes a deep, slow river of inexpressible joy, and we can scarcely endure to give it up.

Therefore brothers and sisters, “Count it all joy . . . when you meet trials of various kinds” (James 1:2).

Every day in the God's Word

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

FRIDAY APRIL 10, 2026.

SUBJECT : THE BREVITY OF LIFE!

Memory verse: "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 vs 14.)

READ: Psalm 39 vs 4 - 6:

39:4: Lord make me to know my end, and what is the measure of my days, that I may know how frail I am.

39:5: Indeed, You have made my days as handbreadths, and my age is as nothing before You.

39:6: Surely they busy themselves in vain; He heaps up riches, and does not know who will gather them.

INTIMATION:

Life on earth is the period between birth and death. And because it has a beginning and an end, it is temporary, and not permanent. The brevity of life is a theme throughout the books of Psalms, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes. The Bible is full of metaphors that teach about the brief, temporary, transient nature of life on earth. The earth is not our permanent home or final destination. We are just passing through, just visiting earth. The Bible uses terms like alien, pilgrim, foreigner, stranger, visitor, and traveler to describe our temporary and brief stay on earth. 

Ironically, people spend so much time securing their lives on earth but take little or no thought about life after here; where they will spend eternity. They are busy with the things that are temporary, but neglecting the things that are permanent. Amassing riches and busily accomplishing worldly tasks would make no difference in eternity. Few people understand that their only hope is in the Lord. The only thing that matters in eternity is your relationship with your Maker, and it is the relationship built with Him while on earth that you take to eternity. All other things you have acquired, built, accomplished and so on, are abandoned here on earth to the cares of others, and they will one day perish.

To make the best use of your life is build a superb relationship and fellowship with the Lord which is the only thing that qualifies you for eternity with Him, and your mansion in His house. Realizing that life is short helps us use the little time we have more wisely for eternal good, and don't get too attached to this world. May God help us see life on earth as He sees it. 

In First Peter 2 vs 11, the apostle Peter stated, "Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul." As believers, we are "sojourners and pilgrims" in this world, because our real home is with God. Our true loyalty should be to our citizenship in heaven, not to our temporary stay here, "For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ." (Philippians 3 vs 20.) How prepared are you to receive Him at His coming?

Real believers understand that there is far more to life than just the few years we live on this earth, and that their homeland is heaven. When you grasp this truth, you will stop worrying about "having it all" on earth. God is very blunt about the danger of living for the here and now and adopting the values, priorities, and lifestyles of the world around us. When we flirt with the temptations of this world, God calls it spiritual adultery: "Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." (James 4 vs 4.)

Believers are in the world and constantly in association with the world, its standards, and circumstances. Though they are in the world, but they are not of this world (John 15 vs 19). The prince of this world is the greatest enemy of God, and by extension, our greatest enemy. "Believers are ambassadors of Christ" (Second Corinthians 5 vs 20). As an ambassador they will not be able to isolate themselves from the rulership of the prince of this world where they accomplish their ambassadorial assignment. This is because to fulfill their mission, they would have to have contact with the world.

God warned us not to get too attached to what's around us because it's temporary, "For the form of this world is passing away" (First Corinthians 7 vs 31). The cares of this world; financial security, self actualization, worldly happiness, marriage, and so on, are not the ultimate goal of life. As much as possible, we should live unhindered by the cares of this world, not getting involved in burdensome life activities that might keep us from doing God's work.

Compared with other centuries, life has never been easier for much of our world today. The advancement in technology has made life much more easier and enjoyable. We are constantly entertained, amused, and catered to. With all the fascinating attractions, mesmerizing media, and enjoyable experiences available today, it's easy to forget that the pursuit of happiness is not what life is about. Only as we remember that life is a test, a trust, and a temporary assignment will the appeal of these things lose their grip on our lives. 

