DAILY, WEEKEND, AND HOLIDAY INTERNET EVANGELIZE TO THE WORLD MINISTRY

  Morning, April 25 Go To Evening Reading “Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away.” —Song of Solomon 2:10 Lo, I hear the voice of my Beloved! He speaks to me ! Fair weather is smiling upon the face of the earth, and he would not have me spiritually asleep while nature is all around me, awaking from her winter’s rest. He bids me, “Rise up,” and well he may, for I have long enough been lying among the pots of worldliness. He is risen, I am risen in him, why should I cleave unto the dust? I would rise towards him from lower loves, desires, pursuits, and aspirations. He calls me by the sweet title of “My love” and counts me fair; this is a good argument for my rising. If he has thus exalted me and thinks me hence comely, how can I linger in the tents of Kedar and find congenial associates among the sons of men? He bids me, “Come away.” Further and further from everything selfish, groveling, worldly, sinful, he calls me; yea, from the outwardly religious world which knows h...

  Morning, December 7 Go To Evening Reading “Base things of the world hath God chosen.” —1 Corinthians 1:28 If you dare, walk the streets by moonlight, and you will see sinners then. Watch when the night is dark, the wind is howling, and the picklock grates in the door, and you will see sinners then. Go to yon jail, walk through the wards, and mark the men with heavy over-hanging brows, men whom you would not like to meet at night, and there are sinners there. Go to the Reformatories and note those who have betrayed rampant juvenile depravity, and you will see sinners there. Go across the seas to where a man will gnaw a bone upon which is reeking human flesh, and there is a sinner there. Go where you will; you need not ransack earth to find sinners, for they are familiar enough; you may find them in every lane and street of every city, town, village, and hamlet. It is for this that Jesus died. If you select me the grossest specimen of humanity, if he is but born of woman, I ...

  April 22: Judging Gifts Joshua 9:1–10:15; 2 Corinthians 10:9–18 ; Psalm 50 Comparing our gifts to those of the person sitting in the next cubicle or pew is dangerous work. Judging ourselves by this standard denigrates or inflates the gifts we’ve been given, leading to either ungratefulness or pride. Because the assessment method is faulty, we will always miss the mark of success—even if we’re successful. Paul had been called by God to minister to the Gentiles (see Acts 9:15 ). When others in the Gentile community questioned his authority, Paul boldly defended his calling. He also pointed out the measure by which these leaders judged their gifts: each other. They were undermining Paul’s authority based on his lack of verbal abilities ( 2 Cor 10:10 ). Paul was undeterred by this because he knew his calling: “But we will not boast beyond limits, but according to the measure of the assignment that God has assigned to us” ( 2 Cor 10:13 ). If we judge our gifts and calling by compa...

February 6: Student or Scholar? Exodus 14:1–15:27; John 3:1–21 ; Song of Solomon 2:4–7 Sometimes we approach God with curiosity, but not with a spirit of humility. We enjoy participating in religious discussions, but forging the link between interpretation and application is difficult for us. We have certain expectations of who He should be for us, but we don’t think about how we should align our lives with Him . Nicodemus—a Pharisee, a leader of his fellow Jews, and a teacher of Israel—wanted answers from Jesus . He told Him , “we know that you are a teacher who has come from God , for no one is able to perform these signs that you are performing unless God [was] with him ” ( John 3:2 ). Was Jesus a Messiah , like Moses or David, who would restore Israel? The scholar quickly became a student. Through His answers, Jesus showed Nicodemus that he wasn’t in a place to hold Jesus accountable. Rather, it was the other way around: Nicodemus needed to be challenged and transfo...

January 30: Difficult Definitions Genesis 47–48; Hebrews 11 ; Ecclesiastes 12:1–8 As an editor, I love definitions. The field of lexicography can be complex, but when a definition is finally solidified, there’s [a] comfort to be found. It becomes something stable. This is also the reason I love the book of Hebrews : the author is keen on definitions, clarifying terminology, and using analogies to prove his points. “Now faith is the realization of what is hoped for, the proof of things not seen” ( Heb 11:1 ). In this succinct definition, I have [a] perspective on the essence of faith . There is no room for doubt or error. The hope referred to is Jesus . And the proof is in an assurance that even though we cannot see Him , we have confidence in His work both presently and in the future. The author goes on to say, “For by this [ faith ] the people of old were approved [ by God ]. By faith , we understand the worlds were created by the word of God , in order that what is seen...