June 12th, 2017 - Daily Bible Inspiration
1 Corinthians 15 is probably the most uplifting, encouraging chapters in the Bible, in my opinion.
The reason? Paul did a tremendous job of educating us with how important the bloodshed of Jesus Christ was on the cross, and how equally important it was for him to conquer death!
Without the cross of Christ, I firmly believe that all Christians are fools. We have no foundation to stand on because Christianity would simply be a fairy tale - and we would all be hallucinating.
We all have a physical body, a spiritual body, and a soul that hits the depths of our hearts emotionally and mentally. Our physical bodies are ailing, and we are slowly and slowly dying to our deaths (sad, but it's the truth!). Finding your purpose and meaning in this lifetime is extremely important, and it is by the grace of God that we may be able to see what He has done for us, and how he can provide us eternal life with Him!
So whether you are a little child, a teenager, young adult, or senior, you have significance in the Lord. Whatever you do, you can do it for our Lord! You may not even notice that God is using you to minister and encourage others, through the work of the Holy Spirit.
May the saving grace of our Lord continue to empower us to live for Him in all facets of our lives, no matter what circumstances we are in. Have a great day :)
This post has received a WhaleShares vote courtesy of @christian-trail
Be Blessed.
Thank you so much @christiantrail! It is really appreciated. God bless :)
Amen. :) And let us not grow weary in doing good! God bless you!
100% agree with you @mineisjesus! May we not grow weary at all - and my we also seek the Lord as our refuge in times of self-pity and frustration, a season that I am currently going through! What great reminders we have in Scripture. God bless you too :)
Hey, I know the struggle...will keep you in my prayers. :)
Thank you so much. I Praise God for SteemIt because I can find a community of Christians that are caring and such bold prayer warriors, such as yourself. God bless your heart @mineisjesus :) It really is encouraging!
I believe there is a caveat somewhere there. You must truly know the Lord, and the Lord knows you. Matthew 7:22 says "Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?'"
verse 23:
then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness.’…
Some will do things for the Lord, in the Lord's name, but in the end if the Lord doesn't know you (as His), it's in vain.
Yes, I agree. I should have cautioned what I meant by doing things for the Lord, and what Scripture tells us to caution for when people profess it (a la Matthew 7:22).
I think this starts with relationship building and getting to know people intimately. Without a deeper relationship with others - to the point of knowing them completely inside and out - there will be no way for humanity to determine the integrity of one's actions. I think that's what makes Christ's sovereignty so unique and supreme because He knows thoughts and actions beyond our comprehension.
Of course, people can live as facade all their lives, but as a Christian, I think we shouldn't be as cynical. It is quite obvious that people are unreliable based off of our sinful natures alone; but, I think giving everyone a chance to bear fruit is something that we can all be encouraged about.
And I think to tie altogether, it does go back to what you said - truly knowing the Lord. Without the intimacy of Christ in our lives and the Holy Spirit working in our hearts to refine and transform us, we are just mockers and pagans practicing fruitful works.
Thank you for addressing the issue @cryptokash! I'm glad you mentioned it. God bless!
You hit the nail in the head there. It's bearing fruit. It's loving one another. By these we know we are truly His disciples. The ones referred to by Jesus in Matthew 7 were probably doing the "ministry" but were not bearing fruit. Another take away from the verse is that the name of Jesus is so powerful, that even those that are not His true followers can use it and perform miracles.
You're exactly right! And I think the type of fruit that we bear should be deeply rooted in Christ. What I mean by that is even through trials and hardship, we could still bear the fruit of Christ because it is in our DNA, it is what we become. It is not because we want to look like we are Christians or act as if we're holy. Those motives are dry and limited.
And I definitely agree with that takeaway, and I've actually been witnessed this firsthand at my old church. Many pagan worshipers who are doing the work of the Lord, which is glorifying and purifying; yet, in the same token, they themselves are not really bearing fruit outside of the realms of their called ministry. It seems hypocritical, but who are we to understand the works of the Lord? I think He can - and will - use anyone to bring Himself to glory! That's how powerful our God is.
Amen! and amen. Keep posting bro.
Thanks for your kind words, @cryptokash! Definitely helps encourage and motivate me to put out more content :)