Life is short no matter how long we live. Be conscious of the two divides in eternity—heaven and hell. Take time to evaluate your life and days on this earth by asking, “Where do I want to be in eternity?” “What do I want to see happen in my life before I die? What small step could I take toward that purpose today?” If you want to be with the Lord, deal with an undisciplined area in your life, and tell someone about Jesus. Because life is short, don’t neglect what is truly important.

Prayer: Abba Father, give me the grace to be eternity conscious, and not be consumed in seeking after the cares of the world that are seen, but focus on the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

What Is Well-Placed Shame?

 What Is Well-Placed Shame?

When you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. (Romans 6:20–21)

When a Christian’s eyes are opened to the God-dishonoring evil of his former behavior, the Christian rightly feels ashamed. Paul says to the Roman church, “When you were slaves of sin . . . what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed?”

There is a proper place for looking back and feeling the twinge of pain that we once lived in a way that was so belittling to God. To be sure, we are not to be paralyzed by dwelling on this. But a sensitive Christian heart cannot think back on the follies of youth and not feel echoes of shame, even if we have settled it all with the Lord. 

Well-placed shame can be very healthy and redemptive. Paul said to the Thessalonians, “If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed” (2 Thessalonians 3:14). This means that shame is a proper and redemptive step in conversion, and even in a believer’s repentance from a season of spiritual coldness and sin. Shame is not something to be avoided at all costs. There is a place for it in God’s good dealings with his people.

We can conclude that the biblical criterion for misplaced shame and for well-placed shame is radically God-centered. 

The biblical criterion for misplaced shame says, Don’t feel shame for something that honors God, no matter how weak or foolish or wrong it makes you look in the eyes of other people. Or another way to apply this God-centered criterion of misplaced shame: don’t feel shame because of a truly shameful situation unless you are in some way participating in the evil. 

The biblical criterion for well-placed shame says, Do feel shame for having a hand in anything that dishonors God, no matter how strong or wise or right it makes you look in the eyes of others.

The reason we should feel shame is disapproval for behavior that dishonors God. The reason we should not feel shame is behavior that honors God, even if people try to shame you for it.

Every day in the God's Word

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY APRIL 09, 2026.

SUBJECT: MONEY AND THE LOVE OF MONEY!

Memory verse: "For the love of money is the root of all kind of evil: for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." (First Timothy 6 vs 10.)

READ: Matthew 6 vs 19 - 24:

6:19: Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal:

6:20: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal:

6:21: For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

6:22: The light of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light.

6:23: But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

6:24: No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will be loyal to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

INTIMATION:

I know that money is a sore subject that a lot of people want to avoid, but in my considered opinion, learning how God views money is basic Christianity. The importance of this subject is reflected in how much the Bible teaches about it. The Bible has more to say about money than most Bible doctrines like heaven and hell or faith and prayer. The influence of money in our lives is very real, so it isn't surprising that Jesus taught more on the subject of money than any other single topic like prayer and faith. 

In the anchor Scripture we read today, the apostle Paul used money and people's attitude toward money to reveal their hearts. Our integrity often meets its match in money matters. It is ideal that we make wise use of the money opportunities we have toward realizing our eternal inheritance in Christ. For instance, if we use our money to help those in need or to help others find Christ, our earthly investment will bring eternal benefit. Heaven's riches are far more valuable than earthly wealth. When we obey God’s Will, the unselfish use of possessions will follow.

It's a common scenario in our present time to see those who love money take exception to the Lord's teaching on money. We are in the age that measures people's worth by how much money they have. God doesn't operate by the world's value system, and it's more important for us to understand how God's financial system works. 

Jesus says that we can have only one master. We live in a materialistic society where many people serve money. They spend all their lives collecting and storing it, only to die and leave it behind, and would not know what happens to all that wealth thereafter. For many, their desire for money and what it can buy far outweigh their commitment to God and spiritual matters. 

