When we decide to make disciples, God opens doors to serve the unsaved, providing opportunities for greatness in His Kingdom.

Mt 20:25b-26:
You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant…

Why is serving the measure of greatness? It imitates Jesus!

Phil 2:8b-9:
(Jesus) humbled himself and became obedient to death– even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name…

Serving others through prayer, study, worship, giving, fellowship, and service without seeking recognition reflects Christ's attitude, leading to true greatness in God's eyes.

Ph 2:5:
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus…

I’ve mentioned before that my dad sent a letter to me shortly before I left college. At the end of the letter he reminded me of the importance of living for Jesus by quoting a line from the poem, “Only One Life” by former well-known cricketer turned missionary C.T. Studd. He wrote, “Only one life, twill soon be past, only what’s done for Christ will last.”

Do we believe what Studd wrote? Do our lives reflect that sense of urgency and determination?
Jesus was determined to die for our sins. Nothing would deter Him from His urgent mission.

Lk 9:51
As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.

This “taken up to heaven” refers to His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension to heaven. His mission was incomplete without His death. He knew His death was necessary for us to become God’s children.

Let’s continually spend time with God and His Word so when Satan tempts us we will resolutely keep our eyes on Jesus and make disciples!

To glorify is to make something or someone look good.

1 Cor 11:15a
But if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her…

Jesus was made to look good not through an outward appearance but for His hour—His death, burial, and resurrection.

Jn 12:23
Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

As His followers we, too, reveal His glory when we sacrificially and wholeheartedly follow Him.

John 12:24-25
I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

Let’s glorify the Lord today by dying to self to live for Christ. Let’s live the paradox of losing our life to find it.

Lk 9:24
For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.

As believers in Jesus, we experience the joy of having our sins forgiven. We are immersed into the Body of Christ. We are given the opportunity and the grace to live a life of love.

Eph 5:1-2
Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

We are exhorted to imitate God! In this verse, Paul points out that Christ lived a life of love by dying on the cross; His Father—Our Father—considered Jesus’ death a fragrant offering for our sin debt.

Romans 3:25a
God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.

As followers of Jesus, we must live a life of love to God and our neighbors—anyone God puts in our path (cf Lk 10:36).

Let's deny ourselves and take up our cross today. Let's sacrificially live to bless others, thus obeying His command to make disciples!

As Jesus beckons us to follow Him, it’s a call to wholeheartedly commit to His ways. By the power of His Spirit we must teach His ways to those who want to be followers.

Lk 9:23-24
Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.

Lk 14:33
In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.

Jn 13:34-35
A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

This seems hard but when we trust the One who loves us and endured the scorn and shame of the cross, we find it not only possible but rewarding.

Mt 11:30
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

Let’s follow Jesus and embrace His ways. Only Jesus leads to an abundant life!

Happy MLK, Jr Day and Happy Inauguration Day!

Let’s begin this day honoring MLK. He once prayed, “Have faith in God. God is Love. Love never fails. It is our prayer that we may be children of light, the kind of people for whose coming and ministry the world is waiting. Amen.”

As we ponder his message in prayer, let’s think about the many lost folks we know that do not know God’s love and presently aren’t interested. We could say they are hard soil like soil on a path.

Lk 8:12
Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.

Let’s be children of Light today and love those who are presently unreceptive to the Good News. Let’s pray that God will remove all obstacles that are blinding them. Let’s pray for America to receive a new heart!

MLK, Jr
Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.

God blesses us with many ways to sow gospel seeds. At this point, we won’t know the type of soil we are sowing upon but we do know the Lord of the harvest knows how to prepare the soil. So let’s pray for people who will become good soil. I believe God is already tilling the soil, removing rocks and thorns.

Lk 10:2
He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.

We are God’s workers. We sow, we harvest, but God reaps, giving the increase. We love and obey God by sharing the Gospel as His Spirit empowers us!

1 Jn 5:14-15
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us–whatever we ask–we know that we have what we asked of him.

Let’s pray with confidence that God will use us to make disciples. God died so folks will be saved!

Praise the Lord!

Ps 34:1-3
I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips. My soul will boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the LORD with me; let us exalt his name together.

God is so good! He loves us. He’s saved us! He’s given us His Spirit to lead and guide us. He provides a way for an abundant life. He provides for all of our needs. He’s preparing an eternal place for us to live. Will His goodness ever end? No!

1 Chr 16:34
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.

Let’s praise the Lord today. Although we’re separated by distance, we can still lift our praises—As One—today. When we do, the heavens open and God is glorified. Let’s praise Him and see God help us with people to pray for and to attend our Alpha meetings. Let’s make disciples together!

God will make a way!

2 Chr 20:22
As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes… and they (the enemy) were defeated.

It’s cold outside but I pray there’s fire in our hearts.

Jeremiah 20:9b, 13
…his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.

Sing to the LORD!
Give praise to the LORD!
He rescues the life of the needy from the hands of the wicked.

We have an awesome opportunity to flame the fire that is in us to touch and bless others! God has given us so much.

2 Tim 1:6
For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.

Let’s not let our heart grow cold toward making disciples. Let’s keep reading the Word and praying for the lost to hear the truth of God’s blazing love for them and for us to have a bold and white hot passion to reach and teach folks about Jesus.

Mt 28:19a, 20b
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations…
And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.

Yes! God will be with us always. His fire is in our hearts!

God loves us and wants us to live abundantly. Jesus became one of us to die for and conquer sin so we could live in His kingdom, a realm of commanded blessing.

Luke 4:43
But he said, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.”

Let’s honor God and live in His realm,not the sinful realm of eventual destruction.

Proverbs 14:12
There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.

By God’s grace let’s remain in the realm of commanded blessings by doing everything Jesus commands. Then we will, as Jesus did, preach to others how to enter the realm of commanded blessings! Like St. Francis of Assisi said, “Preach the Gospel at all times, if necessary use words.”

Luke 9:1-2
When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

“If you can explain it, God didn’t do it.”

-Warren Wiersbe, a former DTS professor and prolific Bible author.
______

All blessings flow from God and He does not share His glory with another.

“Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.”

Abram learned this hard lesson: evidenced by his response to the King of Sodom after rescuing his nephew Lot.

Genesis 14:22-24a
But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand to the LORD, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, and have taken an oath that I will accept nothing belonging to you, not even a thread or the thong of a sandal, so that you will never be able to say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ I will accept nothing but what my men have eaten and the share that belongs to the men who went with me.”

This shows Abram's commitment to giving glory to God rather than man. Despite the victory over the kings and the offer of wealth from the king of Sodom, Abram chooses integrity over material gain, ensuring that only God receives the credit for his blessings. Let this be a reminder for us to live lives that reflect our faith, acknowledging that all we have comes from God, not from human accolades or wealth. Let's praise Him, from Whom all blessings truly flow.

If God’s not in it—run away!

How great is our God? He’s the King of kings and Lord of lords. He has all authority!

Rev 19:16
On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written:
KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

As God’s children we live in His Kingdom, the realm of commanded blessings. Still we can be deceived and leave the realm of commanded blessings. We do this when we sin and our faith lapses.

Jam 1:15
Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

Let’s make all effort by God’s grace to stay in the Kingdom. We prepare for this daily spiritual war with our daily time with God.

Jesus motivates us to cherish the Kingdom.

Mt 13:44
The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.

So let’s thank God for the Cross allowing us into the Kingdom. Let’s daily prepare to resist the devil and live abundantly!