Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:
When Things Get Complicated, Remember The Basics – Trevin Wax
9 Things You Need To Know About Widows – Gaye Clark (TGC)
Why You May Be Tempted To Neglect Your Church – Tim Challies
10 Love Challenges – David Murray
Hope you have a great Lord’s Day living out a passion for God and compassion for people!
The tenth commandment forbids coveting. The Bible fleshes out that command by giving us several practical reasons to flee coveting:
1. Life does not consist in the abundance of our possessions – there is more to life than stuff (Luke 12:15).
2. There is great gain in godliness, so we should pursue being godly instead of having more (I Timothy 6:6).
3. Things are temporary – you can’t take them with you when you die (I Timothy 6:7).
4. Only a few things are needful – things like food and clothing. Anything else is extra and unnecessary (I Timothy 6:8).
5. Coveting leads to other temptations that can lead to ruin and destruction (I Timothy 6:9).
6. Coveting has led some to walk away from Christ – they have lost their soul seeking to gain the world (I Timothy 6:10, Matthew 16:26).
7. Riches are uncertain – we should look to God to provide instead of pursuing things (I Timothy 6:17, Hebrews 13:5, Matthew 6:33).
8. Things rot, wear out, rust, break, become obsolete, and can be stolen – we ought to pursue treasures that have a more eternal value (Matthew 6:19-20).
9. Coveting reveals a heart that is caught up in the idolatry of wealth (Matthew 6:21, 24).
10. Everything else is rubbish compared to the surpassing worth of knowing Jesus (Philippians 1:21, 3:8).
Here are some good posts on the family:
Marriage on the Edge of Eternity – Francis Chan
(It might be time to rethink our focus…)
10 Ways to Exercise Christlike Headship – Owen Strachan
(It may not be what you think…)
5 Reasons We Eat Together as a Family – Tim Challies
(Some good reasons for an important family practice…)
It is a good discipline to test our speech by asking of what we are about to say, especially when it concerns another person. Is it kind? Is it true? Is it necessary?
– Alistair Begg in Pathway to Freedom
The ninth commandment forbids bearing false witness. The command alone should cause us to commit to speaking the truth. But God gives us at least four more good reasons to speak the truth:
1. God hates lying. Proverb 12:22 tells us that “lying lips are an abomination to the Lord.” God absolutely despises lying, and so we ought to speak the truth.
2. Habitual liars are lost. In Revelation 21:8, liars join murderers, sorcerers, and many other sinners in the lake of fire. A life characterized by lying denies a gospel transformation in one’s life. Liars need salvation.
3. Lying belongs to the old way of life. Colossians 3:9-10 reminds us that we have put off the old self with its sinful practices (including lying) and put on the new self. We have a new life in Christ, and we should act like it.
4. We follow the truth. Jesus is the truth (John 14:6). The Spirit is the Spirit of Truth (John 4:16-17). The Word is the Word of Truth (John 17:17). As we follow Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and God’s Word, we follow the truth. And if we follow the truth, our words should agree with the truth.
– Charles Spurgeon
God says, My Servant now behold
The One I keep and will uphold
My chosen in whom I delight
For He is precious in My sight
He will not break any bruised reed
Nor crush the one in desp’rate need
He calls to all who are weary
Come now and find your rest in Me
To all the world, He is the Light
He comes into the darkest night
Opens blind eyes that they might see
He comes to set the pris’ner free
So come to Him without delay
And let Him guide you on the way
And to no other give your praise
To Him alone your voices raise
– From a sermon on Isaiah 42:1-17
(To the tune of the “Doxology”)
A bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench.
– Isaiah 42:3
This verse about the Servant of the Lord is quoted in Matthew 12 in reference to Jesus.
Jesus will not break a bruised reed.
Jesus will not quench a faintly burning wick.
Jesus came not to break, but to bind up.
Jesus came not to snuff out, but to save.
Jesus came not to harm, but to heal.
Perhaps you are bruised this morning.
You may be bruised by your own sinful actions. Jesus invites you to come to Him and find mercy, forgiveness, cleansing.
You may be bruised by chasing idols that have left you empty, without meaning, without hope. Jesus invites you to come to Him and find a new life with a new meaning and a new hope.
You may be bruised by what others have done. Jesus invites you to come to Him and find refuge, rest, comfort, and peace.
Perhaps you are a faintly burning wick this morning.
Faint and weary, you may be flickering, smoldering – and you are not sure you can go on. Jesus invites you to come to Him and relight your flickering wick in the flame of his fire. He invites you to look to Him to renew your strength.
Are you bruised? Are you faint? Jesus invites you to draw near to Him.
Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:
Heaven Will Never Be Boring – Dave Radford (DG)
Because God is infinite, he can be infinitely enjoyed. Jesus Christ is not concerned about running out of ways to keep up with your ever-increasing ability to enjoy him. His character is endlessly deep, unsearchable, and inexhaustible. Imagine the scope of the entire universe: trillions of shining stars, burning brighter than the sun; magnificent constellations; billions of spinning galaxies, all magnificent and vast, colorful and mysterious. Yet, they are finite. Brilliant, though they are, they fall utterly short in comparison to the breadth, length, height, and depth of the love of Christ. His love, grace, kindness, wisdom, power, and mercy each stand as never-ending, infinite universes for all your affections to delight in.
All Of Us Need A Friend Like Martin Luther Once In A While – Justin Taylor
All of us need a Martin Luther in our lives now and then—a friend who is not afraid to stand on gospel promises and get in our face with gospel truth when we would rather wallow in self-pity.
Why the Church Needs Intergenerational Friendships – Joseph Rhea (TGC) Intergenerational community is part of God’s vision for the church (see Titus 2). It’s a beautiful one, and friendship is the key. When individual Christians believe it’s worth sacrificing for, our churches will begin reflecting that multigenerational beauty.
5 Reasons to Pray for Other Churches – Eric Bancroft (Ligonier)
When natural disasters take place, churches act lovingly to care for other affected churches. But why must we wait until problems strike and only help in physical ways? I propose that we act now with the greatest resource we have and for the greatest goal: that churches reflect the character of God.
Hope you have a great Lord’s Day in fellowship with God’s people of all ages as you gather to worship our great Lord!
The Eighth Commandment tells us not to steal. We must not shoplift, take items from work, waste time while on the clock, lie on our expense accounts, or cheat on our taxes. We must not kidnap, embezzle, or commit fraud. We must not cheat on a test or plagiarize someone’s work. We must not rob someone of their reputation, or steal glory from God. We must not steal.
Instead we must work to provide for our needs in an honest way. We must earn what we have. And yet, God calls us to go further. We must work so that we can give to those in need (Ephesians 4:28).
Instead of stealing, our lives are to be marked by giving. Instead of hands that grab what belongs to another, we are to have open hands that share with others. God is a giving God, and we, who are made in his image and are being conformed back into his image, should be a giving people.
Is your life characterized by giving?
Brian J. Mikul 