Tag: 2 Corinthians

Accountable to God: Day 3

On By Ben JenningsIn Devotional10 Comments

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10 For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.11 I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine.s12 If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof.
Psalm 50:10-12

3 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Psalm 100:3

The expression goes that “possession is nine-tenths of the law”, and when it comes to stewardship understanding who really owns the things we possess is really foundational to understanding the way God views us. Today we are looking at 2 different passages in Psalms that help us to understand this.
In Psalm 50:10-12 God declares that everything is his. There is nothing you and I have ever seen or imagined that ultimately does not belong to God. We can put our name on it, sign contracts, deeds and make deals, but ultimately the things we have do not belong to us. We will die, and someone else gets it.
Psalm 100:3 speaks to this same idea from the context of God has Creator. God created us. He is self-sufficient and dependent on nothing and no one else for His existence. We on the other hand are totally dependent on Him for literally everything we have. Like the sheep that depend on the land of the shepherd for sustenance, we are completely dependent on God for the things that sustain us.
Application:
The most natural reaction to those of us who believe this truth is to be thankful for what we have. God does not owe us anything. What we have is a gracious gift from Him, and we should be thankful to Him for it.

Accountable to God: Day 2

On By Ben JenningsIn Devotional6 Comments

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14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?15 And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
2 Corinthians 6:14-18

Today’s verses won’t be confused as being politically correct. Paul, the writer of 2 Corinthians, tells his readers to not be yoked with unbelievers. This means that there doesn’t need to be partnerships that take place between the “people of light” and the “people of darkness.” Now, know this: We all were a part of the world of darkness at one time, and God gave His only Son for those who are a part of the world of darkness. That being said, those who are without Christ have a different and often competing set of values. We are to love them, but we should be different and separate from them. Our values and ways of think should reflect the fact that we are “children of the light.” Then these right values lead to right stewardship, while wrong values lead to poor stewardship.
Application:
As “children of the light” there should be difference between light and darkness. Are you in a situation where you are “unequally yoked” to someone who has “darkness” values? Are there values influencing yours?

Voices: Preaching

On By Ben JenningsIn Devotional10 Comments

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Devotion for Thursday, December 8

1 Corinthians 2
1 And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.2 For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.3 And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.4 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:5 That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.6 Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought:7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:8 Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.11 For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.

Questions for meaning:
What was Paul telling these Corinthian believers?
What role did preaching have in Paul’s ministry to this church?

Make sure to reference the verses in answering these questions…

Application:
Do you think it is important to hear good biblical preaching? Does it have an impact on your life? What role should preaching have in your life?

Authentic Faith- Day 10

On By Ben JenningsIn Devotional18 Comments

authentic faith Devotions for Saturday, August 13, 2011

2 Corinthians 5:6-10

6 Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)8 We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.9 Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him.10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.

Pastor Ben’s Commentary:
This may sound like kind of a morbid question, but have you ever had someone close to you die?  I have a couple of times.  What happens to us when we die?  It’s an important question.

The Bible says in this passage that those who have faith in God in life need to know what is going to happen to them.  To be “absent from the body” (physical death) means that we are present with the Lord.  There is no in-between place. (v.6-8).

The author then goes on to explain that because we believe that one day we will be with God, we want to be ready to see Him. (v.9-10) Let me explain:  My parents used to leave Shad and I at home by ourselves from time to time.  Many times when they left us they would give us a list of chores to get done.

Now if I knew that my parents would be back soon, we wouldn’t mess around too much and would get right to work on the list because I knew I’d see them soon and answer to them for what I did.

But sometimes when I knew they’d be gone all day I would procrastinate.  I’d play video games, or watch tv and waste time.  Then I’d look up at the clock and realize-“Oh No-they’ll be back in 20 minutes and I still have to do all this stuff!”  Of course when I messed around they always came back early.  I’d hear the garage door come up and I knew I was in trouble.

What’s my point?  When I was realistic about the fact that my parents would come home and hold me accountable for what I did it would impact how I behaved.

The author is telling us-One day you will stand before God and give an account for what you did right and what you did wrong.  The believer won’t have to pay for their sins, Jesus already did that.  But you will give an account to God for what you did and did not do.

Application:

1.  When people die they will either be with the Lord or separated from Him.  You are not your body.  Everyone lives forever somewhere.  This gives hope to people of faith, and should also be a sobering thought for us as well.

2. Even believers, who will spend eternity with God, are still accountable for the way we live.  We will face Jesus one day.  That will be really cool, but it is also really serious too.  We want to meet him knowing that we did a good job with what was given to us.

If you had to stand before God today, would you know that you are ready?  Would you be ashamed of how you lived, or excited to meet Him?