Month: December 2025

 

Matthew 28:19.  Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

 

I can remember a time when disciple-making sounded more doable. My days had more margin for late nights, spontaneous meals, and extended fellowship. Fewer responsibilities demanded my time. Discipling others in a life-on-life way didn’t sound easy, but it did sound more manageable than it does now.

Businessman, husband, mother of young ones — you probably know what I mean. You used to say yes to nearly every invitation. You used to send those invitations. Now saying yes often means saying no to some part of life that seems nonnegotiable. And for as much as you’ve tried to invite others into your normal routines — aiming for overlap, not addition — the fact still stands: Discipling others is harder than it once was.

Yet you still hear your Lord’s command: “Make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19). Evangelize and baptize. Teach and train. Invest your life in others so they grow up into Christlike maturity.

“Yes, Lord,” you say from the heart. But as you look up from your overtime schedule, overdue projects, or overloaded sink, you add, “But how?”

Go and Make When?

Of course, something would be wrong if we heard Jesus’s command to make disciples and thought, Simple. I can make disciples in my sleep. The command should make us stagger a step or two.

Indeed, not only discipleship but also disciple-making comes with a cost. We reckon rightly with Jesus’s command when we start rearranging life to more regularly welcome the unbelieving and less mature. What hobbies might we give up? What lesser priorities might go? In what creative ways might we take others alongside us and teach them to observe more of what Jesus commanded?

But as we feel the weight of the task, we should also beware of adding more weight than what’s there. “Go and make disciples” does not require us to neglect job or family. In fact, the same Jesus who told us to make disciples also told us, through his apostles, to work and parent heartily (Colossians 3:18–4:1). So, those who shortchange family or employer in order to make disciples do so at the expense of their own discipleship. And a disobedient disciple-maker is a walking contradiction.

Somehow, then, we need a vision of life-on-life discipleship for lives with little room.  (Hubbard)

 

 

And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.” (Mark 9:35)

Mark was careful to record that Jesus said this after He sat down. This was important because by sitting down, Jesus showed that he was going to teach. It was the custom in those days that a Rabbi, when teaching – especially teaching something important – would sit down while His listeners stood. This was a way to say, “This is important.”

The question at hand (Mark 9:34) was, “Who would be the greatest?” This seemed to be one of the favorite topics of conversation among the disciples. Jesus could have answered the question, “Hey everybody – don’t forget that I’m the greatest.” But Jesus did not put the focus on Himself. For an example of greatness, Jesus put forth the last and the servant.

Of course, Jesus is the greatest in the kingdom – no one is greater than He is! So, when He said last and servant, He was really describing Himself, and He accurately toldus about His nature. Christ was truly first in all the universe, yet Jesus made Himself last of all and servant of all for our sake.

In this, Jesus challenged His followers to be last of all. The desire to be praised and to gain recognition should be foreign to a follower of Jesus. Jesus wants us to embrace last as a choice, allowing others to be preferred before us, and not only because we are forced to be last.

Jesus also challenged us to be the servant of all. In the worldly idea of power, a great man is distinguished by how many people serve him. In ancient China, it was sometimes fashionable for wealthy men to grow their fingernails so long that their hands were unusable for basic tasks. This demonstrated that they did not need to do anything for themselves; a servant was always there to wait on them. The world may think of this as greatness, but God does not. Jesus declared that true greatness is shown not by how many serve you, but by how many you serve.

In the following verses, Jesus used a child as an example of kingdom greatness. In that day, children were regarded more as property than individuals. It was understood that they were to be seen and not heard. Jesus said that the way we receive people regarded like children shows how we would receive Him.

Because Jesus is last of all and servant of all and in some sense like a child, when we honor and receive a child – or someone who is a servant like Jesus – we honor and receive Jesus Himself.

Do you want to be great? It’s not bad to have ambition, but we should be ambitious to serve others – not to have them serve us. That is the way of Jesus, who was truly the greatest in the kingdom. (Guzik)

 

 

When You said, “Seek My face,” my heart said to You, “Your face, O Lord, I shall seek.”
–Psalm 27:8

How can you guard against hypocrisy and ritualism in your prayer life? Make God the focus of your prayers. I think this is what the apostle Paul was talking about when he said, “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Paul wasn’t talking about praying with your eyes closed all day long, walking around in a constant conversation with God. He was saying there is a way to pray in your spirit while going through the activities of your everyday life.

 

Missionary Frank Laubach wrote a short book called The Game with Minutesabout training yourself to think about God and talk to God at least once every minute. Let me share with you several suggestions adapted from Laubach’s book to help you get into the habit of praying throughout your day by focusing on God.