Whatever you store up, you will spend much of your time and energy thinking about. If you store up your treasures in heaven, definitely your thoughts will be heavenly bound. Don’t fall into the materialistic trap of busy pursuing after money to acquire wealth because “the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.” Many who chase after money, to be rich at all cost, fall into temptations, traps, and many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition, thereby piercing themselves through with many sorrows. 

Scriptures recognize that money is necessary for survival, but it warns against the love of money. Money is not evil. What is evil is the materialistic heart that is obsessed with obtaining it. In some people’s desire to satisfy their thirst for wealth, they have marginalized their relationships with friends, family, others, and even God. The sorrows that they produced through their striving to be rich manifest the error of the greedy motives of their hearts. If one sacrifices his or her good works in relationships because he or she has no time for others as a result of running after riches, then his or her spiritual life is void of the very foundation of the community of God. 

Money is a hard master, a deceptive and dangerous one. It is dangerous because it deceives us into thinking that wealth is the easiest way to get everything we want. It is so deceptive that it can take God's place in one's life. Most people will trust in money rather than God to solve their problems. This is sinful, and those who pursue its empty promises will one day discover that they have nothing because they are spiritually bankrupt. Wealth promises power and control, but often it cannot deliver. Great fortunes can be made, and lost overnight, and it is noteworthy that no amount of money can assure one of good health, happiness, or eternal life.

Jesus made it clear that having the wrong treasures leads to our hearts being in the wrong place. What we treasure the most controls us, whether we admit it or not. If possessions or money become too important to us, we must re-establish control or get rid of unnecessary acquisition of riches. Jesus calls for a decision that allows us to live contentedly with whatever we have because we have chosen eternal values over temporary, earthly treasures. Heaven’s riches are far more valuable than earthly wealth.

Always aspire to a spiritual vision of money, that is, visualizing it from God’s perspective. Spiritual vision is our capacity to see clearly what God wants us to do and to see the world from his point of view. But this spiritual insight can be easily be clouded. Self-serving desires, interests, and goals block that vision. Serving God is the best way to restore it. A ‘good’ eye is one that is fixed on God.

Money can become our master. How can you tell if you are a slave to money? (1) Do you think or worry about it frequently? (2) Do you give up doing what you should do or would like to do in order to make more money? (3) Do you spend a great deal of your time caring for your possessions? (4) Is it hard for you to give money away? (5) Are you in debt? A sincere answer to these questions will reveal truly your attitude toward money. 

Prayer: Abba Father, You are above all things and by You all things consist. My most sincere aspiration is to love You and adore You above all things. My utmost heart desire is to serve You our Creator, and not serve Your creation. Nothing can ever take first place in my life, and nothing other than You will I serve, rather they will serve me as I serve You, in Jesus' Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

Talk to God, Not Just About Him

 Talk to God, Not Just About Him

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. (Psalm 23:4)

The form of the 23rd psalm is instructive.

In Psalm 23:1–3 David refers to God as “he”: 

The Lord is my shepherd . . .

he makes me lie down . . .

he leads me . . .

he restores my soul.

Then in verses 4 and 5 David refers to God as “you”: 

I will fear no evil, for you are with me;

your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me.

You anoint my head with oil.

Then in verse 6 he switches back:

I shall dwell in the house of the Lord.

The lesson we can learn from this form is that it is good not to talk very long about God without talking to God. 

Every Christian is at least an amateur theologian — that is, a person who tries to understand the character and ways of God and then put that into words. If we aren’t little theologians, then we won’t ever say anything to each other, or to God, about God, and will be of very little real help to each other’s faith.

But what I have learned from David in Psalm 23 and other psalms is that I should interweave my theology with prayer. I should frequently interrupt my talking about God by talking to God. 

Not far behind the theological sentence, “God is generous,” should come the prayerful sentence, “Thank you, God, for your generosity.”

On the heels of, “God is glorious,” should come, “I adore your glory.”

