Originally written by Charles H. Spurgeon, published in “Mornings & Evenings,” entry for May 4th, PM.

Updated to modern English by Darren Hewer, 2009.

“For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.” (1 Peter 1:23)

Peter most earnestly urged the scattered saints to “love one another deeply, from the heart,” and he wisely obtained his argument, not from the law, from nature, or from philosophy, but from that high and divine nature which God has given His people.

In the same way that a wise teacher of a prince might try to foster in them a kingly spirit and dignified behavior based on the prince’s position and descent, so too Peter says to us: “Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart. For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.” (1 Peter 1:22-23)

Peter says this as he looks on God’s people as heirs of glory, princes of the royal blood, and descendants of the King of kings, earth’s truest and oldest aristocracy. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if, in the spirit of humility, we recognized the true dignity of our reborn nature, and actually lived up to it?

What is a Christian? If you compare him with a king, they add priestly sanctity to royal dignity. The king’s royalty often lies only in his crown, but with a Christian it is infused into their inmost nature. A Christian is given a truly honored position through their new birth.

We ought to carry ourselves, in every way, as people who are not merely “commoners”, but chosen out of the world. We should be distinguished by sovereign grace, written among “the peculiar people” and who no longer grovel in the dust, and no longer live purely for the material things of this world.

Let the dignity of your reborn nature, and the brightness of your future, compell you to yearn for and cling to holiness, and to avoid all appearances of evil.

Question: What does it mean to be a descendant of the King of kings?

About this Author: Charles Spurgeon

There is great satisfaction in a job well done, but there is also a danger.

Pride, that insidious sin, tends to swell our brains so that they can no longer think straight.

Although we often begin with the right attitude, using the gifts God has given us - health, energy, creativity or intelligence - to work, learn and produce, sometimes in the end our perspective becomes distorted. We start to think too highly of ourselves and forget that it was God who enabled us to accomplish these things in the first place.

In the Old Testament judgment was proclaimed on the city of Tyre, not because of their ambition or skill, but because they had grown proud.

“By your great skill in trading you have increased your wealth, and because of your wealth your heart has grown proud.” (Ezekiel 28:5)

“Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor.” (Ezekiel 28:17)

We can keep ourselves from falling into the same trap of arrogance by remembering that everything we have is a gift from God.

“For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” (1 Corinthians 4:7)

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” (James 1:17)

God give me a grateful heart to always remember that everything thing I have – my intelligence, beauty, athletic ability, musical talent – is a gift from You. Thank you for the amazing things You have done in me and through me; may I never forget Your work in me and grow proud.

Questions: In what situations are you in danger of growing proud? What helps keep you from falling into the trap of pride?

About this Author: Suzanne Benner

“When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him.” Luke 2:39-40

An angel appears at a faculty meeting and tells the dean that in return for his unselfish and exemplary behavior, the Lord will reward him with his choice of infinite wealth, wisdom or beauty. Without hesitating, the dean selects infinite wisdom.
“Done!” says the angel, and disappears in a cloud of smoke and a bolt of lightning. Now, all heads turn toward the dean, who sits surrounded by a faint halo of light. At length, one of his colleagues whispers, “Say something.”
The dean looks at them and says, “I should have taken the money.”
~ Betsy Devine and Joel E. Cohen, Absolute Zero Gravity, Simon & Schuster.

How do we get real wisdom? Barring angelic intervention, we should look to God’s Word. The first descriptive words (besides prophecy) about Jesus in the Bible describes Him as strong, wise, and full of God’s grace. Jesus demonstrated his wisdom time and time again, whether it was when he gave the greatest moral speech in history (Matthew 5-7) or when He shamed the religious leaders of the day who tried to trap Him (Matthew 22:15-33).