 

• As you get up and get ready in the morning, tell God your thoughts about whatever you’re doing, even if it’s as mundane as choosing your clothes or making a cup of coffee.

 

• In social settings, think or whisper “God” or “Jesus” as you glance at the people near you. This will remind you to view people not only as they are but also as the people God wants them to be.

 

• At mealtimes, set an extra chair at the table to remind you of God’s presence.

 

• When you’re reading a book or an article, read it to God. Also, share with Him the emails and letters you receive, knowing He sympathizes with both the good things and the bad things in your life.

 

• When you’re trying to solve a problem, talk to God about it instead of talking to yourself.

 

• Keep your Bible or another reminder of God someplace where you will see it as you go to sleep. Allow God to have the last word of the day. Then let your eyes and mind begin there in the morning.

 

That’s the essence of real prayer. Prayer is not a theological formula to reach a distant deity who may or may not be there. Instead, prayer is an intimate conversation covering every detail of your life with the One who truly loves you the very most. That’s the kind of prayer that really works. (Jeffress)

 

Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.
Colossians 4:6

The apostle Paul created lists in his letters. He listed the spiritual gifts (Romans 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 12:7-10), the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), the acts of the sinful nature (Galatians 5:19-21), and others. But he never ordered his lists in terms of importance—except in one instance. In 1 Corinthians 13:13, he listed the three most important virtues in the Christian life: faith, hope, and love. And of these three, he said love is the greatest.

Nowhere is love more important than in the words we speak to others. The Bible speaks clearly about the power of speech. Proverbs 18:21 says that our words have the power of life and death. The apostle James warned his readers about the power of speech and how easy it is to be double-minded when it comes to our words: “Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so” (James 3:10). If love is the greatest virtue, surely our words should be spoken with love at all times.

Look for ways today to speak words that reflect God’s love, words that convey grace to others. (Dr. Jeremiah)

Our words reveal our thoughts.

 

A Rest for the People of God

Heb 3:7-19  Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, if you hear his voice,  do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness,  where your fathers put me to the test and saw my works for forty years.  Therefore I was provoked with that generation, and said, ‘They always go astray in their heart; they have not known my ways.’  As I swore in my wrath, ‘They shall not enter my rest.’”  Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God.  But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.  For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end.  As it is said, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”  For who were those who heard and yet rebelled? Was it not all those who left Egypt led by Moses?  And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness?  And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient?  So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief.

 

 

Merry Christmas !!!!

 

Matthew 6:19-23    “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. 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!

A big house on several acres with multiple cars in the driveway. A prosperous life full of comfort and free from suffering. The opportunity to plot your own course and achieve your dreams through hard work and diligence.

These are a few examples of what some consider the American Dream, that national ethos which was summarized in the Declaration of Independence: “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

On the surface, this is almost all you could ever ask for—the opportunity to choose your own way and have the freedom to pick your path to happiness. It’s certainly something that is not promised in other parts of the world. Many would give everything they have to come to the United States and pursue the American Dream.

I must ask, though: How’s your American Dream going? Are you finding the happiness you’re free to pursue, or has your American Dream become a nightmare?

You see, I love the idea of the American Dream. I love the belief that we all have opportunities in this great country, and if we’re willing to work and sacrifice, we can reap the benefits. With that said, there’s a bit of an inherent risk with that attitude. When it’s all about me (I’m working hard, I’m making my way, I’m going to do what I need to get ahead), it leaves very little room for the One who has promised that He has a plan for us.

I believe in the American Dream and agree that we should all work hard, for the Bible has plenty to say about downfalls of laziness. But I also believe that it’s impossible to find true and lasting peace and happiness through simply chasing prosperity and comfort.

Jesus said, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19-21, ESV).

I don’t think I’m going too far out on a limb by assuming that many of you reading this are struggling with something in your lives. Maybe the American Dream has come true for you and you have all the money that you could ever need, but you’re finding that the material possessions aren’t buying you any happiness. Or maybe you’ve worked hard every day of your life but nothing has come easy, and it feels like you’re spinning your wheels with little hope of ever catching up, let alone getting ahead.

Regardless of where you are in the journey, I’d humbly suggest that you examine your life and see if everything you’re amassing—both your successes and struggles—are bringing you happiness and hope. Truly consider if you’ve allowed Jesus to consume your life. Are you following His path and calling, rather than your own?

