If you want to walk in the Spirit you must reject:

• The desire to seek the approval of the world
• The secret sins that you try to hide from God
• Selfishness that puts your own desires above others

“From the tiny flea to the giant elephant, we see the engineering genius of God.” —Ray Comfort

Christian, three habits that will protect your soul:

• Daily prayer and quiet time with God
• Gathering faithfully with local believers
• Confessing and forsaking your sins promptly

August 18: Connecting the Dots

#Devotional

Isaiah 37:14–38:22; Luke 13:1–35; Job 9:1–11

When we don’t have all the facts, we still like to connect the dots. Questions make us uncomfortable, so we draw lines with answers that make us feel safe and that fit our worldview. But sometimes we hold too tightly to the picture that results.

Job’s friends were guilty of this error. Although they affirmed true things about God’s character, they connected the dots in unhelpful ways. For example, in Job 8, Bildad pointed to God’s justice and stated that Job’s hardship couldn’t be for nothing. Therefore, he must have sinned. Job also affirmed God’s justice, wisdom, and strength, but he didn’t buy into Bildad’s worldview. In Job 9, he acknowledged that God was beyond his understanding. Job might have suffered, but he kept his high opinion of God.

Job wanted answers, too. He longed for God to make Himself known and settle the matter (Job 9:3). Job mourned that he had no way of defending himself before God: “There is no arbiter between us that he might lay his hand on both of us. May he remove his rod from me, and let his dread not terrify me; then I would speak and not fear him, for in myself I am not fearful” (Job 9:33–35). In the end, when Job requested an answer from God—who alone could answer his questions—God silenced him. He restored Job’s prosperity, but Job still had to live without knowing why.

When we don’t have the answer, we should still affirm God’s love and goodness, acknowledging that “He is the one who does great things beyond understanding and marvelous things beyond number” (Job 9:10). And we do have one answer that quiets our fretful hearts—we know the arbiter and what He has done for us, which makes it easier to live with the unanswered questions.

How are you sharing the good news of Jesus with someone who is dealing with difficult questions?

August 18 - Of Wine and Wineskins

#LifeOfChrist

“‘No one puts a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and a worse tear results. Nor do people put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins burst, and the wine pours out and the wineskins are ruined; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved’” (Matthew 9:16–17).

Whenever repairing clothing or attaching a new patch to an old garment, the tailor or seamstress must be careful to follow particular guidelines and avoid certain mistakes. In like manner, believers cannot combine outmoded and external traditions of self-righteousness and ritual with the gospel of grace and forgiveness.

With these words, Jesus illustrates the truth that the old way cannot contain His new way: “Nor do people put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins burst, and the wine pours out and the wineskins are ruined.” Old wineskins eventually dry up and crack, and if you try to pour new wine into them, they will burst and spill the wine. Fresh wine requires a fresh skin. By analogy, the only life that can contain genuine holiness is the regenerate life granted by God when the Spirit draws a person to faith and repentance, when he or she trusts Christ as Lord and Savior.

The old wineskins refer not to God’s law and the Old Testament but to the rabbinical traditions that supplanted and contradicted God’s truth. Thus Jesus’ bringing in His new teachings in place of some old or unbiblical teachings does not mean He sets aside the divine law for some kind of ill-defined, licentious, anything-goes form of grace. The Lord unmistakably declares that He came to fulfill the Father’s law, not destroy it. Law and grace, rightly understood, have always been compatible with the believer’s benefit and blessing.

Ask Yourself

The subtext for this passage is that the self-righteous are focused on the value of their “wineskins,” while the true believer places his worth in the value of the “new wine.” What’s the difference?

DAY 18: What wise conclusion did Job come to regarding his debate with his friends?

https://telegra.ph/DAILY-BIBLE-08-18

Imagine standing before Christ one day and hearing:

"You watched thousands of hours of entertainment.
You read and watched endless news.
You argued and bickered online.
You scrolled for years.

But you barely opened the Book I gave you."

That thought convicts me. It reminds me to keep returning to Scripture, because no voice matters more than the voice of God speaking through His Word.

Christianity is not humans climbing up to God. It is God coming down to rescue humans.

“When Paul believed and embraced Christ as his Savior, his Lord, his treasure, he was united to Christ so that the death of Christ became his death.” —John Piper

WEEK 3 — Suffering, Healing & Presence

Dear Daughter,
Ask the furnace what it does to gold — it does not destroy it, it reveals it.
Whatever fire your marriage is walking through right now is not proof God left. It may be proof He is refining what remains.

Dross burns off. Gold stays.
'When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned' (Isa 43:2).
What is the fire revealing in you that comfort never could?
#DearDaughter #RefinedNotRuined #StrongMarriage

One of the clearest evidences that you love Christ...

Is how you treat people who can do absolutely nothing for you.

Pray together, stay together! 🙏💞 Two voices lifted as one carry weight in heaven! Matt 18:19-20 ❤️

Will you pray together today? #StrongMarriage #August

A husband's/father's daily home audit:

1. Is Christ honored here?
2. Is my wife cherished here?
3. Are my children discipled here?
4. Am I bringing peace or pressure here?
5. Is God's Word shaping this home?
6. Am I patient, gentle, and self-controlled?
7. Would my family describe me as joyful to be around?
8. Am I making disciples or merely paying bills?
9. If Christ inspected my leadership today, what would He commend?
10. Am I building a culture of constant prayer?

Men are not transformed by vibes, slogans, or motivational noise. They are transformed by the Spirit of God through the Word of God.

Believers, we must guard our minds from the corrupt ideas of this present age. The world constantly pushes lies about truth, morality, and God.

"Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Rom. 12:2).

“The Spirit says that in later times some will depart from the faith.” 1 Timothy 4:1

“Deconversions” confirm the faithfulness of God to his word.

So does the acceptance of prodigals.

“Thus says the Lord: ‘If you return, I will restore you.’” Jeremiah 15:19

A healthy church is not defined by its band or its coffee. It is built on the faithful preaching of the biblical gospel.

“While his son was still a long way off, the father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.” Luke 15:20

He saw.
He felt.
He ran.
He embraced.
He kissed.

Christian, your identity is no longer tied to your past mistakes or sin. You have been washed clean by the precious blood of the Lamb and adopted into the family of God!