If we need wisdom, we shouldn’t hesitate to ask God for it: “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind” (James 1:5-6). We truly begin to become wise when we realize how little we really know, and how much we have to rely on God. And the only way to know God is through Jesus. (1 Corinthians 1:25)

What is the best way to step forward on the path to wisdom? The only way is to follow Jesus, the one who is full of “grace and truth” (John 1:14,1:17). Who better to follow than the strongest and wisest, the man full of grace and truth, God alone? Our teachers, pastors and friends can be an enormous help to us in our walk of faith, but they can never replace God Himself.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)

Question: In what ways does your own life currently reflect Jesus? In what ways would you like it to?

About this Author: Darren Hewer

“And anyone who is ashamed of Me and My message in these days of unbelief and sin, I, the Messiah, will be ashamed of him when I return in the glory of My Father, with the holy angels” Mark 8:38

Dr. Charles Malik, once president of the General Assembly of the United Nations, and I - along with others - were invited to a very prestigious meeting in Washington, D.C. Present were some of the most distinguished leaders in our nation and from other countries.

In the course of his remarks, Dr. Malik emphasized his conviction that there were no human solutions to the problems that face mankind. Only Jesus Christ could help us as individuals and as nations.

As a young businessman, I was tremendously impressed to think that one of the world’s leading scholars and statesmen would speak so boldly and courageously of his faith in Christ. Following the meeting, I introduced myself to him and expressed to him my appreciation for his courage in speaking out so boldly for Christ.

I had heard others - politicians, statesmen, scholars - speak of faith in God and the Bible and the church in general terms. But few, in those days, ever spoke of their faith in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. I shall never forget his response.

“I am sobered by the words of my Lord,” he said, quoting today’s verse, Mark 8:38.
Perhaps you are one who loudly acclaims, “No, I could never be ashamed of my wonderful Lord.” But the familiar axiom is true: actions speak louder than words. If we are truly unashamed of our Savior, we will look for every opportunity to share the good news of His great love.

Bible Reading: Psalm 31:1-5

Today’s Action Point: I will not be ashamed of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, but will trust the indwelling Holy Spirit to witness through me.

About this Author: Bill Bright

“And you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:32 (NKJV)

Jesus came that we would have abundant life, rich full life, filled with joy, peace, and blessings on every side.  The Word of God is like “seed.” You need to plant it into your life, cultivate it, grow it, and rip out the weeds that try to choke it out.  When the facts in your life don’t line up with the promised blessing, stand firm in faith according to the Word, and you will see the circumstances come into alignment with God’s truth.

More and more I am convinced that “believing is seeing.” Fix your eyes on what God says to be true about you, and what has been provided for you through the cross. Keep reminding yourself about what the word says, the promises that God has made, and don’t settle for less. The enemy will do his level best to rob you in every way that he can, but you are more than a conqueror and you will have the victory to experience all that God has for you, as you stand firm on the promises in faith.  Choose to take God at His Word, and you will continue to be released into greater levels of freedom, joy, peace, and rich full life through His truth.

“For He has strengthened the bars of your gates; He has blessed your children within you. He makes peace in your borders, and fills you with the finest wheat.” Psalm 147:13-14 (NJKV)

Question: What can you do today to stand together and believe with and for one another?

About the Author: Emmie Stanley

“Whoever does not have the Spirit cannot receive the gifts that come from God’s Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 2:14 (TEV)

You can’t earn your spiritual gifts or deserve them - that’s why they are called gifts! They’re an expression of God’s grace to you: “Christ has generously divided out his gifts to us” (Ephesians 4:7, CEV).

Nor do you get to choose which gifts you’d like to have. Paul explains that God determines that, “It is the one and only Holy Spirit who distributes these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.” (1 Corinthians 12:11, NLT)

Because God loves variety, and he wants us to be special, there’s no one single gift given to everyone, and no individual receives all the gifts. If you had them all, you’d have no need of anyone else, and that would defeat one of God’s purposes - to teach us to depend on each other.

