Posts Tagged with "Devotional"

This devotional is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, Forgiven Much, given on November 27, 2016. Day 1: Jesus and the Sinful Woman Quotes: "And if you're wondering this morning what is the nature of her sin, well we are not explicitly told. One could speculate that she is a prostitute given the phrase, 'a woman of the city', but the exact nature of her sin isn't importan...

This devotional is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, Now That the Election Is Over, given on November 20, 2016. Day 1: The Voice of God (v.1-5) Quotes: "This is the plea of a loving God whose heart has been broken by his peoples' rejection of him." David Prior "The Lord draws their attention to his gracious saving acts in the hope of restoring the relationship with the...

This devotional is based on Christian Wegert's sermon, The Lost Sheep, given on October 30, 2016. Day 1: Lost (v. 4) Quotes: "We think living without God will lead us into freedom and liberty. We believe we are autonomous and independent without need of God or Christ. We think walking to the horizon far away from our shepherd will satisfy our soul. We think it will gi...

This devotional is based on Brian Chesemore's sermon, A Saving Mercy, given on November 13, 2016. Day 1: The Word of the Lord and a Wayward Messenger (v.1-4) Quotes: "Jonah now has a second chance to learn the scandalous mercy of God." Kevin Youngblood "I would imagine that in this room there are some of who may have tried, maybe even recently, to flee from God and...

This devotional is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, A Scandalous Mercy, given on October 16, 2016. Day 1: Jonah's story is a cautionary tale Quotes: "For all its orthodoxy and beauty however, this prayer reveals some of the great defects in Jonah's character." Kevin Youngblood "Jonah needed to be humbled, for even though God had mercifully saved him, his heart was u...

This devotional is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, From Tears to Shouts of Joy, given on October 2, 2016. Day 1: Liberation and Laughter (verses 1-2) Quotes: "It is to be feared that the psalms are by no means so prized as in earlier ages of the Church." Charles Spurgeon "Apart from . . . biblical illiteracy, there are special reasons for neglect of the psalms. The l...

This devotional is based on Brian Chesemore's sermon, Food and Drink, given on September 11, 2016. Day 1: Provision from God Quotes: "The entirety of the Christian life is to be taken up with the glory of God and that includes the daily act of eating and drinking."Brian Chesemore "Now if we ponder to what end God created food, we shall find that he meant not only t...

This devotional is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, Leisure, given on August 28, 2016. Day 1: The Gift of Leisure Quotes: "The Creation account is God-centered, and the Creation account concludes with all eyes fixed upon God. This informs and defines a Biblical perspective of rest and leisure because there is no true rest, there is no genuine leisure apart from God, ...

This devotional is based on Jeff Purswell's sermon, Work, given on August 21, 2016. Day 1: Our work glorifies God Quotes: "Our work, our jobs, our careers, the tasks to which God has called us, they are not a diversion from serving God. They are serving God!" Jeff Purswell Questions and Reflections: What emotions and thoughts characterize your response to work...

This devotional is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, Sleep, given on August 14, 2016. Day 1: Sleep is a daily gift from God Quotes: "If one isn't serving the Lord's purpose and depending on his provision and trusting in his protection, then all one's efforts are vain. All one's efforts are ultimately worthless." C.J. Mahaney "A Christian is to receive sleep each nigh...

This devotional is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, Prayer, given on July 31st, 2016. Day 1: The Praying Christian (verse 13) Quotes: "Heaven's great harbor of refuge is [prayer]; thousands of weather-beaten vessels have found a haven there, and the moment a storm comes on, it is wise for us to make for it with all sail." Charles Spurgeon "Our whole life, as we migh...

This devotional is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, Patience In Suffering, given on July 24th, 2016. Day 1: Patience looks to a certain and glorious future (verse 7) Quotes: "James' doctrine of the Christian life is a doctrine of process or growth, and patience is its central requirement." Alec Motyer "Patience has a specific object, patience has a specific hope: th...

Day 1: The Darkness of Jericho Quotes: "Zacchaeus didn't want to change. He had no virtue. He didn't have anything in himself that would help him draw near to the ways of God. Neither the life in the city, nor our occupations, nor our curiosity, can take us to know the ways of the Lord, because the ways of the Lord are the Lord's." Pepe Mendoza "The ways of the Lord ...

Day 1: An Announcement of Condemnation Quotes: "He speaks to the non-Christian for the benefit of the Christian." Craig Blomberg "James looks with divine foresight and sees the dark hurricane cloud of the Day of the Lord about to strike them down." Peter Davids "The rich will lose everything they have devoted themselves to and everything they have relied upon. Theirs...

This devotional is based on Brian Chesemore's sermon, Maturity in Community, given on June 26th, 2016. Day 1: The Call to Maturity Quotes: "Paul is warning that the alternative to a glorious, Christ-exalting, maturing church, is to remain as a child-like church, an immature church. It is to remain in the vulnerability of the newborn state; it is to be left vulnerabl...

Day 1: Worldly Orientation Quotes: "James personifies the entire church as the "bride" of Yahweh or Christ. At best she has become distracted from and at worst unfaithful to her groom . . . The audience has the wrong object for a lover the fallen world system and values of the unregenerate." Craig Blomberg "The intention to be a friend of the world makes a person an ...

This devotional is based on Jeff Purswell's sermon, God's Unstoppable Mission, given on May 29th, 2016. Day 1: The Power Behind the Mission is the Holy Spirit (v1-13) Quotes: "God Himself is on a mission, and that mission is unstoppable." Jeff Purswell "What is about to transpire [Pentecost] is not an isolated event, in an ancient city, affecting a small group of r...

