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

June 28: Meet and Greet Esther 1:1–2:23; 2 John 7–13 ; Psalm 116:1–19 “If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house and do not speak a greeting to him, because the one who speaks a greeting to him shares in his evil deeds” ( 2 John 9–11 ). This passage is sometimes used as support for forming exclusive communities—ones that don’t interact with people who don’t believe in the gospel or who have a different faith. Based on this passage, some believe that we as Christians are not permitted to interact with nonbelievers. Is that what John is really teaching? John issued this warning during a time when false teachers were spreading confusing doctrines about Christ. He exhorted believers to “test the spirits” to see if these teachers were actually from God ( 1 John 4:1 ). They would know if these teachers were from God if they confessed the true message of Jesus Christ—specifically that He had come in the flesh and was from God ( 1 J...

Morning, June 28                             Go To Evening Reading “Looking unto Jesus.” — Hebrews 12:2 It is ever the Holy Spirit’s work to turn our eyes away from self to Jesus; but Satan’s work is just the opposite of this, for he is constantly trying to make us regard ourselves instead of Christ. He insinuates, “Your sins are too great for pardon; you have no faith; you do not repent enough; you will never be able to continue to the end; you have not the joy of his children; you have such a wavering hold of Jesus.” All these are thoughts about self, and we shall never find comfort or assurance by looking within. But the Holy Spirit turns our eyes entirely away from self: he tells us that we are nothing, but that “Christ is all in all.” Remember, therefore, it is not thy hold of Christ that saves thee—it is Christ; it is not thy joy in Christ that saves thee—it is Christ; it is not even faith in C...

June 28th Apprehended by God If that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended. Phil. 3:12 . Never choose to be a worker; but when once God has put His call on you, woe be to you if you turn to the right hand or to the left. We are not here to work for God because we have chosen to do so, but because God has apprehended us. There is never any thought of— ‘Oh well, I am not fitted for this .’ What you are to preach is determined by God, not by your own natural inclinations. Keep your soul steadfastly related to God, and remember that you are called not to bear testimony only, but to preach the gospel. Every Christian must testify, but when it comes to the call to preach, there must be the agonizing grip of God’s hand on you. Your life is in the grip of God for that one thing. How many of us are held like that? Never water down the word of God; preach it in its undiluted sternness. There must be unflinching loyalty to the word of God; but when you come to personal d...

June 28 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect Matt 5:48 Seeking the aid of the Holy Spirit, let us aim at perfection. Let every day see some sin crucified, some battle fought, some good done, some victory won; let every fall be followed by a rise, and every step gained become, not a resting-place, but a new starting-point for further and higher progress. Guthrie  Hardman, Samuel G., and Dwight Lyman Moody. Thoughts for the Quiet Hour . Willow Grove, PA: Woodlawn Electronic Publishing, 1997. Print.

The Silent Servant Isaiah 53:7–9 Excerpt A servant is not permitted to talk back; he or she must submit to the will of the master or mistress. Jesus Christ was  silent before those who accused Him as well as those who afflicted Him. He was silent before Caiaphas ( Matt. 26:62–63 ), the chief priests and elders ( 27:12 ), Pilate ( 27:14 ;  John 19:9 ) and Herod Antipas ( Luke 23:9 ). He did not speak when the soldiers mocked Him and beat Him ( 1 Peter 2:21–23 ). This is what impressed the Ethiopian treasurer as he read this passage in Isaiah ( Acts 8:26–40 ). Isaiah 53:7  speaks of His silence under suffering and  verse 8  of His silence when illegally tried and condemned to death. In today’s courts, a person can be found guilty of terrible crimes; but if it can be proved that something in the trial was illegal, the case must be tried again.  Everything  about His trials was illegal, yet Jesus did not appeal for another trial. “The cup which ...

The Tree of Life Excerpt Whereas God had possibly created trees with the appearance of age ( 1:12 ), the trees in the garden were others that had grown later ( 2:9 ). Among those trees in the garden was one that produced life ( the tree of  life ) and another that produced knowledge ( the tree of the knowledge of good and  evil ), or at least eating them did. This “knowledge” was experiential. “Good and evil,” a merism for the things that protect life and that destroy life, would be experienced if the forbidden fruit were eaten (v.  17 ). The potential for catastrophe was great if they in self-confident pride (hubris) overstepped their bounds and attempted to manipulate life. The tree of life, on the other hand, was apparently a means of preserving and promoting life for Adam and Eve in their blissful state. These trees were  in the middle of the garden,  apparently close to each other; they provided the basis for the testing to come.  More Ross...

Tongue as Word of Evil James 3:6 Excerpt The tongue is “the world of evil.” In the ancient way of thinking, this is not a difficult phrase. The body was the microcosm of the universe. In all its complexity, the human being was a small, self-contained universe, thus the term “microcosmos.” There is a double sense of microcosm here: not only the body in relation to the universe of nature but also the tongue in relation to the universe of wickedness.19 Thus, contained within the tongue or speech are all the representations of wickedness in the world. Is a representation of evil, in words that are the same as the evil itself? Obviously not, but the power of verbal representation is not slight; this James knew full well. Words have the power to elicit action; indeed, the activity of speech itself interprets every other human action. There is no evil act that the tongue cannot tell, let alone initiate.  More Richardson, Kurt A.  James . Vol. 36. Nashville: Broadman ...