Your spiritual gifts were not given for your own benefit but for the benefit of others, just as other people were given gifts for your benefit. The Bible says, “A spiritual gift is given to each of us as a means of helping the entire church” (1 Corinthians 12:7, NLT). When we use our gifts together, we all benefit. If others don’t use their gifts, you get cheated, but if you don’t use your gifts, they get cheated. This is why God wants us to discover and develop our spiritual gifts.

Whenever we forget these basic truths about gifts, it always causes trouble in the church. Two common problems are “gift-envy” and “gift-projection.”

* Gift-envy occurs when we compare our gifts to others, feel dissatisfied with what God gave us, and become resentful or jealous of how God uses others.

* Gift-projection happens when you expect everyone else to have your gifts, do what you’re called to do, and feel as passionate about it as you do. The Bible says, “There are different kinds of service in the church, but it is the same Lord we are serving.” (1 Corinthians 12:5, NLT)

Sometimes spiritual gifts are overemphasized to the neglect of the other factors that God uses to shape you for service. So keep in mind, your gifts reveal one part of God’s will for your ministry, but not all of it.

Question: Do you know what your spiritual gifts are, and if so, how are you using them in service to God’s Kingdom?

About this Author: Rick Warren

“Now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief. But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment.” (John 16:5-8)

The ministry of the Holy Spirit is fundamental to our Christian life. He is the one who creates a desire in our hearts first to be saved and then to live a life pleasing to the Lord. Let’s look more closely at His role in making us part of God’s family.

It begins with illumination. Prior to our salvation, we were all spiritually dead. (Ephesians 2:1-2) Dead people cannot desire spiritual things; nor do they have any deep interest in seeking God. In addition, our physical minds were blinded by Satan, leaving us unable to understand the truth of the Gospel. (2 Corinthians 4:3-4) For the situation to be corrected, Christ’s Spirit had to penetrate our minds and teach us spiritual truth. Apart from the Holy Spirit, there is no understanding of divine matters. (1 Corinthians 2:14)

Illumination is followed by conviction. The Holy Spirit convicts us of sin, Christ’s righteousness, and the coming judgment. As our minds absorb some basic truths about our sinful tendencies, we begin to feel dissatisfied with our behavior. Guilt occurs as we realize our own rebellion and self-centeredness. Our self-assurance over the rightness of our actions and motives disappears, and we feel sorrow instead.

The enlightening and convicting work of the Spirit is followed by the gift of faith, which leads to new life. (Ephesians 2:8) When we trust Christ as Savior, we will repent and turn away from ungodliness.

Each new life of faith is ushered into the Father’s family through the mission work of the Holy Spirit. Praise God for the gift of His Spirit!

Question: How can feelings of guilt & sorrow lead us to repentance and therefore a closer relationship with God?

About this Author: Charles Stanley

Daily audio podcast: A second daily devotional, The Mission of the Spirit, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog

“Don’t you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you?” (1 Corinthians 6:19, NLT) Paul wrote these words to counter the Corinthian sex obsession. “Run away from sexual sin!” reads the prior sentence. “No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body.” (v18)

What a salmon scripture! No message swims more up-stream than this one. You know the sexual anthem of our day: “I’ll do what I want. It’s my body.” God’s firm response? “No, it’s not. It’s mine.”

Be quick to understand, God is not antisex. Dismiss any notion that God is antiaffection and anti-intercourse. After all, he developed the whole package. Sex was his idea. From his perspective, sex is nothing short of holy.

He views sexual intimacy the way I view our family Bible. Passed down from my father’s side, the volume is one hundred years old and twelve inches thick. Replete with lithographs, scribblings, and a family tree, it is, in my estimation, beyond value. Hence, I use it carefully.

When I need a stepstool, I don’t reach for the Bible. If the foot of my bed breaks, I don’t use the family Bible as a prop. When we need old paper for wrapping, we don’t rip a sheet out of this book. We reserve the heirloom for special times and keep it in a chosen place.