This devotional is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, Quarrels and Fights, given on June 5th, 2016. Day 1: Relational conflict is worse than you think (4:1) Quotes: "Instead of a climate and culture of peace that would reflect the "wisdom from above" that James referenced in 3:17, and the presence of peacemakers he referenced in 3:18, there is instead a climate and cul...

This devotional is based on Bill Berry's sermon, The Basis for Our Service, given on May 22, 2016. Day 1: The qualification for our service is God's grace Quotes: "The basis for our service to our God is not found in anything that is in and of us, but the basis for our service is God's grace, and God's grace alone." Bill Berry "He (God) only shows us our sin, asks ...

This devotional is based on Brian Chesemore's sermon, Who Is Wise?, given on May 15, 2016. Day 1: Godly Lives Reflect True Wisdom (3:13) Quotes: "Wisdom in the first century Greek culture was everything. If you were known as wise, you were a rock star. To the first century Greek, wisdom had everything to do with your learning and your skill of speech. Rhetoric was K...

This devotional is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, Got Faith?, given on May 1, 2016. Day 1: Dead FaithJames 2:14-17 Quotes/References: "James is not arguing that works must be added to faith. His point is that genuine biblical faith will inevitably be characterized by works." Doug Moo Questions and Reflections: Compare this passage with that of Romans 3:21-27....

This devotional was written by John Cahoon and is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, A Happy Day, given on April 17, 2016. Day 1: The Gift of Our Leaders Quotes/References: "Your soul needs the caring and watchful eye of a godly pastor." CJ Mahaney "Our concern today is to give all our energy to you, serving you, watching over you to prepare you for that final day!" C...

This devotional is based on Jeff Purswell's sermon, The Poison of Partiality, given on April 3, 2016. Day 1: The Partiality of AppearancesJames 2:1-4 Quotes/References: "When we show favoritism, when we assess people by externals, we are usurping God's exclusive right to stand in judgment over others. You're taking the place of God." Jeff Purswell "If we have faith...

This devotional is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, The Last Word, given on March 27th, 2016. Day 1: Jesus' Love Quotes/References: "Those who Jesus has revealed himself to, view themselves first and foremost as loved by him, not as those who love him. This is a common feature of those he has loved. They think of themselves as loved by him, not first and foremost as ...

This devotional is based on Bob Kauflin's sermon, True Worshipers Receive, given on March 6th, 2016. Day 1: The Heart of True WorshipJohn 4:1-15 Quotes/References: "From start to finish, the Bible's story is a story of grace; a story of God's initiative to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves by offering us unmerited mercy and undeserved love. Worship in the Bi...

This devotional is based on CJ Mahaney's sermon, The Difference Meekness Makes, given on February 28th, 2016. Day 1: The Anger of Man James 1:19-20 Quotes/References: "If Christians studied and applied this command alone (verse 19), the tone and content of communication and conversations on the internet would change immediately and dramatically. Untold damage is do...

This devotional is based on CJ Mahaney's sermon, Trials, Temptations, and Good Gifts, given on February 21st, 2016. Day 1: Blame-shifting James 1:13 Quotes/References: "It is critical that we distinguish between the external trial and the internal temptation" CJ Mahaney "The stakes are high here. Suffering will either leave you a much better person or a much worse...

This devotional is based on Jeff Purswell's sermon, The Great Reversal, given on February 14th, 2016. Day 1: An Earthly Deception James 1:9-11 Quotes/References: "We can rightly assess our earthly status only by focusing on our heavenly destiny" Jeff Purswell Questions to Consider: Have you ever been disillusioned by the world because you pursued something th...

This devotional is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, A Generous God for a Difficult Trial, given on February 7, 2016. Day 1: Our Desperate Need James 1:5 Quotes/References: "In seasons of severe trial, Christians have nothing on earth in which to trust, and we are therefore compelled to cast ourselves on our God alone. When our vessel is tilting so far over it is in da...

This devotional is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, A Radical Proposal, given on January 31, 2016. Day 1: Accepting our Trials | James1:1-2 Quotes/References: "James is nothing if not realistic: Life is a tale of various trials." Alec Motyer Questions to Consider: Read Acts 8.1-3. James is writing to "the Dispersion". Think for a few minutes about those who wer...

This devotional is based on Brian Chesemore's sermon, The Lord of Psalm 23, given on January 19, 2016. Day 1: God's Faithfulness to Restore | Psalm 23:1-3a Quotes/References: "The unwavering faithfulness of the Lord calls for my absolute trust in him. To reflect deeply on the faithfulness of the Lord in this Psalm challenges us to be like David and gain a personal t...

This devotional is based on Jeff Purswell's sermon, Job's Final Stand, given on November 15, 2015. For a PDF version, click here. Day 1: "When will we get there?" Read Job 29 Quotes/References: "The prolonged lament and grief in the book of Job is not wasted manuscript. It's a compassionate reflection for people whose own suffering is also prolonged, whose own suffe...

This devotional is based on CJ Mahaney's sermon, The Protest of Job, given on October 18, 2015. For a PDF version, click here. Day 1: Long Suffering Quotes/References: Christopher Ash: "Job is forty two chapters long. We may consider that rather an obvious observation.. But the point is this: in his wisdom God has given us a very long book, and he has done so for a ...

This devotional is based on Jeff Purswell's sermon, The Wrestling of Job, given on October 11, 2015. For a PDF version, click here. Day 1: Job's Perseverance Quotes/References: Jeff quote: "The book of Job shows us that times of suffering are to be expected, it shows us that such times are normal even for believers in a in a fallen world." Jeff quote: "Wrestling a...