This is the way it must be, if we are feeling God’s reality in our hearts as well as thinking it in our heads and describing it with our lips.

Every day in the God's Word

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

WEDNESDAY APRIL 08, 2026.

SUBJECT: THE SIN OF EVIL DESIRES!

Memory verse: "But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.” (First Timothy 6 vs 9.)

READ: Matthew 5 vs 27 - 30:

5:27: You have heard that it was said by those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’

5:28: But I say to you that whoever looks on a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

5:29: If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out, and cast it from you; for it is profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.

5:30: And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.

INTIMATION:

A desire is a craving or longing for something. Some desires are evil or sinful and is frequently translated as “lust.” Some desires are good. For instance, the apostle Paul had the good desire to be with Christ; “For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better” (Philippians 1 vs 23). Just as the Lord’s desire concerning the last Passover with His apostles; “Then He said to them, “With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.” (Luke 22 vs 15.)

For evil desires, or inordinate affections, the apostle Paul says, such should not be tolerated by believers because, “Those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passion and desires.” (Galatians 5 vs 24.) When we accept Christ as our Savior, we need to turn from our sinful ways and willingly nail our sinful nature to the cross. This doesn’t mean, however, that we will never see traces of its evil desires again. As Christians we still have the capacity to sin and sometimes sin, but we have been set free from sin’s power over us and no longer have to give in to it. We must daily commit our sinful tendencies to God’s control, daily crucify them, and moment by moment draw on the Spirit’s power to overcome them. 

“Lust” is a devilish desire. Jesus said “lust” is as good as the “deed” itself. For instance, the Old Testament law says that it is wrong for a person to have sex with someone other than his or her spouse (Exodus 20 vs 14). But Jesus said that the desire to have sex with someone other than your spouse is mental adultery and thus sin. Jesus was emphasizing here that if the act is wrong, then so is the intention. In the passage we read today, Jesus is condemning the deliberate and repeated filling of one’s mind with fantasies that would be evil if acted upon. Therefore, desires that will lead you to wrongdoing should not be accommodated. 

Some people may desire to be rich, which in itself, is not wrong or evil, but the desire to be rich at all costs will definitely build up ideas in their minds that will expose them to temptations, snares, and many foolish things that are harmful and destructive. For instance, somebody might desire to make wealth by all means, and will be harboring stealing, money rituals, or obtaining by false pretenses, and if such desires are acted upon, the person may be committing murder, and other heinous crimes that are evil in themselves. 

Sinful actions are more dangerous than sinful desires, hence desires should not be acted out. Nevertheless, sinful desires are just as damaging to obedience as the actions proper. Left unchecked, wrong desires will result in wrong actions and turn people away from God.

Jesus was speaking figuratively when He said you should get rid of your hand or your eyes, He didn’t mean literally to gouge our your eyes, because even a blind person can lust. But if that were the only choice, it would be better to go into heaven without eyes or hands than to go to hell with the two. It takes the help of the Holy Spirit to resist any actions on our evil desires. The world is full of enticements. Daily we are confronted with subtle cultural pressures and overt propaganda. The only way to escape these destructive influences is to ask God to help crucify our interest in them.

Evil acts begin with evil desires. It isn’t enough to ask God to keep you away from temptation, make you stronger, or change your circumstances. You must ask Him to change you on the inside—at level of your desires. The Scripture says, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it springs the issues of life.” (Proverbs 4 vs 23.) We should keep our hearts with all diligence, making sure we concentrate on those desires that will keep us on the right path. Make sure your affections push you in the right direction. 

Put boundaries on your desires: Don’t go after everything you see. And don’t get sidetracked on detours that lead to temptation. “Finally brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things that are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things that pure, whatever things that lovely, whatever things that are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.” (Philippians 4 vs 8.)

Prayer: Abba Father, give me the grace to put boundaries on my desires, to concentrate on those desires that will keep me on the right path of obedience to You in all things, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen. 

PRAISE THE LORD!