Regard sex the same way—as a holy gift to be opened in a special place at special times. The special place is marriage, and the time is with your spouse.

Casual sex, intimacy outside of marriage, pulls the Corinthian ploy. It pretends we can give the body and not affect the soul. We can’t. We humans are so intricately psychosomatic that whatever touches the soma impacts the phyche as well. The me-centered phrase “as long as no one gets hurt” sounds noble, but the truth is, we don’t know who gets hurt. God-centered thinking rescues us from the sex we thought would make us happy. You may think your dalliances are harmless, and years may pass before the x-rays reveal the internal damage, but don’t be fooled. Casual sex is a diet of chocolate—it tastes good for a while, but the imbalance can ruin you. Sex apart from God’s plan wounds the soul.

Your body, God’s temple. Respect it.

Question: How does our society contribute to our sexual temptations, and how can we proactively respond to these challenges?

About this Author: Max Lucado

Originally written by Charles H. Spurgeon, published in “Mornings & Evenings,” entry for June 30th, PM.

Updated to modern English by Darren Hewer, 2009.

“Ah, Sovereign LORD, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.” Jeremiah 32:17

When the Chaldeans surrounded Jerusalem, several hundred years before Christ, when war, famine, and pestilence desolated the land, the prophet Jeremiah was commanded by God to purchase a field.

This was a strange purchase for a rational man to make during wartime! It seemed highly unlikely that the purchaser would ever enjoy the possession, as it seemed certain to be taken in war or even destroyed in battle. But it was enough for Jeremiah that his God had spoken. He knew that God should not and cannot be ignored by His children.

Jeremiah replied to God’s command by saying: “Oh, Lord God! You can make this plot of ground fruitful. You can rid this land of these oppressors. You can make me sit patiently in your presence, because for You made the heavens and the earth, and there is nothing too hard for You!”

This trust in God gave a majesty to the early saints. They dared to do God’s commands, even things which common sense would condemn. Whether it was Noah who built a ship on dry land, Abraham who was told to offer up his only son, Moses who despised the treasures of Egypt, or Joshua who besieged Jericho seven days using only the blasts of rams’ horns as his weapon, they all acted on based on their trust in God.

The Lord gives a rich reward to those of obedient faith, so we should pray in these modern times for a potent infusion of this heroic faith in God. If we meditate more on the promises of God, we will enter a world of wonders which we are currently still strangers! Let Jeremiah’s reason for confidence be ours as well: Nothing is too hard for the God that created the heavens and the earth.

Question: Which of God’s commands do you find hardest to obey, and why?

About this Author: Charles Spurgeon

Please open your Bible and read John 15:14-17.

There is no higher compliment than this: God wants to have a personal relationship with you. Some people see the Lord as some distant deity who is busy with global problems. Others view Him as a vaporous being who created mankind and then cut us loose.

The truth is? He deeply desires a relationship with His followers. If the Lord’s purpose in creating mankind had been simply to get something done, He would have fashioned us like robots without initiative or free will. Instead, we are uniquely designed to receive our Father’s love and to choose whether or not we’ll love Him in return.

God cares for His Creation and wants to intimately know every single one of us. While Jesus Christ poured His life into 12 men, modern believers tend to focus on His miracles and preaching. Many overlook the fact that He spent every day with the disciples. Jesus’ priority was to teach and prepare them. He wanted the 12 to continue reaching the world with the Gospel after He returned to the Father.

We are the spiritual descendants of the Lord’s disciples, and God pours Himself into us. He left His Spirit with us to serve as our closest companion and comforter. God’s intention is for every person to enter into a loving relationship with Him. If any man or woman chooses not to develop that connection, he or she has missed the purpose of life. Make yourself available to the Lord. He will reveal His love for you and show you His will.

Question: What does it mean to be counted as a “spiritual descendant of the Lord’s disciples”?

About this Author: Charles Stanley