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Genesis 12:4-9 Abraham finally left Haran and forsook everything. Speaking of Abraham and those who were with him, Hebrews 11:15 , 16 says, "And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country , that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city." Abraham's separation from Haran was complete. Once Abr

Galatians 2:11-21 The new life is life "in Christ." The word "in" does not in this connection speak of location, such as "in an automobile," but carries the idea of union. We are in union with Christ. Through Him we are dead to the Law, having been identified with Him in His death and resurrection. On the resurrection side of this experience we have His life. He has come to live in us. It is this that marks the real difference between the old life prior to our salvation and t

Ephesians 1: 19-23 The Scriptures frequently refer to God's power as it relates to the believer. Ephesians 6:10 says, "Be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might." Philippians 1:6 says, "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." Colossians 1:29 records Paul's testimony: "I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily." God's power is sufficient fo

Genesis 15:1-6 God assured Abraham that He was Abraham's "exceeding great reward" ( Gen. 15:1 ). The king of Sodom had offered Abraham all the riches that Abraham and his servants had brought back, but he turned them down. Notice that the tense is not past or future, but present. Not "I was" or "I will be" but "I am "--"I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward" (v. 1). We see from God's promise to be Abraham's reward that God never permits His children to lose when t

James 2:1-13 James summed up man's responsibility to his neighbor by urging him to fulfill the "royal law" ( James 2:8 ). He who fulfills this law of Christ will love all men alike and will look with contempt on none. Because he will be concerned about the value of a human soul, he will see no distinction between the rich and the poor. Observe how serious it is to show respect of persons: "But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as trans

Romans 5:1-5 Our standing before God is in the grace to which we have constant access ( Rom. 5:2 ). We do not need new credentials each time we come to God, because our standing is constant since we come by means of what Jesus Christ accomplished for us. God does not accept us as we are, but as we are in Christ Jesus. God makes His grace abound toward us ( 2 Cor. 9:8 ), and we are able to come boldly into His immediate presence ( Heb. 10:19 ). All of this is available to us;

Ephesians 1:2 , 3 ; John 15:1-10 The believer's resources--all spiritual blessings--are "in Christ" ( Eph. 1:3 ). Christ is the life of the believer and thus provides for him all that he needs. Before salvation the individual was in Adam, but after salvation he is in Christ. In Adam the individual possessed only a sinful nature, but in Christ he possesses a divine nature. The divine nature of the believer causes him to want to do the will of God. Apart from Christ, a person

James 3:1-6 Consider four parallels that a fire has with words spoken by the tongue: It hurts, it spreads, it consumes, but it can have a good use under control. It only takes one false or bitter word to hurt deeply. In fact, the hurt may be so deep that recovery is impossible. Just as fire spreads, so do spoken words. Some people are always willing to listen to destructive words about others, and they spread the words further so the damage becomes even more extensive. Just a

James 4:13-17 We do not need to be in a state of unrest about the future. Some worry needlessly and wonder, "Why doesn't God let me know what He has in mind for me in the future?" Some young people may be thinking about the mission field and wondering what God's will is for them five or ten years from now. It is important, however, that we recognize that God knows everything about the future, even if we do not, so the important thing is to trust Him today with our lives and l

Romans 5:3 ; 2 Corinthians 4:7-18 Humanly speaking, no one likes tribulation. Within ourselves we react negatively to difficulties. The word "glory" means "rejoice." No unbeliever can do this, but the believer's whole outlook is changed because of his relationship with Christ. A true Christian can look tribulation in the face and say, "I thank God for this difficulty; I rejoice in it." Notice that Romans 5:3 does not say we rejoice in spite of tribulations; rather, it says

Genesis 13:1-4 Even though Abraham returned to fellowship with God, irreparable damage had been done. When a believer backslides, he does things he will never be able to undo. Abraham's testimony had been weakened, and damage beyond repair had been done to worldly Lot, Abraham's nephew. Lot had gone with Abraham to Egypt. The backslider never backslides alone; he always takes others with him. Even though Abraham had backslidden and had brought about much damage, Genesis 13:3

Philippians 4:8 , 9 ; 2 Peter 1: 1-9 A good exercise is to analyze the kind of thoughts you have been thinking. Some will be spiritual thoughts that make a positive contribution to life, others will be thoughts about things that are not necessarily good or bad, and there will be thoughts that are definitely bad--and you realize this without anyone's telling you so. The quickest way to deteriorate or to degenerate is to allow your mind to be occupied with unworthy thoughts. We

1 Corinthians 3:10-15 A call to be a missionary is much like Abraham's call. It is necessary to leave home, possessions, relatives, worldly ambitions and to go to another country to which God has led. But one can never out-give God. Though Abraham was called to give up much, he was promised much more. God always promises blessings when we obey and follow Him. Hebrews 13:5 says, " Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for

James 1: 1-8 The more often faith is tried, the easier it becomes to endure trials because they produce patience. And through trials, the believer becomes more steadfast in his faith. Endurance is the ability to withstand hardship or stress. Patience is the ability to bear pain without complaint, evidencing self-control. In a sense, both of these ideas are involved in the statement of James that "the trying of your faith worketh patience" ( James 1:3 ). The Greek word transla

Philippians 2:1-5 ; Psalm 133 The Christian life is not a stereotyped life composed of rules and regulations. It may involve rules and regulations, but the Christian life is essentially the presence of Christ in the believer. This is why Paul said, "As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude. See to it th

Romans 8:31-39 From the account of Isaac's birth there are many important lessons we should learn. Five are extremely significant. First, God is in no hurry to work out His plans. He is never too late; He is always on time. Man frets and worries and is always in a hurry to work out his plans. Second, God is almighty. Nothing can hinder or thwart the outworking of God's purpose. Abraham was old and Sarah was barren, but these obstacles presented no difficulty to God. Third, Go

Read Philippians 1: 12-21 The life of the indwelling Christ enabled Paul to be free from worry and self-care during his imprisonment, which could have led to death. Paul was bold and unashamed and was concerned only that Christ would be magnified in his body regardless of what awaited him--life or death. There was no wavering on his part. We tend to think that these tremendous qualities were true only of the great men of God, such as the Apostle Paul, but that it is impossibl

Read 1 John 1:1-4 There are three key words in the epistle of 1 John. They are "life," "light" and "love." These words are used many times in this epistle. That God has given us eternal life is clearly stated in 1 John 5:11-13 , which are key verses to the study of this epistle. God has given us eternal life, and that life is in His Son. If we have the Son, we have eternal life; if we do not have the Son, we do not have eternal life. Eternal life is a special quality of life

Colossians 3:13-17 We must beware of false peace. Some who do wrong may have a peace about it, but it does not come from God. As someone has said, "Peace of heart alone is not always the peace of God." A significant test to apply to determine the origin of the peace is this: If I have peace in my heart about a matter, do I also have peace with others in the Body of Christ concerning it? Understandably, not everyone will agree on any single issue, but if only the person himsel