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Good morning NCL family,

 

Before our Lord was crucified on the cross His most faithful follower denied Him three times.  The same faithful follower that followed Him so closely then, began to follow Him from a distance.  Peter was not the most faithful follower of Jesus, after all.  But Jesus had forgiven and restored him, and on the day of Pentecost we saw a new and improved Peter preach a powerful sermon and three thousand people were saved.

 

Good morning NCL family,

 

How do you read your Bible? Some people read the Bible for information only. Reading the Bible for information only is to use it like an encyclopedia. Becoming an expert in information doesn’t really change anything. Some people read the Bible for pleasure. Reading the Bible for pleasure only is like reading a fictional story in order to escape from the reality of life which doesn’t really change anything. Some read the Bible for understanding. Reading the Bible for understanding, which includes information and pleasure, means that you are reading the Bible with a deep desire to hear from God and respond to what is shown to you in His Word. That changes everything! The Bible was written for transformation, not just information.

 

Good morning NCL family,

 

C.S. Lewis wrote, “Christ says ‘Give me all. I do not want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want you. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it.... I will give you a new self instead. In fact, I will give you Myself: My own will shall become yours.’”

 

This is discipling...

 

Good morning NCL family,

 

The apostle John records in his gospel one of the most important facts about Jesus that we may not always think about: the fact that Jesus knows the heart and mind of mankind.

 

"Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.  But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man" (John 2:23-25).  Jesus knows what is in man! Jesus understands the problems of the human heart!

 

Good morning NCL family,

 

“Who is wise?  Let them understand these things.  Who is prudent?  Let him know them.  For the ways of the Lord are right; the righteous walk in them, but transgressors stumble in them” (Hosea 14:9).

 

As we have been studying through this wonderful book written by the prophet Hosea, I have seen clearly all the elements of the eternal triangle: There is the persevering love of God, the faithless human heart, and the deceptive attraction to the world.

 

Good morning NCL family,

 

“Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. For me to write the same things to you is not tedious, but for you it is safe” (Philippians 3:1).

 

Paul was able to rejoice in the Lord in spite of his sufferings because he knew and trusted God.  He did not let the trials and tribulations of life tear him down.  It is interesting that when things are going well in our lives it is easy to rejoice, but when hard times come, we feel so rejected.  But true joy enables us to transcend the trials and tribulations!  Joy comes from a consistent relationship with Jesus Christ - thus, believers “rejoice in the Lord!”  Paul tells us here that it is not tedious to remind one another to “rejoice in the Lord!”  To remain joyful, we should remind ourselves daily of God’s love for us and remind one another of God’s love for them.

 

God wants our heart. He wants to protect it, form it, heal it and love it. He knows the destruction that comes when our heart is given to this world in any way. Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:19 to "not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal." The desires of this world actually remove the life that God has instilled in our heart.  They're like thieves who come in and take away the precious jewels that God wants us to have. They destroy us.

 

Good morning NCL family,

 

If ever a man spoke God’s truth with authority, it was Jesus.  It has been said that the scribes spoke from authorities but that Jesus spoke with authority.  When Jesus finished his message to the multitudes on the Beatitudes, Matthew recorded this, “That the people were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes” (Matthew 7:28b-29).  As we venture through the gospels, we see that when Jesus spoke everyone was astonished.

 

Good morning NCL family,

As we have been learning of the “Persevering Love of God” through the book of Hosea, my mind has been opened to see clearly that “mercy” is the sole basis of any approach to God by sinners.  We cannot come to God on the basis of justice; justice strikes us with fear and causes us to hide.  We are not drawn to God by His wisdom; though we stand in awe of His wisdom, it does not give us greater courage.  Nor does omniscience, omnipotence, or omnipresence.  The only reason we dare to come to God in hope of a solution to our sin problem is because of His mercy!