Pastor’s Bible Reading Schedule: 2 Samuel 23-24; Colossians 1
Devotional Thought:
So many have limited their definition of the gospel to simply the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ based on 1 Corinthians 15:3. However, the gospel is so much more than that. Scripture refers to the gospel in many different ways. One author has put it this way, “Scripture describes the gospel with several phrases. Acts 20:24 calls it “the gospel of the grace of God.” Romans 1:9 designates it “the gospel of His Son,” and 1 Corinthians 9:12 “the gospel of Christ.” Romans 15:16 refers to it as “the gospel of God,” 2 Corinthians 4:4 characterizes it as “the gospel of the glory of Christ,” Ephesians 6:15 as “the gospel of peace,” and Revelation 14:6 as the “eternal gospel.” The gospel is also described as the “word of truth” (Col. 1:5), or the “message of truth” (Eph. 1:13). Those descriptions have given rise to our common expression “the gospel truth.” The gospel is an embodiment of the truth about God. Jesus Christ is the central figure of the entire Bible and is the totality of the gospel. The gospel not only puts us in the same family as brothers and sisters in Christ, but also unites us under the same authority. “For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that y might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.” (vs. 9) We pray for each other because we desire for each other to live in the knowledge of His will and in obedience to His will. It is God’s will that we live in victory over the power of darkness (vs. 13), and in submission to being conformed to the very image of Christ. (vs. 15) It is the gospel that provides the power for salvation and the power for sanctification. The complete word of God is the fulfillment of the revelation of Christ and therefore, becomes the basis for the work of the Holy Spirit as He uses that revelation to confront us with the reality of Who Christ is and what He is really like. “Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to His saints… which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (vs. 26-27) What a blessing to have the truth of God’s word to guide us to live a victorious Christian life.
Personal Requests:
• Lord, please help me to live a life that demonstrates the power of God revealed in the gospel. Please help me to refrain from the selfishness of my flesh and to yield to the leadership of the Holy Spirit.
• Lord, thank you for revealing truth that is timeless and applicable for every generation and situation.
• Lord, thank you for promising me that Christ is always with me and empowering me to live the life you have saved me to live. Help me to accommodate and never frustrate your working in my life.