The American Dream is fine—incredible, in fact—but don’t forget that for Christians “our citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20, ESV). By turning your eyes to Jesus, you not only find joy here on earth, but have hope for eternity as well. (Graham)

 

 

And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail.
Revelation 12:7-8

Because we do not see the warfare that takes place in spiritual realms, it is easy to forget that it even exists. In his vision of the End Times, John saw the war between God’s angelic agents and Satan (Revelation 12:7-9).

The oldest example we have of this warfare occurred in Job’s life. Satan wanted to prove to God that Job was only faithful because God had put a “hedge” of protection around his life (Job 1:10). That is, God had prevented Satan from having access to Job and his family. But God removed the hedge and allowed Satan access to Job in order to prove that his faithfulness was not based purely on blessing but on love for God—which Job ultimately proved.

Daniel discovered that a war in heaven for three weeks had delayed an answer to his prayers (Daniel 10). And Paul taught that we are in a struggle with principalities and powers in heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12).

Do not let your guard down. Pray that God would keep a hedge of protection around you and your family as you pursue a righteous life. (Jeremiah)

There is no holiness without a warfare. 

 

 

Hebrews 9:27  And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,

Revelation 11:13    In the same hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. In the earthquake seven thousand people were killed, and the rest were afraid and gave glory to the God of heaven.

 

The apostle Peter observed a way of thinking common among most people. When confronted with the truth about the end of the age, people would say, “All things continue as they were from the beginning of creation” (2 Peter 3:4). In other words, because life continues uninterrupted, we tend to think it will go on that way forever. But such is not the case.

When describing the two witnesses who will testify during the Tribulation period, the apostle John saw a severe earthquake that would happen in Jerusalem and kill seven thousand people. He saw them as terrified and giving “glory to the God of heaven.” But their fear was not a reverential fear of the Lord, rather it was a fear of death. He gave no indication that the disruption in their lives prompted them to turn to God and secure their salvation. Instead, their fear of death only hardened their hearts further.

After death comes the judgment (Hebrews 9:27). Don’t miss the chance to secure your eternal destiny through faith in Christ. (Jeremiah)

As death finds us and life leaves us, so judgment will find us. 

 

Heb 9:23:28  Thus it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.  Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own,  for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.  And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,  so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

Perfection. Have you ever seen it? Sure, we may look at a snowflake, a flower, or a child’s smile and we feel that we are looking at perfection. In our mind’s eye, it may seem that way, but that snowflake will soon dissolve, the flower is missing a petal, and the child will certainly have his share of misbehavior. The fact of the matter is that in this world, it is very rare—impossible, even—to find something without spot, without blemish, without defect.

The same can be said of the Old Testament sacrifices—they were not perfect. They did not purify anything and never truly dealt with sin and judgment. But when we look at the sacrifice of Jesus, the most pivotal moment in history, we witness something that is faultless. Hebrews 9:23–28 shows us that Jesus’ sacrifice was perfect.

First, Jesus’ sacrifice purified everything—even itself (vv. 23–24). Christ’s blood not only purified mankind, but Heaven as well. Why Heaven? Was it corrupted because of Satan’s presence or defiled because of God’s wrath? No! Christ’s blood had to cover everything, and therefore even the way into Heaven must be covered and enshrouded with blood in order to cover man as he comes to God. The sacrifice of Jesus is what makes it possible for us to enter into Heaven. We have been cleansed through the blood of Jesus on the cross.

Second, Jesus’ sacrifice does not need to be repeated (vv. 25–26). Every year under the old covenant, the High Priest had to make atonement for the sins of the nation on Yom Kippur. However, since the blood of animals is incapable of permanently atoning for sin, the High Priest had to repeat the sacrifice year after year. Not true with Jesus’ sacrifice. He never had to repeat it because it was a perfect sacrifice—the shed blood of a Man for men. He died once for all.

Finally, Jesus’ sacrifice is perfect because it took away judgment (vv. 27–28). There is an old joke that says that the only two sure things in life are death and taxes. There’s certainly some truth to that statement. Man has an appointment with death that he cannot avoid and he must keep. Man dies once—not twice (except for Lazarus who died twice, and Elijah and Enoch who did not see death). And just as man dies once and then is judged, Christ died once to take away our judgment. That is the point of Hebrews 9:23–28.

Jesus’ sacrifice was so perfect that it purified everything from you and I to Heaven itself; it never had to be repeated, and took away our judgment.

Take a moment today to appreciate the incredible impact of Christ’s death and resurrection; the purifying final act that took away judgment for those that call upon His name. What a joy to place our eternal hope in Him! (Graham)